Have we chosen that bad an itinerary??

We have booked the Odyssey from Singapore to Sydney leaving November 23 and arriving in Sydney December 21 and just went on to my Seabourn to look at shore excursions. I can't believe the lack of interesting excursions available and am wondering if this being a bit of a repositioning cruise means that we are going through a tough part of Indonesia en route to Australia. We have never been to Asia or Australia and wonder if the lack of excursions means we are bound to make out own fun port wise until we get to the Barrier Reef. Any info would be much appreciated.

The reality is that in sailing between Singapore and Australia there is not a lot apart from Indonesia. Indonesia does not have a highly developed tourist infrastructure (except that associated with resorts eg Bali) and as such facilities for cruise ships and passengers can be a bit limited. Accordingly, if you want to sail from Asia to Australia there is not a lot of choice. What Seabourn seems to be offering on this cruise are a number of new ports of call which dont seem to be any worse than the alternatives!

One of the best stops ever was an obscure Indonesian port we visited last year with SB. We're walking down the street in the morning shaking hands with shopkeepers and delivery men. Walking through a neighborhood with schools, several girls begin talking with us. Shortly thereafter, their teacher appears and invites us into the classroom for a brief chat.

About 5 PM, I go out for a solo walk. Two 18/19 year old girls ask if they can walk along with me. Nowhere in the world would I consider such a proposition. Here, it just felt like the right thing to do. A great hour long walk through parks, meeting family and friends. Fantastic experience!

Sounds like a fabulous itinerary of "off the beaten track ports" to me. It is certainly not a repositioning cruise, as these usually have few ports of call. Sounds more like a b2b cruise.

We loved Lombok. We hired a private driver on the wharf, away from the "official hire tent", so got a good deal and he took us everywhere we wanted to go and waited for us all day.

You will find lots of do in Darwin, Australia's most Asian city. The cruise from Darwin, past Thursday Island, then along the East Coast through the Barrier Reef is spectacular.

I doubt you will be disappointed.

Thanks for the info everyone. Would we expect to find nice beaches along the way? Also, we are excited about visiting Komodo island!

Thanks for the info everyone. Would we expect to find nice beaches along the way? Also, we are excited about visiting Komodo island!

Yes. In Lombok, my daughter swam at Senggigi Beach, in front of 5 star Sheraton Senggigi Beach Resort, and we relaxed on the beach under a palm tree, away from the touts at the other end of the long beach.

(Gunung Pengsong, Lombok was a highlight, authentic scenic rural traditional farming. People in cone hats squatting in rice fields, people threshing wheat to get grain, then drying grain in the middle of the wide part of the road.)

You can't swim in Darwin at the beaches nor rivers, because of the crocodiles.

Also you can't swim in the northern Queensland beaches, at that time of year, because of the stingers, unless you wear a stinger suit. However, you can swim at the islands and Great Barrier Reef.

You can also swim in the ocean and harbour in Sydney, which has lots of beautiful beaches.

We have booked the Odyssey from Singapore to Sydney leaving November 23 and arriving in Sydney December 21 and just went on to my Seabourn to look at shore excursions. I can't believe the lack of interesting excursions available and am wondering if this being a bit of a repositioning cruise means that we are going through a tough part of Indonesia en route to Australia.

I'm on for the first segment of this cruise (Singapore to Bali) - we have a roll call started. I've been to Indonesua several times and we are hoping in a couple if the ports to organize small private excursions. Until we get to Bali, the ports aren't really beach ports but rather city ports where there are cultural sites worth visiting outside the immediate port.

Thanks for the info everyone. Would we expect to find nice beaches along the way? Also, we are excited about visiting Komodo island!

We stopped at Komodo Island last year. I did the "Komodo Island and Pink Sands" excursion and I loved the snorkelling of the beach on the Pink Sand Island. The water is very clear and the sand does have a slight pale pink tinge due to the red coral powder mixed in the fine white sand. You take a local boat from Komodo Island to the Pink Sands Island.

A few restrictions to be aware of on Komodo. It is not for the mobility impaired as the walking tracks are uneven. They ask you not to go ashore if you have an open wound as the dragons will smell the blood. I am sure a healed cut is not an issue. Also you cannot just get of the ship you need to be with a guide either Seabourn provided or if you can work out how before hand, a private guide. When you see those Dragons you will know why. You don't want to be out walking around and come across one. There is apparently over 2000 of them on that little Island.

Also they advise against bright colours. It was an amazing experience and one I am glad I had. We got to see six of them at the watering hole.

Oh, one other thing..........the guides give instructions before going to the watering hole, they are good to listen too. We had a situation where when we walked in we saw a 2 metre (6 feet) dragon going into the jungle. The guide had told us to stay together and stay on the tracks and open spaces. We then proceeded to go a bit further into the open space where we saw another five big dragons, some up to 3 metres (9 feet). One guest decided he wanted to follow the dragon into the jungle to get a better photo. The Dragon took offence at this and chased after him. Luckily the guides had it under control quickly and steered the Dragon away. The other big Dragons merely looked up. I have a feeling they might have been eaten recently. Luckily for us.

Julie

I agree with frantic36. We were on Komodo Island in Feb. It is a rough track to see the dragons and you need to pay attention to the guides. We had two security guides carrying long sticks and a botanist. It was very hot one person fainted. Fortunately, our ship's dr was in his group and got him back to the ship. No bright colors, no open wounds - no kidding!!! They are large and very fast. I did not know they could climb trees!!! Exciting!