We arrived home early on the morning of Wednesday, February 20.

This was a very good trip, and I want to acknowledge some of the organizations/people who helped make it go so well.

First, Crystal Symphony Crew and Staff: This was billed as a luxury cruise, all-inclusive trip, and it definitely was. The service was outstanding. Our meals were always good, and there were always activities to participate in if you wanted to. The most outstanding thing that happened was getting reimbursed for two days because I was sick and confined to my room. I had contracted some kind of intestinal virus, and had to be quarantined. Luckily for me, these were sea days, so I didn’t miss out on any of our shore excursions. They tried to find an empty room for Mark, so that he wouldn’t have to quarantined as well, but nothing was available. Because we couldn’t leave our rooms, although we continued to use room service and internet, Crystal refunded us for those days. We did not ask for or even expect them to do that.

Second, the staffs of both Heritage Hotels in Auckland and Queenstown worked to return us some cash we had left in our safe in Auckland. After trying, without success, to find a courier service to bring us the cash, they put the money in their account, then transferred it to the Queenstown Hotel, where it was waiting for us when we checked in. All of this at no charge to us – fantastic!

Third, GoWay Travel Tours which organized all of our transportation, lodging and tours while in New Zealand and Australia. They work with multiple vendors to provide a vacation based on what you want to see and do. I was concerned that there would be glitches, but without fail, everyone was where they should be when they should be. The tours were all they were billed to be.

Last, but not least, Jill Ward at Bursch Travel who researched and made the arrangements for this once-in-a-lifetime trip.