" Slow boat " to Japan for the Sakura or Cherry Blossom, and a bit of sightseeing, fine dining and some dancing in between, that was the idea and why not, take 19 nights instead of 9 hours fly direct. It is the journey that matters and something to reminisce in future. See photos. In Nov 2017, we travelled the shinkansen or bullet train around Japan for the autumn foliage and kind of felled in love with the beautiful people, place and views. So this time, we wanted to see the sakura. We experienced sakura in Hirosaki Castle Park in North Honshu. Aomori is the closest big town. ( see photos and separate review on the Diamond Princess ) We sailed QE, Melb to Yokohama for the first leg and switched over to the Diamond Princess to sail around Japan for the 2nd leg for another 9 nights. Thanks Cunard staff for the cabin upgrade. Hundreds of us, had to do the switch over and gladly give the Japanese a chance to enjoy what we did in the last 3 weeks on the QE. The rumour was, 1700 Japanese were getting onboard the QE for the Golden Week ( 4-5 public holidays ). In my past reviews on Cunard voyages, I have commented their excellent ambience, decore, service, food, entertainment and varied activities. Breakfast room service and dining service were excellent, everyday. These high standards continued, in my humble view. Thanks Reynaldo and Alvin for your serving of pistachio souffle which I enjoyed watching more than eating ( I am not a dessert person ). Thank you to our Brissie realtors table companions and making everyone laugh, sometimes in tears, each night. And to Ron and Angela for the many many happy times we had while onboard. On sea days and there were many, Zumba exercises at 9am and line dancing at 10am, ballroom dancing at 11am and in the afternoon, different type of dance lessons and from 7.45pm onwards, ballroom and latin dancing in the Queens Room till midnight and in the Yatch Club, with more pop and disco until the wee morning hours. In QE, you can literally DANCE TILL YOU DROP DEAD. As they say, when the going gets tough, the tough gets going. Survive I did with a trick, get some rest and catch a nap. We enjoyed dancing but not as dedicated as some others who wake up at the crack of dawn, to practice in the Queens Room. Thanks to the many people we met while dancing like Des and Pauline, Ron n Barb, Arthur n Betty, and Tim n Tima, Mark n Annie, etc.... Life on board the QE includes the pool activities, mahjong, fencing, table tennis, darts, trivia, interesting talks, shows and of course, drinking and fine dining and late night suppers in the Lido after dancing. Following an interesting presentation on the social culture and food aspects of Japan, there was an interesting ceremony on breaking of the sake or wine barrel. The Japanese vintage sake was free flowing and was limitless. It was not a good idea, on an empty stomache and before lunch but life goes on.... Neil, the entertainment director and zumba instructor, was easy, funny and encouraging to many newcomers to zumba. He got my table companions, Steve and Donna, converted. Lesley, did a great job hosting and was ably assisted by the dance hosts like Brian and Sheila, Richard, etc. Much credit is due to our 4 dance instructors who patiently taught many of us, several useful dance moves and techniques to improve ourselves. Recorded music used for dancing was in manyways better than live music on some occassions ( see review on QE to Tasmania and Port Arthur) As for the ports, we were lucky to get some magical views of sunrise over the Sydney Opera House and the ferries darting in and out of Circular Quay ferry terminal. I have lived and worked in Sydney before and this experience is still a treasure. A tip, get the portside cabin when coming into Sydney. We enjoyed strolling along the Royal Botanical Gardens and the views from Mrs Macquaire Chair of QE, Opera Housre and the Harbour Bridge. This must be one of the most beautiful harbour in the world, in my view. In Brisbane, we enjoyed the free shuttle to town centre, free City Hopper ( red coloured ) ferry ride around Southbank and wandered and shop inthe high street. We dropped in a big Commonwealth Bank to do some banking and got free wi-fi and an excellent coffee, on the house. Thank you customer service. That is why banked with you. We skipped visiting Alotaul in PNG as it was so bloody hot and humid but we did our own shore excursion ( aud 45pp for a 2 hour air cond bus tour ) in Rabaul to the Hotsprings, Mt Tavurvur ( pronounced TaVOORvoor) volcano that last erupted 5 years ago in Sep 2014, the Japanese general Yamamoto bunkers, and the Volcano Observatory station. The scientist staff showed us in and explained all the seismological monitoring. You can get some beautiful views of QE in the harbour below and the volcano, too. In Manila, we got a free shuttle to a big shopping complex. We got some currencies and went shopping. I booked and got a nice hair trim by a gorgeous hairdresser and my wife got a manicure done at the same time. You can walk out of QE or port to see Josef Rizal Memorial and Fort Santiago without having to catch the free shuttle. Do that later. Otherwise, it was a 30 min hike back and it can be very sweaty due to its humidity and the pathways are not always clear and smooth. In Nagasaki, we took a tram ride to the nearest station and walked 5 min to the Peace Park and another 5 min walk to centre of the atomic bomb blast. The English tourist brochure on how to ride and pay the tram fare and the direction to the stations is very simple and clear to understand. Remember to change tram at the main station for the next tram and get a transfer ticket from the tram driver before disembaring. This is used for the 2nd and final tram when you exit. Just follow the cruise crowd as nearly all will head in the same direction. It is 50% cheaper to pay on the tram as you exit instead of buying the day pass. You may not have much time visting other places. We window shopping when we return and walked up to the Church which was first used by Portugese inthe 13th-15th century. BTW, you can see the small mountan scenic top from the QE ship portside andyou can catch your own ropeway or cable car up there for a small fee as compared to shore excursion. Yokohama, has a lot ot offer which we will do the next time. This time, we caught the city free shuttle to Sakuragicho station. We have a Suica card from previous visit and we avoided the very long queue to buy a train ticket to Central Tokyo or Shinjuku or Akihabara in our case. We caught the unreserved seating JR Keihin- Tohuku for Omiya direction express train direct to Akihabara for under 600 yen or usd 6 or aud 9. Incredibly cheap and quite fast if you know how and do your homework. Use hyperdia.com website. Otherwise, Cunard transfer will be aud 100 plus. Hopefully, my table companions took up my suggestion,if not for the money, at least, just for the experience. In conclusion, we were very happy overall with the voyage and the many people we met, dined and danced with and highly recommend this ship and voyage especially for the Pollywogs who have never crossed the Equator. You get a big colorful Cunard map of the world certificate with your name on it for crossing the Equator. Nice surprise. Looking forward to the next Med cruise in Sept. Hopefully, you enjoyed reading the review and got something out of it in some little ways. Well, at least enjoy the photos. Read Less

We chose this cruise on the Golden Princess to celebrate our golden wedding anniversary. Our balcony cabin(A425) was comfortable, roomy and very clean. The bed was very comfortable and the linen was clean and fresh. The ship has aged and there are matinence issues but over all it is a lovely ship to sail in. The art deco features are beautiful and there was some quiet places to go to when needed. The entertainment was brilliant. Loved all the shows except one. This one was not as classy as the others. The Princess Theater needs a little vamp up especially the seating but it was comfortable. We had two dress up nights where we ate in the dinning room. The service there was good and it was nice to dine with other passengers and to be waited on but to be honest and in my opinion the food was better in the buffet/self serve. There was more viariety and heaps of it. The deserts were to die for and the service was excellent. Getting on and of the ship for shore excursions was well organized and good info sessions on each port was presented to passengers before each stop. This made it very easy to get around and what to expect. one negative thing that really annoyed me was that the sitting area in the Atrium was always full. We only sat there once during the whole trip as every other time there were no spare seating. I think some passengers sat there all day and didn't want to give up their seats. The onboard activities was very good and well planned. This was the last trip to New Zealand by the Golden Princess and she did herself proud. Read Less

Golden princess Off to bad start Princess couldn’t find our boarding passes, had to wait half an hour while they made up new ones. Club class dinning steak like leather . This has happened twice so far, I guess they are getting ready for P&O hand over. Room got flooded out now we have mildew smell, they have shampooed twice now, smell is going along the corridor and people can smell it out side our room. Asked for another room were told nothing available! Ordered steak Diane again tough steak again, the only steak that’s ok is the minion. We both were quarantined to our cabin after my wife got A& B influenza. Meals were brought to our cabin - cold and soggy. The carpet was black with mildew so they tried to clean it with no luck Large blower was brought in to try and dry it, I think this made it worse. We are elite customers and this was the worse princess cruise we have ever had, ship is in need of full upgrade we noticed hand rails that had fallen down the stair case, I believe that this ship is going to P&O good luck with that! We missed out on Fiordland National Park due to bad weather which was unfortunate Read Less

We chose a 3 night Sydney - Burnie - Melbourne cruise as a sampler and introduction to Cunard cruising. Embarkation was reasonably painless. We arrived a little earlier than the allocated boarding time and was told to board anyway. We dropped off bags, queued for about 15 minutes and then found ourselves on-board. Finding our cabin was easy as we were escorted by our cabin steward who did a good job of explaining our cabin facilities. The cabin was comfortable and clean, though no larger than what we've previously experienced. Power is via British and American sockets, which is no problem, but there were no USB sockets. The bathroom was small but everything worked as expected. The bed was comfortable, but I found the pillows too soft. A nice touch was a complimentary bottle of sparkling wine on ice in the cabin. As a tip for Cunard though, next time source a wine that is drinkable. Two lunches and breakfasts were in the Lido buffet. As a buffet, the food was reasonable quality with a good variety. Shouldn't have to pay extra for espresso style coffees though. One lunch and dinners were in the Britannia Restaurant. This was disappointing. The food was no better than a reasonable RSL club bistro. The service was reasonably attentive though a little hit and miss. After our first night's dinning I found myself with someone else's keycard. This was quickly fixed up at the purser's office and provided a lesson to check the card after purchases. A highlight of the food experience was the high tea, which we experienced on our second day. Being our only day at sea, it was very popular and the overflow ended up in the Britannia Restaurant. The tea (or coffee) was plentiful and hot, the food, sandwiches, scones and sweets, were spot on and the service was attentive. Drink prices were on the expensive side, especially once you remembered to convert from USD and add the gratuity. Being Australian, gratuities, and tipping in general is a pain. If it is part of the standard or expected cost, just roll it into the overall price and be done with it. Then we can decide to tip if we feel the service deserves it. Overall though, the service was good. We didn't take in a show but did experience some of open the entertainment on other nights. The bands were what you would expect and reasonably entertaining. We took in a talk by a historical expert regarding WWII Japanese hold-outs (refusing to surrender after the war) in the Pacific. I found this interesting as I enjoy the historical aspect, but it wasn't to my wife's taste. My wife though did sample the shopping, fortunately without much success. Our one port day was in Burnie, Tasmania. This a good, honest working town, but not a very inspiring cruise destination, especially as it was a public holiday and would have been completely dead if it weren't for hundreds of cruise passengers wandering around looking for something to do. There were very few cafes and you couldn't even have a beer and lunch in a pub as they were all closed. At least the mayor was there to greet us when we came down the gangway. We didn't do any organised shore excursions, but my sister, who was part of our cruise group, did, and enjoyed the Cradle Mountain excursion. Overall, the ship had a decor in keeping with it's image and wasn't overcrowded. We weren't disappointed, but now feel we've done the Cunard experience and probably won't be sampling it again. We are going on a longer Oceania Mediterranean cruise later this year. It will be interesting to compare that experience. Read Less

My wife and I needed some time away after a very stressful couple of years. We heard amazing things about cruises and had high expectations going in. We did not expect those expectations to be exceeded! But they were. An amazing experience that we will definitely be doing again. We were expecting to have mainly relaxation with lots of reading and time laying back relaxing, but instead found ourselves thoroughly entertained with all the on board activities and entertainment staff. The atmosphere is contagious and everyone is having a good time. The food is incredible and the staff are so friendly and helpful. It's something that needs to be experienced to be understood. The destinations we went to were great and it was so easy to get on and off the ship. It was like the ship was our hotel room and we could go exploring each destination and just return once we were done! Read Less

We originally did not choose this ship, our orginal cruise (P&O) was cancelled, therefore we were given the choice of 3 cruises we could take. Imagine our delight when we found we could go on a Princess Cruise. We had only ever heard good and positive things about Princess. We Travelled to New Zealand on a 13 night cruise with about 3000 souls on board? Being platium members we had priority boarding which literally has us arriving and on board in15 mins. We had 500 mins of free internet, and access to areas of the ship that others didnt for set periods of the day. The quality of the bedding was better, it was a silver service in the dining rooms to which they completely changed the table after every couple had finished eating and all the flowers and plants were real. The Service was great, and the food impecable, not at any point was the menu repeated. You could do as much or as little as you liked. Our room was alway clean and our steward jeni lovely. Bed was comfy but pillows too soft. Plenty of lounge chairs on tops decks, and a large selection of pools/spas to use. Even lookout spots accross the waters were easy to find and accessible. Read Less

The cruise itself to new zealand was fantastic. The boat is old daggy and certainly not the glamorous cruise like you see in the media. Go to new Zealand for sure but choose another boat. Off shore excursions are great but very expensive. Not enough communication re sail away party etc. Arrived in room and television was blasting. Trying to get our heads together and shoved out the door again for muster. Embarking was way too late!!! Felt like we were late for the party! Not enough decent entertainment. Food however was fantastic. Requested table for 2 and didn't receive. On one occasion sat down for meal after requesting a 2 table about to order and 4 people sat at the table. Thanks for making us leave and miss our meal after you asked if we wanted a share table and the answer was and will always be NO Thank you Read Less

We wanted to continue to add to our cruise days with Princess to improve our level status. We had 3 wonderful servers at our dining table for 2. Diana, Joel and Plamen made our experience most enjoyable. The destinations on this cruise were wonderful. 1. Although Princess offers dining tables for 2-8, it always requires a meeting with the Maitre'D on the day of embarkation to confirm one. When having that meeting, the MD always makes you feel that the request is an imposition and if they had their way they would stick to larger tables because it is easier for them. We have had bad experiences with the larger tables due to language issues with sharing a table so prefer a table for 2. If you are going to offer a table 2 then support it and don't require people to beg for it. 2. Although we were promised in a phone call prior to sailing that both non-alcoholic beer and wine would be available on board. My wife is a recovering alcoholic and I can't drink alcohol due to a medication I take and it is important to both of us to have both beverages available. That proved not to be the case. There was no NA wine on the ship. There was an extremely limited number of bottles of NA beer and they were scattered all over the ship. We were actually told to go and find which bars had any. No one that we spoke to including Hospitality knew where any bottles were actually stored. Obviously these beverages either are not in enough of a demand or are not a big enough money maker. 3. The room gratuity is stated in all the literature and and on line to be $13.50 US per person per room for a balcony. This cruise was based on Australian dollars. However, Princess, without letting anyone know as far as I am aware, pro rated the gratuity cost to US dollars and in fact were charging $18.77 in Australian dollars instead of $13.50. I believe the costs of drinks were also increased on this cruise to be of equal value to those charged on other ships in US dollars. We made sure that we reduced the rate of gratuity charged to our room and made sure that we tipped the people that served us well were individually tipped as appropriate. Most cruisers are unaware of the fact that they can have the automatic room gratuity reduced or eliminated merely by visiting the on board main desk. Read Less

First cruise and I was terrified due to negative reviews on here. Our review...well we are now hooked....an amazing cruise. We ate everywhere...enjoyed it all. The ships crew are constantly cleaning to keep the ship presentable. The entertainment is amazing. Attend as much as possible. All incredibly enjoyable especial the Maquee live shows. Entertainment crew hilarious Mathew Dom Pablo Miguel etc. We had the smaller cheaper cabins which were perfect for our budget and needs....hot showers were amazing. Many reviews complained about the interior being old....well I'm no spring chicken either any more but it's how you present yourself and this ship is no different....the decor is gorgeous. We did a few pacific Islands and pre booked our tours through the ship and had a great time being emersed in the culture and saw some amazing scenery. All our kids 3-17 attended kids clubs Turtle cove HQ and HQ+ and loved it experience. We also had EDGE packages. These were prepaid great for 7-25yrs. Our adults would probably pay per session next time as didn't get the value from pre purchasing. Thankyou from the bottom of our hearts for your passion to serve. Sad to see you retiring but hope to travel again with P&O and see some familiar faces. Read Less

Everything went perfectly on the cruise, went on a 7 night from melbourne around australia. The service was excellent, the atmosphere was excellent and was worth the money. We had a balcony cabin, Our cabin was abit tight but thats probably because i didnt know what to expect. The dining was perfect, weather it was the free buffet or the fine dining restaurants. The entertainment was really good. Didnt expect so much but was really happy. There was never a dull moment. Either in the day shows or the adult comedy shows or even sitting at a bar having a few drinks. I went with my partner and i advise couples to get the ultimate romance package. Very good value. The shore tours are good but have to book them in advance to get a good one and be prepared. But once again i cant stress enough the great service from all staff. Thank you guys so much for the wonderful journey Read Less

Embarking from Port Melbourne ,fantastic ,as was Disembarking..So fast.Cabis old but cannot compalin as it was comfortable and only spend part of time there.Always cleaned and room cleaning people such as Prince and Mary very good on Deck 10 evens. Food is disgusting ,All Asian and Indian ,everything has flavouring ,even baked beans,,,,,,,,,Chicken ,ham and beef etc always dry,,given a few more days ,you could light it up with match as it is very dry. Had to go to bar outside of PANTRY to get orange juice even though there was abar in the PANTRY. then we had to queue up outside at bar where Pool is to get an orange drink ,but P and O made sure plenty of alcohol available in PANTRY.,,No Mocktails,,It seems that the P and O mob want us to live on watered down alcohol drinks. No bodt coming around to ask if we wanted drinks when we were in the PANTRY,,COFFEE is so gross,Better coffee available at Service Stations better than this RUBBISH, Same old problem with TABLES,Have to have someone sit at table while partner goes to get small meal then the one at table has to go and get something over and over again,,,,WHY aren't there Trays so we can put 2 meals on it and save not being able to have meal with each other,,,,,,,,,,,,Staff always overworked but very good at jobs. laundry,you have to have Australian dollars to use Washing machine and Dryer,$3 for washing machine ,$3 for dryer, which you get dollar coins from Level 5..Detergent machines not working,Have to go to level five for a $1 packet. Feel sorry for staff there as they are doing great job with we passengers and extra work load,Artists in longes played same music every day of cruise,Cant they learn different songs ? Mathew and other guy doing trivia etc very good,bingo expensive and no one to show how to play it.No body at hand cleaning stations to make sure people disinfected Hands at events,,,,,,,,,,,,Just lucky no Virus going through ship.Staff at Waterfront very good ,but menu repeated over and over again.Staff wonderful there.TOURS,some not worth it especially the one at akaaroa where you go to hilltop pub, Pies etc cold when the Tour bus arrives and pastry items have to be warmed up,,WHy no Baimarie there at Pub,they know buses coming,Wated time there.Wellington Tour also disappointment,,Went to Look out and spent short time there and then went to Botanical garden Rose Garden,,,,,Jus a eating place and coffee place then just few minutes to see the small garden,NOT WORTH PAYING FOR.,The train trip through gorge pretty good.as is walking tour in Hobart, on our Hobart ticket ,it said to go through Terminal and go outside to meeting point,No one there.Tour guides decided to have people meet in the TErminal and no signage to let people know where new meeting area was,Considering tours are not free from P & O ,there should be a better system,Just a Pole and sign naming Tour would suffice.If doing Tours ,find some one who has done them before as you will be disappointed some times.,,,,,,,No seating in the various some times so have to stand up.............P & O seems to be Alcohol oriented and not interested in non drinkers...........Emergency Medical of patient occurred,Announcement over PA went over and over again ,took a long time for Emergency Team to arrive to level 11.The patient had to be airlifted to Helecopter,The Captain crew and Helecopter crowd fantastic doing this job,..........Standard of P & O gone down as some of Photo people arguing with Cruisers and wrong information given by Tour manager at Marquee,and they argue about iD required even though announcement says what is required,,,,,,So few thing required by P & O to make Cruise more enjoyable but it seems that P & O believe that we will cruise with them and accept what they dish up.........We are not Asian so please put more European food in Main dining room, Seriously ,the food is disgusting,,,,,,,More Pasta etc would be great but get away from Asian food ,So much waste when people cannot eat it. ,,,,,,,,pHOTOS bad systm.photos not discounted and supposedly P & O do recycling and proud of it........Seems strange that all Chemicals and paper gone into printing photos then the unwanted photos shredded,Would be better to sell photos very cheap and have photos bought then shredded,I Dining area ,there are high Stools and benches for people,Too high for Kids and people with hip problems..Just a matter of time when somebody falls from these stools. We have been on Princess and P & O before but would not go with them again and would not recommend P & O to anyone now,Pacific Dawn was great many years ago,,, as I have mentioned ,P & )O taking us for granted,,,,,,,,,we went on tour of Galley,We followed the guy down escalator ,kept walking up escalator then through,revolving door,,and back into Waterfront restaurant.no signage or explanation of how galley works or of amount of food consumed of galley tour,Not a word spoken Read Less

Cruise was chosen by our travel agent and we weren’t disappointed at all. Loved every minute of it...lots to do, see,hear and experience . Did find the up selling at stores and with the photography annoying, but obviously many people didn’t. Ports we docked at were beautiful and tender travel to shore was very well run. Embarkation and disembarking ran like clockwork,as did everything else on the ship. Lots of food choices and movies shown were amongst the most recent. Activities on board were varied..maybe a few more male oriented could be included..hubby found it hard to go to many of them,as predominantly female geared Ship was kept clean and tidy, and though there were a few leaks around the place,it was well maintained. Cruise director PJ and his staff did an excellent job, as did chefs and waiters and bar staff and room Stewart’s Overall a wonderful new experience. Read Less

Onboard Electrical Fire took out all Inrernet (WiFi) and all Onboard Cabins/Stateroom and Deluxe Suites for some 9-10 Day Upon Returning to Melbourne on the 21st November this was only some 15% Fixed if that, and paying Some $11,201.00 for this Cruise, and only getting a Disgraceful $150 Goodwill Credit is again a total Disgrace from Princess Cruises Headoffice in Sydney, NSW and California, USA - Should of been given back at least a Minimum of 30% of the Total Amount of Full Fair Paid, and getting told that it was only just a Minor Electrical Fire Fault, to Finding Out in Auckland, New Zealand that it had Destroyed some 6+ Major Hardware Devices that needed to be Fully Replaced and Upon leaving Auckland, New Zealand we was told things should be back up and working within a say or so (This Never Happened at all, Upon Arriving Back into Melbourne) this was still Not Fixed, so again Imagine leaving Auckland, New Zealand late Saturday Afternoon 17th November 2018 and being at Sea till Wednesday Morning 21st November with No TV's (A Total Disgrace, given that The Golden Princess Cruise Ship) went into Dry Dock in Singapore in March/April 2018 for Refurbishing and this Occurring.. Buffet Dining Onboard, was the Same as all Previous other Cruises Onboard the 'Golden Princess', the Smell on Deck 7 Mid-Ship as others have said and even on last cruise in Dec 2017' it still has the same Sewage Smell there and it's not from the Smoking, it is a Sewage Odor/Smell. The Live Entertainment Onboard needs to Cater for all Age Groups, and Not just Retirees. Did goto most of the Specialty Dining, and Food there was okay, but Menu's still need Improved, Lacks Variety. Swimming Pools, were always Clean and Tidy, when they were Opened without the Netting Covering them. Bar Staff (I am Not a Alcohol drinker at all) - but Bar Staff, were Friendly although at times there was up to a 10min wait to be Served just to get a Can of Coke' as there Soda Drinks Package is that Watered Down that it's Worse than Mc Donald's or Hungry Jack's Coke, so Real Soft Drink being Coke, or Sprite from a Can is what you can call real Soda' but Prices have gone up as last Year in December 2017' a Can of Coke was only $2.55' and now there $3.75 a Can. Ports, and Shore Excursions where Okay, Train Excursions are Great 'Arthur's Pass' was Fantastic to See, Coach tours are also great too. The Only Port of Call, that I thought was a Disgrace, would have to Be 'Auckland' NZ. Did not Travel with Children on this Cruise Holiday to New Zealand' in November 2018. Would Not Recommend this Cruise Ship 'Golden Princess' and Would Not go back to New Zealand again, But that being said "Milford Sound" at 6:30AM in the Morning is a Fantastic Once in a Lietime Viewing Experience going up the Passage'. Read Less

Cruise start date matched my mother inlaw’s birthday and Melbourne the departure and return city the other reason for this cruise. Golden Princess is a beautifully designed ship and handled sea conditions extremely well. Our cabin an upgrade to family suite on deck 9 below the bridge was impeccable with great views from the balcony. Dining anytime in the Horizon Court is a must with exceptional buffet menus breakfast, lunch and dinner are equal to restaurant quality. Entertainment shipboard or flown in everyday was captivating and never boring, the shows though could go for a little longer. Service from all departments excellent. Ports and shore excursions a must to experience, with one exception, we missed out on going to Luganville due to a medical emergency for an elderly passenger sustaining a head injury necessitating the Captain to make for the nearest port in Australia and that being Sydney. Of course that put a spanner in the works for all passengers on board who had booked excursion at Luganville but these were refunded to all concerned and the safety of that passenger was paramount in any case. The whole family enjoyed this our first cruise and will do others with Princess in a heartbeat, funds permitting. Read Less

The crew, security and cleaning staff were all stellar. Melbourne folks are an absolute blast to party with. Carnival Liberty sells more alcohol than any other ship in the fleet largely due to the good folks from Melbourne's love for celebrating life to the fullest! If your looking for a glass-half-full trip then this is the one. It's also largely suitable for families, we could see no evidence of any impropriety.. just great great times. Truffles restaurant was great and they would break the dinner up with their dancing cabaret through the enthused diners. We didn't really try the buffet up on the Lido deck except for cooked breakfasts. The staff were so very courteous and helpful. They made the whole experience very personable one which I really love. The best advice I can give is don't try to participate in all the activities all the time - you will exhaust yourself. Just pace yourself and give yourself a little buffer to go and enjoy the view of Bass Straight from the observation deck. Read Less

It was ex Melbourne and was advertised heavily as the inaugural cruise. The ships is so tardy, so old and weathered. No maintenance done at all. Our suite was vibrating non stop impossible to sleep. When reported nothing was done. This was the same results every time we needed guest services, no one cared about anything. Terrible attitude. Most passengers were so drunk and alcohol was never restricted at all, so very rowdy, dangerous and scary all of the time. Forget having a quite dinner, impossible as drunks everywhere. When we asked the staff to stop serving alcohol we got nowhere. So much for their so called zero tolerance policy, a total lie. Management should all be fired. No communication from the bridge, even when long delays where happening or the ship just stopped with no explaination at all. Food was great for the first night then downhill ever since. Read Less

Princess Cruises have done much to have the risk of cross-infection / cross contamination under control in all areas of the cruise ship. My wife and I were very impressed with that. We both have some knowledge of pathogenic bacterial control. In addition the air quality around the entire ship is fresh, nice and comfortable. Also, the Golden Princess has neat and modern interior decor, really happy with it. Very attractive buffet area (Horizon) with smart, modern lighting - we didn't need to go elsewhere. The service staff are really good, and they're happy people! The stateroom stewardess was joy to have. We didn't see the ship's officers much as they didn't mingle or talk with us. It was nice to hear the captain's voice now and again, however. I would go on the Golden Princess again for sure, and I would recommend this ship to anyone without hesitation. Well done Princess Cruises! Are you guys the best kept secret? Read Less

The views of milford sound were breathtaking and overall new zealand has a natural beauty and is a stunning place to visit. THE CREW AND STAFF WERE EXEMPLARY IN THEIR HANDLING OF ALL OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS AND REQUESTS OF THE PASSENGERS And were all very professional in their given fields. Nothing was too big or small to handle and was always done with a smile on their face. The shore excursions were handled, given the enormity of the amount of people on board, like a smooth operation. THE ONLY MISFORTUNE WE HAD WAS MISSING A PORT OF INTEREST - gisborne, due to bad weather, and i think another port should have been chosen or extra time could have been spent at the next port of call which was wellington. The time spent on the golden princess was memorable and my husband and i would not hesitate to sail with them again on our next future adventure in the next couple of years. FEDERICO AND KAREN VERDINO 04.01.18 Read Less

Marylin and I chose this cruise for two main reasons. 1. It left from Station Pier, Melbourne. Just 14 kilometres from home. 2. Someone else was going to cover all the Christmas and New Year cooking, house keeping and entertainment. We have done this cruise a number of times before so no new surprises. One change we made to the usual tours was to hire a car for the day in Wellington. We then spent the day exploring places of the beaten track. (It did help hat I used to Live in Wainuiomata some 50 years ago!) We drove through the Hutt Valley to a place called "Brown Owl" Why? Idano :) We then took a winding mountain road through the Akatarawa Valley to Waikanai and Paekakareki then back to Wellington.. A lovely day out. We took our car GPS which has New Zealand maps loaded so I did not need to rely too much on 50 year old memories.Other ports we just visited to town. The ship was generally great except for temperatures in the public areas. Passengers were wearing padded jackets,sweaters and anything else just to keep comfortable. When this was raised with Customer Services, who had a whole raft of similar complaints, the "Ventilation Officer" said it was because it was cold outside!! Really? HELLO! We are cold inside. Engines make heat. Big engines make a lot of heat, Can we share it around please?, A very uncomfortable trip in that regard. The rest of Golden Princess was its usual great self. Great staff. Great menus. Great entertainment. Even in some quite wild weather, our Captain navigated around the worst of the bad stuff and we had a very comfortable journey, #Marco#Polo# Read Less

The cruise was a gift from my daughter and it was our first... It was an amazing journey for both myself and my husband and one we are looking forward to repeating. I now firmly believe this is the only way to have a holiday- it is stress-free, the crew staff are friendly and always have a smile for you. The range of activities they had was open to all and they had something for everyone. The Dining experience was amazing the two crew members that were allocated to our section remembered who we were and greeted us with a smile and they remembered us by name. Our room was wonderful and I fell in love with my bed it was like sleeping on a cloud. The overall service from all crew members could not be faulted as they all had a smile and were quick to help you in any way. The ease of getting to our booked shore excursions was quick and efficient and the knowledge from our tour guides was interesting and offered an insight into the area that you might not have known. So for anyone looking at taking a holiday, this would be the way to go and Princess cruises are definitely the way to go. Read Less

Sailed from Melbourne for the first time on the Golden Princess - and loved it! My husband, myself, 14 year old daughter and 84 year old father had a wonderful time. The itinerary was fabulous, sea days were total relaxation and as usual, Princess impressed with their wonderful staff, excellent service and facilities. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Princess. We hardly saw our daughter who absolutely loved the teen club and the friends she has made. It was my father's first cruise and he had a wonderful time. The on board program catered for all ages. And the entertainment ranged from tribute shows to Neil Diamond through to Freddy Mercury along with a wonderful show called 'Born to Dance' which was brilliant. Food was excellent as usual with the Crown Grill steak always impressive. Of course we put down a future cruise deposit for our next cruise with Princess! Where to next ... :) Read Less

We chose this cruise as it went from Melbourne (a lot easier to get to than Sydney for us) & it was to celebrate my 70th Birthday. It was also my husbands 71st birthday while we were on board. We hadn't been on the Eden before. We went around the Pacific Islands for 12 nights then did back to back to Adelaide for 2 nights. Our cabin was very nice. Oceanview on deck 6 right at the back of the ship (aft is the location we prefer).Our cabin stewards were great. Always smiling & very helpful. We were disappointed with The Pantry. Not much variety of food that we liked. It seemed to have the same things all the time. The staff working there were lovely. The adults only pool area was of no use as the water came over my head at one end & almost over my head at the other. Also a big step to get up to the pool deck & narrow wooden slats to get down into the water. I needed to be able to do daily exercises in chest deep water which was impossible. We thought the entertainment was very ordinary the best being the show that the crew did. It was fabulous. Also a couple of good entertainers in the smaller bar areas. Read Less

My husband and I have just returned home from a 5 night cruise to Tasmania on the Pacific Eden. This is my very objective review of our experience. I apologise as it is quite lengthy as I wanted to be thorough! Getting on board was a very stress free process, we probably queued for about 15 mins which was pretty good considering there were a LOT of people in the cruise terminal at Melbourne. All the staff involved in this stage were very friendly and helpful. We got on board and made our way to our room which we had no trouble finding, plenty of signage on board the ship with directions to where everything was situated. CABIN - First impressions of our room (we had a forward port side room with a porthole) was very good...lots of room, large comfy bed and a very good sized bathroom with both a bathtub and shower. There was no fridge or coffee making facilities (not a negative for us at all, we were not bothered in the least) A serious nitpicker would probably suggest that the grout was a bit stained in the bathroom but seriously, it had absolutely no impact on our trip at all, I am only mentioning it as I was trying to see things from every angle and that stuff matters to some people. BARS, LOUNGES, SHOPPING, FACILITIES - we loved the decor on the Eden. It was tasteful without being 'over the top'. All the public areas were very clean and there were enough different themes in the bars to suit most tastes. We particularly loved the Blue Room and the Ocean Bar. Staff in these areas were lovely, always smiling and happy to help out. Beer prices started at $5.95 a can for VB, cocktails started at $12 each and soft drinks were $2.75 a can/glass. Not a lot of shopping options available on the Eden, but as we didn't go on a cruise to go shopping it did not bother us. EATING OPTIONS - We sampled all eating options apart from the Chef's table. DRAGON LADY - ASIAN FUSION (included in fare) 9/10 - we loved the food and the service here was absolutely brilliant! We enjoyed it so much we went back there a second time on our last night. Our waitress, Ria, was amazing, she explained everything about how the menu worked, happily brought us seconds of the main items as we enjoyed them so much. ANGELOS - ITALIAN (included in fare) 6/10 The lower score was attributed more to the service, the staff were not close to the standard of those in Dragon Lady. Our waiter dropped our soup on the floor on way to table and my husband ordered a beer before entrees and received it during dessert. The food was pleasant without setting the world on fire, our waiter was so stoic we didn't dare ask for seconds of anything SALT GRILL ($49 per person for dinner)10/10 We loved Salt Grill! It was the most incredible eating experience. The staff were friendly and so good at their roles. We had Kobi Waygu beef and it was simply delicious, entrees and dessert were sublime.. we pre booked this in cruise control as the special occasions package and it was pretty good value doing it this way. For $199 we got dinner for 2 at Salt Grill, ($98 value) a bottle of Moet Chandon ($89 to buy on board) a box of Hillier Chocolates ($10) and $50 on board credit added to our account. THE WATERFRONT (included in fare) - 9/10 for breakfast - definitely the best place to get breakfast. No need to pre book a table, you just front up between the times posted for breakfast and get allocated a table. Lots of options and all very nicely cooked. THE WATERFRONT -6/10 for dinner - bookings needed to be made in advance, though they did have a reception for 'guests without bookings' so I imagine they did try to accommodate late comers. We found service was a bit slow and the food was kinda boring. Once again it was 'nice' but didn't set our taste buds tingling. The menu does change every night so we might have just got a bad one. We spoke to some other passengers who said they had a lovely meal there the previous night but had also found a couple of nights a bit ho hum. THE PANTRY - (included in fare) 7/10 for breakfast. There were plenty of different things to have for breakfast, you could have as much as you wanted and definitely didn't go away hungry. The sausages were no where near as nice as the ones served in the waterfront. While it is presented buffet style, it is not self serve. We actually preferred this as your food didn't have a chance to come in contact with a bunch of other people before you got to eat it.. :D Apple and orange juice were available, as much as you wanted. THE PANTRY - 8/10 for lunch. We found there were plenty of different options for lunch. Our hardest thing was deciding what we wanted to eat! If you struggle eating asian, mexican, or indian food, there was a lovely roast available each day as well as fish and chips and a nice fresh salad and fruit bar. Kettle bun also had fresh rolls and sandwiches on offer. Our only nitpick for the pantry was the cakes and desserts section - we found most of them quite bland and tasteless, but as we aren't sweet tooths, it wasn't really a big deal. Certainly not a deal breaker in any case! The coffee at the New Zealand ice cream bar was delicious at $4.50 for a large cappuccino which we thought was great value. Other food options were available for a nominal charge - pizza $9.50, burgers for $5, bucket of jumbo prawns $15 etc. Room service is user pay and once again we thought the rates were pretty reasonable if you were too lazy to go get your own food...:D THE ENTERTAINMENT - we did miss the first night's show as we opted to go to karaoke instead lol. We saw two shows from the Pacific Performers, The Velvet Rope and Sideshow Alley - we loved both of these and the singing was wonderful. We also saw the Aussie Boys of Motown - these 3 guys were fantastic! So entertaining, we could have listened to them for hours. The comedian for the Sit down Comedy night, Paul Brasch, was very funny and entertaining. We loved the theme nights, Gatsby, Bianco (white party) and Back to School. Our only issue was the venue used for the start of the Gatsby night...it was too small an area for the amount of people they had which made it quite uncomfortable and a bit warm. Once it moved to the bigger Dome venue, it was much more enjoyable. We were very impressed with the musical talent on board, in particular the Hitmen duo, and the assorted bands that played throughout the different venues on the ship. THE STAFF - 9/10 - practically every staff member we had contact with was lovely and friendly and so helpful. Only one waitress on the last day was a bit dour, hence the point off! Our cabin steward, Moses, was wonderful. Bobby (cruise director) and the entertainment crew were funny and friendly and got right into doing things with the passengers. SHORE DAYS - we pretty much did our own thing on shore days, we did not book any of the shore tours offered on board. We found getting off and on the ship to be a very smooth process. Port Arthur was 'by tender' and it was a well oiled machine getting people on and off the tenders. No fuss and easy with very little waiting around. We had shuttle buses waiting at the port to take us into Burnie, with 3 pick up and drop off points. Once again, very well managed and a very easy process. EMBARKATION - we were given our time of 9am and we were off the ship at 9.05am, bags collected and in a taxi on our way back to the city...seamless and easy! OVERALL - 8/10 - We really loved our time on Pacific Eden and would definitely sail on her again in a heartbeat! Most of the nit picky negatives I have listed had no impact on the overall enjoyment of our cruise. We liked the smaller, more intimate feel of Eden rather than that of the bigger ships. We did hear one woman say it was the worst cruise she had ever been on, and that judgement was made ONE HOUR after getting on board...lol We did note that a lot of elderly people complained the most about Pacific Eden - most travellers in our age group (mid 40's), parents with younger children and also the younger (20 something) cruisers, that we talked to, all expressed pretty much the same opinion as us, that they would happily sail on the Eden again. Read Less

We chose this itinerary because it left from Melbourne and we really wanted to see the sounds and explore more of New Zealand. I will start with the positives first, some of the staff were immensely helpful and friendly, embarkation and disembarkation were half an hour each (which in my book is great!) we found our oceanview stateroom was big enough and loved the wardrobe, plenty of drawers and room for the cases under the bed. I loved the amount of pools on board and found the terrace on back of boat to be the warmest at 25'degrees and generally uninhabited as was the lovely alfresco area we ate most of our meals at which you can find at the back of the boat outside Horizon Court, say hello to Joe he is gorgeous. We both loved movies under the stars and appreciated the movies and Tv channels in the room. Neither of us care much for shows but we loved the piano entertainer AJ Clarke and the classical trio that played in the piazza. We enjoyed all ports except Akaroa due to gale force winds. Now for some negatives.....our room flooded as mentioned below, we didn't complain the first time as our cabin steward was very attentive and we dismissed it as an accident, the second time we went to guest services, whilst he organised a room for the night while they rectified the room, he seemed to be more concerned that this was the first time we had complained???then 4 days after the event he sent us canapés for our inconvenience. We both felt it could have been dealt with a little better. Besides the pizza and hamburgers ( which we thought were better than Royal Caribbean) we both thought the food in the dining room and buffet was a little limited. Our Wellington port tender, yes I said tender as Wellington is a working port we had to be shuttled to town by buses, this took roughly an hour and a half to get to town, I am glad we had not organised a private tour! The staff was the most disappointing thing, right from the start it didn't bode well, there was no greeting to the boat whatsoever, which we both found unusual and a lot of the staff in the cafe were rude and some of the bar staff were not necessarily rude but not exactly friendly. Whilst we had problems we still enjoyed our cruise and our experiences are based on comparison to cruising with Celebrity and Royal Caribbean. Read Less

Cruising is the restful holiday that I needed after a busy year at work. The Golden Princess gave me that. Our cabin C705 was located on deck 10 just across from the aft lifts. It had a comfy bed was clean and fairly roomy. Our balcony was larger than our friends who had a mini suite on deck 9 and large than the balcony on 11 and 12. we had half covered area and half open it was a bit more private than 9 as we looked straight down to theirs. ( not that we used it very much but probably would of if travelling alone) Rome service was basic but free and we used it a couple of times for convenience on port days. The service was fab the food was varied and great. We purchased the drinks card and for us it was fantastic not having to worry about anything. The cocktails were a hit we defiantly found the card worthwhile as only a couple of bottles of water $4 a coffee or two $4 a couple of beers and a couple glasses of wine and a Baileys or two was more than what it cost for the Drink card. Most cocktails were just under $14 and there was a heap to choose from but we managed to try most of them. So if you are wondering whether to go with that I would recommend0. They do have happy hours at the bars two for one but they looked crazy busy and having the card was like one big happy hour if you want that or just a few and it's just as good. There was something to do for all of us to make our holiday one to remember. The staff were so attentive and were always cleaning and sterilising after the cruise before us had gastro through it. The ship was great it was clean and comfortable although a little dated. The WIFI was $99 for 200 mins which is quite expensive I think these days it should be free for travellers. The Lotus Spa treatments were wonderful but the after product sales push ruined the whole experience we didn't go back there. The massage was $150 with mini facial but the products they pushed were another $259 and they pushed hard. Beware. The onboard purchase of excursions were really expensive. We managed to hire cars and book with local company's for a third of the price for a similar tour. Try an app called Viator they had some great onshore excursions. Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to get back to the ship though. every time we docked the locals offered tours as well but we booked ours on line to make sure we saw what we wanted to see. Overall it was great a we would go on Golden again. Read Less