elaine5

What happens if we arrive in advance of time. Do we wait until the specified time or could we board early? 

Hi, new to cruising with Cunard. I am almost at 90 days out. How do I get my boarding pass? Can I choose my arrival time? 

how much is the Cunard transfer to StP?

So, you are tendering at St M and want to go quickly to Portofino after arriving back to St M around 3:30 and must be on ship at St M by 6, which might mean last tender at 5:30? If so, the only possible way is to hire a taxi to take you and return. It's a lovely (twisty) drive along the coast and not too far via taxi. It could be done in an hour. I know everyone has heard of Portofino. But, consider just enjoying the area near St M, also beautiful. Or go to Hotel Continental on the outskirts of St M and have a drink on the terrace for the amazing view. We actually walked (and a bit of bus) from our cruise stop at Portofino to St M and spent the day there. 

Why taxi:  There are public buses, but they will likely be full at that time of day going back to Portofino, esp. if a ship in in port there. We took the bus and it was standing room only and sometimes the buses pass by if full. Even if you got a bus, it would be too iffy for the return. There is also a ferry, but I would not try it for under 2 hours. 

We're thinking of taking the Oasis next summer from Rome. The main cruise starts in Barcelona. Our young adult kids will want to do escape room/lazer tag, etc. Can we prebook activities (like shore excursions) prior to boarding? Otherwise, I'm thinking sea days will be all booked up by the time we board the ship.  

We do not want to eat late. We really liked MTD in Europe this Sept-no issues getting 6:30 reservation each night prior to boarding and 5-10 minute wait at most. We had level 4 open balcony circling 3rd floor which had fixed early dining.

We just selected MTD for a last minute Celebrity Carib. cruise as Early was sold out. I made a reservation for 6:15 each night at 20 days out. Fingers crossed.

thank you. hoping someone with more recent sailing will chime in. Open only available for late would not be acceptable for something described as any time from 6-9 pm. 

Also confused. Open says anytime 6-9pm. 

Thanks. We don’t care about assigned table or staff. We’re hoping if we show up at 6 it won’t be too long. We definitely do not want late dining and early could not be confirmed before onboard. So thought we’d take our chances with Open. 

What does “open late seating”mean? Is that you just showing up late. Did you notice how open was for earlier times? We’d dine Open at 6pm. 

We went in late Aug. We saw variety of ages--but it was last week of UK summer holiday. Our ship was fairly "hopping." I'd expect older for mid-May, so probably not as lively past 11pm. Two70 was very full at midnight when Beatles mimic band was playing-the only night I was there around midnight. The Music Hall place and small pub around the corner usually had activity until at least 10:30pm+. Didn't check out other venues. It's a big ship with lots of fun places--you'll find somewhere that others also hang out past midnight. For ex, my 20-somethings had no issues finding places until 1am on a Disney cruise.

If Hilton says no, I’d pick a hotel with a restaurant and go eat a long breakfast. If you get one by the beach, check your luggage at hotel and eat and then walk/sit on beach with a big cup of coffee. Marriott has a nice one on the beach. Also Used to be yankee clipper and yankee traders (Sheratons), so now maybe Marriotts. All good options to eat/beach it. 

I’d call the Hilton you had booked and ask if you can come and eat breakfast at the hotel and then wait in the lobby. Explain you had a room booked on points (so they know you’re a HH member) but flight  was Canx. If it is a free breakfast, then just ask if you could wait in lobby for a few hours. I bet they say it’s ok. Good luck!  

We have kids similar ages. I'd go for the bigger ship (Prima) with lots of "fun" things to do. RCCL Anthem might also be a good option. We did fjords last Aug on Anthem and kept thinking how much our kids would have loved that ship. It was an excellent cruise experience--and we're fairly picky.

Look at the arrival time for the port and then subtract a few hours--that's when the cruise thru fjords is. But, if you're sleeping, you can catch the exact same thing for 2-3 hours when you depart. It's absolutely gorgeous! 

also used Olden Adventures for Troll cars last Aug.--great! 

Stavanger-https://rodne.no/en/ Stavanger boat ride to pulpit rock

On 3/8/2023 at 5:53 PM, stcroixguy said:

I booked the Rodne online and it was easy

booked with them previously. easy peasy. no issues. on a somewhat wet day, someone slipped (not near the edge) and broke their leg on Pulpit hiking excursion. that made me pause when we went back this summer--we walked around Stavanger instead--delightful town. We did the 500 steps (?) hike in Flaam after the train ride. It's a nice hike nearby--I made it about 350 steps, DH went all the way. Our friend went kayaking right at Flaam port (no reservation--just rented a kayak after lunch) and loved it. It's a very small village.

agree with Kaisatsu.  In Olden we did the Troll cars booked directly with them. So fun! Gerainger is great for kayaking or the tourist bus to the top of the mountain. We booked through a local tour company. They emailed us and picked up for free at the dock. Geiranger Fjordservice 

In Bergen, we have walked around and toured the Hanseatic Museum (series of buildings-read up on history 1st) and also taken the funicular up and walked down Mt Floyen. You could squeeze both in--Mt F 1st, then Hanseatic. We loved Bergen. 

are there still  "share tables?" Prior to Covid, we walked up and said we'd share a large table and were always seated right away. We enjoyed meeting new people each night.

which one to choose: legend/pride 4K (obst. view) on 4th deck or OV on Riveria (1st deck)? similar pricing. We had a low deck before with galley below and the 3am chopping of meat woke us up every night. No idea what's below Riveria.

Thank you. We are experienced cruise travelers in Europe. Ship is just a floating hotel for us. Thanks for info about tender. That is a consideration, as we don't have any status with Carnival and do not typically book ship's tours. Still debating....

At Open, do they make up "share" tables or you are seated only for the number in party (such as 2 can choose to join a table for 8 with other Open diners)? That worked well for us on Princess--we met lots of nice people and there was little to no wait for the share table.

DD(17) really wanted to see Paris. I took her (2.5 hrs bus each way). She loved it--I was somewhat exhausted and it was a lot of traveling. I've been to Paris a few times, so it was just for her and mother/daughters time. Now, 5 years later, she's grad college and might not be back for quite a while. I do not regret it at all. 

Does Early Booking Bonus on Europe 2023  $300 Onboard Credit, Unlimited WiFi for one device, Premium Beverage Package for Two apply also to inside/OV cabins? When I make a sample booking, I get this link for my inside cabin selection: 

Early Booking Bonus on Europe 2023 Sailings

Save 20% + $300 Onboard Credit, Unlimited WiFi for one device, Premium Beverage Package for Two.

But, on the terms and conditions on the main page, I see this in terms and conditions:

Offer provides 20% off cruise fares of all stateroom categories. Offer also provides a complimentary Experience More Essentials Package (inclusive of $300 USD Shore Excursion Onboard Credit [OBC], Unlimited WiFi for one device, and a Premium Beverage Package for Two) per stateroom, for guests booked in Veranda and Suite stateroom categories.

On 2/26/2023 at 1:19 PM, elaine5 said:

thanks. it's the carnival pride.

oops--it's the Legend. I think same layout. Now looking at Aug 2024 Dover-Rome.