Bubbeh

If you normally enjoy train travel you will probably enjoy the RM. For the most part, I don't like train travel. I'm told the scenery was spectacular but, lets be honest, once you've seen one snow capped mountain or one rapids flowing through a gorge, you've seen them all. However, it is extremely well organised and the staff were excellent. It's just not for me. I've also done the Indian Pacific and The Ghan and wouldn't give you two knobs of goat poo for those either. Yet, know people who rave about their experience on both of these trips.

Did the Rocky Mountaineer before COVID, while the service was great and the seating was comfortable, it was boring as bat sh!t. We did it as an extension tour following an Alaska / Canada / Inside Passage trip. Not cheap but it was a once in a life time experience. Grumpy just loves train travel but I tend to think of it as like flying only it takes longer and is less exciting.

Hope it was a good one and that you were made a super fuss of by those that matter most. Dee x

My advice for what it's worth, fly Business or at very least Premium Economy. Crikey if you have to sell someone's kidney to do so, just do it!

Hey Mic, is it your birthday today?

I recently used my card to purchase a green chilli at Woolies - a whole 65 cents worth!

Best course of action? Just ignore it. With regards to your query about using credit cards exclusively, I can't remember the last time I used cash other than in a caravan park for the washing machine and even some of these now are for CCs. Seriously, if I came upon a business that refused to take a card, I'd just move on to the next one.

A brilliant post and surely an acceptable compromise.

I'm beginning to wonder if this is a wind up. How much clearer can the responses be? Do not tip, it is not necessary and should not be encouraged. However, if you absolutely must then 'be kind to your mother' and 'look both ways before crossing the street' are perfectly acceptable tips.

Nothing, not a penny. It's their job and they are already paid to do it.

Why would you want to? You have every right to expect great service all the time, it shouldn't be related to whether you're going to tip or not. Please don't do it, this only serves to undermine our industrial relations system. I don't mean to be rude, but I honestly can't understand this need to impose your societal norms on other cultures.

Some people are just no better than they need to be and some people are in the wrong jobs. Tipping them isn't going to change anything.

Equally our employers do not need any excuse to downgrade an employees rights to a fare living wage.

Thank you, this is exactly right. Please don't tip! We pay people a living wage and do not want to change that by expecting clients/customers to subsidise an employee's wage.

Oh no, you mean I will have to experience this on next year’s Australia/New Zealand cruise too? If you're lucky. 😉