SusieKIslandGirl

I'm so glad you were able to visit Napier. We missed it last month because of the cyclone damage in the area.

Depends on your departure port. Last month in Auckland, we were able to drop our bags off but told to return closer to our appointed time-which was about 2 hours later. We returned in about 1-1/2 hours and entered but we were asked 3 different times about our check-in time. It was quick with Verifly.

One thing to mention if you do book on your own-the website shows 2 options for fares. You can call a TA or HAL to look at the Advantage fare. It is lower than the Have It All, just a bit more than the basic fare but has a refundable deposit.

We were just on the Noordam in New Zealand and a Seafood Boil was offered one evening in the Lido, as mentioned above. It included a piece of salmon, a 1/2 Dungeness crab, shrimp, mussels, potatoes, garlic bread and corn. $35 plus gratuity-DH really enjoyed it. I don't care for seafood so I just chose what I wanted at the buffet and ate with him.

We just did the 14-day Auckland to Sydney cruise last month. It was fantastic, even with a few weather problems. Roldan and Henry, servers in the Billboard on Board, were so much fun during trivia. If you see them, please say "hi". Enjoy!!

Maybe we need a spreadsheet of Who's Who like the wonderful ones Jacqui does for her cruises.........CC name, actual name and general location (only for those who want the info published, of course) 😊

Thanks for mentioning DH on the Care List. He's finally negative and I didn't hear him cough at all today. Back to normal!!

@cruising sister, looking forward to seeing you at the Meet & Greet.

@cruising sisterWe leave Amsterdam on May 14 and return from Norway on May 28. Sadly, this is the cruise Jacqui had to cancel.

Greetings Everyone! It feels like it's been forever since I last was able to read the Daily. It has taken so much longer than usual to get back to normal after a cruise. I suppose the 35 hours it took to get back from Australia and then DH ending up with Covid didn't help-we really are getting older! He's finally over the worst and I managed to stay negative so all is well. So sorry to read of all the difficulties that have been happening but very glad to read some good news from Jacqui and Debbie. My happy dance news is having been able to exchange our Nieuw Statendam verandah cabin on Deck 8 to a Vista on Deck 7 during our Norway cruise in May for no extra cost-and we were able to keep all the perks we had. Take care everyone!

We just finished a cruise from Auckland to Sydney. The water came in glass bottles. It was still mineral water which I didn’t care for-tap water was better but with the beverage pkg. it was handy when leaving on an excursion.

We requested distilled water ahead of our last cruise on Princess. It was not distilled and I noticed considerable buildup in the water chamber when we arrived home 2 weeks later. The funny order was last month on a New Zealand cruise on HAL. I preordered 2 gallons and when we reached the cabin we had 2 liters. DH asked about the rest of the 2 gallons and was told they deal only in liters. They did finally give him 3 more 2 liter jugs to make the 2 gallons 🙂.

We took a Beachcomber Cruises catamaran up to Ship Cove and then made several stops on the way back to Picton. Calm water and a mainly sunny day-perfect.

Perfect timing! We'll be in Lyttelton tomorrow and there seems to be quite a bit of public sleeping on board the Noordam right now. Even better is the wi-fi seems to be working well. Weather has been a bit cool but warmed up today and tomorrow should be even warmer. So far, a great cruise. (I first posted this on the wrong page. I went to the link for the 2022 photos and posted there-dumb!)

Well, duh. Was looking at the past photos of Lyttelton and posted on the wrong page.

Perfect timing! We'll be in Lyttelton tomorrow and there seems to be quite a bit of public sleeping on board the Noordam right now. Even better is the wi-fi seems to be working well. Weather has been a bit cool but warmed up today and tomorrow should be even warmer. So far, a great cruise.

Hi Pete and Judy, I've been enjoying your posts for several years now. We just left Auckland yesterday on the Noordam and while in Auckland, another Judy and I were able to find NZ Fabrics & Yarn. The only problem is fabric is heavy! Can't buy too much 🙁. I couldn't believe it last night when the Daily Program for today arrived and saw that Hyperion Knight was performing!!! After your reviews I knew I had to attend and so glad I did. Can't wait for his Name That Tune tomorrow morning. Thanks for all your reports-they've been so helpful. --Susie

We just arrived in Auckland this morning and will board the ship on Saturday. Passport control didn’t take too long but Customs lines were insane. Just as you reach the front of the line, waiting for the next agent, there were big bins of Covid tests. 2 boxes of 2 tests were rubber banded together-1 set per person. And that line is probably where you might want your mask. Weather much nicer here than in Seattle when we left.

Finally catching up with yesterday’s and today’s Daily. What else is there to do when the flight from Seattle to San Francisco arrives at 3 pm and the connecting flight to Auckland leaves at 10:55 pm? Hoping for some sleep on the plane. Have a great week everyone!

I would definitely get the handicap parking placard. My sister was once asked for it as proof to board the airplane during preboarding. And it works for parking too 😊.

Thanks everyone. Looking for to seeing New Zealand.

We leave for Auckland Monday. I just checked the visa app and received the same message 😯. Tried again and my info appeared. Phew! Good luck getting it fixed and thanks for the alert.

Fantastic itinerary. Hope the weather is good for the Falkland Islands stop.

No, $78 for both of us--$39/pp

Thanks everyone for the information. The HAL shuttle is $78 which seems in line with some of the other quotes given. Just a bit more hassle taking the hotel shuttle back to the airport, I guess. Ah, the decisions.........