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matamanoa

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  • Posts

    1,780
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About Me

  • Location
    Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • Interests
    reading, painting
  • Favorite Cruise Line(s)
    Princess
  • Favorite Cruise Destination Or Port of Call
    caribbean

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matamanoa's Achievements

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Cool Cruiser (2/15)

  1. There are so many choices of quaint towns and attractions to see around the Southampton area. We spent three days in Bath a few years ago pre cruise and thoroughly enjoyed it. Easy train ride back to Southampton to catch the ship. We've also spent a day in Brighton and it was a straight train run there from Gatwick airport where we landed. Interesting town as well. There is a lot to see and do in Portsmouth and we spent the day there this past summer. Would have liked more time, a two day stay would have been nice. So much to see just in the dockyard area. We have also spent some time in the towns in the New Forest but luckily we had friends who were driving us around on that trip. It's a bit harder when you are on your own without a car but the area is beautiful. The Cotswolds are one of our favorite areas to visit but again harder to get around in if you don't drive your own car. Whatever you choose to do pre cruise will no doubt be amazing as there is spectacular scenery and so much quintessential UK, that you'll want to come back for more! Enjoy your time there and your cruise. Barb
  2. Based on our own past experience, that flight is too early. Don't stress yourself out at the end of your cruise. Either book a later flight or stay over an extra day. Barb
  3. absolutely gorgeous picture. Well done! Barb
  4. While our cruise didn't leave from Whittier but from Seward instead, we used the Alaska RR for our transfer from Anchorage and it was a wonderful experience. Our luggage was handled by train staff, we were served a delicious breakfast while riding through the countryside, listening to an on board naturalist describing the flora and wildlife and we were able to get a different perspective of the land by traveling inland and not hugging the coast on a bus. Very positive experience.
  5. Thanks for the useful tips. The walk we are taking is free and is run by the city. They do cover a fair bit of ground so should give us the most value for the short amount of time we have in Melbourne. A friend did recommend the Hopetoun Tea Room and said that we might need a reservation. From the pictures that I've seen for the lineups waiting to get in, we'll keep our fingers crossed that we can get a seat without too much of a wait. It looks just like my kind of place. I'll check out the website you suggested for St. Kilda.
  6. We love quaint little shops and alleyways, art museums (not modern art). We are taking a guided walk around the CBD one morning, so that should show us some interesting places that we might want to pop back to. We like antiques and historic architecture. And - I love tea rooms and being able to have a cream tea!
  7. I'm sure we will. The only problem is that we have so little time to discover your wonderful city. My husband and I will be coming through Melbourne on a cruise and so that affords us one day in the area. We don't plan on going into the city that particular day as we will be back again after the cruise ends. At that time, we will have two days to see whatever we can of Melbourne and then we're off again on another cruise. So the first time in port, we are going to stay in the port area and discover the shops, restaurants and galleries in the beach area and Bay St. On our second time in Melbourne a week later, we will have more time to see what the CBD has to offer and I'm sure we'll enjoy our brief stay. Barb
  8. Thanks again Leigh for answering. Barb
  9. Another question if you don't mind. We will be using the tram service on Easter Sunday to get to the cruise port. Due to the holiday, will tram service run on a lighter schedule with fewer trains available? Barb
  10. Thank you Yarramar and Possum52 for the information. The tram sounds perfect! Barb
  11. What is the best way to get from our hotel (Ibis Budget Melbourne, at Collins and Elizabeth Strs) to the cruise port? My husband and I will have a medium suitcase and a carry on each. Thanks for any advice. Barb
  12. Please return to the old format. This one is ridiculous and as JB put it, if it doesn't go back to the old format, then I won't be reading it. Please don't change anything else!
  13. Contact Custom Irish Tours. We have used them before and Derek is a wonderful guide. Their website is www.customirishtours.com One tour in particular which we really enjoyed was the Beautiful Meath County Wicklow Tour.
  14. My husband and I have spent some enjoyable hours listening to informative and educational talks from naturalists, historians and other speciality speakers. We have found that the lectures on health - accupuncture, beauty products, relieving stress topics - are usually the ones which invite you to buy products after their presentations and we avoid those talks. You have to read your daily activities list carefully to see what is on offer on any particular day and you should be able to choose from a variety of lectures that occur mostly on sea days. We particularly enjoyed the daily lectures from a retired high school teacher whose talks about the South Pacific and Hawaii were standing room only on the four or five sea days it took to get to Hawaii from LA. If you were to be on an Alaskan cruise, there is almost always a naturalist on board who gives lectures over the PA system as you are sailing into a fjord or some other natural landmark along the way. As was mentioned above, the art auctions might not be your cup of tea but perusing the artwork itself could be of interest. There are so many activities listed daily and you can pick and choose what you want to attend. Sometimes one of the officers on board will give talks about the workings, etc. of the ship and they are always interesting talks, as are the Q & As events from one of the higher ups on board - the captain or another one of his officers. Enjoy your cruise! Barb
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