Aus Traveller

1. There is no way to know ahead of time if the crossing of the Tasman Sea will be rough. We have been on around a dozen NZ cruises and never had rough seas. 2. I doubt very very much that they will be able to leave the ship in NZ. If this is what they want to do, I suggest they look at a one-way cruise. 3. The average age on P&O is much younger than HAL, even though the average on NZ cruises is a bit higher than on Pacific Island cruises. 4. I cannot answer this question for sure, but I should think you would be able to do it on line.

We have gone on around a dozen cruises to NZ and never had a rough crossing BUT, it is the luck of the draw.

For a Reef trip from Port Douglas I can recommend a company called Reef Sprinter. They operate small jet boats giving a couple of advantages - no risk of getting seasick on the jet boat because it skims over the water and you don't spend a couple of hours just to get to the reef. I have gone with the company a couple of times and found them excellent. You can check out their website. Their office is in the marina where the tenders from the ship drop you off.

For cruises booked within Australia and NZ, automatic gratuities do not apply on Princess cruises on the Australian-based ships. The cruise fares include a reasonable pay schedule for the crew that does not rely on gratuities.

An 11am flight is probably OK for a domestic flight but I would not try it for an international.

Sorry to hear you were so crook. Get well soon. 🙂

I have often suggested that anyone who buys a basket or woven hat should hold it over the white bed cover in their room and shake the he.. out of it. If nothing falls out, then it will be OK. Hopefully if eggs etc fall out, then they will all come out at that time. To be safe, when you get home with the item, put it in the freezer for a day or two. With timber items, the Quarantine Dept is looking for wood borers. These can easily be identified by the tiny holes they leave. Sometimes sellers will insert a small tack into the hole to camouflage it so if there is a tack in a spot where there is no obvious reason, it is likely hammered into a borer hole.

Sorry - the rest of the posts from when the thread restarted after a two-month delay, were about the Pacific Encounter.

Thank you SO MUCH. I think that ends the debate unless someone can show evidence that the situation has changed in the last week or two.

Do you happen to have the sheet detailing the daily events from your embarkation day? This would show if the MDR is open or not.

Is this a new development? Can I ask when you found that the MDR wasn't open? 🙂

They had the embarkation lunch in May, but of course, it could have changed since then. I will check it out in early November but someone else on this forum might be going on the Encounter before that.

I will answer if you don't mind - the Waterfront has been open on embarkation day on every cruise we have been on on the Pacific Encounter so I am sure it will be for you also. Entry is prior to 1.30pm.

We like cabins with accommodation above and below. We don't find being near the lifts any problem at all. With our door closed we don't hear anything from the lifts or people walking in the corridor.

I don't believe Norfolk Is is a replacement for New Caledonia. BTW, cruise ships have been calling into Norfolk for many years, but there are only a limited number of cruises with Norfolk on the itinerary. It is a tender port and if missed if the seas are too rough for tenders to operate.

I am sure you will enjoy the extras that come with a suite. 🙂

I doubt that the service crew have access to passengers' accounts and even if they did, why would they take the time to check them out.

I have received a refund from Princess via HSBC Bank. I am sure it is legit.

Welcome back everyone. Although we went to different ports last year, following your journey has brought mine back to mind.

Still the same - passengers can only leave the wharf on the shuttle bus (free) that drops people off close to the centre of Lyttelton.

Don't go to the dining room as the meal will take too long. I suggest you go to the buffet. It will open early.

You should have breakfast before the trip. You cannot take any food from the ship when you go on excursions or so ashore for bio-security reasons. The info on any tour will indicate if food is served during the excursion. On the GBR excursion to a pontoon on the reef, there is a lovely buffet lunch included in the tour cost.

When we went on the Barrier Reef excursion there were plenty of mask/snorkel sets available.

I fully understand that. I never thought otherwise.🙂 I still think it would be more convenient to stay in the CBD and head to the airport the next morning (as I mentioned above). My other comments were in answer to another person's post.

I see that you mention avoiding the 'buffet lunch crush onboard the ship so I can wait until evening to dine in the restaurant'. We always board fairly early so we can have lunch in the dining room.