Transpacific Brisbane to Seattle April 13, 2023

[Eliot Ness]

I'm starting to get confused on what dates we're going to be at the ports.  Carnival shows us crossing the date line on Thursday April 20, then in Tahiti the next day on Friday April 21.  Isn't there a date change crossing the date line? 

 

Plugging in our cruise dates into Shore Excursions:

 

https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/?source=Adwords&gclid=Cj0KCQiArsefBhCbARIsAP98hXTYYzpL39I3nDFTCeb-aXFyNUO1X37JcAIVBYUM63mpQ2olwrQ38roaAq8oEALw_wcB

 

They show us repeating April 20, which throws off scheduling private excursions.  They also have Noumea on the 15th instead of the 16th and Suva on the 17th instead of the 18th.  This really makes booking private excursions a hassle.  I've already booked Noumea and Suva with Viator, but now I'm concerned that I've booked the wrong dates.  Any ideas on this? 

[Suz&Sean]

6 minutes ago, Eliot Ness said:

I'm starting to get confused on what dates we're going to be at the ports.  Carnival shows us crossing the date line on Thursday April 20, then in Tahiti the next day on Friday April 21.  Isn't there a date change crossing the date line? 

 

Plugging in our cruise dates into Shore Excursions:

 

https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/?source=Adwords&gclid=Cj0KCQiArsefBhCbARIsAP98hXTYYzpL39I3nDFTCeb-aXFyNUO1X37JcAIVBYUM63mpQ2olwrQ38roaAq8oEALw_wcB

 

They show us repeating April 20, which throws off scheduling private excursions.  They also have Noumea on the 15th instead of the 16th and Suva on the 17th instead of the 18th.  This really makes booking private excursions a hassle.  I've already booked Noumea and Suva with Viator, but now I'm concerned that I've booked the wrong dates.  Any ideas on this? 

That website seems all messed up. It shows it as a 20 day vs 22 day cruise and has us getting into Seattle on May 3rd. 

Susie

 

[bantry]

On 1/17/2023 at 5:08 PM, kaykayozzie said:

Sounds like there are a couple of soloists amongst us so we can keep each other company. look forward to meeting everyone. Does anyone know if they have lectures etc on Carnival? I am no longer young enough to party all night and sleep all day. Kay

They usually do have a lecturer on the longer cruises.  Just got back from a Hawaii cruise with Carnival and the lecturer was great.  Learned so much!

[bantry]

On 2/10/2023 at 11:15 AM, baloothecat said:

@irie0518 We’re the same with not usually buying insurance. We’re going to go with an Allianz all trips premier yearly policy which has better coverage than Carnivals and we have multiple trips planned for the next year. That being said I saw on another forum that Carnivals insurance should meet the requirements for this sailing according to John Heald. I’ll try to upload a screenshot .

I have Allianz insurance also and all you have to do is ask them for an embassy letter and that will show that you have the coverage needed for this trip.

[bantry]

On 2/11/2023 at 11:43 PM, EngIceDave said:

Anyone notice it seems like the spa may closed during this time? No offerings, no reservations.

I've noticed that too.  I wanted to find out how much it would be for the thermal suite but nothing is listed.

[EngIceDave]

15 minutes ago, bantry said:

They usually do have a lecturer on the longer cruises.  Just got back from a Hawaii cruise with Carnival and the lecturer was great.  Learned so much!

What topics?

[EngIceDave]

Just FYI if arriving early to Australia prior to sailing....

 

 

• Daylight saving time, also known as summertime, ends at 3 a.m. on the first Sunday in April in the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, and Victoria. Australia's Northern Territory and the states of Queensland and Western Australia do not observe daylight saving time.

[EngIceDave]

Australia Weather in April

Even though April is considered fall across Australia, temperatures are still quite warm across most of the country. The colder areas of the country include Tasmania in the south, while the tropical north is much warmer.

	Average High	Average Low	Average Rainfall
Sydney	73 F (23 C)	58 F (15 C)	4.2 inches (106 mm)
Cairns	84 F (29 C)	72 F (22 C)	7.5 inches (191 mm)
Melbourne	69 F (21 C)	53 F (12 C)	2.3 inches (58 mm)
Brisbane	80 F (27 C)	64 F (18 C)	3.5 inches (90 mm)
Perth	77 F (25 C)	59 F (15 C)	1.6 inches (41 mm)
Adelaide	72 F (22 C)	57 F (14 C)	1.7 inches (44 mm)
Hobart (Tasmania)	64 F (18 F)	49 F (10 C)	2.1 inches (52 mm)

[EngIceDave]

Called Carnival today (2/21) and asked about the lack of spa booking availability online as well as asking if they had any type of list of speakers or topics as part of the Journey's cruise

 

Spa is open and it is some glitch between US and AUS booking, or so she said *wink* You'll be able to book once on-board.

 

and there is no advance list of Journey's cruise speakers or topics.

[zashi99]

Lynda from Foley, Alabama. I am joining you for this cruise as a solo traveler.  My husband usually cruises with me, but this itinerary has way too many sea days for him. As many of you did, I got an offer I couldn’t refuse. Not as good as a balcony, but I’m happy. I’m extending the trip on both ends. I’m flying Southwest to San Diego, staying with my daughter for 2 nights, flying to Brisbane on Hawaiian. Not looking forward to spending the night in the Sydney airport, though. Spending 5 days in Brisbane before the cruise, renting a car. Still working on excursions/activities in the various places. My primary interest is snorkeling, so would be interested in snorkeling excursions. One thing is set - I’ve rented a car in Hawaii. I lived in Honolulu for 3 years, and I’m looking forward to revisiting some places, getting some plate lunch, doing some shopping, soaking up the flavor of Hawaii. I really miss living there. Spending 3 days in Seattle where my daughter is flying up to join me. Flying home on Southwest from Seattle. Really excited! 

[baloothecat]

13 hours ago, zashi99 said:

Spending 5 days in Brisbane before the cruise, renting a car. Still working on excursions/activities in the various places. My primary interest is snorkeling, so would be interested in snorkeling excursions. 

Welcome Lynda! If you don’t have your accommodations booked I’d do that asap. You are going to be in Brisbane during Easter and Australian equivalent of spring break holidays. we booked the 4 day cruise before so we could snorkel the Great Barrier Reef, bucket list item for us. For Noumea we booked Signal Island water taxi turtle tour for cruisers on Viator. I also  read  Amedee Island was good, the ship offers an excursion. Suva- a number of us have booked a snorkel excursion thru untouched Fiji- they have a private group set up for our cruise on Fb Carnival Luminosa April 2023 Fiji Excusions. I also posted their email here in an earlier post. Not sure if they have any snorkel spots left but had other options ie waterfall/village excursion. No payment in advance, they will collect payment in USD on day of.
 

Whatever you do don’t miss snorkeling in Moorea! I’d choose Moorea over Papeete for snorkel any day.  We have snorkeled in Hawaii,Mexico,Caribbean, and French Polynesia has been the best so far.  I posted some private excursion operators in an earlier post. There’s another operator who does small group lagoon tours max. 12 people who may be able to pick up at tender dock. It’s called Corallina Tours, great reviews on TripAdvisor and CC, the owners name is Maui. His morning tour is at 8:30am. Website: 

https://www.corallinatours.com/all-tours/snorkeling-lagoon-tour/

@irie0518 this might be an option for you guys as well if you didn’t book private.  You would need to contact him to see if he’ll pickup from tender dock before booking.   His email is on his website.

Their option at the end of the tour to stay on the island/motu and have lunch and hang out is a great option. We will be having lunch there on our private excursion. You need reservations and reserve the ride back to the mainland,. Recommend to prearrange transport from their drop off on Moorea to the tender dock.taxis are not plentiful on Moorea. Maui might be able to help or give options.This is the website for Coco Beach restaurant to check it out:

https://www.cocobeachmoorea.com/
In high season it books up way in advance. hope this helps!

Stephanie

 

Edited February 22, 2023 by baloothecat

[zashi99]

Hi Stephanie! Thank you for such an informative reply. My plans are starting to shape up nicely. Flights are booked and hotels are reserved. I have snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef twice and I must say, what an experience. I’ve snorkeled all over the world, and GBR is one of the top snorkels.  It was challenging - not an easy snorkel, but very worth it. I’ve not had the chance to snorkel in the South Pacific as of yet, and am very excited about this opportunity. I am planning to snorkel in Brisbane also. 
 

In Noumea, I plan to take the HOHO bus to the water taxi, and go over to Ilot Maitre. In Fiji, thanks to you, I am booked with Untouched Fiji for the Beqa Lagoon snorkel. I had been unsuccessful in booking a snorkel trip, so was planning to do a river trip. It sounded pretty fun, but would rather snorkel, at least this time. In Pape’ete, I am thinking of getting a day pass to the InterContinental Resort. I plan to visit the market in the am and perhaps find the food trucks in the pm. Wish we were staying later, as I would have loved to go to the dinner show at the IC. In Moorea, I have a snorkel trip booked with Moorea Tiki Tours. It’s all day and includes lunch, and the pick-up and drop-off are right at the cruise dock. 
 

I’m excited to take a stroll down memory lane in Honolulu. Zippy’s chili and rice, Rainbow Drive-in plate lunch, possibly Aiea Bowl for dinner, malasadas (have to bring a box back with me), coconut butter cream rolls, so many things I miss. I used to live on Ford Island (back before there was a bridge), so plan to drive over and see if my old house is still there, directly across from the Utah memorial. Won’t try to do the Arizona Memorial this time, been there many times before. Gotta go fabric shopping, too. Too bad we are there on Friday - no Swap Meet at the Stadium. Oh, shave ice! Need some of that. I can see I need to plan a trip to Hawaii some time soon. 😀 One day is just not going to be enough. 

[baloothecat]

10 hours ago, zashi99 said:

Hi Stephanie! Thank you for such an informative reply. My plans are starting to shape up nicely. Flights are booked and hotels are reserved. I have snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef twice and I must say, what an experience. I’ve snorkeled all over the world, and GBR is one of the top snorkels.  It was challenging - not an easy snorkel, but very worth it. I’ve not had the chance to snorkel in the South Pacific as of yet, and am very excited about this opportunity. I am planning to snorkel in Brisbane also. 
 

In Noumea, I plan to take the HOHO bus to the water taxi, and go over to Ilot Maitre. In Fiji, thanks to you, I am booked with Untouched Fiji for the Beqa Lagoon snorkel. I had been unsuccessful in booking a snorkel trip, so was planning to do a river trip. It sounded pretty fun, but would rather snorkel, at least this time. In Pape’ete, I am thinking of getting a day pass to the InterContinental Resort. I plan to visit the market in the am and perhaps find the food trucks in the pm. Wish we were staying later, as I would have loved to go to the dinner show at the IC. In Moorea, I have a snorkel trip booked with Moorea Tiki Tours. It’s all day and includes lunch, and the pick-up and drop-off are right at the cruise dock. 
 

I’m excited to take a stroll down memory lane in Honolulu. Zippy’s chili and rice, Rainbow Drive-in plate lunch, possibly Aiea Bowl for dinner, malasadas (have to bring a box back with me), coconut butter cream rolls, so many things I miss. I used to live on Ford Island (back before there was a bridge), so plan to drive over and see if my old house is still there, directly across from the Utah memorial. Won’t try to do the Arizona Memorial this time, been there many times before. Gotta go fabric shopping, too. Too bad we are there on Friday - no Swap Meet at the Stadium. Oh, shave ice! Need some of that. I can see I need to plan a trip to Hawaii some time soon. 😀 One day is just not going to be enough. 

Hi Lynda!  So happy to hear your plans are shaping up. We are very excited about the GBR, how awesome to have done that twice!  Our best so far has been Bora Bora and Tahaa in French Polynesia. In Brissy Is it Moreton island you plan on snorkeling at?  I do enjoy reading about others plans  for independent excursions. I knew about hoho bus to llot Canard but not llot Maitre.We will be back in Noumea next year on a S.Pacific cruise so I will be interested to find out your experience there.  Papeete - I don’t think you’ll go wrong with a day pass to IC and  yes it’s a bummer about the dinner show timing, I saw that also. We will be heading to the IC for our boat rental. The food trucks are always a good option for a reasonably priced meal in FP . Moorea- I had not heard of Moorea Tiki Tours, they must’ve started up since our visit at end of 2021. The timing is great for our times in port and another option for those wanting to book outside of ships tour. Honolulu, wow your descriptions of the foods- just wow and yum! Stephanie 

[irie0518]

On 2/22/2023 at 2:04 PM, baloothecat said:

Welcome Lynda! If you don’t have your accommodations booked I’d do that asap. You are going to be in Brisbane during Easter and Australian equivalent of spring break holidays. we booked the 4 day cruise before so we could snorkel the Great Barrier Reef, bucket list item for us. For Noumea we booked Signal Island water taxi turtle tour for cruisers on Viator. I also  read  Amedee Island was good, the ship offers an excursion. Suva- a number of us have booked a snorkel excursion thru untouched Fiji- they have a private group set up for our cruise on Fb Carnival Luminosa April 2023 Fiji Excusions. I also posted their email here in an earlier post. Not sure if they have any snorkel spots left but had other options ie waterfall/village excursion. No payment in advance, they will collect payment in USD on day of.
 

Whatever you do don’t miss snorkeling in Moorea! I’d choose Moorea over Papeete for snorkel any day.  We have snorkeled in Hawaii,Mexico,Caribbean, and French Polynesia has been the best so far.  I posted some private excursion operators in an earlier post. There’s another operator who does small group lagoon tours max. 12 people who may be able to pick up at tender dock. It’s called Corallina Tours, great reviews on TripAdvisor and CC, the owners name is Maui. His morning tour is at 8:30am. Website: 

https://www.corallinatours.com/all-tours/snorkeling-lagoon-tour/

@irie0518 this might be an option for you guys as well if you didn’t book private.  You would need to contact him to see if he’ll pickup from tender dock before booking.   His email is on his website.

Their option at the end of the tour to stay on the island/motu and have lunch and hang out is a great option. We will be having lunch there on our private excursion. You need reservations and reserve the ride back to the mainland,. Recommend to prearrange transport from their drop off on Moorea to the tender dock.taxis are not plentiful on Moorea. Maui might be able to help or give options.This is the website for Coco Beach restaurant to check it out:

https://www.cocobeachmoorea.com/
In high season it books up way in advance. hope this helps!

Stephanie

 

Thanks Stephanie.  We too are booked on the Fiji snorkel tour.  Still looking for our tour operator for Moorea and still looking for what we are going to do in Papeete.  Pre cruise we are spending 3 night in Sydney and then taking the train to Brisbane and spending 3 nights in Brisbane before we set sail.  Do you think we need to pre book thinks in Sydney and Brisbane or do you think we can just book things while we are there?  We are just not sure how bad the jet lag is going to be and getting adjusted to the local time.  

[baloothecat]

4 hours ago, irie0518 said:

Thanks Stephanie.  We too are booked on the Fiji snorkel tour.  Still looking for our tour operator for Moorea and still looking for what we are going to do in Papeete.  Pre cruise we are spending 3 night in Sydney and then taking the train to Brisbane and spending 3 nights in Brisbane before we set sail.  Do you think we need to pre book thinks in Sydney and Brisbane or do you think we can just book things while we are there?  We are just not sure how bad the jet lag is going to be and getting adjusted to the local time.  

Hi Joanne- Yay I’m happy you also got in on the snorkel tour in Fiji! Glad u now have more options for snorkeling in Moorea. Most of the small group tours of Tahiti (Papeete) going  around the island  leave before we arrive unless u book private. You can get a rental car and go around yourself. Easier to find & less expensive if you drive manual. There’s an Avis near the ferry (close by where we will dock)  and other providers at the airport, 20min taxi ride away. Some of the hotels on the island offer day passes if that interests you. You can also take the ferry over to Moorea for the day, More activities to do over there but needs to be prearranged. I’m with you for not knowing how your body will adjust to the jet lag, I have the same concerns.,We have 2 full days in Brisbane plus the day we arrive. We really wanted to go to the Australia Zoo (Steve Irwin’s) but the animal encounters are all sold out so we booked the Koala Sanctuary for the day before we board the 1st cruise. I’m leaving the other days open and we will play it by ear. Perhaps if there’s an activity in Sydney you don’t want to miss, you could book that for your last day and keep your options open for the other days. I imagine you’ll be adjusted by the time you get to Brisbane.
Stephanie

[zashi99]

So, I have booked a day pass at the IC in Pape’ete. Just need to iron out Brisbane and Seattle. Current plans are: Saturday - arrival in Brisbane, rent car, check-in to hotel or airbnb, hit up some museums/sightseeing, visit a local games group for board game night. Sunday - Easter service at St John’s Cathedral, a mosaic lamp art class in the pm. Monday - River cruise/Koala Sanctuary in the am, shopping in the pm. Tuesday - snorkel excursion to The Wrecks/dolphin feeding through Tangalooma Resort on Moreton Island all day. Wednesday - day trip to Alstonvale, NSW to visit artist Donna Sharam at her home/gallery. I love her work and own several of her artworks. Will visit Byron Bay along the way. Thursday - board the ship. Things are shaping up very well. 
 

The advice my travel agent gave me when we traveled to New Zealand, to help make the time adjustment more quickly, was no matter what time we arrived or how tired we felt, don’t go to bed until it was actually bedtime where we were. We followed his advice, and it seemed to help. 

[EngIceDave]

Odd seafaring traditions...

 

HOW SAILORS CELEBRATE THE EQUATOR OR INTERNATIONAL DATE LINE CROSSING

 

https://randomwordstorm.wordpress.com/2015/02/19/how-sailors-celebrate-the-equator-or-international-date-line-crossing/

[EngIceDave]

We can only hope for this... https://carnival-news.com/2012/10/10/carnival-spirit-marks-equator-crossing-with-traditional-ceremony/

 

Carnival Spirit Marks Equator Crossing with Traditional Ceremony

October 10, 2012

In a scene that has been played out since men first ventured to sea aboard ships, Carnival Spirit’s guests and crew witnessed a traditional maritime ceremony during their 16-day trans-Pacific crossing to Australia. The time-honored ceremony involves converting “pollywogs” — crewmembers and junior officers who have not crossed the equator on a ship — into “shellbacks,” or seasoned sailors.

The crossing was achieved at 9:46 p.m. on Oct. 4 and the ship’s horn blared to announce the event and called guests to the Lido Deck for the ceremony. Stuart Dunn, Carnival Spirit’s cruise director, playfully explained why the captain sounded the horn: “Normally you can see the line of the equator in the water, but it was the dark that night.”

A band of would-be pirates from the Carnival Spirit crew dragged the hapless pollywogs through the crowd and into the presence of King Neptune, who presided over the ceremony. The crowd booed, cheered and demanded the pollywogs “kiss the fish,” a dead specimen of which was provided for that purpose.

The pollywogs then were soaked with a puree of “galley-left-overs” bisque. The crowd roared, cameras flashed and the captain and his officers signaled the end of the ceremony with gales of laughter.

King Neptune spoke: “As you sail my seas, all guests and crew of Carnival Spirit have now crossed the equator and are worthy of the title Trusty Shellback.”

[EngIceDave]

On 2/19/2023 at 4:49 PM, Eliot Ness said:

I'm starting to get confused on what dates we're going to be at the ports.  Carnival shows us crossing the date line on Thursday April 20, then in Tahiti the next day on Friday April 21.  Isn't there a date change crossing the date line? 

 

Plugging in our cruise dates into Shore Excursions:

 

https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/?source=Adwords&gclid=Cj0KCQiArsefBhCbARIsAP98hXTYYzpL39I3nDFTCeb-aXFyNUO1X37JcAIVBYUM63mpQ2olwrQ38roaAq8oEALw_wcB

 

They show us repeating April 20, which throws off scheduling private excursions.  They also have Noumea on the 15th instead of the 16th and Suva on the 17th instead of the 18th.  This really makes booking private excursions a hassle.  I've already booked Noumea and Suva with Viator, but now I'm concerned that I've booked the wrong dates.  Any ideas on this? 

I think we gain a day when we cross the international date line.

[EngIceDave]

Finally got my whole itinerary done....

 

Fly to Perth, Australia from Orlando through Dubai. Two stops total. 14 hrs to Dubai, 10 hours to Perth.

I've done the flight to Dubai before, you basically just eat, sleep and watch tv, in a few hour increments.

 

Week in Perth w BIL then fly to Brisbane for a day visit before cruise.

Excursions booked:

Best of Noumea - Through Carnival

Suva Forest Park & Waterfall Tour - Through Carnival

Unique Tahiti Full Day Tour - Papeete - Through Unique Tahiti

and the full day Dole Pineapple tour and lunch in Honolulu - Through Carnival

 

[mainecruisefan]

33 minutes ago, EngIceDave said:

I think we gain a day when we cross the international date line.

This is correct. I have done the pacific twice east to west and lost 2 days. This is the first time I will get an extra day.

[EngIceDave]

Thought of some very important questions...

 

Is Australian Pepsi like American Pepsi?

Do they have Starry of Sierra Mist? Is it Australian or American? Can you tell or care?

What are Australian bagels like?

Does everyone talk funny?

If I find a kangaroo, can I keep it? Can I bring it on-board? Can I have a service kangaroo on-board?

Does the toilet really flush the other direction?

What exactly is "Australian food?"

[baloothecat]

On 2/24/2023 at 8:01 AM, zashi99 said:

So, I have booked a day pass at the IC in Pape’ete. Just need to iron out Brisbane and Seattle. Current plans are: Saturday - arrival in Brisbane, rent car, check-in to hotel or airbnb, hit up some museums/sightseeing, visit a local games group for board game night. Sunday - Easter service at St John’s Cathedral, a mosaic lamp art class in the pm. Monday - River cruise/Koala Sanctuary in the am, shopping in the pm. Tuesday - snorkel excursion to The Wrecks/dolphin feeding through Tangalooma Resort on Moreton Island all day. Wednesday - day trip to Alstonvale, NSW to visit artist Donna Sharam at her home/gallery. I love her work and own several of her artworks. Will visit Byron Bay along the way. Thursday - board the ship. Things are shaping up very well. 
 

The advice my travel agent gave me when we traveled to New Zealand, to help make the time adjustment more quickly, was no matter what time we arrived or how tired we felt, don’t go to bed until it was actually bedtime where we were. We followed his advice, and it seemed to help. 

Lynda sounds like a wonderful itinerary you have planned!  I’m an artist myself so I appreciate your planned studio visit. I looked up a Queensland based artist I’ve followed for a while De Gillett but she doesn’t have any workshops during my time in Brisbane. I’m sure I’ll be spending some of my free time dragging my husband into art supply stores and the modern art museum! Thanks for the jet lag tip, makes sense. Stephanie 

[EngIceDave]

3 minutes ago, baloothecat said:

 

The advice my travel agent gave me when we traveled to New Zealand, to help make the time adjustment more quickly, was no matter what time we arrived or how tired we felt, don’t go to bed until it was actually bedtime where we were. We followed his advice, and it seemed to help. 

This is true and works, but sometimes it is a struggle.

Got to keep yourself up as long as possible and close to your normal bedtime and your clock will rewind.

 

 

[baloothecat]

@zashi99 in case you’re interested in this Pop Art Exhibit in surfers paradise on your roadtrip:

https://hota.com.au/whats-on/live/exhibitions/pop-masters