Australia a big bust

anyone else feel the ports Ncl went to in Australia a bug bust. Tender every damn port and no town when you got there !!!! I spent 50 k on my trip and feel I wasted it

anyone else feel the ports Ncl went to in Australia a bug bust. Tender every damn port and no town when you got there !!!! I spent 50 k on my trip and feel I wasted it

Tell us more!! Which ports were bad? Our 2014 experiences down under worked out very well. How much was about the problems with MCL versus the ports visited? Looking forward to learning more specific details.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 173,890 views for this posting.

Airley beach was a waste. Bay of islands there was nothing there. The Sydney port was awesome and Indonesia.malaysia and Singapore were spectacular.

My biggest frustration was 8 of 10 of the ports were tenders.

In 30 plus cruises I have never seen 80 percent tenders !!!!

The Asia portion was incredible but New Zealand and Austtralia was a huge disappointment

Next time I will just go to Asia and save the long travel

Airley beach was a waste. Bay of islands there was nothing there. The Sydney port was awesome and Indonesia.malaysia and Singapore were spectacular.

My biggest frustration was 8 of 10 of the ports were tenders.

In 30 plus cruises I have never seen 80 percent tenders !!!!

The Asia portion was incredible but New Zealand and Austtralia was a huge disappointment

Next time I will just go to Asia and save the long travel

5flushing,

Surely you knew there were eight tender ports when you booked the cruise. If I was spending that much money on a trip to the other side of the world, I would have spent many hours if not days researching where the ship was sailing to. I do that and the most I have spent is about $8000! Why did you think Airlie Beach was a waste? I have been there on a cruise and loved it. It is a beautiful place to visit and my DH and I are looking at having a holiday there soon.

What were you expecting in Australia and New Zealand? Both countries are very different to our Asian neighbours.

Leigh

Our ship had a failure to the propulsion system and things were changed just days before. We did most of the ports we signed up for other then Brisbane. The challenge was we were on the wrong days so docks were booked by other cruise ships. We signed up for 4 tenders and got 8.

Our ship had a failure to the propulsion system and things were changed just days before. We did most of the ports we signed up for other then Brisbane. The challenge was we were on the wrong days so docks were booked by other cruise ships. We signed up for 4 tenders and got 8.

Unfortunate that this information was not included in the original post.

Sounds like you were disappointed by the changes, and the mechanical problems, which I can understand, and let that ruin your whole cruise, which I can't.

Airlie Beach and Bay of Islands aren't big cites but nor is it true to say there is nothing there.

It does seem that NCL are quick to make port changes which again seems to have clouded your opinion.

I suggest NCL are actually the bust, and not Australia/NZ.

Having been to both Bay of Islands and Airlie Beach, I disagree that there is nothing there. They are quieter parts of the world, but beautifully set and both gateways to an abundant range of activities.

Your choice to partake in as little as you did in either of these locations no doubt contributed to your less than sunny view of our part of the world.

Don't despair, you have learned a valuable lesson. It's always all on you - do your research, know what you're getting into, what you'll see, what you want to do in a particular destination - that way you won't be disappointed.

We're all adults so exhibit that mature decision making process all of the time and you'll be right as rain.

All the best for future cruising!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Considering what the problem really was, that Heading was a bit over the top. It's a bit like landing in Death Valley and saying the USA is a waste of time for a holiday.

NCL a big bust!

Three of the five ports in Australia seemed to be a waste of time.Arlie beech did not have much at all . In cairns we had a tender and an hour bus ride to get there. Port Kemba is an industrial port but was not so bad..Sydney of course was amazing.Darwin we went to an animal park and no kangaroos or koala bears . Overall it was the cruise ship that let us down but it was not the only thing. I left Australia having not having seen kangaroos or koala 's .

Luckly the Singapore zoo had all the animals we expecting to see in Australia.In my opinion I saw more of what I expected to see in Australia in Singapore

Three of the five ports in Australia seemed to be a waste of time.Arlie beech did not have much at all . In cairns we had a tender and an hour bus ride to get there. Port Kemba is an industrial port but was not so bad..Sydney of course was amazing.Darwin we went to an animal park and no kangaroos or koala bears . Overall it was the cruise ship that let us down but it was not the only thing. I left Australia having not having seen kangaroos or koala 's .

Luckly the Singapore zoo had all the animals we expecting to see in Australia.In my opinion I saw more of what I expected to see in Australia in Singapore

Again maybe a bit more research.

Sorry we no longer ride Kangaroos down the street and have relegated Kaolas to the back blocks.

What animal park did you go to at Darwin?

It also sounds like you're a Big City person and to be honest we only really have two of those here.

Sorry that Australia is so bad, might be best if you don't come back.

Our ship had a failure to the propulsion system and things were changed just days before. We did most of the ports we signed up for other then Brisbane. The challenge was we were on the wrong days so docks were booked by other cruise ships. We signed up for 4 tenders and got 8.

So the ship and your specific cruise was a bust, not Australia then. Your heading is wrong.

In Sydney why did you not go to Taronga Zoo? It's on the Harbour. Plenty of wildlife there.

I once went to Queenstown, Tasmania because I thought it be as nice as NZ! FAIL 😉

Sent from my SM-G930F using Forums mobile app

We had planed on seeing a lot of wildlife in Brisbane but the port was cancelled.IIn Sydney we wanted to see the city and it was amazing.

as far as being a city boy not really.i live in small town of 20,000 .

I went to the Auckland zoo Singapore zoo and a wildlife park.in Darwin.The only place that had kangaroos was Singapore

Not trying to insult your country just the ports we saw marginal.

In the last year I have been to 47 countries on six cruises and this one is only one that diapointed me. Some of may be it's very much like Canada.

So you did not use the free on board credits you received for the itinerary changes/ propulsion problems that the ship had and you will not of course take up the offer of the free cruise either??????

All we received was 25 percent future cruise cresit and $500 on board credit. Since we were four people it amounted to 125.00 per person.

the 25 percent future cruise credit as of today has not been posted !!!

So you did not use the free on board credits you received for the itinerary changes/ propulsion problems that the ship had and you will not of course take up the offer of the free cruise either??????

Well not in Australia anyway, seems Australia was the problem and that we don't ride Kangaroos to work anymore.

Street has Mrs Gut sees a few hundred most days on her way to work.

Well not in Australia anyway, seems Australia was the problem and that we don't ride Kangaroos to work anymore.

 

Street has Mrs Gut sees a few hundred most days on her way to work.

I can always remember a tour guide telling us once that things we were about to see were not necessarily good nor bad just different..... if you want to see things that you feel at home with......... STAY AT HOME

gota go ..those bloody kangaroos are blocking the traffic going over the Harbour Bridge again :D

I can always remember a tour guide telling us once that things we were about to see were not necessarily good nor bad just different..... if you want to see things that you feel at home with......... STAY AT HOME

 

gota go ..those bloody kangaroos are blocking the traffic going over the Harbour Bridge again :D

Now if you were riding an Echidna, that'd all be solved.

As an aside Echida seems to be a delicacy to crows. Anytime we see a dead Echidna there are 100s of crows even if there's a dead roo or wombat right near it.

I think as you were on the 'trip from hell' cruise, you will probably find fault with a lot of things - understandably. NCL fault though, not Australia/New Zealand. Unfortunately you weren't able to go with the flow and make the best of a bad situation. I don't know of places that have ports free for a cruise ship at short notice - definately not in Australia so you will be tendering. You stopped at some great places - with a positive attitude and a bit of research you would have had a better time - and found some kangaroos and koalas.

I honestly think Australia may be better seen by land and not by cruise ship.it seems going to a beach town only to read danger no swimming due to salt water crocs and jelly fish makes it kind of a waste to go to a beech town

From my diary, 2016

ms Maasdam 43 day circumnav. and NZ

Wednesday 26 Oct, 2016

10am - 8pm

CAIRNS

Tropical Rainforest & Aboriginal Experience 10.45am - 5 hrs

"This excursion was excellent! Comfortable, air-conditioned coach and a scenic ride up to the Rainforestation. It was a very winding road with beautiful scenery.

We watched Aboriginal dancers and didge players in a covered amphitheatre in the rainforest, which was funny when four people volunteered to dance Aboriginal style. Then we had a go at boomerang throwing and did pretty well, (although the shorter person did better than the taller!). (Smirk!- that would be me!)

We had lunch in their restaurant (this was not included in the blurb, so was a surprise and very tasty.) We had 'roo (being patriotic, ha ha) and salads etc. Yummo. And they had food such as vegemite damper, so they make an effort to keep it very Aussie for the visitors. Clever people.

Then we drove through the rainforest and down into the waterway on an army duck, looking at plants and birds and snapping turtles and that was fun, very informative and interesting, too.

Wandered around the wildlife sanctuary, listening to the non-Aussies (lots) getting excited about the roos and koalas, Tassie tigers etc, and their enjoyment of all these new sights is such a joy to watch. It was a really good place to visit."

We have had some wonderful trips ashore. From Istanbul to St Petersburg and many ports in between, over a few years. I agree with other posters that in future you do as much research as possible.

Best wishes for happiness on your next trip.

fe (from Aus.)

You came to Australia stopping at Airlie Beach and Cairns and you didn't consider a trip to see the Great Barrier Reef, I'd say you missed a great opportunity.

I certainly feel for the O.p and can understand their frustration. What is more frustrating is out here, the kangas are all asleep on the side of the road. Sheer bludgers and what their handlers are doing god only knows