jajsmom

Yes, by flavors I meant different ports of call. I wish there was more time spent in Iceland, so also considering a land trip. We were most recently on the SKY and have sailed mostly in that class of ship. Unfortunately, the Sky had less time in port than the Caribbean Princess itinerary. Will check out the other positive reviews.

We are considering booking a cruise to Iceland next year on the Caribbean Princess. A trusted friend just came back from a cruise on the Caribbean Princess, and said it was the only ship she would never sail on again. I've read some other negative reviews about this ship. Please tell me your thoughts. Also, if you've been to Iceland, please tell me which of the various flavors of cruises you did and liked or not. It's very hard to tell the differences between these cruises. Should we stay away from the Caribbean Princess? Thanks for all input.

Thank you all! Relaxing Robbies, that is EXACTLY the information I was looking for! We plan to go to the Lone Pine Sanctuary and do some sightseeing in town. and it looks like we can do all of that with this transportation, without the exorbitant Princess fees for the excursion, and without the ability to see more in Brisbane.

We're going to Australia with Princess this October. Specifically the port of Brisbane, there is a new port for docking which is a good half hour away from the city center. There is no public transportation from the port. Does Princess offer a shuttle, and if so, how much? Also has anyone used taxi/uber from that location? Trying to plan our own excursions, but want to be sure we can make it on time. Thanks!

Thank you. We're usually do it yourself people, but for these cruises, it seems better to use the cruise excursions for timing in ports. For this port, we're on the Royal Princess in October, with port times also from 8-6.

Adding on. Since for us, Yorkeys Knob is a tender port, is it better to do this as an excursion through the cruise line? Or would we be fine transporting ourselves to the train and skyway on our own. Thanks.

Did both of our Australia and New Zealand eta's today. Easy to do the Australia one on the app, but the NZ one would only go through on the computer. Final cost for the two of us was about $100 USD. At least that is done now, so we can start booking excursions.

Thank you both!

After not being able to get through on the NZeta app, my husband decided to do it online. In addition to a NZ$23 charge for the application, he was being charged a NZ$35 fee for IBL, which is an environmental fee for visitors. I have never seen this mentioned before. The only thing he was not sure of when filling out the application was whether he was in transit or visiting NZ. We will be on a round-trip cruises from Sydney, with all of our ports in NZ. Thank you for any insight.

Thanks. Travel agent has linked us for dinner, but we will head towards the back of the buffet for embarkation.

Thank you!

This will be our 25th cruise, but the first on MSC (on Seaside.) On other lines, we generally eat in the dining room for the first day lunch, but we are not in YC, and it does not appear that there are any dining rooms open for breakfast or lunch. We are also traveling with a large group (14). It looks like there are two different buffets on the ship. Is one preferable over the other? And will we have better luck finding seating for a large group? We do not all have to be at the same table, but close to each other would be great. Also, our group has all different loyalty levels, ranging from no loyalty up to Diamond. Will everyone have very different boarding times, even though we will all be arriving together? And what time are staterooms generally open? Thanks!

Thank you all! I told you this always confuses me, even using the correct letters! So I can book a 2025 cruise then, as long as I book it by next December. Thank you!

This always confuses me. We purchased FCCs in December 2022. Do these need to be used and sailed by December 2024, or do they just have to be applied to a cruise by then. Thanks!

Along the same lines, are hair dryers in the staterooms? We will be on Seaside, and someone recently told me that the MSC ship they went on did not have hairdryers. Thanks.

Thank you!

Thanks. It looks like we're up to 14 people now.

We are sailing MSC for the first time with a large group. We're currently at 12, and may be adding a few more couples. Will we all be seated together (reservations linked) or will we be divided into smaller tables. Thanks.

Thanks! I am a distance runner (minimum 5 miles on a trip) so running on a treadmill is just painful! I will try to run on the island, even if I have to make multiple laps.

Thanks for your responses! I did not see any designated areas. I've been cruising for years, and prefer the older ships that had dedicated walking and running areas. the newer ships seem to have forgotten about them. How are we supposed to manage our food intake on a cruise? 😂

I did a search and could not find any information. Will be on MSC Seaside. Other than a treadmill, is there any place to run on deck? It does not appear to have a promenade deck, and I do not see a running path up top. Also, is there any path on Ocean Cay to run? And if there is, does anyone know the milage? Thanks in advance.

Thank you. It's good to see actual tour recommendations. I do not see as many specific companies recommended as I do for other cruise ports around the world.

Thank you both! I'm learning so much here.

Once again, helpful. That's good to know.

Thanks! It's sounds like a port adventure to GBR from Airlie Beach is looking good. We live in Florida, so we have our own resident alligators in the pond behind our house. But wandering around Port douglas does not sound so bad either.