arxcards

Dinner at 555 was nice. The atmosphere is a bit lacking, but the food was amazing. The price has recently gone up to $72pp, but we booked at a cheaper price some time back. Is that value for money? Well, we will often eat a similar quality meal at TGI Friday's for a similar price - but dining room food is already included in the fare. Thank heavens for all the OBC we have, as $60pp would be my value limit. All the same, the NY strip was about as good as it gets, and way superior to a $100+ Chops Grille steak on Royal. The cabin. It is nice. This booking goes way back with covid cancellation credits and an Ocean suite was hard to pass up. Nice size, rather comfy, well laid out and maintained. The outward opening balcony door whistles in the breeze, a flaw compared to sliding doors that latch-up onto the seal better. Power outlets are interesting. For a suite, we have 1 x Aussie and 1× US. The US socket has a light switch adjacent to it on the panel, so it is a delicate balance using an adapter plug without turning the light on. Thank heavens for USB. There are 4 lamps in the room, each with 2x sockets. Plenty for your devices, but really restrictive if you rely on the power sockets. In the case of an Ocean suite, pack detached cables, not chargers with fixed wall plugs. Apart from a nicer cabin, a suite has limited perks - a bit of priority and 2 x large bottles of water. Brunch was nice. What a great option to have eggs benny followed by 7 layer chocolate cake at 9am. We skipped dessert. Only the $9 Java juices available. I am OK with them on the menu, but would prefer the free "carton" juices to be an option too. The app worked well to book. It said 10 minute wait, so we did the reservation as we were leaving the cabin, and got our alert just before we arrived. The lobby was jammed with people waiting for their table ready alert. The decor hasn't scared us. It mostly sits in the background, and we love the retro cartoon-like panel art in the passenger corridors. So far, nice. Just nice, as we haven't quite synced to the ship yet.

Good choice, take care. 30+ years ago, I had earlier worked with a guy who was struck by lightning while windsurfing on Lake Mac.

Some damage, insured, fixable. Inconvenient, but otherwise OK. One of Barb's workmates has learned that solar panels don't like hail, and our daughter has a pock marked car.

Dolly Parton song 🎵? That would spoil a cruise, and there is also Sheena Easton. All good though, our cabin is on a deck that goes from go to whoa anyway.

The storm mostly died-out. Family & friends in the lower Hunter were smashed by hail early this afternoon. It has been an erratic December.

Coke Taken on Splendor today

Clouds are rolling in. Big dark ones! Will it be sailaway or hailaway?

Thanks. Even deck 5 is weird Bob, as it only works on starboard. We have walked around a bit. Boarded early, but not much open. A short cruise, so a large % were walking about with their trolley carry-ons till 1:30, and that was really strange to see. Barb had a plate of salad, and I had a Guy's ringer. Nice enough, but nothing special. We are looking forward to trying out different eateries, and it will be 555 tonight. Looking forward to sailaway, both for the beauty of the harbour and for the venues around the ship to open.

I promise little, but hope to share some thoughts and comparisons from aboard Splendor over the next few days. First time on Splendor for me, and first time Carnival for Barb. So far, so good. 1st on, even overtaking a few transit passengers that headed for X-ray ahead of us. One thing so far - so many with priority on Princess that there is a crowd when check-in opens. No so much with Splendor. First aboard at 10:45, and much fewer people in the conga line.

As far as I am aware Crab Shack isn't included with plus or premier - a specialty pop-up rather than a "casual" dining venue.

It was nice to have Christmas dinner at City Extra, but a Canadian breakfast and cocktails can't compare to Grand Princess.

That could work.

Looks great. Our Christmas brunch was pretty easy, and inspired by the Princess suite breakfast which is eggs benny, but on a bed of roasted chunks of potato. You could try and wrangle this dish at breakfast one morning. Merry Christmas to you & your mum!

It can be complicated. For many turnarounds here, it works pretty much the same as the US, however ... Since covid, for the first arrival of the ship for the season, it is all passengers and luggage to be disembarked from the ship. You will take your entry card and luggage to the customs checkpoint. Once cleared, you take your luggage (tagged with new voyage embark tags) to luggage drop. You will have transit cards and will be front of queue should you choose to reboard. You can also go about a normal day in port, but you will have your carry-on stuff with you. The transit term is purely for the cruise - when you are processed in Sydney with your arrival card, you have entered Australia. You will need to apply for an ETA or Visa prior to travel. For most Canadians, an ETA is all that is required - the official link for info https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/electronic-travel-authority-601

No, this is only for $AU and $NZ bookings. When booking from elsewhere, including the UK and US, daily grats are added to your onboard account. There is the option to pre-pay them. While that would seem unfair, your upfront fare should be cheaper. Once aboard, the $AU pricing is the total price - ie, there is no extra gratuity added to bar or restaurant purchases.

Thanks. I get the inspected strips. It makes sense to have a reliable strip, as there is a lot of cheap imported garbage down here.

It was a passing thought, as I can't otherwise figure why there is one set of rules for Australia and a different one for the US. Perhaps you can help with a reason why the Carnival Australian FAQ has all multi-outlets and power boards on the prohibited list, yet the US allows for non-surge strips.

I can't recall how long ago or where, but I think I have seen a noel pun like that somewhere in my past.

Merry Christmas to a.. from the Hub of the Hunter. A bit .ike our popu.ous east coast cities, we have ro..ed into today with a coup.e of mi.d storms and now some rain. We have Christmas festivities ti.. noon, then off to Sydney for the night before boarding Sp.endor on Boxing Day for a rather .oose three days at sea. Rain wi.. be a bit of a nuisance, but it is nice not to be baking in 40 degrees. Oops .... noel 😉

It is a bit of a scramble there, and that is generic information about visa outcomes. An ETA isn't a visa, and is automatically granted unless you are on a naughty list, don't meet the requirements of the application, or haven't completed it correctly. Then you would require a manual outcome. Not that I have applied for an Aussie ETA, my understanding is that you will get an email notification and that is evidence. As with a US ESTA and travel authorities in many other countries, you don't require additional paperwork to be carried with your passport.

The US Carnival FAQ allows non-surge protected powerboards, however the Australian FAQ is clear that they are prohibited items. It is quite possible that 240V is seen as a higher risk than 110V US boards. Multi-plug box outlets/power boards/adapters/extension cords are not permitted on board. However, should you require a multi-plug box outlet/power board/adapter/extension cord, please ask your Stateroom Steward who will be able to supply you one for the duration of your cruise. https://help.carnival.com.au/app/answers/detail/a_id/129/related/1

I believe that relates to a Visa. The Australian ETA will just send an email alert, and it is linked to any e-passport. From the OP, I can't tell if they have applied for the ETA via the app, or applied via the web for the $190 subclass 600 visitor visa.

If I am travelling light, I will walk to Mascot station. With a bit more luggage, I have taken an airport hotel shuttle to the Holiday Inn, then the short walk to Mascot station. I will have to investigate the bus a bit further. For me, the trip is about getting home, and the airport surcharge triples my measly $8 fare from Mascot to Newcastle. Bear in mind, the OP is talking about having a bit of extra luggage to cart around, and fewer/easier hops might be the way to go.

Intercity trains terminate at Central, and there are lifts to access the suburban platforms to take a train around the city circle to Circular Quay for OPT. For White Bay, it is an easy walk to the exit at Central for a cab or uber.

No fairy bread lamingtons? That crème looks a bit firm. The roast looks lovely, so it's a shame about the pudding.