The Journey
Round-trip Papeete
An unhurried loop through the Society Islands and out to the Tuamotu atolls, with the ship in close to shore and a retractable marina that turns every lagoon into an extension of the deck.
Board the m/s Paul Gauguin in Papeete and sail into the South Pacific dusk, the green peaks of Tahiti softening behind you and the islands ahead.
A whole day on the line's private islet off Taha'a, the vanilla coast, with a floating bar in the lagoon, a barbecue under the palms, and the warm shallows to yourself.
The most beautiful lagoon on Earth, and the ship anchors right in it, beneath the green tower of Mount Otemanu. Turquoise water, white sand, and the days to spend in it.
More time to go deeper, swim with rays, a 4x4 into the green hills, or simply a lounger, a book, and the most photographed view in the Pacific.
Out to the Tuamotu atolls, rings of coral around impossibly clear lagoons. Drift-dive the passes of Rangiroa and Fakarava amid sharks, rays and walls of fish, or simply float in water the colour of glass.
Tahiti's dramatic sister, its jagged peaks rising over Cook's and Opunohu Bays. By now Les Gauguines, the ship's Tahitian hosts, feel like family, the dances and the songs part of the rhythm aboard. Then the slow return to Papeete.