French Polynesia: Sailing from Tahiti through the Society Islands on the Legendary Paul Gaugin

Paul Gaugin embarks from Papeete, the French Polynesian capital on the island of Tahiti. We arrived a day early and chose a 2-bedroom suite at the Hilton Tahiti. The property is beautiful and ideally positioned for the sunrise, with a remarkable pool area. The included breakfast buffet enjoys heavy French influence with delicious pastries, crepes and cheeses. We pre-booked our transfer from the airport to the hotel, which may have been a mistake because the 10-minute ride cost $$170. Ask in advance!

Life Onboard

We enjoyed the balance of “just enough to do,” meaning we had three restaurants to choose from, 24-hour room service, afternoon tea, a nightly show, piano bar and spa. We also enjoyed the included kayaks, snorkeling gear and paddle boards you can use right off the back of the ship at designated times.

Our itinerary visited some well-known islands, but I think any itinerary is likely magical in French Polynesia:

• Huahine: We opted to take the complimentary and eagerly waiting “Le Trucks” to take us into the town of Fare. Fare is a lively town with shops, artisans and groceries. We did our best to meet and connect with locals and learn about their brand of island life.

• Bora Bora: The Paul Gaugin runs continuous tender boats for guests, which help tremendously on busy days. In the morning, we enjoyed a half-day snorkeling tour with only 12 guests that gave us the opportunity to swim with sharks and rays. As average swimmers, we felt safe (even in a current that was so strong in one spot that it pulled my husband’s dive watch off his wrist). In the afternoon, we used the tender boat to head to a private motu (beach) with chairs and towels set up by Paul Guagin hosts. And after dinner, we tendered to the island once again to enjoy the annual Heiva festival with beautiful traditional dancing. There were very few tourists in the audience as locals young and old performed mostly for their families and neighbors. So authentic.

• Day two on Bora Bora found us exploring the island's village (with very pricey dress shops). Indeed, Bora Bora earns its reputation as one of the most beautiful places on Earth and a haven for Hollywood-types.

• Rangiroa: The journey to Rangiroa took 19 hours, and for us it was a bumpy one. We never felt scared, but some people did feel seasick. A crew member told me that most sailings have 1–2 periods of rocky waters. On arrival at Rangiroa, we opted for the water taxi to take us to the completely undeveloped side of the pass known as Tiputa. Once there, we rented five e-bikes for $25 each. What a treat! We stopped at a beach, saw hermit crabs and palm tree forests. This simple part of the island is completely unspoiled, and the few locals we met wore joy on their faces.

• Fakarava: We rented cruiser bikes for five hours and explored ~15 kilometers of this beautiful island, riding the crushed-shell roads along the ocean and pausing for lots of photos. A little busier than Rangiroa, Fakarava had more roadside restaurants, a local pearl farm and a gorgeous private beach where we relaxed under the palm trees. The water is so perfectly clear, so the little (harmless) sharks that swim close to the shore are completely visible.

• Motu Mahana (Ta’ha, Paul Gaugin’s Private Motu): We enjoyed a peaceful sea day, savoring the ship, before arriving at the Motu Mahana, Paul Gaugin’s private beach. This was to be a magical day, but Mother Nature had other plans. Pictures and reviews tell me that the beach BBQ, floating bar and water activities are incredible. But we had to return to sea to ride out an approaching swell (the first one in 20 years). I will say that the entire crew handled this amazingly well, worked extra hard to keep us entertained and full of cocktails, and we fared just fine.

• Moorea: We arrived in Moorea and walked to the base of Magic Mountain. For $2 per person, we gained access to a trail up the mountain. The steep 40-minute hike was well worth the views, and the hike was a great way to balance all the water activities of cruising. We saw some of the ship’s crew enjoying the town as well. The following day on Moorea, we booked a half-day off-road safari tour of the island. Eight of us enjoyed stops including Magic Mountain (no hike this time), a pineapple farm, Belvedere Lookout, a juice factory and a vanilla plantation. This excellent overview of local agriculture was a nice learning stop after so much resting. Back onboard, we enjoyed one more delightful dinner and a send-off from the captain. Our incredible voyage ended the following morning, but the memories remain. Our family befriended many of the Paul Gaugin crew, and we were sad to say goodbye. The attentive servers and charismatic bar staff — including Angelo, Jade, Jonathan and Ryan — truly made our luxurious South Pacific adventure a dream. If you like smaller, more attentive cruises, you’ll love the Paul Gaugin.

Day Trips

• Trip Extension: Two Nights in Moorea: We opted to ferry back to Moorea for two more nights to experience the overwater bungalows at the Hilton Moorea Lagoon Resort & Spa. We had two bungalows for two nights that were not cheap, but worth the memories. Each bungalow has a huge space, balcony, private dock, outdoor shower head and glass floor inside to see the fish underneath. For two days, we didn’t leave the property, exploring the fitness activities, pool and restaurants. The property has lush gardens, coconut trees and an amazing pool complex, so keep your camera handy. The west-facing waterfront villas make for incredible sunsets. The breakfast buffet was magnificent, and the on-site meals were pricey

• Final Night: Papeete: We returned to the Tahiti Hilton for one more night. We chose to take a final day tour with a well-rated tour by “Unique Tahiti.” Our guide was as wonderful as promised, and we enjoyed learning a lot about Tahitian history, faith and culture before taking the long journey back to Virginia.

Paul Gaugin makes it easy to eat nearly all of your meals onboard, even on shore days, because the boat is always close by. There are three restaurants:

• E’Toile: The main dining room serves cruise-style dinner, with an island formal dress code. Nice sundresses for women are the norm, and the food is extraordinary.

• La Veranda: A second dining choice for all three meals. Reservation only for dinner. La Veranda was our preferred breakfast and lunch option.

• Le Grill: Le Grill is more casual, and we only ate there when we were too tired to dress up a little. The food was still tasty and plentiful, but we just preferred the other two options.

If I have one complaint with dining aboard the Paul Gaugin, it’s the wine. I was told that it’s very hard to get wine to Tahiti without it overheating along the way. As a wine girl, I preferred a cocktail on this trip (which were delicious).