DesertGirl28

On 3/18/2023 at 3:43 PM, possum52 said:

Great information. Just to correct you - the OPT is the Overseas Passenger Terminal, so just the building and surrounds, where you board your ship from. Circular Quay is where the OPT is situated and the area just north of the OPT around to about 100-150 metres from the Opera House which is situated on Bennelong Point. I assume you mean the ferry piers when talking about the quays?

 

Hope you enjoy your trip back down under next year.

 

Yes, that is what I meant. Thanks for clarifying.

On 10/20/2022 at 7:19 AM, Relaxing Robbies said:

We are cruising to NZ in early November and have already made a booking for a tour at Zealandia. We will decide on the day whether to get the shuttle from the i-site or do the cable car first and shuttle from the top. The walk down through the botanic gardens is lovely if the weather is ok. 

We did a NZ cruise in 2020, just before COVID hit. We took the shuttle to Zealandia and went on a tour. I use a walker so they provided a scooter. We wanted to take the cable car back down but there was a sign on the cable car - cash only, local currency. We had only credit cards. We had to walk back down thru the gardens. Husband said it was nice, I was too busy working the walker's brakes so I didn't go over it. Just wanted to give you a heads up.

On 2/28/2023 at 6:56 PM, cruzky said:

Hello, 

 

We will be flying into Sydney on Jan 26th. Looking at staying at the Pier One Sydney Harbor Hotel for 5 nights.  Is this a nice hotel to stay in? Is this hotel walkable to the OPT? Need to find a liquor store in this area to purchase wine. Also a store selling suntan lotion, etc.

 

Thanks for your help

Roseanna

We were in Sydney just before/as COVID hit. We walked along the OPT towards the Opera House. We found a wine store that was very helpful and had both cheap and expensive wines. I can't remember which Quay but my husband thinks it was the 2nd or 3rd from where the ship was. We used it for the cruise to NZ and again for the circumnavigation of AU. Unfortunately the 2nd cruise was stopped after 3 days when everything shut down. We will be going back next Jan/Feb and will try to find the store again. 

Well, I finally got my notes all written up. Thanks Rick for your post. We were on the Northern Lights after this one so my notes are long. We were on deck 5 and never saw any tables during the 5 times we did laundry. I had heard (I think from someone who was on the previous cruise) that they had a lot of COVID and were restricting things. But most of those got off so it was just down to masks at the buffet. By the end of the next cruise even the dining staff showed their faces. There was still some on board but not that bad. For us, we are double vaccinated, triple boosted and had it during the 2nd half of May. We weren't worried. 

Here's our story

24 Day Cruise-Adventures.odt

We just got back from our In Search of the Northern Lights for 2022. There is a tour called Fjord Cruise Lysefjord & Preikestolen. You can book via the ship, Viator or directly. DO NOT book directly. They will not refund your money if the ship doesn't make port. Our captain canceled the port call the night before due to a need to out run a storm. Those passengers who booked via Princess or Viator got a refund. I booked directly but was refused a refund.

On 4/29/2022 at 3:31 AM, Globaliser said:

 

 

Last week, I bought a programme for a concert that I was attending, and was asked for cash. It was the first time that I had used cash for anything since Christmas. And in 2021, I think I probably made a cash transaction about once every three months, usually when paying for a taxi that was dropping me off in a phone blind spot where the card machine couldn't get a signal to authorise my card payment.

 

There has been a revolution in payment methods here (accelerated by the pandemic) that is difficult to overstate. I think that reports of street beggars proffering contactless card devices may be a bit overblown, but I couldn't be 100% sure. But the truth is that you can do pretty much everything by card payment. I often don't carry any cash with me. And many places simply will not accept cash at all.

 

One consequence is that there are now even fewer occasions on which you are expected to tip, in any form. Most restaurants add a service charge, and if they do there is no need to tip anything on top. Some restaurants don't do this, but the card payment machine will usually then give you a chance to choose how much to add on by way of a tip before you pay. If neither of these things happens, then IME staff don't seem to care at all, which is an indicator that they're being paid properly without either added service charge or tip.

  

 

Yes: if you get cash from a machine in London, it will almost certainly be all Bank of England notes, and you should have no difficulty using these throughout the UK and in the Channel Islands if you're going there.

 

Generally, difficulties only arise when trying to use Scottish, Northern Irish or Channel Islands notes in England - and even then it's a relatively rare occurrence, easily surmounted.

Thank you most sincerely for answering all my questions. I had just read that Channel Islands have their own currency. Looking forward to seeing the UK.

We will be coming into Heathrow and staying at the Premier Inn T4. Where is the best place (ATM) to get some currency for spending/tipping? I couldn't find an email for the hotel to ask them. Will the pounds I get be useable in other areas of the UK? Thanks in advance. 

On 11/10/2021 at 1:50 AM, JimChar said:

Just recently confirmed our Northern Lights cruise on Island Princess Oct 2022.

In super panic mode now as we have no clue what to expect except the Northern Lights part and it will be deep freezer cold (we're from always warm tropics).

Keen to find out what tours can we join at the stops. We do have an overnight in Alta (11am to 11pm next day). 

Any suggestions are utmost welcomed. Thank you

 

 

We will be on this cruise with you. I've started my research for the port calls. So far I booked a fjord cruise from Stavanger thru Rodne Fjord Cruise. It looks like a yacht type boat and it takes the Viator and ship's tour people. By booking directly it was half the price of Viator's. Here's the link https://rodne.no/en/booking/?r=Stavanger&t=2282&d=2022-10-09 For Tromso it lools likely we will do a ship's cruise Artic Ctr, Museum & Cathedral. In case you need the link for the Roll Call https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2773684-oct-07-2022-search-for-northern-lights-island-princess/ 

On 3/29/2020 at 8:11 PM, John Bull said:

 

Ibis Blackfriars is 10 min walk to ho-ho.

Premier Inn Southwark (note spelling) is 5 mins further.

I don't know either of those two, but we've happily stayed at a number of Premier Inns, and the  chain gets good reviews.

 

Not wishing to put a damper on your plans, but because the UK (or USA) may not be over the current issue by September I'd advise that you book cancelable. (if things are hunkey-dorey by then, mebbe cancel and book non-cancelable closer to the day)  

 

JB 

Thanks JB for your input. I booked the ibis. You are right that this trip might not happen so everything has no cancel charge. 

6 hours ago, Cotswold Eagle said:

Maybe the ‘no trains on Sunday’ thing comes from a misunderstanding arising from the fact that there are no direct services from Gatwick Airport on a Sunday, which is sometimes mentioned on this board?

 

As JB says, certainly not true from central London. 

Thanks, I guess I've been reading too many posts in my initial planning. Glad you and JB set me straight. Since we have plenty of time to get to SH I think the train is more scenic. Now that this straightened out, which of the 4 hotels would be best for the HOHO bus? 

ibis Blackfriars -Waterloo

Premier Inn Southwalk - Waterloo

Hi, I hope you can help me. We will be in London 2 nights in Sept before we head to Southampton for a cruise. Since we will be going to SH on a Sunday, I understand the train is not an option. We will be on the National Express. These are the hotels I'm considering. Would like your opinion on ease of getting the HOHO bus and getting the coach to SH

Luna Simone - Victoria Station

Double Tree - Victoria Station

ibis Blackfriars -Waterloo

Premier Inn Southwalk - Waterloo

Thanks in advance for your insight

On 4/21/2019 at 3:15 PM, sueaussie said:

On our recent New Zealand cruise we had booked and paid for the Eastern Bays Scenic Mail Run shore excursion in Akaroa.  Unfortunately weather conditions on the day meant that our ship (the Noordam) couldn't take us to port and our stop in Akaroa had to be cancelled.  I rang the Mail Run company from the ship to let them know what had happened as a courtesy.  Unfortunately they did not afford us the same courtesy when we followed them up with an email requesting a refund.  They did offer us the same tour within 12 months but refused us a refund because we did not give them 24 hours notice, which of course was impossible.

 

With all other private shore excursions that I we have booked, if the ship doesn't make it to shore then a refund is given.  However, this was not included in their paperwork (our mistake for not checking) but in the interest of good tourist relations it's not good form at all.  

 

So if you are cruising to New Zealand and are stopping in Akaroa be aware that if you book this excursion and the ship doesn't get into shore you will forfeit your payment.

Thank you for your experience. It looked very interesting being able to see the area. But not taking a chance that we don't make port.

Hi, we are doing the Ruby Princess from Sydney to NZ in Feb, lay over in Sydney for 2 nites, then do the Sea Princess around Australia in March of 2020. We are from USA and haven't traveled overseas too much. Not sure which airlines would service LAX to Sydney other than Qantas, NZ Air and Virgin Australia. Could use some help.

When would be the best time to book our flights? When they first open, 6 months out, 3 months out or something else?

Does anyone know when Princess' EZ-Air opens? I've never used it before, how flexible are they?  Can they accommodate flying in for the NZ portion and flying back from the Aussie one?

If flying Air New Zealand, Qantas or Virgin Australia, what are the differences among the airlines and the different classes in each. How do they compare to Delta, American & United? Any help would be appreciated. We will be flying out of LAX. We normally fly coach (domestic) but for that long a flight, we want some leg room. When we flew to Istanbul on Turkish Air, the basic fare was quite comfortable - meals, sleep masks, drinks, etc. were included.

Thanks

I'm using BushandBeach as well. Great reviews. My B&B hosts also recommend them.

 

 

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Are the glow worm caves better in Waitomo cave vs the one accessible from Bay of Islands? The second cave is just a half hour from where we tender so the tour is much cheaper.

There is no problem using the Stockholder OBC for gratuities. Now the SOBC won't cover all of the gratuities but it will cover part of them.

Thanks to all for your replies. Glad to know we can use it for what we want. We don't do the drink package (soft or hard) or pictures. But the gratuities is what we would use it for.

We are thinking of buying the stock, but I read that it can't be used for gratuities. Is this true? We normally don't book tours from the cruise line and aren't big drinkers, especially at ship prices (bottle of wine in cabin). Never have tried specialty dining, we aren't "foodies". Not sure it would be worth it, as we sail only 2x a year at the most.

TIA for your advice

Princess will probably release theirs late April.

They came out in late April, I booked for early 2020

We are hoping to do a cruise of New Zealand and Australia in 2020. We are not necessarily restricted by month or length of trip and have a total budget of approx £10-12k for our trip.

 

We have found a lovely cruise around Australia with Princess which leave 10th March 2020 for 28 days days but cannot see a one cruise does both Islands where it takes in the best of both countries or a cruise around New Zealand for approx 10-14 days.

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you.

We are booked on that cruise. To do New Zealand there is a 13 day cruise on Ruby prior to it. There are 2 days in Sydney between the 2 cruises.

Has anyone taken the HOHO bus or harbour tour in Kiel? Because of limited time & amount of time it takes to get to Hamburg, I was thinking of taking one or both of these tours. On our cruise (2018) this is our last port after 19 out of 24 port days. Leisurely day and pack?

Nordiska museet = Swedish society history during the modern era (1500—) . What people ate, how they lived and etc.

The new viking museum is well Vikings only.

For Swedish pre 1500-history in general, Historiska museet is the place to go to.

Thank you for the clarification. I'm not up on the difference between Nordic and Viking. I'm sure I will be by the time we finish the cruise next year.:o

Just a reminder that the new Viking museum opens tomorrow, location is just a couple of hundred meters from Vasa.

http://www.vikingaliv.se/en/

https://www.facebook.com/vikingalivdjurgarden/

I have finally read thru the 21 pages of postings, thanks so much for the information. There is the Nordic Museum close to the Vasa. How is this different from the new Viking museum? We won't be in Stockholm until June of 2018 but I like to plan:D

While I have wanted to see the Baltics for awhile. This is exactly why we are going now. Like GradUT, we also went to the Black Sea a number of years ago. I'm so glad we had the opportunity to see the Crimea while we could.

 

GO!

Back in 2010 we did 24 days (2 B2B cruises). So glad we did - several days in Istanbul, private tour in Yalta, Sevastopol & Ephesus. Now all that is off limits. We are doing the Baltic & SPB in 2018 on HAL.

Haven't been to those museums but have been to Tallinn on a rainy day. I still think it is worth putting on the rain gear and taking in the old town.

 

Thank you for your reply and photo. I have rain gear (from Alaska) and as long as it is not a down pour I see it will be worth it.

As I said, it provided information and context for the sites that we wanted to visit (example: town hall). So - it was a valuable tool in enhancing our first visit to Tallinn.

Thank you for your reply. It sounds like this is what we need to do a down hill walk. I don't like standing at a site reading a guide book.

Yes, Alla Tours also offers the same type of tour wherein you start at the top and work your way downhill. I am in agreement with the previous poster - I would DIY in Tallinn to get the most enjoyment out of a day in port. I don't know of a specific DIY walking tour that begins at Toompea Castle and ends at Great Coastal Gate/Fat Margaret Tower.

We went with an SPB tour (since we were with SPB in St. Petersburg) that drove us uphill and we walked downhill . . . and they certainly weren't the only tour operator that had a similar itinerary as it was *very* crowded at all lookout points over the city and along the fairly narrow route between the upper and lower towns, especially with multiple ships in port. I was grateful that our tour guide was tall, making her easy to spot.

 

The tour guide did share interesting stories of life in Tallinn, including what it was like growing up under Russian rule . . . but if I were to do Tallinn again, especially on a crowded day, I think I'd tour on my own.

Thank you both for your replies. I thought a guide would give us the history/explanation of what we are seeing. We don't go until next year so don't know how many ships will be in port.