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Another long preamble before I get into the actual trip...
60. It’s just a number they say, but for me last year when I was thinking about it, it was a number I wasn’t looking forward to becoming. I’d decided on a cruise to ‘celebrate’ my 50th. Initially I’d thought about booking a large villa in Bali and inviting whoever wanted to join us but for some reason it became too hard.
Royal Caribbean had a four night cruise to nowhere the weekend before I turned 60. It left from Brisbane and was mainly over a weekend. That it was on Quantum of the Seas Quantum of the Seas | Cruise Ships | Royal Caribbean Cruises was both interesting and not. I’m not a fan of these huge ships and the idea of being surrounded by 4500+ people was not that appealing but it was the only choice that I had.
I’m not sure why, but balt (as in bpeteb) was not keen on approx $10k for four nights in a loft suite so we settled on a Junior Suite J4 for just under $2400 including USD260 onboard credit.
I sent out a group invite. Initially 13 confirmed, then nine and we eventually sailed from the Port of Brisbane Luggage Point Sewerage Treatment Works International Cruise Ship Terminal with seven friends. Two junior suites, one balcony, one outside and one inside.
In November we all got an email telling us instead of going nowhere, we’d instead be going somewhere - Airlie Beach. This made us chuckle, but you’ll have to get to the end of this waffle to read why.
We wanted to say thank you to our friends for coming with us. It wasn’t exactly a small expense for any of them. I tried to book something onboard but RCL is hopeless. We were ready to put on food and champagne but unless we were 16 they weren’t interested. Then I looked at restaurants at Airlie Beach and nothing appealed. So we chartered a yacht for half a day! It cost waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more than the cruise. Worth every dollar. Providence V - Sailing Whitsundays
My health was not great but there was no way I wasn’t going. I booked my colectomy for May even though my surgeon said you do need it now. Three weeks before we left one of our friends was diagnosed with a tumour that needed immediate removable (since fully recovered) so that was two down. Then four days before sailing another friend tested positive for Covid (damn you World Pride). Two more down and that’s why we were seven.
We decided we’d use the obc to buy a drinks package (got it at the cheapest pre-cruise price they offered) and also pre-booked a sushi and sake lunch at Izumi (ended up being great value!).
For anyone who hasn’t had the pleasure of the drive out to the Port of Brisbane Luggage Point Sewerage Treatment Works International Cruise Ship Terminal, it is a really long way from the city, and anywhere else except for Luggage Point. Hamilton was so much better but of course these giant ships can’t get under the Gateway Bridges.
Ship from the treatment works, I mean cruise terminal
world's shortest boarding wait (well, no wait)
Saying that, it is a great facility that could do with a cafe or a coffee shop, or anything for that matter.
Expecting chaos, every one of our group took no longer than 15 minutes to drop off their bags and board the ship. Amazing. The people staffing the terminal were lovely. As we were in a junior suite we got priority boarding but I reckon that it saved us all of five minutes. We got to use the lift instead of the travelator
The whole process was just so efficient.
Miraculously we bumped into a friend about one minute after boarding. Weird lifeboat ‘drill’ completed, we went in search of our first drink (aperol spritz)
then up to the Windjammer buffet a quick bite (chaos). Another couple of drinks at the North Star bar
then the sound of screaming kids started drilling into our brains so we moved on to the Solarium Bar (>16 only) and that’s where we stayed until we sailed.
the place we boarded from in the middle of nowhere
It was a bit grey and drizzly and if there was a sailway party we missed it.
60. It’s just a number they say, but for me last year when I was thinking about it, it was a number I wasn’t looking forward to becoming. I’d decided on a cruise to ‘celebrate’ my 50th. Initially I’d thought about booking a large villa in Bali and inviting whoever wanted to join us but for some reason it became too hard.
Royal Caribbean had a four night cruise to nowhere the weekend before I turned 60. It left from Brisbane and was mainly over a weekend. That it was on Quantum of the Seas Quantum of the Seas | Cruise Ships | Royal Caribbean Cruises was both interesting and not. I’m not a fan of these huge ships and the idea of being surrounded by 4500+ people was not that appealing but it was the only choice that I had.
I’m not sure why, but balt (as in bpeteb) was not keen on approx $10k for four nights in a loft suite so we settled on a Junior Suite J4 for just under $2400 including USD260 onboard credit.
I sent out a group invite. Initially 13 confirmed, then nine and we eventually sailed from the Port of Brisbane Luggage Point Sewerage Treatment Works International Cruise Ship Terminal with seven friends. Two junior suites, one balcony, one outside and one inside.
In November we all got an email telling us instead of going nowhere, we’d instead be going somewhere - Airlie Beach. This made us chuckle, but you’ll have to get to the end of this waffle to read why.
We wanted to say thank you to our friends for coming with us. It wasn’t exactly a small expense for any of them. I tried to book something onboard but RCL is hopeless. We were ready to put on food and champagne but unless we were 16 they weren’t interested. Then I looked at restaurants at Airlie Beach and nothing appealed. So we chartered a yacht for half a day! It cost waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more than the cruise. Worth every dollar. Providence V - Sailing Whitsundays
My health was not great but there was no way I wasn’t going. I booked my colectomy for May even though my surgeon said you do need it now. Three weeks before we left one of our friends was diagnosed with a tumour that needed immediate removable (since fully recovered) so that was two down. Then four days before sailing another friend tested positive for Covid (damn you World Pride). Two more down and that’s why we were seven.
We decided we’d use the obc to buy a drinks package (got it at the cheapest pre-cruise price they offered) and also pre-booked a sushi and sake lunch at Izumi (ended up being great value!).
For anyone who hasn’t had the pleasure of the drive out to the Port of Brisbane Luggage Point Sewerage Treatment Works International Cruise Ship Terminal, it is a really long way from the city, and anywhere else except for Luggage Point. Hamilton was so much better but of course these giant ships can’t get under the Gateway Bridges.
Ship from the treatment works, I mean cruise terminal
world's shortest boarding wait (well, no wait)
Saying that, it is a great facility that could do with a cafe or a coffee shop, or anything for that matter.
Expecting chaos, every one of our group took no longer than 15 minutes to drop off their bags and board the ship. Amazing. The people staffing the terminal were lovely. As we were in a junior suite we got priority boarding but I reckon that it saved us all of five minutes. We got to use the lift instead of the travelator
The whole process was just so efficient.Miraculously we bumped into a friend about one minute after boarding. Weird lifeboat ‘drill’ completed, we went in search of our first drink (aperol spritz)
then up to the Windjammer buffet a quick bite (chaos). Another couple of drinks at the North Star bar
then the sound of screaming kids started drilling into our brains so we moved on to the Solarium Bar (>16 only) and that’s where we stayed until we sailed.
the place we boarded from in the middle of nowhere
It was a bit grey and drizzly and if there was a sailway party we missed it.
