Monthly Archives: Jan 2022

Cruising in a new world…

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Well, on the morning of Saturday 22 January 2022, as I listened to radio and heard Phil Hoffmann, the boss of one of the biggest tourism companies here in Adelaide, South Australia, telling everyone regarding their latest deals, during his regular radio spot, mention a cruise from Adelaide to New Zealand, my ears pricked up to listen.

He mentioned a cruise happening in December 2023, from Adelaide, South Australia to New Zealand and return, which will be sailing Christmas and New Year before returning back to Australia, for 19 nights.

Over at a friend’s house over an hour later, as she’s my cruising buddy as well, I mentioned if she was interested. Stupid question by the way lol. I got on the Phil Hoffmann Travel website to check out the cruise in detail and liked what I saw with both the price and the itinerary. On the PHT website, there is a feature where you can chat live and after talking with a guy from PHT Travel with the chat feature of the site, a cruise was booked. Or as I jokingly say, “accidentally booked” lol. Accidentally on purpose.

The cruise is leaving Adelaide on the 16th December 2023 and returning 1st January 2024, 19 nights with ports including Port Lincoln and KI, on board the Grand Princess, sister ship to the both the Golden Princess and the Star Princess cruise ships.

Both the Golden Princess and the Star Princess are no longer Princess ships as they were both previously sold to P&O Australia and have since been renamed. It leaves the Grand Princess, the oldest of the 3 sister ships being the last of the 3 still with Princess Cruises.

I don’t know if this cruise will go ahead. I hope it will as December 2023 is just under 2 years away. Hopefully cruising has resumed here in Australia by then and New Zealand has reopened their borders again. With the world as it currently is, the world is an unpredictable place because of covid and all it’s variants.

I hope that by the time December 2023 arrives, the world is more settled and used to the new normal we have to live now. Time will tell.

All I know is this, the reasons for my booking this cruise is I want something to look forward to. I want to feel as though life is returning to a new normal because it will never be the same as it was before the pandemic. I want to go back onto a cruise ship.

For those who think that they will never get back onto a cruise ship because of covid and the thoughts of cruise ships being huge Petri dishes floating on the water, I just want to say this – cruise ships are continuously by the crews and this was going on even before the pandemic. It’s the people who get onto the cruise ships who need to not board ships while sick and those who fail to regularly wash their hands.

I also know from experience after doing 2 long cruises as a passenger, that a cruise ship simply cannot allow passengers to get off the ship without permission from the authorities of the port and the countries laws they are in at that moment, which include health authorities, customs and immigration.

I know that cruising will include being double vaccinated and having boosters, wearing face masks, washing hands frequently or hand sanitising, covid tests before boarding a cruise ship and other measures but if they keep me safe and those on the same ship as me safe, I’m going to do it without complaint.

Bring on the cruise in December 2023

Until next time

Kaye

First cruise memories…

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On this day, 4 years ago, a friend and I boarded our first cruise ship, the Golden Princess, for a 17 night round trip cruise from Adelaide, South Australia to New Zealand. The ship definitely became my happy place.

There’s something so magical and peaceful being on a ship. It’s definitely another world. I loved the sea days where I could sit outside of the Promenade Deck and look over the ocean and just relax and forget about the world in general and I did. For 17 nights, I had no idea of what was going on in the world, just what was going on board the ship.

I definitely became a cruise addict while on board the ship. Okay, if truth be told, I think I was addicted even before I got on board. Once on board the ship, it was confirmed that I was addicted to cruising.

I mean, why wouldn’t you be? For the duration of a cruise, you don’t have to cook, wash dishes, prepare meals, do housework, or make your bed. It’s all done for you by the wonderful and friendly crew on board the ship. They just made everything happen with precision.

While on that cruise, I met some wonderful people. I also got to know some of the crew from the cabin steward, the waiters in the theatre, the Explorer’s Lounge, the Lido Deck and in the Horizon Court buffet.

I laughed at the Cruise Director’s team as they entertained the passengers, I enjoyed the shows in the theatre, the barista in the International Cafe got to know my habits and how I have my coffee, or at night before going back to my cabin and bed, how I have my hot chocolate. The waiters got to know my orders as well… chocobana mocktail or a glass of Coke anyone?

While on the ship, I actually forgot that there is a world outside of the ship as I didn’t watch any news to even know what was going on in the world at the time.

One late night sitting in the Piazza and having my hot chocolate, the singer in the Promenade Lounge was playing the piano and taking requests from all the people up on deck 7. Someone had requested YMCA and so the singer is singing the song, he gets to the “it’s fun to stay at the YMCA” part and a few of us sitting in the Piazza on deck 5 start doing the actions. That was funny.

There were many funny moments and beautiful memories from that cruise, I will treasure.

New Zealand is beautiful as well and the cooler temperature, I enjoyed. While the temperature was perfect, in Adelaide, everyone there was going through a heatwave.

One day, I will return for another cruise. I am just waiting for this covid mess to calm down. People, get vaccinated, wear a mask and wash your hands!

I didn’t want to leave the ship. I could have happily stayed on as a stowaway. I had such a fabulous time.

I miss cruising but I have photos to remind me with the memories attached to those photos. One day, I will be back on a ship again, just not now.

Until next time

Kaye