Chelseapop

You can also buy 'sheets' of detergent in resealable packs. Can't think of the name because I keep them in my suitcase all the time for travelling. Half a sheet for a normal load (from memory) and 1 sheet for a larger load. May be safer than capsules because there is no risk of the capsule being squashed and bursting.:p

The ship tenders at Yorkeys Knob which is about approx. 15 min drive from Cairns. There should be shuttle buses provided.

When I queried 'domestic'/'international' travel insurance with insurance companies they clarified that it is not really the ports that defines an international cruise but that the ship's doctors are registered as international doctors and as such are not registered with medicare. Meaning if anything happens to you ONBOARD you are not covered by domestic travel insurance - it needs to be international. On my cruise just recently to the Whitsundays a friend of mine had some type of reaction after being ashore in Cairns. He went to see the ships doctor after reboarding the ship and would not have been covered by domestic travel insurance/medicare/private health insurance as the doctor was INTERNATIONAL.

I have just done this cruise on P&O and the ports we visited Airlie Beach, Yorkeys Knob (Cairns) and Port Douglas are all tender ports and passengers must be able to walk and carry their folding

wheel chairs if necessary. They made the announcement that the wharves were not wheel chair friendly/accessible (I think the were actually) so that may be one thing to keep in mind.

While we are discussing drink packages - can anybody tell me if the beers in each package are the same. I know the wines and spirits change as the packages get more expensive but all the packages JUST say beer. DH drinks VB, fosters, Crown etc and I just want to order the correct package for him without worrying about, and paying for the wines and spirits that he doesn't drink.:rolleyes:

I would still go with the Carnival shuttle. They meet you at a pre designated place at the airport and once you get to the OPT they whisk your bags away and they will magically appear in your cabin later on. No need to queue at the baggage drop off first. Stress free. I have also seen very long queues at the airport taxi ranks, and just bear in mind you will have to wait until one of them is a maxi taxi. :cool:

Sapphire57, yes the FB page you have found is the correct one. Sorry for thinking it was Oz instead of Australia. There is a guy on there called Phil who is a wealth of knowledge and will answer any queries.We are booked on the same cruise next June (well hopefully). Hubby isn't too well at the moment with lung problems but hoping he will be fine next June - we will be celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary. :o

Jennyau, you will have a ball. The Spirit is a great ship

Like any cruise it will be what you make it. We LOVED the Spirit. You will be able to get a lot of info of the Carnival Oz facebook page. Lots of people ask question pertaining to the Spirit.. You should be able to get any questions answered there. We are sailing on the Spirit again in Jun 15.

On our first cruise on the Carnival Spirit we wondered the same. We had a set dining time at a set table so had the same wait staff each night and they were wonderful. Every night (except the last night) the dining room was packed. On the last night (when the tipping would normally be done) I would say only a third of the regular same time diners were in the restaurant. Obviously the others didn't turn up that night so they wouldn't feel obligated to tip. Was pretty sad looking. We also tipped our wonderful drinks waiter who looked after us most of the time, on the pool deck and in the MDR and also our cabin steward. Our next cruise was on Pacific dawn. In the MDR they sit you where ever there is a seat - never at the same table a second time and you never get to see the same wait person again. Pretty much the same with most of the drinks waiters. The only person we tipped on that cruise was our cabin steward. On each cruise I just take along a supply of print notes saying - 'thank you for looking after us' (or something like that) with our names on the note. I also take my own supply of envelopes so I don't have to go looking for them.

People cruising on a domestic cruise may very well be healthy but a healthy person can still fall and break a leg or have another type of accident on board. The doctors on board are not registered with medicare and as such medicare will not cover any costs - nor will private health insurance. It is a small price to pay for peace of mind.

If you are meaning military on board credit - Carnival do have it for Aust and NZ forces. Just need to email proof of service ie statement of service/discharge cert for past members/ or proof of current service with the following info:

We/I are/am sailing with Carnival :cool:and would both like to apply for the Defence Benefits Onboard Credit for that cruise.

My/Our details are as follows:

Name(s):

Booking Number:

Itinerary:

Cruise Code:

Ship: Pacific Carnival Spirit Departure: Port - departure date

Email to: InfoC@carnival.com.au

We (hubby and I) have received it.

OK I had them the wrong way around as to who owns who (my boo boo), but my point is still the same. They are running the two lines the same way - no grog packages etc. If you are aware of that before you book your cruise with either Carnival or P&O I can't really see the problem. And by the amount of pizza boxes and food trays that usually lined the hallways at all hours I don't think the cost of room service put too many people off ordering it either.

Carnival are actually owned by P&O so they are sailing under P&O rules/conditions - no drink packages and no boarding carrying alcohol. The Spirit's first sailing out out of Sydney did in fact run out of beer (on the second last night I think). We loved our cruise on the Spirit - the staff and service were exceptional. But it is touted as the 'family cruise ship' so expect a LOT of kids to be onboard. If you go on to the Carnival Australia facebook page you can ask any questions about who to contact for certain things like speciality restaurants etc.:)

Thanks Tassie Cruiser.:o

I know these drink packages have been discussed infinitum but was just wondering if anyone who has sailed on these ships knows if the beers available are different between the Select package and the Premium package. On the RCI drinks package webpage it just says 'Beer' for both. Don't want to purchase the wrong one for hubby, or for that matter pay more for the Premium Package when he only drinks everyday Aussie beer (VB/Fosters) that may also be available on the Select package.:)

I have used Groupon a heap of times without any problems. But make sure you do check the valid dates of the voucher and any excluded black out dates, Not all vouchers are valid for three months some are less, a lot are more. Some can only be used on certain days/nights also. I also check out reviews of the restaurants online and if possible the menu so that you can be sure you are getting a good deal. Some offers I have checked out are of no better value than just walking off the street - and some have limited menu choices for pretty much the same price as just walking in off the street. But in saying that I have also had some tremendous vouchers. A little bit of homework before you purchase the voucher is worth the time. :D

...also height to get under the Gateway Bridge , and the length of a ship is an issue , in having enough room to turn around in the river.

 

Brisbane is very lucky that they have 2 excellent cruise terminals to choose from to suit the various size of the ships that call.

Ann Sherry , from Carnival Australia and Carol Marlow from the real P&O , made it very clear to Brisbane a few years ago that if a facility was not built at Fishermans Island , Brisbane would be struck off the calling list. The good people of Queensland jumped to it and provided an excellent facility , that any City, anywhere in the world , for the amount of use that it gets , would be proud to call their own.

 

 

 

 

 

Where is the 2nd 'excellent' terminal in Brisbane? If you are talking about the grain terminal it is a disgrace. It is way out in the boondocks with no transport to it at all and no facilities at all. We had to pick up some friends there once when P&O had to dock there to due to bad weather and passengers coming off the ship were pretty much just abandoned. They had sailed up from Sydney and P&O hadn't even bothered to arrange buses/transport to anywhere where they could get transport into the city etc. Because it is so isolated taxi drivers can charge whatever they like because there is no other alternative for transport.

I cut and pasted this excerpt from the Princess cruise line website - they are the same as P&O. It specifically says service of the Australian and NZ Defence force not other countries.

Defence Force Benefit for Veterans & Active/Retired Personnel

To thank the brave men and women of the Australian and New Zealand Defence Force for their service, Princess Cruises® offers up to $250 free onboard spending money* for veterans as well as active, retired or disabled military personnel.

Mine was directly through RCI too.

In Noumea it is very advisable to have the Pacific Franc because a lot of stores refuse to accept anything else. In Vanuatu if you don't have Vatu you are virtually at the mercy of how each individual shop/outlet calculates the 'current' exchange rate. We went into a chemist to purchase some strepsil cough lollies and paid what seemed an awful lot only to realise we had been totally ripped off by the shop assistants magic calculator when doing the currency conversion. We ended up paying something like $34 for two packets. If we had had Vatu we would have just paid the correct amount.

Yaaaaaaaaaaaay it's in the bank account already.:):):)

I, unfortunately had to cancel a cruise with RCI a couple of days ago due to hubby being ill and was told my refund would take TWO MONTHS!! Might just go check my bank account now....... well I can live in hope.:D

:oI just cut the following from the US Embassy in Bangkok website. One would assume that cruise ships fall into the same category as a flight with an onward ticket.

U.S. citizens carrying a tourist passport and in possession of an onward or return airline ticket do not require a visa to enter Thailand. The passport must have at least six months validity remaining to be allowed entry. Upon entry, Thai immigration officials will place an immigration stamp in the passport permitting a 30-day stay in Thailand if arriving by air or a 15-day stay if arriving by land. This time limit may subsequently be extended for an additional 7 days by paying a 1,900 baht fee to the Thai Immigration Bureau office. The headquarters of the Thai Immigration Bureau is located at Government Center Chaengwattana Building B, No. 120, Moo 3, Chaengwattana Road, Tungsonghong Sub-District, Laksi District, Bangkok 10210, 66-2-287-3101 through 66-2-287-3110. For more information or additional Thai Immigration Bureau locations, please consult the Thai Immigration Bureau website.

We are sailing to Vietnam and Thailand next Feb on the Mariner and were told by RCI that our visas for Vietnam would be organised on the ship.