arxcards

+1, correct as of today. All of our states are using the same guidelines, so that also applies for cruises departing or ending in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide & Fremantle. National Cabinet links federal & state bodies to discuss issues, including these. They met recently, but the discussion was mostly about housing shortages. If cruise protocols were discussed, nothing was publicly mentioned, so I am figuring it will be the same tomorrow, next week & next month as well.

That is just the limit of their display. Cruise Mapper must be reading from wider source data, as Pride of America goes year beyond what is visible on the DOT portcall page Honolulu (Oahu Island, Hawaii) cruise port schedule | CruiseMapper

Honolulu has Ovation listed (29th April), but nothing there for Quantum

The Australian government and our federated states have never controlled those protocols nor the ship ban that proceeded it, but a committee that is made up mostly of CMO's and epidemiologists and the like. They have noted the changes, but they aren't open to any lobbying from the Australian public, so I reckon they will change it only when all of their boxes have been ticked, not before. Whether that happens tomorrow or in 2030, I don't really care. We have taken care of our personal circumstances to continue cruising, so we don't need to point a finger at someone else and tell them how they should be doing their job.

So, how were the desserts? 😂 The line-up would be like the dessert bar used to be at Sizzler, only for the ones that don't have to pay extra.

It will depend on how they manage it. There was a Green lane, a blue lane & a yellow lane on the app for the past year too, but no separate lanes to the check-in counter, at least in Australia. Sometime early this year, in Sydney at least, they decided to start issuing medallions prior to check-in, as that made the check-in step quicker. Even those with medallions from the US were being funneled to the medallion desk, as there was only one lane. It makes sense to split into two lanes, but I don't know if they will bother. Until Coral returns next month, we won't know if there are any physical changes to how check-in will operate. It would be nice if they would mail the medallions in Australia, but I doubt that will happen as it is easier for them to program and sort them on the ship, then deliver them into the terminal on embarkation morning - the same as it has long been for cruise cards. If anything, I think it is more likely that they will do away with posting them in the US.

We have upcoming cruises on Princess (November) and Carnival (December). For both cruises, we have been advised that we need to comply with the current vaxx & covid testing protocols. At this stage, both lines are expecting those protocols to be in place until at least the end of the year.

Generally their wi-fi is very good, with reliable reception around their ships. Connecting to the rest of the world via internet can have problems, as mentioned. Weather, location (not much coverage way south or way north), how good the ship tech is at tuning their gear to the relevant satellite(s) etc. The big constraint on ship wifi internet has been latency (ping). The time it takes to communicate via satellite makes it seem like the connection is slow, when it is just about distance. The Princess ships have recently been updated with Starnet. These satellites are much closer than the previous technology, offering a quicker and more stable connection, and also faster DL speeds. On our most recent cruise, Foxtel Go was IP blocked, as the ship is not "in Australia". On other Princess cruises last year, we were streaming Foxtel Go with no issues, so even the old technology was capable in the right conditions.

The shareholder OBC is intended for passengers that hold shares at the time of sailing, not at the time of booking, so I get the 90 day rule. As to why two different Carnival Corp brands handle this differently, well that goes well beyond my level of understanding. Not worth the effort, but I figure there are some that would buy shares, get their OBC credited and maybe a dividend or two, then sell them before sailing.

The medallion charge is a one-off, so it is make the most of it or don't use it at all for ordering.. Any drinks or room service ordered via the app will score the one-off charge, Room service menu via the traditional phone ordering is $5 per order, At this stage I think the cabin TV ordering is part of the medallion service, as I recall the menus being similar to the app (far from certain about this), Room service via the door card is still n/c. I think the only change to what we have done previously on Majestic is we will be skipping Alfredo's for our embarkation lunch. I am just indignant that they are still promoting that we are getting extras.

I guess the other point is how long you are travelling before coming home. If you are flying just for the cruise, I think it is much more relaxing to be cruising home. If you are doing some land travel between the flight and the cruise, it is a choice between arriving jetlagged for your holiday or returning home with it. On our first US/Alaska trip, our arrival into the US was LAX and connecting to Vegas. That city would have been much more fun without being preceded by a long-haul flight. Spending the next afternoon walking around the Grand Canyon wasn't as comfortable as it could have been.

Confusing? No different to any other part of the world. At least we don't have a PVSA to muddy the waters even more. All visas are conditional, so it is better to have a visa waiver (eta) if one is available. The Australian authorities recommend getting an eta if you are travelling from a participating country, of which the US is one. The intent of a transit visa is to cover you for being in transit in Australia as a hop to a 3rd country which could involve multiple airports and/or flight delays before departing overseas. If you are going from the ship to the airport, it would meet the intent of a transit visa. If you have planned accommodation for a night in Australia, I believe it doesn't meet the intent of being in transit. These transit visas can take several weeks to be processed.

The visa waiver will cover you for all travel in New Zealand for 2 years, however ... Maybe the NZ members will correct me. If you are only visiting New Zealand ports (arriving on the ship, leaving on the same ship) you will hold a visitor visa and don't need a visa waiver. Information about NZeTA: New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority | Immigration New Zealand Arriving in New Zealand by cruise ship When you arrive at your first New Zealand port you will be deemed to hold a visitor visa. This expires 28 days after the ship arrives at its first port of entry in New Zealand or when the ship leaves — whichever happens first.

Too true. 10hrs on a plane to Hawaii - approx $1100 18 days food, accom & travel on a cruise ship to come home - approx $1100 #takethelongwayhome

There are plenty of these ATM, but they only become the norm when the cruises aren't going to sell out. If you can book flexible & late, there are great solo deals.

True. Money is important. A last go, cab from Central to White Bay was under $40, which for us is halved to $20 each.

Well, this one might be worth a look. 10th October, 18 nights, Quantum of the Seas, Honolulu to Brisbane, inside guarantee $1099pp twin. You just need to pair a decent price for a flight over.

Royal Caribbean Quantum of the Seas repo from Honolulu to Brisbane, 10th October. Showing 18 nights for $1099pp twin inside guarantee. Balconies start at $100pp per night. This is booking direct with Royal, twist your T/A's arm and you might be able to squeeze a bit more.

Luminosa had plenty of cruises last season where there was no solo supplement - ie $1000 twin share was $500 solo. They were relatively last minute and on undersold cruises. 180% is more the go now. The solo cabins are a bit of a furphy, especially on NCL. Twin inside cabin pricing started at way less than double the price of the smaller inside solo studio cabins. Sure, no solo supp on them, but they had a more expensive base price.

Always a preference for us to fly out and cruise home when all else is equal. Getting the more intense travel out of the way first and returning home refreshed is front of mind for us, and there are no issues with the weight of the luggage you are bringing home if you don't have to fly home after the cruise. The time of year and a more interesting itinerary will always determine if that is possible though. If you want to go across the Pacific in March/April, then you will be cruising out/flying home. We are doing Dover - Sydney in 2025 in preference to Sydney - Dover. While it is a bonus to be cruising home, it is the ports in Norway/Iceland/Greenland that were the number one priority when making that choice.

P&O does a direct transfer bus between White Bay & Central station in both directions. I don't see why HAL wouldn't do the same.

I am a bit belated on this, as I haven't had many new pies to try out for a while. In this general location, a diversion off the highway at Kew towards Port Mac had awesome pies at North Haven - Addictive Pie Shop. It has been a few years, so I can't vouch for current offerings. They have been great pies, and the owner was a regular contributor here, but passed earlier this year. Icy Jen's pies always went down well with a couple of Crownies.

I keep a few goldies in the console of the car for parking, but most of them prefer card these days anyway. Any change will live in my fob pocket for the day, then into a money tin. Our local noodle bar is cash only, so that is where the smaller coins end up.

Technically, the $5 cap for legal tender of small coins could be a problem. A bank could refuse to accept them when cashing-in for notes??? $1 & $2 coins have a $100 maximum as legal tender.

Same here. Most trolleys are free, but the coin deposit ones don't tend to leave the car park.