cruisemom42

That reminds me. Holland America had a ship docked at one of the Israel ports on the day the Palestinian attack on Israel occurred (Oct 2023). They pulled out all the stops to get everyone back to the ship, even those on private tours, and did not leave until everyone was on board. Kudos to them for doing an extraordinary job under very challenging conditions. There are some situations that no one can adequately plan for.

I don't think anyone's saying the ship should wait. Just that people are sometimes late due to things other than being an inconsiderate bum.

I will be taking a river cruise at the end of this month on a Viking river cruise that's called "Chateaux, Rivers, and Wine". It is round-trip from Bordeaux and visits a number of areas well known for producing excellent wines (St. Emilion, Sauternes, Medoc, etc.) It might be a good starting point for you. The cruise is offered from April through October (I think) on various dates. I am also planning to spend additional time in the area before the cruise to see more of the region on my own, including some days in Bordeaux, a visit to the Lascaux caves and various other places such as Sarlat and Poitiers.

Hadn't you heard HAL's new laundry slogan: "Pressed, not possessed." 😈

1973 -- Emerald Seas 1974 -- Sitmar Fairwind (and about once a year thereafter for next 10 years) My grandparents sailed a number of times on HAL started around 1971-72. They retired to Fort Lauderdale and cruised often.

Wow, very impressive. I hope you'll write up something summarizing your thoughts on all of them once you've finished your "study". I would be very interested to hear your thoughts across the broad spectrum.

If you're docked at 7am and ready to get off as soon as it's possible, you should have no problem being at the Acropolis entrance by 9am.

Again, I'd double check. Been reading these boards for almost 20 years and I've never heard of a ship tendering at Piraeus. Have you checked your roll call? Perhaps someone there has an answer.

I have never heard of any ship tendering in Piraeus. I'd double check that if I were you.

You should be fine. Be sure you've got it Google mapped so you don't waste time with any wrong turns. And the idea of letting your tour provider know that you're coming from a ship is also a good one.

Indeed, it was very similar last year. I'd hoped that 2023 was an anomaly due to Japan having opened for tourism only a few months before I was there. Sounds like it's a longer-term issue though. Thanks for your update.

Where do you need to meet the tour? If it starts at the port, you'll be fine.

I agree with the above. Using a stroller in Pompeii would be practically impossible. And depending on when you will be there, it will be hot and crowded. Not to mention the houses are often close quarters and you are not supposed to touch wall surfaces, etc. -- difficult to keep a toddler from doing that. I would probably stick with just doing one place, and perhaps for a half day. Getting somewhere by ferry might be easier/more fun than driving.

My Iceland/Greenland cruise last year on Insignia had one lecturer. He was terrible. The info presented on Greenland in particular was very random.

Every girl's crazy 'bout a sharp-dressed Pooh. I'm waiting for the Poohby podcast.

Lois, sorry to hear you are in the hospital again with more health issues. I hope they are able to get things sorted so you can get home and feel better. 🤞 Keep your spirits up. Good to get this dealt with before your next cruise.

The train schedules are only set a certain number of months in advance. I wouldn't worry about it. The Civi train is a commuter train for locals going into Rome to work, as well as for tourists. They're going to have plenty of morning options. The schedule doesn't change much over time. You can put in a closer date (e.g., like in the next 3 months) to get an idea of the timings. If using the Trenitalia site, be sure you set the time for whatever hour in the morning you want to leave (if you don't it will default to whatever time it is when you're doing your search.)

Yes, you do need to manage expectations with regards to room size in the historic center. Most hotel rooms are small. No getting around it. Hotels like Smeraldo only have a limited number of rooms. As marazul suggests, I'd try to figure out some dates fairly soon and book a room (or rooms) you like at the cancellable rate. You can always cancel later, but once the rooms are booked, they're booked.

Do you happen to know how it is decided which ships will dock where in Dublin? Are small ships prioritized for docking there vs. being tendered? I'm disembarking there on upcoming Azamara cruise (700 pax) and hoping they wouldn't be tendering for disembarkation.

I've seen that there is an ITGuide available via Apple Store but I haven't used it. In looking at reviews a few mentioned that the site doesn't have great wifi, which doesn't surprise me much due to its location. Rick Steves does good, downloadable tours but nothing for Herculaneum. The site itself sells an audio guide that might be the best bet.

I was on the same cruise as @Haljo1935 so same weather for me. This was the only port I'd not been to before. I had a shore excursion credit through HAL for the HIA promo and I chose to use it here even though I knew I'd lose the credit if the port was canceled. A lot of the tours did sell out. I'm very glad I chose one that got me out and around a good part of the island. This port is all about the natural beauty (not my shtick in general) and I got to see a nice sample of it. I'd definitely recommend a tour -- either private or ship -- that lets you have a similar experience. Note: While it's easy and convenient to walk around the city near the port on your own, be aware that on Sundays there is very little open.

Step over to the table of the offending party, adopt your best cheesy Italian accent, and say loudly: "Im-a so sorry, but I canna letto you do that here."

By "sights" in Pisa I assume you mean the Leaning Tower and the Field of Miracles (where the tower is located). Yes, the Tower is open on Sunday July 14 from 9am until 10pm, but be aware that you have to buy a ticket in advance if you want to climb it (not yet available for July):(https://www.opapisa.it/en/tickets/buy/ ) The other sites in the Field of Miracles (Campo dei Miracoli) are also open, including the Baptistery and Cathedral, although if services are being held, there may be periods when you cannot enter the Cathedral. Both of these are also work a look if you're going to be there. I have no idea about the tour you mention.

I so agree with this. Part of my frustration with HAL is that they are constantly teasing and not delivering. People told me on these boards for years that itineraries longer than 14 days had lecturers. Well in my experience, some have had lecturers, some have not. And some lecturers are good while others are terrible. I feel the same about classical music. While I am guardedly happy that it seems to be returning, I find it completely frustrating that I have no way of knowing whether there will be any classical music on MY cruise. I hope HAL does have classical music on this year's Europe itineraries. I am booked on the Rotterdam for 14 days in August. But I feel skeptical as the cruise can also be done in 7-day segments, meaning HAL will probably claim that they don't do classical on short cruises. Frustrating.

I can't stress enough that this is not the norm. I was there in late November for nearly a week. No problems at all with dust or allergies.