On board coral Princess now

[yes!yes!yes!]

Didn't see any covid cabins.

Ship will be fuller today. Back up to numbers like our first two cruises.

[yes!yes!yes!]

We walked off with  one suitcase and collected the other two in the terminal.

We went 40 minutes before our allocated time and had no wait. We waited 5 minutes for a taxi.

Virgin terminal at Sydney is filthy. Toilets are disgusting. Lots of food and dirt between the chairs and  needs a good vacuum. Huge line to drop off bags. 

[NSWP]

28 minutes ago, arxcards said:

The ship has been code green for most of the past 2 weeks.

The numbers are based on %, and the ship has been 1/2 full or less, so there could only have been a maximum of 4 covid cases on the last cruise. Could have also been 0. 

And that is what we like to hear young Geoffrey.

[LC1950]

11 minutes ago, yes!yes!yes! said:

We walked off with  one suitcase and collected the other two in the terminal.

We went 40 minutes before our allocated time and had no wait. We waited 5 minutes for a taxi.

Virgin terminal at Sydney is filthy. Toilets are disgusting. Lots of food and dirt between the chairs and  needs a good vacuum. Huge line to drop off bags. 

Pre Covid if you were flying Virgin there was a service set up in the OPT and White Bay that, for a fee, would check you in and they would transport your checked in luggage to the airport so it could be loaded on your flight.  Did you notice if they were at the OPT when you disembarked the Coral Princess this morning?  I can't remember their name I'm afraid but they were mentioned here on CC a couple of times pre covid.  Can anyone recall what their name was?

[yes!yes!yes!]

10 minutes ago, LC1950 said:

Pre Covid if you were flying Virgin there was a service set up in the OPT and White Bay that, for a fee, would check you in and they would transport your checked in luggage to the airport so it could be loaded on your flight.  Did you notice if they were at the OPT when you disembarked the Coral Princess this morning?  I can't remember their name I'm afraid but they were mentioned here on CC a couple of times pre covid.  Can anyone recall what their name was?

They had a checkin service for virgin at the cruise ship terminal. I didn't ask how much it is now.

[LC1950]

Thank you for your prompt response yes!yes!yes!  Much appreciated.

 

Depending on the fee, they would be very helpful for us now that we are not as young and fit as we used to be LOL.

 

E.T.A.  If anyone is interested in this, the company is called OACIS and I think it costs $35 per bag?

Edited September 3, 2022 by LC1950
Additional info

[arxcards]

22 minutes ago, LC1950 said:

Thank you for your prompt response yes!yes!yes!  Much appreciated.

 

Depending on the fee, they would be very helpful for us now that we are not as young and fit as we used to be LOL.

 

E.T.A.  If anyone is interested in this, the company is called OACIS and I think it costs $35 per bag?

This is great for anyone flying Virgin, especially for PM flights. Without luggage, you are free to do your own thing until you need to head to the airport. 

 

It looks like it will be ongoing, as they had plenty of takers when we disembarked a couple of weeks ago.

[JohnGc]

1 hour ago, arxcards said:

This is great for anyone flying Virgin, especially for PM flights. Without luggage, you are free to do your own thing until you need to head to the airport. 

 

It looks like it will be ongoing, as they had plenty of takers when we disembarked a couple of weeks ago.

Used them all the time pre covid days for our flights from Sydney to Qld. Always booked our flights  late afternoon so we could wander around Sydney without the hassle of luggage. Scary the first time because you don't see your luggage once you drop it at OPT until you arrive at your destination. Never had any problems. We booked them on line before our cruise that way when you approach them at the OPT they already have all your details and flight numbers. Saves time and the hassle of getting all your paperwork out at the desk.

[ekka49]

5 hours ago, yes!yes!yes! said:

Sadly my cruise is over. $45 maxi taxi to airport. Just 4 and a half hour wait for flight.

Enjoyed cruising with Princess and would cruise with them again. Hopefully  out of England next year.

Thank you for your posts.

Have a safe journey home

[MicCanberra]

Just off the Coral, only 780 pax for the cruise, it was wonderful.None of the drinks that I ordered were outside of the package and i had tried a huge selection.

[arxcards]

2 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

Just off the Coral, only 780 pax for the cruise, it was wonderful.None of the drinks that I ordered were outside of the package and i had tried a huge selection.

Ditto, even with 1500 and change aboard. For a short cruise, it was way past expectations.

[B'Elanna]

22 hours ago, NSWP said:

Crikey quick trip. Did you do the self walkoff with your bags?  Did you see much evidence of Covid cabins, with the tables in front of cabin doors?

I walked off with my 1 bag at 7am. I love the OPT!

 

I did not see any Covid cabins but then I wasn't looking for them. And I didn't hear of anyone being sick either.

[ekka49]

36 minutes ago, B'Elanna said:

I walked off with my 1 bag at 7am. I love the OPT!

 

I did not see any Covid cabins but then I wasn't looking for them. And I didn't hear of anyone being sick either.

That's good news

[MicCanberra]

3 hours ago, B'Elanna said:

I walked off with my 1 bag at 7am. I love the OPT!

 

I did not see any Covid cabins but then I wasn't looking for them. And I didn't hear of anyone being sick either.

We did similar at 7.45am, only real issue was train were affected by track work rather than strike action, worth checking ahead if you are relying on it with timing.

[marinating]

Well our departure last night was postponed, we are now leaving today at 4.00pm, apparently gale force winds with very high seas up the coast. Brisbane has now been deleted and we are heading straight for Airlie Beach, there are lots of unhappy passengers on board but that is cruising. Feeling the extra passengers on board, cruise director last night said we are at 80% capacity, after the last two cruises we’ve been spoiled with more staff than passengers!

[Cbtours]

45 minutes ago, marinating said:

Well our departure last night was postponed, we are now leaving today at 4.00pm, apparently gale force winds with very high seas up the coast. Brisbane has now been deleted and we are heading straight for Airlie Beach, there are lots of unhappy passengers on board but that is cruising. Feeling the extra passengers on board, cruise director last night said we are at 80% capacity, after the last two cruises we’ve been spoiled with more staff than passengers!

Yep, all part of cruising. However if you have cruise insurance you should be able to get missed excursion payment. Just make sure you get letter from princess stating port was missed due to bad weather.

[MicCanberra]

I know it is disappointing to miss Brisbane for some but unless you had an shorex booked, it is a port that may be easier to stay aboard 

[ekka49]

1 hour ago, MicCanberra said:

I know it is disappointing to miss Brisbane for some but unless you had an shorex booked, it is a port that may be easier to stay aboard 

You have to hope that Princess has shuttle buses laid on when docking in Brisbane now.

[MicCanberra]

1 hour ago, ekka49 said:

You have to hope that Princess has shuttle buses laid on when docking in Brisbane now.

For a cost.

[Aus Traveller]

18 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

For a cost.

That's fair enough. When ships docked at the Grain Terminal, there was often a shuttle to the CBD for $20 pp.

[ekka49]

20 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

For a cost.

I would hope that the shuttle cost would be cheaper than a taxi.

[MicCanberra]

20 minutes ago, ekka49 said:

I would hope that the shuttle cost would be cheaper than a taxi.

Perhaps for one but not necessarily for a couple or even 4 people.

[ekka49]

Just now, MicCanberra said:

Perhaps for one but not necessarily for a couple or even 4 people.

Good point

[yes!yes!yes!]

I cant remember if I mentioned the medallion app.

I bought my mum a new phone so that my son could upload the app.

We had all our documents and such uploaded and they just looked at hard copies at check in.

We never used the app again.

The medallion that you hang around your neck, or like me, in my handbag, was used the same as a sea pass. We both had to get our batteries replaced on the third cruise. Guest services called us on different days to say the medallion had notified them that our battery was almost out and to come down and they will replace them.

 

[OzKiwiJJ]

5 minutes ago, yes!yes!yes! said:

I cant remember if I mentioned the medallion app.

I bought my mum a new phone so that my son could upload the app.

We had all our documents and such uploaded and they just looked at hard copies at check in.

We never used the app again.

The medallion that you hang around your neck, or like me, in my handbag, was used the same as a sea pass. We both had to get our batteries replaced on the third cruise. Guest services called us on different days to say the medallion had notified them that our battery was almost out and to come down and they will replace them.

 

How many days were you onboard for?

 

We're on for 19 days so wondering if we will have the same problem.