Excursions in FP/Cook islands

jacketwatch · November 20, 2005

Hi guys: :cool: Well as the better half has her sights set on a FP/Cook islands cruise on the Tahitian Princess next yr. there is no sense thinking about anything else so I'd better get planning. :grin: So my question to the members of this fun :cheesy: forum is what to do about tours? I normally prefer to do it ourselves so when we disembark at the various ports will there be plenty of independent tour operators awaiting or should I look for some ahead of time? Your suggestions please. :cool:

Mebert · November 20, 2005

jacketwatch,

Hang in there. Tahiti is one of those areas that is really, really far. There are probably some Cruise Crazies who have actually sailed there and will most likely respond to your question.

On the Caribbean and European cruises that I've done there were independent tour operators on shore that provided tours. They also presented substantial savings off the cruise line's rates. But, Tahiti is not someplace that I have traveled yet. I can't wait until you do it so you can let us know how it is.

Check the State Department for travel alerts first just to make sure it's safe to do things on your own.

I'm just happy to see you posting.

jacketwatch · November 20, 2005

:cool: Thank you. All is well and I'll keep checking. Life is busy and I'll get here when I can. Thank you for the concerns. This is a very friendly forum :grin:

jbond · November 20, 2005

Hi,

We did the Tahiti/Cook Islands cruise on the Tahitian Princess a couple of years ago. The itinerary is awesome. So much to see and do and completely different to anywhere else we have ever cruised. We arranged our own excursions on all the islands with the exception of the 4X4 on Bora Bora, Princess had that one all locked up. You can checkout how much fun we had on our excursions at http://community.webshots.com/user/jbond105/1 under Tahitian Princess 1 & 2. The titles will tell you the islands. If you have any specific questions I'd be happy to try and answer them.

Mebert · November 20, 2005

jbond,

What an opportunity you had to get to Tahiti.

Thanks for the picks. I know that this is a cruise site but one of my favarite photos that you took was of someone having an encounter with a hog. That hog was really cute and seemed to be holding his ground. :grin: :grin: :grin:

Did you arrange your shore excursions before you sailed or when you got to Tahati?

jbond · November 20, 2005

We arranged all our excursions over the internet and had them all booked before we left. Nobody required deposits and every operater e-mailed us several times to make sure everything was OK.

Hogs are really popular in FP and the Cook Islands. They are just tied up to a stake and munch around along the roadside.

jacketwatch · November 20, 2005

:cool: Thanks JB. I am just popping in now bot the better half bekons :cool: so I look into the details later. Larry

jacketwatch · November 21, 2005

:cool: :cool: JB thanks so much for sharing the pics. I really appreciate that link. It looks like you had a great time. Can you recommend guides or tour operators? Sincerely, Larry :cool:

jbond · November 22, 2005

I hope that these help and the operaters are still in business.

http://www.tahiti-explorer.com/ This is a general website with lots of tour info

[url=http://www.thetahititraveler.com/]http://www.thetahititraveler.com/ The Tahiti traveller was really helpful. I e-mailed him several times for advice and he was always great.

[url=http://www.papeete.com/patrick/index.html]http://www.papeete.com/patrick/index.html We did the internal Tahiti tour with Patrick. It was very unique and he was a really nice guy, lots of fun.

[url=http://www.huahine-nautique.com/]http://www.huahine-nautique.com/ We did the picnic in the water with Marc. It has to be one of the best trips we have ever done. It's unique and the poisson cru is to die for.

[url=http://www.tahaa.net/index_en.php]http://www.tahaa.net/index_en.php We did a day cruise around Taha'a with Bruno. Awesome scenery, great food, lots of fun and the coral garden was incredibly beautiful, but very demanding on physical abilities. Guess I'm getting old.

In Moorea we rented a boat. I can't remember the outfit, but the operator's name was Heifara. It cost us $600 for the day. There were eight of us and it was really nice to go into the water with the rays and sharks with just a few people.

In Bora Bora we went with Johnny. He doesn't have a website and he was a little flaky. I hear that Sharkboy is very good and reliable. The first day in Bora Bora we did the 4X4. It's exciting, very uncomfortable, but what views. The scenery is more than spectacular.

In Raritonga we just rented a taxi and spent about three hours circling the island. The driver was very talkative and we got to see a lot and learned a lot. Other people rented jeeps for about the same price, saw a lot, but didn't know what is was they had seen. The best shopping is on Raritonga. Prices are much lower than in FP. In FP there are only two prices, expensive and oh my God.

jacketwatch · November 24, 2005

:cool: Thyanks JB. I'll look into those sites. Actually the reason we are cruising FP is because its too expensive to stay on land there. The reality of the $25.00 hamburger hits one up in the kisser. :grin: Thats just obscene. LOL! Larry :cool: