Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Honeymoon Review

Air Tahiti Nui – Flight was long but we managed to sleep most of the way. My overhead light didn’t work and only one ear of my headset worked, it was a bit of a Murphy’s Law episode for our way there. Overall though, it really wasn’t bad at all. On the way back we just didn’t want the honeymoon to end and decided to upgrade to Business Class. It was wonderful and the food and seats were so comfortable. I slept most of the way, watched some movies, did some reading and were back in NY far more quickly that we wanted to be!

Intercontinental – Papeete




It was about 2am by the time we arrived at the hotel and we were pretty awake from sleeping on the place. We staying in an OWB and were like little kids running around when we first got there. The bed was covered in flowers and it was beautiful. Most people think the OWB isn’t worth it for this night since you are just there for a few hours. However, it was SO nice to wake up that first morning to an amazing view. We also had most of the morning there (until around 1pm) before we had to head off to the cruise. We lounged around by the pool, had a nice breakfast, and headed back to the room to enjoy the view for a while.





We also came back to this hotel at the end of our trip and got a day room before our flight that night at 10:30pm. This time we just got a deluxe room and it was still beautiful. We got to relax, get a little more of a tan and have a nice dinner before heading to the airport.





Paul Gauguin Cruise – Regent Seven Seas Cruise – 7 Nights
(Papeete, Raiatea, Taha'a Motu Mahana, Bora Bora, Moorea)














I had never been on a cruise before and was very weary. WELL, was I mistaken! What a wonderful way to see French Polynesia. Only 350 people, and there were times where we thought we were the only ones on board! The cruise was top notch, the food was excellent (three great restaurants to choose from) and the excursions were all wonderful. The staff was friendly and remembered our names no matter how many days had passed while we were there. Our room was spacious with a full bathroom. Though I originally wanted a balcony, I later found out our room was actually larger than the rooms with balconies, as they cut into the room four or five feet to make room for it. We received a champagne and fruit upon arrival and had the opportunity to order two additional bottles of whatever we liked to keep in stock in our room – champagne, wine, liquor, whatever you wanted. We also came back to a snack waiting for us after excursion or afternoon out.
One night they had a honeymoon night, explaining their traditions of wrapping the newly married couple in a quilt made by the women of both families.





They also had shows with traditional Polynesian dancing.






There are so many fun details to list, I don’t know where to start. FM me with any questions!
Overall, I think this is the perfect way to see the islands without having to unpack every 3-4 days. Plus, with the price of food on the islands it’s wonderful to have everything included on the ship, and they fed us until we almost burst!

The excursions were well organized and a lot of fun. There were the ones we did:

Jungle & Waterfall Hike - Raiatea
This hike was no joke. It took almost 6 hours from beginning to end. It was strenuous, wet and hot, but totally worth it. We were hanging onto ropes, sliding on rocks, but saw some exceptional waterfalls along the way. And what better what to end the hike then by diving in the cool fresh waters of a waterfall!











Taha'a Motu Mahana
We hung out at the Motu this day. The tender over there felt like we were traveling right into a postcard. We met a bunch of other honeymooners and all chilled together, did some snorkeling, enjoyed a yummy BBQ and delicious drinks out of coconuts. The beach was nice, the water was perfect and it was a great way to relax. We also had massages on the water which almost put me into a coma!







Stingray Ballet - Bora Bora
This was one of my favorite activities. I know the Steve Irwin thing scared a lot of people (who felt the need to mention it WHILE we were swimming with the stingrays) but I wasn’t really worried. They were fine, we were fine. Even when a few black-tip sharks joined the party! They were also pretty harmless. Our guide fed them and they were swimming all around us. Loved them!




Keep in mind these pics were taken from the boat, THAT is how clear the water is. This is about 4 feet down.






Land & Sea Safari – Bora Bora
Our jeep tour guide was hilarious. He had us cracking up at ever turn, dip and hill of our journey. He also had extensive knowledge of the WWII cannons left on the island. It was quite interesting to hear about. It was not a very sunny day, but I ended up jumping in the water for the snorkeling part of this excursion anyway. The water was pretty rough, but it was totally worth it. I saw some amazing fish swimming everywhere.







Trek of the Ancient and Waverunning Adventure - Moorea
We cancelled both of these because it was pretty cloudy one day, and it was supposed to rain the next. Instead, we rented a car with some friends and drove around the island, checked out Belvedere mountain, ate at a cute little restaurant. The other day we went to Tahia Collins and bought some black pearls, accidentally missed our excursion (Trek) and spent the day just chilling and napping on the boat. We were still off from the time.


Intercontinental – Moorea
We stayed in an OWB for 3 nights here and loved it. This was the best way to get the best of both worlds – cruising at the bungalow experience that everyone strives for when visiting FP. We took the ferry to Moorea from the dock (which was about 10 feet from where the ship was docked). The IC never sent the transfer so we jumped in on another one that happened to be there. The hotel was lovely, but expensive. Watch your eating there, breakfast and lunch easily ran us $65 for each meal. The drinks were also pricey, about $15 a pop, so be weary of the nice fruity frozen drinks while sitting by the pool or beach. The bungalow was beautiful and we had a ton of fish (even some shark) that swam outside out bungalow at night. They were fun to watch after coming back from dinner.



















The hotel has plenty of excursions and activities available and its really easy to book.
Some of the wonderful things we enjoyed at the hotel:

Waverunner
Since we cancelled our waverunner trip on the cruise, we did this through the hotel. It was cheaper and a lot of fun, we had a blast.

Swimming with the Dolphins
This was the most amazing experience. I am now completely in love with dolphins. My husband says this was his favorite part of the entire trip. We got to spend about a ½ hour in the water with them. I wanted to take the dolphins home. This was also pretty expensive, but totally worth it.

Coconut Scrub at Helen Spa
The Helene Spa may be the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. It was so tranquil I wanted to spend the entire day there. If we had the money I would’ve booked treatments for hours and hours! The coconut scrub was great. Our friends also did the rain shower and got massages which they said were fantastic.

And last but not least, here are some reviews for the restaurants we ate at. Keep in mind if you make reservations in advance, which you should, they will send a car to pick you up from your hotel:

Le Iguane or Le Iguana (something like that) -Moorea
We ate lunch here during one of our shore excursions in Moorea. There was eight of us, and seven LOVED every bite of their food – burgers, sashimi, the best mahi mahi my friend had ever tasted. They said it was the best they ever had. I ordered the chicken and it was nasty. I think overall the restaurant was delicious as everyone I was with raved and raved. I think chicken is just something to skip overall when eating on the islands. They’re just a little too, well, FRESH. I mean, we literally saw a guy walking down the road with the chicken. I didn’t need quite that much visualization.

Les Tipaniers – Moorea
Nice place, good food. It was on the water and had a wonderful view. We also just had lunch here so we kept it pretty simple with sandwiches, sashimi and burgers. Many people recommended it to us to revisit for dinner.

Le Mayflower - Moorea
We had dinner here our first night staying in Moorea, and it was pretty good. The salad I had was delicious, and they’re signature lobster ravioli was pretty good. The staff was very friendly.

Te Honu Iti – Moorea
This was the best meal we had in Moorea. I had the beef sirloin in some wine sauce and my husband had a different steak with foie gras, which he raved about. It’s a romantic setting, one of the nicest places on Moorea. Ask for a table by the railing so you can watch and feed the fish. There were stingrays swimming all about!

And last but not least Bloody Mary’s – Bora Bora
We actually gave up a free meal on the ship to check this out. We had a really nice time, the food was delicious and the fish was fresh. It was fun picking it out right there from that day’s catch. The atmosphere was a lot of fun with the sand on the floor and log seats and tables.



That pretty much sums it up! Thanks for reading and I hope this helps. There’s plenty more I could mention, but this would end up 20 pages! Feel free to FM me with any questions! I have a ton of pics I’d be happy to send.

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

gorgeous!!!! Looks like a beautiful honey moon

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Everything looks gorgeous. Great pictures. Thanks for sharing.

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Wow, how beautiful!

Great review... thank you!

We're hoping to go to Tahiti, Moorea, and Bora Bora too

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

wow...i am beyond jealous! those pics are absolutley breaktaking!

glad you had a great time .

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Yipeeeeee
Love the pics and the review.
So incredibly happy for you!!!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

What a great review. Your pics are amazing!!!!!! Looks like you two had a great time!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Great review! Looks like you guys had an amazing time!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Looks like you had an amazing time christine.

We did the same thing with the plane ride home upgraded to business class it made a huge diffrence.

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Looks like you had an amazing time!!!
I'm very jealous!!!
Congrats and welcome back....Thanks for sharing your experience with us!!!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

All those pictures look like they come straight from travel brochures - everything looked perfect. What a gorgeous honeymoon you must have had. Thanks so much for sharing!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

what a great review- i want to go to tahiti!!!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Amazing review, Christine!!!!!!!

The cruise sounded so fun and the ship looked gorgeous. Looking at your pics makes me want to go back!!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Wow your honeymoon looks amazing! thanks for sharing with us! I have been hesitant to consider FP b/c of the long flight(s) to get there..but maybe after seeing your pics, we will reconsider :)

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Christine! I am so jealous - what an amazing honeymoon! I was procrastinating on my schoolwork and came across the review...okay back to my webquest...

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

I'm so happy you enjoyed it-I can't wait for ours in July!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

wow those are beautiful pictures!! Your making me want to go there!!!!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

Wow It looks like you had a great time..your pictures looks amazing

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

I just sent you forum mail. Thanks!

Re: Honeymoon Review - French Polynesia

wow.. looked unbelieveable