Port Power

We love Azamara and are pleased there will be a third ship. Especially as it will be refurbished to the current decor. Nevertheless it should be an offence to sell a cruise when the Company well knows the ship is being sold. Negotiations didn't suddenly take place last week. P&O UK should have to foot the bill for costs incurred in changing to a new itinerary, like extra hotel nights or flight changes. Yep, last minute cruises only are in our future. Carol

We've flown from Perth on embarkation day three times now, also arriving around 11:30am. Even when the rugby was on, a taxi had us at the OPT by 1 o'clock. There is still plenty of wriggle room for strong winds or late arriving aircraft and getting to the ship by a 4pm deadline. Even better it there's a late sail away. We'll do it again.

You individually register for the Cruise Critic Meet & Mingle (aka Meet & Greet) or Connections Party with most of the larger cruise lines (see on banner at top of this page), but not NCL. Someone on the Roll Call actually has to volunteer to email NCL Events to set it up and advise numbers. Then the rest get to read about where and when in the daily program.

You still keep all the perks you received when booking on boad, but usually receive additional on board credit from your TA when you transfer the bookng to them. As that OBC is refundable, that's as good as a further discount. Personal recommendation is the best referral. Remember you have a time limit to transfer a booking though.

Just booked the Maasdam, we are so excited! Can anyone tell me about the Wifi onboard? And any comments regarding the lanai ocean view rooms? Thanks.

I've always found the production shows on HAL to be excellent. We prefer HAL over Royal Caribbean. Classy compared to brash. HAL is much more gracious. Also a free laundrette.

In South America there were few really older passengers, so I think Australia will also be a mix of 40's upwards, including folk in their 70's and early 80's. My Mum still loves to cruise at 87 and she's not doddery. Plus January being school holidays.

We have had a window cabin looking out onto the promenade deck. The windows are coated so passers by cannot see in during the day. However, with the lights on in the cabin, close the curtains. On some ships this cabin can become a "lanai" cabin with the window becoming a door onto the promenade deck. Personal choice if you think it's worth the extra money. What if the smoking area is just outide your door? Or you might consider it as good as a balcony.

WiFi is as slow as any other ship at sea. Nothing different there Enjoy your cruise.

We've claimed twice when having to return to Australia mid cruise because of family emergencies. Was paid on full both times, albeit with some hassle on one claim. However, as others have mentioned, we did actually read the brochure to find out what was covered, what was not, age limits, etc. Notably, different banks require different spend amounts to be covered. Keep the statement which shows when the initial deposit was paid. And yes, I read the section that said the card had to still be in use at the time of the claim. That seemed pretty obvious to us anyway. It would be like claiming on house insurance after the policy had expired.

Yes, read the PDS. If it's not right for you, buy travel insurance that is.

Hi,I have given Sun Princess our credit card details for our South Pacific cruise, Do they charge a percentage if they bill me from card ?

If so is it possible to pay in cash on last day if you are making no more purchases

Cheers

We were on Sun Princess last month. Registered our credit card, but like Mr Walker, paid using our EFTPOS card (no fee) the day before disembarking. Therefore only cocktails the last night on the c/c. All in Australian dollars through an Australian bank, so no overseas transaction fees.

Beware if registering a debit card. Ships can hold a very large sum of your money, but not return it until well after the cruise.

You can view your account on your tablet, and also print it out from the machine next to guest services at any time.

We are going to be in Dunedin for 2 days on our cruise. Based on the available ship excursions and what I have found out about Dunedin, I can't figure out why we have 2 days there. Am I missing something?

DON

You sure are! The aforementioned Speights Brewery tour is excellent. Also the Taieri Gorge scenic train booked through local company Good Company Tours.

Opposite the train station is the Settlers museum in the old Bus Maintenance Depot. We spent hours in there. Memories of our childhood. Just a fantastic place, and FREE. The HOHO bus takes you from the port and delivers you back later too. Plenty to do over two days for sure.

Has anyone done the Taieri Gorge train from Dunedin?

I'm interested in the 4 hour tour departing the train station at 9:30am and then having free time to explore Dunedin in the afternoon.

We booked directly with Good Company Tours. They pick you up from the ship. If two ships in port, the cruise companies book out the train, but if only one ship, the locals have capacity. We can highly recommend this local tour company.

Can anyone help me please I'm wanting to join the meet and mingle for 22 July 17 , navigator of the seas. ...having trouble doing so as can't find it ???

Cheers x:D

On the blue banner at the top of this page, click on Meet & Mingle. It takes you to the page to Register for M&M. Click on that sentence. Fill in the ship, date of departure and your cruise reservation number. Have a great cruise.

P.S. It is best to ask these sorts of questions on your particular roll call.

We were on Sun Princess last week. Cocktails AU$9.95 and $13.95. Cider $6, Prosecco $9 for a piccolo. BUT.......There is 'Happy Hour' 3-4pm and 9-10pm in the Wheelhouse bar where the second drink is only $1. They don't open the prosecco or beer bottles either. I stocked the cabin fridge for drinking on the balcony or during afternoon trivia. Drinks package is still $59 (no extra service charge either). We took wine aboard for drinking at the dining table. An extra bottle is around $40. Overall our daily consumption was well short of the package price without skimping.

Coffee card is $35 and with that you can also get free pots of tea, hot chocolate and brewed coffee, even if you are not buying a specialty coffee at the same time.

Hi there

 

We are on the Norwegian Jewel in January with one day in Dunedin on 11th January.

 

Have seen companies offering transport into Dunedin. Would we need to pre-book or would there be ample transportation available on the day?

 

Many thanks for assistance.

We are on the same NCL Jewel cruise, but I haven't seen you post on the roll call for it. The HOHO bus picks up from Port Chalmers as well as the ship providing a shuttle for a fee. Other tours have also been organised, but you may have booked the nature excursion by now.

This is the only "airport" hotel that I think would make sense for the OP's plan. The difference between transferring to/from any other "airport" hotel and transferring to/from a hotel in central Sydney is relatively small, and IMHO more than made up for by the convenience of a hotel location in town.

 

One question would probably illustrate this if you pick some other "airport" hotel: once you've transferred there and checked-in, how are you going to get into town and how long would it take you?

Leave your luggage at Rydges at the International Airport (check in on your return) and then take the train into the city. Train takes about 15 minutes only and they are frequent. Price is about $14 one way, but only because of the train station fee (it's privately owned by the airport operator). A taxi to Cicular Quay is around $40. As you have to check onto the international flight in the morning at least two hours before departure, it's easier to walk across the road than battle traffic from the city (plus you don't have to get up as early). We always overnight at Rydges.

P.S. QANTAS isn’t a word, it's an acronym. Queensland IS spelled with a "u".

G'day all,Thats interesting re Port Power's comment re the same train for the cruise line and normal pickups at Dunedin. We were on Pacific Pearl around November 2015 and the train that ran from the dock was solely for the cruise passengers and proceeded through Dunedin station as a second train (noted with non ship tour cruise passengers boarding) waiting at the station. Our train proceeded up to Pukerangi While the other train now following went to Flat Stream (I think).

cya

BL262000

I only ever referred to the Taieri Gorge scenic train, which both cruise shore excursion passengers, independent passengers and private citizens travel on at the same time. I made no mention of any train at Port Chalmers.

There are also trains out of Dunedin Station doing other scenic routes besides Taieri Gorge.

hi guys. Doing a 12 nighter on celebrity solstice in January, 2018 to New Zealand from Sydney.

On the 30th January we arrive at Dunedin and we are really keen on doing the rail journey ( 4 ) hrs, taieri gorge. I have contacted Viator and it can only be done from 2.30pm that day which won't fit in with the cruise schedule. You can do this trip through the cruise line however they are charging a small fortune for the same tour.

Just wondering if anyone has another tour company that may be able to assist us.

Ps. The day before and after the trip is all good but for some reason not on our day. I suspect the ship has purchased most of the tickets however I'll stand corrected.

Regards bob.

Contact Good Company Tours. http://www.goodcompanytours.co.nz You can book the train through their website and they pick you up from the port. It is NZ$140 for the Train and City Combo tour.

Richard and Adele are locals. After two cruise ships took over the whole train a few years ago causing Good Company to have to cancel their confirmed bookings (we were one of those), the Rail company always allocates them a number of seats. And remember the ship's excursion is on the same train, so you won't miss it or be late back. We are booked with them again next January. There is a Plan B to bus one way and take the train back if the ship arrives after 9am.

There is also a HOHO bus that collects from the port except Sundays. Last time we used it the price wss NZ$15 pp. They ferry passengers back from central Dunedin late in the afternoon too if you have a ticket. Purchase at the port. If you don't take the Taieri Gorge scenic train, don't miss the Settlers museum across from the train station. It's free, and wonderful.

Enjoy Dunedin. Carol

Is it legal to charge for something that have not been delivered?

I wouldn't have thought so, but it seems might is right.

No you are not the only one, we have had the right amount given in future cruise credit, but are around £700 short on the cash refund, have been in touch with NCL and they said the rest has been paid to the agent and of course this hasn't happened.

We were on February 6 and February 18 B2B. The otner three groups with us on the first leg have all received their FCC as well as cash refunds, but not us. The FCC is in Latitudes account but through the TA we were only offered half the sum thd others received! Weird. NOTHING for the second cancelled leg. We also emailed at least five NCL executives but eventually only received one response after the third lot were sent. Also, what was promised verbally on board isn't backed up by Corporate. Truthful answers to questions we asked on board would definitely have caused us to make different decisions.

It's just rolled into the price. They're under the same umbrella corporation as Oceania which has always done it this way.

 

One thing that Oceania doesn't do is refund any charges for missed ports.

NCL doesn't refund port fees for missed ports either, even when you miss 90% of the ports.

Celebrity and Azamara certainly do.

I think you would have a much stronger case as you would/should have the paperwork saying that they were refunding your cruise and why.

We do have it in writing.

Let's start with Fair Trading or whatever it's called these days. Hopefully NCL Corporate are just dragging their heels. Still, it is stressful and annoying having to constantly chase them up when calls and emails are not responded to after the initial "I'll look into that for you". If only there was an actual office where we could talk to an actual person face to face. (Which would happen if we lived in Sydney.)

Believe me, I keep ALL paperwork from initial booking until well after we return home. NEVER throw away anything or delete emails. At the least it may be needed for an insurance claim if the trip is broken because of a family emergency, etc. Now I also keep break down of prices: cruise fare, taxes & govt fees, gratuities, etc.

But of course if it has settled we'll never know the outcome. Who paid who what.

Thanks for keeping us informed. It has been interesting, especially in case we have to go after NCL for our promised refund when taking up their option of cancelling our Norwegian Star cruise.

Every time I see this thread come up I think he's experienced something to do with this:

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/02/14/asia/australia-billion-dollar-ice-seizure/

This thread has gone off topic, but in such an Australian way. Which is another reason 4flushing spent an over the top amount of money on an itinerary that really didn't suit his needs at all. Hence his expectations were not met. But of course that wasn't HIS fault.

Last March/April we were on a Panama Canal cruise with Celebrity. The Cruise Director had told us all about a pair of rare flightless birds, thought to be extinct, which had been discovered on one of the islands. Game wardens had been keping watch over them. The birds had produced an egg which was due to hatch, so there were lots of media folk hidding in the bushes ready to take photos. The birds were called Yadslooflirpa. Our ship would be passing the particular island about 1pm that day.

Well, the promenade deck and jogging deck were packed with passengers hoping for a glimpse of these birds. Many passengers had binoculars or zoom lenses on their cameras.

The convoy was rather slow and the onboard naturalist spoke about the flooding of the area when making the canal as well as the discovery of the birds. We were all really excited about a possible sighting.

Well, did that CD and naturalist have all us passengers going! And for so long! That day was April 1st. And the bird's name was "April fools day" backwards.

When the men confessed their scheme, we could hardly believe that they had tricked nearly the whole ship. It was a really good day and taken in good humour by all.

We were on a cruise one March heading towards tbe Suez Canal. The lady in front of me at the service desk was telling the receptionist that she had booked a balcony cabin, but there was no sun on her balcony, so the Captain should turn the ship around! Amazes me that some staff can remain straight faced and so polite.

Both passengers don't have to upgrade to Premium, so if only one of you wants Gentleman Jack instead of Jim Beam for instance, it can be worth it. If you have excess OBC, try it out.

On Celebrity Eclipse (a Solstice class) we have upgraded to a Concierge cabin - but only becase there was a promotion giving C2's at ocean view cabin prices! NOT a difficult choice. Otherwise not worth an extra $100 per night IMO.

Because 4flushing only embarked in Auckland, there was ample opportunity for land touring prior to the cruise. The cruise only missed Brisbane (a river problem or some such, not the ship's fault this time). Every other advertised port was reached as this was after the azipods were repaired. Being a northern Australian and tropical cruise, the focus was on snorkeling by then. He should have cruised the southern states for kangaroos and koalas. A great many passengers took the opportunity when stuck in Melbourne to visit Healesville Sanctuary.

If local fauna was so important, Taronga should have been his top prioity for Sydney.

And ALL these tender ports were advertised before the cruise and discussed on the roll call, including Yorkey's Knob and Athol Buoy, so it's not like he didn't know beforehand it was not a major-city cruise. The nature of the scenic locations meant going to non docking areas. It sounds like he really did think kangaroos and koalas would be roaming the city streets! His lack of knowledge can't be blamed on either Australia or not choosing the right ship excursion.

When we toured Canada, I didn't see a moose. Is that Canada's fault too?