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Correct me if I'm wrong but the captain is William Kent at the moment? I know he's our captain on the emerald in 3 weeks..

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That is not unusual, what is more unusual is if it is dry. They have so much rain, around 2.5 metres per year, the fiord lands gets around 6.5m per year.

Definitely! I've also been lucky enough to spend a night on board the Milford wanderer sailing through Milford sound when it bucketed down... makes for the waterfalls to be even more incredible than usual

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If you do the full return rail trip on the Tranz Alpine that will be a full day as you leave early in the morning.

We've done the tranz alpine before... poured with rain the whole second half of the trip from Arthur's pass down to greymouth!

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Unsure at this stage. We are getting a hire car though so we can do what we want.

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Absolutely! We are planning 4 days in Christchurch after our cruise to see and do everything instead of the rush job from the ship.

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Thanks so much everyone. Just gets confusing on their website when it says passports are required all cruises regardless and then asks for a passport number in the cruise personaliser!

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Hey all,

I couldn't find a direct answer on princess's page so I'm hoping someone here can answer for me.

I'm planning to surprise my parents with a short getaway cruise on the Golden Princess in April next year, just from Melbourne to Sydney.

Now my step fathers passport is expired. Given that the ship is not ending in an overseas port of visiting any, does he need to have a current passport or would a drivers licence etc be sufficient. Would like to confirm before I book anything

Thanks in advance!

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Better than Easyjet but JetBlue is far superior. As others have said, Jetstar is fine.. Relatively reliable but very strict on baggage, both hand and checked. Make sure you book the right airport as they fly into Melbourne Tullamarine and Avalon airport as well.

I received a free upgrade for my cruise on the emerald in February

If the gym is not overhead, I would go the other way and stay on Lido deck. So very convenient to the pools, hottubs, gym and buffet.

Pretty much nailed the reason why we chose Lido to begin with, as well as the not being able to be looked at on our balcony reason as well. But we're young and climbing some stairs to get to the Buffet and pools won't be a bad thing!!

Thanks so much for the information everyone. As first time cruisers we have no idea, sounds like we got lucky with the free upgrade!

Hey all,

My partner and I are going on our firs cruise in feb to NZ on the Emerald. Previously we booked into a forward balcony cabin L243 and have now been offered an upgrade to a mid forward C255 balcony cabin. Thoughts on this upgrade? Worthwhile or no?

Thanks in advance for your opinions!

Taxis are definitely readily available. There is a steady stream of taxis 24/7. They also have security guards that organise how many taxis come up based on the number of people waiting. Generally it's pretty well organised and you don't wait too long

Will be looking forward to the people who do go on the Emerald from Nov to hear what they have to say as I'm sailing on her in Feb 2017 :):)

I've been looking at a company called shore trips and tours which is an NZ based company. They do tours in all the major ports in NZ and some in Aus as well.

Napier is on our itinerary for the emerald princess in February next year..:, fingers crossed we get to go!

Definitely Melbourne ( not that I'm biased as a born and bred Melbournian [emoji23]) much easier to transit from international to domestic, you just have to go left or right out the doors depending on the airline as opposed to getting on a shuttle bus.

I haven't personally flown into Sydney international but I've never had a huge issue clearing customs coming home from holidays but it really depends on the other flights that arrive at the same time. As the OP said, she was stuck in a declaration queue after 2 flights of Chinese customers - I've had the same experience! Just all depends on the time of day

Correct, next to visit Melbourne is the azamara quest on Monday. Would assume the boat would be fixed by then!

I've flown both qantas and air NZ to the states and back and can categorically say air NZ wins hands down. They fly 777's which are very comfortable (as comfortable as a 14 hour flight can be). They have excellent service, meals and entertainment. No way to fault them.

With qantas I flew the a380 one way and the 747 back. The 747's are old and tired and very uncomfortable. The a380 was good but you do feel crammed in (with over 500 on board no wonder)

Just off the Emerald. I missed the salmon being offered nightly. One night it was offered and my waiter talked me out of it! Then when it was not on the menu another night I really regretted not getting it. Most nights they had the Caribbean shrimp cocktail (I think that is what it is called) and not the regular shrimp cocktail with the red ketchup sauce.

 

 

 

I am not a fan of Curtis Stone. After seeing him on Celebrity Apprentice, I don't care for him. He came off as full of himself and kinda jerky. I think he really plays up that accent. And a little trivia - his wife was on Beverly Hills, 90210.

Strictly from a personality point of view... I have met Curtis stone through his association with Coles supermarkets in Aus and he is a really genuine and friendly guy. I didn't see celebrity apprentice so I can only comment on what I've seen personally but he is really really lovely

Hearing a lot of bad reviews from this cruise in regards to no water or intermittent hot and cold water, no ac and long lines at passenger services as a result. Glad you had a great cruise though!

We're heading off on the Emerald Princess 13th February 2017 to NZ - Sydney to Auckland.

Oh good lord! Why would you stand naked on your deck when there are helicopters and media hovering around anyway [emoji5]️[emoji5]️

AUD I believe.

I managed to drag my butt out of bed to see you all arrive. It's an absolutely beautiful morning here. Currently watching the spirit pull in and can see you coming out of the darkness behind it :)