2023 World Cruise wrap-up + details of independent tours

[Aus Traveller]

 

Invergordon, Scotland -  Our first stop was the village of Alness, well known for its flowers.

Then we drove into the 'bush' and took a short walk to 100ft deep Black Rock Gorge. The gorge was used in one scene in the Harry Potter movie, Goblet of Fire.

 

We were able to photograph Carbisdale Castle, known as the Castle of Spite, built by a woman after a bitter divorce from her husband, a Duke.

 

At the Falls of Shim there was a chance of seeing salmon leaping the rapids to get upstream, but we are a bit early in the season. Amazingly, we saw an otter.

 

The highlight of our day was a visit to the absolutely stunning Dunrobin Castle. It has 189 rooms and is set in beautiful gardens. We were able to tour much of the castle, although the owners live in a private section. The tour also included a falconry display where the falconer gave us a lot of information on the birds and we saw an extensive demonstration of the skills of a hawk then a peregrine falcon.

 

Driving back to Invergordon, we went through a nature reserve where we saw seals in the distance.

 

We went into Dornoch Cathedral. In Dornoch we saw the beach (not impressed) and drove through the Royal Dornoch Golf Course where it costs 1,000 GBP for four people to play a round. We also went through part of the Hebel Castle golf course that is very exclusive and expensive.

 

It was another great day. Our guide was George of Great Highland Day Tours.

 

[sewgood]

I googled the two castles as the beautiful gardens did attract my attention and while both are wonderful Dunrobin is just breathtaking.

I really think I will have to do a cruise around the UK and Ireland or maybe a driving holiday.

I had better stop reading now as this will end up costing me a lot of money! 😄

Only joking I'm enjoying your travels too much to stop.

[Relaxing Robbies]

3 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

 

We were able to photograph Carbisdale Castle, known as the Castle of Spite, built by a woman after a bitter divorce from her husband, a Duke.

 

Were you able to go inside Carbisdale Castle? It used to be a Scottish YHA youth hostel and I remember well staying there in the early 1980s. It had a great art collection and was an amazing place to stay for very few dollars.

[Aus Traveller]

9 hours ago, Relaxing Robbies said:

Were you able to go inside Carbisdale Castle? It used to be a Scottish YHA youth hostel and I remember well staying there in the early 1980s. It had a great art collection and was an amazing place to stay for very few dollars.

No. We didn't go into Carbisdale Castle. We just saw it from the outside and from a bit of a distance.

[Cruisers47]

4 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

No. We didn't go into Carbisdale Castle. We just saw it from the outside and from a bit of a distance.

Any cruise around the UK in wonderful.   Although we missed Shetland the last time because of the weather.   At Dunrobin Castle it was a lovely 24 degrees, but by the time we got to Liverpool it was only 16.  No rain though.  I have enjoyed your reports and from the sound of it you had a wonderful time.

 

Eileen

[Aus Traveller]

Just now, Cruisers47 said:

Any cruise around the UK in wonderful.   Although we missed Shetland the last time because of the weather.   At Dunrobin Castle it was a lovely 24 degrees, but by the time we got to Liverpool it was only 16.  No rain though.  I have enjoyed your reports and from the sound of it you had a wonderful time.

 

Eileen

I did have a wonderful time, thank you. I am generally posting the info on one day's tour at a time so it doesn't overwhelm potential readers. 😁 Much more to come. I am glad you are enjoying reading my account of the trip, principally of the tours. We were incredibly lucky with the weather although it was very hot in Dubai and Petra and we had to miss the Shetland Is because of the weather. Otherwise, we were terribly lucky. We would hear from tour guides that it had been raining heavily for days, then the weather would clear up overnight before we arrived. We had that happen a few times. The tiny bit of light rain we had didn't interfere with sightseeing.

[Aus Traveller]

Shetland Islands (Tender Port) 29^th July 2023

- Our call into Shetland Is has been cancelled because we have 25-30 knot winds and the sea state is expected to get worse. The weather is cold, windy and wet so it would not have been a very pleasant day. I was going to be sharing a hire car with friends. Note here - If anyone plans to book a hire car it has to be done a long time in advance.

 

Akureyri  Iceland - In today's tour we started off driving along the fjord, then quite a distance to the Godafoss waterfall, the 'Waterfall of the Gods'. It was quite spectacular.

 

I knew that Iceland had several volcanoes, but I was surprised at the extensive lava fields from historic eruptions. The lava has broken down to varying degrees and is now a jumble of lava rocks. Often sheep could be seen foraging for food. In some other areas, there were cattle grazing on the lush green grass. We stopped briefly at an area described as pseudo-craters. They weren't particularly interesting. 

 

We went to an area of boiling water pools, boiling mud pools and steam vents. The sulphur in the steam has killed the vegetation in the surrounding area.

 

Then on to the very spectacular Dettifoss waterfall. This was quite a distance from the other attractions we were to see, but it was worthwhile. Dettifoss isn't usually included on 'cruise-ship tours' because of the distance, but I wanted it included.

 

From there we drove to the Myvatn Nature Baths in a lake formed 2,300 years ago in a volcanic eruption. We didn't go swimming because we didn't have time with the long drive to Dettifoss. It is also very expensive - US$70 to have a swim.

 

Our last stop was at a place where we could see where the tectonic plates of Europe and North America are very slowly being torn apart underneath Iceland. We walked along the rift and were able to climb down to see a natural lake under the up-lifted rocks. 

 

We had fantastic weather for the day and it was a good tour. The tour company was Imagine Iceland Travel. They gave us a 20% discount because I booked nine months in advance and paid my tour cost as the deposit.

Edited September 11, 2023 by Aus Traveller

[Aus Traveller]

Reykjavik, Iceland. - The ship arrived at noon so we didn't get started on the tour until around 1pm. Our first stop was at the Faxi waterfall, lovely but not spectacular. 

 

Our next stop was at the truly spectacular Gullfoss (pronounced Gudfoss) waterfall, one of the largest in Iceland. A glacial river pours over the edge of a cliff, falling a total of 32 metres in two steps. The gorge into which the river pours is part of the rift between the European and the North American tectonic plates. For spectacle, these falls would rival the Victoria Falls in Africa. We viewed the falls from the top, then walked down to a lower observation point and further along the path to get photos. Words don't adequately describe the spectacle of these falls. The water in this river comes from the largest glacier in Iceland, the Langjokull glacier that we could see in the distance.

 

Our next stop was at a farm to see some Icelandic horses. These are a unique breed.

Only a few minutes' drive away, we stopped at a thermal area where we saw the eruption of the Strokkur hot spring. It erupts every 3 to 8 minutes and spurts up to 35 metres into the air. There are also pools of boiling water.

 

The last stops were in the Thingvellir National Park. There was a spectacular view from a lookout where we could see an enormous lake. We were standing on the edge of the European tectonic plate and looking at the ridge that marked the edge of the North American plate, 8 km away. The valley in the middle is described as 'no man's land'. In this area, magma has bubbled up and solidified. There are areas of moss that take 100 years to grow. Our guide told us that the tectonic plates are moving apart at the rate of 2mm per year (although we did hear a couple of different estimates). 

 

We drove across to the other side of the rift where the cliff is around  8-10 metres high. We drove to the top where there is a lookout. A path goes through a rift in this cliff, down to the floor of the valley.

 

This is also where the Vikings set up the first parliament in the world in 930 AD. The parliament continued here until 1798. It was called Thingvellir meaning assembly field. 

 

Iceland has very relaxed laws on food being brought in by visitors (just no meat or cheese) so I took some pastries to have late in the afternoon because lunch was early.

It was an excellent day. This was the Golden Circle Tour operated by Your Day Tours  in Reykjavik.

 

[Aus Traveller]

 

Scenic Cruising Greenland - Around 10am today we entered the Prins Christianssund, one of Greenland's fjords. The scenery was spectacular despite the weather - 5 degrees, cloudy and misty with occasional light rain. We passed a couple of dozen glaciers perched on the sides of the fjord and countless icebergs littered the water. Many waterfalls cascaded down the rocky sides of the fjord. There is one little isolated village in the fjord - Aappilattoq. We left the fjord around 4pm. This was a great introduction to Greenland.

 

Nanortalik  Greenland (pronounced nan-ort-a-lik with the emphasis on the órt') - Even though it was the middle of summer, it was cold (5 degrees) with low cloud, but no rain.  Nanortalik is small, with a population of around 1,330, nearly all Inuit people. They live in colourful timber houses with wildflowers growing on every bit of spare ground. The landscape is strewn with numerous boulders, some as large as a car or a house or even larger.

 

I hadn't booked a tour because the village is small and the only tours didn't appeal. They were very expensive. Many people went on a one-hour tour to get close to icebergs. I had done that on an expedition trip to Antarctica. Those who went said they enjoyed it. However, on shore similar tours were available for US$100, much cheaper than the ship's tour. To find these, walk along to the left after leaving the wharf area.

 

After we left Nanortalik there were icebergs of varying sizes on both sides of the ship. It was freezing out on deck 7. We will reach our next port, Qaqortoq at 10pm. I suspect that the captain didn't want to sail in the dark.

 

Qagortoq (pronounced quack-or-tock) - It is sunny with some high cloud and not terribly cold - around 10 deg. Qaqortoq is a fair bit larger than Nanortalik. The houses are all painted in the brightest colours. They don't have gardens or front lawns, but wildflowers sprout everywhere mainly poppies (yellow, white and orange). After wandering around town, I walked (slowly) to a lookout via a staircase with 130 steps.

 

We left Qaqortoq around 4.30pm, sailing out of the harbour with icebergs on both sides of the ship. It was cold and windy on deck. By 5pm we approached a fog bank, still with icebergs nearby, some of them large. 

By 8.30pm, the fog was pea-soup thick.

 

Early this morning (around 1.30am) people reported that they saw the Aurora but I don't know how much of the sky it covered. Tonight it will be a no-show because of the fog.

 

Edited September 11, 2023 by Aus Traveller

[sewgood]

23 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

Iceland has very relaxed laws on food being brought in by visitors (just no meat or cheese)

Did you buy any food/lunch in Iceland ?

I have read it can be expensive.

[Aus Traveller]

Just now, sewgood said:

Did you buy any food/lunch in Iceland ?

I have read it can be expensive.

It is very expensive. I was on two tours - Akureyri and Reykjavik. A few people bought some small items from a bakery. Iceland permits food to be taken in by visitors with the exception of meat and cheese. That is what I recall of the info I downloaded. I took a hard-boiled egg and some pastries on the first day. It was a full day tour with an early start. The second day tour started at 1pm so I had lunch on the ship. I took a couple of pastries to tide me over until a late dinner.

[sewgood]

Thanks Aus traveller, I will remember to take off a few packaged snack bars next year in Iceland to tide us over.

[Aus Traveller]

Corner Brook  Newfoundland - I decided not to do a tour here because Corner Brook is a very small town. There was a free shuttle bus to the centre of town. Most people (including crew) were going to Walmart (the first stop for the shuttle bus).

 

Corner Brook is dominated by an enormous pulp and paper mill. The centre of town is neat and tidy with big flower baskets hanging from the street-light poles. 

 

I walked to an area of parkland that has a stream running through it and a fair sized lake. I have to say that the present-day reality doesn't really agree with the photos I saw on the internet a few months ago. I started my walk at the far 'right-hand' end and walked 4-5 km. In retrospect, it would have been smarter to start the walk half way along where there is a flight of stairs down from the town.

 

To see more of the town I went on a little tourist 'train'. It runs every 30 minutes and cost CAD$2 (around AUD$2.25) and that is probably what it was worth.

 

When it was time to return to the ship I joined the queue for the shuttle bus, but when each one arrived, it was nearly full with people who had got on at Walmart. It was a long wait. If I had known it was only (literally) a 15 minute walk directly to the ship (not via Walmart), I probably would have taken that option, but I had walked a long way earlier in the day.

 

It was a pleasant day in a lovely little town.

Edited September 12, 2023 by Aus Traveller

[Aus Traveller]

Quebec - I joined friends on a Viator sightseeing tour that started from a central point in the city. There was a free shuttle bus that went part way to the CBD, but my group was walking. It took about 45 minutes brisk/fast walking to reach our destination.

 

The tour around the city was quite good. We went to the outskirts and onto the Plains of Abraham where the battle between the French and English forces occurred in 1759 that resulted in the British take-over of Canada.

 

We drove to the Montmorecy Falls that are quite spectacular. A suspension bridge gives a good view of the falls. The tour took about 3.5 hours. The driver offered to drive us back to the ship.

 

For the evening tour, I booked a Princess tour to a Sugar Shack. This is a working maple sugar farm/tourist attraction. A guide explained the process of procuring the sugar water that is reduced to make maple syrup. We then went into a large barn that was crowded with long tables and chairs. In addition to around 80 people from the ship, there were a couple of dozen others. A man played traditional French-Canadian songs and our guide encouraged us to join in a couple of them with a few words and gestures she had taught us. All good fun. The meal was traditional French-Canadian family/country food. Bowls of food were placed on the table and we served ourselves, passing plates of food down the table. We had pea soup with bread followed by quiche, ham, roast potatoes, meat pie and baked beans. We were supposed to douse all of this liberally with maple syrup. Guests got one glass of wine or one beer. Dessert was crepes then maple sugar 'toffee'. The latter is made by pouring maple syrup onto ice. The person then swirled an icecream stick into the frozen maple syrup to scoop some of it up.

 

While we were inside a storm came over. We later heard it was fairly ferocious over Quebec where the ship was. We drove back to the ship in rain, arriving at 9.15pm.

 

Tonight the city put on a fireworks display near the ship that lasted around 20 minutes. It was part of a festival, not related to our ship's visit.

 

Conclusion - The morning sightseeing tour was good. The Sugar Shack was interesting, but there were too many people crowded into the room. Point of interest here - Many of us booked well ahead for the Sugar Shack at A$119.95 (less 10% elite discount). During the cruise the price went up to $239.95. Message - book ahead for any tours that you might be interested in. You can always cancel later, usually up to 48 hours prior to a tour.

 

[Aus Traveller]

Saquenay  Canada - The plan for today was to travel in two hire cars.

They were booked with National Car Hire who had a desk in the cruise terminal. It took around 45 minutes to complete the paperwork. Four people were in a mid size vehicle. There were to be seven in the second vehicle and the hire company rep assured our organiser it was suitable for seven adults. It wasn't. Only small children would have fitted in the back row. Two people opted out of the tour.

 

Our first stop (after 90 minutes' drive) was at an historical village from the 1920s. It was raining lightly and the village was all outdoors. The entry cost was CAD$46 pp (AUD$50+) and we were told it would need 4-5 hours to walk around. One of our group was seriously mobility impaired. He was happy to sit and wait but we decided not to go in.

 

We went back to the last little town to buy some lunch/coffee. The organiser of the trip suggested we go to see a cavern/waterfall.

After following a 7km muddy dirt road, we reached it. We could see some of the gorge from the carpark, but there was an entry fee to go any further. It was clear from the information board, that we would need at least a couple of hours for the walk. We decided not to bother and drove back to the ship.

 

While we drove we saw a lot of interesting countryside - forests, lakes and small towns and villages. Despite the rain in the morning, we had a good day.

 

 

 

 

Edited September 14, 2023 by Aus Traveller

[Aus Traveller]

Sydney Nova Scotia - I took part in a tour on the Cabot Trail. The island is part of south-eastern Canada known as the Maritimes and it has a very definite Scottish influence with road signs in both Gaelic and English. There  is even a Gaelic college and of course many shops selling Scottish merchandise.

The tour was along a winding coastal road known as the Cabot Trail, regarded as one of the most beautiful coastal drives in the world. We drove along te winding highway, stopping at a few lookouts along the way. The view were lovely. Our guide explained that in Autumn, the trees are ablaze with fall colours ranging from gold to differing shades of red. It would be spectacular at that time of year. Other areas of the Trail passed through forests of evergreens that are harvested for timber.

The first beach we stopped at was covered up to a metre deep with rounded stones thrown up by the occasional ferocious North Atlantic storm. They were mostly about the size of the palm of my hand or a bit smaller. The second beach, Igonish Beach was described as our guide as very beautiful. Well, it had real sand and looked OK, but it didn't impress us Aussies. There was a lifeguard station with a young girl keeping watch and the swimming area of the beach was designated by familiar red and yellow flags. We had a picnic lunch here, eating the lobster rolls and sandwiches we had bought a bit earlier. These are a specialty of this area of Canada and I couldn't leave the area without trying one. They are yummy. We also stopped at a town that is a base for lobster fishermen. They use lobster traps and apparently they make really good money in their two-month long season.

With only one day for the trip, we were able to drive roughly half way along the Trail before we had to retrace our path to get back to the town of Sydney where our ship was docked. We took a short cut across St Anns Bay on the Englishtown Ferry. It takes about 15 cars.

I would rate it as a good trip with lovely scenery. The tour operator was Blackwood Tours.
 

[Aus Traveller]

Halifax, the capital and largest city in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Halifax has always been an important port because its deep harbour remains ice-free in winter.

 

I was in a small group that went on a tour to the main attraction in the area, Peggys Cove. It was only around an hour's drive. The day had started off rainy, but by the time we got to our destination the sun was breaking through. Peggys Cove is absolutely lovely with an iconic lighthouse and a few dozen multi-coloured houses scattered around a tiny harbour. I got some lovely photos.

 

I wanted to go to the Fairlawn Cemetery to see the graves of 121 victims of the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. Most are memorialized with a small gray granite marker with the name and date of death. Some families paid for larger markers with more inscriptions. The occupants of a third of the graves have never been identified and their markers contain just the date of death and marker number. The Halifax cemetery is the resting place of so many of those who died in the sinking because Halifax was the base for ships searching and recovering bodies after the sinking. 209 bodies were taken to Halifax, but many of the wealthy people who were identified were returned to their home countries at their family's expense. 

 

My recommendation is to go by taxi to Peggys Cove. There are SUV taxis that will take six or seven people. There is a cab rank right outside the cruise terminal. Ask the taxi driver to wait for around an hour while you explore Peggys Cove. It is very small. On the way back, if you want to you can visit to cemetery to see the Titanic graves.

[Aus Traveller]

I disembarked from the World Cruise in New York. My QANTAS flight home was due to leave at 7.30pm so I booked a disembarkation tour of New York that would end at the airport. However, it was cancelled because of insufficient numbers. I then booked a Princess sightseeing tour (along with another couple) with the plan to get a taxi to the airport after the tour.

 

We were told by the Shore Ex staff that we couldn't book a tour earlier than 9am because we might get held up in Immigration. We were also told had to self disembark at 7am. We breezed through Immigration and had to wait hours for our tour. The 80+ others on the tour had assembled on the ship at 8.30am and were held up in Immigration for more than an hour. Apparently it didn't occur to the Shore Ex staff that this might happen for the people on the tour. It was 10am before everyone came to the buses. 

 

Sightseeing tour - We started with a one-hour boat cruise past the sights of Manhattan as far as Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. The boat tour guide was ridiculously patriotic - "America is the only nation of earth founded on the principles of equality for all". I felt like asking how that worked for the African slaves and also for the Indians. After the boat trip, we toured the main part of Manhattan for another couple of hours. Our guide on the bus was really good and I felt it was an excellent tour.

 

We went by taxi to the airport where the QANTAS check-in was ridiculously slow. The ground staff didn't seem to know what they were doing. The flight was direct from New York City to Auckland, then on to Brisbane.

 

P.S. I will be away on a cruise for a week so if anyone has any questions, I will answer them when I return home.

[cruiser3775]

Thank you so much for the detailed reports of your shore excursions. It was a lot of work for you, and very helpful.  I am impressed by how much planning you must have had to do, to get these excursions organised and find others to join you.

[MicCanberra]

Cheers, lots of useful info.

[Cruisers47]

12 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

I disembarked from the World Cruise in New York. My QANTAS flight home was due to leave at 7.30pm so I booked a disembarkation tour of New York that would end at the airport. However, it was cancelled because of insufficient numbers. I then booked a Princess sightseeing tour (along with another couple) with the plan to get a taxi to the airport after the tour.

 

We were told by the Shore Ex staff that we couldn't book a tour earlier than 9am because we might get held up in Immigration. We were also told had to self disembark at 7am. We breezed through Immigration and had to wait hours for our tour. The 80+ others on the tour had assembled on the ship at 8.30am and were held up in Immigration for more than an hour. Apparently it didn't occur to the Shore Ex staff that this might happen for the people on the tour. It was 10am before everyone came to the buses. 

 

Sightseeing tour - We started with a one-hour boat cruise past the sights of Manhattan as far as Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. The boat tour guide was ridiculously patriotic - "America is the only nation of earth founded on the principles of equality for all". I felt like asking how that worked for the African slaves and also for the Indians. After the boat trip, we toured the main part of Manhattan for another couple of hours. Our guide on the bus was really good and I felt it was an excellent tour.

 

We went by taxi to the airport where the QANTAS check-in was ridiculously slow. The ground staff didn't seem to know what they were doing. The flight was direct from New York City to Auckland, then on to Brisbane.

 

P.S. I will be away on a cruise for a week so if anyone has any questions, I will answer them when I return home.

Hi

 

sorry I don’t know your name Aus Traveller but have enjoyed your reports.

 

how long have you been home and where are you going on your next cruise.   
 

we have been home since August from our last cruise but it seems a long time till our Christmas cruise,  seems really boring to be at home!!

 

Regards

 

Eileen

[mr walker]

Thanks for sharing your comprehensive review - interesting read for sure.

[sewgood]

Thanks so much for taking the time to write this tour review.

I am booked to go to a few of the ports next year and I found your experiences and advice so helpful in planning for the port stops and I enjoyed reading about the other ports especially the places I haven't been to yet.

I think I now want to go on a cruise of Spain. 😄

 

 

[Aus Traveller]

On 9/16/2023 at 6:50 PM, Cruisers47 said:

Hi

 

sorry I don’t know your name Aus Traveller but have enjoyed your reports.

 

how long have you been home and where are you going on your next cruise.   
 

we have been home since August from our last cruise but it seems a long time till our Christmas cruise,  seems really boring to be at home!!

 

Regards

 

Eileen

I left the world cruise in New York and arrived home in Brisbane on 18th August. We have returned today from a seven-day cruise to Noumea/Lifou/Vila on the Pacific Encounter. Our next cruise is in one month. 😁

[Cruisers47]

3 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

I left the world cruise in New York and arrived home in Brisbane on 18th August. We have returned today from a seven-day cruise to Noumea/Lifou/Vila on the Pacific Encounter. Our next cruise is in one month. 😁

Hi

 

well I am glad you are enjoying your cruising,  who wouldn’t!👍🥳