villauk

I agree. I think these sort of itineraries offer so much more of an experience. We cruised your Vietnam sailing a few Christmases ago and are doing Japan this year, which we are very much looking forward to. It’s not like comparing one side of the Caribbean to the other. We’ve also booked India and Sri Lanka for next, expecting a totally different sort of experience in those places. All our sailings are on M class ships, it’s a base for us and not the destination like it would be if one was sailing the Caribbean for the nth time.

I would appreciate you returning with your actual experience once you have taken your cruise as to what happened regarding the visa. Completing it within 3 days of arrival could prove to be problematic if on a cruise ship, so would welcome your comments.

Fabulous photos.

No, we didn’t go to Japan last year. I was referring to the news reports regarding the extreme heat last year. The tour guides we have booked for 2024 also mentioned how unbearably hot last August was. One even asked us if it was possible to move our booking from August to later in the year!

I didn’t realise you could ask for bottled water to take out at the Elite breakfast.

@cavaaller Where did you read about the mosquitoes? Only asking in case we need to take repellent with us. We’re cruising to Japan in August and are expecting it to be hot and humid, but hoping it’s not going to be as bad as last year 🤞🏻.

We were hoping for the scheduled update before our next sailing. Unfortunately, it’s been posted on another thread that it will only be general maintenance and not any major updating of cabins 😔. Thanks for your review 👍.

Your photos brought back so many wonderful memories - thank you!

You will love it; it’s definitely the best way to maximise your time. Merry Christmas 🎄!

If you want to purchase the non-alcoholic package, do both pax in the cabin have to buy like you do with the Classic and Premium packages?

Are you sailing on Millie from Singapore to India by any chance? Only asking as I’d love your comments on that cruise. I know Phuket is one of the port stops on that itinerary and we are presently considering it for 2025.

Your experiences are so similar to ours. We usually cruise with our children so dine in the MDR, but next March we have decided to try Aqua for Blu for the first time without them. We also did this itinerary over Christmas and took the elephant tour in Ko Samui. You’ve not booked Japan as your next cruise, have you 🤣?

We found that too 👍.

Yes, the flash sale is available to all, but @JeanieC,Aston was referring to the better promotion of £39 for drinks and WiFi, which I believe is only for European 2024 itineraries according to the T&Cs.

Think that’s only on European 2024 itineraries though.

The night safari was very good at Singapore Zoo. Unsure if they still offer it?

We are also having to go to Japan during the heat of the summer months (August). We have booked an SV as we know there is part-shade in those larger balconies. The distance between most of the port stops doesn’t appear to be great, so unsure how much of a breeze there will be e.g. we leave one port at 5am and arrive at the next on the same morning at 8am. I think it will be more a case of limiting the amount of time out in the sun sightseeing. We are actually travelling in 2024, so will let you know how it goes - I’m hoping for a year that is unusually cooler than average🥵.

Thank you so much for your prompt, informative reply 😉.

Hi Kristal, I have a couple of questions that hopefully you could answer. Firstly, did you take malaria tablets for your visit, only I’ve seen it recommended on the government site? We’re just considering a cruise which visits India and looking at what requirements we’d need regarding vaccinations, visas etc., so your visa information is really helpful. The cruise is similar to Terry’s itinerary but starts in Singapore, then continues to Phuket, Sri Lanka and then on to India. Which month did you visit? Do you know what November’s weather would be like? TIA.

Comparable nights for nights, they are less. Great if you enjoy lots of sea days 👍.

TAs are always cheaper than cruises with regular itineraries.

Not every country has that option.

I know others may not agree, but I think there are differences when cruising certain areas. I always think of Alaska as being about the wildlife, Norwegian Fjords are tactile - as though you can reach out and touch them, and the NZ Sounds are panoramic. You can sit on your balcony and just pan out at the spectacular scenery.

We did exactly the same as you did, staying overnight at a hotel in Bangkok too. Ours was on Millie over Christmas a few years ago now - Hong Kong to Singapore 2016. We also sailed in one of the FVs at the aft which was fabulous. All of our private tour guides were brilliant and most we sorted with others from our roll call.

Personally, if the Princess cruise in a balcony was cheaper than X, I’d go with that one as the ship experience won’t be that majorly different. There will be good and bad things on both ships - things you prefer on one to the other etc. In the end, it will all be about NZ. On a side note, it’s the one place in the world we have sailed to that is the most similar to parts of the U.K. Wherever we went, I felt like it reminded me of somewhere I’d visited over here (obviously only my opinion 😉).