OzKiwiJJ

I know what you mean. We really struggled with the flights to and from Japan last year and we were flying business class. Mind you we had two short overnight flights, Singapore - Haneda and Singapore - Sydney, both too short to get any decent sleep especially with the weird angles of the seats in flat mode. I think I preferred the older style seats. They may not have reclined fully flat but at least you were lying straight instead of like a pretzel! We're hoping we have one more overseas trip left in us as we want to go to Europe in 2025. If we do I shall make sure we don't have any short overnight flights even if it means transiting in the Middle East or stopping over somewhere for the night.

I saw those when I was on my way to the airport in Orlando many years ago. It seemed a very sensible idea to me. I'm surprised it hasnt caught on in parts of Australia.

It depends on the length of the cruise. For the world cruise it's 115 days (US time) which is today. I haven't been able to see the minimums yet though.

The MDR was open for breakfast on the five cruises we did on Coral in 2022, on Grand last March and on Diamond in November. I think the times are earlier than regular cruise days though.

After many years I finally woke up the the fact that the disembarkation group only indicates the earliest time you can disembark. There is nothing stopping you disembarking a bit later. We leave our cabin by 8am as requested, have a leisurely breakfast in the MDR then disembark. Admittedly we request the latest set of time slots but they always allocate us to the earliest one of that set. Usually we're off within 30 minutes of our time so not delaying things too much. There are usually still groups being called as we leave.

I've been looking at it as I'm curious to see what upgrades they offer for the world cruise, if any. I can't see them yet though.

Probably but then you'd lose the effect and ambience of the fisherman's fibre shack.

The email comes from Princess but the bidding actually goes through a separate company. You can see that if you click on the Upgrade link in the Personalizer as it opens separate windows for info etc on the bidding.

We were on the West Coast once, having lunch at a cafe, and a blasted pukeko jumped up on the (outdoor) table and tried to steal our lunch! Cheeky bugger!

We've also had some of our first Princess bags disintegrate. I guess they are meant to be biodegradable so don't last for ever. We have gained a few since the restart. About 3 or 4 out of 7 cruises.

True but if you're only worried about the bugs they are an expensive option.

I don't recall ever encountering them in the North Island. Certainly not around Auckland or north of there.

Why? Hopefully Princess will read it and get a reality check.

On Coral the mini-suites and suites are mostly on decks 9 & 10. There are a few on decks 11 & 12 but they are on the midships bump. The only risk is the ones forward with no balconies.

That's expensive though whereas you can get 30 metre rolls of flyscreen mesh much cheaper.

I would be tempted to put in a lowish bid for the Vista Suite. The suites are lovely but there is no different between Vista and Premium other than location, and personally I think the Vista Suites are a nicer location.

I actually find the shower over the bath much easier than those tiny balcony cabin shower cubicles on Coral, despite my wonky knee. I just have to be careful getting in and out but it's not difficult. The added bonus is much more space to wash in and being able to prop my foot on the end of the bath when washing my leg.

Yes, Tim Ho Wan is a franchise. The original once won a Michelin Star I think and it got touted as the best in the world. One opened in Chatswood a year or so after Din Tai Fung opened there. We tried Tim Ho Wan once and it was terrible. It only lasted a year or two but Din Tai Fung is still going strong.

We did the America's Cup Yacht trip once. At the time we had been taking sailing lessons in Sydney so I jumped at the chance to take the helm for a couple of tacks. What an experience! That boat handled like a dream, it was so responsive.

Regular flyscreen is quite soft and fine so might not be suitable for walls on it's own but the flyscreen mesh could easily be attached to the existing netting.

That would be silly! 🤣

We had some OBC left on our 2022 HAL cruise so on the last night I went and bought a nice pair of earrings that were just a tad more than the remaining OBC. I find it much easier to have a small amount to pay on the account than to hassle with getting a refund. Also that way you're guaranteed to get a statement of account - Princess used to not give/send you one if the account was still in credit, you had to remember to get a printout from the kiosk.

Cover the netting with flyscreen mesh?

Or even worse - passengers defecting to other cruise lines.

Is there no way you could attach some sort of flyscreening over windows? Doors would be trickier though but Bunnings have these https://www.bunnings.com.au/pillar-160-x-200cm-black-magnetic-flyscreen-door-curtain_p3962037.