Bubbeh

What a lovely thing to say, thank you.

and the nerd in me just died of jealousy.

I was a reluctant P&O cruiser a month ago, probably wouldn't do it again unless it was part of a packaged tour that I wanted to go on. There was a bloke in our group who had the expensive premium drinks package and he was 'enjoying' a bourbon and coke at the 10am trivia session. He'd worked out he needed to have 15 drinks a day to break even and he 4 days from port he was drinking 'for free'. His wife on the other hand on the same package was only having 3-4 glasses of wine a day.

Packing cubes??? Oh, piffle!

"I refuse to join any club that would have me..." - Groucho Marx

Oh, I actually do take one of those, it's a collapsible camping sink.

Oh, very clever. A million years ago when I was making career choices (limited at time by society and my parents to teaching or nursing) I thought I'd like to be a statistician. My Dad said that I could do Law but he also said that smart girls don't get married so it was better not to get ahead of myself????????

That's not portable, but if you know where I can get one please point me in that direction. 😉

I don't bid for an upgrade and I don't want an upgrade. I always choose a balcony cabin, mid ships between two decks of cabins. I would be horrified if I was unwillingly upgraded to a mini-suite, I see these somewhat the same way that I see flying business class. Once you go there how on earth do you go back to what was previously your preference? In 2015 a travel agent convinced me to book BC flights from Heathrow to Perth (via Singapore), never traveled anything other than economy before that but, sadly from that day to this every time I fly cattle class I feel unsatisfied.

Any cruise out of Freo or into is going to be expensive. We're booked on a 10 day Princess Coral Coast Cruise in September which has cost $6900 for a balcony for 2 of us - for those challenged by numbers that $690 a day which divides to $345 each. However, there are no airfares or pre/post cruise accommodation involved. There are very few people in the world who enjoy a whiskey or a wine more than me yet, after doing the sums, we've never bought drinks packages or any of the other packages. I'm perfectly happy with the 'free' coffee and tea, don't do specialty dining or bother with Wi Fi etc. In fact the only thing I'll ever pay for once I'm on board is drinks and the odd ice cream.

OMG! Where did you get my photo? Seriously, anyone who's read my posts over a period of time will probably be aware that I don't even comprehend 'travel light'. A 2 week cruise? Bubbeh: 1 large suitcase, 1 medium suitcase, 1 carry on suitcase, 1 tote bag and 1 shoulder bag; Grumpy: 1 large suitcase, 1 medium suitcase and 1 carry on suitcase. I pack for good weather, I pack for bad weather, I pack for cyclones, I pack for heat waves, I pack water bottles, I pack mugs, I pack dishwashing liquid, tea towels, dish cloths and a dish drainer. Basically, if it lives in my house and is in any way portable, I pack it.

We returned home from Sydney last week and I can attest that there sniffer dogs in use at Perth domestic airport. The dog and its handler go past every bag and person including the bags coming out onto the carousel.

Absolutely they do have a border check at the WA/SA border - presumably also up north WA/NT. Officers will ask you if you're carrying any fruit / veg etc, you must declare and surrender anything (including honey). Caravanners / motor-homers can expect an Officer to enter their vehicle and do a physical check. You simply cannot bring anything which might impact the integrity of our environment into WA.

That works out about $365 per night, a lot less than many hotel rooms and includes all your meals, entertainment etc. I'd be grabbing it with both hands. Compared to a Coral Coast Cruise we're doing in September on Princess, where we're paying around $3200 each for 10 days in an ordinary balcony cabin, I think it's a good deal. Mind you, I don't know your personal circumstances and I acknowledge that. As suggested by others, you can always manipulate the system.

From one organised person to another, we're booked on a Coral Coast Cruise with Princess in September and I'm not even going to try the App. I'm simply gonna rock up at Fremantle with all the documentation and passports in hand and let them sort it out. From what I'm reading and hearing, it seems to me the new boarding protocols are more bother than they're worth. I'm absolutely convinced we won't be denied boarding because we 'refused to play the game'. In addition, if I get any superior than thou attitude from any of the check in staff at the port, I'll play the nice little old lady not good with technology card.

Always an option in my opinion. 😉

Just out of interest, where are you coming from? it doesn't sound as if you've been to Sydney before and I'd hazard a guess that an awful lot of travelling Aussies have had at least one visit. Simply curiosity, if I was a cat I would probably be on my last life.

I see that @possum52 has responded to your question. If it helps to compare I can tell you that I retired 10 years ago and I was on professional salary of $130k per annum at that time. My replacement earns around $175k now. I can also tell you that the only tip I ever got was to be kind to my mother and look both ways before I crossed the road.

While I take you point, I never met anyone who went to work with the intention of doing a bad job. I may be naive, but this has honestly been my experience. Poor service is more often a result of poor management practices and frequently stems from lack of training, insufficient staff recognition and (non financial) reward. Good bosses will attract good staff.

That's a very good way of looking at it. We pay our people a living wage for a reason.

Don't we all. 😉

Doesn't seem to matter how many times you ask tourists not to tip, some of them persist. I'm not sure it it's just culturally embedded or just being rude; as if our culture has less importance than theirs. By way of making my point; whenever I visit another country, I do my utmost to adhere to their cultural norms. For example, when in an Asian country I would never touch a child's head but at home there's barely a moment when a grandchild or friends grandchild passes me when I don't ruffle their hair or bend down to kiss their little foreheads.

This entire thread reminds me of the Scared Weird Little Guys 'Come to Australia'. Really hope this links works - .

Look I don't want to sound like a wowser but you seriously need to consider a high sun protection factor sunscreen. Your excitement level will certainly be significantly affected if you spend days in pain nursing sunburn and and blisters or, heavens forbid, in hospital. Not to mention, latent problems of possible skin cancer. As others have stated, the sun here is fearsome and has no respect for anybody's skin dark or light but, it is especially cruel to fair skinned people. Please, wear a hat, cover up wherever you can and use a sunscreen with a high (50+) SPF.

'er indoors, hey? I've occasionally heard my Grumpy refer to me as 'she who must be obeyed'. Both quotes come from Pommie tv shows if I'm not mistaken