Crusin6

I loved the smoke free casino on X. We hung out at the bar there late night without gambling and those who smoked stepped outside for a few minutes when they needed to indulge.

 

I am a sixthman cruiser, but can't participate in the late night casino action with impromptu shows and such because I'm quite sensitive to smoke and can't handle the enclosed casino smoke on the Pearl.

 

My cabin mates last year smoked on our balcony knowing it was against the rules. We were so close to a smoking area, but they couldn't be bothered to go there. We didn't get charged, but I would made them pay the whole fee if we had. And I felt bad for anyone down wind of us who had their door open. This year, I'll be rooming with non smokers.

 

 

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How did they dispose of the butts?

Did they put them out in a cup with some water in it and then discreetly remove it from the cabin each morning before the steward saw it and then did they put this cup of butts in a cigarette disposal receptacle in a smoking area?

Or did they fling them overboard and risk them potentially landing on another balcony, possibly even into a stateroom or hitting someone sitting on their balcony and burning them?

Just wondering

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Is 50 or 55e out of your budget?

Take a private transfer

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You missed one: D. "Voluntary compliance is for suckers and so if I am willing to ignore the terms and conditions and I can get away with it, yea for me." And that's the one that we really need to be worried about.

Families with young kids are not doing anything wrong by boarding as a priority unless the airline specifically says the family must only have young kids

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That is not what I'm suggesting. Please stop trying to corrupt my statement of my perspective. I am the one who says what I am suggesting and that is especially important since you seem intent on putting into my mouth (or fingers, as the case may be) a ridiculously nonsensical and inane characterization of my perspective. I'm suggesting that a non-family passenger's desire to carry their luggage on board and have it near their seat is more important to that non-family passenger than a family's desire to save the cost of flying an airline that doesn't give them a way of booking seats together so that they can have a great chance of flying together to that non-family passenger. The point, which I've already highlighted for you, is that to understand the whole situation you have to understand and respect both the perspective of the family passengers and the perspective of non-family passenger, such as someone traveling on business, as I do.

 

The family boarding rules outline that airline's promise - both their promise to families about how far the family can legitimately expect to deferred to, and the promise to non-family passengers about what the non-family passenger can legitimately expect in terms of how far their convenience will be compromised to benefit family passengers.

 

I haven't said one thing contrary to that, and that's why I'm so surprised at your response and so convinced that your response could only be the reflection of not reading what I'm writing, or worse, reading more into what I'm writing than is actually there. What I've said is that non-family passengers have just a good of a case for wanting the family boarding rules adhered to as they are written, and that their expectation in that regard is legitimate and worthy of as much respect as you are demanding for families benefiting from what family boarding (actually) offers.

 

Good thing that I never said that. Stop reading more into what I'm writing than is there. The reality is that the illegitimate "whole family boarding" does take up more overhead space than compliance with the family boarding rules as they are written, and that results in less space available for Zone A passengers.

 

And so that begs the question about how far will today's entitlement culture drive things away from what these airlines are actually offering. Will folks who deliberately purchase a lower priced service still try to game the system to extract from the service considerations that are not included in what they purchased? I think we can bet on it. And that sort of thing drives a spiral that makes things like airline travel pretty close to inhumane, especially for people who abide by what they agreed to.

Ok so it's really the entitlement culture that is at issue

Btw I hate the idea of entitlement but that doesn't mean I'm embarrassed about what I have worked for or feel I don't deserve it

Just putting that out there because feelings about entitlement culture can go many ways...

A. We are all absolutely the same and no one is entitled to anything more than the person or bum next to them.

Or

B. I'm a hard worker and I'm entitled to the benefits that I reaped and do not need to be ashamed of that nor do I need to be politically correct and try to downplay my successes in life Btw that doesn't mean I would step on the downtrodden either so no need to think that but heck I'm a solid person and can care for myself and know hard work and making good decisions in life will only benefit me and I don't need or want handouts

Or

C. Let's give every group/person that whines and refuses to take responsibility anything and everything they want because we are worried about them to the point that we can't teach them to fend for themselves because that will upset them too much and let's make sure we cater to the one whiner and ignore the 10 other people who are benefitting from a policy or procedure

Point is that being a family and getting some things to make things easier is ok...it's not an entitlement...it's not whining...it's not a handout....it's just using common sense...which ultimately benefits all around

Just like they prioritize the elderly and infirm

It's just makes things easier and at the same time adds a hint of altruism too lol

Oh and it's just good business practice

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1/2 of the group is flying home to US. the other half is going to LHR. There was much flexibilty out of FCO than NAP.

I was thinking of a regional flight Naples to Rome and home to wherever from there

In your case you will do fine ....however...

1. It will be a lot of schlepping and connecting

Or

2. It will be costly to do it privately

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As we nearing our trip, I want to circle back on this post I originated months ago.

 

 

 

I ended up booking a few rooms at Hilton Rome Airport where we will stay after the cruise and fly out the next day.

 

 

 

I am still looking for a way to go from Rome to Naples Cruise Port. I've contacted various transportation providers and got quotes (roundtrip) between 1000 - 3000+ Euros, approximately 3 hour ride. Quite a big range. There are 9 of us in the group - 6 adults, 2 teens and 1 child. DH wants to ride the fast train (for the experience I guess). lol.

 

 

 

Our accommodation is near Piazza Navona. I assume we will take taxis / shuttles / or something to Termini Station to get on the train. From Naples train station we would take taxi or shuttle to the cruise port. On the return, we would taxi / shuttle from cruise port to Naples central station for a train ride to FCO.

 

 

 

My questions:

 

 

 

1. Is the above scenario doable with the group size and luggage?

 

2. Where are luggage stored on the train? Would we have to take to our seats? I am trying to determine the difficulty.

 

3. Any ideas on costs to Termini and from Naples station to the cruise port?

 

 

 

Or should we just go ahead and book the private transportation? We like the idea of the train because (1) for the experience and (2) the travel time is less than a private mini bus.

 

 

 

TIA

I've know many families of your size that travel as you are planning but in all honesty most of them opted for private transport in a 14 seater van. Regardless of cost

For my family of 6 we even went as far as to pay 50 e for a 3 mile trip from hotel to termini in a romecabs van. Thank you Stefano for the last minute ride after I emailed you frantically about this after I saw rush hour traffic on the metro at 8 am and realized there was no way we were doing it with luggage!!! Lol

Also we cruised out of Rome or Venice which we easily accessible and of course a minivan seats 9 including driver so that helped

However to answer the question...Rome to Naples cruise port...

Taxi to termini from hotel

High speed train termini to Napoli centrale

Taxi to cruise port

You say you have different group units on this trip so honestly each unit takes separate taxis

In your case I guess it means splitting up into 3/4 taxis

But as I previously posted perhaps a private 14 seater van can replace the taxi rides

The cost split between all the adults of course

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Thanks for the detailed info!

 

If I read your post correctly, then there is no direct train from Naples to FCO, correct? Is it easy to train at Termini Rome?

 

The flight at 850pm is to London, then to the US the next day. I thought staying in London is easier since there are hotels within the airport. We would not have to carry all our luggages - just our overnight bags. If we stayed overnight in Rome to catch a flight the next day, we would have to take all our bags to the hotel.

 

I would love any advice or suggestions. We are a group of 9 (4 adults, 3 children and 2 seniors) - I am appreciative of your advice regarding shuttle or taxi to Napoli Center.

You can't fly from Naples to London?

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Was there no way for you to fly out of Naples?

I'm flying Naples to JFK via connection in paris

Excellent price too

Of course ymmv

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No! Don't do it!

 

I am a hair stylist and own a hair salon. I am friends with some of my clients, but I absolutely hated when someone sent me a friend request that came into my salon. I provide a service for them and I LOVE what I do. But that's just strange and intrusive into my personal life. That is in fact why I deleted my fb account.

And to add to that, business owners etc should have a FB acct under the business to friend them...to tell them of specials you are running...to notify them of available appointments...etc

Then if you want to have your own personal FB acct for true personal friends you just do that

Oh and on the personal account you just use a derivation of your name....

If your name is Mary smith jones

Your personal acct could be Mary SJ or something...and that profile and cover pix should not be of you but I only suggest the picture thing because, yes, your customers may well look you up under... Mary whoever

When you own a business etc and do not want everyone to be your FB friend, one must take these steps. It comes with the territory. Big difference than when you just have a FB friend group of close friends, kids friends moms, immediate family etc.

Alternately, for those that feel they must accept every FB request they get...ok...just accept it if it makes you feel warm and fuzzy....but then just learn how your privacy and security settings work and put that Person on extremely limited access and then just peruse their FB page for awhile.

If you like what they post you can give them more access to your page

If you don't like how they conduct themselves on FB you can then delete them

Plan C....just don't accept their request

Plan D....for those that FB is just too much to handle, lol, just get off FB.

Fwiw...I've been on FB for years and find it astounding how many FB users have their pages totally open to the public FB domain and post stuff like vacation plans etc

If you don't have your security settings correct you have just told not only your FB friends your plans, but their friends, and then their friends....and basically every single FB user about your life

Sounds like a stupid thing to do....but that's just imho of course 😎

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No, and I would not. I think they smile and make nice, but do not consider us friends and in many cases do not even like us. My guess is that they go back to crew areas and gripe about the same people that they were so friendly to in the guest areas. Read some of the many books written by Carnival employees. Most of them think us hideous just for taking the cruise.

I've read those books too and thankfully I just got them from the library because they are so poorly written

I agree they basically hate us for the most part but actually do their job very well and hide it from us perfectly. They deserve oscars lol

Regardless, they have good jobs and that is their focus so they are pleasant to us so they continue to keep those jobs

And yes it is a great job for them and no we might not want it but that's just how life is

I admit there could be a crew member that we would want to stay friends with, even if that is a case that's few and far between

I recall back in the days of the Italian ships sailing weekly out of NYC that the entire crew was Italian. The oceanic I believe was the ship

I can't tell you how many waiters/maitre d/engine crew from those ships are now highly successful business owners etc in NYC....why?.... because they befriended the Italian/American women from NYC and well the rest is history as they say. Lol

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Just an FYI. Viator actually had some Vatican skip the line tix without guide for a sort of reasonable price I believe

Still more $$$$ than via the Vatican direct but at least you would get skip the line

Of course timing coordination with the guide might be an issue

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She didn't feel weird confiding in someone she barely knew. She didn't feel weird seeking out the OP outside of the MDR. She didn't feel weird getting personal with the OP. But asking her to be fb friends was where she drew the line at feeling weird, huh?

 

 

 

Holy cow! I didn't even notice the date on the original post. ;p:')

Lol ...few posters actually look at the date of the thread

I find it amusing when a poster gives current advice to someone about the cruise they took 2 years ago

Come to think of it that's why I love cc. The threads and posts are really a lot of fun

I especially like when posters comment on someone's posting style, because they are bothered by it....because they don't like....paragraphs.....commas....abbreviations...etc

Just too funny sometimes.

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Good point, cruisemom! When I tried this morning it might have been just after 5 (9 hour difference I think). I will try after midnight tonight and see if that works.

 

Cruisin6, good point. I think part of my panic is that I long ago engaged a guide and he directed me to buy my own tickets. I'm not above buying a tour but I hate to jettison him at a relatively late date just because I can't get the dang website to work. I probably should email him though, and let him know what's going on.

 

Thanks, Emily

In 2008 our guide bought our tickets for us. She had them in her hand when we met her down the street from the Vatican. We walked right in with her. This was a morning in July

Stefano of romecabs arranged it for us just a day earlier. We took a day tour with him (we felt we wanted this type of tour for our 1st time back in Rome in many years and the baby was only 7 at the time) he just asked if we wanted a private tour the next day with a guide. He made a quick call and arranged the guide ( a close friend of his and very good btw) told us where to meet her and how much

I knew prices so the tix were regular price it was of course the private guide that was expensive.

Don't recall the total price. Sorry

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Just to add....when I bought my tickets for tours.... and especially if I had questions and wanted to chat before purchasing....I recall doing it around 4am..

I still remember dh asking me where I was going at 4am (it wasn't the bathroom either) and me saying "I have to get on the horn with the Vatican." Lol . A great line that I still use to this day whenever I'm online doing travel planning....as I am right now...and someone is interrupting me

The kids were much younger then of course but they really got a kick out of me saying I was talking to the Vatican at 4am

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During our 2012 trip we had a 5 hour layover coming home in Dublin airport

For the 330 days prior to that flight. Lol. I kept saying omg we will have the best scones around ( well we had no choice actually) and lo and behold the scones were delicious and dh and I washed them down with incredible coffee too

Now my kids are well traveled and somewhat in the foodie category I would say.....but they passed on the scones....and we found them sitting with all the other American teens waiting for their connecting flights....at Burger King. Lol

Every kid there was thrilled it appeared

We had a second cup of coffee and another scone and just let them be.

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Since the USD is nearly at par with the Euro, I was very surprised at how reasonable prices were. We ate very well (not at McDonald's) and spent much less than anticipated.

We had a much better euro experience in 2012 and I'm planning on doing a jig for our upcoming trip!!!

I always pay in euro and pay hotels at checkout. Got great deal this summer at great locations

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We actually ate at the navona McDonald's in 2008

The euro was thru the roof and it was costing us a fortune just for pizza that trip so we said let's see if they have a dollar menu

They did....but it still cost us a fortune. Lol

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Buy not by. Sorry

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I'm having the same trouble as the OP and I'm losing my marbles. I've been trying off and on for weeks. Looking for tickets for June 15th, so I'm not too far out, but I'm starting to get worried about them selling out. I've tried several different cards, including my debit card (but probably used as a VISA). I'm using the official Vatican website.

 

I looked on Tripadvisor forum and saw some postings advising that it is being blocked at the credit card company level. So I called my credit card company, and said what was suggested on trip advisor, but it hasn't helped. The woman I talked to at my credit card company said they are getting a lot of calls about it, and they believe it relates to the Vatican not processing credit cards when they are not open. At the time I was hoping the trip advisor advice would do the trick, so I didn't probe for more. Is this plausible? I've usually tried to buy the tickets either evenings or weekends for me.

 

I'm now kind of locked into a certain day because of other plans I've made. Should I see if my hotel could somehow buy for me? Would it be obnoxious to ask the guide we have hired? he had just told me to buy through the website, which worked fine for tickets for the forum and so on.

 

advice so welcome.

Why don't you just bite the bullet and by a tour thru a local tour guide company

One trip we took a private guide for the 6 of us who of course was able to skip the line

One trip I just booked the tickets thru the Vatican with no guide because we didn't want one

Big difference in price

I'd start with viator 1st and yes I know they are just a tour reseller to get an idea of the prices. II find viator does not markup the tours at all as I've found the same tours at the same price in the past directly from the tour operator

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We are going. The 3 of us. She in one cabin. DH and I in the cabin next door. And so it goes.

The most logical and easiest thing to do

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Right - the 'helpers' are an old scam. I frequently use trains in Italy. However, I have never witnessed a helper taking a seat on a train and not allowing the person who booked it to sit. How does that work when the train leaves the station - does the helper get off the train just prior to departure?

 

Like others, I take only what luggage I can manage and never allow anyone to touch my bags. I have also had to hold onto my bag and forcefully repeat no at one station a few years ago.

This is the point where the seat trespasser would have heard the words "polizia".

Coming from my mouth

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May I just reiterate that you should take 95 to the cross Westchester then the saw mill to the Henry Hudson which puts you on the west side of NYC but I have no clue where the ink hotel is. You will avoid lots of traffic with this route

However I would plan your approach to NYC for around 10am the earliest unless of course you want to plan an approach around 7 am If it were a Saturday morning there is really no traffic but not for a Friday approach.

There are many alternate routes and maybe the mass pike works for you and then down the taconic or wherever

You will get rush hour traffic on 95 of course

I'd think a 5/6 hour trip at best

Either way you should be parked and settled into your hotel before 2pm with a nice amount of time left to explore NYC

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Finally - some competent advice.

I guess you didn't read all the posts did you

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Do the excursion on your own

Arrange a cab/driver ahead of time if you wish

If read that round trip van taxi is less than $100

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