Part two - FINALLY!!!

[Gratz]

Kids club

The staff in kids club were brilliant. Miss 5 loved it, Master3, always screamed when we left him there but when I called to check on him 10minutes later he was always fine. Miss 5 wanted to spend every waking moment there and she made many friends. They did a photo shoot in there one day which she LOVED and I got a gorgeous photo of her.

 

The kids concert was cute, Miss five did a dance up on stage all alone and did it well. Apparently she had my mum crying as she was so proud. All the staff are so lovely, they commented to me very often "oh she's a very good dancer" "oh he has the cutest dimples" etc etc, all the things that make a mother feel proud :D

 

The pager system was good, I left the kids there once for the evening movie (where they get little beds out) but they had to page me as my little man wasn't coping. I was really happy they called me and didn't keep him there until he went into hysterics. I told them that at the start...."It's the kids holiday too, if they are not happy just call me" so I'm really happy that they did. Needless to say the kids didn't got o kids club of an evening after that :(

 

MORE TO COME!

[Gratz]

Noumea!

 

Well the humidity hit us like a brick wall here! IT WAS SO SO HUMID! as you all said it would be :D

 

We went searching for a good tour, with the one condition that it had to be air conditioned. We found a coach that would do a 2 and a half hour tour around Noumea. It was really good, they took us to a few beaches, showed us the squats, up to their worshipping place with the big statue, a few nice scenery lookouts and I can't remember what else, we were all happy with our tour, the kids loved it too.

 

Went back up to the boat for lunch and then my sister and I ventured out to all the shops around the dock! hmmmmmm:o

 

The teenagers didn't do the tour with us, they went to a beach, they said it was nice but nothing special, my nephew stepped on a sea urchin and was ina fair bit of pain

[Gratz]

thats right, hubby and my brother hired some motorised buggy thing (I didn't actually see them) and they went for a drive around but apparently they said the amount they paid was a rip off as there wasn't much power in these vehicles

[Gratz]

Ouvea!!!

WOW WOW WOW :D This island is just beautiful! I told all my family I wanted to go to a place called "the bridge" and they all just stared at me with no response (as per usual) so I left it as I was feeling rather annoyed.

 

We were taken to Mouli beach which was JUST beautiful, paradise. We would have swam for about 4 hours! My brother got bored and decided to then start asking me about this place I had been discussing. He rounded up a few of the teenagers and got a ride there. I was more than happy to just stay at Mouli beach as I was loving it so so much.

 

Turns out that they didn't get to swim much at the bridge as the current was really strong or something. To be honest I didn't really ask much :D

 

Unfortunately I had a lasting memory of OUVEA and that was from SEALICE! :eek: :eek: Over the next three days more and more and more bites kept flaring up. My chest, torso and legs were absolutely COVERED! Lots of claratyne, lots of stop itch and mind over matter I survived!!

[Gratz]

Isle of PINES

 

This was the absolute best day, the island is just BEAUTIFUL! I still just look at my Isle of Pines photo's and think "wow paradise"

 

We swam around the sacred rock and snorkelled, it was gorgeous, saw some beautiful fish. Hubby couldn't handle the plastic snorkel in his mouth so he went back to shore with mum and the kids

 

He walked my mum into the water at one stage and started walking back to shore when my mum THINKS she saw a sea snake, apparently she made quite a commotion the poor darling. :rolleyes:

 

I took the spring float - who suggested that I can't remember??? - anyways it was sooo nice, I recommend it to all!!!

 

When I left here I felt really really sad, worse than how I felt when we docked in sydney! I just totally fell in love with this place and as I set foot onto the boat I said in my head "i will be back soon"

[Gratz]

ENTERTAINMENT!

 

I found the entertainment great, there was one magician/comedian that i was getting bored with but thankfully I got paged by kids club :D that night!

 

The shows were brilliant, a lot of them were Premiere's, found this odd that they would be doing 4 new shows on the one cruise??? Or do they say premiere all the time???

 

Bingo was fun, we did all the noises and sound effects but didn't win anything!!!

 

Heaps of stuff that was happenning on the lido deck was fun to watch, we had one VERY competitive woman who was in everything!

 

I found that the showlounge and the dome were not too helpful with the sea sickness. On the two days I felt a bit under the weather I stayed away from these places

[Gratz]

Last post (sorry i'm doing them bit by bit but i'm saving as I go due to master three tearing this room apart while I type!!!)

 

BEST ISLAND Isle of Pines

BEST THEME NIGHT Island night - heaps of fun getting dressed up and we had more fun witht he waiters that night, everyone was just so happy.

BEST GOOSEBUMP MOMENT well there were many but for some reason I really absolutely LOVED the baked alaska parade with the chefs and the waiters. AND of course the horns :D

THING that surprised me most - How close I got to the staff

FUNNIEST THING - there was a 20 year old guy who carried a soft toy emu with him EVERYWHERE (it did NOT leave his side) and we got to know him and his mates as the "emu people"

ANY DISSAPOINTMENTS - the toilet thing (not flushing) got a little annoying but honestly other than that i could not fault one thing

ANYTHING I WOULD DO DIFFERENTLY - I would pack much less and I think being in a big group we needed to be more organised as we spent a lot of time at first searching for one another

[Cruzer Nut]

Last post (sorry i'm doing them bit by bit but i'm saving as I go due to master three tearing this room apart while I type!!!)

 

Hi Grace,

 

First of all thanks for my Secret Santa pressie :D it's great love Eliot and Buttons, I have a mug with them on it.

 

Just remind Master Three that there are no more Cabin Stewards to tidy up after him once he is done making a mess!!! :cool:

 

Thanks for the Great Review, I am sooooooo looking forward to the Isle of Pines after EVERYONE that has reported on it says that it's magical.

 

Now I'm the one getting excited :o 5 (and a little bit) Weeks to go!!!!!!

[OATLEYGAL]

ENTERTAINMENT!

 

I found the entertainment great, there was one magician/comedian that i was getting bored with but thankfully I got paged by kids club :D that night!

 

The shows were brilliant, a lot of them were Premiere's, found this odd that they would be doing 4 new shows on the one cruise??? Or do they say premiere all the time???

 

Bingo was fun, we did all the noises and sound effects but didn't win anything!!!

 

Heaps of stuff that was happenning on the lido deck was fun to watch, we had one VERY competitive woman who was in everything!

 

I found that the showlounge and the dome were not too helpful with the sea sickness. On the two days I felt a bit under the weather I stayed away from these places

We were on the cruise before you Grace & a lot of the entertainment staff were finishing up & were feeling quite sad. Sandy kept saying that this would be the final time they perform this particular production.

So yes you did see a lot of "premieres".

I totally agree with you about the Dome & Show lounge..I was exactly the same with the sea sickness & hardly went to the Dome at all.

[Happiest when on Holidays]

Kids club

 

The staff in kids club were brilliant. Miss 5 loved it, Master3, always screamed when we left him there but when I called to check on him 10minutes later he was always fine. Miss 5 wanted to spend every waking moment there and she made many friends. They did a photo shoot in there one day which she LOVED and I got a gorgeous photo of her.

 

The kids concert was cute, Miss five did a dance up on stage all alone and did it well. Apparently she had my mum crying as she was so proud. All the staff are so lovely, they commented to me very often "oh she's a very good dancer" "oh he has the cutest dimples" etc etc, all the things that make a mother feel proud :D

 

The pager system was good, I left the kids there once for the evening movie (where they get little beds out) but they had to page me as my little man wasn't coping. I was really happy they called me and didn't keep him there until he went into hysterics. I told them that at the start...."It's the kids holiday too, if they are not happy just call me" so I'm really happy that they did. Needless to say the kids didn't got o kids club of an evening after that :(

 

MORE TO COME!

 

Please tell me more about the kids club. We head off on the 18th and my kids can't get enough info about this part of the trip. DD would like to know if when your daughter danced was it a talent quest or did they just put on a show. I have had to stop her packing ballet shoes and costumes to perform in:D

Raelee

[setyoufree08]

Hi there, my partner and I have just come back from this cruise and we TOTALLY LOVED IT could not fault the staff at all, the service was nothing short of amazing. We had never been on a cruise before, but we will be going whenever we can from now on!

 

Best night - Island theme. Everyone was so psyched, I am not sure if this was because we could all sleep in the next day or because they had had so much fun in Port Vila, Vanuatu. I guess because it was more relaxed that helped too!

 

Best Island - Isle of Pines

We went to a little resort here and had cocktails at a whopping $36AU and beers at $18AU, NOT CHEAP and will not be doing this next time! But it was so idyllic and dream-like, it was worth it. The water was so crystal clear and the sand so silky soft. Bliss. I felt sad to leave here

 

ANY DISAPPOINTMENTS - one of the South African staff in the casino was really rude and abrupt to my partner and I and we came away feeling quite insulted and hurt. We arrived at 3.15 on Tuesday, one minute late, for the bingo tickets and were told that there we were too late so we couldn't go in, very rudely. Again for the blackjack the next night, when there were people still playing, we were told that we couldn't play, also very rudely. We complained about this fellow as we would hate to think others were being treated the same.

 

I also found the toilet thing a bit frustrating, as well as the lack of a fridge. Apart from this, it was EXCELLENT and I would not want it to take away from the overall good experience we had.

 

ANYTHING TO BE DONE DIFFERENTLY NEXT TIME

Get more cash (Aussie dollars out), at least $500 for changing into Vatu and Francs. Definitely do not buy food in New Caledonia, as it is exceedingly expensive.

[LOVE cruising!]

Welcome back all & thanks for the great reviews.

:eek:Gratz, in regards to the sealice, were they at all the beaches on the island ie at the bridge as well, or just seemed to be in the one spot. I dont know much about these creatures, so better ask now as we are headed to the same islands on our next cruise. Obviously you dont know they are biting you until its too late. Can you see them in the water.

 

Also, what is the floating spring thing? Sounds like fun.

 

I hope they fix the toilets real soon & for some reason I thought the rooms had a fridge.:confused:

 

Anyway, thanks again.

[wildweston]

That was excellent Grace, read it twice, did you put on weight?

[Ela 2]

Hi there, my partner and I have just come back from this cruise and we TOTALLY LOVED IT

I also found the toilet thing a bit frustrating, as well as the lack of a fridge. Apart from this, it was EXCELLENT and I would not want it to take away from the overall good experience we had.

hi Setyoufree08,

From your post it looks as if you went on the 9th Dec cruise on the Pacific Dawn. I'm puzzled at the comment about the "lack of a fridge". Which cruise were you on and what cabin? I thought all the cabins on the Pac Dawn had fridges, unless maybe the smaller T-grade ones don't.

 

Cabins on the Pacific Sun don't have fridges. :):)

[MargnGrah]

I also found the toilet thing a bit frustrating, as well as the lack of a fridge. Apart from this, it was EXCELLENT and I would not want it to take away from the overall good experience we had.

 

All cabins on the Pacific Dawn do have a fridge, maybe you just didn't find it as it looks like part of the wall. It is on the side of the wardrobe facing the mirror. In some of the 4 berth cabins it is under the desk.:rolleyes:

 

Now you will have to go on another cruise just to find it!!!!:eek:

[Gratz]

Cruzer nut your waiting time is going to FLY!! i'm so excited foryou! Glad you liked your gift!

 

Good to know Oatley Gal as I was starting to think it might be a put on with so many "NEW" shows! They were quite good, I just wish i had gotten to all of them

 

Raelee, it was a talent show, no prizes were awarded, there wasn't any judging or anything but if DD wants to take a dancing outfit then pack it. Miss five was annoyed that she had no dancing stuff to dance in!! What kind of things do you want to know about kids club, happy to answer any questions you have

 

setyoufree08, I have a feeling you may have been on the sun? All of PD cabins have a fridge and by you saying you needed Vatu I'm realisisng you musn't have gone on my cruise?

 

LOVE!cruising, i didnt see the sealice at all, but I would have felt about 15-20 bites over the four hours. Some were pretty painful and lasted about 20 seconds of "OUCH" time and some not so bad. I ignored it cause I was enjoying the water. The bit i definately was not prepared for was the amount of EXTRA bites that i obviously got that I didn't feel initially. I definately FELT the ITCH for the next 6 days. Just to help you imagine how bad it was.....along my bra line of my costume top (they go for fabric to skin contact as there is more heat there) I had 28

bites on ONE SIDE :eek: In saying ALL of that though...I swam with my mum for the WHOLE time and she did not get one single bite! One of my sisters had raised bites but was not itchy, the other sister was as bad as me (and kept showing everyone her chest!!! SO ANNOYING!):rolleyes:

 

wildweston - about the weight!!! Well we're not going there!!!! :mad:

[Brossy]

Hi Grace

You did a great review...I even learnt a few things. By the way what is the floating spring thing? How are the bites now?

[Gratz]

I have searched and searched, someone posted a photo of it and I can't find it!! I will keep searching

[Diddles62]

Am so glad you managed to get the time for part 2 of your trip, its great to read about adventures that others have experienced. I just cant wait for our turn to arrive :rolleyes: Just getting paranoid about seasickness at the moment driving DH up the wall :eek: all sorts of things are going through my head :eek:

[Gratz]

diddles at times before my holiday my head ran away with me too about being sea sick and also having a contagious illness and being locked in my room.

 

ask away about sea sickness and i'll answer

[Diddles62]

How did you manage to overcome it or were you fine Grace? I have got some Travelcalm the natural one our chemist suggested for us as being suitable as other may knocked us out and I dont want to sleep away all our time on the PD LMAO

[wildweston]

Hi Ladies I am absolutely paranoid about seasickness too. I went to Cairns in October and got sea sick in a glass bottom boat and every type of transport I went on after that triggered off motion sickness (which annoyed my 15 yr old son ). Going to try to stop worrying because I will be sick if I focus on it! :eek:

[Diddles62]

Hi Ladies I am absolutely paranoid about seasickness too. I went to Cairns in October and got sea sick in a glass bottom boat and every type of transport I went on after that triggered off motion sickness (which annoyed my 15 yr old son ). Going to try to stop worrying because I will be sick if I focus on it! :eek:

 

 

I am going to try not to focus on it, I find I get sick more via sight more than the inner ear. I was going to get those seasickness wrist bands but Dr kept saying its all in the head and they are just like a placebo :mad:

[wildweston]

Well you know they can say it's all in your head but when I got sick it was definitely in my stomach without a doubt!!

[Gratz]

i felt really off the second day and the second last day. I did not vomit at all but felt off colour. I took travacalm and ginger tabs and also made sure i always had something in my stomach so my stomach acids didn't turn on me...so had a few crackers or whatever every few hours. I then also had a few cat naps on these days, not long sleeps just 30min lie downs

 

Now knowing that it was in the same area travelling out of sydney, and then coming back in, I am going to medicate myself at this stage of the next trip no matter what. the second last day we were facing waves up to 4.5metres which in my little world is classsed a s ROUGH seas (although i'm sure this is probably normal)