As part of our vacation in French Polynesia (see my review on the Paul Gauguin cruise ship http://www.epinions.com/content_70302600836) we stayed for 3 days at Le Meridien on the Island of Tahiti. I booked this package through Radisson Cruises and I choose Le Meridien for two reasons. The first reason was that the cruise spent very little time on the island of Tahiti and I wanted a chance to see this island (I’ve got a review of Tahiti in the works). The second reason was that it was the least expensive post cruise package available. Luxury vacation or not, I still have a limited budget.

Location and Impressions

Le Meridien is located about 20 minutes counter clockwise around Tahiti from the docks in Papeete. It is on the main road that circles the island in a little suburb called Punaauia. As with many tropical resorts, the registration desk is right at the drop-off point, in the open air (but under cover). There is a circular drive in the front with some well maintained tropical plants and a few parking spaces. There were also large hedges on the perimeter of the property.

We arrived with two bus loads from the cruise and the check in line was quite long. They invited us to eat lunch first and check in after lunch. The lunch buffet was included with the cruise package. Meanwhile the concierge kept our luggage including our hand luggage so we didn’t have to drag anything down to lunch.

After lunch we registered and were given our room keys. We did not have to present a credit card until we checked out three days later. (They take VISA.) A bell hop brought our luggage and we explored our room.

Our Room

After a week in a very nice but rather small cabin on the ship this room seemed huge. We had a king bed, two night stands, an armoire, a desk and stool, a table and 2 chairs, a dresser with a mini-bar, and lots of floor space. And the Air conditioner was working nicely, thank you.

The bed was quite comfortable and had four standard size pillows. It was just a mattress on a frame, no box spring, but that allowed us to store our suitcases under the bed like we did on the cruise. One night stand had a phone and one had clock radio. The armoire had plenty of hangers, four shelves and a safe.

The desk had some brochures for local tours and attractions. The table was small but adequate for a few snacks or drinks. The mini-bar even had a little bit of room for us to put our own drinks and snacks in to keep them cool. There was a remote controlled TV that had about 10 channels but we really only watched CNN international.

The floor was tile (much easier to clean at a beach resort) and the décor included a lot of light colored wood work.

Our room had a balcony overlooking the large sand bottomed pool. We could also see the lagoon from our balcony. There was another table and two more chairs on the balcony. On several occasions we ate snacks and sipped our bourbon out there.

Our Bath

I thought I had a nice master bath at my home but this bath wins the award hands down. The main part of the bath is plenty big for two people to be in without bumping into each other. There is a large tub with handheld shower. Next to the tub was a window (with blinds) so that if you were bathing you could still see into the room (and watch TV?) On the other side of the bath there was a separate room for the toilet and another separate room for the shower. The shower head could be adjusted by height or removed and used as a handheld one. There was plenty of room for two people in the shower. Hey, it was our tenth anniversary vacation.

There were bottles of shampoo, bath gel, and lotion, that were replaced as needed. In addition there were 2 bars of soap, towels for two people and plenty of places to hang wet towels. The counter around the sink was huge, plenty of room to leave all those toiletries. The mirror over the sink must have been six feet wide. The décor in the bath incorporated a dark wood but it seemed to work very well.

There was plenty of hot water no matter when we showered and plenty of water pressure, too. This was definitely one of the nicest beach resorts I have ever stayed at as far as the room, the balcony, and the bath were concerned.

The bath would have been perfect if it had two sinks instead of one.

Dining

There are two restaurants and one bar at Le Meridien. We managed to try them all. All are open air but under cover so flies are attracted to the food and birds are attracted to the diner’s crumbs. If this is a problem for you, look for the hot items which were in covered serving dishes or breads and cheeses that had cloth napkins over them. The open air did not present a problem as far as temperature was concerned. There are ceiling fans and cool breezes off the lagoon. Of course, the temperature here in Lubbock rarely dips below 90 degrees F in the summer and the temperature in Tahiti is closer to 80 degrees F year round.

La Plantation is in the main building, 2 stories down from registration. It overlooks a small man made waterway full of large tropical fish. From La Plantation a guest can see the pool and the lagoon but it is impossible to see the beach at the lagoon.

We ate the lunch buffet on the day we arrived and found the food to be good but not exceptional. They had stations for breads and cheeses, salads, fruits, cold meats, hot items, desserts, and cooked to order hamburgers. Be sure to ask for a well-done hamburger in order to get it “medium rare” by American standards. I enjoyed the cool salads and the cheeses but I noticed that as items were used up they were not replaced or refilled in a timely manner. Sometimes a refill took 20 minutes. Iced tea and water were self serve but the glasses were quite small, about 10 ounces. At least they actually had ice.

Our hotel package included the buffet breakfast each morning. Two mornings we ate at La Plantation for breakfast. The cost would have been 2400 francs each (about $21) if we had to pay for the breakfast and I do not believe it is worth it, even by the expensive French Polynesian standard. (I never did find out what the lunch cost but it was more than the breakfast.) Breakfast included French bread and cheese, cereal, yogurt, juice, fruit, hot items like eggs and potatoes, cold cuts (like a German breakfast), and a made to order omelet station. My husband ate his share of chocolate croissants and then some. For some reason, I liked the stewed tomatoes.

When we checked in we were given 2 vouchers for a complimentary dinner or lunch (one for each of us). We used the vouchers one night at La Plantation for dinner. We each ordered salad, entrée, and dessert. The food was good. The service was not too fast and not too slow. The atmosphere was relaxing as we sat into the evening just watching all the water around us. I would recommend ordering seafood items as they are not undercooked and the seafood is local. My husband’s streak seemed a bit on the rare side for me. My shrimp was quite good. The salad choices ranged from a simple garden salad or Caesar salad to rather elaborate seafood salads. Ours were two of the more elaborate salads. The greens were fresh and crisp and the extra ingredients were quite tasty. If you have room for dessert, get anything with the local vanilla ice cream. I wish I could remember more of the details of my dinner but I do remember the prices. Everything in French Polynesia is VERY expensive (look at a map to see why). The salads ranged from 600 francs to 1400 francs. The entrees were about 2000 francs to 3000 francs and the desserts were all 1000 francs. (A franc is worth slightly less than a penny, so 1000 francs is between $8 and $9 depending on where you exchange your money.) After all the good food on the cruise and with these prices, if we didn’t have the vouchers we would not have eaten here. We would have chosen lighter fare at a nearby pizza place.

One morning the breakfast buffet was served at Le Fare Te Moana so that they could start refurbishing La Plantation. The food was the same but the atmosphere was a little different. Le Fare Te Moana is a stand alone building that sits over the beach looking at the lagoon. It is open on all sides but many of the tables are under cover. There is also a plexi-glass windbreak on the lagoon side of the restaurant. From here we had a partial view of the island Moorea about 20 miles away. Normally Le Fare Te Moana serves lunch and drinks but we only ate the one breakfast here.

L' Astrolabe is the hotel bar. It is located in the main building one floor below the check-in desk and one floor above La Plantation. We heard that many drinks were 1200 francs and we avoided the bar. They did have a large TV that attracted a crowd when they showed World Cup soccer. One evening we heard a Tahitian band in L’Astrolabe. Well, they were dressed as Tahitians, played Tahitian instruments, and played in the Tahitian style but many of the songs were American pop (yes, played them in the Tahitian style). They finished up early, about 8:00 pm and I didn’t find any other entertainment at the resort later than that.

Customer Service

We found the front desk staff to be helpful and efficient. When we asked for a nearby cyber café they told us that they hotel has internet access for 1000 francs per day. We bought one day and spent 4 hours on line. There is only one machine for this purpose at the hotel so you may have to wait in line. At one time, the server dropped the connection and an employee came immediately to get us reconnected. Whenever we asked for directions or information, the person got us the correct answer immediately. One gentleman was leaving work and four of us stopped him to ask a question. Although he was technically “off the clock” he chatted for a few minutes, never rushed us, and waited until we thanked him so he could leave.

The restaurant staff was pleasant but at the buffets they could be hard to find. We just served ourselves. We found the dinner service to be very good. The waiter even put our napkins in our laps just like they did on the Paul Gauguin cruise. By American standards they may have seemed slow but we enjoyed just relaxing and watching the scenery between courses and we never felt neglected.

When we requested ice (no ice machines) they usually arrived at our room with an ice bucket and tongs in about 10 minutes. Once it took longer and the person apologized profusely.

Whenever we wanted towels at the pool, someone was always there. We didn’t have to sign for them and if anyone left a towel on a chair, an employee came and picked it up. The pool area never looked messy and there were plenty of lounge chairs available. Apparently they even provide kids water toys for the young guests.

No one was rude and never once did I encounter any anti-American or anti-English-speaking attitudes anywhere in French Polynesia.

Other Amenities

Le Meridien has twelve over water bungalows. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see the inside of one. They seemed to bigger than the rooms and had large porches for reading, relaxing, and dining.

The pool is a manmade and has a sand bottom. There is a manmade beach that flows right into the pool. The deepest part was less than 5 feet. It’s quite large with a free form shape and lots of space to cool off. You probably can’t do any serious swimming here, though.

Lagoon has strong currents and its beach is small. Beaches in French Polynesia are public so the beach at the lagoon will have some people who are not guests. (Non-guests are not allowed at the pool or pool beach.) If you choose to snorkel or kayak just be aware of the currents so that you can get yourself back safely.

On Monday through Saturday, Le Meridien offers a free shuttle service into the city of Papeete. The schedule while we visited was

Leave hotel 9:00 am
Leave town 12:00 noon
Leave hotel 2:00 pm
Leave town 5:00pm

The shuttle is Meridien’s own le truck. It is open air, not air-conditioned, but has more comfortable seats than the public le trucks. It is possible to take the Meridien truck one way and use a cab or local trucks the other. Just be sure to tell them that when you make a reservation so that they won’t wait for you thinking you are lost.

There is a tour desk at Le Meridien for booking excursions. I booked our off road adventure through email before I left but the company had no problem picking us up and returning us to le Meridien. I did confirm the tour once I got to Tahiti and the local phone call from the hotel only cost 100 francs.

Nearby

The Museum of Tahiti and her Islands is within walking distance. The cost is 600 francs and interesting if you have an hour or two. The displays have English descriptions and concentrate on the native Polynesian experience before and after the white man’s coming.

For less expensive food try the little restaurant next door called Le Cigalon. They are open for lunch and dinner but closed on Monday. They have pizza, burgers, ice cream, salads, fries, etc. They even speak a little English but don’t worry the menu is in English. The pizzas are very thin crust and about 12 inches in diameter. The salads could be a meal by themselves. We shared a pizza and a salad. With two soft drinks it came to about $20-$22. That is fairly inexpensive by French Polynesian standards.

About another block down from the pizza place is a small grocery store. They were open Sunday morning but not Sunday afternoon. Also, they were closed the Saturday we arrived because it was a national holiday. They have bread, cheese, soft drinks, snacks, whatever you would find in a grocery store. We had a lunch of French bread and cheese one day that made us feel like we were in Paris.

Conclusion

If I am ever so lucky as to get back to French Polynesia, I would definitely consider staying at Le Meridien again.

For More Info

The hotel has a nice website with good pictures of the rooms and lobby.

http://www.lemeridien-tahiti.com


Recommended: Yes