carlmm

Very sensible move and very well done to inform booked and potential passengers so far in advance.

May I be honest? You will be "fine". IMHO a dark suit is certainly fine for those who eg. never owned a tuxedo but dream of cruising with Cunard at least once. Anyway, everybody will welcome you. Yet, if it is really just about your stated laziness, I feel it is a bit unfair to those who cruise Cunard for its formality. It is probably the last cruiseline were you can move around in a black tie environment. This special atmosphere is easily destroyed.

You might try the Miramar right by the old port.

Thanks for stating the info and your thoughts. Have a great visit to the Azores and enjoy for time!

Jus a word of warning, maybe we had just bad luck: We waited for more than hour for the port bus, the crowds grew and grew, according to the schedule there should have been several buses, but they never came, we finally gave up.

In my experience, no. Yet I never experienced such long lines as quoted above, at most maybe 30 minutes. Maybe the handling is different in really bad peak times.

Hi, @bluemarble, so much more comprehensive than what I had started to write. Should answer your question perfectly, @ClefsDor.

Let me give a different perspective to those stating "hot" as a negative attribute only: There are literally millions of people who travel to Italy in Summer exactly because it is nice and warm! Everybody has to act according to the individual perception, constitution and feeling. Regarding the advice September: Some of the cities might be even more crowded, because then all the locals are back and all the tourists are there who, well, follow the idea to avoid the Summer "heat".

Without knowing any details about the specific voyages you are looking at, these options should be quite different. Hurtigruten operates as a service connecting the various ports. Thus, a typical itinerary includes many more ports with a short time in each one compared to regular cruise lines. While Hutigruten will provide a more authentic Norwegian experience, Seabourn and Silverseas are international luxury cruise lines.

Yes, should be possible if you take a rental car and carefully plan your day. It is less than two hours driving without congestions. You definetly need to prereserve your tickets.

You do not have "to contend". Most probably you will enjoy the meals. Many times I have spend about two and a half hours in the Britannia restaurant. No problem. Who reported about the less than one hour meal? The waiters are quite good in adjusting to the passengers wishes. I would hate it, like you, but there seem to be people, often Americans, who regard this as good service.

Which port? Sardinia is actually rather large.

First train in, last train out gives you more than 12 hours, more than cruise passengers have doing an excursion from Le Havre. I wouldn't recommend either but given your list of interest, why not, start with the Eifel tour.

Indeed Buzios is very walkable. It is a seaside resort, nothing spectacular. A number of sculptures, including the option to take pictures with Brigitte Bardot 😙 Of course there are also many beaches, yet the nicer ones are in a greater distance.

There are also museums in walking distance. Up the hill there is the castle with museum and of course a great view. Down at the promenade is Malmaison, a lovely old villa with varying exhibitions.

Well I hope so ... Thank you @bluemarble I just checked for my upcoming cruise and this charge is nowhere mentioned, neither directly nor in the T&Cs.

Service charge on excursions? Is any other cruise company that greedy? Is this for real or an IT glitch?

As it is clearly stated. Reading too much into marketing speech just easily leads to disappointment.

These steps are the reason I would recommend everybody with severe mobility restrictions to think about if this a good place to visit. The site is really not about the valley itself, nothing special, but about the tombs well below the surface.

Quit an interesting addition. Especially if it is true that the restaurants and so on are indeed locals' recommendations.

The Quartier Latin has some advantages, yet only you know if they are such for you: The RER to CDG stops right there, thus you can reach the airport by oublic transportation without connections - very big advantage with luggage. For many it is an quintessential Paris area, nourished by pictures, film and books from the fifties. Many sights are walkable, so are restaurants and bars.

I once had a similiar cabin: Yes, one can hear the theatre and the bow thrusters. The later I found particular sleep wracking. Yet, I know people who did not mind, eg. early risers who were up anyway when the ship docked

Perfect!

When one reads the posts on many other cruise lines' boards, one finds many complaints about the shore side service. Thus it is even more positive to read about your experiences. Even if it is "only" in the States 😉.

Given three days and on a first time visit, I would recommend just sightseeing, too. Yet, if you really like your beach break, Barcelona has the huge advantage of being a large city with the beach right there. You might include the beach like many locals do, after work resp. in your case after sightseeing, for two or three hours. It is just a bus stop away, or from some sight a walk of less than 15 minutes.