Let’s talk shore excursions! Every day you’ll awake to views of a new island to explore and a menu of excursion options to choose from. Shore excursions are an additional cost on all Paul Gauguin cruises, and they can be booked in advance to ensure availability. You’re always welcome to add more on board, but the more popular tours do tend to sell out before departure.
What are your options? Snorkeling, galore! ATV & off-road 4x4 tours. Island biking. Catamaran sailing with BBQ lunches. Wave runners. Helicopter rides. Pearl farm & Tahitian vanilla tours. Just to name a few.
My sister and I opted for a few shore excursions during our 8-day cruise in French Polynesia. We loved our e-bike tour of the island of Moorea - the stunning Belvedere lookout was the final destination:
And our group did a fantastic 4x4 off-road excursion for one of the two free days on Bora Bora, visiting local Pareo artists and beautiful lookouts along the way:
Bora Bora off-road excursion! (Jenna Fedyschyn) Handmade Tahitian pareo (Jenna Fedyschyn) Bora Bora off-road excursion! (Jenna Fedyschyn)
And for travelers who might prefer to wander and explore independently, there’s still plenty to do on your own! My sister and I had a few days where we chose to do just that. We stumbled upon cute little local towns and shops to peruse, beautiful public beaches, and cheap bike rentals to explore on two wheels ($10 for 2 hours on Bora Bora):
Public beach in Huahine - not too shabby! (Jenna Fedyschyn) Rented bikes on Bora Bora for $10 (Jenna Fedyschyn)
The excursion times are scattered throughout the day, so about every half hour there's a new group of guests coming and going. I never once felt like the Paul Gauguin guests were overwhelming the local population, which is something I've experience before on those 1,000-passenger cruise ships (pre-Adventure-Life), and have tried to avoid ever since. Whether you wanted advice on which excursion to choose, or recommendations for activities to do on your own, the excursion desk on board was always so helpful in pointing us in the right direction.
The trip planners at Adventure Life were very helpful and always replied to my inquiries right away. The excursions, accomodations, and local guides were excellent
Avi Argaman
1 day ago
Be sure to sign up for all the tours, otherwise you will be sitting on the boat since not all stops are moored at a dock. Some are anchored.
Gail Puryear
1 day ago
There were two best aspects to our trip:
1. The Adventure Life folks and the folks in Athens and Crete who supported our itinerary, guided us, and ran the cooking program were all superb.
2. Everything they all planned for us went without a hitch. When we needed a bit of help, they came through with really good answers.
We became aware of AL from a friend who had an excellent experience in a different location. So did we. We can recommend AL without reservation.
Tom Campbell
1 day ago
My agent Jeff did not push the sale while providing thorough information and replying quickly to my many questions.
Mary Lou Carlson
2 days ago
We have used AL for decades now to plan trips. Kassandra has been with us from the start and has never disappointed. She knows our family and our quirks and is always willing to fit the trip to us. This time we made her work for the booking because of family member schedules. It has all come together for a great Christmas gift for many families.
