Emma Chisit

Go to the Princess website.  Scroll down to bottom of page.  Under “Ships and Experience” click on “FAQ: Onboard Experience” which gives you this link:

https://www.princess.com/learn/faq/onboard/onboard-experience/

Click on “Stateroom Services” where it says:

Tipping is not required or charged to your onboard account when sailing on a Princess ship that departs and returns to Australia and/or operates with Australian currency onboard (please refer to Onboard Currency.) You are welcome to reward our onboard crew for exceptional service, however, tipping is not required. For all other Princess ships, to simplify the tipping process for our guests, a discretionary crew incentive of $16.50 per guest for suites, $15.50 per guest for mini-suites and $14.50 per guest (including children) in all other staterooms, per day, is automatically added to your shipboard account on a daily basis. The crew incentive is a daily (adjustable) amount added to your onboard account and pooled in order to recognize the many crew members in the Bar, Dining, Entertainment, Housekeeping, Guest Services, Galley and Onboard Revenue areas and entertainment areas throughout our fleet who contribute to the guest experience. 

A 18% service charge added to bar charges, dining room wine accounts, and Lotus Spa® services. This is shared amongst the beverage staff, their support staff and Lotus Spa® personnel.

Under “Onboard Currency” in same list of FAQs it says:

All prices onboard Coral Princess®, Majestic Princess®, and Grand Princess® cruises departing from and returning to Australia, one way Sydney to Auckland and vice versa and repositioning voyages from Asia to Australia and vice versa are in Australian Dollars.

Prices onboard all other Princess Cruises ships including Princess cruises repositioning from USA to Australia (including sector on repositioning sailing Auckland to Sydney and vice versa) Regal Princess® repositioning from Europe/Asia to Australia and Diamond Princess® cruises departing from and returning to Japan are in US Dollars. 

This was just  added to the Courier Mail website as part of a longer article about Covid stats in QLD.:

"Authorities have confirmed an Covid-19 outbreak on a cruise ship currently docked in Brisbane.

Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said authorities were aware of cases on the Coral Princess cruise ship, which carries 2600 passengers and had been docked in Port Douglas in the state’s far north on Thursday.  Ms D’Ath said anyone due to embark in Brisbane today had been informed of the outbreak and could make “personal decisions as to whether they want to go on board or not”.

“There were protocols put in place as to what would occur if there was an outbreak (and) we are seeing an outbreak,” she said.  “Some of those the passengers are being removed.  “They have chosen to isolate either home or in other accommodation. And we’ve supported them in doing that.”

It comes as Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk confirmed that 782 are being treated in hospital for Covid-19, with another 104 people treated for flu.

Queenslanders aged 65 and older are being “strongly encouraged” to don masks in crowded spaces and everyone is being urged to get their fourth shot.

Ms Palaszczuk said 91 per cent of all deaths in the state with Covid-19 were people aged 65 or older.

“If you’re 65 and over, seriously, okay. Get that full dose, but also to strongly encourage you if you’re in that age bracket, seniors in our community to think about wearing masks in crowded spaces.”

2 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Hopefully Princess will listen to the feedback they are getting about those crappy wines.

Agree  - and hope someone from Princess reads these threads  because they seem to have better wine offerings on their overseas cruises.  

Also thanks for the wine tips! 

3 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Yes, the white wine selections are abysmal. Try the rosè, it's very, very nice and works well as a substitute for a crisp white wine.

Thanks  it sounds good.  I just looked it up because not familiar with Makepeace.  ( Not precious but I tend to stick with whites because I often get headaches from reds so has made me a bit risk-averse.  Actually used to prefer reds) We are doing a short Coral Princess cruise in October in the same cabin we booked for next year's world cruise.  Booked as a try-out for the cabin - but might end up being a try-out for the wine!😀  Frankly the thought of 107 days with that selection of wines depresses us both, and DH drinks anything.   

Thanks OzKiwiJJ for posting all this information. The wine by the glass selection for those with a Plus package is depressing, especially for predominantly white wine drinkers like me.     I hope it improves, Princess clearly is able to offer a better selection overseas.  This was posted on the main Princess board from a Majestic Princess cruise in March 2022.

https://profcruise.com/oceannow-delivery-menu-2022/

The same blogger also posted a selection of beverage menus collected from multiple Princess ships in May 2022:

https://profcruise.com/princess-bar-and-drink-menus-2022/

Again, a lot more variety than is being offered on the current Coral Princess cruises.

54 minutes ago, Mrs f. said:

We are also on that cruise. Am hoping to get to some Tasmanian wine trgions.

Yes they have excellent wines, and they don't always make it to the US.  (I lived in Northern VA for 17 years.)  With O's wine policy you should be able to clink your way on board with a few bottles in the three Tasmanian ports.  

21 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

Agreed. Plenty of time to see how the protocols work on the cruise ships operating in NSW and Queensland.

I just hope that the early cruises continue to follow stricter protocols for the time being.  Given the nervousness about cruising in some parts of the Australian community.  The live report from Pacific Explorer (Post #252 on page 11) indicates they have certain protocols - but that they are not necessarily always being enforced.  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2855548-live-from-pacific-explorer-31st-may-australia-is-cruising-again/page/11/

I've been following overseas cruises since their re-start last year.  They started with strict protocols, then things were relaxed and more cases happened.  

1 minute ago, NSWP said:

She is currently in Portland, Oregon. Maybe doing coastals to Seattle or Inside Passage cruises - Alaska.

Yes I  see - just looked her up.  I think Regatta is in the same neck of the woods, but she is coming to Australia via Japan not Pacific islands like Westerdam.  Japan might be a challenge for the Oceania ship.  The Tasmanian government might be somewhat cautious but the Japanese government seems more so. 

1 minute ago, NSWP said:

I am on Westerdam 23 November 2022, part of itinerary is Port Arthur and Hobart. I have been to those places before, on fly drive trips, but I trust Tasmania will be open to ships.

Where is Westerdam at the moment?  Regatta still has to do her repositioning cruise from Los Angeles to Sydney.  She comes via Japan - and Japan is definitely not open to cruise ships as yet. .  

9 minutes ago, Cbtours said:

Just hanging to be on the water again lol

Aren't we all!  But also interested in what is going to happen with Tasmania opening up to cruise ships as we are on the Oceania Regatta circumnavigation from Sydney on 12 December which has three Tasmanian ports.  So I am following Pacific Explorer with fingers crossed, ditto Coral Princess when she starts cruising.  No problems I hope.

1 minute ago, Cbtours said:

Presume they will keep updated via our cruise line (Princess). We are booked on the round Aus October 22 which includes Hobart and Burnie. Wont be a big deal for us as been to tassie many times, but might affect others wanting to see. Hobart especially is well worth seeing.

We are on your cruise for the Sydney to Brisbane segment.  It's a trial as we got the same cabin as we booked for next year's world cruise.  Have been reading your roll call.

2 minutes ago, Emma Chisit said:

Good question.  Earliest port stop I could find was Burnie on 5 November for Coral Princess. 

Not listed on Tasports site however; that only goes till end of June.

10 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

When is next cruise season for Tasmania?

Good question.  Earliest port stop I could find was Burnie on 5 November for Coral Princess. 

Tasmanian Ports website - cruise ship schedules are not listed at the moment.  Only small ships (under 100 passengers) with Tasmania-only itineraries are currently allowed.  See:

https://www.tasports.com.au/cruise

Agree with what onlyslightlymad and Little Monty said.  This article might give you some insight into the Australian government thinking.  The Federal politician quoted is Greg Hunt the Minister for Health.  

https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/covid19-vaccine-wont-guarantee-the-return-of-international-travel/news-story/4316d15554490c3d5796ab9e6c2a615a

12 hours ago, flashfearless said:

 

 Will likely try to make our own plans to see Alice Springs.

What Little Monty said....

Also, check out the Australia/NZ section of Cruise Critic.  Lot of helpful people there.  And a few from overseas who originally posted to ask advice, had their cruise derailed by coronavirus, and stayed around to chat.  Closest they can get to Australia for the time being..

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/564-australia-new-zealand-cruisers/

14 hours ago, flashfearless said:

 

Could you clarify that statement about the "major summer holiday period"? 

Exactly as zalusky said .   It's the same as the long summer holiday in the US - but with Christmas/New Year in the mix.  School finishes about mid December and doesn't start again till end of January. Mind you, since we haven't been allowed out of Australia for a year we are all exploring our own country.  So by the time 2023 rolls around everyone will be ready for a change - and might have headed off overseas again.  So you might not have competition from domestic tourists.. We long to be on a Viking cruise again - should have been on one in NZ over this Christmas/New Year just past.  

I see Viking is doing this itinerary in Jan and Feb 2023.  Be aware that January in Australia is our major summer holiday period, so if it were me i would choose February.   Also I should have mentioned - jet lag.  That would definitely affect the pre-cruise excursion.  I lived on the east coast of the US and it always took me a week to recover from jet lag after i flew to Australia.

13 hours ago, Rabbit27 said:

 

 

I would also google time distance between each state with flight time to give you a idea how big Australia is.

 

As said, Australia is a very big country, much the same size as the continental USA.  I lived in the US for seventeen years, and found that many people didn't seem to realise this.  Very good advice above to organise your own itinerary with your TA.

This link might be useful to get a feel for the size of Australia, and the resulting impact on travel times:

https://www.virtualoceania.net/australia/states/

For example the Northern Territory (where Uluru is) is 1,349,129 km2 in land area, with a land border of 3179 km and coastline of 10,953 km. The Northern Territory is slightly bigger than South Africa, about two times the size of Texas, and six times the size of the UK.

I would like to add this quote from an interview yesterday (23 June) on ABC Radio National with the Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt:   "I do think that the border- the international border closures will remain in place for a very significant time."

https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-greg-hunt-mp/media/interview-with-fran-kelly-on-abc-radio-national

Agree with what my fellow Aussies have said above, it isn't looking likely for international travel this year and on into next year.  The most recent information I have seen is at the link below on the ABC website, from a speech made by the federal Minister for Tourism Senator Birmingham to the National Press Club last week.  (Note that ABC is our national broadcaster - like BBC in UK, not like the ABC in the US. For those trying to make travel decisions it is as good an Australian news source as any.) 

Quote from article:   "I do sadly think that in terms of open tourist-related travel in or out of Australia, that remains quite some distance off," Senator Birmingham told the National Press Club.  "Just because of the practicalities of the volumes that are involved and the need for us to first and foremost keep putting health first."  Asked whether that meant the border would not open until next year, he said, "I think that is more likely the case".

If this turns out to be what happens, then  …..exactly when next year is the big question. The government's approach has been very cautious to date and I for one cannot see that changing.  So for the foreseeable future Australia is pretty much the Hermit Kingdom at the end of the world. 

I wish things were different…

4 hours ago, flossie009 said:

Voyager is now transiting the Suez Canal northbound.

I think Voyager may be the distant ship in this screenshot from Norwegian Jade's bridge webcam:

Reminds us of the cruise we should have been on last month 😞

Flossie - Thank you so much for this picture and your earlier post mentioning that Voyager was going to transit the Suez Canal with Norwegian Jade close by, followed later by Nautica.  Last time I checked on Voyager she was near Mumbai, but I had lost track of her.  We never managed to take our first Regent cruise (originally 1 March on Voyager - Hong Kong to Tokyo) as it was one of the first cruises to be cancelled.  However we have cruised a bit with Oceania and in fact we went through the Suez Canal on Nautica in 2012.  Despite being mainly landlubbers we have clocked up well over a year of sailing days with a dozen or so different cruiselines over the years, and that Nautica cruise was one of our favourites. 

Meanwhile I have been checking in regularly on the ever-expanding large group of ships in Manila Harbour (not that we have sailed on any of those).  However we were booked on an Australia circumnavigation on Queen Elizabeth - which also was cancelled.  So I had been keeping an eye on her (via Marine Traffic) while she was anchored in a northern Australia port "awaiting orders" and I followed her slow journey to Manila with a companion P & O ship.  Actually from the deck of our house we saw her sailing way out to sea on her journey north. Probably the closest we will get to her. 

"Watching" via Marine Traffic or Vesselfinder all the cruise ships dispersing all over the world is very sad to see -  I hope they are all heading to safe harbour and the crew returned home safely.. 

Scheduled sail date:   3/01/20     

Cruise cancelled by Regent:   2/20/20  

Refund request date:  2/20/20         

Deposit only refunded (15% of total fare):   3/8/20

Remainder of cruise fare refunded (85% of total fare) :  5/15/20

16 minutes ago, SeaDog-46 said:

 

Queen Elizabeth has just taken a BNE pilot.

 

Saw Queen Elizabeth earlier way out on the horizon passing Maroochydore/Mooloolaba.  Very hazy today, but distinctive shape was obvious and she was where Marine Traffic said she would be.  Now showing to be off Caloundra.  

Thanks to all who post on this thread especially OP Kiwi_cruiser.

3 hours ago, ArtsyCraftsy said:

 

Quote :  "We're tentatively scheduled for both of those (Esperance and Fremantle -- with an overnight in Fremantle), plus Burnie (I'm excited about this one -- Tasmania!), Phillip Island (Cowes), Melbourne (overnight), Portland, Adelaide (overnight), Kangaroo Island, Port Lincoln, Albany, and Busselton.  After Fremantle, we'll have 7 sea days to Sri Lanka.  As of yesterday afternoon when the list was distributed, only Fremantle had been officially confirmed.  So the others are subject to change."

 

Please enjoy your time in Australia - and Welcome.  Regarding your port stop at Kangaroo Island (our third largest island) the following link from the local tourism authority has the most up to date information about the effects of the bushfire that started on the 3rd January 2020.  They state "The majority of the Island is unaffected by the fires, and is open for business."

https://www.tourkangarooisland.com.au/kangaroo-island-fires

(And no - I have never been to KI, but will be going this year - and already researching.)