ROCruiser

Hi, Ombud. It may be easier to get over to the Central district in the morning using MTR and join the tour. After the tour, you can go to Li Yuen East/West, Escalator, and Man Mo Temple which are all in the same vicinity. Then take the Star Ferry (a must-do in HK), to Kowloon side and see the Avenue of the Stars, Kowloon Park, Temple Street, etc. They are in the Tsim Sha Tsui and Jordan area within a mile or so walking distance or one MTR station away.

On our port day in Hong Kong December 2018, this was what we did. Not sure if it still works the same way though. HK is an easy port if you know how the MTR works and if all else fail, taxi is easy and not that expensive.

When we cruised from Singapore to Yokohama this past March, our first Japan port was Ishigaki. Spent hours on the ship waiting to clear immigration and left with two hours to see the town. Then we took the 9-Day Princess cruise around Japan. Re-entering Japan after a stop at Jeju, Korea. No problem at the first port in Nagasaki, no delays.

We took the taxi from port to downtown and got on the City View bus there. Purchased the one-day pass from the driver. Here is what we did on our day there.

Make sure the cruise terminal is right in town. We were there in March and our cruise docked quite a way away from the city center. They did provide complimentary shuttles though. Our port day was short, very short, due to immigration process which left us with only two hours in town so I cannot be much help. Here is a video of our fail stop in Ishigaki.

Never been to Sakata but Nagasaki is easy. If mobility is not an issue, their local trams are easy to use. A tram station for tram #5 is right near the port. You can get a one-day pass at the port and ride their trams all day. Shimizu, we walked to the train station but did see taxis available.

Our ship (Cunard Queen Elizabeth) docked at the pier near Rizal Park March 2023. We also had a day at Puerto Princesa before Manila. We just walked around Rizal Park on that day and stayed near port because it was a Saturday. Was told not to wander too far because of weekend traffic.

Thank you! I started the blog about 10 years ago, mainly to keep memories alive when husband kept forgetting where we have been and to let friends and family know what we have done. Same thing with the videos. Hoping these records will help travelers who may be visiting these ports in the future. Have a wonderful trip. It's not easy to take a group along, air tags can be a good idea. Haha!

Thank you so much for the kind words. We have been to Japan many times but I have only recorded a few visits there in my blog. A longer cruise that we went on around Japan was July 2015. That one included a port day in Busan (which may be different now transportation wise). Then, we also had some port days in Japan on our transpacific cruise May of 2018; a family reunion cruise to Japan November 2018; and a couple of ports on a cruise out from Yokohama to Singapore December 2018. In July 2019, we did a Japan cruise from Hong Kong. Lately, the March cruises from Singapore to Japan and another transpacific cruise in May of 2023. These are all in my blog, not all on videos because I started learning how to edit videos during the pandemic. Here is the link to the Home Page of my blog. Thank you so much for visiting.

Did ours today for the October/November Princess cruise. Son was the tech guy and did everything using the App. Got the Australia ETA soon after the application for all three of us. My NZ application was pending but husband and son's got approved soon after. I finally got the approval email back a few hours later. All set!

We've been to Naha three times. The first time we chartered a private bus on our family reunion cruise because my 90 year FIL was with us. We went to Naminoue Shrine/Beach and Fukushuen Park on the 2nd and 3rd visits. Here is a video of our visit in March 2023 and this was from 2019.

Depend on your group. If they are active and able, I think it's fun getting to Sapporo in the morning and then back to Otaru for the afternoon. You won't be able to see everything on one trip anyway and getting a chance to say 'Yes, we did that!' surely beats not getting there at all. We did not go to Sapporo on our first visit because FIL was with us and he was in his 80's. Not a good idea to take him on long walks like that. Otaru is mainly the canal and shopping. For us, we don't need that much time in that city. But then each person is different. Some may find it relaxing just walking around Otaru and shop.

That sounds like fun! Traveling with friends and leading the group can be challenging depending on everyone's interests and mobility issues. We have always had friends traveling with us in ports. Last year when husband and I went on the Alaska cruise and then the Coastal cruise (have not worked on the videos on that cruise yet), it felt so relaxing with just the two of us doing whatever we wanted with nobody else in mind. We had to tell a couple of friends that they can't join us on the Oct cruise because of their health issues. I just cannot be responsible if anything happens while we are at sea in the middle of nowhere. They were the ones who lost their passports and money in Copenhagen in 2017. Almost missed getting on the second cruise because we had to run around getting the police report and their replacement passports. Sorry, didn't mean to complain. You asked about the Sapporo stop. Now I am not sure if that was the last stop on that train but I am sure you won't miss it because that's the stop many people will be getting off. I always follow the route using Google Map just so I know exactly where we are.

Wow! That would be quite a disappointment with so many ports canceled! We have done NZ in 2014 and really enjoyed that so this will be revisiting three of the ports there. We are not excursions people, walking around and see how people live and eating local food would fit us fine. Yes, we are going to have many sea days on this cruise on this beautiful ship. I am curious about Papeete. We will have two days there also. Never been there before. Kind of decided what we will be doing in Hawaii. Thank you so much for the info. Regarding the videos, you will not find anything for our trips before 2019. I self-taught how to edit videos during the pandemic when we were under the safe-at-home order. Still learning. Only trips/cruises in the last few years are available. I do have a blog and you may be able to find something there. The link is also in my signature. Happy planning! I am also researching for our October cruise still. Thanks again!

Hi, Chubbypiggy, I understand that you have done the Majestic Princess from Sydney to L.A. We will be doing the reverse in October from L.A. to Sydney on Majestic Princess also. Please give us any tips and advise if you care to share. Don't want to hi jack this thread but not sure what's the best way to do this. Thanks!

First, to clarify, when I said it was 2007 that we walked back to port in Otaru, it was actually 2018. About taxis, Kagoshima was a port day on the Diamond Princess in March and we had 8 people total in our group. Two taxis was a little cramped but worked. We also had 2 taxis for Otaru for the 5 of us when we were on Cunard QE in May. If it is possible using your cell phone, take a screen shot of the Google map showing where you want to go to show the driver. It worked for us every time.

Good afternoon! 1. We stayed in Sapporo for a couple of hours only. I believe we arrived at the Sapporo Station around 10:00 something and we were back in Otaru around 1:30. 2/3. Trains run pretty frequently between the two cities, at least it seemed like. They have local trains and then the fast trains that make fewer stops. We just took whatever train that came by. It was less than an hour ride on the local train. The local trains stop at almost all the towns in between. 4. I believe dried seafood is OK to bring back to the US. Yes, we brought some back that my BIL shared with us. I regret not getting some myself. I should remember, "if you see something you want, buy it, because you never know if you'll see them again." 5. It's a 10-minute walk from Otaru Station to the Canal if you just keep walking without stops on the main street (Chuodori Street.) 6. From where we started (Chuodori Street end) of the canal it's probably a 15-minute walk with shops all along so there's plenty to see and shop. We were rushing through this because we were tired. 7. Now, I don't remember how much it cost for the taxi ride back to port. It's not a long drive so it should not be that much. In 2007, we walked back to port from Sakaimachi, very doable but we were really tired this time around. I think aging has a lot to do with it. 8. Yes, there were many taxis at port, I believe outside the gate. If you take a taxi, ask them to drop you off at the Otaruchikko Station and not the Otaru Station. The main station is farther away from port. But when you come back from Sapporo, get off at Otaru Station so you can explore the area. From Otaru Station just walk down the main street, it will take you to the Canal. (And the restaurant we recommend is also on Chuodori Street.) Hope these help!

Hi, Chubbypiggy! 1. Our port time for Kagoshima was 8:00 AM~4:00PM. Not exactly a very long day but we managed. 2. I believe we were at Sengan-en Garden for about two hours. I remember we just strolled around leisurely without rushing through. If we had time, I would love to have lunch there though. Prices looked decent. 3. Usually they let everybody out as soon as the ship was cleared. Unlike tender ports where they'd let those on excursions go first. 4. We bought the one-day pass on the bus from the driver with exact change. The Information Center at port did not sell those and the office in Tenmonkan was closed on that Saturday. I would think it's easier to get tickets at the Info Center if they were opened. 5. Now, I don't remember about the "Cute" card. For the ferry, you don't pay on the mainland side when you go across to the island. Just get on the ship and you pay on the other side when you get off the ferry. If I remember correctly, there's someone at the exit/entrance to collect money. On the way back, again, you pay before you board the ferry on the Sakurajima terminal to go back to Kagoshima. Hope I have answered all your questions about Kagoshima. Let me know if you need more info.

Hi! Yes, we always try to get off the ship as early as possible to avoid the crowds. The taxi line was about a 15-20 minutes wait (it felt much longer though). Maybe it has improved now because we were the first ship in port after the pandemic. As I suggested, check to see if there are other cheaper shuttles available at port once you got off instead of the expensive ones offer by Diamond Princess. We figured for the 8 of us, it was cheaper to get two taxis instead of using the shuttles. The closest tram station is pretty far from the cruise port. Have a wonderful cruise!

Have not had any problem, Been to Japan numerous times.

Oh, great! We are in Claremont, which city are you in? If you don't mind me asking.

I was just going to say that my Kagoshima video was the one time that the auto subtitle did not work therefore no captions was available. Good to know that you understand Mandarin! Wow! I am so envious of your trips coming up. Sounds fun! We love traveling around Japan. I am sure you all will have a great time!

We have stayed at Intercontinental Yokohama Grand before, a beautiful hotel. It's a little walk from the train station with luggage but a nice area to be. You may find more information in my blog post of other ports in Hokkaido in the past if not on the video list. That was before I started learning to edit videos during the pandemic.

Sorry it took me so long to see your post. So glad that my video helped. Yes, we were in Kagoshima and here is the video on that day. Now come to think of it, check to see if there are other kind of shuttles provided at port instead of the Diamond Princess one (quite expensive) that would take you to downtown. The taxi line was quite long on our day there and the DP shuttle was expensive. Walking out to the tram station was too far for some of us so we took the taxi after patiently waiting for a bit. The City View Bus was a good transportation between the sites just not to and from port. I also have videos on other ports like Beppu, Seogwipo, Miyazaki, and Wakayama. If you click on my name "Taste of Retirement" under the video, then go to 'video' you will find a list of all the videos that we have. Hope this help.

All you need to do is to walk down from Glover Garden, through the shopping street and you are back at the cruise terminal. Here is our day in Nagasaki, with Glover Garden at the end of the video.