cruisemom42

There are usually English tours mixed in with the Italian ones. Not as many but I seem to remember there were a fair number of them on each day it is open. I haven't checked the site recently though. Perhaps the English ones are sold out?

Never heard of them or seen them mentioned on this board before.

I missed three ports just on my most recent cruise (Panama Canal on Oceania). 😡

I think this is one area where getting input from frequent cruisers, especially ones who recently used the services is important. Not sure I'd trust a TA -- unless that TA fits the criteria above. Things can change rapidly in ports. One service I used to use reliably changed after Covid and is now more expensive and restrictive. Fortunately I was able to locate a new/better option.

The Domus Aurea is fabulous but be warned that it's a work in progress. Lots of scaffolding and some areas are off limits. They are currently doing a lot of work to restore and stabilize it. I've been three times, most recently last November and I really saw a lot of progress. Some of the frescoes that have been newly cleaned and revealed are wonderful.

This is the one I originally booked in the early days post-Covid. Back then they allowed you to cancel and rebook at a later date if you were concerned about Covid, and it's been on the books a long time.... I think I asked you about your hotel in Bordeaux, but I ended up booking one that's a bit closer to the area I want to be in. I'm taking 2 daytrips from Bordeaux but will also have about 2.5 days to explore the city.

I wouldn't be surprised if they haven't loaded the May tickets yet. The link you included is for the Scavi (excavations) under St. Peter's, not the Pantheon.

You can reach Erice by cable car or bus (very twisty road, hairpin curves, not good if you get motion sick or fear of heights). Once in Erice, the town is hilly. Not a lot of stairs but the roads are steep in places. If you arrive by bus you'll have to walk maybe a quarter of a mile from the bus dropoff place to the heart of the town (with a lovely church enroute). It's worth it IMO but it's not an "easy" trip. Strenuous? Depends on your level of fitness and ability to walk.

Hi everyone -- sorry I haven't posted in a while. Not much new for me. I've just been vegging at home, watching the condo project proceed and doing lots of reading. All of a sudden I realized it's time to get ready for my Bordeaux and river cruise trip. (I leave in 8 days!). I've started watching the weather so I can decide what to pack. Hoping for nice weather and not the horrible early heat wave they had last year. Today I'm going to a retirement lunch for one of my team who had decided to take the plunge like me. It will be fun to see her and I'm hoping a number of other former colleagues. Melody, the prom pics are cute. You guys are such a photogenic family. You could be in a commercial. For Chicos! 😄 Lois, hope your health is improving!

My father was a mid-level govt employee and my mom was an elementary teacher. We traveled to Europe and we cruised annually. Travel was just important to us.

Not so sure about that. My parents weren't wealthy but we started cruising (as a family) in the 1970s. I like cruising but as a solo every cruise costs me about twice as much per dium as for a couple. I'm not willing to give up the amount of time I spend traveling in order to pay more per trip. It's not that I don't see the value, it's just that my priorities are different.

I'm guessing most are in either the luxury or the exploration categories. Not an option for some of us. I know Viking keeps churning out ships that are just under 1,000 passengers, but very few of their itineraries appeal to me. Even Oceania's new ships are more than 1,000 passengers.

Yes. It's really not far. Sounds like you're overthinking it a bit. I wouldn't really call the "old port" a port -- it's more like a tender or dinghy drop-off point right at the middle of Mykonos Town. As I said, you can take a short sea bus/water taxi or a shuttle bus (land) along the road that skirts the water. You can also walk it but the walk can be hot and unpleasant (no real sidewalk), so for the small cost I'd take transportation.

The Galata location won't give you the great views of Sultanahmet. I prefer the latter location. At least for a dinner. The evening cruise was a while ago. It was on a smaller vessel (no dinner) and had commentary. For me, I enjoyed the sunset views around departure but it was dark too soon and as you sail farther away from the city, it gets dark and isn't that well lit except in a few spots. What I enjoyed about the daylight cruise was being able to see some of the old-style wooden Ottoman mansions, though more and more of them are being torn down and/or rebuilt as modern luxury dwellings.

I've done the Bosporus cruise in the evening and during the day and I much preferred it during the day. At night the best views of the lights would be from a nice rooftop restaurant in Sultanahmet area, where you can get great views of Haghia Sofya, Blue Mosque, etc. all lit up. (IMHO).

When was your experience? In October 2022 there was no port shuttle.

Small ships for me. Itinerary is about equally important but I would never choose a great itinerary on a huge ship, whereas I might choose a less-than-stellar itinerary on a small ship. When I say small, I mean small. The smaller Oceania and the Azamara ships (all same size) are ideal for me. Around 700 passengers. I will cruise on ships up to about 2,000 (give or take) but have decided anything larger is not for me.

I love the R-class, and I've showered in a non-suite cabin. I hope O holds on to at least a couple of them. Perhaps for longer, more interesting itineraries.

This was also true when I went. You could not go at your own speed. There were certain "stop points" and you had to remain with the group.

All ships and all lines have pluses and minuses. The key is finding what appeals. I have never felt the need to limit myself to one line. But two things I like above all else are good itineraries and small ships. HAL no longer has what I consider to be small ships. But they still have some very good itineraries. I will sail on Azamara happily for some of their good itineraries. They don't tend to have the long cruises that HAL offers (although you can often string together several shorter cruises). But HAL's longer itineraries can sometimes have a lot of sea days and HAL doesn't offer enough to make those sea days enticing. I will also sail on Oceania's small ships for a good itinerary. Their entertainment isn't great, I know. But the classical music means a lot to me and at least I know there is one new show after dinner every night that's generally entertaining enough for someone that's not ready to go to sleep at 9:30 at night. For me, their food is also better than HAL's (or any other line I've been on -- and that does not include any of the luxury lines).

My experience (and that of many others who've posted) is that until you get to 15+ days, you don't seem to get anything much beyond what's on a shorter cruise. The possible exception being a lecturer on the trans-ocean cruises with lot of sea days.

Important to know what the itineraries/ships are for each. One word of warning, in small ports (e.g., if you're going to Greenland) tendering can take a long time on the bigger ships.

I think these are relatively new offerings. The best I can suggest is to decide which museums you would actually plan to visit, then add up the admission costs and see how that compares with the cost of the card. You also should add in something for the convenience of not having to stand in line to buy tickets, BUT keep in mind that the most crowded site in Istanbul is usually Haghia Sofya, which is NOT included. (Nor is the Blue Mosque). I've not seen long lines at Ephesus in the past either, and most private tours (or ship tours) include the cost of admission anyway. Topkapi Palace can have long lines, but of the other included sites, I would say lines are not usually a factor. By the way, I would also like to make a plug for the Archaeology Museum in Istanbul. It has some really fine pieces that should be better known than they are, including several sculpture busts of Alexander the Great, a wonderful carved sarcophagus also portraying Alexander and some of his generals, and more (including the world's first recorded peace treaty, a copy of which is displayed at the U.N. headquarters). I also really enjoyed the Islamic Arts museum (across from the Hippodrome). I feel it's not visited as much as it should be. Some of the pieces are exquisite.

You should be fine. Are you going to arrange to have a taxi waiting for you to get you back to the ship? The Hypogeum is in a sort of residential area and it won't be easy to find a taxi unless you happen to poach one that's dropping someone off for the next tour.

Exactly what I was going to suggest! I'm not sure I'd go to Delphi as your 'out of Athens' option. It's very worthwhile but it's an extremely long daytrip.