Jumping Cruiser

Hi everyone!

We are going to Naples on 1st July and looking to do Capri independently. Our ship is docked between 7AM-6PM. Would you say the 8:35 (Outgoing) and 15:35 ferry times would be suitable? Also, does anyone know how reliable these ferry services are?

Thanks 🙂 

3 hours ago, Ulsteinvik said:

Cadiz (Spain) updated their official cruise schedule for 2024.

Do you have the link for the schedule please?

7 hours ago, SherriZ366 said:

Saw both posts but I still think they will put in an older Oasis Class Ship.  Especially judging from prices being charged for Wonder compared to Harmony, which was in Port Canaveral prior to Wonder being homeported there.  

The main 3/4 night competitor in PC is Disney, obviously who charge a lot of $$$’s. I imagine Royal will be thinking that if they pay a higher price for Disney, why wouldn’t they also pay that for Utopia. 

2 hours ago, alpineapa said:

What are we doing wrong that we don't see the direct train?

 

EN - Trenitalia

This is the correct website, but regional train times, which includes the CE, have not been released yet. We’re going on the 30th June and haven’t been able to book yet. Keep checking, but usually about a month before they will become available.

53 minutes ago, Moxiefurball said:

1. How do we get from ship to train station without walking?  It appears there is a port shuttle to another stop, where you have to wait for a 2-3 euro bus to train station . Is this correct?

 

2. With the  express train it seems you have option of getting off at stop nearer to ST Peters , or the last stop nearer to Coliseum.?

 

3. Going back from Rome from to Citavecchia is there only one train? 

 

4.  Thoughts on using this as a more economical  way of getting from Port to Rome and back to ship?

1. You can get the public bus for about 2-3 euro each way from the port entrance or you can take a direct shuttle from the ship to the station, but this costs 6 euro each way. If you want the direct shuttle, then put your staring point as ‘Civitavecchia Porto’ on Trenitalia and this will show you the combined price for train and shuttle. 
 

2. The first stop, Roma S. Pietro is closest to The Vatican. When we go, we usually get of at this stop on the way and get back on from the starting point at Roma Ostiense, which is close to the colosseum. 
 

3. Yes, there is only one direct train. This leaves Roma Ostiense at 16:30.

4. We really like the direct service that it provides, especially around rush hour, as commuter trains can be busy. Although it’s slightly more expensive, we feel like it offers a better experience and still gives you enough time to explore Rome. 

Having the same issue with 3-night dining package for Wonder 26th Nov. It dropped significantly yesterday, but with an error, then returned to full price, before dropping back down this morning marked as sold out.

8 minutes ago, euro cruiser said:

Unless you have a late arrival to Civitavecchia, if this is a port day I would seriously reconsider using the CE.  Most ships pull in and start disembarking passengers for a port day between 7 - 7:30 AM.  Why waste time waiting around for a 9:00 train?  You could already be in Rome by the time that train leaves Civitavecchia.

I have only been once and used the CE service, so don’t have much knowledge of the more regular services. Is it common for there to be delays getting out of the port? Are commuter trains usually busy at that time on a weekday morning?

17 minutes ago, billaraneta said:

Hello why Utopia of the Seas will not sail in Asia?

Demand and geopolitical factors make it difficult for this region at the minute. It makes more sense for Royal to homeport Utopia elsewhere to maximise revenue.

1 hour ago, dinekani said:

That's very helpful, thanks.

 

I have another question. I understand that there are two stretches to get to the CE station - one is from the cruise ship to the Welcome Center and the other is from the Welcome Center to the actual CE station. Based on my research, it seems that the shuttles for the first stretch are free (right?), but I'm not sure about the second stretch. I think I read somewhere that for CE ticket holders specifically, the shuttles for the second stretch are free, but I couldn't get a confirmation on that. Can someone confirm, please?

Firstly, its best to use this website to look up all of your tickets (https://www.trenitalia.com/en.html).

From my experience, the shuttle from the ship to the cruise terminal welcome building is free, as no walking is permitted on port property. Then, there are a few different options to get to the station, including:

- Walking: Takes about 15/20 mins from port entrance.

- Public Bus: Get a public bus for around 2/3 euro, which takes you from port entrance to the station.

- Direct Transfer Train Ticket: You can select a specific train ticket for CE that includes a direct transfer from ship to the station. If you are looking to book this then put your starting point as ‘Civitavecchia Porto’ and this will show you the total cost of the train and transfer. This shuttle costs 6 euro each way, so would take the train ticket price up to 13.50 euro per way, as opposed to 7.50 euro just for the train.

Hope this helps, but if you would like me to be more specific then just let me know. 

4 hours ago, Mary Louise said:

What train station do I select in the port of Civitavecchia to take the express train to Rome. There seems to be a several options and I want to select the correct one.

You need the Civitavecchia Express service from Civitavecchia to Roma Ostiense. It is 7.50 euro one-way and 15 euro return. You can get off at Roma S. Pietro on the way to Rome, if you are planning to visit the Vatican and then back on at Ostiense which is closer to the Colleseum. The train times are as follows:

9:07 - 10:10 (Civitavecchia to Roma Ostiense)

16:30 - 17:20 (Roma Ostiense to Civitavecchia)

2 hours ago, Ethanol95 said:

They should release more info on Utopia very soon, given its now a year away.

 
Icon is their pride and joy at the minute and I think still will be after the launch of Utopia. They have put so much effort into promoting Icon that I think any attempt to market Utopia will just get brushed under the carpet by many. I hope that their focus on Icon doesn’t harm the quality of Utopia either, as Oasis class are still incredible ships and will be for many years!
 

As I mentioned on another thread, while I think it is unlikely that Utopia will go to Asia, I think that this would make more sense marketing wise as they don’t have a comparable product in Asia, whereas many US & Europe customers will still be attracted to Icon. Although, I’m far from an expert, and Royal will obviously send her wherever they can make the most $$$! 
 

Wherever they choose to send her, they had better start selling, as a ship launch without passengers wouldn’t be a good start! 😂

2 hours ago, Ethanol95 said:

Last i heard, Utopia will debut in UK when she launches initially, not sure for how long though, taking over Anthem. Plans might or might not have changed.

I doubt that they would replace Anthem with Utopia in 2024, as many Southampton itineraries I don’t think could handle an oasis class (e.g Norway). It could be possible that they homeport both in Southampton, but that’s two really big ships to fill, which I don’t think there really is a market for, especially with only 12 months notice.  
 

If they wanted to debut her in Europe, it would make sense to me to send Oasis to PC on 3/4 nighters and have Utopia take over the Med route for the summer season. Although, Oasis would still be due dry-dock, so they would have to fit that in somewhere. If not, the short sailings gap from PC is the only real opening left, as discussed here already. Obviously not including Asia, which seems unlikely, but not impossible considering Disney’s recent move.
 

5 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

 

Ok... I'm booked on Freedom out of Fort Lauderdale on 7 December 2024. There have already been rumblings among peeps booked on my sailing and others in that time frame. Nobody has heard anything from Royal and some who have enquired have been told "she is still sailing" (strictly speaking, I guess she is but not quite the same part of the world).

 

I know it's like asking how long is a piece of string but how reliable have you found these port entries to be?

Usually, they are fairly accurate, especially in Madeira where they update their schedule frequently. Only one booking for 2024 was not included in an itinerary, which was the TA call for Odyssey. However, as Royal are advertising no cruises departing between Nov 9th 2024 and December 29th, I believe this makes it more likely. Although, I would wait for Royal to confirm. 

Funchal, Madeira Port Bookings (Correct as of 31/03/23)

A new booking has been made for Freedom - most likely a stop on her way to dry-dock? I see she has port of origin marked as Lanzarote and a gap in schedules between 9th November and 29th December, so this seems likely. Also, the port call for Odyssey has been removed, as this is not a port on the final transatlantic itinerary.

Odyssey OTS - 30th April 2024.  *CANCELLED*

Anthem OTS - 5th May 2024

Anthem OTS - 10th June 2024

Anthem OTS - 12th September 2024

Anthem OTS - 24th September 2024

Anthem OTS - 10th October 2024

Adventure OTS - 5th November 2024

Odyssey OTS - 10th November 2024

Voyager OTS - 16th November 2024

Freedom OTS - 21st November 2024.  *NEW*

Adventure OTS - 29th November 2024

Renderings Summary

I know some of these renderings have already been posted, but I thought I would summarise all of todays releases on one post. 

Dueling Piano Bar

Lou’s Jazz ‘n Blues

Bubbles - Champagne Counter

Rye & Bean - Coffee/Bar

Overlook Bar & Overlook Pods

1400 Bar

Trellis Bar

Point & Feather Pub

Spotlight Karaoke

Playmakers Sports Bar

Schooner Bar

Music Hall

Boleros

The Attic - Comedy Club

Casino Royale 

Some more videos have just been released by Royal, with a few new renderings that we haven’t already seen from today.

On Anthem for 23rd June Mediterranean cruise and haven’t been notified of any changes to timings.

We are going on a cruise to Naples in June this year and wanted to explore some opportunities for shore excursions to Capri. We were looking ideally for a boat trip around the island, possibly including a trip to the blue grotto, followed by some free time in Capri itself.

Has anyone done something like this before or have an external excursion company that they could recommend? Thanks

Now showing as sold out for me for Wonder 26th November.

29 minutes ago, Bloodgem said:

Has anyone from the UK been offered the package?

 

I'm have 2 up coming sailing on the Anthem, out of Southampton, and I have not been offered the package

I’ve been offered it for my Wonder sailing in November for £73. Not showing on my June Anthem sailing though.

Just now, ZoeyVictoria said:

Still there for me.

Thanks, it was just me 🙄. Got a bit too excited!

Has this appeared on Anthem for anyone?

1 hour ago, Missusdubbya said:

Has anyone ideas/intel about which ships will be doing Spring 2025 TAs?

 

I know this will belong in the future deployment thread 😁, I am just keen to book a b2b and the pre TAs are out.

 

There are a lot of possible options…..

Odyssey: Cape Liberty - Southampton (Around Late April - Approx 27th)

Captain Announced!

Captain Henrik Loy has been announced as the first captain for Icon. Click the blog post below for more info.

Icon of the Seas Captain Interview

25 minutes ago, Missusdubbya said:

Does anyone know what’s happening with Allure deployment? I can only see cruises until Jan 25.

As far as I know, nothing has been announced past Jan. Allure is due a dry-dock in 2025, as her last one was in 2020.

I’m wondering if she may come out of service in January and have her full amplification that was planned for 2020, before doing the 7-day Mediterranean itinerary in 2025 which usually begins around April. Her postponed amplification was supposed to take 58-days, so add a week of sailing to Cadiz and the timing looks about right to me.