Australia to Hawaii in the spring?

[bobbiwoz]

Has anyone here done the cruise? 18 nights, probably 4 nights before in Australia, maybe 3 at least in Hawaii, and travel. It’s the longest we will have been away.

Radiance of the Seas, and we like the ship.

It’s my dog, I hate to leave him in a kennel for so long.

Now, the whole deposit is no longer refundable. I feel I have to make a more binding decision soon.

 

[Denise W]

I would love to do that cruise, if you book it please tell us about it!
Denise

 

[bobbiwoz]

I would love to do that cruise, if you book it please tell us about it!
Denise

I am pretty sure we will book.
We have agreed to come home after the cruise, and not stay in Hawaii. It’s an 18 night cruise and we want to spend perhaps a total of 4 nights in Australia, we could be home in under four weeks, and see some amazing things.
Princess in Oz, a Disboarder, lives in Melbourne and will show us around her beautiful part of the country, we will see Sidney, two stops on New Zealand, three stops in Polynesia, and sail on the lovely Radiance. We have sailed the transpacific on the Radiance twice, from Vancouver to Honolulu.

 

[bbel]

Is this the cruise that you cross the date line, so do one day twice?
And my favourite captain in the fleet just moved to radiance! (I worked with him on my first royal ship and he's well liked by guests and crew)
I have a friend who just left Radiance and is now obsessed with New Zealand...

 

[bobbiwoz]

We do cross the date line.

 

[bobbiwoz]

We have booked!

If anyone here is going, we can meet for a meal one day!

 

[OKW Lover]

Has anyone here done the cruise? 18 nights, probably 4 nights before in Australia, maybe 3 at least in Hawaii, and travel. It’s the longest we will have been away.

Radiance of the Seas, and we like the ship.

It’s my dog, I hate to leave him in a kennel for so long.

Now, the whole deposit is no longer refundable. I feel I have to make a more binding decision soon.

Somehow I missed your original post. My wife and I, along with some friends, did this exact cruise 5 years ago. In fact, we crossed the International Date Line on April 15, 2014. As you know, the cruise itself is 18 nights, of which you have something like 12 sea days. We did some pre-nights in Waikiki and Sydney. On the back end, we spent 3 nights at Aulani so we were gone a bit over 3 weeks. We were in a Grand Suite and had friends in an Owner Suite and a regular outside cabin. Plus we met a very nice Austrailian family on board who were in a veranda cabin.

Our pre-nights in Sydney were at the Marriott Circular Cay. Its very nice and convenient to lots of stuff. One day we went to the Sydney Zoo, which you get to by taking a ferry from Circular Cay. Enjoyed the zoo very much. On the way back we rode the ferry around Sydney harbor and made a stop at Manly Beach, which I had visited in 1971. On the day our ship departed we simply walked (rolled) our luggage down to the ship which was just a block away.

The two stops in New Zealand were just OK. All three stops in French Polynesia are really spectacular. And we really enjoyed the stop at Maul before the cruise ended in Honolulu. Life onboard the ship during the sea days takes on a relaxing rhythm. There are always activities to do if you want. There was a polliwog ceremony on the day we crossed the equator going north. I remember at one point the captain announcing that we were something like 3,000 miles from the nearest land!

Hope you enjoy your sailing.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Somehow I missed your original post. My wife and I, along with some friends, did this exact cruise 5 years ago. In fact, we crossed the International Date Line on April 15, 2014. As you know, the cruise itself is 18 nights, of which you have something like 12 sea days. We did some pre-nights in Waikiki and Sydney. On the back end, we spent 3 nights at Aulani so we were gone a bit over 3 weeks. We were in a Grand Suite and had friends in an Owner Suite and a regular outside cabin. Plus we met a very nice Austrailian family on board who were in a veranda cabin.

Our pre-nights in Sydney were at the Marriott Circular Cay. Its very nice and convenient to lots of stuff. One day we went to the Sydney Zoo, which you get to by taking a ferry from Circular Cay. Enjoyed the zoo very much. On the way back we rode the ferry around Sydney harbor and made a stop at Manly Beach, which I had visited in 1971. On the day our ship departed we simply walked (rolled) our luggage down to the ship which was just a block away.

The two stops in New Zealand were just OK. All three stops in French Polynesia are really spectacular. And we really enjoyed the stop at Maul before the cruise ended in Honolulu. Life onboard the ship during the sea days takes on a relaxing rhythm. There are always activities to do if you want. There was a polliwog ceremony on the day we crossed the equator going north. I remember at one point the captain announcing that we were something like 3,000 miles from the nearest land!

Hope you enjoy your sailing.

Thank you! We look forward to the whole experience.
From the Disboards, I have met Princess in Oz who lives in Melbourne and we will see her, either in Sidney or her home town. We will end our vacation in Aulani.
On our 2018 Radiance Cruise, Vancouver to Honolulu, we especially enjoyed a husband/wife cruise director team. She had another title and both were very personable and talented. They added much to the onboard experience. We may be with one other couple, or they may renew a bathroom, sigh, I think the new bathroom is winning.

 

[OKW Lover]

A suggestion for your stops in French Polynesia, don't take the ship's excursions. Instead, just get off the ship and go to the line of taxis. Talk to the driver about a 2-3 hour tour of the island. You should be able to get one for about the same price, or less, as the ship's excursion but you won't be stuck on a bus and in a mob-scene at the usual spots. You also won't have to wait until everybody gets back on the bus before moving on to the next stop. Instead, have your driver show you their island.

Oh yes, buy black pearls in Bora Bora or Morea for the best prices. They are significantly more expensive in Hawaii.

 

[bobbiwoz]

A suggestion for your stops in French Polynesia, don't take the ship's excursions. Instead, just get off the ship and go to the line of taxis. Talk to the driver about a 2-3 hour tour of the island. You should be able to get one for about the same price, or less, as the ship's excursion but you won't be stuck on a bus and in a mob-scene at the usual spots. You also won't have to wait until everybody gets back on the bus before moving on to the next stop. Instead, have your driver show you their island.

Oh yes, buy black pearls in Bora Bora or Morea for the best prices. They are significantly more expensive in Hawaii.

Thank you!

 

[mousefan73]

Maybe you have time to look into other options fir your dog. Friend/ family and part kennel.

 

[gumbypee]

I feel you on the dog thing. I miss mine incredibly when I go - it's the "worst" part of traveling. I have been fortunate to have a family memeber in the vicinity lately to watch my puppers. I have had awesome and horrible experiences with dogvacay.com so you just never know. I do have A nice boarding facility now if needed but I still hate it

 

[bobbiwoz]

I feel you on the dog thing. I miss mine incredibly when I go - it's the "worst" part of traveling. I have been fortunate to have a family memeber in the vicinity lately to watch my puppers. I have had awesome and horrible experiences with dogvacay.com so you just never know. I do have A nice boarding facility now if needed but I still hate it

Our Gus seems to enjoy his kennel time. We had a family wedding this past weekend, so he had aone night stay. As soon as we neared Wind drift, he began wagging his tail and he pulled DH into the building. He pulls DH out of the building when we pick him up...he is better trained then to pull, but you can tell he is excited both ways.

We pay for extra exercises, and we are hoping for the best. We are both in our 70’s, we want to travel while we can, and I cannot imagine life without a dog.

 

[gumbypee]

Our Gus seems to enjoy his kennel time. We had a family wedding this past weekend, so he had aone night stay. As soon as we neared Wind drift, he began wagging his tail and he pulled DH into the building. He pulls DH out of the building when we pick him up...he is better trained then to pull, but you can tell he is excited both ways.

We pay for extra exercises, and we are hoping for the best. We are both in our 70’s, we want to travel while we can, and I cannot imagine life without a dog.

Oh that is a great sign when he is eager to go to the kennel place! I had a dog sitter when I lived in Houston and my Genie would love going there - it was her own little vacation!!

 

[PrincessBelle39]

We looked at this one but decided against it mainly because of the ship. With so many sea days, we just wanted a bit more.

 

[bobbiwoz]

We looked at this one but decided against it mainly because of the ship. With so many sea days, we just wanted a bit more.

I think they also have a new ship with a very similar itinerary. We feel very comfortable on the Radiance, it will be our third cruise on it.

 

[PrincessBelle39]

I think they also have a new ship with a very similar itinerary. We feel very comfortable on the Radiance, it will be our third cruise on it.

We've only cruised Oasis Class. Haven't tried any of the smaller ships yet. We will get there. We are in Australia so there are a few options for us. I'll have to look at the other itinerary's. This one certainly appeals.