Some more holiday news

Published on 12 April; fixed a typo on 8 May :-) 

Since I went on my solo cruise on the Carnival Splendor last year, I've been wanting to take Paul for a cruise on that ship.  A few things about it really appealed to me - they still have proper traditional dining, their Steakhouse (Fahrenheit 555) is beyond belief excellent, the casino is one of the better ones I've tried, the buffet is okay but they have a pizza bar which is great, and you can get fresh squeezed orange juice to start the day.  I was hoping to nab a last minute deal once I ended my contract at work, but since that seems likely to continue for another year now, I've just booked a four day cruise - Sydney to Tangalooma and back in April 2025 - to show Paul what I mean about the ship.  Or actually, to go on the ship again and to show Paul what I mean  :-)

Also in the last few days, I heard that Royal Caribbean was bringing the Voyager of the Seas to Australia for the summer 2025-26 season.  And, that it was coming from Europe which brings up the fact that there will be a relocation cruise to Australia.  I actually put a courtesy hold on the three separate cruises that make up the relocation - starting on 1 November 2025 in Rome with a cruise to Dubai, then Dubai to Singapore, and then Singapore to Brisbane, arriving on 13 December.  In the end though, we've decided to only do the Singapore to Brisbane leg, however we will probably arrive in Singapore for the cruise by air at the end of a holiday in Europe - details yet to be worked out though.

BTW to my Queensland family and friends who like cruising - Royal Caribbean is selling cruises out of Brisbane on the Voyager of the Seas up to April 2026, but unusually, the last of those cruises isn't the standard 'return to Europe or the USA' that happens with their ships at the end of each summer.  And in fact, there is a rumour that Royal Caribbean might be going to keep the Voyager of the Seas in Brisbane full time.  That would be nice; options for winter-time cruising around Australia have been limited to P&O or Carnival for some time, so a bit more variation would be good!