ceeceeDee

Agree with what you had to say re the restaurants, Daz. We avoid the Pantry as much as possible and only go there if the MDR is not open for lunch (port days usually). Having said that, the baked ham last cruise was really nice. The rest of the offerings looked a bit 'blah' to me and I avoid the salad bar because you never know who has sneezed on it or stuck their fingers in (particularly kids. Don't get me wrong, I have got nothing against kids but a lot of the time they have their minds on things other than hygiene). There was no limit on how many times we could go to Dragon Lady and Angelos on our cruise. From memory we only dined once in the MDR for dinner. Had no trouble going to Angelos multiple nights.

Our last P&O cruise wasn't actually dedicated to footy, but the State of Origin was on the big screen on the Lido Deck. We just avoided the area whilst it was on. Footy jumpers were in evidence in the dining room, but that was pax wearing them!😂 Didn't really impact us at all.

Sorry to hear your husband has been ill, Eileen. I hope you are not too disappointed with P&O. Not much choice this time of the year. As for the food ...... We did the Queensland coast on Encounter last June. Whilst I wouldn't rave about the food (except in Luke's specialty restaurant - outstanding), we didn't find it as bad as some people have reported. It's not 5 star but then P&O isn't a 5 star line. I guess it depends on your expectations. We tend to accept P&O for what it is - a budget line. Having said that, we managed to find dishes we liked (and some we didn't) over the seven days. The fact that I didn't have to cook it or clean the kitchen and the food was served by excellent wait staff went a long way to making it more enjoyable.😂 Just expect pub food and you may be pleasantly surprised.

We're all thinking of you Les and sending positive thoughts

Can Tanna handle cruise ships?

Yes, a bit far to throw in Fiji

Thanks, Geoff. Seems a bit hit and miss, but I'm happy to go with the flow. We didn't bother with 'duty free' anyway. The prices weren't all that great and we don't buy duty free just for the sake of it. Totally different story when we go the Port Vila. Prices there are well worth investigating.

🙄😂

Unless both hubby and I have REALLY bad memories, we were not required to fill out any forms when we did a P&O cruise that sailed past Willis Island in June last year. I find it a bit strange to be required to fill in forms when Willis Island is an external territory of Australia. I'm not arguing the point, I just find it intriguing.

Awwww🙂

As I said in an earlier post, my bikini briefs aren't that shocking!😂

Problem solved! Gotta love this forum. 🙂

That's why we check our cruise account at least once a day so we can potentially pounce on mistakes immediately. Never had a problem, but there's always a first time for everything.

Absolutely. It's like film reviews. Critics have panned movies that I have actually enjoyed and conversely praised movies that I thought were rubbish. Yes, you can get some guidance reading cruise reviews, but frankly I've found that most reviews are written by people who wanted to have a good rant and complain about everything. Unfortunately, most people who have a good time, don't bother to leap into print to say so. Honestly, I've read reviews from people who were on the same ship and at the same time as us and couldn't believe the negative comments. Their experience certainly wasn't ours.

Just bear in mind that P&O is a budget line and Princess' poor cousin.🙂 (P&O ships are Princess cast offs). Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking P&O. We've sailed with them a lot over the years and always had a good time. Just that Princess is a cut above (but then again it is also a price above). You will probably find things that compare and things that are different or not as good between Princess and P&O. A matter of individual taste and individual expectations.

Every cruise line is different (for better or worse depending on your individual point of view and taste). For instance, we cruised on Symphony of the Seas a while back and I'm sure the Americans around us were amused to see four Aussie tourists' jaws simultaneously hit the deck when we exited the gang plank and stepped on the ship to discover ourselves confronted by a glittering shopping mall! Definitely not what we were expecting. If we wanted bells, whistles and whizz bangs this ship filled the bill. It was all very slick and we did enjoy it, but prefer the smaller ships to this floating metropolis.🙂

I've only ever been in an interior cabin once and that was way back in (I think) 1971 in a 4 berth cabin on the old P&O Iberia. That was sailing by the seat of your pants - sharing a cabin with strangers and trekking down the hallway to the communal bathroom!😯 And we plebs were separated from the first class passengers. Not that we cared, it was only a 3 day cruise to nowhere and it was a girls' weekend away for my friend and me. These days there is no way I'd go interior. I'm not claustrophobic, but I do like natural light. An obstructed oceanview wouldn't bother me (though if I'm completely honest, I prefer a mini suite 😂). All comes down to dollars in the end.

Depends where you are going. If it is a domestic cruise, there are usually enough port days to use fee wifi in a local cafe or library, unless you're desperate to be contactable. We bought a wifi package for our next cruise as it's the South Pacific and I want our pet sitter to be able to contact us in case anything goes wrong with our fur babies (and since I will have wifi, probably post to CC).

A cross between the Mad Hatter's Tea Party and Musical Chairs (Ships) 🙄 I can't make up my mind whether Princess is Juggling or practicing Sleight of Hand. Either way, I wish they'd get their act together. I'm easily confused.😂

Thank you, Les. I actually did get ferrero rocher! Along with a whole heap of stuff for our next cruise. 😉 My girls know me too well. There was also a sweat shirt with the message printed on the front: Coffee, Dogs and Crime Shows I don't think they could find one that added Cruises to that list!😂

Me too! I have an opinion, but I keep it to myself!😂

Yes, like 'big whoop'!😠

Yes, now I'm beginning to wonder. We were toying with the idea of a cruise to NZ return in 2026. Due to work commitments, we are 'locked in' to a time frame, so a cancelled cruise would leave us high and dry so to speak. I guess we'll keep watching the situation before making a final decision about booking with Princess or looking at other lines.

Good luck. Let us know how you go

Well spotted! I was so enamored with the 'principal' rainbow I didn't see it's delicate sibling.🙄🙂