After many years of dreaming and planning and booking, we left for Sydney in Australia for our grand odyssey Down Under. 

Visiting Sydney, cruising on Princess Cruises‘ Majestic Princess to New Caledonia, Fiji and Vanuatu, flying to Melbourne and back. 

It was our last adventure in a pre-corona world. It seems like another century. Of course it isn’t.

This is an overview of our 2020 Australia – New Caledonia – Fiji – Vanuatu Odyssey. 

Flights and lounges

• Star Alliance Lounge Paris
• Lufthansa Business Lounge Paris CDG
• Swiss Business Class from Paris to Zurich
• Swiss Business Lounge Zurich E-gates 
• Swiss Business Class Zurich to Bangkok
• Thai Airways Royal Silk & Royal Orchid lounges at Bangkok Airport
• Singapore Airlines Silverkris Lounge Bangkok 
• Turkish Airlines Lounge Bangkok 
• EVA Air Lounge Bangkok
• Thai Business Class Bangkok to Sydney 
• Qantas Economy Class Sydney to Melbourne 
• Air New Zealand Lounge Sydney Airport
• Singapore Airlines SilverKris Lounge Sydney 
• Singapore Airlines Business Class Sydney to Singapore 
• Singapore Airlines SilverKris Lounge Singapore Terminal 2
• Swiss Business Class Singapore to Zurich
• Swiss Business Class Lounge Terminal A Zurich
• Swiss Business Class Zurich to Paris

Sydney

• Around Sydney Harbour, Circular Quay and the Museum of Sydney
• Macquarie Street, Hyde Park, Central Station, the Goods Line, the Chinese Garden of Friendship, Powerhouse Museum, Darling Harbour, Pyrmont Bridge and Queen Victoria Building
• InterContinental Sydney 
• Parramatta and Sydney Olympic Park 
• Sydney Royal Botanic Gardens
• Swissôtel Sydney

Majestic Princess

• Check-in on Majestic Princess 
• Majestic Princess deluxe balcony stateroom 
• LGBTQ+ get-together on Majestic Princess 
• Restaurants and food 
• Bars and drinks package 
• Pools, sports and entertainment 
• Communication, television and internet 
• Cooking presentation and galley visit
• Cruising on Majestic Princess

Ports of call

• Noumea, New Caledonia 
• Lifou (Drehu), New Caledonia
• Port Vila, Vanuatu
• Dravuni Island, Fiji
• Suva, Fiji
• Savusavu, Fiji
• Nadi and Lautoka, Fiji
• New Caledonia, Vanuatu and Fiji Pacific Islands Cruise

Melbourne

• Return to Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit at Albert Park
• Melbourne CBD
• InterContinental Melbourne The Rialto
• Outside Melbourne CBD: Shrine of Remembrance, Chapel Street (Prahran), St Kilda Beach 
• Drag queen bingo at Pride of our Footscray Community Bar
• Old Treasury Building and Parliament of Victoria 
• Melbourne to Sydney on NSW TrainLink XPT