AndrewK

Just off Diamond and yes, our room had a "universal" power outlet. It is marked as 220V only ... so don't go plugging any US 110V stuff into it. The outlet can accept most plugs including UK and Australian types.

There are still normal US type 110V outlets in the room in addition to the universal one ... so everyone should be catered for :)

... If I'm not mistaken, don't you Aussies pay a lot more for cruises than the rest of us and aren't you banned from purchasing thru a US website? ...

My apologies also to the OP for the off-topic discussion.

Yes, correct on both counts. Prices are relatively higher here, but the lines which have ships positioned here have removed tipping so it balances out to some extent. It doesn't seem to have affected sales ... the cruise market is booming here.

I think the restrictions on purchasing through overseas web sites came about because local travel agents were being disadvantaged. It never affects us anyway. If we see something advertised which appeals to us we just go and ask our local T.A. about it and book through them if we decide to go.

My wife is elite on Princess ... owned by Carnival. It will be interesting to see if that transfers over to Carnival itself. Carnival will be joining P&O and Princess in running cruises out to the Pacific Islands as well as New Zealand. We really enjoy those itineraries.

Carnival is on the way, no tipping!

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=4311

Yes ... I read that article earlier this morning. More competition has to be good for the consumer!

Interesting to see that they've done their homework and are "adjusting" the product to suit the Australian market.

... Off topic:

AndrewK, how is the situation in Australia, Re:Flood levels? I assume you are not in the vicinity of these?

Thank you for thinking about us.

I'm on the mid-north coast of New South Wales and we're not affected here. We have many cruising friends as well as family in Queensland but thankfully everyone is fine.

The situation is still very bad in many parts of Queensland and also in northern New South Wales. The situation is improving in the Queensland state capital Brisbane, but there will be a very lengthy and expensive cleanup required. The effects will be felt for years to come.

Some cruises depart from Brisbane (particularly P&O and Princess) but at the moment the port is completely closed to all shipping.

Our thoughts also go out to Sri Lanka and Brazil ... both are experiencing disastrous flooding with many lives lost. Kind of puts the antics on these forums into perspective doesn't it.

... I just read through some threads on the smoking subject on the RCCL and Celebrity forums and found that evidently the smoking problem on those lines is very similar to MSC ...

Having cruised on both MSC and Celebrity, my experience is that they're at opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to smoking. On Celebrity we didn't encounter any sort of "smoking problem". We never noticed smokers and were never affected or restricted by smokers. In contrast, apart from the theatre and dining areas, there was barely anywhere on Poesia where we could go without being affected by smokers. This included most of the lounges and bars ... especially the large Pigalle lounge where many mainstream activities are held ... but which "welcomes smokers".

@ artistcleveland, just do a search for "smoking" on these MSC forums and you'll get some idea of the reality of the situation. Smoking is a frequently raised topic here as well as in MSC reviews ... and there's a reason for that fact.

Absolutely loved every aspect of our cruise on Celebrity Mercury.

In comparison, MSC Poesia was like spending 18 days in a giant floating ashtray.