Muffinz

there are no tips payable on Aus / NZ Cruises, so if you ordered a drink for $15 then you would pay $15 only...  someone can correct me if I am wrong, but that's my understanding

there 'should' be enough time if everything goes to plan - e.g. ship docks on time with no issues... but if the ship is late docking into Sydney or something then you may have a problem, so it might pay to have a plan B.

the flight we really wanted to take after our cruise disembarks in Sydney in December is 11:45am, but we decided that was too risky, so opted for a later flight.

if I were you I'd seriously consider staying that night at a hotel near the airport and taking a flight the next day if you can - for piece of mind

We are cruising on Crown Princess in December and I think we've watched every you tube clip on Crown Princess that has been uploaded in 2023 and 2024!

I think I know the layout of the ship inside and out like the back of my hand - and we've not yet stepped on board LOL!

4 hours ago, arxcards said:

The former Rydges (now Sydney Harbour Hotel) is the closest in a direct line, but it is a solid set of stairs in between there and the terminal. It is still closer than the others I mention, even after walking around on the footpath. I had given up on them, but haven't tried with their new management. Their pricing is comparatively cheap at present.

We stayed here a night before our cruise in 2018 - you literally walk across the street and down the ramp / road bit and you're at the terminal

On 5/12/2024 at 4:24 AM, wrongwaywatson said:

Due to work, we are unable to fly in the day before.  We booked out flight through Princess, leaving O'Hare around midnight, nonstop and we arrive in Anchorage at 4:30am.  

if you are unable to fly in the day before then I would seriously consider booking the cruise for another date when you are able to fly in a day or 2 early

as mentioned above any number of things can happen, flight delays due to bad weather, the previous incoming flight delayed....

We had friends doing a cruise around NZ earlier this year and they met some people who flew in from the USA, arriving in Auckland NZ on the morning of the cruise.... but their luggage wasn't on the plane and was still in the USA

On 5/12/2024 at 3:29 PM, icat2000 said:

Thank goodness it doesn't effect my cruise booked out of Sydney on the Crown. 

Same - we're on the Crown Dec 14th from Sydney... have already booked non refundable airfares from Auckland return, so we will be a tad upset if they cancel that cruise

5 minutes ago, EDDY0827 said:

When you pay for your ticket at a kiosk, the screen will ask if you are a senior. If you have problems, there is usually someone to assist; or ask someone buying a ticket for help.

I think they are talking about using their credit card to just tap on and tap off the train... we were in Vancouver for 10 days last July and you don't need to buy an actual ticket from a machine, you can just tap on and tap off with your credit card when you enter the train station and exit the train station

thanks for doing this 'live' report - it was very enjoyable to read!

I believe it is a bus / shuttle that Princess put on and it leaves the pier (Canada place) at a certain time - someone will correct me if I am wrong.

I think part of the issue is - people have paid thousands of $ to do a cruise and paid for airfares / accommodation and the last thing they want to do is spend some / most of the cruise stuck in their stateroom because they are unwell.

Common sense would tell you that if you feel unwell and have covid like symptoms you should test yourself - and if positive you should isolate in your stateroom.

But I fear many would just ignore that and try to carry on as normal, going to the buffet, theatre, bars...etc... all while infecting other passengers with covid.

We cancelled a cruise for February 2023 on Majestic, because it docked in Sydney (just before final payment was due) with over 800 covid cases on board.

However, we're not living our lives around covid and fully intend to take out cruise in December on Crown Princess

On 5/4/2024 at 5:15 PM, LincolnLegend said:

It really sucks to have to add nearly $1,000 to every fare to catch the ship!

Same here - most of the cruises that leave from Auckland go around NZ and back to Sydney, or go to destinations we're not really interested in like mystery island, isle of pines, Noumea.

We've seen 95% of NZ so a cruise around NZ to everywhere we've been to doesn't really interest me

Celebrity are doing a couple of cruises in 2025 / 2026 from Auckland to Fiji, Samoa, American Samoa back to Tauranga / Auckland - but they are very expensive and I think they go in Jan / Feb which is the rainy season in the pacific Islands and the temp can get well over 30 degrees... no thanks.

Would love to go to the islands but when the temp is a bit 'cooler'

We priced the one on Celebrity Edge in 2026 and it was about $12k for a 12 day cruise to the islands

our one in December 2024 on Crown Princess to Sth Australia was less than $7k and even when you add in return airfares and accommodation in Sydney 2 nights pre cruise, it's still way cheaper

this site might help you

https://www.meghanmaloneyphotography.co.nz/post/where-to-find-lupins-new-zealand 

Unfortunately they grow inland in the central south Island and not easily accessible by a cruise port on the coast

"Generally starting mid-to-late November through to early January. The lupins flower first around Tekapo and the Mackenzie Basin and gradually make their way south through the Lindis Pass and as far as Queenstown and Glenorchy"

to see the Lupins in bloom you'd need to go to Queenstown and drive north towards Tekapo, or go to Christchurch and drive inland towards Queenstown. It's a 3 hour drive from Queenstown to Tekapo and the same from Christchurch to Tekapo

We've got nothing booked for winter, but have booked the 12 day Southern Australia Explorer cruise on Crown Princess in December - leaving Sydney 14 December

Neither of us have been to Adeleide, Port Lincoln, Kangaroo Island or Tasmania, so we're really looking forward to it

Managed to get a good deal on Air NZ airfares to Sydney, but are flying back on Qantas.

if you're booking online direct with Princess it can sometimes show there are no cabins available - as many are bought up by Travel Agents, so your friend was probably best to contact a T/A and ask about availability 

51 minutes ago, arizonaperson said:

Thanks for checking. I didn’t think they did,but another cc member said they did on one cruise out of Galveston this year. Appreciate the answer.

there's a thread on here about princess soda packages and some people said there was Dr Pepper on their cruise - so maybe it depends what ship or where the ship is cruising from?

Dr Pepper is not that popular in Australia (or New Zealand) so maybe they couldn't get any or just decided not to put any on Majestic?

My understanding is that in Aus / NZ there is no smoking permitted in the casino on Princess ships - can someone confirm this?

Our only cruise to date was on Celebrity Solstice in 2018 and we loved it - and we're booked on Crown Princess in December 2024, so it will be interesting to compare 

We probably won't use the casino - unless we have to go through there to get to another part of the ship.

we priced a similar cruise on Celebrity in Dec 2024 and Princess was way cheaper

4 hours ago, phoenixx said:

Did you find premium economy better than Skycouch?

yes - way better, as you have a much more comfortable seat with more leg room.

with the sky couch it's just a row of 3 seats really and 1 or 2 people can book it., but we had more space between us because we had 3 seats between 2 and we could put up the arm rests. but it's certainly not big enough for 2 'slightly larger' people to comfortably lie down and sleep.

if I had the money I'd do Premium economy - especially for a long haul flight

We flew Auckland - Vancouver return in July last year on Air NZ

it's a 13 hr direct flight and it was in darkness pretty much the whole way (maybe I didn't know it was daylight as the blind thing was shut?) flight left Akl 8pm and arrived Vancouver 2pm

We chose the 'sky couch' option on Air NZ and it was ok, but all you're really paying for is to have the whole row to yourselves. Unfortunately we had a lot of kids on the plane that were very 'vocal' and we didn't sleep much at all.

Coming back we managed to bid and win an upgrade to Premium economy and that was very good. Flight left Vancouver 9:30pm and arrived in Auckland 5:45am and was in darkness the whole time

2 hours ago, Yehootu said:

 Unfortunately people don't care, they will do what they want regardless if feeling sick or not. Here we go.

Sadly this is true - not just no cruise ships either

we were supposed to be on Majestic in Feb 2023, but about 3 weeks before final payment in 2022, Majestic docked in Sydney with over 800 covid positive people on board... we decided to cancel that cruise mainly due to the large number of covid cases still happening on cruise ships

We're on Crown Princess in December, so hopefully we'll be ok.... we're certainly not living our lives around covid,but we are still weary of catching it

4 minutes ago, 555 said:

Last cruise my wife didn't use the Wi-Fi for one minute & I used it sitting around the pool for maybe 10 minutes a day to read my local news, which is a complete waste of time even at home.

It's hardly something we feel is a need, especially when on a ship with so many other things to do. 

but then there are others who really want / need the wifi to keep in touch with loved ones by video link / zoom / whatsapp on a daily basis

The plus package works for some and doesn't for others - simple as that

On 4/25/2024 at 11:44 AM, yarramar said:

On Boxing Day, the shops will be packed with bargain hunters, I would be heading for David Jones in Elizabeth St for a traditional Australian shopping experience

thanks - we're most likely staying at the Hilton 2 nights pre-cruise and will probably visit David Jones then

On 4/25/2024 at 12:19 PM, cruiser3775 said:

I use Bounce luggage storage at Circular Quay, but I think it may not be open on Boxing Day. Today is Anzac day and their website says they are closed.

 

There is luggage storage at World Square shopping centre that is open 24/7.  That could work to combine with some shopping. You could catch the light rail there from Circular Quay.

https://sydneystoragelockers.com.au/

 

Going all the way out to the airport, then coming back into the city seems like a waste of time.

thanks for that - something to look into

thanks for posting this - Japan is on our bucket list

will follow with interest

39 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 

thanks - we've been to Sydney a couple of times before and have seen places like Harbour Bridge, Opera House and Botanical gardens.... but can check what excursions are on offer from Princess

We did look at Bounce? I think it was and I sent them an enquiry asking if they were open Boxing day and didn't heard back

Hi All, 

We're disembarking our cruise on Boxing day 26 Dec 2024 in Sydney OPT

We will probably be off the ship 9-9:30am? and our flight doesn't leave Sydney until 5:45pm

Our plan at the moment is to get train / princess shuttle bus to the airport, drop our bags off (check in?), then go from the airport to somewhere for shopping / sightseeing.

Is there any mall / shopping centre close-ish to the Airport? could we go to Birkenhead point factory shops from the Airport?

or is there anywhere else we could easily get to from the Airport?

any advice would be appreciated