mom kaplan

February 20, 2023

On 2/7/2023 at 12:49 PM, VitaminSea53 said:

Does anyone have first hand experience with Welcome Pickups? I am thinking of booking them for 3 cities we will be visiting. Reviews are mixed - they either love them or hate them....

We used them in Athens 3 times and have had great experiences each time. I can't speak on other cities though

December 28, 2022

3 minutes ago, JHLH821 said:

Thank you so much. I don't want to put you to any trouble though. If you do (easily) find information about it, you can post it here of if you prefer, email me at momkap at icloud dot com

Thanks again

December 28, 2022

On 12/22/2022 at 12:55 PM, JHLH821 said:

JHLH821, I'm not familiar with the area. Any suggestion as to the easiest way to get to Ein Hod Artist Village from the port?

December 28, 2022

On 12/23/2022 at 9:14 AM, Markanddonna said:

I took a very interesting tour that covered Caesarea Philippi, the Nimrod Fortress, Safed (disappointing), and other stops such as Katzin and some that covered Israel's history. It was with Bein Harim which I would not recommend because of our horrible guide/driver. See if other tour companies might cover this area. There is no public transportation up there (only local buses.)

You didn't mention going to Jerusalem. We stayed there for several days basing our hotel to the west of the old city. We walked most everywhere.

Thanks, Markanddonna, for the suggestions as well as the recommendation to avoid Bein Harim as a tour company. Sorry you had less than a good experience with them.

We will be in Jerusalem (specifically Ashdod) for an overnight after we leave Haifa. We spent a couple of days there on a previous cruise but plan to return to a few places of interest again in addition to going to the Dead Sea and Masada.

December 28, 2022

On 12/22/2022 at 1:00 PM, IgKh said:

I personally like Haifa itself, but I'm very biased since I used to live there and that's where my Alma mater is. There are multiple special interest museums (I'm particularly fond of the Israel Railways museum, the Hecht Museum of Archeology, the naval museum and the Mada-tech science museum). You can also join a guided tour of the Bahai Gardens if you didn't have the chance already.

Markets wise, the Wadi Nisnas market is indeed much slower on Sundays (not fully closed, but most shops are). The Talpiot Market however is open, and has become a really trendy area for restaurants experimenting with modern Israeli cuisine in the recent years.

(A few months ago I posted a Rhapsody of the Seas cruise review in the Royal Caribbean forums, which has a relatively extensive pre-cruise portion, maybe that will help you get an idea).

Going beyond Haifa, there are many many unique and interesting sites in Northern Israel - Caesarea is the obvious one you haven't mentioned (it's kind of on the beaten path). I can think of others - I like Zippori National Park and the adjacent Beit-Shearim national park, there is Safed, Nimrod fortress, Rosh ha-Nikra / Ras a-Naqoura, and much more.

If you have any particular types of places you are interested in, I'll be happy to try and come with more specific suggestions.

Thank you so much, IgKh, for the suggestions. Great idea, I'll look at your review on the RC Rhapsody of the Seas' section for other ideas too.

December 28, 2022

On 12/22/2022 at 12:55 PM, JHLH821 said:

Thank you for the recommendations, JKLH821. Sounds like something right up our alley!

December 22, 2022

Our cruise is originating in Haifa with an overnight and following day (until 10pm) there. This will be our second cruise with an overnight in Haifa so we're fortunate to have previously toured Nazareth, Acre, and other "highlights" in northern Israel so we are now looking for a tour that's kind of off the beaten path. We'll be in Haifa, Sunday, 5/28, so I know the market is closed. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

August 27, 2022

On 7/30/2022 at 2:45 PM, fasterflier said:

Yes I think that is right...Trieste, although they are still showing this on the website:
JERUSALEM TO VENICE

Hi Jack,

I did start a Roll Call for this cruise but because the itinerary has changed (actually before we booked so I had no idea it was originally called “Jerusalem to Venice”) it’s named:

“Sirena May 27, 2023 Jerusalem to Valletta”.
I hope you’ll join it as it’s been a rather quiet thread thus far.

January 15, 2020

On 1/7/2020 at 12:38 PM, mom kaplan said:

ORV, we are not new to Oceania but in no way are we experts, so we do know the difference, I just miswrote, but you're absolutely correct. Oceania markets it in a confusing way. You have to be able to ask for the different options rather than have them offer them upfront. Thank you for validating my opinion in that.

ORV, I just reread my response to you (above) and it now comes across to me as “snippy/snooty”. I apologize if you read it that way. It was certainly not my intention. (After being on CC for a few years, I may be overly sensitive to “snippy/snooty” comments - not on this particular topic posting, but many others - I try not to make them. I may have failed this time.)

January 7, 2020

1 hour ago, ORV said:

Absolutely true, but the fault lies with Oceania in the way they market it. For those new to Oceania their perception of it is understandable.

ORV, we are not new to Oceania but in no way are we experts, so we do know the difference, I just miswrote, but you're absolutely correct. Oceania markets it in a confusing way. You have to be able to ask for the different options rather than have them offer them upfront. Thank you for validating my opinion in that.

January 7, 2020

1 hour ago, rallydave said:

Just for clarification since this issue rears its' ugly head quite often. It is NOT and OLife flight. Flights are for without OLife and OLife; no difference. OLife has absolutely nothing to do with flights.

People keep mistaking that fact and don't want more people to get confused. You have 4 choices when purchasing your cruise:

Cruise only, no air

Cruise plus air

OLife no air

OLife with air

Rallydave, you're absolutely correct. I misspoke/miswrote but do know the difference. It is not an OLife flight. It is OLife with air.

January 7, 2020

12 hours ago, alcpa1 said:

MomKaplan might be on the ATL - GIG flight that gets in at 6:45. We're on the same flight a couple of days before the cruise.

You still should be able to get a refund for the overpriced and untimely transfer and grab a radio taxi at their kiosk and use the luggage hold at the Copacabana Hilton and head to the ship on Karen's arranged bus at 1.

Think about it and head back to the Roll Call.

You're right, alcpa1, we are on the ATL-GIG flight arriving at 6:45am. I am going to speak to my TA about a refund and look into the before mentioned private driver (which we're doing in BA after disembarkation because we have a 9pm flight but was reluctant to do in Rio fearing flight delays being an issue) or taking you up on your suggestion about the radio taxi, luggage storage and Karen's bus if that's still available.

Thank you so much, everyone, for the "food for thought"!

I love the CC "family"! It's so very helpful.

January 6, 2020

1 hour ago, pinotlover said:

Oceania will have an Agent to meet you either in baggage claim or after you pass through customs.

You may either then proceed directly to the port OR, you will sit and wait in the bus or van depending upon whether or how many others are soon arriving.

You will then be taken to the port to wait. If you arrive at port pre 9:00-9:30 while they are still getting the shipped clear, you will be given your luggage back and will have to watch it yourselves until they start accepting/ receiving new luggage. This typically starts 9:30. -10:00. You will then wait , with all your carry-on, until general boarding begins which is normally 11:00 or later.

So not a one size fits all answer. You might get out of the airport quickly. You might not. They might start taking luggage as early as 9:00, though they probably won’t.

Once aboard, you may have lunch while sitting with all your carry on luggage until your cabin level is called.

Personally, we don’t like that plan. We’d take a taxi to a nice Marriot or Hyatt where we gave status, check all our luggage with the concierge, walk around town and have a nice relaxing lunch before proceeding to the port near the time our cabin would be ready. 1. The outrageous fee you pay for the ship transfer would more than pay for all of the above including lunch. 2. My scenario far beats sitting the airport and port for hours, plus we’re not lugging all the crap all day while additionally not being caught up in the mayhem that occurs when boarding begins. That , however, is just us! Each to their own.

Thanks Pinotlover for the information. I have to check the various hotels to see 1. the location of the hotel 2. if our status is of the level we'd need to qualify for that perk 🙂

January 6, 2020

First I apologize if this is a much-discussed topic. I've read through a number of the pages on the Oceania forum/boards and didn't see it mentioned so if I missed it, I'm sorry.

Our OLife flight arrives in Rio at 6:45am. We are using Oceania's airport to port transfer. We chose this because after a long travel day/night we didn't think we'd want to much in terms of a private tour in the morning before boarding. I know it will take a bit to make it out of the airport but does anyone know if they normally have us wait at the airport until nearly embarkation time (12 noon if Concierge/1pm if Standard) or do they bring us to the port in the early morning expecting us to wait there until we can board? If they do bring us to the port early, will they take our luggage early or at least allow us to store there until board so we can do a little walking (in reportedly safe areas)? TIA

April 28, 2019

On 4/16/2019 at 2:41 AM, Iriel said:

Yes, coupeb, that will work. I visited Iguazu Falls last month and you really don't need much time in Brazil, you can see everything in two hours. We did complement the visit with the boat under the falls and the Parque das Aves. I do recommend taking an entire day to see everything on the Argentine side. There is a lot to see, we entered the park at 9:30 and left at 18, only because it was closing. Both sides are wonderful, though. If you need it, I can recommend a taxi driver, he took us everywhere and gave us great advice to really make the most of our time.

Hi, hate to impose upon you too but could you please send me the name of your taxi driver too? Thanks a million.

(email denLkap at aol dot com)

September 22, 2018

Found it, thank you