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TravelManagers - Christie Gowan

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TravelManagers - Christie Gowan

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Planning your holiday should be half the fun! I do the hard work – you get to countdown to your escape
to an amazing destination (or two).

Ask me today about how I can help you to create…
• Your ideal cruise – the itinerary that ticks all the boxes, the best ship for you & a cabin perfectly suited to your needs
• Your Round the World travel experience – tick off a few bucket list items in one holiday!
• Your personalised holiday plans – whether you want to “flop & drop” or you’d like to explore a new destination
• Your perfect specialised tour – experience a country or region with experts to guide you all the way
• Your self-drive holiday – hit the open road & see where it take you
• Your once in a lifetime experience – is there an event or festival you’ve always wanted to experience?
• Your unique itinerary – flights, hotels, travel insurance & so much more! Let’s start planning today
😊 Christie

09/11/2026

Today was about excitement... with a hint of disappointment. We started the day navigating the Monday morning subways to get across Tokyo... followed by our first shinkansen to Odawara. From there... our taxis took us up into the mountains... to explore the region around Hakone.

That excitement was dampened (literally) by the rain & clouds... as Mt Fuji was nowhere to be seen. We still continued up the Hakone Ropeway to glimpse through the mist expectantly.

Unfortunately... the highlight up there was our attempts to "look seven years younger" by eating a black egg! Don't worry... the minerals only blacken the eggshell. The rest of the egg remains unchanged... and not even "eggier".

We broke off from the rest of the group to head back down in the cable car... to cruise on a pirate ship across Lake Ashinoko. The misty weather only made the scenery better... especially where the autumn colours are just starting to come through.

The local bus then took us to our "feature stay" for this trip... one night at a ryokan-style property. All the benefits of a traditional ryokan... with a few modern comforts.

The private onset in each room enabled some quiet relaxation for each of us... followed by a delicious traditional meal all dressed in our yukatas. Keep an eye out for our group photo to come. For now... my attempted "mirror selfie" will have to do.

Our first experience in the countryside has given us plenty of reasons to smile... now we're just keeping everything crossed for Fuji-san to show itself in the morning.

08/11/2026

My second day in Tokyo pretty much revolved around food! Our morning started with a visit to the Tsukiji Outer Market, to marvel at the range of fresh seafood, but also other amazing local delicacies.

We then jumped back on the subway to Shinjuku, where we had a fun sushi making class. I have to say all the years of eating nigiri paid off, as I was pretty good at shaped it for my lunch.

After a post-sushi & sake nap , I explored Kappabashi-dori (kitchen street) near our hotel. The range of what was offer was astounding - especially the fake food ready for display & range of knives!

My evening was spend in & around the Ginza area, indulging in monja-yaki, okonomiyaki (Tokyo style) & some yakatori. I bought dessert home, but may snack on that on today's first shinkansen to Hakone.

07/11/2026

My first 24 hours in Japan has not disappointed! From the mind-blowing views from the plane coming into Tokyo... to the views that awaited at my hotel. The ancient history of the neighbourhood we're staying in (Asakusa) to the heights of the Sky Tree just across the river. We navigated the Shibuya Crossing & walked more than 20,000 steps... some along Cat Street to Harajuku... and then to Meiji Shrine.

A few of us navigated the streets of our local neighbourhood to find dinner... and ended up on Hoppy Street - famous for it's variety of small eateries. Several shared snacks & a few drinks later... we ended up browsing the confusing range of products over seven floors of our local "Donki" store.

And that's only the start of our amazing small group adventure together!

28/10/2026

Princess Cruises has announced the 2028/2029 local season on Grand, Emerald & Royal Princess sailing from Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane & Fremantle.

This new season includes the Grand World Odyssey set to sail in May 2029 for 129 days - or there are a range of shorter segments to be released.

These departures go on sale on 11th November, while I am in Japan. Luckily there is only one hour's time difference, so that I will be able to lock everything in for you before I go sightseeing for the day.

What an amazing itinerary - and there is a wide range of interesting local sailings to book too!

Let me know if you'd like me to email you more details for the Grand World Odyssey & the rest of the season too! ⚓ Christie

22/10/2026

** Princess Cruises alert **

The 2028-2029 Australia & New Zealand season is almost ready for launch!! Details will be released next Wednesday... with cruises on sale from Wed, 11th November.

I'm excited to see the new & exciting itineraries on offer. What's still on your wishlist?

Let me know if you're keen to find out more! ⚓ Christie

21/10/2026

Are you considering a river cruise for your next holiday, but are concerned about low water levels in the rivers? 2026 saw a record drought that the river cruise industry has never before seen before.

As a result, European authorities have been using this opportunity to protect future seasons, by investing in measures to improve navigation during low water, such as dredging, channel improvements, and enhanced monitoring and forecasting.

o Dredging is planned specifically at 12 critical Lower Danube locations, four on the Austrian Danube, and six bottlenecks targeted under the Middle Rhine.
o Most actions improve the depth available to ships locally, rather than raising water levels across the whole river.
o These investments are intended to strengthen the long-term resilience of European river cruising, although they cannot eliminate disruption during extreme conditions.

Of course we can never predict the weather, but hopefully this practical approach gives you a little more confidence in making the decision to try one of the many amazing river cruise itineraries in Europe - or around the world!

Ask me more today! 🏞️ 🏰 🍷 Christie

12/10/2026

Princess Cruises is updating their Plus & Premier packages for international sailings from 13th October. From tomorrow, you will be able to include prepaid gratuities... making it even better value to upgrade to one of these packages before you sail.

The current Crew Appreciation and Service Charge is between USD18-20 per person per day depending on your cabin type, charged to your onboard account daily. "Crew Appreciation recognises crew members in the Bar, Dining, Entertainment, Housekeeping, Guest Services, Galley, Onboard Revenue areas and more throughout the fleet who contribute to the guest experience." This includes many crew members who you will never see, but are vital to your experience onboard.

In good news... this new upgrade is only an additional AUD10 per person per day! This means that the cost for the Plus package is AUD89 per person per day & the Premier package will be AUD139 per person per day for International sailings, including gratuities.

Cruises departing from an Australian port are still priced at $79 per person per day for the Plus package & $129 per person per day for the Premier package, as gratuities are not required for these itineraries.

Let me know if you would like to upgrade your existing package, or add one of these packages to your existing International Princess cruise reservation today.

⚓ Christie

08/10/2026

For those who have "seen everything" on cruises from Sydney... here's something quite unique. Combining a few Aussie ports, PNG, the Solomons, Vanuatu, Fiji, Samoa & NZ - all onboard Holland America's Westerdam.

Departing Sydney on 4th January 2028, you can choose to just cruise for the first 26 days ending in Auckland - or you can stay onboard for the full 40 days.

We have exclusive rates on both of these departures, so let me know if you'd like to find out more.

How incredible does this itinerary look? ⚓ Christie

06/10/2026

It's that time of year again...

Queensland doesn't have daylight savings... so please remember that I'm only available from 10am Qld time Mon-Thu... which is 11am NSW/Vic time.

This does mean that you have more time at the end of your day when I'll still be available to talk. ☀️ Christie

30/09/2026

Looking for something new to watch on TV tonight? Princess Cruises has a fabulous new 4 episode series featuring Aussie celebrity chefs competing onboard two Princess ships.

Tonight's episode of Chefs Ahoy was filmed while cruising in Greece on the amazing (new) Sun Princess. The third episode will be on the same ship in Spain. The other two episodes were filmed onboard the always popular Diamond Princess in Japan & Korea.

I had a sneak peek of the first episode courtesy of Princess Cruises last week & loved it! Not only does it show off this fabulous new ship & highlight the experiences you can have off the ship, but it really highlights the beautiful Princess crew & amazing service that you all love!

The series is hosted by Pete Helliar, so there are a few laughs too.

I can't wait to watch the rest of the series & hope you watch it all - Channel Nine on Wednesdays after The Block. 📺 Christie

https://www.princess.com/en-au/chefs-ahoy-tv-show

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