Wookie01

I understand that it was at 3am, but I wasn’t awake to verify 😂

@terrydtx a quick follow up as promised, we are anchored in the harbour and the magic carpet is being used for tender service, that’s a relief 🙂

Update to some previous discussions here. Today we checked into the Rydges in The Rocks, pre our cruise starting tomorrow. As some have said previously it is a bit old a tired, even a bit musty. But on the other hand the room is really generously proportioned and has a nice view of the harbour and Opera House. The lobby bar was very comfortable for drinks and some casual food too. Can’t really fault it for the price and location. An easy 200 metre walk to the cruise terminal and cost less than $400 for the night.

That doesn't sound like a training issue, sounds more like a poor attitude and laziness by the sommelier. Perhaps he would be better off demoted back to the MDR and somebody more deserving with a better attitude should replace him. 😞

Could also be for crew drills perhaps 🙂

lol that was me, and I said that the next day we were tendering. 🙂

Let me know your interests and I will try to come up with some appropriate suggestions. 🙂

We board at the OPT in Circular Quay on 21 Dec, but next day is at anchor in the harbour until 6pm when we head to NZ. Were originally scheduled to visit Newcastle (just north of Sydney) on that day but there is some issue with port access so that stop was cancelled. 🙂

Terry we are boarding on Wednesday (when Jim leaves) and our first day is anchored in Sydney harbour. Tenders will be in use so I will let you know about the Magic Carpet then.

@Jim_Iain hope your internet service improves. Have they said why it is so slow? Enjoy your sea days before hitting Auckland 🙂

Could you return to the ship from Lyttelton or did you have to go back to Christchurch and return on the shuttle?

Lol, also called FOFILs - Fat Old Farts in Lycra 😅

Each state is slightly different, but all are on holiday from mid/late December until late January 🙂

Sydney Mardi Gras is on between February 16 and March 3, that is probably causing the price increase.

@Jim_Iain Was the boarding debacle the reason for the delay? It looked like you were a few hours late departing?

The downside (about the only one 😉 ) to living in Australia, everywhere else is sooo far away 😉

Have a great day and enjoy your last port prior to disembarking. Safe travels and fun memories, thank you so much for sharing your review with all of us here, it has been a delight to follow along 🙂

@Norwayladythanks for sharing your SS views, so sorry that the Celebrity executive team have cut back so harshly that the suite experience is not what it should be. 😞 We will be in our first (and last) SS in late December to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary. It is an outrageous price and something that we will never do again, but we thought that it would be a great 'treat' to celebrate the milestone. Seems that Celebrity are doing their best to spoil the celebration 😞

@Norwaylady how are you and Mr enjoying the suite? Anything that has particularly pleased, or displeased you about it? Would love to hear your thoughts and impressions. 🙂 Thanks for your wonderful reports, they are a delight to read and my 'Mrs' enjoys me reading bits out to her. We will be boarding in Sydney for the Xmas/New Year NZ cruise and it will be our first suite experience - so looking forward to it! 🙂

I am surprised that nobody has mentioned Rydges Sydney Harbour, which is less than 200m from the OPT. From what I have read it is a 'middle of the road' hotel with great convenience. We will be staying there prior to our cruise in late December.

Would be nicer if they cooked it! Lol, too rare for my likes 😉 We will be onboard for the NZ cruise over Xmas/NY and so looking forward to it 🙂

Nope, suites have traditional verandahs 🙂

Thanks, yes we were aware of the combo ticket. My concern is whether we can take the bus on from the Gondola into Lyttelton to board the ship or do we have to return to Christchurch and pick up the shuttle from there. 🤔

Thanks everyone for the recent posts. 🙂 From what I read it is still a bit difficult if you want to go to the Gondola on the way to/from the ship as there are no ship excursions. Not sure if it is possible to shuttle into Christchurch and then take the local bus back to Lyttelton via the Gondola, then be able to access the port.

Hi all, We are sailing on Celebrity Edge in December and our package includes premium wifi for one device. Does anybody know how Apple Watches perform in this environment? Does the ship see the watch as a second device? My iPhone will probably be on airplane mode to avoid accidental network usage, will that create any problems? thanks for any assistance, Graham 🙂