Kellyansapansa

Thanks to everyone who shared the itineraries and brochures. We're very excited about the 29 night Yokohama to Adelaide itinerary and the opportunity to have our favourite ship bring us from one of our most beloved destinations, right to our doorstep. 🙏

It might be. I'm Adelaide born and bred and have been hearing it my whole life. 😉

Don't worry, you'll be fine. I've heard that the entrance exam has been toned down quite a bit post-Covid. I recommend focusing on the 'animals that will kill you' and 'bizarre road sign' categories. 😉

Crow-eater refers to someone from South Australia. A durry is a cigarette. Every state has its own nickname for its citizens. https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/history-culture/2013/05/slang-what-aussies-call-other-aussies/#:~:text='Crow-eaters' for South,is simply not heard enough.

I'm a crow-eater and we definitely call them durries. 😉

As an Aussie, I can only say that the burgers are better at Hungry Jack's. 😂

On our first ever cruise, on Diamond Princess in 2014, there was a big sale event held in one of the main dining rooms. There were thousands of items on sale, including clothing, accessories and souvenirs. It felt like they had decided to clear out a warehouse of old stock. There was some really random stuff but also some treasures to be found. It was a fun way to spend a couple of hours on a sea day, pawing through the piles of stuff. We've never seen this on a cruise again, and I never knew if this was a one-off event or something that happened fairly regularly on selected ships and itineraries. 🤔

On the Coral recently it cost us $10 to wash and dry one load, including detergent.

No, they will give you a USB with the images. You will also be able to download the digital images from the Medallion app.

We had our goodwill FCC extended by 3 months. We booked the cruise first, with no deposit, then put in a request to have the goodwill FCC applied. It had to be escalated for approval but we received confirmation of the extension within 24 hours. We're in Australia, if that makes any difference. 😊

We were on the Island in early February and the buffet was exceptional. The biggest change we noticed was more options provided in single serves, which we really liked. There was plenty of choice and the quality was excellent. 😊

We had our goodwill FCC extended by 3 months. We booked the cruise first, with no deposit, then put in a request to have the goodwill FCC applied. It had to be escalated for approval but we received confirmation of the extension within 24 hours. We're in Australia, if that makes any difference. 😊

We picked our first cruise based on itinerary and it happened to be Princess. We loved the entire experience and have cruised Princess ever since, except for one trip on Royal Caribbean with extended family. That was a very different experience and reinforced our preference for Princess. 😊

13 is our number too! We met on a Friday the 13th, got married on the 13th, and we live in number 13. 🐈‍⬛

I'm not sure anyone is going to be crossing borders after being incinerated. 😳

We received a ship-shaped USB once but we've also had silver ones with the Sea Witch logo. Both were great souvenirs, it's a shame if they no longer give them out. I'm hoping they just ran out on our particular cruise. 😊

@woostergirl Did you end up making a decision? My husband and I did an 11-day round trip from Brisbane to PNG in late January and early February. We visited Alotau, Rabaul (overnight) and Conflict Islands. We were scheduled to stop at Kiriwina Island but weather prevented us from docking there. We loved the entire experience, but we are a mature couple travelling on our own. In my opinion, the South Pacific and Fiji itinerary would probably be more interesting for kids that age. There really wasn't anything to do in Alotau other than walk into the main street and visit a local supermarket and a tiny handicraft market. On our first day in Rabaul we took a tour with a local guide which was lovely, but again not overly exciting for kids. We spent a lot of time in a small fibreglass boat crossing the harbour, walked around the ash fields at the base of a volcano (not as exciting as it sounds) and spent an hour on a small island which was lovely for swimming but had no other facilities. On our second day in Rabaul we walked into the main street and visited a local produce market. There were a few stalls selling locally made jewellery and handicrafts but not a lot, and nothing particularly aimed at kids. The Conflict Islands were lovely. It was a tender port so there was quite a wait to get onshore, but once we did we spent a couple of hours snorkelling. There's a lovely lagoon with plenty of coral and lots of different coloured fish to be spotted. Facilities were limited but there was a food and drink hut, canoes and kayaks for hire and glass-bottomed boat tours. This would be a great port stop for kids who love the beach. Anyway, you may already have made a decision but I thought I'd post my experience in case it helps you or anyone else. 😊

My husband and I visited Rabaul with the Coral Princess cruise ship in February 2023. We did lots of investigation into tours and excursions prior to our cruise and booked a tour with Madapai Tours based on reviews on various platforms. We communicated with Bradley, the owner of Madapai Tours, via email and he was very responsive and helpful. We paid a 50% deposit via Western Union transfer and paid the balance in PNG Kina in person on the day of the tour. The description of the tour was as follows: The Madapai Tours package includes: - Rabaul Hot Springs - Volcano Base Walk - Volcano Hike - Digging Megapode Eggs - Beehives Cool Off - Simpson Harbour Cruise We will provide: - Boat - Experienced Boat Operator - Trained Tour Guides - Site Fees - Fresh Fruits - Light Snacks - Packed Lunch It was an overnight port and we booked the tour for our first port day. We were scheduled to disembark at 9:00am but there was a delay with our clearance and we eventually disembarked just after 10.30am. As we've experienced at other ports, the buses for the Princess shore excursions were able to drive into the port and wait for their passengers on the dock, but other tour operators had to wait outside the gate which was no more than a five-minute walk. There were many tour operators hustling for business at the port gates, but they were not aggressive and left us alone as soon as we said we already had a tour booked. We found Bradley and his team quite easily and discovered that there was only one other couple joining us for the tour, which was wonderful. Bradley explained that he would be escorting a different tour group, and passed us into the very capable hands of Jerry, Alex and Tua. We were driven in a van to a nearby landing where we were given life jackets and bottles of water. We were then taken in a boat to visit the ash fields at the base of the Mt Tavurvur volcano where we were treated to a performance of the traditional whip dance by local men. We were encouraged to give a small donation directly to the dancers. We were satisfied with walking around the base of the volcano and decided not to go on a hike as well. We also browsed the markets offering a range of very reasonably priced traditional handicrafts and saw the hot springs which are heated to 100 degrees celsius by the volcano. Unfortunately we were unable to dig for Megapode eggs as the incubation period was finished. We jumped back into the boat for a 40-minute cruise across the stunning Simpson Harbour, and arrived at the beautiful Little Pigeon Island. We stayed at the Island for an hour, ample time to wander around the small island and have a swim in the gorgeous clear waters before eating lunch on the beach. A simple lunch of sandwiches and fresh fruit was provided. We crossed the harbour again and circled the magnificent Beehives a couple of times before cruising past the Coral Princess and back to the port. The tour was brilliant and we were so impressed with the whole Madapai Tours team. It was a very personalised and intimate experience and we would not hesitate to recommend Bradley and the team for anyone visiting Rabaul.

We did an 11 day cruise at the beginning of February and managed to avoid catching Covid. Our strategy included: - wearing our masks everywhere indoors - wearing masks outdoors when in close proximity to other people - sanitising every time we walked past a sanitiser dispenser, which was frequently because they are everywhere - washing our hands before and after entering the buffet - washing our hands when entering our cabin and before touching anything - in the buffet we would find a table first, unroll our cutlery and use the napkin to pick up the serving utensils at the various buffet stations, then discard the napkin and get a new one back at our table - taking the stairs 90% of the time to avoid the lifts - wearing our medallions in a wristband so we never had to hand them to anyone, we could just tap them when required It was actually quite a shock to get to the airport after disembarking and see everyone walking around without masks. We had become so used to wearing them!

It may vary by ship, but on the Coral recently there was definitely no shortage of staff in the buffet. We used the omelette station every day and never waited more than a few minutes for it to be delivered piping hot to our table. 😊

Our first ever cruise was on the Diamond from Yokohama in 2014. We fell in love with both Japan and the Diamond Princess. ❤️

I've used the Airport Limousine Bus several times and it's fabulous. Always on schedule and very clean and the driver is always very helpful in making sure you get to the right stop. 😊 Edited to add that taxi drivers in Japan are also wonderful and very polite. Having your destination printed is an excellent idea as most of them will not speak English. Also, there is no need to tip either the bus driver or the taxi driver.

It does if you're outside the US. I'm in Australia and they responded to my email to let me know they wouldn't apply it more than 90 days out. I believe people in the UK have had the same response. 😔

Ooh, that sounds promising, thank you! 🙏

I'm keeping everything crossed they bring it back before I cruise again in November! 🙏