OzKiwiJJ

There is a nice Canadian Belgian-style beer that I had on a cruise a couple of years ago - La Fin Du Monde. High alcohol though, like many Belgian beers.

That dark ale looks good!

I can't give you any recommendations as I rarely drink beer, and when I do I prefer a darker ale these days. However you will be spoilt for choice in both countries.

Thanks. I will if it goes ahead but I can't see the Australian governments changing their minds by then. Interestingly I just looked at some all inclusive Australian resorts. Over $11000 for two for 7 nights. 😲 I'm paying that for 30 nights (drinks package included) in an inside cabin on Sapphire. OK the accommodation might not be as fancy in a cruise ship inside cabin but the scenery changes daily.

Princess are very diplomatic. Their reason for the current wave of cancellations for our region is "the Australian Government's approach to managing the resumption of cruising in the Australian region". I'm not sure whether to 🤣 or 😪.

I'm actually not sure, Jenny. The overall statement lists cruises though to 21st September but the detailed list of cancelled cruises doesn't include the 19th September Sapphire departure from Sydney. I'd love to have that one go ahead but I suspect the Australian governments will still be avoiding having cruise ships here then. Anyway we used an FCD as a deposit and final payment is still around six weeks away so we'll just have to wait and see what happens.

I actually went to one of the Riverdance live shows some years ago. It was amazing. Far, far better than I expected.

It's brilliant! Friends introduced us to it several years ago and we've watched it almost every year since. In the last few years it's been on sometime between 6pm and 7pm, perfect timing to sit down with a glass of champers and some canapes before our usual rolling feast seafood dinner.

Hawaii has done very well at controlling the spread so it might be feasible further down the track. I reckon they should start with Australia and NZ, then widen it to include South Pacific countries - New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji, as they need the tourism, and possibly even French Polynesia if their borders are closed to France at the time. Then start slowly extending it to Asia - Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand. Singapore still hasn't flattened out from their second wave. Hong Kong has done well with the virus but isn't great politically at the moment.

The port fees and taxes might arrive by cheque.

I refused to book with that TA after reading their T&Cs. 😲 In fact after a minor tussle with another online travel booking agency to get a refund, rather than a credit note, when the hotel itself had cancelled the booking at no cost, I don't think I'll be using any TAs or booking agencies any time soon, except for one US TA who is a real gem.

In this case it's not only the cruise lines, it's that specific TA. They require final payment three months earlier than the cruise line's final payment date plus I have seen posts elsewhere from people saying they have been told that their refunds will take another 90 days from the time the TA receives the refund from the cruise line (which may take 90 days).

I wouldn't risk it. You'd have to pay the full amount almost immediately using that online site, then if the cruise is cancelled you'll wait six months to get your money back.

We actually went out for lunch today. We went for a drive, firstly to Manly. It seemed quite quiet with only a few cafes open in the oceanfront cafe strip. So we went on to Dee Why, our favourite beachside dining area. It was buzzing. Some restaurants were still closed but quite a few were open. We had coffee at a new French cafe/patisserie then discovered a small Yum Char restaurant with outside seating. So we had some delicious dumplings and squid while we enjoy the fresh sea air. What a treat. It's been months since we were able to do this as I was badly affected by the bushfire smoke which kept me indoors most of summer, then lockdown happened. I feel like I've had a real morale booster. ☺️

Those countries have done very well in controlling the virus so far. I'd love to do a lengthy cruise there but the mass market lines just whizz though the popular ports as fast as they can, and I'm not sure I can afford the smaller or more upmarket lines now.