Ngaire and Ken
Bert and Mitch + pre-cruise NZ wineries
Maddy and Paul + pre-cruise NZ walking + post-cruise to Angkor Wat
Mark and Cheron + pre-cruise NZ wineries
Pam and Jim + pre-cruise NZ, post-cruise Oceania
Sheila and Ken + pre-cruise NZ
Susan and Dennis + pre-cruise NZ
Cindy and David, post cruise leg onward to Hong Kong
Paul and Susan + pre-cruise NZ

Mitch and Bert 644-pre-cruise New Zealand Wineries. Olivia, it will be so great to travel with you again!

omg, I am thrilled the two of you will be with us! Been a loooong time, maybe back to Ngaire's Japan cruise? Yay!

So happy you're coming with us Mitch & Bert !! We haven't cruised together since MUSH I think.

Tom & I are doing pre-cruise on Oceania and then in #643 on KIWIS, post cruise to Angkor Wat.

Wow! It's a great group already! We are thrilled to join you.

Hi everyone.

Mona and I will be on this cruise too, in 717. It will be great to see you again Mitch and Bert. We're also doing the pre-cruise wineries tour.

After the cruise I'd like to spend a couple of days in Singapore and then do my own post cruise trip to Thailand.

Can't wait.

Tom.

That's great news Tom & Mona.

I heard from a cute little Dallas blonde this cruise is a big seller so don't be shy and join the roll call.

So glad Tom and Mona are aboard. We are hoping to get to Auckland about 2 days pre-cruise and will spend 2 or 3 days in Singapore on the return. I have someone working on an award ticket for me. Merry Christmas to all.

Maddy & Paul, pre-cruise New Zealand walking, post-cruise to Angkor Wat

We are also on this cruise. Our room is 651. We are doing the pre-cruise winery tour and hopefully will be doing some post days in Bali.

Pre cruise. Than onto Hong Kong post cruise around all Australia on Oceania from Sydney to Sydney

We are also on this cruise. Cabin 645. Also the pre cruise NZ.

Woo Hoo, you guys are next door to us !

We will have our own neighbourhood!

Please add Susan and Dennis to the roll call. Cabin 650. NZ wineries pre cruise.

Yay, we more than doubled the numbers in just two days! What a fine group!

Hi Olivia. It was nice to have finally met you in person on our Voyager "Stupas" cruise! I know you are still onboard - hope you survived the rough seas I was hearing about from Peggy.

David and I are signed up for this cruise. We are doing the grand cruise - staying on until Hong Kong.

Cindy, glad to add you and David to the line-up! When we get off in Singapore, you will retrace the cruise happening right now, this year AFTER you left us! For 2017, my wish is for you to hit every one of those ports. We weren't so lucky, but a good time, still.

If we were to use Regent Air for this round trip, anyone know what the Business class upgrade cost is : LAX - AKL and then SIN-LAX ??

Also, if we're doing the Angkor Wat post cruise...any idea what time we return back to Singapore on the return ?

Marcie: Here is what is on the Regent site for our cruise:

Business Class Air Specials

This voyage features a specially-priced Business Class Air* Upgrade for only $2,999 each way.

Marcie,

If you purchase business class air through Regent, it will cost about $7400 per person when you take the amount of the air credit into consideration. For people on the West Coast, this may be an instance where it is better to book the flights on your own. Assuming fares don't increase significantly from those available in the first half of January 2017, it should be possible to save from $500 to about $1000 per person by booking directly instead of through Regent.

The savings only apply to folks who live on the West Coast. People who live on the East Coast would be better off purchasing their air through Regent.

Thanks so much Wes and Dave !

specially-priced Business Class Air* Upgrade for only $2,999 each way. Doesn't sound like any deal to me.

Especially since the business class upgrade on the Singapore to Hong Kong cruise following yours is only $1999 each way. Might be worthwhile asking Regent about the pricing difference.

You're welcome Marcie..concur with both Dave and your upgrade pricing assessment. If I recall Marcie you also collect miles/points, tho getting award seats to/from OZ is tough..we're using points pro's. Tho, am comfortable doing our own award air tix almost anywhere, when the award ticket is tough I go to Ben @ points pros. For example, looks like our flight to Auckland will be 140K pp, we are either flying back to ATL from Bali or Singapore using AA or AMX/Chase (Krisflyer miles (Singapore air).

Wes, good for you! Best I could do for less points (80k) miles one way has a brutal schedule. Still have to get my return from SIN. My points bank is dwindling!

Hi Olivia, alas-- currently AA has no saver awards (62.5k) for their LA-AKL flight so we used 175K miles pp (good routing from ATL tho). Points pros will be on look out in next few months for a drop to saver awards but with AA devaluation coming up later this month, a saver award LA-AKL will be 80K AA miles pp--still better than 175K pp and worth the change fee if we can get. We did get for 55K AA miles pp our rtn from Bali (since we have been to Bali and Singapore on a previous Voyager cruise)--this is a placeholder (November) but when our rtn date Feb 17th opens up later this month we will make the change (at no cost since origination (Bali) and destination (ATL) remain the same (most flights on Cathay Pacific, BC).

Thanks to Marcie for helping us change our suite (736) to the "Matassa Suite" 643.

We got the business awArd DFW to AKL on American one way with a perfect schedule. Happy to get that and use miles. The mileage awards are just going to continually get more expensive. Will be easier and probably less miles from Singapore to DFW.

We are joining the neighborhood. Paul and Susan in 654. We are also doing the NZ pre-cruise.

Delighted to hear you've joined the party, Paul and Susan!

Olivia, a very good deal flying back from Singapore is using AMX Points (93,500) for first class to Houston with one stop in Moscow (90 min layover). You would have to transfer your AMX membership reward points to Singapore Krisflyer miles. As a contrast if we wanted to fly BA FC to Atlanta it would of cost 200K Avios per person and Singapore airlines is a better FC product. Biz class on AA is 80Kpp for return. We are flying this route leaving Singapore 21 Feb at 2 a.m. for Moscow then Houston. We booked the Singapore Hilton for the 21st as a day/early nite room--we'll head to the Singapore airport just before mid night on the 20th.

For those of you who pay for your cruise with the American Express Platinum card, may have a deal for you if you invest with Charles Schwab. Pls see link below:

Why? Get an additional 43000 Membership rewards points, a $100 or $200 AMX credit depending on the scale of your Schwab investments, $200 airline fee credit, Global Entry fee credit and a few more bennies.

I checked with the cruise travel specialists at AMX and you can use multiple AMX-P cards to deposit towards your cruise and still get the $300 SBC as long as one of you has the platinum card.

I rcvd my statement credit four days after getting my card (Ida applied for hers yesterday) and got my 40K AMX points yesterday. Had our TA deposit $3K more towards our final payment on Auckland to Hong Kong. This also was timely as my renewal for Global entry is due and used this card for that--AMX will pay the $100 GOES fee.

In other words, if this works for you just deposit another $3K, get a statement credit immediately, 40K MR points (worth @ 1.8.pts about $720).

This is a unique/good deal now that AMX has limited it's bonuses to one per lifetime of the card.

Hope this helps.





http://www.schwab.com/public/schwab/investing/accounts_products/credit_cards

Bringing this to the top to see if we have any new joiners for this cruise. Some of these ports I haven't visited in several years, and loved New Zealand back in 2005! Cannot wait to get back, Jan-Feb is just so DULL and BROWN around here in the winter.

Been quiet here for a few days! Been busy getting my yard back in shape for the summer season.

Well there are more we have over 50 people on that trip it is a good deal and selling really well.

The list of KIWIS shore excursions is now available by email.

Just part way thru the final list, but so far I am a little disappointed. Some of the excursions that were previously offered at some of the ports are not being offered on this cruise

It will still be an awesome cruise though!

I know this question comes up often, Cindy how can I Find that email link?

Olivia, This is courtesy of Dave F from San Diego.

The excursion listing usually appears about seven to ten days or so before excursions become available for booking.

To get the listing, click on Find a Cruise and select the cruise you want. Then click on the name of a port other than the embarkation or disembarkation ports. This will take you to the Port & Excursion page for the selected port. If the excursion list has been released, you will see a link entitled, "Receive All Available Tours Via E-mail" right above the symbol for "Light Activity/Walking." Click on that link, supply your email address and the complete list and description of all excursions will be sent to you very shortly.

Dave was kind enough to enlighten me a while back. Could never remember so I copied and saved it in a Notes file that I could look up.

Olivia - I can email it to you if you have any problems finding it. Just let me know!

I got it with that info Ralph posted from Davefr, thanks!

Very excited to walk the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

Wow! You are doing the Bridge Climb? That's awesome!!!! Wish I could still do that, but physically not possible for me anymore...