lynncarol

It's not just cruise ships anymore.  It seems since the pandemic, everyone that can possibly do so is traveling.  My sister has lived in Sarasota most of her life.  Apparently the beaches there are one of the new hot spots for tourism.  When my husband and I visited her last winter, traffic in her area was terrible and the four of us couldn't even find a place to go out for lunch.

I had a funny experience in the Sydney Airport.  We were traveling on land independently and had been using a woven bag previously to bring back breakfast rolls from a local bakery to our hotel while in New Zealand.  But at Sydney an official and her dog were waiting.  The dog made a bee-line towards my bag which, despite being empty, still must have smelled of food. Of course, I was checked out and even though found to be innocent, that dog continued to eye me suspiciously until I left the area.  

You should hear what folks in other countries think about the USA.  Even 20 years ago, nobody in the UK could believe that in the USA I had never been mugged nor owned a gun. You will be fine.  My husband and I travel abroad often and frequently  take family members with us.  I would never put someone I love in harm's way but have no hesitation about traveling abroad to countries not actually involved in a war zone.

Have you considered a river cruise? There are ones that start in Paris and incorporate a make a day tour to Normandy.

Getting ready for a two week trip (on our own) to Argentina and Chile with focus on Patagonia area.  No qualms what-so-ever about these destinations.  Now if I were cruising near Israel or Egypt at the moment, I would definitely be concerned. However, I understand that all of these cruises have been cancelled. My husband and I did a 17 day mega-yacht cruise on the Black Sea just 2 months after Russia annexed the Crimea in 2014.  It was a great time to be in the area as all other passenger ships had cancelled and the locals (including those in Sochi Russia) were friendly and glad for our business.

i used a seat-cane with sling-seat that has four legs with rubber tips.  Nobody said a word.  I think what they don't want are the kind of hiking sticks that dig into the ground.

Bring carry-ons only.  You probably will never see these people again so what difference does it make if you wear the same outfit several times

Always do the early self-disembarkations when returning to home port.  You will be on your way to the airport while others are still waiting for their luggage to be off-loaded

Try to get to the departure port a day early.  This relieves a lot of stress for my husband especially

If you have a delicate GI track, bring your over-the-counter meds.  They do not sell this stuff onboard as they really want folks to be seen and cleared by the ship's doctor. {An expensive proposition} Of course, if you are really sick, you owe it to your fellow passengers to get checked out.

Leave all expensive jewelry at home.  Can't tell you the number of horror stories we have heard over the years about loss/theft of these items. Usually in the ports.

Finally, as others have said, don't let the unexpected bumps throw you.  Usually they make very good stories once you get home. 

My husband and I love to snorkel but on this cruise, we need to bring carry-on luggage only.  Is there anyplace in Bonaire that we could rent snorkel equipment if we don't utilize a tour? Thank you.

Spent two days in Lisbon and one in Sintra this past April. If you only have one day, definitely chose Lisbon. 

I'm probably biased as I hate crowds but we were in Portugal this past April on a tour for 12 days and Obidos was my least favorite of all the places we saw.  The narrow streets were mobbed with tourists and as it is a tiny place, there was no way to escape the crowds  We didn't even get to try their famous cherry liquor as there were such long lines we gave up. At least it wasn't hot when we were there or it would have truly been unbearable.

Check out the River cruises.  Ones that leave out of Paris usually include the Normandy battlefields and cemeteries 

Four of us will be in Santiago in November (not part of a cruise) but I was looking for day trips from the city as we won't be renting a car.  Tripadvisor.com comments about Mauricio Escobar Fernandez as a tour guide/driver have been very positive.  We have corresponded with him and were very impressed so booked a day tour.  

Purchase online timed admission, if you will be visiting during a weekday, to coincide with the one hour a day they light up the golden mosaics on the ceiling of St. Mark's.  Been to Venice several times but only to St. Mark's once and seeing the ceiling lit up made it extra special. And yes, you can include the up-close visit to the alter as well as the museum and outdoor balcony upstairs which we really liked as because of the extra charge we found them to have fewer visitors.

Even though we have diamond status on Royal Caribbean, my husband and I chose Princess as the latter has access to Glacier National Park and RCCL doesn't.  To us that was worth giving up our free booze. 

Happened to me five years back when I had a cruise scheduled. Called the number on the summons, told them I had an upcoming cruise on that date and that was the end of it.  This was in Pennsylvania. 

My husband and I spent a week in Antigua back in 2010.  We loved the city...lots to see and lots of attractions nearby. We even flew into Tikal for the day. The second week in Guatemala, we hired a local guide/driver to take us around the country and also into Honduras to overnight near the Copan ruins. Towards the end of the week, I told our guide I wanted to see the attractions of Guatemala city. He, a native citizen, tried to discourage me, saying it was 'too dangerous'.  Eventually he gave in but remained very nervous throughout our time there.  Now I admit this was a long time ago, but if a local man is nervous in Guatemala city, I would not recommend it to others. 

My husband and I stayed at the Melia Madrid this past April.  It is a nice hotel.  Just a few blocks away is a metro station which is what we used to see the sights. (The hotel supplied us with metro cards although we needed to put money on them at the kiosk, sort of confusing but locals helped us out). Highly recommend visiting Retiro Park which is right across the street from a metro stop. We also wanted to visit the palace, but learned to our dismay that timed entrance .tickets must be purchased in advance

I have been on many cruises in my time.  The best for me, are the ones that visit the most interesting ports.  Years ago, my mother (then in her late seventies) took me with her on a Marco Polo Africa/Indian Ocean cruise which included a 5 day safari in Kenya and Tanzania, as well as cruising to the Seychelles (pre-casino and crowds), Zanzibar, Madagascar and other islands.  Quite an experience.  Years later my mother, two days before she died at age 98, asked me to bring to her bed my scrapbook of that cruise, and we shared those wonderful memories together again. 

Another vote for keep the cabin.  If there is a lifeboat beneath you, the view directly below is obstructed.  On our Alaskan cruise, that would have meant missing the sea otters  that were traveling along on their backs near the ship when we were at a stand-still to allow viewing a glacier.

8 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

 

The guide should not have said what he did. Putting that aside, you didn’t really think it was a totally free tour, did you? Meaning that you tip the guide at the end.  (Yes, it would be a free tour if you stiffed the guide.) 

Your 'stiff the guide' implication is unkind. We are always generous tippers but nobody likes to be ripped off.  And with a group of over twenty people, an expectation of such a big tip from each person for a two hour walking tour, was definitely a rip off. 

I stand corrected.  Thank you.  It was 20 pounds that he wanted. We had been in the UK  but were heading next to Poland and Hungary so utilized several  currencies during the month-long trip. Anyway, at my age I should have realized that if something sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't.  

16 hours ago, edinburgher said:

Lovely that you had more than one day and could visit more locations, as this city offers a lot despite being quite small in size for a city. And yes, the Royal Boatanical Gardens are beautiful.

 

Unfortunately most cruise pax have only one day, and if tendering or docking outside the city some of that short  time is los timmediately. With the new tramline extension recently opened, best location is Newhaven.

You raise a good point  about the cruisers having more limited time, and in that case, they may be tempted to take a walking tour. However, the first day I signed the two of us up for one of the "free walking tours" being touted by vendors on the Royal Mile.   I don't think we were more than 10 minutes into the tour when our guide stopped the group and announced that he was only working for tips and expected that to be  20 euros per person. I don't know how he ever enforced this request, as we left at that point giving him ten euros total. But, beware...those walking tours are anything but free.. 

My post didn't mention a "fast track'  but said that you could skip the line with a pass. I apologize if a 'fast track' is what you interpreted my comments to mean.  However, I was speaking from my experience there last September.  Taking the Tube, we arrived at the Tower right after opening time to find a long line of folks waiting to buy tickets.  However, with our pass, we went right in. I don't recall seeing anyone holding timed admissions tickets when we arrived (maybe it was too early for them) but at the entrance, the attendant only gave our passes a quick glance before immediately admitting us.

You can also purchase a London Pass for the day which allows you to skip the lines at the Tower.  In addition it gives you free access to the Uber boat on the Thames which we used to get from the tower to the the Millennium Pedestrian bridge dock where we walked across to St Paul's Cathedral.  Then back on the boat to the Westminster Abby complex. Probably the pass is cheaper than the taxi tour and will allow you to customize your visit. 

My husband and I were in Edinburg this past September for three days.  Unfortunately, the first day was the Queen's funeral and all public buildings were closed.  The next day, no available tickets to the castle with all the re-schedulings. However, that forced us to explore more off-the-beaten track places in the city.  I highly recommend the National Museum of Scotland, just a short walk off the main drag in the historic center. It's free as are all museums in the city. Next, back up to the main street and head down the Mound several blocks to the Princes Street Public Gardens (free) if you want to get great photo opts of the castle.  Just across the street from the gardens is another nice museum, the Scottish National Gallery which was having a special exhibit on the Impressionists artists at the time.  Another place we really enjoyed was the Royal Botanical Gardens, easily accessed by public bus. A gorgeous place, and even has a small waterfall feature.  Having visited the Castle years ago, I can truly say that I enjoyed these experiences more.