Hlitner

I am puzzled by some on the HAL boards. You want the \cost? Just go to any decent cruise agency web site where they will have a cruise search engine. You simply put in the info to pull up the cruise, and it will show the price of all the available categories along with any "bonuses" provided by HAL and the cruise agency. There are days when I will price-out 10-20 different cruises (with different cruise lines) in a few minutes by using some of these web sites And you do not need to book with any of these agencies to get the info. I will warn you that the 35 day cruise (known as the Voyage of the Vikings) is one of the most expensive (on a per passenger day) cruise in the HAL repertoire. We have taken the VOV, twice, and it remains one of our favorite HAL cruise itineraries. But we recently noticed that "Barry from Boston" who is an interesting piano bar player/singer who used to do the annual VOV cruise, is now working for Celebrity! When HAL decided to do away with their piano bars, they lost some of the best piano bar personalities in the business. Darn shame. Hank

Your husband really needs to careful about Sudafed, which is outlawed in many countries (including nearby Mexico). Even in the USA, I tease my pharmacist that it's easier to pick up a narcotic script than buy a package of Sudafed! As to having an "incident," it is often luck of the draw! I believe that Tramadol is classed as a narcotic, and you are well-advised to know the law in any European country where you will enter the continent. In some cases it might be OK if you are carrying a valid prescription and in other countries it may be illegal. The odds of you having an "issue" are slim, but it could happen! Consider the popular drug, Ambien! While technically not a narcotic it is restricted in some countries. You might travel all over the world with this common sleep med (we have friends that do this) but if you get caught with that drug in Singapore you could be in deep trouble (they require an import license). The funny thing about Ambien is that we could buy it at most pharmacies in Mexico, without a prescription. But if we have Sudafed in Mexico, that would be a big issue! Hank

Let's talk about Business Class. The problem with upgrading to international business class, on a decent airline, is that it is completely addicting! We learned the lesson, the hard way :). I now have a DW who expects to fly business class whenever we take longer international flights, no matter what the cost. Is it worth it? My simple answer is that we have never regretted flying business class on longer flights. We especially will do this on flights where we need to get some sleep. But we are talking about lay flat seats. My message is simple, When booking any business class, carefully look at the hardware (aircraft type and seating quality). As far as connections, it is no different than flying the lowest priced economy. You should choose your flights (and airlines) carefully. I do not support the idea of paying any cruise line for business class without having the ability to choose flights. Speaking of choosing flights, and connections, a big plus with most business class is that it included lounge access. For us, a 3-4 hour layover is not a bad thing if we are at an airport where we have access to a decent lounge. In fact, many flyers actually do their booking/routing in order to access certain lounges. The lounge experience, when you are dealing with the better lounges, is part of the fun. When we need to lay over in airports like Istanbul (when flying on Turkish Air) we actually look forward to our time at the airport. Get stuck at Toronto, and have access to Air Canada's Signature Suite, and it is not a bad thing :). Have to kill a few hours in an airport with an AMEX Centurian Lounge (you generally need an AMEX Platinum Card to access these lounges) and the time flies faster than some flights. Hank

I have a somewhat different point of view, since we always look for "value" when we book any cruise, be it with Princess, HAL, or an ultra luxury line. Value is about what you get for your money, which is not the same as just looking fo rthe lowest cost. We are currently looking at a future 14 day Enchanted cruise. The price difference between a Category MF mini suite and a M6 Reserve Mini suite is $1984 (for two persons) or just over $140 per day. So what would we get for that extra $140 a day. A more central location for our suite (we could care less about location) and some dining benefits. When looking at the dining benefits, DW and I seldom eat breakfast in a dining room (we usually just relax at the IC with a donut or pastry) so the "special" breakfast for Reserve's is of little use. As to dinner, on that ship it means we would be in a small section of one of the MDRs, with the same menu as everyone else with the exception of 1 additional entree. Assuming we would even want that extra entree, I have to wonder if could justify paying $140 a day for that privilege. The other dining advantage of having a dedicated queue to get into dinner is not very important to us since we usually go to dinner after 7:30 when the queue for the regular MDRs is often shorter than what we have seen for Reserve :). While we do appreciate some of the Reserve benefits, for us the extra cost (over a lower category Mini) is not a good value, especially on the Grand and Royal Class ships. I do like the Reserve concept, but unless the meals are in a dedicated restaurant with an upgraded menu (not just the addition of an item) we are unlikely to book the Reserve Minis. We do have some family members who really love the Reserve minis, so are aware that many will disagree. Hank

The issue with being bumped from higher capacity cabins also gives me a lot of pause. Even booking as a couple, it can be an issue if one books a cabin that can hold a 3rd and/or 4th. We have also booked our share of outside cabins when we do not think a balcony or suite offers good value. Consider on the upcominng VOV cruises, moving up from an outside to a balcony will add more than $100 per person/day to the cruise price. Given that the outsides are about the same size as the balcony cabins, paying $200+ a day (per couple) seems a bit excessive to have a balcony that remains unused for much the cruise. Hank

I think you have two problems. I assume you are using the HAL web site (we never find this a good way to go). When I look I a couple of my favored cruise agency web sites there is plenty of availability in many categories (including suites and balconies). The other issue is that it is a segment of longer bookings (they are also taking bookings for a 27 night cruise that includes that segment) so some cabins are usually allocated for longer bookings. I just looked at a Signature Sutie (on the 13 night sailing you mentioned) and one of my favored cruise agencies it kicking-in an extra $650 OBC (this is pretty normal when using decent cruise agencies). Hank

I get the disinterest in beaches (we happen to be beach lovers) but am puzzled by a disinterest in waterfalls! My first thought, when I saw that, was cruising through Prince Christiansund and seeing some of the gorgeous waterfalls. In fact, many Captains, when going through this area, will actually do a 360 degree turn when they encounter some of these waterfalls. Hank

LOL about the temps. You will certainly not freeze. DW and I do enjoy the beach, the sea, etc. so we prefer the warmer weather (we live in Mexico during the winter). The last time I was in "your neck of the woods," Ak was having a heat wave! We went hiking in Denali in shorts and t-shirts and were sweating in 80 degree temps. On the other hand, Athens can easily top 100 in the summer, and it really is an awful place during their too frequent heat waves. Hank

I am also surprised at the lack of response to the OP's questions. I do think part of the reason is that most experienced travelers, that post here on CC, tend to travel in-season or during the shoulder seasons. When we do island hopping (using ferries) in the Greek Islands, it is during the season (or shoulders) because it suits our own style which does include gong to some beaches, outdoor night life. etc. Sitting at an outdoor restaurant in Naxos, at 10pm, is fine during (or near) the season, but not likely to be something we would want to do in late November. You might want to consider some short day trip ferries such as to Aegina and/or Hydra. But I have no clue what those islands would be like that late in November or the frequency of ferries in the off season. I should also mention that taking ferries (which are often the size of a small-medium size cruise ship) does favor folks who are mobile, can handle their own luggage, etc. Just getting on a large ferry, with luggage, can require some effort and one is not likely to get much help. It often means walking up ramps, negotiating some steps, etc. And once arrives at their destination island, they must reverse the process. try to find a taxi, get to a rental car location that may or may not be convenient, etc. For some of us, this is just normal travel life and we are well within our comfort level. For many folks we have met on cruise ships, this would not be their idea of fun. So what to do in Greece in November? We would certainly take advantage of the smaller crowds to enjoy the usual attractions found in and around Athens. Climbing up the Acropolis in cooler weather would be a welcome change from doing it in 100F. The OP might also want to consider a full day trip to Delphi. Many of these day tours include visits to some other historic places and the ccoler weather will be a real plus. A drive down to Sounion is also a nice way to spend at least half a day. There are also some interesting caves (for folks that like to explore such places) in Greece and I recall once stumbling on a cave while driving from Sounion to Athens along the less popular inland route. Off season, I would favor going to Crete, which is a huge island that has its share of historic sites and some nice towns. The popular islands, such as Santorini and Mykonos, go into something akin to hibernation after their shoulder season. Many shops and cafes will even close for the winter season. The thing to remember about Crete is that it is a very large place that is over 160 miles long (east-west). One could probably plan a nice, off season, driving trip on that island. Hank

Have lived in Puerto Vallarta for 18 winters and never give water/ice a 2nd thought at any of the local bars/restaurants. Hank

We really like having a rental car on Tenerife. For a first-time visitor we would suggest working out an itinerary that includes the drive up to the top of Mt Teide. That can be done as simply a round trip day trip, or one can vary the route. One of my favorite routes is to drive directly from town to Teide, and later use the back roads to head down to the northern coast (i.e. Purerto de la Cruz). At that point, we work our way around the eastern end of the island back to Santa Cruz (the Port). Hank

With a 10:30 am flight, you have no choice but to use a vehicle. Whether your cruise ship offers a bus transfer, that can get you to FCO by 7:30 (8:00 should work but is tighter than we like) is a question you need to ask. I would suggest that you post on the CC Roll Call (for your specific cruise) and look for a few others that want to share an early private transfer. Once you get more than 3 folks (sharing) the cost of a private transfer is usually less expensive than cruise line transfers. Ideally, you would want a transfer that is scheduled to depart the pier by 6:30am. For the reasons cited by Euro-Cruiser, using the train is not a reasonable option for such an early flight. And even with later flights, we are not big fans of using the trains since dragging luggage on and/off trains (and ensuring they are always secure from theives) is not a particularly great option (you will need at least one change of train to get to FCO). Hank

We travel all over the world, and carry several different adaptors (including the standard 2 prong that works in most European countries). They are simply in a large ziplock bag that also houses various charging cables, extension cord, and chargers. Adaptors are inexpensive and do come in handy. By the way, another use for the European adaptor is on cruise ships where it is common to have European receptacles in one's cabin. When we have 1 or 2 US receptacles and 1 or 2 European, we are able to use them all :). We do make sure that all of our electronics and appliances, with which we travel, work on dual voltage 120/240 so that we never need to have a bulky voltage converter. Hank

Perhaps we should start a new topic called "cruiser's hypocrisy" or something similar. Why? Because we cruisers want to go to places that are not crowded with other cruisers and/or tourists. But we are part of the very problem we want to eliminate. And yes, you are right about Iceland. When we started visiting Iceland (and Greenland) we were usually the only ship in the ports, and our ship carried fewer than 600 passengers. Hank

When we started cruising, about 50 years ago, we always wondered about the old folks who would stay on the ship when we were in ports (mostly in the Caribbean). Now, we are those old folks, and will often stay on the ship the once or twice a year that we cruise in the Caribbean. We choose those cruises for the ship/line for that reason. When we cruise the rest of the world (i.e. Europe, Asia, South American, etc) we do generally go ashore (usually on our own) for the port days. Keep in mind that when it comes to the Caribbean, we have been ashore, more than 50 times, at most of the ports. While we still have our favorite beaches and places, on every island, we usually find that our ships have more to offer except for the days when we want to go to a beach or snorkel. Hank

If in your situation you have to make a decision do you want to deal with the hassles of the subway/metro, and train to get to Shin Yokohama or pay the big bucks (probably about $50) for a taxi from the port to Shin Yokohama. By the way, we spent a week in Kyoto and it was all very good. Another decision, you need to make, is whether to buy the train tickets you need, or get a JR Rail Pass (i.e. a 7 day pass). We opted for the rail pass, and took advantage when we spent one of our Kyoto days taking the train all the way to Hiroshima for a day trip. Hank

Argh! We have both seen too much of that kind of thing which does seem to be a problem with the various shore-based tour providers scattered all over the world. I have no doubt you will get to Grieg's home...somehow. But I really do feel sorry for the many cruisers who are uncomfortable doing anything on their own. Depending on cruise line excursions has really become a gamblers game.

Yes and no. I all the stations we used (Tokyo area, Yokohama, Kyoto, etc) there was always escalators and elevators. That being said, some of the stations are huge and it can be a long walk (sometimes blocks) to change trains, get to an elevator, etc. But lets talk about going to Kyoto. If you are doing it direct from Yokohama, you first need to get to the Shin Yokohama Station. This is not the same as the main Yokohama station. The Shin Yokohama is on the main line that has the high speed bullet trains (which do not go into Yokohama). You can get to the Shin Yokohama Station from town by taking the metro/train, but this is a commuter line and can be very crowded (especially during rush hours). Dragging luggage on/off these crowded commuter lines, and through crowded stations, can be a challenge to some folks (we did it and are in our 70s). That being said, Japan is probably the safest nation on earth and folks do usually cut you some slack just because they see you as a visitor. Perhaps the best answer to your question is that if you can handle the physical work of hauling you luggage (and perhaps needing to pick up the bags to get them on/off trains) you can do it. Now lets talk about the so-called bullet trains (which do connect Tokyo/Yokohama to Kyoto. You should have reservations on these trains and you can get assigned seats. There are two classes with the First Class option known as "Green Cars." The Green Cars cost more, but you do get more space (the normal class is also quite nice). The cars have overhead racks which can easily hold smaller bags. Large bags are more of an issue and can sometimes be left at the end of a car. But the best solution is to reserve the special Green Car seats that have extra luggage space. These are very limited (there are only a few on each car) and are near the end of the cars. These special seats have extra space (behind the seats) that have room for large pieces of luggage. These special seats must be reserved (often well in advance) but do not cost any more than the regular Green Car seats (the seats are the same, but the extra storage is nice). We reserved these seats when we took the bulltet train from Kyoto to Shin Yokohama. And by the way, if you do not want to deal with changing trains (from the port to Kyoto) you can simply take a taxi direct from the port to the Shin Yokohama station. If you are planning on going to Kyoto from Tokyo, you will need to deal with the huge stations (i.e. Shinjuku and Tokyo Stations are among the largest in the world). Keep in mind that you would need to roll your luggage a long way. Another option, especially if moving between two hotels) is having your hotel ship/forward your luggage to your next hotel (we have done it). This is a fabulous option (we used it to ship our luggage from Tokyo to Kyoto). You generally send out your luggage the day before you plan on checking-out, and it will be waiting for you when you arrive at your next hotel. The cost is quite reasonable (we sent two large bags for about $50) and saves you the hassle of dragging your luggage through stations and on/off trains. Hank

We have single lady friends, in PV, who are out and about every day. These ladies are in their 70s and we know some that live in places that are on quiet dark streets! Do we have crime in PV? Of course (which is why I always warn folks to take the usual precautions against pick pockets). But violent crime, during the daytime, against solo ladies (or anyone) is rare. DW would tell you that she feels safer in PV than in most places of the USA. Hank

My DW's response was "I don't see where that is a problem." Understand, that the area outside the cruise terminal is a very busy (with both traffic and pedestrians). Other than the normal risk of pickpockets, and getting hit by a car/bus, it is quite safe. In fact, the entire region from the cruise port all the way into town (which spans the so-called Hotel Zone) is safe for anyone during the day time. As to choosing Uber over a regular taxi (generally yellow) that is debatable. Until the last two years, I was a big fan of Uber because one knew the cost (it is on the app) and Uber prices were somewhat less than the taxis. However, in the past two seasons we have noticed an increase in Uber prices (something akin to their surge pricing in the USA) which often means that the regular taxis are competitive. The thing about using the regular taxis (those outside the port) is that there are no meters and the drivers will often overcharge (they are supposed to use published zone fares) "gringos" and especially cruisers (who they see as naive easy marks). Before using a regular taxi, always tell the driver your destination and ask for the fare (you can specify dollars or pesos). You can bargain, but this is best done before getting in the cab. I will reiterate why I say "regular taxis" Inside the port area, the taxis are so-called "federal taxis" and follow different rules form the normal taxis found everywhere outside the port (and airport). The port or federal taxis charge a price per person fare and are not permitted to pick-up any customers outside the port. This means they must return to to the port, empty! Accordingly, their fares are generally higher than the regular taxis (assuming you have 2 or more in the taxi). The regular taxis (found outside the port) charge fares for the taxi...not per person. All the taxis (federal taxis and the regular taxis) are safe and the drivers licensed. In theory, Uber is also controlled, but some folks have their doubts (just like in the USA). Once upon a time, about 3 years ago, I was ripped-off by an Uber driver. She overcharged me, big time, by reporting that I had made several stops beyond my Uber App destination. I caught the error, within an hour, and immediately sent a message to Uber (via the app). Uber (Mexico) did acknowledge my complaint, asked for more details, and corrected the overcharge (this all happened the following day). I mention this, because just like the regular taxis, Uber drivers can try to scam folks. Hank

Finally, after 12 long years of indecision and very slow repairs, the famous walkway between Riomaggiore and Manarola, in the Cinque Terre area, has reopened. But, it is only open to those who do some planning and are OK with putting up with the overtourism that is endemic to the area. Here is a link to a related article that explains the situation: Italy’s famous ‘Path of Love’ reopens after more than 12 years | CNN DW and I walked this route, many years ago before the mudrock slides that destroyed the trail. If similar to what existed prior to its destructions, it should be a relatively easy hike for folks that can handle a half mile on a paved trail. Hank

Cruisemom, the last time we were in Bergen (just prior to COVID) we did dock at that terminal and taxis were very scarce. We walked into town (and later back to the port) but I do realize that is not a good solution to going to Grieg's House. This might be a case where Uber is your best friend. Otherwise, if no taxis at the port you would have little choice but to walk towards the center of town and hope to spot a taxi. Hope all is well and good to see you are still on the move :). Hank

When we want a cruise for sun/sand/ and relaxation, we head to the Caribbean. When we want a winter home, we live on the Mexican Riviera (Puerto Vallarta). Would we recommend flying from Europe to our west coast to take a Mexican Riviera cruise? Probably not. But, if you happen to be on the west coast, and like to cruise, than the Mexican Riviera is a great option. Another alternative is taking a Panama Canal cruise that gets you some of the Caribbean, Central America, Hank

I have no idea what the OP would like or not like. I can say that we do like Croatia (and many other places around the world) and will be heading back to Dubrovnik (for a 3 week cruise) in a few weeks. Theme Park? I have no clue what that means when referring to a city. Many of us are not very happy with the impact of overtourism, but that is the price we all pay for being tourists :). The OP can escape "theme parks" by going to many of the remote places in the world such as in parts of Africa, Asia, and even Europe. But we do find that most folks who complain about overtourism are the same folks who are contributing to the problem by going to the more popular places. When we first went to Croatia and nearby Montenegro, there were not a lot of tourists. But, alas, these countries have been discovered and their popularity continues to increase. On our most recent trip to that part of Europe, we rented a car and drove through parts of Slovenia (which was surprisingly crowded with tourists). If the OP wants to get away from overtourism the best bet is to rent a car and go far from cruise ports into countries like Slovenia, Serbia, Poland, etc. Even in Croatia, there are plenty of places to escape the hoards, but one generally needs a rental car. Keep in mind that cruises and tours tend to go to tourist places. Hank

Sure, in fact they have two excellent watch shops where you can spend $30,000+ on a watch. There is one shop with a few clothing items, but it did seem like the company is obsessed with pushing very high-end (expensive) products. You can spend money on more expensive wines (they do have a wine list).