Bubbeh

On 6/22/2023 at 7:49 PM, Worldtraveler 4727 said:

 I was really mainly wondering if a credit card would suffice for even the smallest purchases like a coffee or ice cream cone etc

I recently used my card to purchase a green chilli at Woolies - a whole 65 cents worth!

On 6/22/2023 at 5:38 AM, Worldtraveler 4727 said:

I would like to thank all the Australians and New Zelanders who have helped to clarify (over and over!) that there is NO TIPPING in either country. I appreciate your patience. It is such a different culture here in the US, and honestly, we all just want to do the right things when we visit your wonderful countries.

If I might ask for clarification on one more example, please?

This is the statement printed in the itinerary for the 7 day land tour of interior Australia before a 13 day cruise around New Zealand this next Oct/Nov on Princess.

GRATUITY INFORMATION 

Farewell to your Tour Director Today you will say goodbye to your tour director and conclude your Princess escorted tour. As traditions and customs vary widely across the globe, we often have guests ask what gratuity guidelines are appropriate for the region they are touring. It is our belief that gratuities are a direct reflection of the level and quality of service received. It is customary to extend gratuities as a sign of appreciation on the last day of your land tour. The following is the recommended industry standard for tour directors in Australia:   Tour Director: 5.00-7.00 USD per person per day   Extending gratuities is a personal matter and should be distributed on an individual basis without solicitation and not on behalf of any group.

What is the appropriate action here, please?

Also, I would LOVE to not have to get any Australian or New Zealand cash. Is is possible to use a credit card exclusively?

Thanks so much for helping us --once again!--understand and act correctly according to your customs!

Best course of action?  Just ignore it. 

With regards to your query about using credit cards exclusively, I can't remember the last time I used cash other than in a caravan park for the washing machine and even some of these now are for CCs.  Seriously, if I came upon a business that refused to take a card, I'd just move on to the next one.

On 6/20/2023 at 11:53 AM, Kristelle said:

If somebody gives exceptional service or an experience or food or whatever was really good and you want to acknowledge that, go on tripadvisor or the company's website or Facebook page and leave a public message saying so.

In the case of an individual, leave a letter for management saying so.

 

This benifits them much more, while in keeping with culture of country you are in. 

 

And still fulfills your need to give them something extra.

A brilliant post and surely an acceptable compromise.

On 5/14/2023 at 12:43 AM, cachouonacruise said:

Just to make sure, I do not mi-apply the no-tipping policy in Australia and New-Zealand, does the no-tipping apply also to:

 

serving staff in a sit-down restaurant?
tour guides, on excursions?

bus drivers on tour excursions?

I'm beginning to wonder if this is a wind up.  How much clearer can the responses be?  Do not tip, it is not necessary and should not be encouraged. However, if you absolutely must  then 'be kind to your mother' and 'look both ways before crossing the street' are perfectly acceptable tips.

On 3/23/2023 at 1:27 AM, chubbypiggy said:

Will be staying in Sydney Marriott one night pre-cruise.  How much should I tip the person taking my luggage from taxi to my room?  How much to leave in room for cleaning staff for one night stay? How much to tip taxi driver from airport to hotel?

Nothing, not a penny.  It's their job and they are already paid to do it.

On 2/23/2023 at 10:47 PM, Karaboudjan said:

ust so I am clear (since I hope to be in Australia and New Zealand next year) by 'no tipping' are we referring specifically to the American(?) practice of paying service workers 'sub-minimum' wages and expecting tips to make up the difference?  Is it 'okay' to give a tip for exceptional service?

Why would you want to?  You have every right to expect great service all the time, it shouldn't be related to whether you're going to tip or not.  Please don't do it, this only serves to undermine our industrial relations system.  I don't mean to be rude, but I honestly can't understand this need to impose your societal norms on other cultures.  

On 1/27/2023 at 10:21 PM, Nowcruise5 said:

The cab driver was rude and would not get out of the taxi to even take our luggage out of the trunk. Don’t want this to again, so should I have some cash

Some people are just no better than they need to be and some people are in the wrong jobs.  Tipping them isn't going to change anything.

On 1/29/2023 at 5:32 AM, beatleman said:

our workforce are well paid and do not require tips.

Equally our employers do not need any excuse to downgrade an employees rights to a fare living wage.

On 1/29/2023 at 12:03 AM, AZjohn said:

Do the Australia and New Zealand citizens a big favor and adhere to their no-tipping culture as they don't want the same thing to happen that has happened to us in America (that everyone expects a tip as a subsidy to their employer paying them a ridiculous low wage).

Thank you, this is exactly right.  Please don't tip!  We pay people a living wage and do not want to change that by expecting clients/customers to subsidise an employee's wage.

19 hours ago, TheHawk1 said:

23 hours ago, Bubbeh said:

Known here as 'budgie smugglers', for obvious reasons.

Oh no, you mean I will have to experience this on next year’s Australia/New Zealand cruise too?

If you're lucky.  😉

On 4/30/2024 at 5:17 AM, Carol28 said:

Andd, eventually, I'll have the same questions about the Edge in Australia/New Zealand.

I think you'll find that we're pretty casual down here.  A pair of black pants and a blouse is fine for evenings even on formal nights - if in doubt chuck a string of pearls round your neck and a pair of pearl drop earrings on and you'll be fine.  Some people really frock up for a formal night and they like to do that, so good luck to them.  

4 hours ago, Ergates The Ant said:

European men often wear fitted bathing suits, like underpants? Speedos?

Known here as 'budgie smugglers', for obvious reasons.

On 5/1/2024 at 9:21 AM, ledges1 said:

You forgot the limp, grease dripping bacon that so many love (not me).

I think this may be a cultural thing. 14 or so years ago on our first cruise out of Sydney on an Royal Caribbean ship (Radiance of the Seas) with a very high proportion of Australian guests, the general consensus amongst the people we spoke with at breakfast (buffet mainly) was that the bacon was cremated and inedible.  We've since discovered that this is the way Americans prefer it.  There were so many complaints that they started serving it both ways to suit all tastes.

I'm a vegetarian but my husband is not.  Furthermore, he thinks bacon was invented by God for his own personal glutinous enjoyment.

On 5/1/2024 at 2:13 PM, Mareblu said:

BC and a stopover for a few days in Singapore is perfect for us

Ditto.

7 hours ago, Mareblu said:

The poem I’m posting was read beautifully by an Australian female passenger.  Brought tears to our eyes. Bravo, Oceania, and CD Peter, who organised this moving reflection and homage on their own initiative.  Lest We Forget.

Just brought tears to my eyes too.  Thanks very much for sharing.  Dee x

50 minutes ago, NSWP said:

Anyone who says 'Happy Anzac Day' should be sent to the trenches. 25 Apil is a day of solemn remembrance

While you may have a very valid point, can we try education in the first instance before sending people off to the trenches?

In 2015 Grumpy and I were on the official Gallipoli Cruise (https://gallipolicruise2015.com.au/) which left from Fremantle via Albany and traveled the same route as the diggers ending in Rome some 35 days later.  We had the most wonderful of experiences, touring the Peninsular the day prior to Anzac Day and anchoring just 1km off shore for the Dawn Service.  I could go on indefinitely about this but, suffice to say this was our most memorable Anzac Day event.  We've also had other great Anzac Days, one year we travelled to Melbourne for the Anzac Day Game between Essendon and Collingwood, this also lives in my memory as a wonderful experience.  Our tradition though, is always to watch the game together, with wine/beer and snacks in abundance and the only year we failed to this since 1995 was the year we were in Turkey when the feed to the ship was interrupted and there were many very disappointed people wearing their team's guernseys.  Just reminiscing here.

20 hours ago, Hammer61 said:

Young lady at the gym reception yesterday afternoon as i was leaving said have a happy Anzac day! Made me smile at first then i thought how sad

I understand that the RSL and the Federal Government had come out earlier in the week and requested that people did not wish each other a 'Happy Anzac Day' as it was a commemoration not a celebration and doing so was inappropriate.  I was involved in a discussion about this shortly afterwards and I explained it thus:  January 27th is Holocaust Remembrance Day, would you wish a Jewish person a happy Holocaust Day?  My point was accepted.

2 minutes ago, rkmw said:

The cruise line should have a debark tour for airport passengers and give you a tour of Sydney and then drop you off at the airport 

 

if you don’t want the tour there’s closer places in Sydney to store your luggage for a few hours 

Excellent suggestions.

We did our first (and probably last) P & O cruise - Pacific Adventure, Singapore to Sydney in March.  I was very disappointed in many aspects.  Food was not up to scratch in either the MDR or food hall thing that has replaced the buffet.  I was also not impressed with the level of cleanliness and the lack of somewhere quiet and comfortable to sit and just read was disappointing too.  Fortunately, we had a balcony and spent many pleasant hours whiling away the time and reading in peace.  The ridiculously low temperatures in some of the venues was awful - we renamed the Adventure Hotel to the Arctic Hotel.  On the upside our cabin was wonderful, very spacious and heaps of storage space.  

On 4/20/2024 at 11:16 AM, MicCanberra said:

I have met some rude people on cruise ships but they have tended to be passengers. And as for people complaing of bad service when staff are clicked at is just disrespectful.

Couldn't agree more.

On 4/21/2024 at 2:30 PM, Ozwoody said:

Oh so true, especially for a world cruise.

What follows will probably put some of you in incredulous horror.😵

 

For our last WC in 2018, once we finished packing we had 6 check in bags.....

Don't get to excited yet.

We also had two carry-ons each as well.

 

But when your away over three months, there is a lot of other stuff, yes there was extra clothes as most of the cruise was in warm regions, but there was a reasonable trip through the artic circle, requiring warm heavy clothes.

And then there was Hil's art gear, brushes, paints, canvases, etc.

Plus heaps of, health stuff for three months, electronic stuff like charges for shavers, phones, tablets, tooth brushes, hearing aids, trimers, etc.

And I won't go into shoes, women will know what I mean.

 

When I seen the line up, my eyebrows were just as high as some of you are now.🤣

Sounds perfectly reasonable to me.  

On 4/21/2024 at 1:20 PM, OzKiwiJJ said:

I don't have the figure to wear cocktail dresses these days. 😪 Thank goodness for Camilla kaftans, they hide all my wobbly bits! 🤣

Never heard of Camilla Kaftans before, just Googled them - crikey they're a bit exy!  I think I'll stick with paying for my extra luggage.  

On 4/21/2024 at 10:22 AM, cruiser3775 said:

Like many others, i can't go on a cruise without taking a flight to get to the port. So I am limited to the one suitcase, no more than 23 kg, requirement. I take an airline sized carry on which can be attached to the handle of the main suitcase for moving around the airport.

I just always book an extra suitcase each at a minimum.  

On 4/19/2024 at 2:59 PM, OzKiwiJJ said:

Once in the muster station there is nothing to indicate cabin class.

Nor should there ever be!