ilovesalchows

Not sure how much you want to spend, but the TWA Hotel at JFK has day rooms and is an awesome experience. You can plane spot from the heated pool over the runway.

It looks like both flights are bookable on their own. I assume you have logged in to United and looked at your own record? I don't think you have anything to worry about. That being said, if you can change your flight for a credit without penalty, you should go ahead and do it.

If it is on Alaska Air, usually when you check in for the flight there is an option to grab an earlier flight for a fee. Not sure what it is now, but it was $25 per person last time I did it.

This. My family of four travel super light, and we are extending with land tours in Europe on both ends. I will gladly pay the high prices for laundry. I also wash underwear and tees in the sink with the travel laundry soap sheets.

We loved the TWA hotel, it was such fun. Nothing like waking up in the airport for a morning flight either.

Be careful with the minors flying internationally. You will likely need extra documentation if their parents aren't traveling with them.

Coming from the US you probably weren't going to be flying into Trieste regardless. It's not a major airport. The lion's share of travelers are booked into Venice. It's really not a big deal to take the train over to Trieste.

If you are purchasing your own ticket home, why wouldn't you just buy an open jaw (multi city) ticket on your own for the whole thing? Probably cheaper than whatever you are trying to do here. In general, I wouldn't try to use the BOGO unless you are saving a LOT of cash or planning a straightforward itinerary. It's not worth it to save a couple hundred dollars.

100% do this! Venice is so lovely to wander around at night and in the early morning before it gets crowded. Much better way to get over jet lag and make sure you don't have any worries about missing the cruise as well.

I booked Iceland Air for our cruise and we were able to choose our seats for free at booking in economy. As mentioned above, they have different levels of economy. Only the "light" version doesn't include free seats. Of course, if you use BOGO, it is a mystery as to what fate class you will get until you have your confirmation #. Classes of Service | Icelandair

Venice is building the new terminal to accomplish its goals. They want cruises only to begin or end in Venice so people are likely spending the night and eating at local restaurants. In the interim, the city has no interest in being a tendered port stop. Day trippers cause a lot of congestion and don't spend a ton of cash. I assure you Venice loves tourists, but they are in it for the long haul and don't want to see their city destroyed.

I am fine with Venice banning cruise ships in their vicinity. I care more about Venice than cruising. I am fine with Venice charging day trippers a tax, it is a small amount anyway, and as much as day trippers tout that they should want their money, they put a big strain on the city without spending hundreds of dollars locally like overnighters do. In fact, I am fine with anything Venice wants or needs to do to protect itself and it rapidly dwindling full-time residents. What I am not so keen on, is NCL knowing they aren't going anywhere within 2 hours of Venice this summer, but not sharing this information with their clientele until the week before the cruise. At least, this is how it seems from reading the emails people are posting in the roll calls. It also seems some people aren't finding out until they are on the cruise, but it is unclear if they just weren't paying attention or not. Judging from a lot of the transportation questions people are asking, I am assuming many passengers are not comfortable traveling on their own. They like the idea of getting on getting on a ship and visiting many places without the stress or logistics of land-based travel. There is nothing wrong with that, and this is the group with whom NCL should be communicating most clearly. Most of us who are posting and scouring CC are a bit more informed and it won't be news to us. We have put a lot of time and effort into researching all aspects of this trip. We were suspect as to the likelihood of tendering into Venice even when we booked. I won't know for sure until I take this cruise next month, but I suspect there will be plenty of people onboard who are shocked by this and will miss out on an opportunity to visit one of the most unique and beautiful places in the Mediterranean. If they knew they wouldn't be spending time in Venice proper ahead of time, they may have been able to stay before or after their cruise. This is totally different from Venice (Ravenna) and/or Venice (Trieste). I am sure there are plenty of people who didn't understand that distinction either. Heck, I am even pretty sure NCL was optimistically thinking they would be tendering us in when they planned this itinerary. But now they know it isn't going to happen, they should just tell us where we will be spending that day. It's not like anyone can cancel now anyway.

It's skiplagging, not legging. Since the OP is planning on eventually flying to Philadelphia anyway, there is little risk if the original flight routing gets changed. Of course, they would lose the cost of the extra flight and possibly the hotel, depending upon timing. Unless you are a chronic abuser of the airline's terms and conditions, they likely won't flag you.

Nice! Our hotel is Athens is giving me a bottle, and my parents will give me theirs as they don't drink wine. Good to know. I wasn't sure if I was up to the challenge of downing those before the cruise. (we only have two nights)

Liquor & Beverage (ncl.com) They do, but they charge a fee.

All the sailing events are in Marseille. I actually have tickets to one of the finals. There are also surfing events in Tahiti or somewhere else in the South Pacific I believe?

On another note, we chose the Gem because I think the ports are more amenable to cruising. They are small and mostly walkable from the ship. Italy is much better experienced as a land based itinerary, in my opinion. You miss so much of the charm of Europe by not sitting in piazzas at night or wandering historic walled cities early with no tourists. Plus Italy, France, and Spain are so easy to visit on your own. The ports on the Adriatic itinerary are more far flung and not easily connected by train. You are not going to be on a bus travelling over an hour to get to the sites. However, if this was my one stop shot to see Rome, I would do the Getaway and stay as long on the front or back of the cruise as I could. If there is one place I would recommend to anyone anywhere in the world it is Rome. Just simply magic.

For insurance, I think you need to prove they wouldn't allow you to travel due to Covid as well. Since airlines are no longer restricting travel that may be hard. Of course it depends on what is spelled out in your policy.

My family of four flew BA Business Class from Milan Linate-LHR-Pdx in July. I didn't bother choosing the seats ahead of time because I refuse to pay and we all ended up sitting together anyway. Incidentally, we all have Oneworld status, although lowly, and we could have picked our seats for free week ahead. I forgot about it, however.

We loved Joe Banana Limos when we stayed on Amalfi Coast last summer. There is a form you can fill out on their site telling them exactly what you want to do. They customized a package for us and it was really reasonable.

We are staying at the NH Collection Venezia Murano Villa in Venice. I chose it because it is on the Alilaguna waterbus route from the airport and this is the first stop. We have been to Venice before and are very comfortable taking the vaporetto over the main islands. We also prefer the quieter side canals and outer islands this time since we have already seen all the crowded sites. (Hoping to see Torcello this time) The bonus is dining on Murano at night after all the day trippers have left. As far as Trieste, there are so many hotels. You should be able to find something for all budgets and amenities. I would recommend the DoubleTree or the Savoia if you want something big and traditional. If you are fine being a little out of town, the Miramare is fabulous and you can swim in the sea from their little platform.

Fabulous! We are going again next summer for the Olympics. I will give Montmartre another chance!

Every other excursion NCL offers drops you back in Fira. If it were just myself and the kids we would have no problem wading through mule poop on the trek back down the hill if the lines were too long. (Wouldn't be the worst experience I've had travelling, once a human peed at the top of the steps to Montmartre towards us while we were ascending) Of course, this could be a misrepresentation by NCL. I called them and asked and the rep basically read the description back to me on the phone. Here is what is says: Your tour will start with a scenic drive from the ship to the Aroma Avlis. Your walking tour will have designated selfie stops at: • Aroma Avlis • The Blue Domes Churches of Oia • Church Bells in Fira To make this experience even more fun, you will be provided with a selfie stick and utilize our Selfie Station in order to help catch the perfect picture. While at Aroma Avlis, you will enjoy a wine tasting and explore one of the most famous wineries on the island. Need to Know: Note: The tour is not recommended to guests who utilize a wheelchair. Those guests with mobility concerns are cautioned to evaluate their personal level of ability and stamina. The order of sites visited may vary. Wear comfortable shoes, sunglasses and comfortable clothing. Bring your own fully charged cellphone or camera. A limited amount of selfie sticks will be available to share. Guests who miss the return transportation will be responsible for getting back to the ship.

I know what you mean. We are on the Gem in July and I just bit the bullet and the bought the "selfie" tour. While not really IG influencers, my understanding is that is the only one where they tender you back from Athinios. We are traveling with grandparents and looking to avoid any cable car bru ha ha.

We flew to Singapore on Singapore Airlines from Portland in Nov 2019. We chose to go through LAX on the outgoing because the flight took off at night. The Seattle flight left in the morning and I thought the LA option would facilitate sleep. We booked Premium Economy and it was really nice. We came back through Seattle.