Alternatives to Cruise for Family of 5 Looking to Celebrate and Chill

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  SmiTTy on 19/02/2019 - 10:04

  Surely if you check the carnival website you'd be able to find other similar cruises on different dates? Otherwise try the other brands like royal Caribbean, p&o, Princess etc

  Alternatively try luxury escapes resort holiday

  • 

    Hoju on 19/02/2019 - 10:40

    +1

    Thanks I’ll give luxury escapes a go - dates are tight that’s all, somehow a rostering coincidence has given me a week off without using any leave

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  floppy on 19/02/2019 - 10:19

  have you heard of Daydream island in the whitsundays? i think they have all inclusive packages. or as you mentioned club med, there are some in Bali and nearby countries.

  • 

    Hoju on 19/02/2019 - 10:41

    Thanks I’ll have a look!

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  justwaitingforamate on 19/02/2019 - 10:29

  Fly to Bali or Thailand, good value for money and well travelled= caters to whatever level you wish
  Can relax on an island, rain forest or rice paddy setting or be in the thick of it. Literally a choose your own adventure and you can spend what you save on 100 xiaomi scooters when you return.

  • 

    Hoju on 19/02/2019 - 10:42

    We did think of that but the flight time and hassle associated is just a bit much stress for a short period with the juniors too.

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  Fiximol on 19/02/2019 - 12:50

  Edit: got the wrong date. Whoops =X

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  volgo on 19/02/2019 - 17:05

  Used to be Club Med in New Caledonia, it is less than 3 hours from Sydney and you have yourself a holiday in a French speaking tropical resort.
  If Club Med is gone I'm sure there'd be some other nice resorts.
  I went many years ago and had a great holiday.

  • 

    Hoju on 19/02/2019 - 17:06

    Thanks I’ll have a look :)

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  [Deactivated] on 19/02/2019 - 19:46

  +1

  I generally check these 2 sites . Ozcruising first.
  Then whatever you find on any site , I make sure I check ozcruising and dccruising (in case price is cheaper for that specific cruise)
  . If you keeping scrolling through the deals/specials section of these sites, if there isn't anything suitable today, check everyday for a week, and you will almost certainly find something good.
  I tend to look at $100 pp per day, as max, so anything under, I consider a good deal. A great deal would be around $70 or less pp per day.

  https://m.ozcruising.com.au/cruise-specials?gclid=eaiaiqobch…

  https://www.dccruising.com.au/specials.php

  Also, you can get any deal found online, matched in store. I know cruiseabout shellharbour used to do this, so I guess other agents price match also.

  https://www.yellowpages.com.au/nsw/shellharbour/cruiseabout-…

  • 

    madreece on 20/02/2019 - 07:46

    Thanks for the links Chewy!

  • 

    Hoju on 20/02/2019 - 07:51

    Thanks for that. I must have clicked on the ozcruising website about 400 times in the last week since the Carnival one sold out
    I'm only off for a specific week at the end of feb, otherwise no options :(

    ozcruising has been great in the past though, I'd definitely keep up with them in future.

    • 

      [Deactivated] on 20/02/2019 - 09:30

      I just checked yesterday, and it is good to keep checking the 'hot deals' to find a great bargain.
      Remember to always check the pricing of better suits/cabins sometimes it is only $25 more for balcony cabin, compared to interior without even a window.
      I noticed even the best prices pp per night, were still up quite a bit from my cruise last year. I believe the weak Aussie dollar has spiked prices somewhat .
      Me and 2 mates got 5 nights Sydney to Tasmania (2 port stops) then back to Melbourne. Balcony cabin for just $396 :) .
      IMO it is sooooo much nicer, for times spent in the room, even when you're not out on balcony, to have curtain wide open with view out window, I even proped door open to hear the waves also :)

      • 

        Hoju on 20/02/2019 - 09:44

        Gee, that sounds like an awesome deal. I have seen some great deals and been tempted to get one of the two night Or three night one way deals but just don’t have the time off.
        The only option I have for this period is the carnival one. The other one is a 10 night Princess Cruise this trip from Sydney and seeing if I can just get off halfway at Cairns and fly back! I don’t know if they do this though…

        • 

          [Deactivated] on 20/02/2019 - 09:50

          +1

          @Hoju:

          if I can just get off halfway at Cairns and fly back! I don’t know if they do this though…

          You could call any cruise agency on phone, and get a definite answer.
          If you mean pay for less nights, and get off half way, they probably wouldn't do that but certainly worth asking .
          They probably would have trouble booking the second half of trip though, plus they have thing where they run you through all the safety stuff at start, so I'm not sure they could do that for people boarding half way. So could get off half way, but probably no discount worth asking though, either call agent, or click 'chat now' on 1 of the websites

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            Hoju on 20/02/2019 - 09:52

            @[Deactivated]: Thanks! I’ll give that ago, especially as we are only three days out from departure so they might be happy to just sell cabins

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  BobD on 20/02/2019 - 07:51

  If looking at SE Asia cruises then Pandaw looks good. Under 18 free and not super huge boats.

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  Hoju on 22/02/2019 - 21:42

  +1

  Fortuitous! Cyclones on the east coast caused the cruise we wanted to be diverted from Moreton Island to Phillip Island, resulting in some cancellations and on randomly phoning ozcruising this morning in the vain hope of getting something, they had cabins! Unbelievable. Not cheap but 6 of us for $4000 is ok-ish, especially as one of the rooms is an extended balcony suite or something, all they had left!
  YAYYYY

  no idea what's included in the carnival cruises but I'm sure it's a step above the P&O we did when we had to pay extra for even a soft drink package…

  • 

    isthisreallife22 on 22/02/2019 - 21:58

    haha, cool story makes it that extra little bit special for you guys

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  isthisreallife22 on 22/02/2019 - 22:06

  +1

  I know you have the cruise, but places that came to mind:

  1. Fiji - have never been but I know plenty that have gone on this exact type of trip there, lots of kid friendly, English speaking, etc
  2. Whitsundays Island resorts - probably Hamilton Island based on your requirements (e.g. you can fly directly there)
  3. Tangalooma Resort on Moreton Island off Brisbane (nothing spectacular but very easy trip, nice break from Sydney, and a good family island place)
  4. Port Douglas has numerous resorts of the type you described
  5. Noosa

  Actually heaps more ideas in Tasmania, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, etc… argh now I need to find myself in the same fortuitous position as yourself dammit