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I suspect they (and many many others) do... For those who don't know, the Schengen area comprises all the EU member states other than Ireland and Cyprus (Ireland can't become part of Schengen because of the common travel arrangement with the UK and Cyprus is going through the steps to join) plus the four non-EU countries of Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

That is the case if you fly/train/ferry into a Schengen country from a non-Schengen country, for example to start your cruise, or you are on a 'one way' repositioning cruise that starts in a non-Schengen country and ends in a Schengen country. However it does not apply if you are on a cruise ship starting and ending from a non-Schengen port, with Schengen countries as port stops, when a registration for EES is not required, so those sailing out of and back to the UK will not be troubled by EES. So for example, fly into Barcelona from the UK/US to start your roundtrip cruise from there and you will do EES, but sail from and back to the UK with Barcelona as a port stop and you won't do EES, but sail from the UK with a cruise ending in Barcelona and you will do EES. Confused yet! For the first six months from May 2025 it will be a “transitional period” where those travelling are expected to have applied for the waiver, but if they have not they will not automatically be refused entry at the border if they fulfil the other entry conditions. And the important thing to realise, is that although those under 18 or over 70 (or those with a spouse with EU or other Schengen country citizenship) don't pay the 7 euro application fee, they still need to have applied and received the ETIAS authorisation.

Around £50 or so for both of us, and as a taxi is a fixed price of 39€ then the small difference in price was well worth it.

Shuttle bus will be down you your ship and whatever RCI charge, and most likely will be added to your cabin bill. Cable car is 12,50€ one way and they do take cards. Queue - lots of factors, such as time of day, weather, time of year, how many cruise ships in, etc. and when I have walked past the queue has either been non-existent or around the building. The Monte gardens are 15€, and they take cards. The bus is 1,95€ if you pay on the bus (its less if you buy a ticket before boarding) and it is in cash as they don't take cards (other than their own pre-paid cards) but they do give change - although don't expect change from a 50€ note! There is no entrance fee for the cathedral but there is a 4€ charge if you want an audio guide (in various languages) - the cathedral at Christmas -

Yes. It was offered when we were asked towards the end of the cruise about preferences for disembarkation time and I had some OBC left over and it was a good way to use it.

On the occasions I have disembarked at Barcelona I have never seen any porters. As for baggage trollies, probably, but I never bothered as the distance between the hall and the taxis outside is so short that they were not worth bothering with. And as you are on QV, assuming that you are disembarking to head to the airport, then I would recommend checking out the private car airport transfer Cunard offer, as the last time I did that it wasn't significantly more expensive than a taxi but being wafted to the airport in a big black BMW was far nicer - and the driver took care of the large suitcases.

Each or between you! Either way... Weirdly I find that the longer I am staying away the lighter my luggage - a couple of weeks away and I will take a normal suitcase because I am not going to be doing laundry, but a month or more away and then I can just take a 10kg cabin bag as laundry is inevitable.

Likewise. Jet2 doesn't appear to be one of those airlines that deliberately splits those on a single booking apart, so paying to choose the standard seats is pretty pointless.

Videos saying 'everything is fine, nothing to see here' don't generate clicks and YouTube advertising revenue, but videos that say 'shock horror, you won't believe this' do.

After being delayed by 20 minutes sitting down and then waiting 90 minutes for any food to arrive. As before, they are either doormats or they are exaggerating,

Fair enough. Not good, but not terrible. Again, not good, but not terrible. Sorry! Assuming you mean that the 1.5 hour started after sitting down, really? Really? How long did they sit there before saying anything - 30 minutes? An hour? More? Then how long after involving the head waiter did the food arrive, because if it wasn't instantly then I would be very surprised. And I guess that the whole thing including drinks was on the house.

So how long were they kept waiting for the table, and how long between being seated and the food arriving? An hour for each? Sorry, but I really cannot believe anyone would have been kept waiting until say 9pm for a table booked for 8pm and then would sit there without saying anything until 10pm before food arrived. Either your acquaintances are doormats or they are exaggerating.

Look at companies like www.parcel2go.com who are are agencies for all the main courier companies - a quick quote with them for a 10kg 50x40x20 cabin sized bag was £45 from the UK to the USA with it being shipped with UPS and you dropping it off whichever local convenience store is nearest to you, and although that was only with £50 insurance, even adding that on it would still be way less than the $244 you were quoted.

When I was there recently on a Sunday the bars, cafes, and restaurants were mostly open, as were the more tourist shops, but a lot of the 'normal' shops were closed. As for recommendations - sorry, only had a coffee and a pastry there.

The official Spanish government website I posted indicated that it did, and that website indicated that it all seems to be automated these days with the traveller entering their details into a computer terminal and then the terminal deciding if the customs staff needed to actually see the goods or speak to the passenger, and if not then it would do what was needed automatically.

Personally I would do it for the purchases made at that port stop for the purchases made at that port, so whatever is bought in Barcelona is done in Barcelona, Malaga in Malaga, etc. as that would make it easier if you needed to show the items bought. The official website Tax Agency: DIVA digital stamp for travellers (agenciatributaria.gob.es) has a spreadsheet with the list of locations with the terminals DIVA_aerop_act_en24.xlsx (live.com) and it would appear that they exist in all four locations. For the one in Tenerife, then my guess would be that it would be in the ferry terminal office that adjoins the cruise terminal and has the ticket sales desks, a cafe, and a few offices above.

That only works if Maleth own any assets - and as regards the aircraft, well other than a small Embraer 145, they don't own them, they lease them. AELF FlightService acquires majority stake in Maleth-Aero - ch-aviation "the ch-aviation fleets module shows that Maleth-Aero also operates aircraft dry-leased from European Aviation (six A340-600s and one B737-300(QC)), Opel Investments (one B737-300 and two B737-500s), and Frontier Services Group (one B737-300), and owns one E145." And if you have ever watched any of the 'Sheriff' tv shows, that is often the issue debt collectors have - they turn up to seize assets to settle a debt, and there is a nice new flash car on the drive but it is leased so they can't touch it.

Perhaps you should point them to their own website! Passenger Rights European Union − Support − American Airlines Anyway, I doubt that you will get much assistance from the EU Commission as they will likely say it is for you take it up with the airline directly. However there are a number of 'no win, no fee' companies that take on these claims and can get the compensation for you (Google is your friend) and they take around 25% of the compensation as a fee, but nothing if they are not - so risk the $100 they offered for a potential 75% of $1,300...

Personally I feel that the Sky Garden has the ambience of an airport lounge, and that if you want cityscape views then the 10th floor viewing platform at Tate Modern (which is now reopened) on the other side of the river is a better choice.

I would say you are comparing Apple's and Oranges, but would actually say it is more comparing Apple's and Turnips! The Ritz is 'fine' but it is no Reids...

The CAA website says that their Passenger Advice and Complaints Team (PACT) "will advise on whether we think you have a valid complaint, and if so will take it up with the business concerned, but we do not have the legal powers to impose a solution on an airline" so impounding an aircraft, even if that aircraft did actually belong to Maleth and not a leasing company that Maleth was renting from, is a non-starter. How the CAA can help | Civil Aviation Authority And as for suing in Malta and then getting Maleth to pay even if you did win - that's amusing, very very amusing.

They didn't take the cheapest bidder, they took the most expensive - there was no other bidder, it was that one or nothing.

If there is then La Spezia isn't that large of a place that you actually need to use it to see everything there is there. Realistically the town itself doesn't have that much in it, as it is mainly used as a convenient port stops for Cinque Terre. Within the town itself, other than the usual parks, there are few sights. There is a small castle with a museum that may interest you, with grave markings from the local area - And an air-raid shelter that has been converted into an installation (the town was bombed heavily in the Second World War because of the port). But that's not to say it isn't a nice place for a stroll around, and there are some lovely cafe's doing excellent coffee and pastries (but get off the main street and away from the tourist places). And being a small town in Italy it does matter what day of the week you are there, as on Sunday most of the shops will be closed.

As I mentioned the tram to La Laguna is easy (and cheap) and you can get it from near the cruise terminal (https://maps.app.goo.gl/rwavqphsqsjmJfb38) but check the weather in La Laguna before you go as it is 550m above sea level so can be cool or damp whilst it is a glorious sunny day in Santa Cruz. But you must buy a ticket before you get on the tram or they will fine you - but the ticket machines at every stop do have an English setting. For a beach day, La Teresitas can easily be reached by bus (and you can pay on the bus) (https://maps.app.goo.gl/CjUtESc6jJuDgYTG6) and there are reasonably priced beach cafes all along the strip of golden sand as well as in San Andreas a few minutes walk away, and as there is a breakwater enclosing it then the water is warm and calm. In Santa Cruz itself, then take a walk up to Parque García Sanabria which is a lovely place to stroll around in the shade under the trees and by the water fountains (https://maps.app.goo.gl/bEopxFKJkjqSigmZ6) and there is a nice cafe at the north end top of the park for a drink.

Just to add to all the helpful points from JB. An alternative to the pay entry national park is to drive to the Caldera de Los Cuervos which is free of charge and allows you to walk from the free but busy car park to the blown out volcano (https://maps.app.goo.gl/pZo7B3j2ftXGbkdd7) - when you reach the volcano make sure you turn *right* not *left* as that is the shortest route to the blown out entrance. Also on the southern route JB posted are the Ladera del volcán (https://maps.app.goo.gl/tG1zNNXpZVw5bM3JA) from a lay-by at the side of the road to reach them. Personally I wouldn't bother with the long drive down to Playa Blanca, and although most of Puerto Carmen isn't anything to write home about, the old town and harbour area is fine for a stop for a drink and bite to eat on the cliffs along Av. del Varadero overlooking the sea and there is a big carpark nearby (https://maps.app.goo.gl/M2PFDZmNd66GXEm2A) - obligatory picture of food... Unless you pay for entry there there is little to see there and for views the end of the road at Mirador de Guinate is almost as good (https://maps.app.goo.gl/jWBajm9aHgPF8qzd8). Also on the northern route JB posted is the Ciudad Estratificada (https://maps.app.goo.gl/Q2JrtRWLydGkJ9No8) that again is just a lay-by at the side of the road. And Haria is a small town / village that is worth stopping at for a drink or snack, particularly if you are there on a Saturday morning when there is a proper artisan market (not the usual tat) here - https://maps.app.goo.gl/rFh8PZaeySnmwXFM6