arxcards

They all do it, and it is more about not letting the cat out of the bag until they have had time to notify the affected passengers. Officially, it is only supposed to be travel agents and those booked on the 18th October cruise that know of the cancellation. The speculation begins as soon as a cruise can no longer be booked. Carnival goofed last year when their brand ambassador announced the big news of Carnival Spirit basing in the US. Good news for everyone, except those already booked for the same times on Brisbane departures. These days though, they need to find a smarter way, because we are much more efficient at sharing information these days. No way my T/A would accept a booking for one of those affected cruises, as he knows he would be doing a lot of work for $0 commission.

I am disappointed that this cruise is still showing this morning. There is no benefit in them booking you to something they need to refund - double the effort for nought, for everyone involved. I looked-up this cruise yesterday, so it generates an email from Princess encouraging me to book. The wording is ironic

The fine print for the Carnival brands (Carnival, P&O, Princess) is harder to spot than it used to be, but there is still a restriction in play for schoolies and the holiday season that follows. For cruises operating in Australia: All guests under the age of 18 must travel with a guest age 18 or older. Age-restricted cruises: For cruises departing from an Australian port between November 1st and January 7th, any guest under 19 years of age on the day they board the cruise must travel in the same stateroom as a responsible adult 19 years or older. In addition, from January 8th to January 31st, there is a limit on the number of guests under 19 years of age who can travel unaccompanied. Once the limit is reached, a responsible adult 19 years or older must travel in the same stateroom. We can advise you at the time of booking whether the limit applies to your booking. Princess Cruises can waive the responsible adult Australia & New Zealand 9 requirement at its discretion. The responsible adult is accountable for guests under 19 years of age in their stateroom for the duration of the cruise, and the ‘Rights of the Captain’ will be applied to anyone who displays disruptive behaviour. The difference prevents 18-year-old schoolies from becoming the "responsible adult" in the cabin, which could affect the 18yo in your group. I am not aware of Royal Caribbean's Quantum having similar restrictions.

Splendor's next scheduled Vila call is when korky1 is aboard.

A lift counterweight on the loose?

I am hearing murmurs that she will do a few cruises out of Sydney in October 2024 before heading back to Brisbane. These will be Rock the Boat/Elvis/Cruising Country charters. Rock the Boat is awesome and priced to match.

Thank you! I love your candour. I do like the look of the cabin. Brisbane embarkations are so much better. 😉 In Sydney, Carnival had days when Splendor's queues were down to the ferry wharves. I noticed that Cassidy Rae was doing a resident musician piano & vocals show - did you get to see any of her shows?

It is pretty much in the middle of it all. Lots of dining options a short walk away, and Luke Mangan's Glass Brasserie is in the hotel. It is a couple of km's back from the harbour at Circular Quay, but easy to get around the city. Probably a bit far to walk to the passenger terminal with luggage, but an easy cab ride.

Pro - your views are both to port and to aft. I wonder how much use the balcony will get during an ocean crossing, and the balcony is a bit open to the weather. Two steps and you also have access to a more protected aft deck which is not often frequented. Possible banging of the door by the few that use the back deck. Aft lifts are a great way to get around Coral, so even though it is as aft as it gets, you can get around the ship easily enough. Only possible con I see is being on the end of the see-saw if a Tasman crossing is a bit bumpy. That isn't an issue for us.

I had friends call there on Pacific Adventure a couple of weeks ago. They tendered to a temporary wharf at the back of the markets, the same spot where Claude's water taxi used to operate from. Tendering there would be a bonus, but I don't know how short lived that option is and if the size of Pacific Adventure played a part. I can only be confident that you will be allowed in. Pacific Encounter is due in Port Vila on Monday, and that will be worth keeping tabs on.

I am sorry to hear that. It sucks. No, not thrilled or even vindicated, but that itinerary looked vulnerable from the time they chose to relocate Coral back to the US. Just part of their craft where they announce the ships that are arriving, but don't mention which ones are departing. As a company it would be nicer if they were upfront. You can't blame those on the other end of the phone though, as they really wouldn't know until they see the changes on the screen in front of them. Sadly, when you go to Princess, your cancelled Oct 18th cruise is still available for booking. That should shake out over the next couple of days along with the replacement itineraries. She will really need a drydock by then.

Nothing in Australia has changed in the 3 weeks since that post. There has been no announcement about any forthcoming changes to the Australian East Coast Cruise Protocols. The status quo is in play until those government protocols are changed. At this stage for the Carnival brands in Australia,vax and pre-cruise testing remain in place until at least the end of August. As this is a HAL thread, it is somewhat irrelevant to them until they return to Sydney in October, and it is hoped that everything will be relaxed by then. We are rolling into winter now, and few ships remain - Carnival Splendor plus 3 x P&O Australia ships. Coral Princess is about to depart on a world cruise, but with Australian based rules at the time of departure. She will be away for 3 and a half months, so they are also hoping the Australian rules will be lifted before they return on 20th September. This is why they have no protocols listed going forward, but do have these general comments on their CruiseHealth page: It’s easier than ever to prepare for your cruise. All guests are welcome – regardless of vaccination status – and vaccination and testing requirements have been lifted! This applies to itineraries to all destinations except where government regulations may vary like Australia voyages that have their own vaccination and testing requirements.

The same aspect of view is available at Quay West and Four Seasons. Quay West is still up the hill a bit, but only halfway, as you can enter via a basement lift from the street below. Quay West has a top floor pool & balcony to get the pics without a window reflection.

I I agree. In most ways, Princess is a notch or two above. I am not a fan of P&O's dining rooms, but their menus on the first cruise after the restart were the same as they had been 5 years before. Same now as it was back then, it is a bit hit and miss for my liking. Princess is better but has also slipped a bit too. Regarding cabin layouts, all of P&O's ships used to be Princesses (Explorer was Dawn Princess, Adventure was Golden, Encounter was Star). The decor in the cabins has changed, but the layout and furniture have not. Yes, there will be a difference from ship to ship, but it isn't a Princess to P&O difference. On Pacific Explorer, as it was on Dawn/Sun/Sea Princess, there is even 2 different cabin layouts for identical grades of cabin.

Some overnight in Cairns and those usually skip Port Douglas. Others spend the one day in Cairns, but only cruise to Port Douglas for the next day. If anyone is prepared to pay for a night off the ship in Cairns and a 1hr shuttle up the highway to Port Douglas the next morning, it opens-up more possibilities for GBR out of Cairns.

I don't really have an opinion either way on the Grace. Yes, the building is interesting. For a bit more art deco, also take a look at Luxury Accommodation in Sydney - Kimpton Margot Sydney which is also home to Luke's Kitchen, although I don't think it is open every day. Luke's Kitchen | Kimpton Restaurants (ihg.com)

Carnival has a much shorter window than most. Don't know why. They all have their own versions; Princess is at 59 days.

They reinstated priority boarding in November, but likely that was after you had printed your boarding pass last time around. Do it early to be sure you get an early slot, but you should also have that front of queue priority boarding that you have earned.

I must admit I haven't taken notice of exact timing. I wonder if it is like Princess, where the number of days is based off a US West Coast time zone. If the case, it will open in the wee hours of tomorrow morning.

28 - 14 = 14 days? Would be the same for those without the priority VIFP boarding, and you should also get your extra couple of days this time as well.

Either/or for me. If you are doing the sounds last, you are going clockwise around New Zealand, and between ports you will get to see some glimpses of land on the starboard side. For Milford Sound, you will see most of what you didn't see going in while going out. As you see with the earlier photo, the scenery can be spectacular, and I prefer to be up on deck for that and overlooking the bow if possible.

One of the main players in CMV has returned with Ambassador, which seems to be CMV MkII. Their flagship is the old Pacific Dawn, which will be down here as part of a world cruise in Feb/Mar next year. It would be nice if they have some local vacancies to see how they look in their new pyjamas.

When in January? Close to New Years is really expensive around the harbour. Convenient or budget? View of the harbour, or no view required? For me, if price doesn't matter - Quay Grand Harbour room. If price does matter - Marriot is convenient and good value. Rydges Sydney Harbour is closest to OPT, but not on my short list.

The hull issue is about cleaning of fauna & flora from it, which has affected several ships this season. Some ports in NZ, particularly the fiords and Bay of Islands, require the ships to certified to be "clean". NZ put more restrictions in place for this just before the pandemic, and during the pause most of the ships got "dirty" at anchor and subsequently failed their compliance inspections. With Explorer heading-off soon for a season based in Auckland, it appears that there are even more restrictions, and they scheduled for divers to clean the hull while at anchor off Bussleton. Alas, conditions were too rough, and the job is yet to be completed.

No fault line.