lyndarra

Agree. I usually have one coffee on a cruise, on the first day, just to remind me how bad it is. Ship coffee - yuck. Coffee makers never seem to get the water hot enough for tea. Had that experience recently in European hotels. Not a kettle in sight,

Semantics.😟

Just confirmed here, post #8

"An Australia ETA is for visa-exempt nationalities. It is not a visa per se or a full visa. It is a simple electronic travel authority that lets the Australian government know that you want to visit their country." - ivisa.com

That's my recollection. IIRC the Taeiri Gorge train could be booked privately (as a non ship tour) but you had to board at Dunedin station and get off there on return.

I would be looking closely at the itinerary however, in my experience, HAL usually has more variety in ports of call than Celebrity. These two would be my preference over the others.

BTW. Reports on TV news this morning of 400 COVID cases on Quantum.

Knowing what to expect I didn't waste my time watching it and, from the above reports, my time was better spent elsewhere.

Of course. Social media is the place to go for accurate information - not.🤡

Have a look at this. Nothing conflicting there. He needs one. https://www.emirates.com/ph/english/before-you-fly/visa-passport-information/uae-visa-information/

Agree. My first cruise Feb 2012 was on Century, Sydney to Auckland via Hobart.

HAL still had it up 'till COVID. I was on Maasdam NZ to Oz in Feb 2020. Happy hour was two for the price of one in the Crow's Nest shortly before (early) dinner IIRC. I'll know on January 3 when Westerdam departs Sydney for Singapore.

Different countries = different SIMs. When I go from Oz to NZ I usually buy one at the airport on arrival. I used Vodafone last time - no problems. This may help https://www.kiwiexperience.com/blog/the-best-sim-card-for-your-new-zealand-travels

USD1.45 for AUD1.00. That doesn't sound right. The highest the AUD has been to USD was $1.10 way back in July 2010. The lowest was 0.48 in Sep 2000. Unless one goes back to the 1970s when our dollar was floated.

I have never cruised on Eclipse but have done three on Solstice. If you have cruised on Solstice is there much difference between them?

Eight hours and 800ks from my place to my sister's place at Wishart. About another 45 minutes to terminal from there IIRC.

I usually buy a newspaper if I have a doctor appointment. I arrive on time but can often wait an hour. There is a newsagent next door to the surgery so I buy a paper and do the crosswords and puzzles. Before COVID the surgery had a stack of old National Geographics available, which I love reading. A few times I'd be reading an interesting article when I got called in and finish reading it after consultation. I wonder when the NGs will be back. Oops, gone a bit OT.

Means bright or enlightened. Something like that.

Makes driving to Brisbane an option if you have somewhere to park cheap - visit rels perhaps? It could work for me. A tank or less of diesel each way. Not good if one dislikes driving.

Have you noticed recently that QANTAS points don't seem to get you as far as they used to?

This reminded me of the dolphins we saw from the ferry going from Spain to Morocco last month. Always great to watch them.

I've found that balconies mostly suitable if cruising in the tropics. Nice to sit outside in the evening with favorite beverage in hand. Most of the time, for me, it's too cool out there. So climate is something to consider. My last last Alaska cruise we had an inside. To upgrade was USD100 each per day (7 days cruise) to go to ocean view and another hundred PPPD for balcony. We saved the extra for another cruise.

BTW. Smallest Aussie note is $5.

I've done several cruises with Royal, all of which I liked very much. Have done one cruise each with Princess and Carnival and neither were my taste or up to the standard I've experienced on Royal. Next, having said that, Celebrity and HAL vie for my affections. Both pretty much on par for service service IMHO . HAL often has slightly better itineraries and Celebrity just slightly in front on food and dining, MDR or buffet.

Just heard the ad again, it was on the radio. "Medallion Class" cruises