OK, I am totally new ot the luxury ship sailings - we have sailed "rc" many times (it's easy - we had kids with us) - and now - for our 20th anniversary - we are going for "us".... and cannot wait.
unfortunately - we were late on booking, and could only get category F - however, was re-assured over and over - it would not better - category F is fabulous - and you will never want to hang in the room anyway -

opinions - thoughts - pictures?

thanks so much!!!!!!! cannot wait to learn more - I'll have a ton of questions, being the control freak I am..... (haha!) :)

Welcome to the board, Tracysue! I wouldn't worry, the view outside your cabin is much more important than the one inside. While a balcony on the PG is fantastic, you really will spend so much time out of your room that you won't miss having one too much. If you like to sit outside at night, you can always go up to the pool deck and still have a spot to yourself.

Lots of people think that the F cabins are the best value and very convenient. So do not be concerned.

We have always booked a G, one level up, the only difference being one large window instead of two portholes in the F. But otherwise, same cabin. You can see pictures on the rssc website here:

http://www.rssc.com/ships/suites.jsp?code=PAU&suitecode=8

You will love it, it's a great destination and a nice ship--we did our 20th on her, and are just getting geared up for our 4th trip in December!

Hi Tracysue, and welcome to LCT! We've done the PG twice and loved it. It's perfect for an anniversary - we spent our 16th on board, and also last New Year's. What a blast that was! What sailing are you on?

We did have a balcony each time, but it's true, they are a lot more expensive. Did you waitlist just in case? No matter, I am sure you will fall in love with the PG and the FPs!

Well, I'm going to be a spoil sport. If money is not a major concern, I would rather have a cabin with a large window (or preferably a balcony) on the PG. I realize opinions differ, but we have enjoyed immensely sitting out on our balcony on the two PG cruises we took. In addition, it is sometimes a bit difficult to find shaded seating on deck.

Just our opinion.

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Eugene

Eugene, I would prefer one as well but I don't think it is an option for tracysue. I don't think it will spoil her cruise sailing without a balcony, though!

She wanted opinions, and that's why I decided to chime in. It wasn't clear to me whether she was locked in or had the option of picking another sailing on which she could get a different cabin.

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Eugene

ok, is everyone this nice all the time? Being from "big cruise ship" boards - there is a lot of colorful - and opinionated postings,,,,, everyone here is so nice - on all the topics....

Thanks everyone - for your input - unfortunately - we don't have an option.... all the rooms are books, we got 1 of 5 rooms left - category f...... I know we'll be outside a lot - but - we'll be ok...... I' sure - hmmm... tatiti - bora bora - what's not to like????

I'll make sure to bring hats for the shade options.... although I have read here - that it feels like you are "alone" a lot of the time - because so many people do hang in their rooms on the balconies? do you all find that?

Yes, we are wait listed..... but they said we are about 5th on the list....

we are traveling to Tahiti, (staying 2 nights at the interContinental Hotel) then boarding proceeding to Raiatea, Taha'a Mahana, Bora Bora, Moorea, then back to Tahiti.

7 nights..... YEA! then 2 at the hotel - so 9 nights..... total....

Again thanks to all... can't wait to start planning the excursions... that will be my next new posting question (s)! :)

LOL Tracysue, we do try to be nice but sometimes we have been known to go off topic :)

Ask as many questions as you would like, we love answering them!

Welcome to LCT Tracysue! Yes, as a general rule, everyone on this board is very nice and willing to share from their experiences. Ask away and enjoy planning your trip.

So what's your cruise date?

Ask all you like about excursions, we'll give us our personal opinions, which may differ markedly, but will all be nice. :D

TracySue:
1st of all I would like to welcome you to Luxury Cruise Talk. Glad you decided to check it out.
We had a group of 5 couples on the Paul Gauguin
02/15/2003 and all of us had F cabins. (we had 314) They were just fine. Decided to save on cabins so we could spend more on excursions since this cruise is so port intense. Worked out great. Of course it would have been nice to have a balcony, but we never suffered much since there is very little time to be in your cabin anyway. You will have a great time. Relax and enjoy it.

Welcome!!

I've sailed on the PG twice, both times for anniversaries. It is simply the best way to spend an anniversary!!

You'll be fine in an F, the cabins are all the same inside, it's only the window/balcony that differs. I found that they had added some areas with shade on deck this last time and finding a nice spot was really no problem.

There are many great excursions and if you dive (or want to learn) the PG is fantastic. We got certified on our first trip; did the bookwork at home then the checkout dives at the hotel and we were good to go.

LCT is a very nice place. A better bunch of people are hard to come by. Not only do we have fun on this board but we travel in groups sometimes and those trips are the best!

Traveling in groups isn't something we've done before but folks here sound so interesting and nice. Maybe someday it will work for us to join in.

Traveling in a group aboard a cruise is way easier than doing a land trip.
Right up front everyone understands that they do there own thing aboard the ship. We would usually meet for cocktails at 6:00 pm each evening. Most of the time we would have dinner together but once in awhile someone would go with others. This really works well.

Welcome Tracysue. We love the PG. We've been on her twice for a total of 24 days and have never had a balcony. While I know that we would have enjoyed a balcony we preferred to allocate our money on extending our trips and doing excursions.

Wendy had a typo in her first posting above. The window cabins above the F porthole cabins are category E (not G). We stayed in an E our first time and booked E on our second trip but were offered a free upgrade to a D which we gladly accepted. That was still a window cabin but in a very convienent location.

I hope your wait listing comes through. You'll have a wonderful time in FP.

Yes Kathy, thanks for correcting me--I posted in haste. All our cabins have been E's, including our upcoming cruise.