cruiser1812

Almost everyone here says "Forget About It". If a US traveler, most Delta flights leave 6-11 AM, but almost everyone on this Board say this is not possible. I can't imagine that they would have this schedule if it did not work, and so, I will assume that these commentors had the regretful experience of missing their plane, or just too close to departure for whatever reason.I've only flown out of Venice once in 2008, but at that time, I found it a breeze compared to Paris, Rome, Barcelona and such

I have a cab reserved at port to pick me up 45 euros,fastest way to get to airport

ekiprent@tiscali.it is email address

driver will be outside with your name on a sign

I would be interested in hearing how that goes. What is the name of the company?

Thank you

OP sails Eurodam Aug 6 2016 and overnights in Venice. Would have been extremely helpful if he had followed with that info.

 

Sorry, I do not understand what you are saying here.

I need to get from Eurodam 8/22/16 to Airport in Venice for flight at 11 AM. HAL has not been quite forthcoming on this info, and so, I was wondering what are my best options?

Hi, I was looking into doing this trip for a 7 am - 7 pm stopover in Livorno. I plan on buying a ticket for the ship's shuttle between the port and the train station. From the schedules I found, they have a train trip from Livorno to Montresso at approximately 8 am - 9:46 am (or the later 9:30 - 11:16 if we sleep in a little) and return from one of the towns is approximately 15:45 to 17:24. Is this not practical?

 

It gives us minimum 4.5 hours to go around the Cinque Terre villages, and perhaps take a boat ride between two towns in between if the weather is good.

I don't think the weather is ever good...It could not have been a calmer day, but we were told boat trip not available. Had to take train. Thus, whole day about being on time for train

Hi, We are a group of four. We have a port stop at Livorno and fancy visiting Cinque Terre as we have done Florence and other places. Would appreciate tips from anyone who has made this trip independently or other trip suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks Brendan Mc:)

I took the ship's tour from NCL in 2014, and it was the most exhausting, unfulfilling and expensive tour for the money that I have ever taken. Pretty much, I don't think one can do Cingue Terre from Livorno, although cruise lines would like you to think so. I am not confident that a private tour provider could do much better, but at least, if you purchased from your cruise line, they would have to wait until you return.

The Lobster part you are right about, but I do not remember it being the last night and it was not decent lobster. Well I don't know about that, because we never sailed the Norway. We were booked on her when she had her accident. As for prices going up, that I totally disagree with. You are basing inflation on the past few years; you would have to be an economist to factor in all the years of inflation. I do know, our first cruise, in 1983 was on a now defunck company: an old ship, tiny cabins, no outside hired entertainment and we paid $6.99 a person plus port charges. That was an industry rate, regular rates were higher. I dreamed of the day we could cruise on a decent line. Oh, I will add, we had a great time and yes, the food was fantastic.

 

I use the 20 year figure just off the top of my head, btw. I can't comment on what you pay as a single. But I can comment on the envalopes. Do you have any idea why all lines have done away with the envalope tipping the last night and are you aware all lines now add auto DSC? Other than that, could you tell us how you think you would pay twice as much as a single compared to 5 years ago? Nothing else has changed that much except for items that one can choose to buy or not?

 

We had a young man on our Jewel Cruise a few weeks ago: he paid, (last minute booking) $379.00 for a single and that included the liquor package. Was that about twice what you paid 5 years ago? sorry, I do not think cruising has increased in price that much and it is still a good vacation bargain compared to land tours or quality AI.

I could not find my records for my 2011(Princess) or 2014(NCL) Med cruises, but I did find my 2009 on Holland's Noordam. It cost me $1850 as a single in an OV cabin for 10 days. An 11 day in 2016 for a similar cruise on the Eurodam would be $3075. So you are right, its not 2X more, but still a lot.

I am accustomed to the Daily Service Charge, and I always tip my room steward, as well as others who assist me, an additional amount.

On NCL's Epic last year, I had to pay $83 for a bottle of Vodka thru Room Service. That same size bottle on the Noordam was $34. Quite a difference!

no one is anxious to pay extra for anything, the point you are missing is: times change, things change and cruising is very different today than 20 years ago. I have a gut feeling you were not cruising back then. If you were,you have forgotten what it was like. The price of cruising, when you take in inflation also hasn't really gone up: if anything it is less but if you were not taking cruises in the 80s and 90s you wouldn't know that. I can remember when most ships did not have an exercise area or a very small one; there was a place to enjoy lunch and breakfast away from the 1 main dining room, but not really a large buffet. Certainly they didn't have 10 or more dining choies. There was one pool, no kids programs, 1 show nightly, etc. I could go on and on. My point is simply things change, sometimes for the better, sometimes not.

My first two cruises were in 1991 on NCL's Norway. Food was generally good with the last night being the Lobster and Cherries Jubilee celebration. That is also when we handed out our gratuities in envelopes to the cruise staff that served us well. There was an ongoing buffet (never used as I don't eat all that much), but soda was always available. Now, even that has a charge.

Yes, things change, and when they are not for the good, we have to say so.

I don't need 10 dining choices, any shows or a kids program.

I do think that the price of cruising has gone up.As a single in an OV, I would need to spend at least 2X more than I did in 2011. This is not 3% inflation for me.

What with all the "Upcharges" and gratuity on top of gratuity, there is little control on one's costs. What I have liked about cruising is 1)knowing pretty much what it will cost me and 2)unpacking once.

Think NCL has blown #1 out of the water, so much so that #2 does not matter. Might be time to return to land based travel. At least, I can choose where and when to eat and what I want to give as a gratuity.

I think it would be closer to a 30 min drive from the tender pier. Taxis do exist but are not cheap. You would probably need to hire one for the round trip and have them wait, which might cost you we'll over 120 Euros. We would simply rent a car for the day and then you. Old also visit some other places such as Antibes or eve St Paul de Vence (if you have a long port day).

 

Hank

 

 

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Thank you so much,Hank, for responding. I have rented an auto twice now in Europe, but both times were during land tours, not cruises. Even thou more economical, check-in and check-out were time consuming and the drives a bit stressful. Have been to Antibes and St Paul, so just trying to make this an easy excursion. Ah well, if I were guaranteed 120E, I would be happy.

We are in port 8AM to 6PM.

I have wanted to see the Fernand Leger Museum in Biot for many years now. As this is something of an "acquired" taste, no private excursions that I have found offer this option. I understand that Biot is only about 20 mins from Cannes, and so, it seems that one should be able to get there by taxi for something less than I have so far been quoted...$220(USD) RT for private transfer.

Does anyone have info on reliable Taxis in area?

Thank you for info.

Think I paid about $35 for a bottle of Vodka on Princess in 2011. I also brought in my own water and soda with no problem, but it appears cruiselines are cracking down.

Currently booked on Carnival where I find a bottle of Vodka at $75 and a six pack of Coke for $10. What are other lines charging?

Don't quite understand the confusion here. It is quite simply www.romecabs.com. Stefano should answer your emails, and he is very accommodating. I have used his services three times, coming or going between port and Rome. Always on time and professional. Other cruisers have reported to me that his tours are quite good.

Any other variation of the above website is probably suspicious...

I would not pay extra for any of these choices. If it gets this complicated, why not just take a "Land Vacation"? Cruising is wonderful, but the primary advantage of a cruise is getting from "Here to There" without packing and unpacking and knowing your costs upfront. Without the latter, cruises are losing their allure.