#69316 - 01/13/08 07:14 PM
Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
|
Maverick
Junior Member
Registered: 07/14/07
Posts: 8
Loc: Kansas, USA
|
December 27- Jan 1: Sheraton Moorea
Jan 1- Jan 4: Le Meridien Tahiti
Sheraton was great for relaxing post-Christmas with the family.. Family of 4 required 2 beach bungalows. We got the end ones, number 51, 52. For beach bungalows, the two end ones are the best due to the fact that no one is going down that path. There is only a partial beach/water view though. Sheraton is small enough that getting to the beach or main area was very quick and easy. Daughters ended up nicknaming their bungalow "Area 51."
Weather, although the first 3 days each had periods of rain, lasting 1 hour to 4-5, it was very reasonable. We made the best of it. Temperature remained warm so when it rained, we would use the hot tub to relax, and then duck under the tiki huts on the beach to catch up on reading. In no time, the rain cleared and all was fine on paradise again.
Sheraton is small and isolated, which fit nicely with the Moorea look and feel. We visited the Intercontinental and found it very big. So, no regrets about choosing Sheraton. Service is sincere but Tahiti paced. Don't equate speed to quality and attentiveness. By far the best service were the fine ladies at the Sheraton Activity/Concierge desk. They were very willing to provide information/suggestion and make reservations for anything from excursion, cars and restaurants. They even record it so if someone else is on duty, they know exactly what is schedule for who. Miki and Francesca, as well as the others were super. The separate private excursion table (to the left) wasn't as friendly or willing to provide information. The beach side restaurant was very convenient for lunch dining. Seared tuna sandwich was fantastic, as was the poisson cru. Discovered that there was good quantity for sharing. Breakfast was also very good. Opted to go a la carte as opposed to the brunch because of $$$ and can't eat that much food. Entre like french toast (450xpf) came with a side of fruits, which was just the right amount. The bread basket was also another good choice with plenty of different bread products for 950xpf.
The rain actually made the Albert 4X4 excursion more adventurous and memorable. We got Tom for the guide, and he is great at what he does. During the agricultural portion of the tour, he grabs pineapples and grapefruits, uses the broad leaves and flowers that are readily available and made a great fruit spread as refreshment during the trip. Nice touch.
In terms of restaurants, the top of the list are #1 Le Mayflower (great food and wine, great ambience, although it sits next to the main road, and great service). Ate there for New Years Eve. The place was packed. #2 Hono Iti. By Cook's Bay and by the water. We also ate at Aito and Le Mohogany. They were good, but we weren't wow'ed.
We figured out that Albert was pretty accommodating so when we rented their car and the 8th hour is after 5, they would just let you keep it overnight to return in the am around 8:30. This gave us wheels for the afternoon to drive around the island, visit the Lagoonarium, grab snack at the Roti, grab snacks for our rooms at the magasin, and use as transportation for Le Mayflower which didn't provide free shuttle. It would have costed $5000xpf for taxi round trip from the Sheraton. The car rental was $7500xpf. So it was a great option. In the morning, we would dine at Carmeline (crepe, fantastic croissant) before returning the car at their location across from Le Bali Hai.
News Update: Royal Chicken was a nice simple and cheaper meal during one of those days that it had showers. Kind of odd eating chicken on the deck watching the rooster run around. Here's the news: I got to meet the owner of the Royal Chicken. He sold it to a local and will be relocating himself to Cambodia in 2008. It was already sold when I was there; the new owner (Tahitian lady and her son) were there; Alan was showing them the ropes and recipe secrets. Very interesting guy. He's from Paris and moved to Moorea about 18 years ago. He thought Moorea was paradise, but is drawn to Cambodia (culture and Buddhism). He does plan to stay in the food/restaurant business though. The rotissiere chicken and rosemary potato had just the right mix of herbs and spices. Grabbed wine and baguette, and a very simple but delicious meal for 4 for $1600xpf.
Tahiti was a shock, since we stayed there after Moorea. Papeete felt like a huge metropolitan city when we got off the ferry. The Le Meridien Tahiti is a very decent hotel, but there was no concierge personnel. We had to ask for info and assistance from the front desk, which tended to have lines. The rooms were clean, but where was the heavenly beds??? We did enjoy the pool but the beach was no comparison to the fantastic, best lagoon at Sheraton. Do take the time to watch the sunset from the hotel beach. There is a very pastel blend of color to a Tahitian sunset. I thought St. John USVI had great sunsets; this color palette was so unique that this is now the best rated in my book.
Being a ways out from Papeete, we needed a taxi for any excursion. Wow!! We used the same strategy as on Moorea, and managed to get an all day rental from Avis for around $110xpf for the day to drive around the island, visit the falls, etc, and still have a car to drive ourselves to Le Coco.
Le Coco was the best all around (and the most expensive). Go a little early, and you can relax on their lawn looking towards the ocean and Moorea. You see the same sunset as Le Meridien, but your view is framed by a beautiful garden lawn, colonial white railing and you sink into their very plush lawn furniture. Have a cocktail while they explain their menu. They will not rush you. Take your time to proceed to your table. As they say, the table is yours for the evening. They definitely are NOT trying to turn over their tables. If you can splurge, this is one worth the dollars comparative to the price of other restaurants. Our other Tahiti favorite, we tied it for second with Le Mayflower, was L'O a la Bouche in Papeete. Very good food with nice presentation, nice French style Bistro, and great French wine. Save room for desserts. This restaurant was closest to a true French restaurant. For breakfast (with fresh croissants of all different types), consider L'Oasis across from the Notre Dame church in Papeete.
When driving around the island, we picked up some lunch meat, cheese and a couple of sticks of baguettes (still warm), along with the local fruit nectar juices from the grocery store. We found the road that leads to the top of Tahiti Iti (little part of the Tahiti island. At the top, there is a little gazebo where you can see Tahiti Nui, and both coasts. Great stop to have lunch and enjoy the scenery. It's off the beaten path, but worth it.
On Tahiti, for convenience and trust, we ended up using one taxi by Rene Hoffer. He is a very nice guy with stories to tell about the Presidency of Tahiti. Ask him about it. The advantage was when we were close to ready, we could call him to pick us up; we didn't need to find a taxi stand. He was also willing to give a discount on the evening rates for taxi. I have his business card if someone is interested in using him. I can provide the mobile number should there be interest.
Nine days seemed just right...but now seems too short now that I am back at work. Until the next trip...a bientot! Bon Voyage to those about to go. I hope some of this info is helpful.
P.S. I just looked at the credit card statement. My suggestion is to not look until you absolutely have to. The exchange rate is bad. Wait until you have all your pictures online before thinking about the cost. Remember MasterCard, "...a Tahiti vacation, priceless!"
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
#69317 - 01/14/08 06:29 AM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: Maverick]
|
Patti.
Expert Advisor
Registered: 03/28/04
Posts: 2460
Loc: Las Vegas, NV
|
Wow. Fantastic trip report. Great detail. Sounds like you had a wonderful time. I loved the "area 51" part.....very cute.
And I do agree.....make sure you are looking at some beautiful pictures of your trip when your credit card bill arrives. We have been each of the last 3 years and each year that bill looks worse and worse because the exchange rate keeps going down. I can't even imagine what it will look like this year. But it's still totally worth it!
Sooooo....when do we get to see your pictures? :-)
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
#69319 - 01/14/08 07:15 AM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: Patti.]
|
BarbiJKM
Supreme Advisor
Registered: 02/14/07
Posts: 6150
Loc: Mesa, AZ
|
Great report! Thanks for the news about Alain ("Chickenman"), who is a friend of ours. Hope he's still around when we return in March. His prior sale of Royale Chicken fell through while we were there last summer.
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
#69354 - 01/14/08 06:25 PM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: BarbiJKM]
|
holte
Expert Advisor
Registered: 11/19/04
Posts: 2417
Loc: Duluth, Minnesota
|
I wish that I could have written such a great trip report. Good job!
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
#69355 - 01/14/08 06:44 PM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: Maverick]
|
Maverick
Junior Member
Registered: 07/14/07
Posts: 8
Loc: Kansas, USA
|
Wow, thanks for the interest and kind replies.
Per a requests, here is a link to a few memorable pictures. These are all untouched originals. The colors down there was very special.
I hope this link works; this is my first time.
[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/22834292@N06/]Flickr [/url]
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
#69361 - 01/15/08 07:48 AM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: Maverick]
|
BarbiJKM
Supreme Advisor
Registered: 02/14/07
Posts: 6150
Loc: Mesa, AZ
|
If you are Marynian on Flicker, your 3 photos are at this link:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/22834292@N06/2194172524/in/photostream/
GORGEOUS!
Edited by BarbiJKM (01/15/08 07:49 AM)
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
#69384 - 01/15/08 02:54 PM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: BarbiJKM]
|
superstar
Advisor
Registered: 02/16/06
Posts: 567
Loc: Laingsburg, Michigan
|
Great report. Thanks for taking the time to write it.
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
#69392 - 01/15/08 05:45 PM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: BarbiJKM]
|
Maverick
Junior Member
Registered: 07/14/07
Posts: 8
Loc: Kansas, USA
|
Yes we are, and thanks for the assistance BarbiJKM. Still learning.
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#69452 - 01/16/08 09:00 PM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: Maverick]
|
koloagirl
Member
Registered: 03/05/02
Posts: 71
Loc: Koloa, Hawai'i, USA
|
Aloha from Kaua'i!
Enjoyed your report very much! We are going to Moorea on Feb. 2nd and staying at a little pension one beach down from the Sheraton -- can't wait! I too don't care if it rains -- it will still be great and the lagoon is always lovely, even in the rain!
Does anyone know if you can get the rosemary potatoes from Royal Chicken ala carte? We don't eat meat, but I'd love to try them!
All my posts lately are about food it seems -- can you tell I am on a diet for my Moorea trip?
Mauruuru!
Janet
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
#69460 - 01/17/08 09:09 AM
Re: Moorea/Tahiti Trip Report
[Re: koloagirl]
|
Eperera
Member
Registered: 09/25/05
Posts: 159
Loc: Durango, Colorado
|
I'm not sure if you can get the potatoes ala carte (I think yes), but I can tell you they are really good. Part of the reason they're so good is they are cooked in a pan UNDER the rotisserie chicken, getting ALL the delicious meat drippings. So, you may want to consider that if you're vegetarian.
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
Moderator: BarbiJKM, hamara, DenverJoe, Poehere
|
6922 Members
15 Forums
10259 Topics
91469 Posts
Max Online: 118 @ 04/08/12 01:59 PM
|
|
0 registered
and 25 anonymous users online.
|
|
|
