Nelsj099

On 11/20/2022 at 2:52 AM, gottagocit said:

The only voyage we’ve taken where I recall the need to give our passports to Princess on a transpacific voyage from Alaska to China. If I recall correctly we had to surrender the prior to arrival in Vladivostok, Russia and our first port stop in China. 

I have lived in both Russia and China, and cruised to Russia when I lived there (getting off with my visa was very confusing to the customs agents in St. Petes, I had to explain to them for 40 minutes that I live in Russia and that is why I don't have a photo on my visa).  Both China and Russia along with many other countries have complex customs procedures.  Many of these countries that require immigration checks China included you are actually supposed to have your passport on you at all times.  (I carried mine for the first year I lived overseas every day.) If you need it for an excursion you should be able to get it back.  This may be  difficult though.   I know some people choose to go to immigration themselves with their passports on some lines and it may be at 4/5 am and take forever but I have read about people doing this instead of turning in their passports as well. 

I do a lot of online teaching.  What you need to know is the internet speed where you will be when you need to teach.  I live in China, and to use Zoom we need a VPN, so my internet speed this morning for zoom was download 1.3Mbps and that will connect and hold a zoom call with no problem.  If you can get someone to share internet speeds where you need them you can make a more informed decision.   I anticipate my upcoming cruise to have fast open internet.  It won't take much to be better than what I get here.  🤣

I haven't done Princess in the Med but NCL and the shows were at the normal times 7:00 and 9:00 ish.  I have done 3 trips 2 Med and 1 Adriatic, I remember going to 1 show in all three of those cruises.  I was doing long tours 12ish hours, came back ate and went to the casino or bed.  

I would love to do a forward facing but I think it would be a little bit cold.  I enjoyed a friends forward facing in the fjords of New Zealand a few years ago.  It was not Alaska cold by any means but it was not warm out there either.  Are you sit on the balcony for long periods of time with a drink people?  Or do you mostly use your cabin to crash?  If you are doing a Glacier Bay trip maybe, or the Med for sure maybe even lower Norway (never done the arctic circle).  But I Alaska has been my coldest cruise by far I would want a heated blanket or something to keep me warm.   I am sure it would be stunning though. 

I think I would go Southbound and do a land tour through Denali, especially since you mention 2024 and they are saying the road will be clear by then.  I also personally looked at doing it by train. I am also not sure about your adventure level but if I had extra days, I may do a multi day kayak trip through Glacier Bay.  

I chose Vancouver because the port days were longer ... I guess being able to skip Victoria and being 100 miles closer helps with that too. 

I chose aft, on the port edge. I have always wanted to do an aft cabin, and it was available.  Best of both? Wake view?  I guess this is why people book so early.  I am usually a 1-2 month out type of person.   I have done the port side as well 10 years ago.  

@s318830I booked Encore late June last night in a studio.  I have done the studios on the Epic, and an inside on the Getaway.  When I looked at the prices it was about 700$ cheaper for me to do the studio.  Studios have some added benefits such as a concierge who planned great events during our Epic cruise including a bar hop, and seating at dinners and shows.  This may or may not benefit your son, as you are traveling as well.    The inside rooms right now even though it says "2nd guest free" are a 100% solo supplement.   These rooms are a little bit bigger but not necessarily nicer.  The bed in the studio is a full sized bed instead of two twins pushed together.  And on the Encore you get a virtual balcony.  Overall I think ( did)  book the studio. 

I have been loyal to NCL for their Casinos At Sea for years.  I have never paid cruise fair, my first cruise came from a land based casino certificate.  I live in China so when NCL was like we are reopening come on your free cruise I couldn't go.  Now they are like you have no offers.  So when I went to book for next summer I chose princess for a fraction of the cruise fair because now I have to pay... I assume that over 11 days that I will get an offer to come back to a Princess cruise in the future.  

I also used to work at a land based casino, I understand the comp system having worked in the payer's club/ cage area.  I get what a casino is looking for.   I get that they are looking for me to pay my cruise fair to the casino plus more.  Leaving my NCL platinum perks has been difficult I keep checking to see if their price has gone down for my dates.  It hasn't.  I guess it does not always pay to be loyal.  

I am cruising in June on an 11 night Alaska trip.  The plus came out to being only 47 cents more expensive than getting the internet, gratuities, coffee and soda package.  I don't ever get.an alcohol package when I cruise, but get free drinks in the casino.  Plus also includes bottled water which I also usually get in the casino.  I also got 200$ OBC with plus.  So it ended up being a better deal. 

I am registered with princess via my dad's address.  But, it worked for me here in China... but, I think my VPN was on.  

When I did the math on an 11 night cruise it came out to I was going to be spending 47 cents more per night with plus.  But, in addition I also got 200$ in onboard credit.  So I came out ahead with getting plus.   I am not really a drinker, but on NCL I get free drinks in the casino so I may have 1/2 per night plus bottled water (I will get all of this with Plus on Princess).  I have never sailed on princess so I won't be getting that casino benefit.  I always buy the soda package but I would have at least gotten the coffee card if not the coffee package for Alaska.  I have loved cruises to Norway, and the Baltics, but Iceland is cold even in the summer a nice warm drink when you get back on the ship is something to look forward to.  

Maybe I am just confused.  But if I have already paid 10.79$ per day in gratuities doesn't that cover my 1$ per drink for the first 10 drinks?  I have not lived in America in 10 years.  And I have not cruised in America in maybe 11 years.  Tipping culture in the US is crazy to me.  I am essentially the same as cruise staff economic migration, leaving your home country to live in another for better pay or working conditions.  I am sure that the staff is not waiting on my 1$ tip on top of the 18%  I have already paid.  They looked at the base salary offer that they were given when they signed their contracts. And, moved to a floating city.  That being said on the last night of a cruise I go around and give extra tips to staff who have made a large impact on my trip.  But, I am expecting some top tier service for that, to me similar to the service you would get in a sit down restaurant in Sydney where you might drop them a few dollar coins for their service. 

On 8/30/2022 at 2:32 PM, YVRteacher said:

He invited me to the singles gathering in Sugarcane today but I told him I hate people

I am reading your TR as I am looking at booking for next summer.  I cruise solo all the time, but not since the pandemic because I live in China where the borders are still closed.  But, this is how I feel when people invite me to things.   I say this all the time.  I hate people too! 

Yesterday was our first day in Melbourne. I chose to do an excursion with another company autopia. I did a 13 hour trip to see the 12 apostles at sunset and the great ocean road. I was a bit surprised that NCL wasn’t offering this tour as they could have easily charged double or triple what I paid.  

I got off the boat at 10 having already had breakfast. My first breakfast of the cruise. I ate on my balcony over looking the HAL ship and all the people disembarking.  It was a lovely cool day but as always the sun is hot in Australia.  In the port building they were selling myki cards for 15$ you could get a card loaded with 9$. Which is pretty standard when buying a travel card. This was easy and quick.  I just followed the signs from here down to the tram 109 that stops at the port.  This went straight to where I was to meet my tour bus at 11. I made good time and got there early. 

This tour also also stopped off at a chocolate factory, and to see the koalas. I was personally a bit frustrated with people’s lack of ability to get back to the bus on time. 

Last night I finished by having dinner at Moderno and watching the production show Velvet.  Not my favorite ever NCL show but it was good.  I also proceeded to loose a few hundred dollars at the casino. Fast forward to today...

Today we got to have a bit of a lay in. I slept until 9:03 when the room Stuart entered my room to start cleaning. Guess it was time to wake up.  I got ready for my day and had a few more chocolate covered strawberries for breakfast from the casino. 

My tour today was Gunns Caves and Devils. Where we explored the Gunns Plaines and saw the opium poppy’s on the country side. We also went to Wings Wildlife center where I upgraded my ticket to get to hold a baby Tasmanian Devil!  She was super cute at just 6 months old already eating meat and still drinking milk. She can break the skin with her teeth which you could see on the handlers hands.  We also went to Gunns Caves to see some glow worms.  The ones in bay of islands last winter were better but this was a good opportunity to see them again. 

Attached may be the daily’s if not I will upload them when I’m in Melbourne tomorrow. We are going to have an over night there before headed across the sea to New Zealand. 

What to do on this rainy day in Eden?  I woke up this morning and decided to have my chocolate covered strawberries for breakfast off to a healthy start. We had our meet up location set as the stardust theatre for a 9am departure. No problem board the tender boat and the sky opens up for a downpour. 

We we got to the pier not that far away about 500 meters boy was I happy to have brought my rain coat. I booked a Twofold bay cruise about two minutes in the rain stopped and I went out on deck to see the sights. It was a bit cloudy and misty for this tour but we got up close to a playful seal. We also learned about how Eden was a whaling town. They used to get help from an orcha named Tom. 

The towns folk all had stories about Tom.   And his impact on their lives.  There is also a very cute picture book about Tom the orcha. I talked to a few of them after my short boat cruise. I took the free shuttle into town and saw the sights of Eden. I walked back to the ship from the last stop and went to the whaling museum.   

This port is also a place for oysters and crab. I saw a few restaurants at the warf with sampler platters I chose to eat for free at O’Shehans instead.  

Yesterday’s Freestyle Daily

Today was an interesting beginning to a fantastic trip.  It is 12:30 am and I have just made it back to my room.  

A bit bit more about me. I am doing this trip as a solo cruiser. I did this same trip last year for Christmas and New Years and I loved it.  I am not a big drinker however I will order an occasional drink when I’m in the casino.  I do not have the UBP.  Even if I order drinks when I am out it will never add up to the gratuity on the UBP.  I am a gambler though you can often find me in the casino.  

So today for me started at my Airbnb In Tamarama near Bondi Beach. I took the 333 bus into Circular Quay and dropped my luggage off at about 11 at the port. I spent the next few hours eating and walking around taking pictures. 

I went to check in at 1:30 just after they announced that my deck all of the rooms were open!  I checked in through the platinum/platinum plus/casinos at sea.  This is all one line in Sydney and no one was in it.  I got through this step quickly before heading to customs who took a while don’t know why and finally into the security cue.   This did take a while someone was trying to carry on their kettle and lets just say they had to X-ray it quite a few times.  At least they will have a warm Christmas tea.  I was on the ship around 2pm. I dropped my purse and headed to topsiders for some Diet Pepsi. At this point the weather was beautiful.  

I had had a lovely conversation with a nice older lady who came down on the ship from Singapore. The new refurbished ship was on it’s  first sailing then. It looks shiny and new compared to last year. I am very impressed over all with the changes! 

After a short 3 language (read over a half an hour) life boat drill it was off to our unofficial cruise critic meet and greet.  It was lovely to match words to faces. During this time there was a beautiful rainbow directly across from us. 

I had thought that my Cagneys reservation was for 6.  Oops I was 30 minutes + late for that. I spent the next 2.5 hours eating dinner and talking to a couple behind me also expats.  Just after sitting down the hail storm began. It was a sail away to thunder and lightning. A different kind of send off, one I haven’t had before. 

After dinner I headed down to the casino for some game play. I need 3000 points to reach sapphire for next year. I need some hard grinding days to make that. I hope I can by the end of the 16 nights we will see. I started at the ultimate Texas table where the minimum bet was 10$. That doesn’t sound too bad until you realize you  will be betting about 60$ per hand. I asked the pit boss to lower the minimum. He finally called and they let him lower the minimum bet to 5$ yay!   I spent about two hours here playing, some highs and lows but I was never really up.  I left the table down 190$ and went to the slots.  I started with some money wheel game and put in 110$ up and down but earned 100 points and cashed out with 100$ then went to planet moolah returns.  I got some small hits but ended up putting in another 100. I got a small bonus then a second one for 400$ now I was up just over 150. I played that down to being up 100 and headed back to the ultimate table.  I played my 100$ in winnings down to 15$.  Oh well a win is a win. I should have about 350 points for today and I am up 15$. 

I have taken pictures of today’s daily’s I will upload them tomorrow with the stronger  cell service WiFi aka data in port. 

Getting ready for Sail Away eating at the newly updated Cagneys Steak House. When a flash Hail Sorm hits Sydney Harbour!   

The Start of my day!  Ready to sail away! 

The new Cagneys menu minus my favorite baked potato soup.  Is attached below a long with a picture of the hail. 

Julie, are you traveling solo? See you tomorrow! 

Wishing them all a safe And fun Christmas Cruise. 

Last year I met a cruiser who was very picky. She basically eats nothing and we went to dinner a few times she usually ordered steak plain with french fries. She had no problems at all.  They knew her order and what she would like. I would think about staying at one dining room like she did so people learn what you like.  

The room is more expensive to get the perks.  You can book without the perks if you want to.  You do pay additional taxes on the beverage package. I am not a drinker so the beverage package isn’t my choice but it does work for most. 

I have an aunt who works for the government in law enforcement.  She said they still had to work and didn’t get paid.  They got back pay when the government was refunded and started running again.