arxcards

That is a good description. I would love to cruise on QM2 at speed, but they rarely go above normal cruising speed on her these days. Most ships have a bit extra up their sleeve for when they are late or have a medivac. Extra speed is also possible with assisting wind & current. We did a Rock the Boat on Radiance in 2019 and following a medivac, there was no way we would be back to Sydney in time. After a day and a half cruising at 23.4 knots, our rocket ship was back on schedule. Expensive on fuel though. Operating at speed usually means the stabilisers are retracted, and it does feel racy with a bit of bounce and wobble. Most parts of the world have ships cruising in a relaxed manner. The schedule from Sydney to Noumea requires the ship to average close to19 knots for 2.5 days, which is far from relaxed.

Nice to see her back.

The ships usually board their harbour pilot around first light - currently about 5am. It will indeed be a nice exception. So, a late night for Sydney Harbour employees, but no ship clearance until the powers that be have had their morning latte.

Hopefully the tsunami doesn't cause too many problems in Sydney.

Pack the night before. No list, just work my way around the wardrobe. Ahead of time, I just make sure the clothes I want aren't in the wash cycle, the electronic stuff is charged, and docs are packed.

Sad it is nearly over. Enjoy your last night aboard @Yaya_in_Oz

The attached page talks about deployment, and is calendar based - not season based. That page has Ovation, Quantum and Navigator here in 24/25 season, Anthem & Voyager here in 25/26 season

A glass, no probs. You would even get by with a sippy cup. Just not the bottle.

I had forgotten about the good doc, and his ex-wife Leanne - until yesterday. Karl Stefawatsisname had a Freudian slip when referring to Jeffrey Epstein, and I am 99% sure he called him Geoffrey Edelsten.

Oooh. A snot block pilgrimage - or is that just a Victorian term?

The page is for January 2025 till April 2026. Going by that deployment summary, Navigator will be here in Brisbane in 3 months time, so looks like a cut & paste error. Scrolling across to late 2025 for the 25/26 season, it still only shows Voyager and Anthem for Australia. Perhaps Navigator will be pasted in the correct cell there at some stage, or it was just an error.

Next to nothing true, but I have seen people throwing them away in airports to avoid excess baggage. When packing close to the limit, 0.25kg matters. I just use imaginary cubes when I pack, and can easily retrieve anything I need along the way.

A mint cocktail isn't a bad thing once in a while.

It isn't just cabin, but if you want to take it to a bar or dining area it is subject to corkage. If they choose not to, that is only due to their discretion.

We were knocking it off from our parents bars for our school parties in the 80's. It is still around the bars as a popular ingredient in mint & choc-mint cocktails.

Packing cubes are great for disorganised packers. They also add weight.

Yep, that is a 24/25 calendar - as there is nothing there for Star of the Seas until late in that calendar. That matches the date of her inaugural in August 2025

Does it not also show Quantum in Brisbane and Ovation in Sydney at the same time, with Anthem in Singapore and Voyager in the Caribbean. Yay, interesting changes they would be, but how could they manage both Navigator & Quantum from Brisbane. The cap of the calendar has been trimmed at the top, so no dates showing. Is this a 24/25 calendar with Navigator being added to Brisbane? But yes, a Transpacific is easier to handle than a relocation from Europe these days and Navigator would be an easy surrogate for Voyager as well as being a new ship to Australia.

Love the hotel Les, but it has become expensive.

Qantas travel insurance is just a badged product, for which Qantas gets a commission for the use of their name on the policy. They have zero to do with the policy itself, and it may not be the best policy for you either - it certainly isn't for us. When flying Qantas to London next year, we won't be insured by them, no matter how easy it is. I haven't hit 60, yet I hate shopping for travel insurance already.

I can't be sure for sausage rolls, but was able to get Mrs Mac's pies nuked at the equivalent of Trident Grill on Coral & Majestic. It seems to be standard practice for Aussie based Princess, but I can't be sure for Diamond. Trident does have included burgers and dogs, as well as pizza at Prego on the opposite side. Soft serve ice cream is N/C at Swirls.

Yes, the claim limits are per person, not per policy.

Nice day. Not many white pointers about.

Same said ships make more money in Alaska - May to September. Cyclones are bad, but east coast lows are most prolific in June & July, often with worse seas than the wake of a cyclone.

Go Chili - get that Medallion 🤣