Laylam

We are considering the New Zealand/Australia cruise next January. We have noticed the very high temperatures in Australia in recent days. Is this normal at this time of year?

 

What can we expect the sea conditions to be at this time?

In Melbourne we have just experienced four days straight with temperatures between 41 - 45C.

Personally, I think our summer is the wrong time to cruise our tropical north/ Great Barrier Reef. It is cyclone season.

.....Was wondering about taking a HOHO bus in both Melbourne and Sydney?or the city tram tour.May only have 1 full day pre cruise,due to vacation days........

Another suggestion would be the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant

http://www.tramrestaurant.com.au/

You need to book well in advance though.

I'm asking on behalf of my niece.

Which brand of sparkling water is available in the public areas? I can't remember. I'm hoping that one of you can!

I'm also hoping that the answer is San Pellegrino, otherwise she'll be hauling goodness knows how many litres of her own onboard.

It has made me smile that 47 people have viewed this and have been unable to answer - including me.

Thanks again Henry....Great! Norah came over loud and clear here in Oz.

Positively poetic! Keep 'em coming.

Hear, hear!

Great photo. I'm enjoying your cruise vicariously, thanks for taking the time to post.

FANTASTIC!! Thank you for taking the time to post it and your review. Roll on March 17th.

I have thoroughly enjoyed your posts Flamin_June, thank you. We board the Legend in about 10 weeks, sailing from Singapore to Athens. See you aboard Stamfordian.

Thank you. I don't think I'm familiar with Jan so will search some threads here so we know what to expect.

I am confident you will love Jan also. She is a lot of fun, has a wicked sense of humour and a great singing voice as well.

That does not ring a bell but could have been. All I remember is that the tour left from the information center in the middle of the main square. WE had a wonderful gentleman who was chock full of insights and information.

Melbourne has 'Red Coated Volunteers' posted all around the CBD, I think some of them may give guided walks. Here's a review of Melbourne which may give some ideas of what to do....

http://www.independenttraveler.com/trip-reviews/notes-on-a-big-hearted-city-melbourne

Agree completely, koala panda. Going outside the city anywhere is fine if you have several days but with only one stay in the center and experience what Melbourne has to offer, which is a lot.

 

I cannot remember the name now but there is a company that offers free walking tours of the city that are really wonderful. We got insights we never would have gotten on our own. If anyone is interested I'm sure it can be googled.

Was it 'White Hat Tours'? I used to subscribe to their newsletter, very informative and the guy has a wicked sense of humour. Their website here http://www.whitehat.com.au/Tours/MWTours.html

I will be happy to send her contact information to anyone heading to St Petersburg who provides me with an email address. But I would not want to publish her information to the world on this forum.

Wouldn't this guide be happy to be recommended on a thread being read by potential visitors to St Petersburg? By doing things this way, others are forced to reveal their email addresses to the world.

Perhaps because it isn't allowed? :confused:

I think there is a rule that you can't recommend a company that you haven't used, but I thought the whole purpose of the forum was to swap information like this..... now I am confused.

We used a woman who was an excellent guide. We hired her for three days. She is a native St Petersburg resident who has a degree in fine arts - a perfect blend knowing the history and the art. My wife and I hired her (and her driver) just for the two of us. But I believe she would take groups up to four people as well.

 

If you are interested, send me your email address and I will respond privately to you with her email address

Why not post her contact details here?

Buccaneer_1, I don't know when you were last in Melbourne, but our public transport ticketing system has changed in the last 12 months. Now, all travellers on public transport must have a (so called) smart card, known as "myki". The government has come up with a "visitor pack", which I believe can be purchased at Station Pier for about $14. The visitor pack covers all day travel & also includes discount vouchers for various tourist attractions

http://ptv.vic.gov.au/tickets/myki/myki-visitor-pack/

.

I thought I'd put this back up on top for Desert Princess, who asked,

"Booked on our first Seabourn cruise in Jan. What should we know before we go?:) "

Water is available in Seabourn square if all else fails.

:eek:

Try "my onboard preferences".

 

Regards,

Thanks wdpmd, that is what I am doing but I am only being shown the page which allows me to choose our Club benefits.

............ Go online at seabourn.com and into your current reservations/special request section where you will have identified the alcohol you want in your mini-bar.

 

At the bottom of the preferences section they ask if you have any dietary requirements - enter in there. ................

Bon voyage.

 

PS can I borrow your boat while you're away?

I have been trying for the last few days to get to the page where you can pre order the alcohol for your mini-bar. I get as far as "My Preferences" and am able to choose our 'Seabourn Club Benefits' but nowhere is there the opportunity (that I can find) to enter our alcohol preferences etc..

Thanks for the tip. We have booked a day with Pablo when we are in BA next January.

Roxburgh, I am sure you won't regret it. Have a great time.

Who did you use for private tours in BA?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

I would have no hesitation recommending Pablo Piera, he was fantastic, speaks fluent English and was great fun. He has a website which has lots of useful tips for planning a stay in B.A.

http://www.yourfriendinbsas.com.ar/useful_data_332.htm

We will be cruising to South & West Africa and are looking for recommendations for Safari companies to take us on a photographic (not hunting) Safari. Our cruise will be stopping at numerous ports, including Durban, Port Elizabeth, Cape Town, Namibia, Angola, Sao Tom e-Principe, Ghana, Senegal, and Morocco. While the ship does offer excursions, our experience has been that often we can find better (and less expensive) excursions on our own.

 

If anyone has experience with a specific tour company and can recommend them, we would be interested in speaking with them (or you). We are also open to other kinds of excursions (other than Safaris) from any of these ports.

 

NOTE: Remember that cruise critic does not permit recommendations if you have not actually used the tour company yourself.

We have used 'Street Scene Tours' in Durban, & 'Cape Convoy Tours' in Cape Town, both were excellent. Each has their own website. We chose them because of their high ratings on Trip Advisor and we were not disappointed.

I know you are in Capetown, but we have 3-5 days in Johannesburg in early to mid October. 1. Wondering what are the key things to see/do, 2. should we take a day and night to Sun City? 3. We are flying to Richard's bay to go to a Safari resort and thinking of a nite or two there. 4. Finally, do you have suggestions of good tour companies in Johannesburg?

 

Thanks!

I can highly recommend Felling Tours in Johannesburg (see Trip Advisor). We took a trip to Soweto with them and visited the Mandela House, the Apartheid Museum and had lunch at a local restaurant, all very enjoyable and informative. As part of this tour we also visited Kliptown a township where there is only 1 Portaloo per 15 families, 1 tap per block of houses and no electricity (legally!!). There is an amazing Youth program running there, where older youths are mentoring the young & meals are being provided for about 350 people before and after school. The young gentleman who showed us around was very optimistic about the future.

Their mission "is to eradicate the poverty of mind, body, and soul and to fight against the disadvantages imposed on the children of Kliptown, by providing educational support and after school activities. It seeks to develop young and dynamic individuals who are willing to contribute effectively for the betterment of their community."

Hi Beth

 

I have not had the pleasure of using any of our local tour companies for a day tour (obviously I just drive and guide myself! :D). But, based on feedback, I can recommend African Eagle Tours. They have a number of packaged tours, or you can make your own, and I believe they also offer the option of a private (as opposed to a group) tour, if you prefer to have the privacy and flexibility a private tour offers........

We used African Eagle Tours and would happily recommend them. We were in Cape Town late October in 2011 and took a day trip to Hermanus with them, where we were able to "Whale watch" from shore. The cost then was R690 pp

We also used Cape Convoy Tours for their "Cape Town Uncovered’ 2 day tour R999 pp - I would highly recommend this company as well.