rogueriver

3 hours ago, cruzrbachoua said:

Any update on the repairs? 

We docked in Honolulu early this morning and I’m sure the engineers hopped on board as soon as they could to assess and begin repairs if possible. We haven’t received an update yet, but the captain has done a great job of keeping us informed. We are heading to Maui tomorrow and leaving for the final leg to San Francisco on Monday.

We are on the Grand now heading to Hawaii and were in a mini suite that lost power. Although it’s been a hassle moving to a smaller cabin, we feel very fortunate that we were given a balcony room. I want to give a shout out to the fantastic crew. This situation has been difficult for them, especially since they are also dealing with a norovirus outbreak. They are continuing to provide superior service and we are grateful. As for the condition of the Grand, it is really showing it’s age and could do with some upgrades.

On 3/30/2023 at 10:35 AM, shipstud said:

Confused with adapter/converter. Could anyone clarify what is actually needed.  From the US.

 

THANKS IN ADVANCE

If you use a higher voltage item like a flat iron or curling iron, you may need to also have a converter. Check to see if your appliance is listed as dual voltage. If not, you’ll need the converter.

Our cruise is departing March 31 in Sydney, and we just received our medallions on Monday, March 20.  I was worried that it was cutting it a little close since we actually fly out on the 26th.  The return address was from New Jersey.  

3 hours ago, cndcruiser65 said:

We will be in Lahaina Maui for a stop with Royal Caribbean in October and would like to rent a car for the day. I noticed most car rentals are in the Kanapalli Beach area. Does anyone know how far that is from the Lahaina cruise terminal,  or the cost to get there for a taxi.  Any information would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you

We also plan to rent a car when we stop in Lahaina in April.  We've reserved from Budget in Kaanapali and it looks like it's about 5 miles from the cruise port.  We plan to take an Uber if available but not sure of the cost.

I realize that deciding on surgery is a very personal decision, but count me as one who would be encouraging it for arthritis in the hip.  My sister had both hips replaced in 2022, one in August and the other in November.  She diligently followed her therapy routine and is now back playing pickleball and raring to go for our 29 day cruise in April.  

4 hours ago, dandee2 said:

There is also PK18 which has a nice beach.

By car or Taxi

https://tahititourisme.pf/en-pf/offers/vaiava-beach-pk-18-punaauia-en-en-pf-3340806/
 

Thank you for the information!

Our cruise will be stopping in Papeete on a Sunday in April and I've heard that many of the shops may be closed.  Do any of you know if that is the case for the market/shops near the cruise port?

11 hours ago, Fletcher said:

Tahiti is not really a beach place. However, the best beach (black sand) is in front of the Pearl resort and also the beach along Matavai Bay towards Point Venus. There is also an outstanding black sand beach on the opposite side of Point Venus but accessing it can be tricky as there are private houses all along the bay.  This is the spot where they shot the 1962 version of Mutiny on the Bounty (see my photos).  

 

 

Thanks so much for the information and the beautiful pictures!

We will be stopping in Papeete on our Princess Grand cruise in April.  We would like to spend some time at the beach and read that the Toaroto Beach near the Le Meridien resort is a nice white sand beach. 

Has anyone been to this beach?  If so, would you recommend it? Is there another beach that may be better?

Would it be easy to take the bus or is it better to go there by taxi?

Thanks in advance for your answers.

Thanks for the replies.  We are already paid in full and I'm trying to purchase the Medallion Net now before the price goes up next week.  I think I'll try calling just in case they will let me use the gift card over the phone.  If not, I'll just take it on board.  We'll be on a 29 day cruise, so I'm sure it will be used up, especially if I don't stay away from the casino!

I tried to use a gift card to purchase Medallion Net on the app but it only allows me to use a credit card. Does anyone know how to use a gift card on the app or will I have to call Princess?Thanks in advance!

On 9/28/2022 at 5:56 PM, PacnGoNow said:

Yes you should download the UA App to your phone and check that flight periodically on the App. Make sure you pick your seats on the UA App too.
It’s a good idea to make sure UA has your email and cell phone number for any schedule changes. And opt in to notifications on the UA App/website too.

No, it is not ticketed. Once it’s ticketed on UA, you will see ticket numbers on their website. You will also see your ticket information on the Princess website

under cruise personalizer-travel summary.

 

After final payment, you have up to 45 days before travel to change EZAIR flight if it’s cheaper, that’s great. They used to ticket after the 45 days, but it seems they have been ticketing a lot later now and on some of these posts they missed the ticketing deadline.

 

I’ve not had a problem, but I’m going to watch mine very closely.

 

 

Thanks to you and the others for the detailed explanation.  I do have the United App on my phone and they have my contact information.  I'll be sure to check my flight often, especially as I get closer to sail date.  Thanks all!

I have booked an EZ Air flight for March of 2023; this is my first time using it.  I'm rather confused as to how the process works.

Since I have a United confirmation number and I'm able to go into United and view my reservation, does this mean it has been ticketed?  I have not yet made my final payment. After reading some of the horror stories, I'm getting a little concerned, especially since this is a flight from SFO to Sydney and it only happens once a day, I believe.

4 hours ago, pattycake08 said:

If you take the bus back from Public Beach to town toward the port, how much is it, and do you need exact change?

I don't remember the exact cost but it was around $3 - $5.  You need to use cash but the driver does have change.  As an FYI, the bus is actually a van that holds about 10 people.  They stop whenever someone waves them down.  Nothing fancy but an easy way to get to the beach.

Thanks to both of you for the information.  In checking a little further, it appears that it will be docking in Ijmuiden, which will make a longer commute time to get into the city.  

Do any of you great CC folks know which cruise terminal Carnival uses in Amsterdam?  It looks like the main one is the Passenger Cruise Terminal near the city center, but there is another one called Felison Cruise Center which is several miles away.  Thanks for your help.

On 5/22/2022 at 12:56 PM, jenndisney said:

We love visiting ruins. First time to Belize. There are a few different ones to visit. Curious which one you would say is a great one. It sounds like one involves a ride up a river. We love that idea but the boat ride had some mixed reviews about not able to enjoy. 

We were in Belize last week and did the Princess ship excursion to Altun Ha.  It included a one hour trip on the river where we saw some manatees, monkeys, and iguanas.  We stopped for lunch and then took a bus to the ruins.  Our large group was split, so the other group did the ruins first and then the boat ride. The ruins and historical information were very interesting and there are a set of wooden stairs on the tallest of the ruins that many of our group climbed (at 74, I decided to skip that!).

We were there last week and took the yellow bus out to Hell because we just wanted to see some of the area. We stayed on the bus and told the driver we wanted to be dropped off at Public Beach on the way back, which worked well. When we were done at the beach, we just walked back up to the highway and waved down the bus to go back into town. It was an easy walk from there to the ship (we were on Princess).

On 5/29/2022 at 9:39 AM, KKB said:

Was it $15-25 per chair or total?

 

We were at Public Beach last week.  We got two chairs and an umbrella for $15 although he originally asked for $20.  We were the only ship in port that day so there were not many people on the beach.  It was great!

We’re on the Caribbean Princess right now which departed from Ft Lauderdale on Saturday. We took our antigen test on Wednesday and had no problem at check in. We are fully vaccinated and boosted.

Thanks for the information regarding the bus to NJ Penn Station.  We always do carry-on luggage when traveling so that could work.  Sure wish Coach USA still went to lower Manhattan.  We took it to midtown on our trip there in November and it was really convenient.

Thank you both for the information.  We have taken the air train/NJ Transit to Penn Station in the past when we were staying near Penn Station, however we have never taken PATH.  Is that part of the subway system or another train?

Does anyone have suggestions regarding the best way to get from Newark Airport to lower Manhattan around the Financial District?  In previous visits we've stayed in midtown and there was a convenient and inexpensive bus that took us from the airport to Grand Central area.  We've decided to stay in lower Manhattan for our November sailing on Princess since it will be departing from the Red Hook dock in Brooklyn.  Any thoughts?  Thanks!

1 hour ago, MamaFej said:

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On another note, have you heard anything from Princess re your Sapphire cruises next February? Celebrity finally canceled our Aus/NZ/SoPac cruises in late July. Our circumnavigate Australia cruise on Princess is still on the books. but finally became unavailable for purchase (at least from here) in the last couple of days. An Australian on our Roll Call posted that Princess had removed the Papua New Guinea stop, and replaced it with another Australia stop. Conjecture is that Princess did this in anticipation of making it an Australian passengers only cruise. I'm definitely ready for PCL to cancel, so I can plan what to do with the FCCs. The cruises on the Sapphire are still available for purchase from here. I hope you will be able to make your revised plans soon. 

 

 

My sister and I are booked on the Sapphire April 2 cruise from Sydney to San Francisco.  Most on our roll call feel that it will be canceled and, like you, we are just waiting for the word from Princess. This will be the third time we have tried to do this cruise, but I guess COVID doesn't care if we don't get our bucket list item checked off!