Rhapsody of the Seas Cruise Review by darienill

The trip involves a 10 day Sydney to Sydney cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Rhapsody of the Seas plus 4 nights in Sydney and 3 nights in Melbourne. We have 6 Americans and 2 Australians on the cruise. Youngest is 22, oldest is 67. My group is from Chicago. We will be visiting relatives in both cities. It will be early fall in Australia and Easter is the first Sunday of the cruise. I’m paying for three people.

Cruise Booking: We booked the cruise direct for 4 of us and the other 4 booked through a TA. We bought insurance thru the cruise line. We paid for 2 cat D1 verandahs and had to take a GTY. Other 4 booked 2 JS Junior Suites which was about an extra $500 per couple. They were assigned cabins at booking. We linked all reservations so we could get an assigned table for late dining. We all booked early November for an April 2 sailing. Final payment was due early January. In early March we got our cabin assignment. We were not contacted, we have not cruised on RCI before, but we were given a free upgrade to two adjoining Junior Suites port side aft deck 8. 8068 and 8070. NOTE: We never opened the connecting door.

Flight Booking: The cruise departs on a Friday. In order to get there by Friday morning we have to leave Chicago on Wednesday. I was able to find a United flight through LAX leaving ORD at 5:20 P.M. a 2 ½ hour layover in LAX and a 15 hour flight to SYD arriving at 7:20 AM on Friday. It’s overnight going plus loss of a day at the international date line. On the way back you leave and arrive the same day. Economy plus seats were $1411.00 Business class $5,022.00. Good thing about flying midweek is if there is a discount that’s when it will be. Prices appeared to be stable across the entire week. Our return was set for a Monday. The early scheduled arrival in SYD allows for 10 hours of delays if they should occur. The cruise will be at sea for the first two days which allows plenty of time to adjust to the time change. NOTE: Nice plan, too bad it didn’t work. More later.

You need a Visa to enter Australia. Your TA can supply one or your airline may also be able to do it or you can do it yourself online for less money. They charge $20 AUD for it and I paid US $18.46 including the exchange fee on my credit card. You can’t beat that. It’s called an ETA and you don’t get anything but it’s electronically registered to your passport. When they scan your passport, it appears. I kept the receipt anyway. I did it all online. NOTE: Worked fine.

Sydney to Melbourne leg: Post cruise plan. Distance from SYD to MEL is over 600 miles so driving didn’t make sense. I checked for airfare and found that it was a 1 ½ hour flight and Qantas has a plane every hour like a bus route. Airfare was coming up at $200 PP until I went on the Qantas website direct and was able to book through their Australia link and found a “Red E-Deal” discount fare for $105 PP. I think it’s like a Southwest Airlines “Gotta Get Away” deal because there isn’t a seat assignment until you do your online check-in. Then you can change seats. After I booked it, the price started to go up. I haven’t been able to find any more details. I checked on luggage allowances because we’re lugging all our stuff with us. On the bottom of the e receipt it states that if you are flying to an international destination you are allowed two bags PP. Even if it’s not the same day or on a different carrier. More details on that after the trip.

Hotel Booking: In Sydney post cruise we’re staying at the Four Points Sheridan which we booked on an employee web site and got the 4 nights for $715. It’s right on Darling Harbor which is about a mile from the pier. Had to prepay for that. In Melbourne we’re at the Langham which is a five star hotel. Sounds nice.

Currency: We will be on land for 7 days so we got some AUD Aussie dollars. On the market they were trading for about 91 cents USD. My bank got them for me for about 94 cents which reflects the 3% conversion rate. Qantas flights booked on line show up on my credit card with a 3% conversion rate listed. The idea is to pay for food as we go with cash and pay the last hotel with as much AUD as we have left.

Stuff: About a week before the cruise we got the wine package pricing and have compared it to the “at the dock” pricing and it appears to be the same. We plan to wait to buy the wine till on board. The one favorite of ours is on the full wine list but not on the abbreviated list posted on the web. RC doesn’t allow any alcohol brought on board. First night we order an extra bottle of wine and bring it back to the room. More on this.

Through CC we hear that there will be 400 kids on board. Makes it a little crowded and kids love to run through the halls. Last cruise at spring break we found a lost child before we even left port. We had two young adults fall overboard also. Yes, we saved them.

There are two formal nights. I’m bringing a suit to get into the main dining room. If there is one night when they have lobster, I have found that it’s a formal night and it’s in the main dining room. (There was no lobster). There are only two places to eat on this ship and I’m betting on the MDR late seating. There are no specialty restaurants on board.

The ship offers two tipping plans. One is prepaid and the other is using the envelopes which is all explained in your cruise docs. Drinks are all tip added.

Plane gets into SYD at 7:10 AM. I’m going to gather our stuff and find the taxi starter. They have Maxi Taxi’s which charge a higher rate but can handle all the bags our party of 4 will have. I’m hoping it will be about 9 AM when we get the cab. The ship doesn’t let you board that early but we’re going to the International Passenger Terminal which is located in an area called “The Rocks”. I’m hoping the porters will be on hand and will gladly take our luggage from us and place it on the skids to be loaded. On all the cruises I’ve ever been on, they take your tagged bags and your tip and direct you to the check in desk. If you’re too early there is a waiting area. We can also wander around the Rocks area and kill time till it’s boarding time. There are lots of coffee shops and such in the area. It’s like a park. If you use Google maps you can see it all under Sydney Rocks. If the porters won’t take the bags then we’ll pile them together and sit it out. The other options are to use the storage place which is about 6 blocks away. That seems too far to walk with bags and they charge $15 a day per bag to store. That’s about $100 plus cab fare. I checked with our post cruise hotel and they would also hold our bags. That would be a lot less expensive. It just seems like a lot of back and forth to kill a few hours. I’ll let you know how that works out.

Melbourne: When we get to Melbourne there will be six of us so I hired a private van. He has a tow behind trailer and the charge is $130 total to the hotel. $21.70 pp. When we leave, our flight is earlier for the 4 of us so we’ll just get a Maxi again. We leave at 11:20 AM , stop in SYD and LAX and arrive 7 PM same day. We considered seeing the penguins on the island but it turned into an all day thing and we let the idea die.

Now here’s what actually happened.

We got out of Chicago with our 8 suitcases and four passengers. Two in coach, and two in business. Everything was on time and we got to LAX about 9 ish for our connection to flt. 839 to SYD.

They cancelled the flight because of an oil leak problem.

UA issued us a Westin hotel voucher and a $16 meal voucher and told us to be back for the flight at 11:30 the next day. We’re going to miss our cruise departure. It’s now about 10 PM and there are no more flights out and the last Qantas is full. ***Now panic.

No, you can’t have your luggage. Some international flight rule you couldn’t argue with.

We had relatives in SYD waiting for us and luckily we were able to call them on their land line and after a lot of back and forth calls, they were able to notify the ship and arrange for us to join the cruise on day 4 in Cairnes. That was the first at dock day. They also canceled our excursion that we had pre paid. We did get a refund.

Advice: We had two AT&T cell phones that were enabled for use in Australia that we used a lot once we got there. Check your carrier. We called back and forth. Yes my cell worked because we were still in the USA so I could use it. I had my charger in my carry on.

It was Thursday afternoon in Australia and businesses were still opened so they could contact the cruise line. At 11 PM in Calf., the USA cruise line was closed. 2 AM in Miami. The next day was Good Friday which is a holiday in Australia so even more places were closed till Tuesday. We had to have all cruise plan changes in place before we left LAX the next morning. By the time we arrive the ship would have left.

We checked with the cruise line on boarding and found that it had to be a docked landing port and the online agenda had shown Arlie Beach as docked but it wasn’t. We heard that another couple missed the boat and had bussed to Arlie to board and were denied and had to bus to Cairnes.

More advice: Bring your cell charger in your carry on. Bring your meds in your carry on (I had mine). Bring one set of undies. Bring all the phone numbers you can think of.

We made a lot of jokes about a plane load of travelers who didn’t get to shower on a 14 hour flight.

Next morning we called our SYD hotel and booked a room for the next three nights, Good Friday, Saturday and Easter Sunday. $543 with breakfast or $181 a night. Our flight left about noon.

We arrived about an hour after the ship left, got our luggage and went out to the cab area. The starter was there and we requested a Maxi Taxi which he was able to grab for us. The maxi varies in what you get but this was a large van with a wheelchair ramp which is where all our luggage stowed. There is a $3 airport fee added to the fare and the Maxi charges 1.5 the normal rate so he punched in for 6 passengers. We were on our way to Four Points. The total fare was $57, I gave him $60 and he tried to give me back my change. Unless you are late don’t bother taking the underground toll way, there’s no view. The distance is about the same as to either pier.

Once we got to the hotel, checked in went out to dinner. Next morning checked the flights to Cairns, there was a 9:30 “Red E deal” for $200 and a late afternoon for about $300. We opted for the 9:30. Had the concierge book it for us and he found a Hilton hotel next to the boat pier which we booked for $255. Flight got in around 11 AM.

Sydney pre cruise: We had two days to kill so we walked over to Darling Harbour via the skybridge next to the hotel. It was sunny and cool in the morning warming up to a comfortable afternoon temperature. We saw the Wildlife World which was like an inside zoo. They have a 2000 pound Alligator, butterfly area, koala area, roo area. I recommend you see it for all the required Australian animals, up close. We bought three wildlife tickets and two aquarium package for $110 with student discount. We also went to the Maritime museum, toured the sailing ship, three for $43. Saw the Harborside shopping center. Got rained on. Visited the Queen Victoria building and Myers store on Market Street. The boat tours also leave from this harbour area. Had dinner at Crinitis in Harborside Mall. Overpriced Italian food and drinks.

Monday after Easter. Still a holiday in town, grabbed a Maxi to airport for our Qantas domestic flight to Cairns. Got checked in and had to find an agent who understood the luggage allowance rule. She took care of us and we were on our way. Flight got us there and we took a cab to the hotel. This time we took one of their funny looking station wagon cabs that have a hump back design that provides for a lot of luggage space and doesn’t charge the 1.5% rate. I had the driver book a similar type cab for the morning trip to the dock which turned out to be a good idea. It was raining on and off in Cairns. It was still the holiday and Cairns was pretty empty. Checked in and headed to the room. This is when my wife slipped on the wet floor and caught her toe in her shoe and broke her big toe. We iced it but had to find a doctor to x-ray it. Went to the Cairns Base Hospital around 6 PM to have it looked at. We were all done and back in the room by 9 PM. Had to pay cash but the total bill was only $283. All they could do was tape it up.

That night three of us had dinner in town on Esplanade Street where all the action is. Earlier that day we visited the casino. The Hilton we stayed in actually overlooked the boat dock and the next morning we watched as the ship pulled in and was tied up. We checked out, got in our cab and made the short trip to the dock. Our names were on a list and after everybody was finished disembarking we were escorted on board. We got all checked in and cleared by customs. Put our stuff in our room and were off with the rest of the party to take the Karunda rainforest tram trip. This takes you up over the rainforest, viewing the river and waterfalls on the way. There is a train option for the trip back, check out the website for more info. When we got to the top it was of course raining and we didn’t bring our $2 ponchos so we had to buy their $5 ones. Trip was about $30 each. At the end of the trail there is a town with some shops and restaurants. We looked around and had lunch, then had to get back to the ship. We had rented a van for our group and that had to be returned also. With eight of us we figured it was cheaper to do it ourselves instead of a ship tour especially since we had an Aussie driver with us.

Tip: If you have a college student with you have them show their ID’s. We got discounts at a few places just for asking. No break for seniors unless you have an Aussie Sr. card.

Finally back to the ship and we’re away that evening. While we were waiting to board, a lady asked me what time the ship was leaving that day and I told her, “You’re talking to a guy that’s 4 days late already. Maybe ask somebody else.”

Ship and cruise opinions: Passengers: There were 400 kids on board and a lot of running in the halls. There were more middle aged passengers than other cruises I’ve been on. A pleasant change I do say.

Food: I missed the specialty restaurants. There was a Filet option on the menu for $15. My daughter had it. Late dining had a lot of empty tables. Wait staff was top notch. Menu seemed to be adjusted for local tastes and I would have preferred what I’ve had on Princess Cruises. Not impressed. Last formal night was prawns, no lobster. Bummer. On two occasions I went up to the buffet at 7PM to see what they had. We wanted to have some cheese and crackers in our room so I was off to see what I could do. They had a cheese spread that was quite impressive. Brie, cheddar, crackers, grapes, apricots, made up a little plate for the room. A quick look around and the rest of it looked good also. There were burgers, sandwiches and pizza in the solarium midday. I had a sandwich and burger. OK. Bought a wine package at the table on our first night. We got the Diamond 5 bottle and paid $137 plus tip which came to $157.50 US total or $31.50 a bottle. We had the Stone Cellars Chardonnay and one bottle of red. We could have got the Gold package and saved $5 a bottle for the Stone Cellars. Very good wines.

We had lunch in the dining room on two sea days. Nice selection and I liked the salad bar which was point and order instead of do it yourself. They also had pasta dishes. We had breakfast there the last day also. ( No poached eggs allowed)??

Breakfast at the buffet: Good selection but the eggs said, “Gluten free eggs” on the scrambled eggs which we didn’t understand. There was a “as you like them” egg station which was really slow. Needs work in that department. Aussie eggs have a really dark yellow yolk by the way. All in all we didn’t have too much luck with the eggs.

Drinks on board: with tips 1 daily cocktail special $5.75 1 double absolute vodka $13.23 1 Cosmo $8.05 2 cokes $4.49 1 white Russian $7.19 1 Tooheys New bottle $4.54 1 Crown Lager Bottle $6.61

I noticed a lot of people were drinking Corona. Interesting.

Room: Had a JS which was nice and roomy. Plenty of storage, nice balcony. Had them clear out fridge but never really put anything in there although had planned to bring wine to the room or maybe a beer. We had notified the ship we would be late so they had moved someone else into the room before we arrived. When we got there it was all ready but that evening a steward shows up with a bottle of wine and two glasses. He proceeds to open it and leaves it on the table. We thank him and I go over and read the card. The wine was meant for the people that had been moved but after a call he was instructed to leave the wine with us. OK with me.

Steward was really on top of things. With the toe injury we asked him if he could freeze our ice pack for us. Not only did he do it but he had it waiting for us each evening at 5 PM or when we got back. There was a laundry day for $15 a bag. We had two bags and he managed to get it for us for $15. I gave him a tip on day 2 and at the end of the trip.

Excursions: Cairns: While still in Cairns we rented a van and went to Karunda to take the tram ride into the rain forest. You ride up over the mountains and look down on the river and waterfalls. The tram has jump on jump off points along the way where you can stop and look around. We were so late to get there that we did the express right up to the terminal at the top. Got off, and walked into the town. Surprise, surprise, it was raining in the rain forest. Those $1.50 ponchos we had brought with us all the way from home were safe in our luggage so we had to buy new ones for $5.

Arlie: We had planned the GBR trip from Arlie but blew that so we missed seeing it all together. We did manage to get our prepaid money refunded at the excursion desk on board. So we had a $600 credit which covered most of our onboard expenses. All trips were planned by others in our party so we didn’t do any ship tours and I didn’t bother to compare prices.

Brisbane: We took the shuttle into Brisbane (about 30 mins.) just to see the town while others in our group went on a wine tasting tour that was so-so. There is an in town pier and an out of town pier. We were out of town. There was a P&O boat in town. Had lunch and walked around the outdoor shopping area.

Ft. Douglas : We rented a van and saw a bunch of wildlife parks and gator farms etc. Buy a bag of pellets and the animals will eat out of your hand. Admissions were about $30 each. Remember to use that student ID. A van rental was about $200.

Next stop Sydney. The night before we docked they announced there was a sick passenger and that we would be pulling in about 1 AM for those that wanted to be up to see the city at night all lit up. My wife made it but I was already sleeping. They got him off OK, we had breakfast and went down to the gangway about 9 AM. Walked right off, found our luggage and proceeded to the cab staging area on the upper deck. The lower deck is for buses. This is where we got separated. We were supposed to wait for two of our group outside of customs. After twenty minutes and no answer on the cell phone we gave up and grabbed a cab to the hotel. It turns out they couldn’t find their luggage and couldn’t get reception in the terminal. We finally met up at the hotel.

At this point let me point out that the terminal was a beehive of activity while we were there till about 10 AM. My earlier plan to drop off luggage wouldn’t have worked at the pier but might have worked at a coffee shop drop off or at one of the hotels nearby. In either case the flight arrival timing is awkward. Maybe arriving a day early is the only practical option.

Four nights in Sydney:

Back at the Four Points in Sydney, this time we met up with some cousins and spent one day shopping, another day two of us went on the speed boat tour around the harbour which was interesting but it’s a big boat so you don’t get as much speed boat as the smaller one where you wear a rain coat. Next day, another harbour tour on the hop on hop off boat. We got to see the “Rocks”, A tour of the harbour. Lunch at the fort. And finally a day trip out to one of the cousins houses in the suburbs. Next day off to Melbourne on Qantas.

Three nights in Melbourne: The Langham Hotel is to die for. We rode around on the free trolly one day, out to the docks area. Beautiful area. Went and saw the casino for lunch. Spent a day visiting a cemetery to place some flowers. Took a trip to see the penguins. My opinion of the penguins is it’s 30 minutes of cute nature buried in 7 hours of bus rides. Didn’t get a river tour in, but would have liked to. Spent one day on an area tour of the forest and sights, had lunch in a little town in the hills. Final night met with the last of the cousins and managed to see all of them but one due to circumstances. I could have had one more day in Melbourne but this far into the trip we were all ready to just go home.

Monday morning day 19: Grabbed a Maxi Taxi to the airport after some confusion with a station wagon, got checked in and on our way. Plane change in Sydney, then off to the US. The plane was oversold but we were all checked through. I checked. Wife took a sleeping pill and was OUT the whole trip back. Had to wake her in LAX. Arrived home on time 7 PM.

TIP: Interesting item is that we used our Visa debit cards at ATM machines and only paid the foreign exchange fee and no transaction costs.

Recovery: 10 days later and we’re still not on our normal sleep schedule.

Qantas flights count on AA miles. I forgot but was able to apply at home with the receipt. I also got miles from our hotel stay.

Visiting Australia is similar to visiting places in the US that you haven’t been to. Things are different but also comfortably similar. You don’t feel odd or out of place and everybody was friendly. Getting used to a cab driver giving you back your change is weird. The toilets don’t swirl, they flush with a whoosh and the water in the sink goes down clockwise. I checked. How about yours, counterclockwise?

The weather was mild to warm for the whole trip and Australia is a little warmer than you would think looking at a globe. There are palm trees in Sydney and Melbourne. Sydney is 34 degrees North and Charlotte N.C. is 35 degrees South. So the trip is similar to a journey from Charlotte to Miami. They were in drought conditions except when we showed up. Earlier in the year is was over 100 in Sydney. This was the last cruise of the season but I would say that the weather was just about right except when it rained.

United had us fill out a form and we expect something from them for our trouble. The insurance covers trip delays which we have filed for. The coverage is limited to $500 PP. We have receipts for about $2700 for the four of us. The medical you file with your insurance company at home. We’ll see what we get and then go from there. There is no refund from the ship and Visa will help you find what you need but you are on your own for payment.