robinph

I believe they have stopped selling them due to diminished supplies due to over fishing. They are trying to let stocks build up again.

When we were on Explorer of the Seas in January they had a table set up before you dinged off and were checking peoples bags and confiscating food including pre packaged muesli bars and lots of the small packs of cereal from the buffet, it was amazing how much fresh food, fruit pasties etc that were there, they said it was being done under advice from the Vanuatu ports as a lot of food was being taken ashore. We have never seen this before or after, we were on the Voyager 2 weeks later and they didn't do it. It slowed up the disembarking process dramatically. Only did it at the Vanuatu ports not the New Caledonean ones.

Good info [emoji5] I was aware you could take two bottles of wine/champagne

We went on the Aria and Pacific Jewel ( which we said we would not go on again) late last year, and were very pleasantly surprised. Aria was beautifully done out and had a great pool area with amazing lounges and chairs, and as it was winter it was great to be able to sit around the pool area without getting blown away because it has the retractable roof. Loved the pantry and dining room food was quite good also, service left a bit to be desired though. It was also great to have Dragon Lady and Angelo's included in the fare. Jewel was looking a bit tired but pantry food was excellent, entertainment was good and staff amazing as always. Robin:)

I don't know the reason, I was thinking along the same lines of far too many people, maybe the island and the coral need a chance to recover a bit, still allow the smaller ships like P&O, Princess, Carnival but have a break from the ones with the huge number of passengers. Isle of Pines has a great wharf which can take two tenders at a time, tendering ran very smoothly on Explorer and Voyager when we were on them recently, so I don't think this is the problem. Royal will have completed the new wharf at Lifou by the next cruise season also. Robin:)

Rumour on Explorer in January was that Royal Caribbean won't be calling at Isle of pines for 2 seasons after this season. Looking at the 2017-18 cruises it looks like this is the case except for 2 themed cruises on Radiance. Without Isle of Pines it all looks fairly boring, about time these cruise lines found some different ports of call. Robin:)

My husband and I are sailing on the Voyager of the Seas on Sunday 26th March. As this is our first cruise on RCI I have a question about the suggested boarding times. We are on deck 6 and the suggested time and it does say suggested is 3pm. We are staying overnight in Sydney and check out is by 10am.

 

We will drop off our bags at the OPC and then had intended to do our checkin once we are able to. I read a post on the RCI board who said that while they were boarding VOS recently in late morning a man was told he couldn't board as he was on deck 3. The OP said that it was the first rime she had seen boarding times adhered to.

 

I know we can always sight see or visit the Rocks Market but if the weather is like it has been in Sydney, we don't really want to be wandering around in the rain. My husband is also walking with a limp and struggles sometimes to walk any distance although he will attempt to.

 

Perhaps Gbenjo or anyone who has been on VOS this season, could clarify if the suggested boarding times have been enforced at all.

 

Also if you have room service, thinking breakfast on the balcony, is it ok to tip the waiter with AUS coins or should I have some US dollar notes?

 

 

Thanks,

 

Leigh

We just got off Voyager yesterday, we were on deck 10 with 11am boarding, but we also had priority boarding so could go from onset of boarding no matter what deck we were on. They were turning people away that were not on decks 12, 10 or priority boarding at that time, but I can't comment on what happened after that time, maybe once they had the initial rush out of the way they may have allowed people on outside of their allotted boarding times. Robin:D

Sorry guys, I'm sure these questions have been asked before, just in a rush getting 3 kids ready and wanting to be as prepared as possible.

 

1. Is this correct you need a US or Euro adaptor (Is a UK adaptor different from a Euro adaptor as this is the only one i can find at our shop)

 

2. Does Vila Vanuatu accept Aussie dollars

 

3. Do you need to book for the main dining or do you just rock up at your allotted time slot?

 

4. We are sailing 25th Jan to early Feb does it get cold at all during this time. Coming from perth so need to pack as little as possible. Would one jacket or jumper be sufficient.

 

5. Can you use your seapass for gambling at the casino?

 

6. Can you use onboard credit for internet package. And can you chose internet on a day by day basis or do you need to buy it for the entire cruise. And is there any other things onboard that are excluded from onboard credit?

 

Thanks

Hi Jadekatz, we to are on this cruise, not long to go now. The cabins have both European and US powerpoints, but we find the European is much better for charging Australian appliances. We take a small power block with two powerpoint outlets and 4 USB ports used with the European adaptor,and we find this more than sufficient. I always take a light cardigan for day and night, mainly for inside as the aircondtioning can be quite cold in some parts of the ship. Sometimes it can be a bit windy and cool on deck to while at sea. Once in the island the weather will be HOT, HOT, HOT!. Don't forget to take small denomination notes for taxis, water taxis or market stalls. Enjoy your cruise Robin

Hi there,

 

Just wanted to run something by everyone, if you've done this yourself before.

 

Long story short, we are a group of 8 and are waitlisted for our preferred dining time. We have been told to go to maitre d first thing for the best chance of having our dining time changed onboard.

 

All 8 travelers have 11am-12pm boarding time, the first boarding time slot. Two of us will arrive at 11am, the rest of the group will be arriving just before midday.

 

Two of us will board at 11am to try and make the dining arrangements. How easy is it then to disembark to meet the group on the pier?

Will we all be able to them go together to get our embarkation photo as a group, or will the first two of us who have already checked in prior, have a seperate boarding queue to get back on the ship?

 

Thank you!

Once you are on you cannot disembark, why don't the two who are there early wait so you can all embark together. Robin:)

Have done 10 RC cruises, latest in Mar/Apr this year & have never had this with payments made in $A. We have pre-bought drinks, wine packages & many shore excursions all in $A.

 

That said, I have read recently about others having similar experiences ie the 3% fee on the $A total so seemingly something has changed. So as OzKiwiJJ suggests maybe a different cc is the answer.

 

I will now check it out for our Legend OTS cruise next month.

We have recently booked our 9th RCL cruise, and until our last booking had never encountered this fee. When we got our CC statement it had this fee on it, so we rang our bank and they said it has only recently been introduced by them and all banks will be doing it, but they did say it didn't apply to debit cards, so we will be paying the balance from our debit card. Robin:)

What is totally wrong "In My Opinion" is RCI Australia advertises in Au Dollars but when you pay by credit card it is paid to RCI USA and converted back to American Dollars and you then have to pay exchange fees from AU to US Dollars:confused:

 

You cannot buy the cruise in US Dollars if you live in Australia but if the final payment is in US Dollars then there is no reason not to advertise in US Dollars or at least have the option of purchasing the cruise in US Dollars if you so choose. Well actually there is a reason! if you could purchase in US Dollars there would be no need for an Australian RCI and then we would all get exactly what the cruise costs, no more no less.

This fee is charged by the bank, we always book and pay our deposit on the credit card, our recent booking incurred this fee for the first time, when we enquired at the bank, they said all banks are starting to charge this fee, but if you pay buy debit card you will not be charged......needless to say we will be paying the balance from our debit card. Robin :)

My Dec 3rd Radiance cruise is still showing Lifou on the Royal website but my Jan 25th Explorer is showing Mare.

 

To be honest I cant remember whether Lifou was originally on the Explorer itinerary as I just booked because >>>ship>>>cheap>>>going somewhere. I only glanced to see if Noumea was there and unfortunately it was.

 

Can Royal please dump Noumea next time.

Hi Woodyren, we are on Explorer 25th Jan also and Lifou was originally on the itinerary. Can't say I'm unhappy about the change, Lifou is not one of my favourite ports of call Robin:)

Our daughter had a guarantee oceanview deck 2 on Voyager and loved it very quiet, I wouldn't expect there to be too much noise from the ice skating ring, if there was any it would mostly be during the day I would think. We just booked a guarantee deluxe balcony on the Explorer for Jan next year , we have just been assigned our cabins all 4 bookings got upgraded to Superior balconies in good positions, we're all happy cruisers.Robin:)

We were told that you are allowed 2 visits to each Angelo's and Dragon Lady per cruise, but if they have vacancies you can go more than that.We used to just ring at 8am and book, never had a problem. We were also told you could only book on the day that you required the booking not earlier, but this may be different for suite guests. Robin

We were in Noumea 2 weeks ago for the second time this year. It is a nice city as long as you get out and about, so many people say they don't like it, but you have to get away from the cruise terminal area. I would recommend any of the previous suggestions. Local tours, Tchou Tchou train and HOHO bus can all be picked up at the cruise terminal which you will be bussed around to from the ship, they all accept Aussie dollars and are all run by reputable tour guides, so do not feel you need to book tours through the ship for safety reasons unless there is something specific you wanted to do. There are also small market stalls upstairs that accept aussie dollars also. Most shops in town require French Francs. Whatever you do enjoy. Robin:)

119 views of the post and no one knows? :( okay.. guess I'll just chance it cause I'm not going without those items to tame my mane! :p

I haven't been on the Jewel for about 3 years, but I took my straightener and hairdryer then and have taken them on lots of cruises since on different lines with no problems. I have them packed for my 9th May trip on Aria, I haven't read anywhere that you can't take them. As for power boards a lot of cruise lines are not allowing them anymore and confiscating them on boarding so to save any hassles we now take 2 double adaptors which are allowed. Robin:)

We are also happy to cruise with a good range of people of all ages with one caveat we do not like being overun with children (I guess I mean the under 14s). On a recent cruise I did make a mistake, and booked during October assuming the USA kids would be in school, who new they have fall break as well as spring break. There were 750 kids on board and that is a lot for the Breeze. It was mayhem, we were glad when the 2nd leg of our B2B started and they got of the ship and wern't replaced, school went back in session.

A smart move switching to RCL Explorer over Carnival Spirit, Spirit is primarily a family cruise ship with lots & lots of under 14"s, we did the Spirit 30 January 2014 thinking most kids should be back at school for the beginning of the new school year, this is when we normally like to cruise...... not to be, there were just on 1000 kids on board, I could not believe it,:eek: this year we did the Explorer and what a difference, a few kids on board but nothing overwhelming like the Spirit:) Robin

The best CD ive had was Bobby Brown on the Radiance of the Seas.

I have to agree with you there, we had him and his wife Becky on our around Australia trip on Radiance in 2012, they worked very well together and were both very approachable and seen frequently around the ship, in 23 cruises haven't had a better CD. Robin:)

We had the exact same cabin on the Spirit, the room is extremely handy to lifts and stairs, no passing noise of any note, but we had an issue in as much as every night around 2 am and again later there was horrendous crashing noises which sounded like a dumpster being emptied, numerous complaints to our room steward and pursers desk resulted in nothing, no one seemed to know what it was.......or were owning up to it!. As it is the last passenger deck I presumed there was something going on in the lower decks, I thought maybe recycling or something. hopefully for you this isn't the case. Apart from this it was a good cabin. I always find deck 1 very central to everything only need the lifts for the pool deck and buffetRobin.:)

Thank you all for your kind replies. Our first Diamond cruise is on the Explorer in April. I suppose we will try the Diamond lounge on the first evening and if it proves to be too packed and therefore too hard to get a drink we will use the 3 free drinks in any bar option the rest of the cruise.

We just got off Explorer on Wed, only a ten dayer and there were 156 diamond members next cruise an 11 nighter to NZ was having over 200. Diamond lounge got very crowded by about 5pm but concierge never allowed any overflow to Izzy's Some people ended up going to the outside seating area. Robin :):)

Hi all' date='

 

This has to be the bargain of the week! If you can go, GRAB this!!!!! You even have a choice if traveling solo or with a friend!

 

10 Nights - Explorer of the Seas

Ports - Noumea, Isle of Pines, Mystery Island and Lifou

Departs on Sunday (14th Feb) from Sydney

 

SOLO - $1255 (Inside Guarantee) - No twin available in this type of cabin $125.50 a night! SOLO

 

TWIN - $1290 pp for a Deluxe Stateroom Guarantee - this is a SUITE with a balcony!!!!!! $129 a night IN A SUITE[/quote']

 

 

We are on this cruise, and the itinerary has been changed, we are now going to Vila instead of Lifou........ great change as far as we are concerned. Robin:)

Hi all, sorry if this has been asked and answered before but I did a search and can't find anything.

I saw on the Channel 9 show which had Explorer of the Seas visiting Mystery Island that they made a school book donation to local schools. We go to Mystery Island on our cruise in mid-February and was wondering if anyone knew of any particular supplies they were after as we'd like to bring some along to donate. Thanks.

Hi Poochie, There is a collection box near the airport/ start of markets. We are going to Mystery Island on our cruise on 14th Feb and will be taking exercise books ( we have 130, 48 page exercise books which Officeworks had on for 5c each, we would have got more but you were only allowed to get 30 at a time so we had to do click and collect online at different stores) scrapbooks plain paper, pens, pencils, rubbers, sharpeners. We also have a large box of chalk which we thought the teachers might be able to use. They are in need of anything useful for the children to use in their daily school life and evidently their library needs readers for all ages. I would love to take more but what we have is quite heavy, and you need to be able to carry it over to the island plus if you are flying to the ship it makes it difficult, but if a few people off each ship donate a small amount it would all add up to a generous donation. They said that they will share supplies with other schools in the area. I remember a few years ago visiting the school on Aneityum and talking to the principle, he showed us their supply cupboard which was empty. He said their years supply from the government was used in the first month. All donations will be gratefully accepted. Robin:)

RCI usually have a Tropical deck party, 50's & 60's Rock & Roll dance party, 70's Disco Inferno dance party, Country dance party, Rock Britannia dance party, they usually don't vary much from these theme nights although they used to have a white night as well but they didn't have that last cruise, most people can manage to throw something white on if the need be, you don't have to dress up to enjoy these nights, most people only really dress up for the island night this is usually the big night. Enjoy whatever you do. Robin:)

Sometimes ignorance really is bliss :D

 

Bushman's is the best - I discovered it on holiday in Townsville/Magnetic Island. I swear some of the mosquitoes were so big they had saddles on them for the smaller ones to have rides. :eek:

 

On the powerboard issue (decided to go with the double adaptors), I'm assuming the ship has US outlets - is this correct?

 

Thanks again for your positive feedback - it's very much appreciated.

Yes they have US and European powerpoints, so you need adaptors, US ones are ok for low voltage items but are no good for hairdryers or straighteners the European adaptors are great for these, I just used the European one for everything, I believe there is a US one in the bathroom also, but I have never noticed it. Robin :)

Royal Caribbean will definetly confiscate powerboards, we now take 2 double adaptors which are allowed. If it is a RC cruise you will need power adaptors European work better with Australian appliances.If it is an island cruise reef shoes are a must have. instead of over the door organisers I take the material fold up containers ( K Mart) in a few different sizes. Glen 20 spray for deodorising and sanitising your room, I always pack material shopping bags 1 for each person to keep their shoes in in the bottom of the wardrobe. I also take one of those fold up clothes peg things for wet cossies or if you want to rinse anything out, a dozen pegs as there is a clothes line in the shower and a small amount of washing liquid. Lanyards for your sea pass which is your room key and charge card in one. Robin:)