Jean C

It must have been a good year - we made it on the Sea Princess in 2017 on their South America cruise. It was touch and go so they waited for an hour or so for conditions to improved. However, the tender I was in was caught by a rogue wave and if not for the quick reactions of our skipper, we would have been slammed into rocks 😱

Hi, we were on Princess in November last year with family members who had the Plus package. They drink a lot of coke and were getting it in cans to bring back to their cabin. They also brought back cans of ginger beer for us for our cabin - Bundaberg no less - and kept us and their kids supplied with plenty of bottled water. So cans were common place from the bars.

PS, Uber is in NZ and is very popular, but I've never used it.

Hi, 13cabs isn't in NZ. The most common taxi in NZ, especially in the main centres, is the Blue Bubble group. For main centres also, or for airport pickups, Corporate Cabs are very reliable, and are best booked in advance as they have a more limited number of vehicles. They cost more, but will greet you with your name on a card at arrivals at the airport and are very professional, you can guarantee they'll turn up - many central city businesses use them, they're a cut above a common or garden taxi but you pay for that privilege. Having said that, I've used many Blue Bubble taxis and other than one "suicidal" driver who'd just broken up with his girlfriend and was deeply depressed and told me his tale of woe the whole journey, they've been fine 🚙

Yes, Irene @Cbtours says how old her husband Frank is, then posts pictures of a fit looking handsome young dude - what's going on there, hehehe 😉

Those 8 cakes don't appear to have done any lasting damaged his waistline 😂 - happy birthday for March 🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂

You won't have any problems with the 6pm flight - that's the one we book, especially during NZ's daylight saving when the previous flight is 11am, too close for comfort for me. Only downside is that you arrive back in Auckland so late 😴 PS, I too used to live in an apartment in Auckland, in Grafton. I'm now in Whangarei, close to family. Auckland was soooo convenient, sob 😪 If we have an early morning flight from Auckland, we stay the night before at the Ibis Budget at the Airport, although the rooms are very compact, it's clean, in good condition, comfortable and a fantastic location, with shops, fast food outlets and supermarket on the doorstep - in case you need somewhere 😊

We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Wharf Street, Brisbane Central - it was just lovely - clean, comfortable, modern, stunning view. It was within reasonable walking distance to the South Bank and Roma Street Gardens, and had a Woolies store just around the corner. I'd stay there again just for the location, especially if you prefer to be out and about rather than stuck in a room. PS, for our dinner, we bought a prepared salad from Woolies, supplemented with some extra shredded chicken from the deli. To follow, we bought a couple of slices of a Belgian chocolate gateaux, absolutely delicious - I only wish they sold it in NZ, although it would be addictive 😋

Many many moons ago I went on the original Queen Lizzy and Queen Mary. I had an aunt who emigrated to New York who used to visit London regularly. Before flights became mainstream, it was a trip across the Atlantic on the Queen Elizabeth or Mary. We would go to see her off and back in those days visitors could go aboard for a look around. It was very posh, even though my aunt travelled steerage class. I must put the QE2 on my bucket list, for old time's sake 😊

I for one have learnt an awful lot from these boards about all things cruise related, both facts, procedures and of course speculation. In fact, I'm even considered "cruise knowledgeable" by those who don't use Cruise Critic - so thank you everyone for your knowledgeable insights, I shine on the back of all your knowledge and your willingness to share it 🥰

Or some overpriced jewellery 💍

I'm sure all will be fine - golden rules: original prescription containers, prescription or doctor's note if the item is questionable, and declare if asked. I've never had my pills queried or inspected, even though for a few years mine included steroids. They are well used to travellers [cough] of a certain age carrying a variety of pills. PS, take a few days extra supply just in case of unforeseen delays getting back home 🛩️

Do you by chance venture into international waters so you could buy duty free? If not, you could still treat yourself to something overpriced but a treat, since it's probably better to use such a generous credit on something worthwhile 🤔

Absolutely correct. On my last cruise they used the little side tables that are normally found by the loungers around the pool 🙂

I read the article and what jumped out at me was their phrase "in recent years" - okay, they need to define "recent" before they convince us that we've all changed and not the biscuits 😇

Me to, I used to love them but suspect they got sweeter over the years. I don't know Iced VoVos?

I'm not sure how the system works, but can you book them, like you can request a wheelchair at the airbridge?

Hahaha, only in Australia (or a poverty stricken third world country) 😉

That's interesting 😊 I've been in NZ for 52 years and people still pick my accent. However, when visiting in the UK, people think I'm an Aussie 🤷‍♂️

Hi, if you particularly want to do the cruise and would still prefer port side, you could book the available cabin through a Princess Vacation Planner (PVP), by using the Princess toll free number, keep a regular eye on cabin availability and should one become available on port side in the same category you booked, you can ring Princess and they will do a straight swap for you (I've done that many times). The advantage of booking now is that you lock in the current fare, however should fares go down while the deposit is still fully refundable, then you can ring Princess and they will reprice your booking for you. Just as an aside, my daughter and a group of friends are cruising next year. 8 booked initially, although the specific cabins they secured didn't all show on the general website, their PVP was able to book 3 x side by side on port side, and 1 x directly across on starboard. Another couple decided to join them and could only get a cabin on the same deck in the forward section, the others are all aft. Both my daughter and I check their cruise every day and as soon as an aft cabin becomes available, she'll get on to Princess and get a swap done. It might take some patience, but people change their plans and cancel for all sorts of reasons - the trick is to check regularly and then act quickly - phone rather than email a PVP.

Hahaha, I quite like challenging puzzles and often borrow them from the charity shop I volunteer at, to check all pieces are there. One of the workers brought this one to me, I don't think she realised how straightforward it would be - it took me about an hour, for age 6+ and just 100 pieces -

And you'll know your way around Sydney like a local by the time you complete the puzzle 😊

Good luck with the puzzle 😊 Not all jigsaw puzzles are created equal, yours looks okay - for the better made ones the pieces fit together in a definite "positive" way, with respect some cheaper-made puzzles can be more of a challenge. Having said that, you don't have much variety of colour so ... good luck it looks to be a challenge 😂

I simply take all my meds in their original prescribed containers/packs, even though one container is fairly large (fingers crossed, I think I can ditch that one soon). There's a side pocket on my hand luggage holdall that I put them in - when travelling I always keep meds with me, and take enough for a few extra days, just in case.

As regards the premium desserts, think cholesterol and sugar 🤣 The 3rd photo is grandkids watching as their premium desserts are being made for them, courtesy of their parents' plus packages. It looks as though they're getting them from near one of the pools.