Scanorama

It might be a viable option for people living in Illawarra, but currently the train line doesn't reach the wharf itself, Port Kembla station has very limited parking bays for shuttle buses (Port Kembla North is worse). The catchment area is very limited, I'm not sure there is a sustained demand for a ship to be based in Port Kembla? If you are interstate or overseas, Port Kembla isn't the easiest place to get to. 

Even as a visiting port, Port Kembla isn't very popular. Only very few ships stopped their pre-COVID, but even fewer now.

Hi 2Tack, I can understand your frustration at the disruption of your cruise. However, the cruise line and the officers of the ship also have a duty of care to all the passengers on the ship. After the eruption, the number of causality and the injury of the passengers were unknown. Many of whom were critically injured and passed away, the degree of their injures made identification impossible. The ship couldn't have just departed with the whereabouts of many passengers were still unknown.

I also read that after the eruption, New Zealand Police boarded the ship and collected DNA samples from the injured/missing presumed dead's cabins to aid identification. The Port Authority and the Police could have also ordered the ship to stay in port until all DNA samples are collected and passengers are accounted for (either injured in hospitals or presumed dead). Had the ship departed as scheduled, RCL would have grossly breached their duty of care as they knowingly left with many passengers unaccounted for.

I hope you will feel better soon about the situation, yes it is sad and disappointing for missing so many ports, but alas this is also an exceptional, unfortunate tragedy that noone could have foreseen. A lot of families were broken apart or wiped out and the lives for the survivors will never be the same again. Not many would go on a cruise and visit to New Zealand would even thought of losing their lives or those of their love ones.

We were booked on the cancelled PNG cruise too, what a shame, it was the 3rd time we tried to do a PNG cruise, oh well maybe 4th time lucky. Hope Sapphire is coming back after the Alaska season, thoroughly enjoyed cruising o her sister Diamond 2 years ago, was very looking forward to PNG this time, many new ports for us.

Sapphire is the sistership of Diamond but without the 'Japanfication'. Kai Sushi on Diamond is the internet cafe on Sapphire, the Japanese bath area on Diamond a public pool area on Sapphire. Sapphire also has the 24/7 International Cafe while Diamond doesn't.

I spent 3 weeks on Diamond last year cruising around Tasmania and NZ and I won't hesitate to go on her again. Sapphire will be great too.

21 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

I doubt that cruise ships docked in Cooktown. It isn't actually a port, although it was in the Gold Rush days of the 1800s. Small boats enter the Endeavour River to reach the town. The entry to the river isn't very deep. Years ago we were on the Pacific Sun (a smaller ship than most present-day ones) on a cruise from Brisbane to Darwin that included a stop in Cooktown, but it was a tender port. We had to miss it due to high winds. Apparently that happened very often so Cooktown was dropped from cruise itineraries.

Thanks, that must be it. Shame the ships don't visit Cooktown anymore, but understand the reasons behind it.

Seeing you are from Melbourne, I'd recommend doing a separate land tour to Queenstown. I did the Sea Princess cruise a few years ago and those who were on the Queesntown tour disembarked the ship via tender at Milford Sound, the first stop of the Fiordlands, missing Thompson, Doubtful and Dusky Sounds. 

The drive from Milford Sound to Queenstown is about 4 hours and between Queenstown and Port Chalmers (where you will meet the ship the next day) is also 4 hours. Altogether you'd spend nearly 8 hours on the bus alone, meanwhile you'd also have paid for your cruise that you aren't on.

If you do a separate land tour, you will get to stay in Queenstown longer and see a lot more.

Did cruise ships use to dock in Cooktown? A friend mine told me she sailed on the Dawn Princess a few years ago and the ship docked in Cooktown, after nearly missing the port due to strong current and weather.

If you are booking a balcony cabin, then definitely Diamond Princess. I've been on both and the balcony on Diamond is miles ahead. Sun has the metal balcony while Diamond has the glasses one, a huge advantage in my opinion as you can still look at the ocean while you are sitting. The balcony is more open too, rather than feeling like you are stuck in a 'box' on the Sun. Diamond Princess also offers the larger 'premium balcony' cabins, well worth the extra if you enjoy your balcony.

Though the Sun has International Cafe (while Diamond does), but the Diamond has Skywalker nightclub which is a fantastic spot to look at the ocean during the day (it's a very quiet spot during the day, one of my favourite on the ship).

IMO if the itinerary is the same, I'd pick Diamond Princess.  

Didn't one of the RCL's ships managed to disembark and embark from White Bay while anchored at Athol Buoy a few years ago?

I think it was Radiance of the Seas got bumped by Ovation of the Seas:

I did it on Emerald Princess a few years ago to Fiji - well worth the money. There is so much food (exceptionally well cooked food) and a tour of the galley. I went on the Diamond Princess last year to NZ but they didn't offer it. Hopefully they will do it on Ruby Princess this year. I will definitely do it again.

Uniqlo at Midcity on Pitt Street Mall

It takes about 4 hours to travel from Milford Sound to Queenstown, and about 3.5 hours from Queenstown to Dunedin. So you will be spending a lot of time just to travelling in the bus. With only one night at Queenstown and the expensive cost for the tour, you will have to weigh to see if it is worth it. Cruising through Doubtful and Dusky Sounds are also quite spectacular (not many cruise ships make it to all 3 due to weather - sometimes none at all).

A poster at my local train station advises passengers that the fireworks on Australia Day has been relocated from Darling Harbour to Circular Quay this year, could this be the reason why cruise ships are no longer permitted to anchored in the harbour?

P.S. I have never been to the city on Australia Day, and didn't realise the fireworks was never at Circular Quay before.

Was it referring to the arrest made on the conclusion of Sea Princess world cruise last year? The passengers boarded in Denver and arrested when Sea Princess returned to Sydney. They were sentenced a couple of weeks ago.

Link: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/canadian-isabelle-lagace-jailed-for-smuggling-30kg-of-cocaine-on-sea-princess-cruise-ship-20171103-gze6xp.html

Have you tried to contact the Department of Fair Trading in your state? It might get the cruise to do something.

Diamond Princess leaves Yokohama on 19/11, arrives Sydney on 11/12

I don't know what Princess are up to!

- Dawn Princess is gone.

- Golden and Diamond are both heading off at the end of summer, leaving only Sun and Sea.

- Sea Princess is gone for at least four months - one month doing the Hawaii cruise (May) and three months with the world cruise (June).

- Sun Princess disappears over to Fremantle at the end of April, then goes up to Singapore and back to Fremantle, then goes back up to Singapre again in June and isn't seen again until November.

- Majestic doesn't arrive until September.

 

So there is nothing out of the East Coast ports from April to September, which is very strange indeed. :mad:

 

Luckily I have a bucket list Crystal cruise booked that winter otherwise I'd be seriously peeved!

Sun Princess is having a dry dock in Singapore then she is spending a few months out of Taiwan before heading back to Sydney in November 2018.

I hope with the addition of a 4th Royal class ship we will see a Grand class ship basing in Australia permanently.

Diamond was retrofitted with video on demand during her drydock in 2014.

Virgin fares include checked luggage (one bag and 23 kg) while Jetstar and Tiger don't unless you pay for it. The limit for cabin luggage is one bag/7kg - if you go over that limit and they catch you at the gate, significantly higher charges apply - far more than what Qantas or Virgin would have originally cost. Tiger has been enforcing the weight limit at the gates in Sydney Airport lately.

Flights out of Darwin are always more expensive because of its greater distance from other cities and fewer flights serve the city. If you want reliability, I would pay more for Virgin.

Virgin and Qantas fares include meal and you have to buy onboard with Jetstar and Tiger but when I say meal, think crackers, cookies and coffee/tea on Virgin. They only provide hot meals on Perth-Sydney/Brisbane/Melbourne flights. Not sure what Qantas offers outside Perth-SYD/BNE/MEL flights. The big thing you need to look for is the check-in baggage - how many pieces and how heavy yours are going to be.

If the flight is going to connect to your cruise, avoid Jetstar and Tiger at all cost.

She will be missed, spent a wonderful 14 days cruise on her last November to Fiji, New Caledonia and Vanuatu

Someone from another post mentioned Golden will be home ported in Melbourne, while Sydney will get the Majestic and Diamond (shame no Sapphire, was hoping to see a different ship home ported in Sydney). I guess either the Sea or Sun will be home ported in Brisbane and the other Fremantle?

What does the 'across the ditch' NZ program consist of? The one way SYD-AKL and AKL-SYD cruises?

That is the standard layout on the Grand class ships, Grand, Golden, Star, Diamond, Sapphire, Caribbean, Crown, Emerald and Ruby. On several ships (Grand, Sapphire and Star?) there was another serving area added just outside the buffet for desserts during lunch and dinner and I believe a waffle station during breakfast that reduces the congestion a bit.

 

 

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Golden and Diamond also have the desserts serving area added.

Her Suez Canal cruise ends in Singapore. Nothing posted after that

Thanks, I hope she will come down to Australia. Diamond is a beautiful ship, would love to try her sister, Sapphire too.

Back to Asia or to Australia?