Gnomey

I have used this company exclusively for some time now and have no complaints. Company policy is no price matching and I have lost a few dollars with this in the past but on the other hand they consistently offer the most competitive price at the time of booking. They have been most helpful sorting out some issues both domestically and internationally and I'll be quite happy to deal with them again when things settle down.

We had a cruise booked through them with Princess and after quite a while they refunded the fare in full. Princess said at the time of cancellation that Princess would give us the 125% refund deal but they ended up just refunding the TA. I can imagine they run a very tight line, budget wise, in order to offer such competitive pricing and to have this Pandemic thrown at them effectively killing the business must be so hard. Maybe we should be thankful they are still trading and paying back what they can, as they can. The alternative is bankruptcy and no cash back for anyone!

Gnomey.

Hi Kayla,

We did USA & Canada a couple of years ago and used the Vodafone $5.00 a day international roaming with our Australian account. It worked well and you only pay for it if you use it, in 24 hour blocks. When I investigated you needed a different sim for USA and Canada which was going to be a pain. We also looked out for free WiFi which was patchy at best. Having said that you can buy a phone anywhere for little cost and then just toss it, just like they show in the movies!

Regards, Steve.

Cruised with a broken ankle, in my own wheelchair on Princess. No problems at all, ships staff were wonderful, felt like royalty!

Steve.

You can't see it all in a few hours off a ship. But after the first time, we always hire a car and drive around. The Cape Willoughby lighthouse is a long drive but well worth seeing. Nice views. Emu Ridge Eucalyptus Distillery is an essential visit with lots of interesting stuff and quite good food and drinks. You might even meet 'Luscious Larry'! Any access road to the southern shoreline is worth the effort. Pennington Bay is very pretty, we have seen dolphins playing at the beach. Kingscote is a nice town, there is a gin distillery on the way where particularly good gins are available, if a bit expensive. The honey factory "Island Beehive" is also on the way and is quite good. American River is interesting too. The Remarkables and Admirals Arch are impressive but a really long drive, probably best done on a ships tour. Basically do some research but book your car early, they book out pretty quickly when the ships come in!

Hope this helps a bit.

Steve.

We went early season and caught a repositioning cruise from LA to Vancouver, but you are going later in the season so that wont work. We also considered the train to Seattle from LA, but a lot of that ride was going to be in the dark. I believe the coastal train to Vancouver from Seattle is very scenic, also considered that too. Domestic flights in the USA can be very cheap. Coming back from Alaska we flew with JetBlue from Seattle to Long Beach and as said above, it was a really scenic flight. A window seat is recommended. As also mentioned above, if you can spend extra time in SanFrancisco it would be well worth it. A very busy but super scenic area, for a City. Lots to see there. We also flew JetBlue from Anchorage to Seattle and thought they were very good. We were given a "free" drink and snack which is apparently something you don't usually get in USA! Hope this helps.

Steve.

Sounds like climate change to me. The government had better tax us to fix it!

Steve.😂

😅😆 I was just thinking, this story is starting to sound like an episode of "Yes Minister".

In jest, Steve.

Former Public Servant! (a long time ago)

Here's one Mic, a Disney family battle!

https://youtu.be/aQDGG51Qq3I

4 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

Disney tunes? do they do he Lion King?

I'm not sure I've heard that one but they do have a variety. It is well worth a check on youtube, I think it was a clip of a Caribbean tooting a Disney that was cute. Disney responded and responded etc! It is pretty clever what they can do with computers, MSC play 'tunes' too.

Steve.

6 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

True.

 

Do any other ships have tonal ship's horns or is it just a Princess thing.

The Disney ships can really turn it on with a range of Disney tunes. Most other Captains know not to encourage them! Do a search in youtube for a laugh.

Steve.

We have been caught up in this garbage on ships and planes. Seems all the Government Departments know the instant you leave the country, to the day, hour, minute and seconds. When it comes to returning however, it seems the computers just don't seem to talk to each other and we have had to ring Centrelink to "remind" them that we are back in the country. Their reply is always "Immigration haven't told us"! It really is quite pathetic, anything they can do to make things difficult for us it seems.

Steve.

Indeed terribly sad news all round. It is all over the internet at the moment too. Latest I read were two floatplanes, one a Beaver the other an Otter involved in a mid air crash. The only survivors are apparently from the Otter, the occupants of the Beaver all perrished.

Steve.

We stayed in D312 on Sun Princess a few years ago which is basically the same ship and is only a few cabins further down from 302. We found it to be a pretty quiet spot with little passing traffic and quite peaceful. Those ocean view cabins actually sit out a bit over the promenade which must help. You will notice some noise walking "home" though as the hallway passes over the Wheelhouse Bar, just be thankful you're not in an inside cabin! We had very flat seas so can't vouch for how much movement there might be. 

Enjoy your cruise, its one we'd like to do sometime.

Steve.

I've used the train many times. It is slow (stops at every station) but cheap, reliable and very convenient. It works for us!.

Steve.

15 hours ago, alibabacruisers said:

Hi Steve,  I tried both clocking on the link and copy and paste, both of which yielded the same result - UK site.  Thanks for trying.

Hi Barbara,

I wish I could be more help. I'm still using a 'vintage' Windows XP system on our computer, I usually find it has many advantages, quite a few disadvantages too though. I hope you can find a cruise, somehow!

Steve.

Hi Barbara, try:  

https://www.cunardline.com.au/

You may need to copy and paste the address. Hope it works for you.

Steve.

Hi Tara Jane,

If you go all the way to Katoomba time would be a bit tight. If you do, look in to the red HOHO bus for a run around the touristy bits. Katoomba is the best for views/scenic stuff. Leura is nice, but really very busy and pricey these days. To be honest it can be really, really packed on some days. The only other place for a short wander around with good cafes is Glenbrook. Not much to see here compared to Katoomba, but the walk up to the Painted Panorama is well worthwhile. There is a nice cafe there too. Your Opal card will get you all around and to the airport, but our fares aren't cheap! If I can be any further help, let me know.

Steve.

We went last year and used our regular vodafone plan. Cost us $5.00 per 24 hour period if we answered, made a call or used data.  It worked extremely well, much better than the 'free wifi' at various cafes. Also worked in Canada and all without fiddling with sim cards. I was much more impressed than I expected to be with the effortless performance! I also looked into sim cards, phone purchase etc, but the American phones wouldn't work in Canada. 

Regards, Steve. 

American coffee and milk is disgusting. Combine the two and its even worse! Most cruise ships use the long life milk and it is awful. Makes cocktails seem worthwhile.

Steve.

Good advice from Sinbad. When things go pear shaped it takes ages to fix it all back up again. Tell them over and over until they tell you to bugger off! Voice of experience speaking!

Steve.

JillH, having been through the hoops with Centrelink ourselves, we found the only people to talk to (if you can!) is Centrelink International. It is also important to let them know when you're back, they seem to develop "selective didn't know syndrome" with Immigration when you return. Funny though they always know when we've left! We once had a running battle with a local office when we did a 'round the top' cruise of Australia with mostly local ports and one in Indonesia. They slugged us for the full 15 days and we couldn't get through to them at all. International, when we got through, just said, "oh that's wrong" one minute and it was fixed. Talk to the people who know!

Steve.

Just strolling around Port Arthur is great. The area is lovely. Lots to see in Hobart, try googling attractions. Hire a car and drive up Mount Wellington, inspect the shot tower, just about every 'out of town' cafe does great Devonshire Teas. Walk up to the Cat & Fiddle Arcade and watch the routine. Visit the Whisky cafe and sample their expensive but superb whiskies. So much to see and do in Hobart, a great small city.

Steve.

We've been on Arcadia, an Adults only ship and referred to as the floating retirement home. After 10pm we were treated like royalty as we were among the few passengers still up! It was very pleasant though but with an almost all male Indian service crew. Last year we did a week on Aurora which was then a family friendly ship and it was great. Crew had more female crew members and a better mix of nationalities too. More like a Princess ship. From my research, Ventura is a "Grand" class ship (Princess style) and family friendly too. Dining was very good on Aurora with less of an 'English' slant to it. Arcadia was very English with roasts, kippers, herrings, Yorkshire Puds, Black Puds etc. One big plus was a kettle with tea/coffee in your room. We haven't tried HAL or Celebrity yet being mainline Princess, not fond of Royal and will not touch P & O Aust. again, whereas we would travel with P & O UK again any time. As for formal, it was strict on Arcadia, but quite relaxed on Aurora. I was one of the few in a dark suit. Hope this is a helpful guide for you.

Regards, Steve.

Haven't got that one yet, but it is a logical business decision. Thanks for posting that Mic, as we approach the 20+ club we're looking forward to the "secret" extras we apparently receive!

Did California coastal on Island followed by Alaska on Coral this May. Island is not pretty from behind and the extra cabins have ruined it, at times we felt cramped with the extra passengers. Coral handled the passengers easily and seemed more comfy. Staff on Island were much better than on Coral. Both cruises were most enjoyable.