16 sea days, 7 ports, 1 day of scenic cruising.

Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia

After taking zero cruises in 2024, we will be on ships for most of the first half of 2025! Our first voyage is 80 days on the Island Princess, going from Los Angeles to Rome. Island Princess is an older, smaller ship for Princess. It was built in 2002 and is one of the two Princess ships small enough to traverse the old locks of the Panama Canal. It has 1,107 rooms, so there are just over 2,000 passengers.

Although this is billed as a World Cruise, it was also sold in segments, and the majority of guests are not traversing the entire world. The cruise was originally scheduled to travel up the east coast of Africa and through the Suez Canal. But with the issues in that area of the Indian Ocean, the itinerary now has the boat sailing the long way around the west coast of Africa, entering the Mediterranean from Gibraltarinstead. This change likely led to cancellations, which led to Princess selling the cruise in segments at a dramatically-reduced rate. And this led to us deciding to leave Mexico early and sailing literally halfway around the world.

On embarkation day, our schedule was tight: we had to go straight from LAX to the cruise terminal without getting to enjoy anything in Los Angeles or see any of our LA friends. An interesting note at LAX: Uber and Lyft pick up in a special zone that requires a bus ride. The rate was quoted at $50 USD at the terminal as well as on the bus, but then soared to $70 USD when we reached the pick-up zone. Since taxis pick up back at the terminal, there is no option but the Lyft/Uber duopoly. LAX may be a circumstance where a taxi is a better, and more convenient, option!

Ship Life

Our trip started with a set of five sea days as we cruised west toward Honolulu. This was the first set of many extended periods at sea for us!

Life on the high seas can get repetitive, but there’s enough onboard to keep us entertained. In fact, we felt a little too busy the first few days and scaled the activities back. We finally got into a routine of eating, walking, and doing yoga and workouts in our room.

We played at the ship’s casino until we hit the point that we received free drinks while playing. This was also the most fun cruise casino we have played at, mostly due to an amazing casino host, Micky. There were frequent promotions and we enjoyed taking advantage of the great drink service. The drink package also carries through the entire 80 days, so it was a good value, comparatively speaking.

Every few days there was a margarita demonstration at the pool. Those who volunteered to help with the making and shaking got to take their drink!

One of the highlights for me was the enrichment lecture series about the Matson Line’s White Ships, presented by Duncan O’Brien.

One of the reasons why I enjoy longer cruises are the extended enrichment series that are presented. Even when the topic does not seem immediately interesting, a good presenter makes the difference. Matson Lines was a company I knew nothing about and Duncan’s amazing series of lectures made me feel like a scholar. The company offered transportation from the West Coast of the United States to Hawaii and other Pacific destinations, providing luxurious travel in the days before commercial airlines. What resonated with me was the influence that Matson’s hospitality had on the modern cruise ships.

The world can feel small but being at sea reminds me of the vastness of this planet. Gazing out at the endless watery horizon speaks to my heart and says “There’s a big world out there!”

Especially when sharing a cabin with your significant other, everything starts to feel a bit small! We get along well but we are also glad to have a full ship to explore so that we can also have some space to ourselves.

Ports of Call

Hawaii

Hawaii greeted us with large vivid rainbows and stormy skies. We treated our first port of call, Honolulu, as an errand day. In the morning, we picked up our mail (forwarded from the mainland), some things we had ordered from Amazon, and we headed to Costco to pick up some tasty snacks for the long voyage ahead. I was excited to get my favorite Hawaiian treat: dark-chocolate-covered macadamia nuts. 

The rain poured for most of the day, so we did not get in a beach walk. Instead we walked through Chinatown in the morning and Waikiki in the evening. As it rained we stopped off in various stores and bars. We found a “pour your own” craft beer bar, allowing us to sample a number of island brews. We also enjoyed shopping at the fancy Foodland Farms grocery store. Finally the rain dissipated and we walked back to the ship. Even though we arrived a half-hour before all-aboard, we were the last two left on land. Nobody else took their chances in the downpour! All-in-all we walked 13 miles and I went to bed with aching feet and a sense of accomplishment. 

The next day Nawiliwili, Kauai welcomed us with a heck of a lot more sunshine. We slept in, brewed coffee in our room with our French press and the coffee we bought at Costco the day before. Eventually we wandered down to the nearby Kalapaki Beach and spread out our blue-and-white-striped ship towels, and enjoyed swimming, snorkling, and laying out in the sun. After a few hours we cooled down with a mai tai at Duke’s Barefoot Bar. What a great start to the world cruise! 

The sailaway was gorgeous and we sat on deck seven looking for a whales. Not a tail or fin, nor a fantastic breach. But the sunset was nice and we sailed on for the next set of six sea days. We had several stunning sunsets as we maneuvered south and eventually crossed the equator. 

We crossed the international dateline going west and like a flash, January 31 ceased to exist for us. The ship’s calendar simply skips a day. Hello February!

Fiji

A new country for us! It was the first time for both of us to visit the gorgeous islands of Fiji. (We flew in once on a layover but we don’t count airports as a true visit to a country.)

I had no idea Fiji had over 300 islands! We visited Suva, the largest city and the Fijian capital, on the largest island of Viti Levu. Our research showed that this is not the island for snorkeling or beaches, so we went to Plan B. Spa day!

After a long morning walk from the port, we arrived at Pure Fiji, home to some of my favorite spa products, including my favorite bath milk. I was truly delighted to visit their facility, which includes their offices and production center, as well as the spa and an outlet store.

(Most people will want to take a taxi from the port to avoid the long uphill walk and stay out of the heat.)

We spent several hours pampering ourselves to a couples orange blossom ritual. This included a gentle scrub, nourishing massage, and hydrating facial. Everything flowed smoothly between the various treatments, and it was quite relaxing. 

We also got to shop from the outlet and purchase great products! Although the products were already affordable (compared to the United States), they are also available every Saturday morning for half-price!

My only regret was not booking more services. I really could have used a pedicure!

We then grabbed a taxi and headed out for lunch at Kanu Gastropub for some local food and drinks. We tried kokoda, a ceviche-like dish with raw fish in coconut milk, mochiko fried chicken, and fried cassava (which we really enjoyed). The cocktails were creative, with one being served in a soup bowl! The restaurant is housed in an old building that is decorated with much nostalgia and history.

After lunch we walked around Suva for some sightseeing. There are a few historic buildings that seem to be on every walking tour of Suva, and to be honest, we found them a bit underwhelming. We tried to enter the Presidential Palace from the rear (northeast) side, but were turned away by a very-friendly guard who shook Corey’s hand the entire time he was telling us that we could not pass. We then detoured back to the front side of the Palace complex toward Thurston Gardens. We did not enter the Fiji Museum so cannot say whether that would be worthwhile. We saw a hint of the Palace from the front side, and possibly it could be entered from there? We decided to head back toward the center city and the port.

It was so hot that we played a game called “sweat or rain,” an exciting affair where you guess whether the water coming off your body came from the sky or not. It was 80% humidity and 80 degrees F, so it was probably 50/50.

Before getting back onboard we did some window shopping around the chaotic retail core, and Corey got a much-needed haircut.

Our day ended with a tour of the Municipal Market. It was massive! The rain had returned so we enjoyed a reprieve while perusing the stalls of local fruits and vegetables. We picked up some kalamansi limes to juice onboard. We also followed groups of school kids to a set of juice vendors, where brightly-colored drinks were sold by the glass cup, or you can bring your own empty container. We shared a few cups of the pink and orange juices being sold. A refreshing treat to end the day!

New Zealand

After two more days at sea we arrived at New Zealand, one of our favorite places that we have visited during our sabbatical. The last time we were here was the southern hemisphere summer of 2022/2023. We spent a few wonderful weeks on the North Island with our niece, Karah. Then Corey’s parents joined us for an adventurous week before we all embarked on a cruise that took us around both islands (and beyond). We have been looking to return, although we have already visited all four ports.

Bay of Islands, New Zealand

A beautiful place where we spent several days back in 2023. We rose early and sipped coffee while watching the sun rise over the small peaks of the islands in the aptly named bay. 

Bay of Islands is a tender port, so check which wharf your ship is taking you to. Our schedule originally listed the town of Russell, but that changed to Waitangi Wharf, right at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds. This is a great spot for those looking to tour this historic site. The Waitangi Wharf also offered a free shuttle to the nearby town of Paihia, which is also where a passenger ferry travels to Russell. So there are ways to get around the bay, no matter where you start at.

The tender operations were very slow, and for a 7 AM arrival, we ended up touching land close to 11 AM. On the plus side, the weather was phenomenal. Since we did a full tour of Waitangi on our last trip, we opted to walk through and past the town of Paihia. This took us past Te Ti Beach and Paihia Beach, both places where locals were enjoying their holiday weekend.

After passing the city we continued down a beach track called Te Arararoa Trail that passes through a nature reserve. We then walked back to town via the road. It was a pleasant walk overall and we finished up eating meat pies down at Paihia Beach. 

We did some shopping at the crafts market, grabbed a refreshing beverage, then walked back to the tender pier. We covered seven miles and enjoyed a nice day back in New Zealand. 

Napier, New Zealand

Since we had visited this art-deco themed town on our previous cruise, we decided to get out of town and taste some local wine. Hawke’s Bay has a long history of wine cultivation, but it can be overshadowed by the popular region of Marlborough.

Just like last time, we had a short port day in Napier, with the last shuttle back to the boat leaving at 1:30 PM. We had researched e-bikes and wine tours but both were expensive, so we decided to just take the city bus.

Upon docking and ship clearance, we rushed ashore to grab boozy-donuts and coffee from Mister D. The streets were quiet but cute and quaint. Last time it was rainy but this time the weather was perfect. My appreciation for Napier increased. Perhaps weather has a bigger impact on the experience than I had realized. 

The bus took us out of town and inland. We jumped off next to a hardware store and walked through some well-manicured residential neighborhoods to reach Church Road Winery. 

We were the first guests of the day and we enjoyed the Tom series tasting, their fanciest label of elegant and well-balanced wines. After the tasting, we enjoyed the nice weather with a glass of wine on the lawn.

The schedule for the return bus was just a little tight for our tastes, so we took an Uber back to Napier to board the final shuttle of the day. It turned out that we would have made it, but it was not worth the risk. 

Picton, New Zealand

Picton is a small town that is the South Island port for the ferries between the islands. Our previous cruise stopped here but we left the town immediately for a full-day tour of the Marlborough wine region.

This time, we jumped off the boat in the morning, briefly walked downtown and enjoyed a coffee, and then I treated myself to a pedicure while Corey traipsed around the town and bought some groceries. Everyone in the spa seemed to be from the ship, and they ended up full and turning away customers.

Picton is one of those towns that is on the map for people heading to other places on the map. Also a port city, the industrial area starts just outside of the few blocks geared toward tourists. We returned to the ship early to eat lunch and watch the Super Bowl in our cabin. 

After the atrociously boring game, we lingered on the promenade deck for a few hours as we sailed out of Queen Charlotte Sound and between the North and South Islands. It was warm and sunny so long as we stood on the sunny side of the ship. We enjoyed watching birds, boats, and islands. Sadly we have not seen any whales or dolphins. But we are grateful for the nice set of binoculars my parents gifted us. They’re sharp and very compact for travel. 

Dunedin, New Zealand

Our last stop in NZ was yet another city we had visited. Previously we toured around by foot and by bus, seeing all of the main sights in one day, including Baldwin Street (the steepest street in the world).

The ship actually docks in Port Chalmers which is just far enough of a walk from Dunedin to be annoying. The city offers a shuttle for a stupid price, but the city bus goes from Port Chalmers to Dunedin and uses the same Bee Card that we purchased in Napier. This time we transferred in town and visited the beautiful coastal neighborhood of St. Clair Beach. On the way we passed by some of the street art and buildings that we had toured on our last visit.

The weather was overcast but we were hopeful for sun breaks in the afternoon. But with the clouds still over the beach when we arrived at St. Clair, we decided to check out their hot salt water pool. False advertising! Turned out that the water was quite tepid. But it was warmer than the sea, and we hung out there until lunch.

Lunch was some local seafood and beers at a place called Salt. We used their Wi-Fi for a while, then took a bus back to Dunedin proper. There we did some grocery shopping and walked around the town a bit, before catching a city bus back to Port Chalmers and the ship.

Scenic Cruising of Fiordland National Park (Milford Sound)

We bid farewell to New Zealand with one last beautiful day on the South Island. 

Scenic cruising is just as it sounds. There is no going ashore in this beautiful and wild part of New Zealand that was carved by glaciers. The ship spends the day going in and out of waterways, including the highlight of the day: Milford Sound. A ranger is onboard to provide interpretive narration as the day goes on.

When we sailed through Fiordland the last time we enjoyed a gorgeous day with a Corey’s parents in a cabana, drinking New Zealand sparkling wine. 

This time we went up on deck early and secured loungers before nine. Having scouted the area beforehand we knew just where on Deck 15 we wanted to perch. After an hour of shivering, I went back to the room for hand warmers, socks, and a second pair of pants. As the day went on, we enjoyed the boat trip through all the sounds and fjords, looking for waterfalls and animals. Although this was a repeat, it is such a highlight that we were just as excited to do it again. The decks got busy from time to time and other folks tried to squeeze into our space but overall we were able to maintain our position on the railing.

Off to Australia

As soon as the ship leaves Milford Sound, it hits full speed westward across the Tasman Sea. After two sea days, next stop is Sydney. At that point about 1,000 people will leave the boat and be replaced by other passengers for the next leg of the journey: Australia, Mauritius, and South Africa… and a whole bunch of sea days!