HMSDingy

Speaking of costs. For those of you that did Dubrovnik on their own, how much did you bring in Kunas? We are 2 and are more into sightseeing than souvenirs.

We're flying into Barcelona one week from tomorrow and would like to thank all those who posted such great advice on this thread especially Hank:D

We are doing our ports of call completely on our own and we are looking to great experiences and equally great memories.

Another thanks to Hank and all who posted. We will be sailing in 3 weeks and I've made an itinerary of on our own excursions. My sister and her husband just returned from a Med cruise with HAL and they too did it on their own and they had a blast. Saved lots of money.:D

Thanks to you, Hank and all the response on this thread. Looks like we're pretty much set for our Med cruise. We'll be hoofing it where we can and taking the trains and ferries at other ports. We're pretty much steering clear of the ship's excursions partly because of the costs and also because we want to experience the countries visited on our own.

Getting a taxi is very easy since they have a long regulated queue right outside the luggage area (just like in the states). Barcelona taxis are very clean and relatively honest and most even take credit cards. They must use the meter, and if you are traveling in the daytime it should be set to #1 (daytime rates). They are also allowed to add a small fee (its less than 1 Euro) for extra luggage (this is also coded right into the meter). Expect to pay around $30 to get to town or the port.

 

Hank

THANKS:D (sorry for yelling,,,:o)

This might be off topic but how easy is it to grab a cab at Barcelona Airport.:confused: We're arriving in Barcelona on the morning of August 25th and taking a cab to our hotel. Form all of the stories I've been reading about pickpockets, I figure the quickest route to the cabs the better.

I tend to agree with your point about ship excursions and their cost. On our Med cruise onboard the Brilliance, the cost per person of an excursion called "On Your Own" which in fact is a non-guided train ride to Rome from Civitavecchia is listed at $114 CAD, roughly $100 US and a similar non-guided coach also at $114 CAD. Again a coach ride from Livorono to Pisa is also $114 CAD. :eek:

The BERG ticket costs les than $10 euros.

Hank, if I can be so informal, after reading many and I mean many posts about the crime and condition of Naples, we have decided to visit Capri once we dock in Naples. I've googled the Mollo Bevederllo using Google maps and got a great street view. The veiw shows the distance for the docking area to the ferrry pier. I hope not to get mugged or approached getting there:rolleyes:. I've also checked our prices for the hydrofoil trip to Capri and back and, with the help of seasoned CC travelers, found many sites with tourist information. We plan to do the same in Civitavecchia by taking the train to Rome and do our own sightseeing. BTW, DW and I are both fluent in Italian, so I guess that would help:D

We are still in Europe (in an apartment in St Remy de Provence) so a lot of my maps are at home. These days, we use our GPS in Europe...which by the way is a great idea for anyone renting a car (most of the rental companies will rent you a GPS). We often rent cars in Cannes to go to St Paul de Vence since public transit (train-bus combination) is not very efficient in terms of time. Try to be one of the first off the ship (you will be tendered) and make sure you reserve a car with one of the companies that have a location in town (such as Budget or Europcar). Carefully check the opening times of your rental car company. The fastest way to St Paul de Vence (one of our favorite places) is to use the Autostrade) and I believe the exit is labeled "Cagnes"....but double check me on this. There is a large indoor parking garage just past the St Paul main entrance if you do not want to park on the road. If you leave St Paul early, you might want to drive down to Antibes and than work your way back to Cannes along the coast road....but leave yourself at least 1 1/2 hours extra on your return to Cannes...for a safe margin.

 

You should be able to make it to San G in less than 2 hours, but much depends on your route. If you are driving on a weekday, you might want to use some of the secondary roads and avoid the road that runs near Florence (traffic can sometimes be bad). We have done the same drive from ships, and have even managed to spend some time in Siena. Another place we like in the region in Volterra, which could also be coupled with a visit to San G.

 

Regarding the Rome question, it is hard to beat the 9 Euro BIRG ticket which gets you round trip to Rome plus all-day use of the metro and buses. We do not generally recommend going outside of Rome via public transit, and there is usually enough in Rome for even frequent visitors. We recently visited the Villa Borghese for lack of anything else to do and loved the park and villa (check-out their web site for info). Tivoli would probably be high on my list for towns to visit near Rome, but it's not convenient for a port day since it's on the far side (east) of Rome. We also love the ruins at Ostia Antica which are located a short way from the FCO airport...but again, it does not work well with public transit. Those ruins rival anything at Pompeii...but seem to be skipped on most tours and itineraries.

 

By the way, we are "walking the walk" since we have been driving through Italy and France since leaving our ship in Civitavecchia last Sunday. For those planning longer term rentals in Europe, try to get a small diesel-powered car since the fuel is about 15 - 20% cheaper than gasoline and the cars get great mileage.

 

Hank

Great read here. As DW and I are both fluent in Italian as well as Spanish & French, we plan to purchase BIRG tickets and take the train from Civitavecchia to Termini station in Rome and do our own sightseeing. I haven't been back to Italy since my college days and we are definitely looking forward to this trip. We also planned a big family reunion in Naples. BTW It will be for our 30th wedding anniversary!:D

DW and I have a bit of an advantage for our Med cruise. We are fluent in 3 languages; English, French & Italian and she is fluent in Spanish and I can carry a decent conversation. For this reason we will do our own excursions. Being able to converse in the language of the country does have its advantages and you won't stick out like a tourist.

You've all been very helpful and convinced me to stick with 7092. My TA is srtarting to hate me:mad: what with all my requests.:o. But on the Jewel I found that the forward cabins do not overlook the canopy. Am I wrong?

I just checked the RCI website and cabin 9508 is available. Its forward, same price and not a hump but at least it's not overlooking the canopy.

I want to add that even though there is the canopy over the lifeboats, it really didn't obscure the view. You'll have the whole ocean out there to look at and the balcony size outweighs any slight inconvenience. (Just wanted to clear that up from the previous post)

Aubie

Then I goofed on this one. The previous cabin was not hump but also over the canopy. I thought this was a regular hump:(. I'll guess I'll have to change again.:mad:

I just changed my E1 cabin to this one. By the looks of the cabin on the RCI website ship's deck layout, (phew...:p) it seems to have a large looking balcony. Can anyone who has stayed in this cabin give me some feedback or opinions?

Much obliged in advance:D

Great pics! We're sailing the end of November for the Panama Canal and we can't wait. Can anyone who has been on her recenlty tell me how pax were dressed on formal nights. That is are passengers following the suggetsed dress code:confused:.

The reasoning for my questions (or madness) is that on our past cruises with Princess I've always reanted a tux and I just want to know waht the % is onboard the RCI ships.

I know what you mean, I think. But the picture is the stern (back).

I found a picture of the Jewel similar to yours but in the forward end. I think I can now locate our cabin and it seems that it is above the lifeboats looking directly down into the water.

I know what you mean, I think. But the picture is the stern (back).

I am aware that your picture is in the stern but if I were to look at a picture of the forward end would I be right in counting the balconies from the forward towards aft as seen on the deck plans on the RCI site? If I look at the RCI deck plan for deck 7, if I count from cabin # 7006 to #7038 its 17 cabins. Now if I count 17 balconies on an exterior picture. would I be close to our cabin.

Quote from a famous inventor....."there is a reason for my madness"....

As far as I know the only obstructions are the last two or three balconies on each side. It is a partial obstruction due to the outside maintenance ladder storage.

 

EDIT: Just click on the image

Speaking of obstructions, we're sailing on the Jewel and we have a forward cabin on deck 7. If I look at your picture similar to the Jewel, do I count the first balcony to my cabin #. I'm trying to point at the cabin by looking at exterior pictures of the Jewel. Do you know what I mean?

I've been in a deck 7 balcony over the lifeboats and when I looked out to the ocean I had a fantastic view. I also had the larger deck 7 and enjoyed that balcony too.

 

enjoy

M

Do you remember the cabin numbers? I'm trying to locate our cabin #7038 on exterior pictures of the ship.

AVOID THE AFT Deck 7 balconies. You will have a skating ring type obstruction in front of your balcony. The forward deck 7 balconies have a double depth balcony that looks straight down at the water. Timer went off. dinner. Maybe photos later.

We're sailing on the Jewel late November and have cabin 7038 which by the look of the deck plan is forward. Shouldn't we be worried by movement of the ship if the seas are choppy?

This is a MUST READ!!! If you have not read the review from the SSQQ Dance Studio for their Canada/New England cruise here is the link...

 

http://www.ssqq.com/travel/newengland200608.htm

 

It is by far the wildest review I have ever read. While I sympathize with the writer on some of his points, I have to admit I almost wet my pants because I was laughing so hard while reading. His writing is brilliantly hysterical!

 

Sorry if you all have seen this before... I just stumbled across it.

I checked the RCI website and all Alaska cruises listed onboard the Radiance, there is tendering. According to the poster's account he sailed Alaska on the Radiance and yet this person says that the Jewel cruise was his first time tendering...hmmmm?:rolleyes:

"That's when I learned about Tender Boats." (actual quote from his review)

Its just about 1 kilometer....It really is less since most measurement from times square are from 42 nd street and Broadway but times square really covers 42-48th street Broadway and 7th Avenue....

Thanks and I appreciate your conversion to kilometers. Not many Americans know the metric system. I am actually looking forward to my weekend in New York regardless of where I'm staying. Do you have any suggestions on which show to see.:confused:

Lexington Ave is miles long. Tell me which street on Lexington Ave and I give you some info.

The address is 511 Lexington at 48th Street. According to the website, Times Square is .69 miles away. Now I have to figure out how far that is:D

Theatre Development Fund TKTS Theatre Centres Discount Ticket Booths for broadway and Off-Broadway

Thansk...How close is the one on Times Square to where I'm stayin...Radisson on Lexington.:confused:

We'll be in New York in 2 weeks. Although I have been following this thread, I have 2 questions;

1) The Raddisson on Lexiongton...can anybody give me any comments

2) What is the name of the place in Times Square that I can get discoutn show tickets