botherme75

This would be good to know. Hope you get an answer. 

Janet

Hello everyone I will be in the Mediterranean at the end of August and I have booked 3 tours with Italytours. I just received my final confirmation email and I’m undecided about the skip in line colosseum tickets? I haven’t purchased them yet can I get some feed back from anyone who can help me?

We did purchase them for our June visit. And, we were very glad we did. Normal walk up lines were quite long. But, we essentially got right in. I recommend buying them if you plan to visit the Coliseum.

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For those of you who successfully got through, would you mind posting the approximate time you called? Wondering if it's best to call earlier in the day (or some other specific time). I've been trying for several days during my lunch hour, and just sit on hold waiting to talk to someone.

Thanks for any advice you might have. :-)

Now if only I could get customer service to answer my call. [emoji849]

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My experience when I worked in Prince William Sound is that it changes during the day. As CruiserBruce said, wear layers and be prepared with rain gear, especially when in port. Temperatures can change dramatically if/when close to a glacier. If you get a nice, sunny day - enjoy it. Coastal Alaska is a temperate rainforest. So gray, rainy, windy days are very common. But, I always felt that the scenery was more beautiful in the wet weather.

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Enjoy! I had a Barcelona one booked in 2014 but had to cancel due to needing some surgery that was going to have a long recovery. I need to get that one back on the books. This one is Alaska, getting that off the bucket list. :)

Thank you! I worked in Alaska for a couple of seasons as a field biologist for Fish and Wildlife Service. It’s wonderful there! Enjoy your trip! And hope you get to do the Barcelona itinerary soon!

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Haha! We have an aft balcony too--and unless the suite was in a great location, I don't think we would have done it anyway. I love those aft balconies! We are in 1690.

Yes, it would have to be a nice spot to give up this location. We are in 7156 on Vision out of Barcelona. I’m looking forward to sitting on our balcony as we sail away from Kotor. [emoji4]

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I got the second email alerting me that they might call and gave that same phone number as the one to watch out for. That was on May 24th for my sailing on Explorer that leaves this Friday, June 8th. That sailing has been sold out for several weeks (no matter what site you use, US. UK, etc) and suites have been gone for well over a month, which is what my 'upsell' offer had been for in the first place. A couple of friends sailing on this same cruise also got the second emails. None of us ever got the call, didn't think we would.

It seems rather silly to send the email. Our cruise is essentially sold out, too. So, I never expected a call after the first email came out. Gotta love automated systems. 🤷🏻*♀️

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Check the Royal Caribbean UK website. They show all the cabins that are available. The US website only shows a few.

Thank you for the tip! The UK site showed the same two balcony rooms available that I had seen on another site. We sail in less than two weeks, so I’m sure there is last minute shuffling around. But I’m not trading my aft balcony for a midship balcony. [emoji23]

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We got the initial email to get on the list for an upgrade about a month or so ago. Today I got a second email letting me know that IF an upgrade is available, they will be calling within a few days from a phone number beginning with 866-562-xxxx. I’m not expecting a call since it appears (at least from what I can find online) that they only have 2 balcony rooms available, which is what we already have. I was surprised to get a second email. Has anyone else gotten the second email?

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For both our 2019 Seaside (Caribbean) and 2020 Grandiosa (Mediterranean) Cruises, kids under 17 only pay port fees/taxes (don’t quote me on exact charges, but it’s a small amount). It’s a great deal for families.

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Hi again......Thanks for the quick response. I'm never quite sure where I can ask questions about tours but since you had good luck with them, I feel better about it. We will be on the May 6th cruise on the Epic out of Barcelona, so before when you will go. This is our first time to Europe ever and probably the only time, so I want to make sure to see as much as possible without going into debt! We have cruised many times but not over there and the cruisetours are so expensive. We go at that time because daughter's birthday falls that week and the weather here is nice for flying out anywhere. I hope it will not be too cool over there on the ship at that time.....it's hard to judge since we are usually in the Caribbean. Thank you so much and have a great cruise with your family........Patti

Patti, there is a sister company for Barcelona (Barcelona Day Tours). We will be doing a half day tour on one of our two pre-cruise days. They were equally attentive to our emails and questions.

Janet

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Easy rule, if the trip is very close, usually the cruise + airfare from MSC is cheaper than buying the flight yourself (if it is not a "simple" connection you can do with Ryanair or Easyjet). If the trip is far away like in your case you should be able to find a much better price by yourself.

 

Exception: For cruises that start from places with very little airline competition like Havana, the MSC offer for cruise + airfare is very difficult to beat.

Thank you for the info! I think we will do better to book on our own. [emoji4]

Janet

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Janet they do offer add on airfare however I have read of a few problems in some recent reviews .

 

First off , you can definitely get a better price if you shop around on line. Their price was quite a bit higher . And second , two separate posters have shared bad experiences using the flights purchased through MSC . One gentleman said they nearly missed getting on board due to mix ups with the airline connections .

 

Since you have so much time til you cruise , I would definitely look around to see what other options you may have.

Thank you so much for the info! Sounds like we will definitely book it on our own. [emoji4]

Janet

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Hello everyone! We have booked our first MSC cruise on Grandiosa for 2020.....so far away. [emoji30]. Does anyone know if MSC offers cruise air (similar to Air2Sea from Royal)? Our experience with A2S has been a good one, and got a great rate for our upcoming cruise out of Barcelona, flying from Chicago . We were hoping to get a similar experience with MSC.

Thank you for any info you might have!

Kind Regards,

Janet

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We got one yesterday for our June 19th Med Venice out of Barcelona on Vision. $1250 to go from balcony to JS. It seemed steep, but it is a 12 night cruise for which all balconies and OV are sold out. We have an aft balcony, so still on the fence about accepting if called. We have our two children with us (17 and 3 YO), and the extra room (and bathtub) would be nice. [emoji4]

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Yesterday I received an email asking if I wanted to be put in a list for a upgrade. Maybe that’s how they will do it now? 🤷🏻*♀️

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I've held a valid passport ever since I started working. Being ever the optimist, I felt if I ever won the lottery, I was going to hop on a plane and take off to parts unknown, and knew I'd need a passport if I wanted to travel. When our son came along, we made sure to have one for him well, because we wanted to be able to travel with him, rather than leaving him behind. The cost of passports has increased over the years, but it's part of the cost of travel. Now that we have 10 year passports, it's a travel bargain that works out to $16 per year.

 

 

 

BTW, I'm still waiting for that lottery win . . .

 

 

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

This is exactly how we look at it. It’s a relatively minor expense when spread out over 10 years. We just did our application this morning for the three year old, and I can’t wait until he gets his first stamp in it next summer. [emoji4]

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My oldest is from my wife’s previous marriage. He has a different name than both of us. We always get a letter signed (and notarized) by his father. We’ve never been asked for it, but I’d much rather be safe than sorry. If you choose not to, then at least bring the court paperwork showing you have full custodial control. Last thing you want to have happen is to show up to port and not be able to board.

This is what we do too. We will have a notarized letter from his dad when we go on our med cruise. But, I also need to take a series of documents showing my identity since I went back to my maiden name after I got divorced. So, I didn’t go from old married name to new married name. It has certainly made things more complicated.

In the OP situation, it doesn’t sound desirable to have contact with the father. I’d suggest contacting a passport agency and see if the docs she has is sufficient to apply for a passport. If so, then surely they are adequate for boarding h the cruise ship.

Good luck!

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So you were able to get the discount for your April 2018 cruise? I couldn't. I'm on Freedom on April 28th and they're telling me I can't get the discount. They said its not available on cruises that far out. I tried to tell them that I logged in to my cruise and it was there. He couldn't explain it, but said that it was not available.

I was able to get the discount for my June 2018 cruise. It was the first time I had seen drinks on sale and all dinner options available. Hope it works out for you. :-(

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Janet, do you have info on where you booked an apartment? There will be 8 of us traveling and I'd love more info on apartments. thank you

Hi there! I did research on Booking.com (I’m not sure if I’m allowed to reference that site, hope it doesn’t get removed) and TripAdvisor to see what was available in areas where we wanted to stay and to get reviews. Then I booked directly with the apartment company. We are staying at Quartprimera Apartments for two nights pre-cruise, and Deco - Santa Fira Apartments for one night post cruise.

Let me know if you need more info!

Janet

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Thanks for the answers. DH is wanting to go at least 1 day early so he might be open to another day or two. A little sightseeing in Barcelona sounds nice.

We are on departing June 19th on Vision for our first cruise. So excited! We will arrive the afternoon of the 17th, but don’t plan on doing too much since we are traveling with a toddler. Probably will just wander around our apartment when we’ve rested a bit, and get dinner. Then just relax on the terrace. The 16th will be a half day tour with Barcelona Day Tours, then La Sagrada Familia after lunch. We’ve heard so many wonderful things about Barcelona and can’t wait to visit.

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My suggestion Take the train or a tour bus from Seward to Anchorage. Anchorage is fun for an overnight or two. The museum is fantastic. Some of the food is worth a trip! Moose tooth pizza and the halibut at the F street station.

Oh, Moose Tooth! That alone is worth the trip to Anchorage. I worked for the Fish and Wildlife Service in Alaska 20 years ago. Loves Moose’s Tooth!

There used to be a backpackers shuttle that ran from Anchorage to Denali. Seems like it was around $50 round trip, but my memory is very fuzzy on that. And I’m sure prices have changed since then.

Janet

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Hotel Continental Barcelona was on our short list. But we ended up booking a three bedroom apartment for about the same price. Our kids will be 17 and 3 when we travel, so separate spaces was ideal. Especially once we are on board and in closer quarters. Hope everything worked out ok for you. [emoji4]

Janet

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Thanks Janet! We needed a bunch of rooms. We have 27 now at Hotel Continental. The breakfast buffet and 24 hour snacks and drinks won't hurt. LOL

Will let you know how it goes.

Oh wow! How lucky you were to get that many rooms there. Have a wonderful time!

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Well, I could not secure group space at any of the recommended hotels but I was able to hold 24 rooms at the Hotel Continental Barcelona.

Thank you all for your suggestions!

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Hotel Continental Barcelona was on our short list. But we ended up booking a three bedroom apartment for about the same price. Our kids will be 17 and 3 when we travel, so separate spaces was ideal. Especially once we are on board and in closer quarters. Hope everything worked out ok for you. [emoji4]

Janet

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