Redking

Playing make believe we're in an Iconic Suite whilst they service our stateroom 🤣

Day 5 Suva, Fiji. We were welcomed to Suva with a beautiful sunny day. I was quite taken with all the fishing boats standing to attention in the harbour. We left the ship at 8.30 to pick up our private tour to the Uprising Resort, a 45 minute drive to Pacific Harbour which is billed as Fiji's action capital. From here you can take tours on the Navua River or head out to Beqa Island. There was a bit of a glitch with our tour because Celebrity had booked out the resort, so we headed next door to the pearl resort where our $50 day pass included food and drink to the value of $40. We managed to book an amazing back, neck and head massage on the beach front. No need for piped rainforest music when you've got the mesmerising sound of the waves lapping on the beach. Feeling totally chilled we heading off to pool for cocktails and spot of lunch before the drive back to Suva.

I should add that the driver himself was lovely and keen to show us around.

Very valid points and thank you for the follow up. From earlier discussions on the this and other threads the confusion arises as to whether the requirement applies to travellers entering Fiji by cruise ship. You are of course quite right in saying that it's always better to err on the side of caution and refer to the relevant government websites for information. Thanks again.

A few more shots from the Gardens, including their delicious fruit cup.

Oops, thanks for the correction!

I think it's Auricka? She has quite an understated presence and is always observing the service in the restaurant. Given the excellent service we're experiencing, she's running a tight ship!

We've arrived in Fiji and not a whisper of needing to provide evidence of travel insurance. Attached is the communication we received, along with the health dec forms.

Some shots of our salubrious taxi

Back on board and mixed ourselves a Brandy Fruit Cup. Very pleasant even if it is lacking some fruit and mint accoutrements.

Lautoka We had nothing booked for this port. A chance conversation with another couple at breakfast in Luminae saw us heading into town on the shuttle, where we picked up a taxi to take us to the Garden of the Sleeping Giant. The Gardens are about a 30 minute drive from Lautoka. It's a beautiful orchid and tropical garden originally owned by William Burr of Perry Mason fame. Our taxi ride was somewhat interesting, a touch of irony intended there. I'm thinking of starting a thread on the most entertaining and nerve racking transport experiences you've had on shore. Photos to follow will hopefully give you the just.

Tuscan day 3 This will be a brief review. For the third time in recent years we didn't enjoy our dining experience at Tuscan. Findlay's Branzino looked and tasted like leather and he said his ceaser salad failed to impress. My tuna was uninspiring. Etc etc. Service felt perfunctory. It's really not the Tuscan of some years ago. That's my twopenneth. Thankfully we all have different tastes and preferences in food. Back to Murano tomorrow!

We met the suite manager the other night he seemed very approachable. Unfortunately I can't remember his name. Marlene is the Concierge and was previously on Beyond. She is a magician! I think she is the only Concierge. Enjoy your cruise, sounds amazing.

Love having a coffee machine and kettle in our suite. Enjoying our selection of Forte Teas.

Excited for Evening Chic night. Love a good dress up.

Loving the colours in the sky.

Gliding past Viti Levu, Fiji. First stop Lautoka

Sea Days One and Two As I sit here enjoying our afternoon cheese and charcuterie plate, I can’t help but reflect on just how outstanding the service has been thus far. Luminae The staff in Luminae cannot do enough for us. Findlay could quite easily have nothing but the soups for lunch for the entire cruise. Bingo, Roberto our waiter was onto it. The past two days Findlay has been served “upsized” versions of the soup. In fact, today he had two bowls of upsized chicken consommé, the prefect remedy for a slight hangover after a fabulous night in Murano last night. I’m gluten intolerant though not coeliac and have always been well looked after on previous cruises. Roberto has taken it to a whole new level, planning ahead with me for our dinner plans in the coming days and arranging for gluten free versions of menu items on days we plan to dine in Luminae. This morning at breakfast I made my standard off menu request for some avocado to have on my toast. Roberto explained that he thought the fresh avocados onboard might not be ripe enough, but he’d go and check. As expected, the little green pears were not yet playing ball and he instead offered me some Guacamole as an alternative which I accepted. Guac on my toast with bacon might become my new normal! When I thanked him for going to so much effort, he said we never want to say no! Sea Day One We had a very relaxing day yesterday starting with breakfast in Luminae. We planned to skip lunch after having a big breakfast, but you know ……………………………. The compromise was that we selected soup and salads from the appetisers and we may have somehow slipped a dessert in there. We then enjoyed a lazy afternoon chez nous which found me mixing a French Mule from our now completed bar set-up. Thank you to @groryjim for your cocktail tips. I’m loving the Difford’s website and am now the proud owner of the latest edition of the Difford’s tome. Cruise Critic is the source of so much information. Gordon our butler par excellence even delivered a proper cocktail shaker, no doubt after spying my pathetic plastic effort. He also dropped off a couple of martini glasses. Once again exceptional attention to detail. Officers’ Soiree and Dinner at Murano Five thirty swung around and it was time to head off to Michael’s Club for the Officers’ Soiree. We were greeted on arrival by Captain Theo or should I say, I knew it was Captain Theo. Findlay, not being diligent in reading his embarkation day reading material, reached out to shake his hand and promptly asked “and you are?” whilst checking out the Captain’s badge. I guess it could have been worse, he didn’t ask if he was the bloke that drives the boat! Drinks and canapes were wonderful and the Appletinis flowed per @NZ1 wonderful review. We caught up with a fun couple from Sydney that we met at lunch on the first day. We both had reservations at Murano, with ours being half an hour earlier than theirs. We’d not long sat down at our table when we saw them come in and we decided to dine together. A wonderful dinner was paired firstly with a Chateau Neuf La Bernadine (one we enjoy at home) and then with a Penfolds Bin 389. Fin had the goat’s cheese souffle, the lamb and Grand Marnier souffle. I had the crab parfait followed by the venison and the GM souffle. I’m hoping @NZ1 will do the honours on food pics from Murano. If not, do not despair we have another three reservations to come at Murano. We were the last to leave the restaurant and decided to head up to our suite with our new chums to give the Grand Marnier a further nudge. Hence the slight hangovers this morning. Wrap up for today I’m struggling a bit with wi-fi, so much for Starlink, so I’ll post this for now without the photos and then post some snaps separately. Brendan, looking forward to your tips on the photo situation. Some sleuthing from your post on last night means I likely have an ID on you! Having had a wee snooze we’re ready to get our party game on again and head off to Tuscan tonight. I’ve not been that impressed with Tuscan on our last couple of cruises, so will report back on our thoughts tomorrow. Cheers for now!

Would you believe I quite like the sound of it. I'm gluten intolerant and love spaghetti squash, assuming that's what I know it to be 🤣 Can't believe day 4 will be our first night dining in Luminae.

He's wonderful. There were quite a few supply challenges on embarkation day which he has navigated like a pro. We requested potato chips/crisps which they didn't have and he has given us a packet from his own personal supply!

After years of coveting, I finally pulled the trigger on a Mary Frances bag. I may have agreed it was the bag OR spa treatments. We'll see!

It seems I've managed to post my embarkation day review on @nz1 live food review for our cruise. Thanks for letting me know Brendan. Absolutely nothing to do with hitting the cocktails too early on a sea day 🤣🍸🍹

🤣🤣🤣Classic Kim!

We weren't even asked about our insurance or covid tests on boarding. I'll let you know if we are asked prior to our arrival in Lautoka.

It's been excellent. They can't do enough for you in Luminae and SO5 last night was wonderfull, I could have grazed all night and the Saki was 👌 Great you're leading the charge on the food front! Hope to meet up soon.