Hlitner

JB, As I posted, for reasons unknown to me there are some localities within Italy that either do not go after the rental car companies, or are somehow ignored by those same rental car companies. The specific ticket to which I referred was a parking ticket I got when we stopped at a flea market in a small town along the S222 (the Chianti wine road that runs between Florence and Siena). It is still a topic of laughter when I get together with my friend who had to translate the Italian language letter that came "Registered Mail." We have had other tickets in Europe that were handled by the rental car company (who than charged me along with an "administrative fee"). Since we know you are a fan of driving in our country, here is another dilemma. There are some toll roads that no longer have any option to pay the toll by cash. You either must have the appropriate transponder (and these can vary depending on where you are driving) or you get a "toll by mail." Of course with a rental car, the mail by toll option goes to the rental car company who may add a hefty administrative fee. It can be difficult to avoid this for a renter. A great example are the tunnels and bridges in/out of NYC (i.e. Holland Tunnel, Lincoln Tunnel, etc) which can only be satisfied if you have an "EZPASS" transponder. This is not practical for rentals since you have to buy those devices (at certain places or through the mail) and some rental car companies do not have those transponders in their cars. So your only option is to drive and let the "toll by mail" go to your rental car company. It is unfair. To make matters worse (for even we Americans) the various toll transponders are often not compatible. So, for example, although I have an EZPASS in my car, it is worthless when I drive in Florida where they use an incompatible "SunPass." Some rental car companies do have a specific transponder in their cars, but they often charge some outrageous fee if you want to use the device. Hank P.S. Even your black Mustang Convertible cannot go fast enough to avoid those toll cameras.

What kind of bus? If taking an excursion, the bus ride will likely be about 1:15 (each way) which could be somewhat longer depending on traffic (especially as you near Mont St Michel. IMHO it is a pretty good excursion option from that port. Just keep in mind that Mt St Michel involves a significant amount of walking (including uphill). Hank

Lots of factors can impact the answer. Your exact docking position (within the port) which will be unknown until you dock. How long it will take to get the gangway in position and clear your ship? How fast you can walk? Exactly where your excursion boat docks vis-a-vis your ship? If your excursion operator is not willing to wait (in case you are a little late) we would be uncomfortable with the arrangement unless the excursion operator were willing to refund any pre-payment. Hank

We cannot over emphasize the beauty/convenience of using the E28. DW and I are not fans of Hop On Hop Off buses (we know that many travelers love these buses) because we have issues with the cost (often over $30 a day) and the amount of time lost just waiting for the next bus at each stop. In the case of Lisbon, the trams are truly a wonderful option, run a lot more often than HoHos, The cost of the tram can be as little as $1.60 per ride (if you buy a 7 trip Colinas Card) and the trams are a lot of fun. Folks should also beware that pickpockets in Lisbon (especially on and near trams) can rival their cousins in Barcelona. Be careful my friend! Hank

LOL regarding rental car rules in Italy! We have been driving throughout Italy for about thirty years, and the rules change with the phases of the moon. I had heard (cannot confirm) that Positano is now part of a ZTL (limited driving zone) which actually makes a lot of sense. If so, this would preclude driving any vehicle into town (there are usually ZTL exceptions if you are staying in a local hotel). As one who has driven throughout the country, we are always wrestling with changing ZTLs. Alternate driving days would actually be a more liberal policy than ZTLs :). It is all part of the game. The last time we heard about this odd/even policy we also heard they were making exceptions for the hours between 10am and 6pm (when there would be no restrictions). https://www.positanonews.it/2023/04/targhe-alterne-sulla-statale-amalfitana-in-occasione-della-settimana-santa/3626542/ I used to have enough local Italian parking tickets to wallpaper my bathroom 🙂For some reason, many localities have not figured out how to collect parking fines via rental car companies. As one point, a small town in Chianti sent me a parking ticket (in Italian) via Registered Mail. It cost them over $20 to send that letter which requested I send them a check payable in Euros :). In the true Italian tradition, that request made it to the nearest trash can. Hank

The problem can be that if you have the HIA package, you will have an excursion credit. Normally, when you book an excursion (prior to the cruise) it will be applied to that credit. However, if you are wait listed for that tour, and later clear the wait list, you will be immediately charged (to your credit card) for that tour....even if you still have a tour excursion credit from the HIA package. Why? HAL told me it is a software glitch that they hope to fix (hope does spring eternal) but nobody is holding their breath. The bummer is that even though you have an HIA excursion credit, the HAL software may not allow you to use that credit. The folks in Seattle say you can deal with this onboard, but that remains a question rather than a solution. Depending who you deal with onboard, which ship you are on, and the policy of the day, you may or may not be able to get that resolved once onboard. Hank

With more than 50 years of extensive cruising under our belt, we do not see this as an either/or issue. DW and I enjoy both sea days and port days. To us, the ideal cruise is at least a month long with about a 50-50 mix of both port days and sea days. On a relatively short Caribbean cruise (assume no more than 14 days) we really do not care as we stay aboard the ship at some ports for which we have little interest (been there...done that). We are currently thinking about booking a 35 day cruise which involves both a transatlantic component and Med cruise. Much of the first 10 days are sea days and the last two weeks are almost all port days. While we are fine with staying on the ship in most Caribbean ports, the Med is somewhat different since the ports are quite interesting (even though we have been to most of them many times). But, in Europe, we can compromise and turn a port day into a very relaxing day by limiting our touring and having a nice long lunch ashore. My message to fellow cruisers is quite simple. Port days can always be treated as "sea days" by simply staying aboard and enjoying a near empty vessel. But sea days can only be sea days although folks can certainly vary what they do from many activities to just a lazy day eating, drinking, and reading. We have often talked to fellow cruisers in Europe who complain they are worn out from all the long port days. That prompts the question, "why don't you just go off on your own and plan a relaxing day?" Hank

There are several different docking locations so saying "near the port" is not all that useful. All the docking locations are along the river, but can be some distance from each other. IMHO, it does not make a lot of sense to try to be close to a port. Taxis within Lisbon are relatively inexpensive and it makes a lot of sense to just find the best hotel (for the price) that is convenient to restaurants and the main part of town. We think the best way to see Lisbon is to use the E28 Tram (which covers much of the historic district) and the E15 (connects town to Belam). I would look for a hotel within a few blocks of the E28. Using the tram is much cheaper than the HoHo and is a lot more fun. Hank

Good to hear that it has been resolved. When we stay on the Amalfi Coast (in the nearby town of Praiano) we will sometimes drive into Positano in the evening (after the day tours are long gone) and have sometimes gotten lucky and found on the street parking in the town. Other times we have parked above (along the Amalfi Drive) and hiked down into town. During the day time (when traffic is much worse) we have used the local bus (I call them Orange buses) which was mentioned in JB's post. Those local (Orange) buses are permitted to drive down into town and are quite convenient. Hank

We agree with you and have no solution. The Japanese do as the Japanese do and HAL (and all cruise lines) as well as the passengers must simply go along with their procedures...whatever they happen to be at any point in time. Trying to predict what will happen in the future and how long Japanese procedures will delay your ability to go ashore (and meet your tour) is just beyond the ability of anyone (including HAL) to predict. I will tell you that on our Westy cruise, the onboard folks did go out of their way to accommodate folks who had confirmed private tours. In many cases, those folks were able to get a low number (we had to get numbers which told us when to report to immigration) which allowed them to get off the ship relatively early. But given the wishy washy way that HAL now does things, there is no way to guarantee that your ship will follow the same procedures. If you are trying to schedule an early private tour then you will have to take your chances with the system. Yes, it does suck (for lack of a better word), but that is life. During our Westy cruise there was one port where we went through the Japanese entry procedures (which included an onboard face to face) and in the course of less than 10 minutes, we had our Passports checked five times by five different Japanese officials (after we had cleared their immigration process). The 5th time happened on the pier and I just smiles at the official and mentioned "go" (means 5) and he actually laughed and asked me "really?" Hank

Not sure if there are enough officials stationed in Kushiro, but the Japanese do move folks around as necessary. As Cruisemom said, on our recent Westerdam cruise we were originally scheduled to go through the Exit Interview at Kushiro. The Japanese are somewhat inflexible with their procedures so you will need to go through the exit interview process at your last Japanese port. The procedure to clear all the passengers can take many hours, and we have no clue as to how "O" will handle the priority/procedure. Hank

The situation on the Westy was somewhat interesting. When we were first overcharged (the first day of our 42 day cruise) we stopped by Guest Relations and were told "we will need to e-mail the beverage manager." After a few hours the overcharge was corrected. The 2nd time (the following day) we again stopped by Guest Relations and again got the usual "we will e-mail the beverage department." That was the last time we heard that garbage. As that point we stopped going to Guest Relations and simply sent a message via the Navigator App. The first couple of times we got follow-up phone calls (sorry bout that) and the overcharges were quickly corrected (no more "we will e-mail the beverage department.") After the 5th or 6th time they no longer responded to our messages and simply corrected the overcharges. They also ignored our 3 requests to meet with the Hotel General Manager about the issue :). At one point I did suggest to Guest Relations that if all they do is send e-mails to the various departments, we do not need a Guest Relations desk. We can simply send those e-mails ourselves A warning! Keep checking your accounts since, in our case, the problem was never resolved and continued throughout much of our 42 days. We never could identify a pattern since it happened a few times at several different bars (and in the MDR) but there were numerous other times when there were no overcharges. It felt like rolling the dice on the craps table. Hank

Hmm. Azamara, Oceania, and Seabourn quickly come to mind. Hank

LOL not exaggerating. It does vary from cruise to cruise but this is what we saw on our last Enchanted cruise in the Caribbean. It does seem to vary from cruise to cruise, but there is little to no effort by staff to enforce any rules so folks do as they please. I am old school and remember the days when most guys wore tuxes or suits. Now, my tux is gathering dust in the closet where it stays when we go on Princess or most other lines. The one remaining exception would be some QM2 cruises. Hank

The war has been fought, the war is over, and the "we were raised by wolves" folks have won. Even on lines (like Princess) where there are still formal, dressy, gala, etc. nights, folks will pretty much do as they please (within some loose guidelines). To the OP I would suggest that if you want to dress to the nines, on Princess formal nights, than do it and be among the few well dressed folks on the ship. You will look good, a few others will admire what you do, others will think you are out of your mind, and most will not care. On Princess you will see men wearing backwards baseball caps, wifebeater shirts, ripped shorts, etc. On formal night they might (emphasis on "might") not be allowed into the MDR. That is reality. I am still waiting to see when "robe people" (passengers who wear their bath robes) are allowed in the MDR (they already come into the Lido). Hank

I know you will consider this post "rude" but the truth is that one cannot be certain what will be offered until you are actually onboard the ship. Your mini-bar will be stocked when you arrive and it will have an assortment of beers, small booze bottles, some soft drinks, and a few other items. You can call Room Service, if you want to change the booze, and they will tell you your options (which vary depending on what supplies they have aboard). The last time we cruised on Princess (the Enchantment) they had lots of logistical issues and had no scotch or cognac. The next time? Nobody knows! There normally would be a choice between scotch (often Dewars), gin, vokka, Jack Daniels, Courvoisier VS, and perhaps a few other items. Hank

We have often debarked, 1 day early, while in Le Havre on a Princess cruise. The procedure is to request early debarkation (I think they call it "enroute deviation") in advance of the cruise, and it should be done in writing. You will get a written approval (via e-mail). Once aboard the cruise it is wise to stop by the Guest Relations desk (anytime during the cruise) and remind them of your intentions (and also tell your cabin steward). Why do we do this? We have often used Princess as our way of getting to Europe (we love transatlantic repositioning cruises) and than prefer to be in France (within the EU) rather than in the UK. There are usually dozens of other passengers also doing early debarkation and Princess usually has the usual baggage policy (leave your bags out at night and pick them up in the terminal). There are good train connections to Paris (about 1 train per hour) which is where we usually go after our cruise. From Paris, after our usual stay, we are off to other parts of France or Europe. Hank

Hmmm, Didn't know there was a difference between Bud Lite and water. Live and learn?

A few years ago we also decided to ride those dreadful beasts. Our two donkeys decided to race up the path, and my steed kept trying to drag my left leg along the rock wall (which would have resulted in a nasty abrasion). I "encouraged" the animal to move towards the center but it was a battle all the way to the top. And then we smelled like "Donkey" for most of the day. While it can be fun, it is not something we recommend for most folks. Hank P.S. Trying to picture you and Julie going up the path and the thought has me ROFL. Would be worth buying a few pints to see the deed.

I would buy you a Guinness if it would get you on one of those beasts. :);

That is a long time to be sitting at the airport. Have you considered grabbing a taxi into town, storing your luggage at any of the many storage options, enjoying a few hours in Barcelona, and later taking a taxi out to the airport? Here is a link to just one (of several) luggage storage sites: Luggage storage Barcelona | See all 99+ convenient locations (usebounce.com). Hank

The blog is about a cruise on the Westerdam and the last time I looked, that is a Vista Class ship.

So tell me about the wonderful Club Orange on Vista Class ships. Tell me about their dedicated restaurant (not), unique upscale menu (not), wonderful Club Orange Lounge (Not). A small upgrade? Yes, although that only impacts cabin location and not the type cabin. Priority? I am 5* and what additional priorities do I get? And here is a shocker. we prefer cabins somewhat forward and would refuse an "upgrade" to a more mid-ship located cabin. And DW is not a breakfast person and is happy to grab a pasty in the Lido (if on Princess it would always be at the International Cafe where they have really good donuts/pastries). As to dinner in the MDR, we generally dine about 7:30 and always request to share large tables. On our recent Westy cruise we never waited more than 3 minutes to be seated and most night we had zero waiting time. So I am trying to get a handle on "pretty lovely." 🙂 Now if you tell me that Club Orange will get me live music/entertainment after 11pm you might get my interest? If you tell me that Club Orange means, we will not be consistently overcharged for drinks than you might get a fan :). If you tell me that Club Orange did not run out of Perrier, Black Tea, Rose's Lime Juice (our friend bought some ashore so we could resupply our favorite bar) Glenmorangie Scotch (finally brought aboard in Korea), Courvoisier VSOP Cognac (the only real cognac covered by the drink package...which has not been in stock on the Westy for about 6 months) I might be a fan. Tell me that Club Orange will get me Production Shows, a real piano bar, the Lincoln Center Stage groups, and I might actually be interested in Club Orange! Hank

Been traveling in and out of Civitavecchia for over 40 years and am still looking :). My advice, for three nights, is find a nice place to stay in Rome, and make the trek to Civitavecchia on the day of your cruise. You can get to Civitavecchia (from Rome) via train (if you can handle your own luggage), a pre-arranged private transfer (consider Romeinlimo or Romecabs) or a taxi. Hank

o Our advice has always been to use some common sense and have a Plan B in case the boat option is not promising. You will not know, for sure, until you are actually on the pier. If there is a boat, and it is pretty full, you are probably going to have a good experience. If the boat is only partially full, you might want to have a chat with the operator about "when will you be leaving for Oia?." As to Plan B, for most that would mean taking the cable car up to Fira. You can later walk to the main bus station and take the bus to Oia or grab a taxi from the adjacent (to the bus station) main taxi parking area. Hank