kuhne

16 hours ago, Cotswold Eagle said:

The security check is before the passport controls. And before that, you pass through automatic gates by scanning your tickets - this is the check-in, so don’t worry if you are queuing for one of the later controls towards the last check-in time, you’ve already done it. 

16 hours ago, MeHeartCruising said:

You will pass thru passport control as you leave London.  First you pass thru UK passport control to properly exit the country.  Then a few steps further you will pass thru French passport control.  You will need to show any required documentation (visas, etc) at that point.  There is also a full X-ray scan of your luggage done at this point.   So you will need to lift each bag up on to a conveyor belt. The X-ray is large enough for large suitcases.  After all that you go to the waiting area until boarding.  In Paris, you simply exit the train and walk out of the station to go where you want.  There are no passport/customs formalities upon arrival. 

Excellent, thanks for the information, everyone!

I was very close to going with a very cheap Air France flight but I ended up following all of your good advice and just purchased four tickets for the train, it wasn't that bad even adding the "premier standard" cabin which apparently has better seats and meals, the kids should have fun there. Got my tickets on my phone wallet and I am ready to go, too bad its until April.

Thanks, guys!

Any tips for someone who isn't from europe or the USA on such a trip? As far as immigration, passports, etc?

3 minutes ago, poocher said:

my 5 year old granddaughter would die on her feet before sitting in a stroller.  Trips would be easier if she would!  
 

sit in the stroller I mean😁😳

That's what I expected out of mine too... but they only act that way when other kids they know are around, all of a sudden the little demons are too old to use a stroller and to be carried around... but when its only strangers around they don't mind it one bit.

Would Eurostar.com be the best place to buy those tickets for the train?

11 minutes ago, poocher said:

Your 6 year old will sit in a stroller?  The 8 year old too?

Yeah, it's a double stroller and we use it for trips where a lot of walking will take place, such as Disney and stuff like that. It's more for us than them... 

Hi all, I've taken this route before, always on airplane, for some reason I've never used the Eurostar.

In April I am taking my wife and two small kids (8 and 6) from London to Paris before going on a Royal Caribbean cruise from Barcelona.

I have almost everything set including every flight but the only thing I haven't purchased is the that trip because I am not sure if we should take the train or the plane.

Everything is better on the train of course, better experience, avoiding airports, etc. My problem is we will have two maybe three big luggage pieces and a double stroller and  me being the dad I have the honor and pleasure of carrying everyone's crap more often than not.

It's my experience taking trains in other countries that having a lot of luggage isn't always fun, especially if they are bigger pieces because the compartments to put luggage are always sort of just there and you just make it work, something tells me I am going to end up with one or two luggage's in one cart, another in the next and the stroller somewhere in between.

Should I just go for a flight? It's such a pain but paying for luggage and checking it in along with the stroller is such a comfort that I am not sure if it offsets the crappiness of flying.

So what do you guys recommend? And if you do recommend the train, could you direct me to which specific train and a link where I could purchase tickets in advance? I feel much better purchasing things in advance even when it isn't necessary, such as train travel.

Later! Can't wait for the cruise!

Hey all! I hope you are doing ok. I have a few questions regarding a cruise I plan to take my family on, it's next year, I'll try to keep questions as simple as possible.

There's a really nice brilliance sailing for next year, July 3, 2023. Parts from Barcelona with only one sea day, it's a one week cruise, stops in portofino, Genoa, Marsellie, Nice and Florence, it ends in Rome.

The trip would be with wife and two kids, so things like extended tours and stuff like that are sort of out of the question, plus we've already been to some of those places.

My doubts are regarding how easy it is to simply arrive and walk around to nice parts of places like portofino, genoa and marsellie? Because I've already been to florence, the ship stops at livorno and you need to take a long bus in order to get to florence, which is what we're going to do, I find it very important to go and see the David and all around Florence is an incredible place but I know it's not a "walk out of the ship and viola! everything is there!" kind of thing.

I already know my way around civitavechia, barcelona and Nice, in Nice it's easy to get an uber to Monaco (return is trickier) or just take the train, or maybe just stay at the beach near the ship. So those are fine, my problem is the other three, portofino, marsellie and genoa, these are places I really want to get to know, walk around, experience the food and culture but without having to be on a tour. Do you guys know if any of these places are like florence? Where I would be forced to get a car or a bus just to be able to get to the good stuff? Or will it be fine if we decide to do everything on our own?

My other question (questions I guess) is about travels before the cruise departs. We were originally planning to arrive three days before to Paris then fly to Barcelona for a day before taking our cruise but I am thinking of adding another three days before paris to get to London first, so the trip in total would be three days in london, three in paris, one in barcelona, the cruise which ends in rome, three days in rome and go back home.

The flight from Paris to Barcelona is easy, we've done that same trip before for a cruise it was seamless. Adding London into the mix before paris makes me a bit nervous. I know the UK has never been part of the Schengen but I dunno if brexit made things more difficult, as I haven't been there since brexit. I have a mexican passport, my kids have both mexican and USA passports, we would all be flying into London for three days before paris, which means we have the chance to take either the eurostar to paris or a flight. I know the train is the best, most hassle free option but we would have luggage, four big pieces, with a stroller, I am not sure the eurostar is the best option for that kind of travel, wouldn't it be easier to simply fly to paris? Flying around europe isn't that expensive.

Anyway, any tips you guys may have or recommendations would be appreciated, the trip is already sort of set in stone as far as locations we would travel to, I already even paid for the cruise, but the london part of the trip is the only one that's still up in the air, I may do it, change it or simply not do anything at all and arrive directly to paris, it's just the kids would love to know both places, especially my 9 year old girl.

Awesome, I needed my november cruise money back!

Sailings have been suspended through November 30, 2020

I am not even sure how this is legal. You are pretty much telling me that my November 8th cruise is happening, right? After all, Royal Caribbean is anouncing that they plan to resume in Nov 1. They are allowing me to go in and add extras to my trip! I better go on ahead and purchase my plane tickets, hotels, etc. Right? Because IT IS happening, it has to, after all, if I try to get a refund for it they tell me I dont qualify because my cruise hasn't been affected by the pandemic. RIGHT?

Except it wont happen and everyone knows that. When Oct 31 comes by they will extend it to 2021 and Royal will suddenly say "oops, not our fault!" and finally offer a refund, 8 days before the actual cruise happens. They expect me to plan everything, planes, hotels, disney tickets, etc. Around their BS.

At this point I don't even care about the CDC anymore, they wanted to extend to Feb, white house didn't allow it. It's all politics and BS. But Royal Caribbean KNOWS they wont sail until probably 2021, it's just logical, at the very least not in november. Why do this to people with cruises in november? Giving them false hope, having them buy extras for their trips, excursions, upgrades, flights, hotel rooms, etc.

I know money comes first and I know they want everyone to cancel themselves before they are forced to give you a full refund, that way they can give you super mega valuable future cruise credit!.

Bah, seriously.

Is there really suspense though? There's no way they allow cruises, not with the way things are and even if they do allow cruises I have a feeling the november cruises are still not happening. I believe even if the CDC and Trump themselves came to RC and begged them tu resume, they would still probably skip november. There's just no way everything is in place to resume!

If the CDC decides to allow cruising this year AND Royal Caribbean resumes on Nov 1 as they said they planned I would be extremly surprised.

I think RC, in the case of the no sail expiring, should at least offer full refunds to everyone who wants them at least until 2021. They can’t hold people hostage with their “higher value cruise credit” when a lot of people clearly aren’t up to the idea of traveling. 
 

Ithink they know for a fact the November cruises aren’t happening. They should just be up front about it and let people get full refunds for those. Rather they are waiting until the last possible moment, that way guests cancel themselves and don’t have the option of a refund.

business-wise it makes sense of course but it’s shady as hell because even the president of the company himself is saying they haven’t ruled out 2020 cruises... does that sound confident to you? 
 

just be up front about it

Just now, John&LaLa said:

 

I meant you could look into a land vacation😉

yea! I already booked some days in the dolphin and bought disney tickets, my only worry was if I wasn't going to get the refund from the cruise, because I want to pay for the rental car and airbnb with the money from the cruise (eventually, when the refund kicks in) but it would suck for me if I plan everything for a land vacation and royal caribbean goes ahead with the cruise. Then I would have to cancel it for future cruise credit.

Just now, John&LaLa said:

 

You could go to Cozumel or Cancun. 

They're operating 

That would actually be way better but I doubt that's happening with this cruise in nov 8. I'll just keep glued to the website to see when it changes to try and get my refund as quickly as possible.

6 hours ago, BND said:

We cancelled that and the Nov 1 before final payment.  Not likely to go as planned, if at all.

I didn't even know Bahamas wasn't open for business, that just seals it I think. They really should just announce it now that no cruises will sail in 2020. I know they are trying to get people to cancel themselves so that way there's no actual money refund and just future cruise credit. But still, there's no way this is happening.

I also think the test should be covered by the traveler as long as it’s recommended and not obligatory. At the end of the day it’s the cruise lines who need people more than people need cruises right now. Absorbing the cost or implementing a quick test on boarding would be awesome and it would make everybody feel safe to see people are being cleared to enter in real time.

who am I kidding though, I’m almost certain they will not require tests for cruising, people are already extremely sensitive about being forced to do things such as masks. Half population don want to get vaccine. Something tells me if they force you to take a pcr test before boarding a lot of people will simply not cruise. 

8 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

Only you know your full circumstances.  We can't travel many places as it requires a two week quarantine once we return, so we are staying put.  I would look at your total picture and make a decision.  I just don't see ships sailing.

Quarantine is adviced but not obligatory when traveling back home (impossible to enforce anyway) but the last time I traveled to Texas by plane in June I did stay inside for about 10 days until I finally had to go out for some stuff that couldn’t wait. I’ll quarantine for sure when I get back from my trip. My fear is that they would suddenly implement quarantine in Florida for tourists who are arriving. That would pretty much force me to cancel as I cannot add an extra 15 days to an already 17 day vacation 

2 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

I think there is zero chance of any cruise happening from US this year.

so you would advise me to go for that Airbnb deal I found ? My fear is we decide to to Airbnb then the cruise happens so I get no refund, rather cruise credit. 

9 minutes ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

I am booked on that cruise.  The most I think will happen is that it will be shortened to three or four nights, sailing only to Coco Cay.  As a retired Floridian living close to the port, I would definitely be on the ship.

oh, me, wife and two kids were going, still booked and checked in but I’m almost certain you and me won’t be cruising. 

11 minutes ago, Basketball wife said:

Perhaps... from one Florida port to another. I can’t see any international port allowing cruise ships from Florida given the number of cases there.

what chances do you see for this nov 8, 2020 cruise in the harmony actually happening

port canaveral

cococay

st thomas

St kitts

back to canaveral.

according to Royal it’s still on, logic and common sense say it can’t. 

Just now, Wine-O said:

 

She's talking about having to quarantine when she gets back to PA.  That's her Governor's issue.  🍷

 That’s what I get for reading in a hurry. Thanks for clarifying. I feel his pain.

1 hour ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Here in the US there are or were a bunch of states that require a 14 day quarantine if you travel too from another us state.  Yes at your own expense.  I.e. I'm in PA and if traveled to maine I would have to quarantine in place for 14 days.  

If you cannot follow the rules then simply dont travel there.

 How is it enforced? I think in Maine the deal is either to get tested or quarantine. The quarantine is not obligatory. But I’m curious how they are enforcing it there. People seem to have enough trouble following a simple mask rule, how do they make sure people are doing quarantine?

3 minutes ago, clarky213 said:

 

The countries requiring Quarantine are trying to prevent you from travelling, if you can't get the time off including the quarantine, you shouldn't travel.

 

In Singapore, anyone arriving from anywhere MUST Quarantine for 14 days in either their own house or a Goverment specified hotel @ Sin$1000 per week, plus must have a test when you arrive (another $100) and at the end of the 14 days (Another $100). They also fit you with an Electronic Ankle Tag to ensure you do not leave the Quantine.

That’s insane but I’m not surprised being Singapore.

thankfully Florida seems to be the opposite right now

12 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

Seriously doubt your cruise will sail.  Also likely you'll have to quaranteen in Florida on arrival.  Cruising rules have not been approved by the CDC and are not likely to be approved for a couple weeks.  Then does your ship have a crew?  Impossible to fly from most places to the USA so the plan is to cruise to India, Indonesia etc.  How long to do that?

Are the ports open?  The first cruises will be to private islands only.

The likelihood of regular Caribbean cruises in November is pretty much ZERO.  

Suggest you read the NCL RCCL suggestions on how to resume sailing.

Yeah I agree about the cruising. What’s impossible is to ask for quarantine at arrival. How would that work. One only has a number of days for a vacation. They can’t ask you to book a hotel for 15 days before your vacation even starts. Essentially they would ask me to take a month off.

I already flew to Texas in June and my cousin flew to Orlando (from my city) last week. They never tell you anything about quarantine. How would they even enforce that anyway? Ankle bracelets? 
 

seriously the world is like a sci fi movie right now 

4 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

I'm not sure if the US is letting travelers from europe or asia fly into our country for travel.  Last I heard it was essential business travel only.   Has that changed?   Let's say cdc allows cruises out of us in november or december will they allow travelers from other countries?  I dont recall seeing anything in the health plan the other day but I didnt read all 50+/- pages.

Land borders have been essential travel only since around April. They say it’ll last a month but then they keep expanding it one more month and it’s been like that until today. They were expecting covid to ease up in Texas I guess but it got bad around June so Mexican gov keeps requesting for essential travel only.

air travel is different. we already flew to Houston in June and while it was weird (empty airports are crazy to see) it was fine. But it got bad in Texas by the time we were getting back so I accidentally timed it right.

this is a copy paste from American Airlines website

“Travelers from  Mexico (see 213 additional countries) who do not have a travel history in Austria, Belgium, Brazil, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Eritrea, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Holy See, Hungary, Iceland, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom during the 14 days prior to their arrival are allowed to enter the United States.”

My cousin flew from Monterrey to Orlando (via Dallas) and went to Disney world last week. She loved it because it was pretty empty.