Everyone
pp. 144-145 · Read in the full issue
Pacific Cruises For Everyone
This is the year for Pacific cruising. From Sydney, NSW, you can ship British, Italian, Dutch, American, French or Swedish, to a large range of South Seas Islands and sometimes on to Asia, at prices to suit any pocket.
1N many respects, a cruise is still the best way to see many of the Islands, combining as it does trans port and the accommodation that is still missing from some of the more unspoiled places. For many people, too, the days at sea are as enjoyable as those spent in port.
The ships that will Pacific cruise this year, out of Sydney, range in size from under 10,000 tons to over 40,000 tons. In addition, some shipping lines have what might be called regular cruise routes. Here are some of the companies and their ships that will interest prospective tourists: • The P & O-Orient vessels Strathmore (23,000 tons); Orsova (29,000 tons); Oriana (42,000 tons); Orcades (28,000 tons); Chusan (24,000); Iberia (30,000 tons). With the exception of the one-class Strath more, all vessels have first and tourist classes. This company’s head-office address for passenger bookings is 2 Spring Street, Sydney. • The Matson Company’s 20,000 ton vessels Monterey and Mariposa.
Accommodation is all first-class but fares vary according to cabin. Sydney head-office is Berger House, 82 Elizabeth St., Sydney. • Burns Philp Line which has half a dozen ships that make regular voyages to the South-West Pacific islands but whose 6,000 tons Bulolo is the one that most interests tourists; head-office in Sydney is 7 Bridge Street. • The China Navigation Com pany which owns the Kuala
Lumpur (12,500 tons) and the smaller vessels ( Shansi, Soochow, etc.) of the New Guinea-Australia Line. Swire and Yuill Pty. Ltd., of 6 Bridge Street, Sydney, are their agents. • The Australia-West Pacific Line, which has the big freighter-passenger vessels Delos, Milos, Aros, Tenos and Samos. Swedish-owned, their Sydney agents are Wilh. Wilhelmsen, 13 Bridge Street, Sydney.
• Messageries Maritimes, which operates the small passenger-freighter Polynesie. Sydney address is 36 Grosvenor St., Sydney. • The Union
The
Pacific
Steam Ship Company which operates the Tofua and Matua on South Paci fic round voyages. Sydney head office is 247 George Street; and in Auckland, NZ, it is Cnr. Quay and Commerce Sts. • Lloyd Triestino which is bring ing the new 27,500 tons Galileo into service in April. Sydney agents are Gilchrist Watt & Sanderson Pty. Ltd., 17 O’Connell St., Sydney. • Dominion Line, which has begun operating the 7,500 tons Francis Drake and George Anson.
Agents are H. C. Sleigh Ltd., 115 York Street, Sydney. • F. H. Stephens Pty. Ltd., which is agent for the 10,000 tons ex-trans-
Tasman liner Wanganella; Sydr address is 13 Bridge Street. • Cogedar line which has t Aurelia (14,000 tons), and (16,000 tons) and is Italian; H.
Sleigh Ltd. (see above) is Sydc agent.
Regular Voyages
The vessels that make regu' round-voyages in the Pacific and which tourists can book are: Bulolo which makes montl voyages to Papua-New Guinea po out of Sydney and Brisbane.
The Mariposa and Monterey wh( route is San Francisco, Los Angel Bora Bora, Papeete, Rarotonj Auckland, Sydney, Noumea, Su 1 Niuafo’ou, Pago Pago, Honoloi and San Francisco. (There is a per cent, reduction available on 1 round-trip fare for the voyages le: ing Sydney on Sept. 23, Oct. 14, N< 7 and Nov. 28).
Tofua and Matua with a rou route that takes them from Auckla to Suva, Nukualofa and Vav (Tonga), Niue, American Sanu Apia (Western Samoa) and reti to Auckland.
Milos, Delos, Tenos, etc., wh< route from Sydney to Hongkc and Japan is via Manila and whc return is via New Guinea ports, a occasionally also via Honiara, B 5 and Santo, New Hebrides to A tralia.
Francis Drake and George Am which go via Manila to Hongkc and Japan and return via Guam a Rabaul.
The Polynesie which makes regui voyages from Sydney to Noumi
New Caledoc and Vila and S: to, New Hebrid and return to S; ney.
The Sham Soochow and S kiang which m» regular voyaj
from Sydney and Brisbane to Pap< New Guinea ports and return.
In addition to these round voya; there are, of course, the regu trans-Pacific, Australasia-Amen voyages of the P & O-Orient 0 vessels; those of Messageries Ms times— Tahitien and Caledont across the Pacific and through Panama to Europe; those of Sh r Savill’s 20,000 ton Southern Cr and 24,000 ton Northern Star: a Royal Dutch Mail vessels Wilß Ruys and Oranje, which cross Pacific on round the world voyage Cruises for the Year Of the straight-out special cruii from Sydney in 1963, the follow\ just about cover the field:
The "Pacific Islands Monthly" is a member of the Australian National Travel Association (ANTA) and the Pacific Area Travel Association (PATA), which are pledged to promote tourist travel in their areas.
L pril 19: Wanganella, to Brisbane, 'man Is., Noumea, Brisbane; 17 5; from £Bl/5/-. (One-class), .pril 7: Flavia, to Rabaul, Japan, igkong, Formosa, Manila; 37 5; from £275. (One-class), pril 11: Strathmore, to Tonga, a, Noumea; from £lO2. (One s). lay 7: Orsova, to Port Moresby, aul and Honiara, BSIP; 12 days; n £B9 tourist; £125 first class, me 4: Wanganella, to Auck [, Suva, Apia (W. Samoa), Vavau Nukualofa (Tonga), Bay of nds and Auckland, NZ; 25 days; n £lsl/5/-. (One-class), me 12: Oriana, to Suva, Pori resby, Hayman Island; 11 days; n £BS tourist; £l3l first-class.
Line 21: Orcades, to Savusavu i), Suva and Noumea; 11 days; n £7B tourist; £ll7 first class, aly 3: Wanganella, to Port resby, Rabaul and Honiara, P; 16 days; from £95/15/-.
Lily 13: Chusan, to Auckland, otonga (Cook Is.), Bora Bora and eete, Suva and Lautoka; 21 days; n £162 tourist; £219 first-class, uly 20: Galileo, to Brisbane and imea; 7 days; from £49 tourist; first-class, mgust 6: Wanganella, to Noumea Hayman Island; 10 days; from /15/-. (One-class), mgust 19: Aurelia, to Nukualofa Vavau (Tonga), Suva and usavu (Fiji); 15 days; from £lO2. le-class). eptember 20: Wanganella, to :kland, Suva, Apia, Vavau, aialofa, Bay of Islands, Auckland; days; from £lsl/15/-. (One s). ictober 15: Iberia, to Suva, anese ports and Inland Sea, Hong g, Barrier Reef; 32 days; from 7 tourist; £329 first-class, ictober 21: Kuala Lumpur, to :kland, Suva, Apia Vavau and aialofa, Auckland; 28 days; from 4. All first-class. This vessel 1 makes a cruise originating in *apore on August 10 and includ- Australian ports Rabaul, Japan Hongkong.
Jovember 2: Wanganella, to fldand, Suva, Noumea and Bris e; 17 days; from £9B/15/-. (One s). ill fares are quoted in Australian rency and all cruises terminate in ney.
Fiji's "Other" Island )ne interesting note is that Savu u, Fiji, is on the cruise pro mme this year—for the P & O ent liner Orcades in June and for Cogedar Line Aurelia in August. ; people of this area of Vanua ru (the “other” island of Fiji),
have waited a long time for this recognition and are sure to put their best feet forward on both occasions.
In spite of the expensive Hibiscus Highway that extends from Savusavu Bay to Buca Bay this part of Fiji is, in many respects, little changed since Cession. It is a copra district and the tourists are certain to find it one of the most unspoiled parts of the South Pacific with a lot to offer.
No doubt Vanua Levu residents who feel that Fiji’s main island of Viti Levu gets most of the tourist limelight are suitably gratified that the account will be evened up to the extent of two cruise ships this year.
Abroad
Duty Free in Sydney
THE duty-free shop at Sydney’s Kingsford Smith Airpott is al ready well known to overseas travellers. Now, to make things even easier for prospective purchasers, Duty Free Stores Pty. Ltd. has opened a viewing centre at 4 Castlereagh Street, City, just next door to the P. & 0.-Orient building (now under construction), and only a minute away from the Qantas building in Hunter Street.
In spacious, ground-floor premises you can view all the duty-free goods on offer, make your selection weeks before leaving and without all the pre-embarkation flurry, pay for it, and know that it will be delivered to you on aircraft or ship.
Up to recently, duty-free shopping was only for air travellers but now the same goods can be delivered to passengers leaving Australia by ship.
If the vessel leaves Sydney direct for an overseas destination you can have it immediately the ship is outside the port; if the vessel calls at other Aus tralian ports after leaving Sydney you collect your goods after the last Aus tralian port is left behind. The goods are kept in bond for you on board up to that point.
There are still a few tricks to the business, however. If you break your journey or even change planes in any Australian airport or Australian terri tory airport, you forfeit the right to buy duty-free goods.
If, for example, you go to Noumea or New Zealand, you can do as much duty-free shopping as you like; but if you go to the Solomon Islands or West New Guinea through New
Guinea, even though they are twice as far as to NZ (and a lot more foreign), you cannot buy duty-free goods.
If you go to Europe or Singapore, the Far East or Africa from Sydney, you are in the clear if you remain “in transit” at Perth or Darwin. But if you break your journey at either place, or even change planes, duty free goods are not for you. (This means that although you can buy duty-free goods if you go to Johannes burg by Qantas, you cannot if you go by South African Airways which ter minates its trans-Indian Ocean service at Perth, WA.) Sydney’s Duty-Free Stores stock the usual range of goods—cameras, tape-recorders, portable typewriters, binoculars, watches, perfume, tran sistor radios, etc. Prices are roughly about two-thirds what you pay for them retail, in Australia. For ex ample a Canon 8 mm zoom movie camera which sells for £A97 retail is priced at £A6O in the duty-free shop; an Underwood portable typewriter, in a zipp-case, which normally sells at about £A39/10/- retail is £A2B/10/in the duty-free shop.
All of which adds up to the fact that if you want to do some heavy, high-priced luxury goods buying, it is cheaper to take a trip to New Zealand or Noumea and get them duty-free.