sweetp12

Some people / groups go over the top in the terms of costumes or themes. Others just wear normal clothes or colours to support their teams but the people that dress up seem to go all the way. There doesn't seem to be any rules however banned the borat mankini I think - they were very popular at the 7's in wellington but as it is a family event they became a no no.

Some groups plan their costumes all year. But if you don't dress up you won't be out of place.

We booked a Fiji explorer cruise for late Feb and as part of the P & O Promo the fare came with "mystery shore tour".

Has anyone been on a cruise with this? I know it will be from one of their ship excursions and that we have no choice over which one we are put on, nor can we swap it.

I am wondering if they give you good ones or just dump you on the cheapest half day sight seeing tour?

Would love to hear what other people have experienced and if they were happy.

The "nines" is a sports event - a spin off of rugby league it is a nine a side knock out tournament.

A great deal of fun, people get dressed up and come from all over the southern hemisphere to attend.

I spent a week being a tourist there and the highlights for me were the tour of the Opera House (it is a fascinating building and the guide showed us everywhere)...

Canberra - loved going on the Parliament Building tour and the war museum however it was a big drive to get here and you then have no time to spend exploring. If I was to do this again it would definitely be an overnight trip.

If you love the natural attractions then the blue mountains is the place to see. Was really lovely and a good trip.

I loved how accessible everything was by train. Apart from the organised tours to Canberra / Blue mountains I did everything by train and walking.

lots of "likes" from me too. Tipping is not wanted or expected in NZ. The only time I do it is rounding up a taxi fare - and that is more about not waiting for the change rather than an actual tip. Even that is going by the wayside as we tend to pay by card for taxis now rather than cash.

Cafes try to put out "karma jars" but most people don't buy into that either. Many shops will have charity boxes at the till so that gets the spare change.

Our service workers earn at least minimum wage, often more which is sufficient to live on here, no extra money required.

Most service providers do it out of a genuine love of providing customer service, this is especially true for tour guides. It is better to be generous with your praise than money - if you have a really good experience a thank you email or good review on trip adviser is more appropriate than money.

We want you to have a genuinely good time in NZ and most kiwis are friendly and helpful because that is our culture. We don't do it to get more money!

I can't answer for Australia but in NZ you can get cheap phones from $10 up. The place I would suggest is The Warehouse (google them to see the website which has the products) or a supermarket. There is both a Warehouse and a countdown supermarket 500m from the main airport terminal.

I think there might also be a vodafone shop in the airport terminal itself, they would specialise in this exact thing!

Is there anything in particular you want to see? What type of tourist are you - e.g. scenic beauty / adventure / cultural???

Because your itinerary is a bit unusual - Otrohonga for example is close to Raglan (a famous surf beach) and the Waitomo (glow worm) caves, but not really a place I would expect to stay overnight. I would push on the extra half hour to get to Hamilton.

You also are crossing the country a bit, Otrohonga to Paiheia is one coast to another and through Auckland. Maybe overnight in Whangarei to break the trip up but on the top side of the journey.

Picton doesn't have much in it, but just 20 min down the road is Blenheim which is a much bigger town and has more than just ferry passengers.

If you are after areas of natural beauty then Nelson / Tasman certainly ranks up there and you could do a loop around the top of the South Island - catching the early ferry (or even the mid morning one) would get you to Kaiteriteri mid to late afternoon. You could spend two nights there and then head down to the west coast (Greymouth). You would be there early afternoon.

I would then head across to Kaikoura and back to Picton. Unless you want to deviate down to the glaciers / Milson Sound. Certainly the bottom of the South Island is very different to the rest!

If you want to hit the tourist hot spots that are stunning then I would go to

Bay of Islands (Paihia) - go to the treaty of Waitangi grounds to get a real flavour of the Maori culture and history of NZ.

Taupo - our big lake! and just an hour away from Rotorua - if you get past the smell it is an adventure hotspot and full of maori culture. Often much cheaper to stay here than Taupo and a really nice road between them.

Wellington - make sure you go to the weta cave, tour parliament and do the obligatory stop at Te Papa.

To be honest I live near hear and apart from the above and using it as a ferry transition point I wouldn't plan on spending much time here.

Nelson / Tasman - it is stunning here!

West Coast - lots of rain so very green, lush and beautiful. Worth the stop but not very populated. Your plan has you staying 6 nights here which is a lot really - I would halve it and go to Nelson instead!

You haven't included the Hawkes Bay which is also really lovely but you have to pick what will be best for you. This is a lovely country and the hubby and I have driven most of it. Just relax and go were the mood strikes you. Not sure if you how you will do this (driving / motels or campervan) but you will find that you won't need to book unless you are travelling at peak time (January or around a public holiday). Even the ferry can be booked on the day....

All the best for your trip, I know the planning is half the fun!

You should follow this blog http://pescadoamarillo.blogspot.com/ J & G have spent over 400 nights on the emerald doing back to back cruises over the winter period. They just got on today for the next 3 months.

J blogs every night and gives good run downs on the food, service, entertainment etc that they go to each day.

Certainly from reading the last 4 years of blogs on the ship they love it but also give very honest feedback on any issues they encounter.

I concur. You could walk there within the hour - but it is all up hill. Much better grabbing a taxi for the short ride. Shouldn't cost you much for the trip.

I live just an hour or so from Wellington and highly recommend Te Papa. Also second Weta Cave http://wetaworkshop.com/visit-us/the-weta-cave/ which is part of Weta Workshop (Peter Jacksons company).

The bus system is very good, you can easily get to Te Papa or if you want to it is a lovely walk from the ship down the water front. Once you get into the CBD part of the waterfront there is a sea front walk way that links around to Te Papa.

If you go to Weta workshop take bus number 2 from the city to Miramar. Get off at Camperdown Road (ask the bus driver to drop you off).

There is no reason to get a tour, Wellington itself is a very compact water front and everything you want to see is within walking distance for most people. If not a bus or a taxi will get you there easily.

Good luck and enjoy yourself. Remember to pack something warm - Wellington is stunning on a beautiful day but it is called windy wellington for a reason!

Hi All

I know that the reviews for Salt Grill are pretty much all positive with loads of people raving about the food.

But is it worth it if you are meat and potatoes type of people?

The husband takes medication which affects his taste, therefore prefers "plain" food as he knows it will be tolerated.

Neither of us eat seafood.

Hubby is also a type 2 diabetic so while he could have a little sweet he wont eat a full desert.

Oh and his diabetes means that he reacts to bread - so that is off the menu as well.

I would like to give it a try - at lunchtime so any tummy upsets wont affect the evening...

But even at $39 a head is it worth it? We will most likely order the steak - is that anything different than what I can get elsewhere (or cook at home!)

Feed back would be appreciated!

Hi Jeannie & G

I hope you are having a nice time back home. I wanted to say that I miss your daily blog, the hubby and I greatly enjoy it.

I know it takes time to complete and you have been wondering how useful your comments can be after doing things so often. Well my favorite blogs are actually the ones in which you do nothing. I love reading about your menu choices, quilling practice and contact lens drama!

Although the best parts are the interactions with the crew and learning more about them.

We are kiwis from New Zealand who are just beginning our cruising time of life and you have been very inspirational to us.

So enjoy your break home but I look forward to you getting back on the boat!

I am a bit of a fussy eater, being a super taster there is a lot of food that tastes dreadful to me. Normally in a restaurant I will ask for items to be left off (e.g. broccoli) because I wont eat it and I don't want to waste it. I don't expect a replacement item, as I figure that it is my issue not theirs and the restaurant shouldn't have to bear any additional cost or hassle because of my taste buds.

My question is should I do this when on my cruise? I have seen behind the scene type of documentaries and the kitchens seem to be a production line to pump out the volume of food needed. If I ask for a variation is this going to cause a hassle for the staff?

While it goes against the grain it is to not clean my plate I could live with this for the 10 odd days if the inconvenience to the kitchen would be to great.

I love them for travel. We use them by putting a days worth of clothes in each e.g. underwear, socks, teeshirt etc so you can just grab one bag and it has everything you need to get dressed.

Air New Zealand has a great service on its website - if you go to cars then taxis & shuttles you can compare prices. You book and prepay and they will be there to meet you at your flight (even if it is delayed) and the price is fixed.

I have often caught a taxi using this service and saved heaps because I haven't had to pay the meter fare which has been much much more.

Hi Sam

Can you confirm if the buffet in the pearl has changed to the pantry? Or did they just give it a new lick of paint?

this is what I have found from other cc

9121 and I could see right over the top of the tender

9149 and had no problems seeing what-so-ever due to there being no boat in our way.

There was a gap between the bulkhead where we were and where the tender boats started.

9025 and 9143 and were really happy with our cabins. You will find that being on deck 9 you are looking over the top of the boats and you will still have a nice outlook with lots of natural light

I am too booked in to an obstructed view on the PP. We went for deck 9 as the reading I did suggested that you looked over rather than at the boats. We are in 9146 for a Feb 2016 cruise.

Anyway the readings of the various boards gave me the following:

9121 and I could see right over the top of the tender

9149 and had no problems seeing what-so-ever due to there being no boat in our way.

There was a gap between the bulkhead where we were and where the tender boats started.

9025 and 9143 and were really happy with our cabins. You will find that being on deck 9 you are looking over the top of the boats and you will still have a nice outlook with lots of natural light

We are on the Pearl for 8 nights next year and the Hubby likes a glass of red with his dinner. He is some what fussy and I was hoping to know what wine they had so I could try and buy some before we went so he can try it. Would prefer to waste supermarket cost on a wine he didn't like rather than cruise cost!

He mainly drinks Pinot Noir.

Thanks in advance!

P & O is a great basic cruise line. The food is fine (nothing special), the entertainment is fair and the cabins are a decent size.

The sale certainly tipped it over for me, especially the free shore excursion.

I used the new P & O booking agent service - they have their own agents who can offer a direct service. Using this agent they got the deal for me even though the cruise I wanted wasn't in the sale. They also gave a 10 day cooling off period before I have to pay the deposit. Better than what the local TA could do for me.

End of the day the price is good and you get what you pay for. If you are happy with the deal then go for it!

Hi all

The DH and I like to learn about things when we visit new places. Factory tours are especially interesting for us.

We are off to Fiji for 2 days in Feb, stop one Suva and then the next day at Port Denarau.

All of the tours (both off the ship & that I can find from tour companies) are very cultural. Having lived in a Melanesian culture for a couple of years we don't need to do these.

So thinking of hiring a cab or organising a private tour - but we need ideas on where to go.

The sugar cane plantations would be wonderful - but do they do tours?

Does anyone have any other suggestions of places we could go?

Any suggestions on best places or ways to do this would be much appreciated.

I think they are a good mini taste of cruising. Not a full entertainment schedule just samples of what they offer on longer trips.

The actual food and wine experiences are based on external parties delivering in most part. For example I did an NZ one and we had Kapiti Cheeses (a local producer).

You need to book asap! they never have enough space for everyone. There was certainly a variety of offers that ranged from a handful of participants (barista training at a bar) to larger events (cheese tasting in the MDR).

Most events did have a cost - mostly nominal but the alcohol based ones were more expensive. From memory they ranged from about $15 - $50 if there was a charge.

I was a bit disappointed as I did miss out on a number of events due to over subscription.

How I look at these is they are a good break away and if you get to go on some events then it is a bonus.