Vader1111

My version is... P&O Australia and Carnival both target bogan families Royal Caribbean target middle class families Princess targets the baby boomers Holland America targets the baby boomers' parents

Leave Loading hasn't been available in the Australian Public Service for 20+ years. Not sure about the various state public services though.

According to the P&O website, Back to School is only done on cruises of 7+ nights - so it won't be held on a 4 night cruise. Also, Island Night replaces Back to School night, as of 22nd June. That's the date for Encounter - the other ships make the change earlier in June.

RCI are VERY American

My first cruise was also on the Pacific Sun, back in 2007. While the P&O ships have improved since then, the service has gone backwards at a rapid rate of knots. I doubt they will be missed, by the time they are subsumed into the Carnival megaline.

Hard to go any further downhill, from where the company is already.

I suspect you haven't received any answers, because you ask an impossible question. We can tell you which shows & which theme nights they have - but not which nights they are on, or even if they will all be scheduled (given the short duration of your cruise). Short cruises (less than 7 nights) will have Gatsby and Bianco (white) parties (i.e. theme nights): https://www.pocruises.com.au/experiences/at-sea/entertainment/themed-events My guess is that these will be on the 2nd & 3rd nights of your cruise, though I have no idea which order they would be scheduled. The production shows currently on P&O ships are: Let's Misbehave Rock Anthem of the Ages Musicology Seven One Sideshow Alley They also have a few shows which are "pay to view": Purple Rabbit Blanc de Blanc Uncorked Each ship runs 3x production shows and 1x "pay to view" show. There is no indication on the P&O website which of these are on which ship: https://www.pocruises.com.au/experiences/at-sea/entertainment/spectacular-shows These could be scheduled any time on nights 2-4, but almost certainly not on embarkation day. I haven't sailed on Pacific Encounter, so I can't tell you from personal experience which shows are on board that particular ship.

My guess would be due to the tender wharf being very small, and the increased size of ships, making it a logistical nightmare. From memory, the wharf there was only big enough to have 1 tender tied up at any given time. That slows down the tendering operations to the point where it's no longer feasible for larger ships to visit. I went there on Rhapsody of the Seas, which had around 2,500 passengers when full. That was probably about the maximum capacity for the Champagne Bay wharf. The likes of the Voyager class ships, and Pacific Adventure, are just far too large. It's a real pity though, because Champagne Bay was one of my 2 favourite ports - alongside Isle of Pines. Snorkelling off the beach, with distinct cold/fresh and warm/salty water layers, was a rare experience.

I would have thought that dropping Noumea from cruising itineraries was a positive thing.

The loading/unloading process is marginally faster. The scan process itself is slower, and the conveyor system for handling the bags after they go through the scanner seems to take forever. They've just shifted the delay to another part of the system, and made it 3x as long. In the past you'd put your bag(s) on the conveyor belt, step through the metal detector, and your bag would be waiting for you on the other side. Now you put it on the conveyor, wait to spread your arms & legs for the x-ray machine, then wait another 3-5 minutes on the other side for your bag(s) to emerge. Bags come out of the scanner, and get diverted into 1 of 2 tracks - the fast lane, and the lane for review. Except that very few bags ever seem to go into the fast lane, everything goes into the review lane. The review lane moves very slowly, because the operator has to review every image manually, before handing you back your bag. It's even worse if someone's bag contents need checking manually (having already been scanned & reviewed on screen). I have no doubt that the new scanners detect things that the old x-ray machines did not, and travel is more secure as a result... but they move slower than the average glacier.

I don't know about Sydney, but Canberra has the new CT technology - remarkably, it makes the scanning process even slower.

Cheaper for 1 or 2 people, maybe not for a whole family. Depends on how many are in the group.

You got very lucky. I was in Airlie Beach on Pacific Adventure, last June - many people waited for well over an hour for the tender back to the ship.

Sepoe -> Septic Tank -> Yank -> American citizen

Tauranga is the jumping off point for trips to Rotorua (basically one big thermal wonderland), and Hobbiton (where they shot parts of the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies). Neither of these attractions are terribly close to Tauranga, so pre-booking tours is an excellent idea. I must admit, I've never spent any time in the city itself - I've done tours to Rotorua on both of my previous visits.