Hydrokitty

We did the Schoenbrun Palace on our Budapest to Amsterdam Uniworld cruise. We had been in Paris a few days earlier and it made Versailles look like a dump.

Couldn't agree with you more! When we were at Versailles everyone kept saying "this is nice, but wait till you see Schoenbrun".... and they were right! Except for an unpleasent guard, we had a wonderful time and the gardens were beautiful. We did Weltenburg and had the best meal of the trip in the monastery/brewery and the boat ride through the gorge was magnificent, even if it was raining. Also did the concert at the Kursalon in Vienna....very nice, but then I'm a classical music lover. Didn't get to Salzburg and everyone says that's too bad! We did Heidelburg instead and it was well worth it.:)

We are going to Petra next year ...it is our hopes to be able to walk the walk :eek:...both ways.....in the event that we have to hitch a ride by Chariot or Camel :D.....what form of currency should we have with us to cover this eventuality.

 

Any idea of the costs for a "One way" ride ? :confused:

 

Cheers

Ken & Jan

Hi Ken and Jan: I was there in Jan, 2009 and at that time the chariot was a round trip only, although I am certain that if they have an empty chariot or an empty time slot, they will take you one way! I really don't remember what the round trip chariot ride was for two people because our tour guide made all the arrangements for us. The camel from the restaurant was about $15 US and like everything else, the price was negotiable. the Bedouins were very friendly and very kind to us and have a marvelous sense of humor. I may be foolish, but I determine what I think is a fair price and if they come close to it, I pay it. This is the primary source of income for these people and I don't like to take advantage of that, but that's just me. I know others who have gotten these rides for much less and some who paid double what I did.:D However, you make it through the Siq and the rest of Petra, do it. It's unforgettable.

Thank you everyone for the responses, especially Hydrokitty because you seemed to address my major concerns. My knees are getting old so extensive climbing is the real issue for me. I would like very much to attempt this trip and it sounds like it is doable with common sense. Thanks again.

You are more than welcome. If you want more information feel free to contact me at chydro564@yahoo.com. I've been helped so many times through trip advisor/cruise critic that I really enjoy passing it on. (Not to mention the friends I've made!)

Great! We will be spending 2 nights there after our Egypt land tour and will have a day and a half to explore.

http://www.1worldtours.com/Petra-Tours.htm

It has always been on my bucket list along with Mach Picchu (already done). Looking forward to a great experience in November. Would love to see the rest of your list. Antarctica is on my list!

Dileep: If you were able to do Machu Picchu, you should have no trouble doing Petra! And like the others, Petra is one of the most wonderful places we've ever been and is truly a world treasure! a full day and a half should be plenty. I believe the restaurant I mentioned is very near the monastry. I know our guide mentioned it and it was past the colonnaded roman street. It was just wonderful.

OK, I'm a senior citizen, a tad over-weight and not in great physical shape...we did Petra as an extension after two+ weeks in Egypt and it was fantastic. It is as strenuous as YOU want it to be! If you want to walk through the Siq, you can. I opted to ride so we hired a chariot. This is a round trip ride and you have an appointed time for the return trip. It takes you from the entrance to the Treasury and was quite an experience! Downside is once the horse starts moving, he doesn't stop till he gets there. Forget taking pictures during the ride, you'll be too concerned about your kidneys anyway! We got to the Treasury about 1/2 hour before the walkers in our group so we had plenty of time to walk back into the Siq and take some pictures. Then we walked through Petra with our guide to the restaurant. The ground is reasonably flat, there are bathrooms in at least two spots and what you see is so mind-blowingly amazing you won't notice the heat or the tired. After lunch I really couldn't walk anymore (I was coming off a triple ankle fx) so we hired a camel just outside the restaurant and rode back to the treasury in high style! We didn't ride the camels in Egypt so this was our one and only experience and I wouldn't trade it for the world! Just don't try to pet the camel after you get off, they're really not too friendly! Again, back at the treasury in plenty of time to take some more pictures and walk around in the Siq some more before our chariot showed up to bring us back to the entrance. If you can walk the whole distance, do it.....but if you can't, don't let that stop you! :D

Will do!!! and many thanks for the help and advice.:D:D

You've been to Europe and know good chocolate. The 24 hour cafe has the good chocolate for sale.

 

Remember to take your own antibiotic ointments like Bactine and triple antibiotic, etc. as you need a prescription in Norway. You can not get them over the counter like you can here.

 

We arrived on 18 May for 17 days. Once above the Arctic Circle, we had daylight 24 hours.

Ok, the meal issue is settled.....chocolate it is! I always bring my own bacitracin when we travel just for that reason. I also bring antacid; anti-diarrheal; am and pm cold tabs and band-aids (I'm a nurse, can you tell)

I'm looking to go in Feb. so we should have 24 hours of darkness....better to see the Northern Lights:D

How could one EVER forget beans for breakfast!! :D:D:D

I will call them and I am sure all will work out. I actually seem to recall another post I saw somewhere who said they were very good in accommodating her allergies, so I have no doubt they will work with me. I'm not fussy....a bowl of pasta with sauce will do me fine!

Certainly there is other food than fish. But if the poster is so very allergic to fish that they have to carry epipens, they need to know that fish appears on all the buffets, and has been in contact probably with most of the dinnerware, and there may well be cross-contamination.

Thank you for your concern...I have eaten in restaurants and never had a problem. However, if I ingest it, I react rather violently and while I haven't had to use the epipen, I have been advised to carry one when we're cruising since medical help is not readily available. I've been to Greece, Turkey, Egypt and Jordan and never had a problem. Most restaurants and cruises will work with someone and provide a basic broiled chicken substitute. As long as I can buy stuff at the cafe, I'll be ok.

And, yes uppity cats (I have two of them) I know it will be cold. I went to Iceland to see them and that was cold too, although not as cold as one would expect. I don't mind cold, especially if I can see the lights.:D

glgolfer: What a find! I have become obsessed with the Northern Lights, having chased them to Iceland and failed, Norway is my next stop! I can't explain it, I just MUST see them, I have been intrigued with them since childhood. anyway, pictures were wonderful and have given me a lot of insight into taking this tour. We would be going with Vantage, as we've done quite a few trips with them and are pleased with the value they offer. A couple of questions:

1. I noticed a lot of snow and white caps....I'm a veteran water rat so that's nothing, but didn't you say you went in Spring???!!!! I'm planning to go in February since that's when optimal viewing for AB is. Has anyone gone this time of year? If so, DID YOU SEE THEM?

It sounds looks like the ships are quite a bit larger than I expected. Did you have any input into your meal times? Also, you mentioned there was no choice in entree....do they have a "default" dish for those of us who cannot eat fish? This could be a serious problem for me.....I'd have to bring a boatload of epipens!!!

Can't wait to hear from you and thanks so much for the wonderful diary and pictures.

Judy

Seafun - Were the visits to Karnak and Luxor, as well as the Valley of the Kings OPTIONAL excursions? Who in the world would want to go to Luxor and not see those places? It would be like going to Cairo and missing the pyramids (or was that an optional excursion, too?).

Throwing in my two cents: Really, it's very surprising that Valley of the Kings would be optional....Benita is right, it would be like going to Cairo and missing the pyramids....also agree with Mike and Seafun: DO NOT MISS KARNAK....it's one of the reasons you're going!!!! I didn't do any of the light shows and dh did Philae. To be fair, light shows are just not my thing...I enjoy things in their natural beauty, therefore I agree that if you want to see a light show at Karnak, save your money and arrange to be at the temple at dusk...you'll see beautifully subtle lighting to compliment the natural shades of setting sun. If you can't do that at Karnak....do it at Luxor, temple there is beautifully lit at dusk as well and within walking distance of the ships and many of the hotels in Luxor. Dh agreed light show at Philae was nice, but not worth the money.

Seafun: I did this trip in January/February, 2009 with Vantage. It was such a wonderful trip and I can't tell you how much I enjoyed reading your diary. It brought back so many wonderful memories. I was so disappointed for you that your balloon cruise was cancelled. We took it and it was spectacular! Thank you again for a fantastic job!!!:):)

We went to both the Pyramid and the Philae night shows. The one at Philae was really great I thought. You actually walk through and around the temple while parts of it are lit and the narration is on. Finally for the last 15 minutes you sit and listen to the finale. Philae is so beautiful that I really encorage you to try to attend the night show.

Webegone thank you.....I will sign up for this tonight based on what you've said.

Seafun, thanks again for a wonderful trip review. I can't wait to go.

Cruisemom42: No, I didn't know they weren't touring the funerary mask, but I will get to see it again at the Cairo museum.... it was one of the most memorable exhibits I've ever seen and as I recall I stood on line for about 12 hours to get the tickets! Worth every second. Only other exhibit that even came close was the Faberge eggs at MOMA.

Just an update on this. I went last night to a special "sneak preview" cocktail party and walk through the exhibit. It was FANTASTIC. Much better than I expected. It includes much more than the smaller Tut exhibit that was touring a couple of years ago, which I saw in Ft. Lauderdale. There are several large rooms of artifacts from earlier periods to sort of "set the stage" for the Tutankhamun find. A beautiful room full of jewelry, many statues of earler pharaohs, including Akhenaton, Ramses II, and others. There is a very well done audio-tour narrated by Harrison Ford, with commentary also from Dr. Zahi Hawass.

 

The Tut pieces included one of the beautiful alabaster canopic jars and the incredibly detailed miniature "coffin" that the preserved organs were stored in. They did not have one of the Tut funerary masks, which was probably the only disappointment, but they did have a similar one from one of the later period pharaohs, found at Tanis. The two things I found most exciting (because I hadn't seen them before) were the large statue of Tutankhamun at the very end, from his funerary temple, and also the statue of Senenmut (royal architect and reputedly lover of Hatshepsut) tenderly holding her daughter.

 

There is also a new 3-D movie, but we spent so long in the exhibit itself that we didn't have time to see it. Nice gift shop too.....picked up a few Christmas presents.

 

If this exhibit is coming to any place near you and you have ANY interest in Egypt, this is a must see!

I saw this exhibit in New York City about 10 years ago and it left me breathless!!! it's definitely a must see.

Seafun that was wonderful!! I'm leaving in January for Egypt and Jordan and can't wait!! I have one question:

Did you do the light show at Philae? I'm not much into light shows, I like natural stuff but this optional keeps coming up and I'm wondering if anyone else has seen it and could recommend it, or not.

I await your reply (or anyone else that has seen Philae light show).