yarramar

It would also have helped to bring your own life jacket and inflatable dinghy.

If you enter Canada by air you need an eTA but just your passport if coming by ship or car. You can read what is required here. With your US eta, you can come and go across the border by car, but need to pay each time you return to Canada. When we were at Niagara Falls, we crossed several times and the fee then was $5 either USD or CAD - go figure. I made sure that I had a CAD$5 note on me. Into the US there was no charge but much more scrutiny.

It depends on which cruise line. You need to ask the specific line or look at their T & C's. Some will allow it while others may want to further gouge you and sell you their own. Whichever the case, if cruising to New Zealand, you will have to leave them on board.

Yes, but a 3rd class ticket (where everyone had more fun) was only £7, equivalent to around $1000. All food and accommodation for that and the passengers didn't need a gym as they would dance all night.

Hi jsglow, I would also say "no problem" for your 12.35pm flight as it is domestic and 90 minutes is usually enough time to reach the airport before flying out. Plus as you said, there are more flights that day (across the various carriers there are 37 flights per day)

Casseum, if you miss your flight, how much will it cost you? Given the ridiculously short amount of time you have to get off the ship (assuming it is on time) get yourself to the airport, check in your bags, go through security and navigate immigration if it is an international flight, I would not be worrying about saving a few dollars and choose the quickest way of getting there. Good luck

Take some time to talk to him/her about their work, their family and life off the ship. Many cruise ship workers are doing it to provide for their families back home. If that is the case, US dollars may be preferable for sending to their family

I have used Uber in the US & canada. It is the same app everywhere & I have linked payment to my Paypal account which, to me, is a more secure way to go plus I can add or delete cards or bank accounts to be used for payments. I didn't check on the exchange rates if or not I was charged but it was very convenient. I also used Lyft which I actually used more than Uber. The convenient thing is that, like here, you just request a ride, it turns up and it is paid without you having to transact or negotiate with the driver

As advised by others, your best option is to go to a Chemist Warehouse on arrival and choose a product from their range. They have stores everywhere. You can go informed beforehand with your preferences by deciding which one(s) now. https://www.chemistwarehouse.com.au/shop-online/214/sunscreen-lotions-gels

There is a Celebrity cruise of 13 days which gives you 7 NZ ports plus the fjords. It is Sydney to Sydney and has 4 sea days but you would see more of NZ than on the NCL cruise and IMO the Eden & Burnie ports are a waste of time. Burnie is good because it has the option of Cradle Mountain but your ship doesn't arrive in port until 11.00am so that excursion is out. With your other 7 days, fly into Sydney (before the cruise) and out of Melbourne to go home or visa versa.

My grandmother often said the same thing. Also the only tips she gave turned out to be very good advice.

If USD is a preferable way of spending in Argentina, maybe a debit card that is "loaded" with different currencies i.e. USD, is the way to go. Safer than carrying cash. A credit card will exchange in pesos

You will need to do some more research when it comes to Argentina as opposed to other countries in South America. With the new president who was elected in December, things will be different. This article explains some things. https://edition.cnn.com/2023/12/12/economy/argentina-milei-peso-dollar/index.html

As above, Aldi & some independent grocers sell alcohol instore but you won't have trouble finding bottlle o's (liquor stores) anywhere in Oz

If you have Telstra, according to their coverage map , you should be good.

Good point, but now we have to calculate the current interest rate of our high interest deposit account by the number of days before the cruise compared to post paying on the credit card that may or may not incur international transaction fees. But hey! we have 55 days interest free. Are there any accountants we can get advice from on these boards?

Except, for maybe, the tram network in Melbourne

The gratuities on sailings out of Australia are included in the drink menu price. The menus, however are Australia specific so no point looking at generic RCL drink prices from other destinations.

The last thing you want is to "chill out" in a hotel room after a cruise and a confined space before another confined space of a plane. Since you are already at Circular Quay, it makes the most sense to store your bags there and use the ferry system for a days outing. The two most obvious ones are Tooronga Zoo or Manly. If you have already done one on your precruise visit, do the other. Either would be perfect for an entire day before your flight out.

New Zealand is a separate country to Australia. That is like asking if an Australian could embark on a cruise from New York in Nova Scotia. You will also need visas for each country, i.e an ETA for Australia and a nzETA for New Zealand. If your trip insurance includes cruise insurance they may pay for a flight to New Zealand

The Opal card is free but you need to put money onto it for it to be activated. All the info you need is here

The Sydney transit system has a maximum payable per day of $17.80 M-Th and $9.80 F-Su. If you only tap once when you got on you will be charged the full fare for that journey, e.g the full fare is $8.40 to Circular Quay but if you were to get off and tap at Cremorne point it would be cheaper. If you only tapped when you got off, they would probably think you were going the other way and pay the full fare. If you kept going back and forth all day the maximum would be the capped amount for that day. Each traveller must have their own unique card, you cannot pay for another person using the same card, Opal or CC. If you are using a foreign credit or debit card, don't forget that it may be incurring FX fees and/or international usage fees. It may be cheaper to just get and use an Opal (minimum top up is $20) card or purchase single journey fares.

If the Tea rooms at the Block Arcade are inundated by cruise ship passengers 😂, you could try another iconic Melbourne establishment. The Windsor

Then you will LOVE Melbourne. If you are paying for your guided walk, DON'T. You can do a free tour run by the city There is a bit of a trademark dispute happening over at the Hopetoun Tearooms in the Block Arcade. It is now called "The Tea Rooms 1892" But still worth visiting. https://thetearooms1892.com.au/ Around Port Melbourne and even Bay St is not that interesting. I am there every week and would not recommend going there unless you want lunch at one of the nice cafes. I would, however, recommend going a few suburbs down to St Kilda. You could walk along the beach to get there and catch an Uber back (it is about 5km) https://stkildamelbourne.com.au/visitor-info/

The cheapest option is the 109 tram which runs down Collins St just around the corner from your hotel. The best option is taxi or Uber. It is just a 15 minute ride to Station Pier. If you don't already have a Myki card each, they can be purchased from any 7 Eleven