buchhalm

Of all the stops we had on our January NZL cruise, Wellington was the only one we didnt enjoy as much as the others.

I didn't know that Time Magazine now does satire!

Never again Costa for us. OK, in all fairness it was CHEAP and a last-minute decision to cruise for a week or so from/to Singapore. Awful, just awful. Old ship, totally geared to Chinese. Only perhaps 200 non-Chinese passengers, and we were huddled together for comfort. 😂 Diabolical food, so much so that the waiter apologised when serving it, 'i am sorry, i have no idea what that is'. We contemplated jumping ship in Bali, where, coincidentally we arrived at 07.30 pm, instead of 09.00 am. And STILL, they conducted "sightseeing tours" of the rice terraces. In pitch darkness. No refunds for those poor souls who had purchased tours. Because we DID run the tours! Well, I'm sure the new mega ships they have are a lot better. 🙂

Are you guys talking about the CABIN bathrooms? Seriously?

You have to decide if you want a totally private tour, small group (max 15 people) or large coach tour. All options are available for both destinations. Both are LONG days, so perhaps don't do them back to back. Are we allowed to name specific operators?

In January, only VERY few passengers wore masks. Some crew did.

for some reason the names "Mikael Sholokov" and "Alexander Pushkin" ring a bell. DW recalls a cruise on AP with her aunt as a 13 or 14 y.o. and waitresses with green eve shadow and being served Grasshoppers wirhout any questions.

The catch cry on Cunard is usually "Hip Hip, Replacement!!"

Taxis take credit cards. And unless i am very much mistaken or you have an extremely weird CC, it is irrelevant which country it is from. As in most other places around the world, there is a small airport surcharge to pay. Sadly there seems to be a rise in the cases of taxi drivers trying to cheat passengers and inflate the prices. Tell the driver that you will need a receipt for the trip. Make a note of the taxi number and driver's name. *card displayed on the dash.

On the bright side, as long as the rats are staying, it is unlikely that the ship is sinking.

OP, what was the comment from management? Dont leave us hanging. 🙂

🙈🙉🙊

I convinced my wife that those patches are a secret sign for the Swingers club...

Are you guys still talking abour rain?

Apart from La Bohème....

The place where coughing spreads like wildfire is the opera. Been twice in the past two weeks. One caugh. And then it spreads...🙄

Bottom line, if you can eat or drink it, declare it. Better safe than sorry. Even IF you have a prohibited item, the officers will be polite and friendly, even if they may confiscate the items. They wont fine you. "Smuggle" something prohibited, and they can get narky with you.

Agree. On our recent cruise to NZ they played that message what you can or cannot take off over and over and over again at every port. Of course they still busted a few people with "just" a pastry/banana/sandwich... And they WERE fined. (Probably for being rude and argumentative)

The only people who still seem to panic are people on these cruise critic forums. Perhaps cruising is not YET for these folks?

I hear generally good reports about "snore and roar", the overnight experience at Taronga zoo. Given the high price, we havent done this ourselves. Living in Sydney, it seems a bit pointless. As for construction work, there is always some minor repair happening here and there, but no major works at the moment. I really dislike the "zoo" at Darling Harbour. Its depressing. (The aquarium is pretty good though). Given that you will probably have a fair amount of luggage, the easiest way is definitely a taxi from the airport to the zoo. (Confirm when your checkin time for the hotel would be. But you can drop the bags and explore the zoo). Depending where your ship will depart from, there are different options. White bay: taxi. Circular Quay (overseas cruise terminal): Ferry from Taronga wharf to pretty much the boarding area. Bus 100 from Taronga zoo main gate to Wynyard station (the last stop) and a 5- minute taxi ride from there or 15minutes level walk. (Taxi or Uber wherever i say 'taxi')

I am with Banshee woman objrcting to the continous mask wearing bullying. Not in support of personal attacks of mask wearers

I am with Banshee woman

It depends if everyones flights (per person/couple/family) are on the same ticket. Say, US-SYD-AKL-CHC-US. Then, for all flights, a generous 2-piece checked luggage (max 32 kg on QF) should apply to all flights. As for cabin luggage, i suggest that you stick to the 7 kg limit as much as possible. At least dont bring SEVERAL pieces, and nothing that obviously looks heavy or is of excessive size. That sort of thing just ticks off every diligent check-in person or gate agent.

I gave my wife ONE over-the-counter motion sicknesses pill (Travel Calm, i think), and that knocked her out like a horse tranquilizer. She barely stirred for 24 hours. (I rember that trick next time the God children come to visit...)

For a January cruise ex Sydney, it WAS available on Celebrity. Laughable "savings". Not worth the time even looking (not to mention being bombarded with "offers" after looking for "upgrade deals")