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My wife and I will be on the Golden in Feb (Buenos Aires to Santiago) and I'm just looking for some helpful tips from anyone who has sailed on this cruise in the past. We are veteran Princess cruisers ( this will be our 9th cruise) so we have a pretty good idea of what to expect from Princess, just looking for some tips, experiences and/or issues that people have experienced in the past. Thanks!

Hi Craig,

My husband and I did this cruise on Star Princess in January this year but the reverse itinerary. Below is part of my review that you may find helpful. We loved this cruise so hope you enjoy it too. (Sorry the font keeps changing. I've tried to alter it but nothing happens!)

Ports and shore excursions

We booked ship’s excursions in all the ports. We did this because I have some mobility problems so my husband and I did several tours separately and I, especially, felt more secure in a group of familiar people. There were pros and cons for using the Princess tours:

PROS:

· A relatively safe environment.

· The ship delayed departure for an hour in Ushuaia when there was a problem with a ship’s tour not returning on time.

· Generally knowledgeable guides.

· Good quality transport.

· Mostly English speakers on my bus.

· It was difficult, pre cruise, to find information about the availability, quality and proximity of local taxis.

· There were no charges made when the ship did not make the call at the Falklands.

CONS

· Relatively expensive.

· Sites got a bit crowded.

Puerto Montt

My husband and I did the Lake Esmeralda, Petrohue River & Puerto Varas tour. This part of Chile is rightfully named ‘the Lake District’ and it has stunning scenery with snow topped volcanic peaks. Our tour was comprehensive and included sailing on beautiful Esmeralda Lake aboard a catamaran; a stroll along the picturesque and impressive Petrohue Falls; a shopping stop at the handicraft market in the pretty lake side resort of Puerto Varas and some panoramic views of Puerto Montt. We had lunch at a delightful restaurant with magnificent views over the lake and a friendly family of Llamas to pet.

· This is a tender port. The ride was approximately 10 minutes.

· There is a small terminal building.

· There are taxis available outside the terminal.

· There was a spectacular sail-away through the fjord.

· Puerto Varas has a lovely lake front walk with beaches.

· There is a small local handicrafts market in the centre.

· There were shops, a supermarket and cafes.

Amalia Glacier – Scenic cruising.

Scenic is an understatement which hardly describes the magnificence of the views of the Fjords, glaciers and waterways of this area. We were very lucky with the weather as it was clear and sunny for much of the day.

· You need to be up early to get the full benefit of the scenery. We were up at 5.30a.m. and had breakfast on the balcony as we sailed majestically through the Fjord watching the sunrise.

Punta Arenas

My husband and I did different tours here. I did the City Drive & Museum and, to be honest, there wasn’t a huge amount to see. The town is relatively small and I think we were shown the best that they have. We spent some time at the Sara Braun Museum housed in a 19th-century mansion which had some interesting exhibits of the flora and fauna of the area along with information on the history. We also went to the City Cemetery where there was time to walk along the avenues lined with cypress trees and view the magnificent mausoleums......an odd attraction I know but strangely compelling. The open air museum gave us a chance to see how the pioneers who colonised the area arrived in their wagons and the type of homes they constructed.

My husband did theMagdalena Island Penguin Reserve and spent a few hours with the whimsical Magellanic penguins on the Island. It was a 90 minute ferry cruise to the island located in the Strait of Magellan. He said there were 1000s of penguins and several different sorts of sea birds so, as a bird watcher and photographer, he was in heaven!!

· This is a tender port

· There is a small terminal building with an information kiosk and a small souvenir shop.

· The town centre is uphill and a 10 to 15 minute walk from the terminal building....turn left on the main road, walk to the hotel and then take the road directly opposite the hotel. This brings you to the town square.

· There is a supermarket to the left of the terminal building on the opposite side of the road that has wine, pisco.....the local fire water.... and soft drinks at very reasonable prices. We had no problems bringing all 3 items back onto the ship.

· There is a large craft and souvenir market in the town square.

Ushuaia

We sailed through the Beagle Channel first thing in the morning so, once again, we were up at dawn to make the most of the sunrise and views and, once again we were not disappointed. This time we passed by 8 separate glaciers nestling among the mountains before finally reaching Ushuaia at 11.45a.m.

I was very excited to get to Ushuaia and to be on Tierra del Fuego as I have had a fascination for this part of the world since learning about the explorers at school. I never, in my wildest dreams then, ever thought I would actually visit the place!

Once again my DH and I did different tours. Mine was the Drive to the "End of the World" which entailed a drive through Ushuaia and then into the Tierra del Fuego National Park and a stop at the end of the world's longest stretch of road, the Pan American Highway. We visited Ensenada Bay, Roca Lake, and Lapatia Bay to experience ancient forests, deep blue lakes and unique fauna on this very pleasant and non strenuous trip. The scenery was stunning and we were very lucky with the weather even though it was relatively cold as we had mostly sunny periods with only a couple of heavy showers.

DH did the ‘Tierra Mayor Natural Reserve Trek’ so he saw much of what I saw but on foot as the group trekked with their guide through the old-growth Lenga forest. They saw the beaver dams and peat bogs on their way to the Five Cascades Waterfalls.

· The weather was the expected weather for mid-summer, cool, breezy and showery so take appropriate layers of clothing.

· The ship docks 10 to 15 minutes walk from the town.

· There are taxis available outside the port.

· There is a pleasant visitors’ centre in the park which has a small museum, restaurant, souvenir shop and toilets.

Cape horn – scenic cruising

We had reasonable weather again today and so got really good views of the dramatic scenery of Cape Horn as we sailed around the island but as on the previous days it was an early start to see things at their best........this holiday is certainly not for people who like to lie-in!!!!

The Falklands

Unfortunately we were not able to land in the Falklands due to the force 11 winds that had blown up during the night. A ship’s tender was sent out to try the crossing to Stanley but it was a very frightening sight to see it disappearing between huge waves and being tossed around like a cork. I cannot understand the people who complained so vociferously about not being allowed ashore. I know it was disappointing but the Captain had the safety of his passengers and crew to consider and he made, in most people’s opinion, the right decision.

Puerto Madryn

Puerto Madryn turned out to be a fairly large and pleasant seaside resort but, as it was Sunday, most of the shops were closed. This town is the gateway to the Patagonian Steppes and the sights were quite a distance away. DH and I had chosen different tours again from a very limited number on offer. I did the Palaeontology Museum & Punta Loma which involved a 2 hour coach ride across the flat and featureless terrain to the town of Trewlow in the Chubut Valley which has a museum that is a mecca for dinosaur fans with 300 million years of history recorded in the fossil collections. This was followed by a long drive to the Punta Loma peninsula for views of the sea lion colonies. To be honest, there really wasn’t much to see.

I think my husband got the better deal with his Valdes Peninsula, Estancia San Lorenzo & Punta Norte trip where he experienced the rugged beauty of Patagonia although it was a 2 hour drive. The Valdes Peninsula is one of the world's great wildlife preserves and he saw the sea lion and elephant seal colonies at Punta Norte along with a vast rookery of Magellanic penguins and plenty of different birds.

My tour was back by mid-day so I had chance to have a walk along the sea front in Puerto Madryn.

· The dock pier is very long and there is a free shuttle bus to the dock exit but some people did walk it.

· There is a lovely wide, sandy beach at the pier exit and a pleasant promenade to stroll along.

· There are shops and cafes along the street next to the promenade although a most of these were closed as it was Sunday. The shops in the small Mall were open

· Taxis were available at the pier exit. I would imagine it would be quite expensive to hire these to go to the sights visited by the tour buses as everything was a long way from the town.

Montevideo.

This was the surprise of the whole trip as I had no concept of what a pleasant place Uruguay is. I’m so glad we chose to do the Punta del Este & Ralli Museum trip because, although Punta del Este is a 2 hour drive from the dock, we did see some of the lovely city of Montevideo and the beautiful, lush countryside before arriving at the thriving and elegant resort. The tour included a visit to the Fundación Ralli Museum which featured contemporary Latin American art, including works by Salvador Dali. We also had a delicious lunch at a beautiful restaurant overlooking the Marina. Our only disappointment was the lack of free time to explore Punta del Este but the tour really was a full day so compromises have to be made.

· This was an industrial dock so you had to go outside the dock gate to find taxis.

· Montevideo is a large city with some impressive buildings in the centre but also some beautiful beaches on the outskirts.

· There seemed to be plenty of cafes around the central square.

· The Ralli Museum is free to enter but is in the suburbs of Punta del Este. There are beautiful gardens around the museum building. There are toilets but no shop or cafe.

· Punta del Este is a beautiful and large holiday resort with some very exclusive shops, lovely beaches and an impressive Marina.

Buenos Aires

There had been some speculation as to whether the ship would be allowed to dock here at all as there is some ongoing political wrangling about the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands and rumour had it that ships that visited the Falklands would be denied entry to Argentina. As it was we did dock although 3 hours late. The reason given was ‘the volume of ships needing a berth’ and, I have to say, the port was very busy.

People who had made independent travel arrangements for Buenos Aires were given free access to telephones on the ship so they could rearrange their schedule but I was so glad our trip was all organised through Princess as we were able to leave everything to them.

· There are compulsory shuttle busses to the port terminal building.

· The terminal building is quite small

· There were taxis available outside the building but it was chaotic as the parking area is very small and there were a large number of tour buses using it too.

· The city is large with a number of impressive buildings, parks and the colourful ‘La Boca’ area.

· Princess arranged a variety of tour options for independent travellers ending at either hotels or the airport.

Glad to be of help! CC is great......

The HOHO bus has a stop outside the cruise terminal. There is a ticket booth inside the terminal building shere you can puurchase tickets. if you buy tickets on line then you must have your voucher validated at the booth. FYI 2 of the large shopping malls run free shuttle busses from the terminal. Just have a look at the various booths. There is also a very helpful tourist Information kiosk and free wifi in there too.

We're going to be on the 2010 Amsterdam WC, with a two-day stop at Mahe in the Seychelles. Can anyone suggest ideas for what to do? Should we take the HAL shore excursion or just bum around on our own. Should be take a ferry to another island? Any advice would be welcome.

We were in Mahe on February 24th and 25th this year and this is the report I did for my review. It might be helpful to you.

Seychelles

For me, these islands were the highlight of the cruise and I’m so glad that we had an overnight stay there. They are so clean with the most lush and colourful vegetation and glorious beaches. The people seemed relatively prosperous and were smiling and helpful.

I did the ‘Discovering Mahe’ tour which took us to the Botanical Gardens (beautiful), a walking tour of the Mahe town (small but picturesque), a drive up into the central highlands with a couple of stops at viewing points (glorious scenery), a Creole lunch at a beach side restaurant (delicious), and free time on the beach (picture postcard perfect) before returning to the ship.

My husband (the adventurous and fit one!) did the ‘Robinson Crusoe Island’ tour which took him to Praslin and then to Curieuse Island. He said the snorkelling was amazing and the beaches were stunning. His photographs are mirror images of the postcard views that you get of the Seychelles.

· Taxis were available immediately outside the dock gates.....a brisk 5 minute walk from the ship.

· Taxis accepted Euros and $US but you need to negotiate. We paid $5 to the town centre. It is walkable but quite a long way and it was very hot and humid.

· We arrived on a Sunday and most shops were closed.

· There was a small craft and souvenir market on the dock side.

· There is a nice market in Mahe centre with vanilla pods, essence, magnets, postcards etc, etc as well as the fish, fruit, flower and textile stalls.

· The Botanical Gardens (30 mins walk from the dock) were worth a visit to see the huge tortoises, fruit bats and the ‘Coco-de-Mer’ palm trees as well as the beautiful trees and flowers. Admission was 100 Seychelles Rupees (approx $8pp) There are toilets and a cafe.

HI,

Could someone tell me what kind of toiletries are found on Costa ships ?

 

Are any shower caps available?

 

Thank You:)

We were on NeoRomantica 3 weeks ago and unbranded toilet soap was provided and the shower had a dispenser with body wash. You could request shower caps, body lotion and shampoo from your cabin steward.

We are ballroom dancers and thinking about booking a cruise on a Princess ship. But we do not whether the dancing on these ships is any good. Can anyone who knows about this tell us, please? Thank you

We are frequent Princess cruisers who love to ballroom dance and have always found some ballroom/latin music played where there is room to dance on our Princess cruises. I see you are from the UK like us and would recommend both P&O and Fred Olsen cruises if you are serious dancers as these lines provide really good quality dance music with some basic sequence dancing as well.

Meteora is a fabulous. We did a Princess ship's tour and I have posted the bit of my review that deals with our day. It may be helpful.

Day 1 - Volos – Meteora Monastery tour.

We docked close to the centre of Volos which is quite a large port. People we talked to who walked around the town were somewhat disappointed that it was so industrialised and not a pretty Greek seaside resort.

Our tour was a full day trip and I was a bit apprehensive about whether it was the right choice – monasteries are not high on my list of interests –but it turned out to be a major highlight. The 2 hour journey was long and through a wide agricultural valley so there wasn’t a huge amount to see. In fact, I ended up sleeping for most of the time so caught up on what we had missed the day before.

The tour stopped for a 25 minute toilet/coffee break in a small town close to the mountains and there was a Lidl supermarket 100m down the road. My DH popped along and got a couple of litres of wine to drink in the cabin. This was really his only opportunity so I’m glad he had the foresight to get it!

The bus carried on for a few more kms and then these huge, towering rocky outcrops suddenly appeared in the distance rising straight up out of the flat valley floor. WOW!

As the bus got nearer and began to climb the foothills we could see these buildings perched right on top of the rocks. It was an amazing sight which got even more breathtaking as the bus drove further up. There are 6 separate monasteries, each balanced on top of its own individual sheer rock tower, and we visited 2 of them – one before lunch and one after. Fortunately the busses are able to get quite close but then there is a walk over a bridge and up several sets of steps to get to the actual monastery. We had time to explore each one and they were well worth it. The paintings and carvings were beautiful, the views were awe-inspiring and the little gift shops had some pretty objects and replicas at reasonable prices. Our guide told us that we were extremely lucky with the weather because it was clear and not too hot so there was no cloud or heat haze.

Our lunch was in a small Greek taverna at the bottom of the mountains and consisted of a set 3 course meal of Greek food plus water and wine.

TIP - Everyone needs to have shoulders and knees covered. Females must wear a skirt – you can borrow a sarong at the entrance.

Get to the tour meeting place early so you are on the 1st bus. We were on the last bus and had to wait for stragglers before we could leave the ship so we had less time at the venues than the people on the other 3 buses.

Thank you all for your good wishes and prompt replies with formal dress information. I've started packing and, as we will be away from home for 30 days and will experience many different temperatures, it's a bit trickier than normal so I shall see how much room is left before making a final decision.

Kinkacruiser....I loved your comment about it being chilly. It is the middle of our summer in the UK and the temperature for the last 3 days has never risen above 14C (60F). Our paper showed Sydney as 17c and Perth as 18c!!!!!

Witchymob.....I'll do my best to look after Sun Princess for you.

My husband and I are sailing on Sun Princess leaving Sydney on July 30th. We were wondering whether he should take his dinner suit or if an ordinary suit will be OK. We are flying from the UK so weight is a consideration but he does not want to be out of place if the majority of Aussies wear dinner suits.

We are getting really excited about our first trip 'down under'.

We did the NCL tour to MP in 2005. The great thing was that we had 3 crew members travelling with us. One was a ship's nurse who was able to give medication and oxygen to those who had altitude sickness. I had a really bad head ache but she provided pain killers which worked. Others needed oxygen but my DH was absolutely fine.

The other crew members saw to all the tour arrangements including the buses, train seats and check-in at the airport. The charter flight back to Arica went smoothly too.

All in all, it was a fantastic trip and, IMHO, well worth the money as it was hassle free. We also did not have to pay the automatic tips for the days we were off the ship.

Hi, any chance of posting your review on this site. I'm booked on Royal Princess for the Amazon this December and would love to read your experiences.

Regards SR