Calabazar

We are on a 30 day cruise soon with the Plus package, which would give us each only 2 casual dining meals. I’m sure it would have been sold in segments (it’s a trans Pacific) but how do I find out? 

It seems crazy to me that it’s only 2 per cruise - we have 2 x 7 day B2Bs next year that would give us 4 meals in 14 days compared to 2 meals in 30 days.
I know we won’t starve but we prefer the Alfredo’s pizza to the Lido pizza, so having the option to eat more meals there would be nice.

We’ve been lucky to be offered move over deals twice, both pre Covid.

First was a cruise from Adelaide to Singapore, where we gave up our balcony cabin for an inside cabin of our choice on the same voyage, in return for a refund of our cruise fare as refundable OBC and specialty dining. 
 

Second time was Sydney to NZ return, where we had to give up that particular cruise completely and choose another in return for our cruise fare as refundable OBC and an upgrade from a standard balcony to a deluxe aft balcony. 
 

We elected to take up both offers as they worked for us and thanks to the advice from fellow CCers, I knew to get right back to them and grab them straight away!

I cruised with my 8 year old granddaughter in December, albeit in Australia. I had a letter from her mother (my daughter) just in case but at no stage was I asked to produce any documentation for her. It may have helped that we had the same surname but no one ever checked our relationship or whether she had permission to travel without a parent.
 

We had a similar situation recently and it turned out that we unknowingly had a transaction limit on our credit card, which prevented us paying the balance online. The solution was to pay via BPAY. 

As someone who has suffered with seasickness on almost every cruise I’ve been on, the only medication (over the counter or prescribed by my doctor) that has worked for me is SeaLegs, available from pharmacies in NZ but unfortunately not Australia. 

5 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Wow! 

 

And everyone entering the country has to self-quarantine for 14 days.

I wonder how the NZ authorities will enforce this? All very well to make the bold announcement but if it can’t or won’t be enforced, what’s the point?

6 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

I've been in the phone queue for two hours now.

Oh no! I just kept dialling and getting the busy signal, hang up call again. Repeat. After an hour of that I finally got the ringing tone. The consultant said she had been able to see how many calls were queued early on but then she couldn’t see anything. So maybe you are in a queue to nowhere? 

6 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

I've been in the phone queue for two hours now.

Oh no! I just kept dialling and getting the busy signal, hang up call again. Repeat. After an hour of that I finally got the ringing tone. The consultant said she had been able to see how many calls were queued early on but then she couldn’t see anything. So maybe you are in a queue to nowhere? 

After an hour of refreshing the Princess website on my laptop and phone as well as calling Princess, I got through calling.
I managed to get what I wanted but as the person I booked with said, what would normally take her 4 minutes to do, is taking 20. 

Hang in there and good luck!

3 minutes ago, mum and son said:

Why don't the government officials pull up every person re-entering the country who has claimed via the TRS for all items over $900? Or, even simpler, why don't they "remind" people at claim point that, you will be responsible for paying duty on return? 

A few reasons not everyone is pulled up, including resources, priorities (narcotics are rightly a bit higher up the list) and that because not everyone is doing the wrong thing it’s not a reason to pull everyone in for examination.
You will definitely be selected if you don’t declare your high value goods on return. After all, they know you are coming and it’s like shooting fish in a barrel. 

Just remember, by claiming on the TRS, ABF already know you have exceeded your duty free limit. If you choose to smuggle your goods back in (technically this is what you are doing if you avoid paying duty) you can risk having your goods seized. Just because you don’t see it being enforced, doesn’t mean it’s not😉

Could you not just order your drinks through the app and have them delivered to you? 

On 10/15/2019 at 12:06 PM, Aus Traveller said:

I am planning on doing this on our next couple of cruises where we don't have to fly to the embarkation port. I will split our wine stock between our two wheel-along hand luggage cases, even if I have to put a few lighter items (medications etc) in a large shoulder bag.

This is exactly what we do. Six bottles each in our cabin bag, even when we are flying to the port. Too easy 😉

Thanks Margo, I’ll start keeping a keen eye out then. 

Thanks Mic, that’s what I’ve been doing. Just hoping to narrow things down. 

Does anyone have any idea when Princess might release their itineraries for Alaska in 2021?

I don’t want to miss the boat again! 😉

Currently on Majestic and just had 4 sea days with origami and quilling offered. About to do 5 sea days so I’ll report in later what was offered on those days. There is the usual Knitters and Knatters get together each day. 

It seems there has been a much greater emphasis on dancing activities this cruise. 

I guess activities will depend on who the cruise director is, and that maybe someone different when you are cruising, to the current CD. 

Late dining - is that traditional? If so, 7.30pm is listed as the 2nd sitting time. 

Hope that is the info you were seeking? If not, let me know and I’ll get back to you in a few days 😉

15 hours ago, turquoisesea said:

The International Cafe is very big and easy to get lost in.  One of the crew suggested we note what color side we are sitting in - beige (light) or brown (dark).  That helped a bit. Did notice different selections found on different sides.  This was back when the ship was on her 4th cruise so things may have changed. 

I think you mean World Fresh Market Place (buffet). Very easy to get lost in! 

I was on Majestic in January, there was a table set up in the Piazza near Vines where drink packages could be purchased. No cup, $7 per day. 

4 minutes ago, cheznandy said:

I dont think it will do South Pacific and New Zealand originating in Adelaide......but time will tell!!

Here’s some more info regarding itineraries 

Adelaide itineraries on offer include:

• Two 7-night roundtrip voyages to Tasmania on Sea Princess visiting Burnie, Hobart and Port Arthur, with departures available on November 9 and 30, 2020. Fares start from $1,299 per person twin share.

• A 14-night roundtrip voyage on Sea Princess exploring the Australian coastline and featuring the ship’s maiden call to Eden as well as visits to Burnie, Hobart, Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane and Melbourne. Fares start from $2199 per person for the cruise which departs Adelaide on November 16, 2020.

• Two 17-night round trip cruises to New Zealand on Sapphire Princess, visiting Melbourne, Dunedin, Wellington, Napier, Tauranga, Auckland, and scenic cruising through Fiordland National Park. Departing October 26 and December 18, 2020. Fares start from $2,599 per person twin share.

• A 15-night cruise from Adelaide to Hong Kong on Majestic Princess, departing March 11, 2021 and visiting Fremantle, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City and Nha Trang is priced from $1,999 per person twin share.

Good news for those of us in Adelaide!

https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/two-princess-ships-to-be-based-in-adelaide-for-202021-cruise-season/news-story/071331fd6c9962b71753b52d49ff081a

Following. We will be boarding as you are disembarking.  

I have enjoyed your previous blog posts and am looking forward to seeing what you have to say about both the Majestic and NZ. My daughter and I did that cruise in January and loved it and the ship, hoping you will too!

If you need/want a seat get to your muster station early, don’t wait for the alarm to sound. The muster time is announced so aim to get to your station before that to secure a seat. 

On 2/8/2019 at 6:27 AM, cruisine21 said:

 The balcony was covered in soot and wasn’t cleaned. They couldn’t use the balcony.

Why not simply ask for it to be cleaned? Ah, no possibility of ‘compensation’ then 😏

I have also recently returned from a NZ cruise on Majestic, also in an aft cabin although on a lower deck. 

On a handful of occasions there were a few spots of soot visible on our balcony table. These were promptly taken care of by our steward without being asked. There were small ‘drifts’ of soot in the corners by the divider but they came and went. We used a couple of the pool towels on our chairs, just in case. 

All in all it was the best positioned cabin I have ever had - the wake view is the best - and I would hate anyone to be put off by these soot stories.

I find it more annoying when they have run out of a particular wine and there’s no compensation for that!