kuldalai

Taromina is the port to go on the shore excursion up to this spectacular ampitheatre with Mt Sicily usually steaming away like a kettle in the background. Just magical in land that time forgot.

Both are very good for both food and service. Windstar probably pip the post for service as their pax numbers are lower.  On the other hand with larger pax numbers Oceania can do more specialty restaurants, and slightly wider menu choice. Oceania grill and Italian are best at sea.

Windstar deck bbq is best outdoor buffet extravaganza at sea by a mile.

As Aussies we offer to share and meet people from all over the world who we are most interested in talking with, and they espescially with us from down under, especially as most have Aus on their "bucket list" but Aus is a long way from the US or Europe; whereas everywhere except NZ is a long way for us !!!

All ports on this cruise are great be sure to take the shore excursion up to the fabulous roman arena overlooking Mt Etna.

Valetta Malta lots to do.

Only shortfall is this cruise fails to call at magical Capri, and calls at Sorrento instead which is OK but no where near as actually calling at Sorrento.

Windsurf used generally on this cruise is a lovely vessel.

Be prepared with the hanky when uou sail from your last port of call in Italia for the overnight back to Civitavecchia .  A little musical surprise.

The Cinque Terre is overun with tourists in the season . i would go for Portofino and Santa Margherita Ligure and Rapallo are old style resort towns with real class where Italians gravitate to in hot weather to get away from Milano & Firenze .

To answer your original quaery what you have booked will take you through the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel (from 0800 to 0900) before being escorted on foot through the Vatican Gardens to the train station within the grounds of the Vtaican Gardens.

(8.00 Special skip the line entryand open visit – with a special multilingual audioguide – to the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel.

10.00 Transfer on foot through the Vatican Gardens with special multilingual audioguide and departure from the Vatican City railway station, by special electric train, destined for Castel Gandolfo.)

So you automatically see Vatican Musems & Sistine chapel, plus a quick walk through the Vtaican gardens .

So the only thing you do not see is St Peters . Admission is free just bowl up any other time . Admissions times on Vtiac website .

From Campo de Fiori it is 30 minutes walk to Castel de St Angelo and St Peters basilica. Entry to the Vatican museum is off a side street off the right hand side of the big piazza in front of St Peters . Just take a taxi from your hotel to the emtrance of the Vatican Museums . Allow 30 mins minimum to get there by taxi .

The wholesale price of satellite internet access may be dropping but generally cruise lines use it as a golden opportunity to rip pax off with exhorbitant per min pricing for pathetically slow internet because they are too miserable to pay for adequate band width, and blame the alleged high satellite costs.

Simple if you booked and paid in Australia your fare is higher and you are not slugged on board gratuities to your on board account . However if you booked outside Australia your fare should be lower and you will be slugged the on board gratuity to your on board account pp per day .

The reason for this , it is illegal under Australian law to quote a price and then charge extra as an odd on afterwards for travel products sold in Australia . The travel price in Australia quoted must include all hidden extras and charges .

All part of the BS American marketing to make everyone feel important . In reality Patinum and Elite get directed to a separate express check in queue. All the rest whether Preferential or Preferred it is just marketing BS, you get directed to the normal queue, unless the Elite/Platinum queue is personless !!!

Sorta like the airlines frequent flyer con with check in baggage priority, when it all goes into the same conatiners basically first to check in on bottom, so your bags come out later, but still proudly tagged priority . Makes you feel important but just another BS marketing con .

Riomaggiore wins hands down, just be sure to find the seafront . Alighting from the train walk back towards La Spezia in a pedestrian tunnel parallel to the railway . At the La Spezia end of this pedestrain tunnel, turn left up hill for inland half of the village . Turn right down some steps and under the railway to reach the waterfront and restaurants .

Book on line only via official website and do the escorted Behind the Scenes Tour it takes you places not accessible to genera admission guests, likes the former court rooms and cells leading over the bridges of sighs to the final CHOP !!!! Really blood curdling - Doge justice was quick and swift !!!

The image that comes up is actually of the waterfront at Portovenere 30 minutes by urban Bus P from La Spezia from Stop P in Via Garabaldi near Corso Cavour. Runs every 30 minutes at 25 & 55 past hour, takes 35 minutes to get there .

Ar Portovenere it is a very pretty little town in itself . Walk along the waterfront promenade up some steps to a Castle/Church on the point, Lord byrons Grotto, then walk up into the village and another castle overlooking the harbour, then down through town back to waterfront . Ferries also depart from waterfront to Gulf of Poets round trip ,. You can quite easily do Portovenere, and CT by ferry returning by train as per my earlier recommendation, but confine your CT villages to Vernazza, Manarola & Riomaggiore . If you are short on time then just drop Manarola & do Vernazza and Riomaggiore .

If you check the ferry schedules in the link I gave you earlier, the schedules are shown full service up to late September, then a slightly lesser schedule till late October . Even though they are 2017 schedules use them as a planning tool at this stage .

If you check the ferry schedules in the link I gave you earlier, the schedules are shown full service up to late September, then a slightly lesser schedule till late October .

Bus P to Portovenere runs half hourly at 25 & 55 minutes past the hour takes 35 mins to get there . Departs from Stop P in Via Garabaldi near corner of Corso Cavour in La Spezia .

Ferries run from near cruise terminal in Summer take 60 minutes, look for schedule on website

http://www.apathtolunch.com/2014/06/complete-cinque-terre-portovenere-la.html#La%20Spezia

Good itinerary is take an early bus t Portovenere and look around, then 1100am ferry from waterfront at Portovenere to the CT alighting at Vernazza, do lunch then take train up to Manarola, then Riomaggiore then back to La Spezia Centrale . CT Rail Pass for the day available at CT Travel Offices in all stations, also get train timetable there,a s Italians change train timetables at the phase of the moon !!!! Riomaggiore to get to waterfront, walk through a pedestrian tunnel parallel to trainli ne back towards La Spezia, then turn right downstairs and under railway to reach waterfront .

Venezia - Hotel Locanda Salieri near Piazzale de Roma . Short walk to grand canal and vaporettos, St Lucia station, and Piazzale de Roma for people mover to/from cruise terminal. Good breakfast, in house trattoria and other eateries nearby .

Roma Hotel Smeraldo near Campo de Fori . All the sights are within walking distance, great location . Plenty eateries nearby . Recommend Roscioli, Pier Luigis .

Book direct via Hotel websites to avoid paying middleman commissions .

Recommend Pier Luigis on Piazza de Ricci near Campo de Fiori . Pricey but outstanding .

Book direct on line via restaurant website .

Answering your question specifically . Take the Leonardo Express from Roma FCO Airport to Roma Termini runs every 30 mins . Then connecting local train to Civitavecchia regular departures and trip takes around 40 mins. Recommend Hotel Miramare on waterfront just down some steps right in front of station . Restaurants nearby , and short walk along the promenade into the heart of town . Book on line direct via Hotel website to avoid paying middle man commissions . Taxi is set rate 15 Euros from Hotel to the new port entry where you either take shuttle bus to your ship, or sometimes taxi right to quayside at your ship . Civitavecchia is a beautiful port city with great eateries and a lovely waterfront . The ugly container port is miles up the coast .

Orginal poster from which port ? Livorno or La Spezia ?

From Livorno Pisa & Lucca are nearest . Lucca is just magical . You can do all three from Livorno by train . Firenze is furtheest and therefore offers less time at the destination ,.

From La Spezia both Lucca & Pisa and doable . Firenze is getting a bit far ,. Again easily done from La Spezia by train .

Take a taxi from port to Bus Stop P in Via Garabaldi near Corso Cavour in La Spezia. Take the urban bus P to PORTOVENERE from there takes 35 mins and departs every 30 mins. On the Portovenere waterfront take the Ferry departing Summer 10am 11am Noon for the CT . Ferry takes 90 minutes to get to Monterosso calling at Riomaggiore, Manarola, Vernazza. In Monterosso ferries arriove in old town, and trains depart from New Monterosso . the two halves are joined by by a shared use pedestrian/road tunnel . Then work your way back by train to La Spezia . Vernazza, Manarola & Riommagiore are the 3 villages to visit .

Vernazza all the action is downhill from the station at the Waterfront.

At Manarola from the station walk through a pedestrian tunnel back towards Vernazza then down under the railway to the waterfront . Manarola ditto. Riomaggiore walk through a pedestrian tunnel parallel to the rail line and head in the direction of La Spezia . At the end of this tunnel turn right downstairs under the railway to the waterfront .

There are CT Tourist Offices at La Spezia and all five village stations . Here you buy the CT Daily Pass which gives you access to the walking paths of the CT plus unlimited rail travel between La Spezia and the villages of the CT. Valididate the Pass in rail validating machine before your first train ride . Ferries operate on full timetable till mid October, then a limited tt till early November . No Ferries early Nov to early April the following year.

Hope this helps . Rail tt available free from the CT Tourist offices, as the Italians seem to change the rail tt every time there is a new moon . Hope this helps . Also check out the official CT National park website .

Forget Firenze from La Spezia, change of trains at Viareggio and lots of stops .

Either go to villages of the CT from La Spezia by train. Monterosso has two halves joined by a shared use pedestrian/road tunnel. The train station is in NEW Monterosso, and the Ferries are in OLD Monterosso .

Or train from La Spezia to Viareggio, then change trains and a quick sprint over to magical Lucca .

Also possible from La Spezia by urban bus P is Portovenere (35 mins) departs from Stop P in Corso Cavour near Via Garabaldi . (Departs evert 30 mins.).

In seson from Portovenere waterfront ferry to the Riomaggiore, Manarola, Vernazza and Monterosso el Mare. Ferries depart Portovenere at 1000, 1100 and Noon . The trip takes 90 minites frpm Portovenere to Monterosso e Mare .

Ferry service between San Fratuouuso, Portofino & St Margherita is really cut back to few times a day between November & April . Also subject to cancellation account rough seas.

From Livorno its tight concentrate on two villages only Vernazza & Manarola or Riomaggiore .

Best port for visiting the CT is in fact La Spezia, not obvious why more cruise boats do not go there . Livorno is really best port for Firenze, Lucca & Pisa .

Forget ferry from Genova, especially in Winter as they dont run at all between November & April .

Your best and fastest way to get from Genova to Portofino is by train and bus, all year round .

You take train from Genova (two main stations are Principe & Brignole) to St Margherita Ligure . Trains run every 30 minutes or so and trip time is around 40 minutes.

Walk straight out front of St Margherita station, turn right walk 30m and you will find the Bus Stop for Portofino ,. Runs every 20 mins daytime and takes around 20 mins. Bus tickets from Bar/Cafe at oppositte end of station .

Check train times on Trenitalia website. On return bus leg get off at central roundabout in St Margherita and walk up to station, or stay on bus goes back to station .

In summer frequent ferries also ply the waters between Portofino & St Margherita township foreshore , below the station . San Fratuousso, Portofino, St Margherita and Camogli are four delightful spots on the Riviera de Levante .

You have three (3) ways of accessing the Cruise Terminal and smaller piers at San Basilio :

1. Public Vaporetto to San Basilio stop, then short walk over one pedestrian bridge.

2. Private water taxi to San Basilio .

3. Take public vaporetto to Piazzale de Roma, then standard road taxi to San Basilio cruise terminal .