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ajtraveler66
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Everything posted by ajtraveler66
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We've been on several NCL cruises, but we've never stayed in "The Haven". We're thinking about doing one on a Bermuda cruise on the NCL " either this year or next. I'd just like your thoughts, in general. Is it all that much different? Is it more quiet? (Of course, I guess that depends on who's aboard. 😀). Is the food any better? (Not that it's bad in the main dining room). We look forward to hearing from you.
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Our ship has yet to post any excursions for Rome that include the Sistine Chapel. So we are looking outside the ship for some possibilities. Ideally what we are looking for is one that INCLUDES skip-the-line tickets to the Sistine Chapel ... but ONLY INCLUDES the exterior of the Colosseum (we've seen it). We would just as soon have time for other sites rather than to spend time in the interior of the Colosseum once again. We definitely also want to see the Trevi Fountain. Beyond that ... whatever the tour guide thinks will be of interest to us will probably be fine with us. The Spanish Steps have been mentioned as a possible 'must see' for our group. Any suggestions on finding the right tour?
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I was curious if NCL had any currency exchange areas onboard its ship for converting dollars to Euro's? We will be on the NCL Star in April (Venice to Lisbon). I have read that most restaurants, etc. do accept Visa/Mastercard. However, I realize that it might be convenient to have a few euro's on hand for who knows what.. Your comments/suggestions are appreciated.
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Thanks, Edinburgher. I thought I had done so, too. For whatever reason, when I went to my profile, it didn't show that I had posted that. There's something about the format/settings that I'm missing or overlooking. Thanks again. .... And this is the reason--I suppose--that I keep requesting the same info. For I certainly wouldn't do it, if I could locate those original posts.
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I'm fine with just plain old black coffee, and it doesn't have to be Starbucks. But I need it on a daily basis because I guess you could say that I'm addicted. 😀. Is there plain old black, non-Starbuck's coffee aboard the ship that's complimentary? I checked out the Le Bistro menu (it'll be 2 of our 3 meals on the meal package), and I noticed that the coffee on the menu is Starbuck's. So what's the pro's and con's of the Starbuck's package, and where must I be leery on the ship if I don't take the package? (FYI... We're on the NCL Star in April).
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We will be in Cannes on April 24, but we won't be there for long. We are trying to decide on just doing Cannes on our own or taking a scenic bus excursion into the Nice area (with selective stops). I look forward to your input. Thanks.
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I hope my information is wrong from NCL, but I was told by an NCL employee that their Venice Walking Tour with Gondola Ride does not include a tour of the INSIDE of St. Mark's Basilica. Since some of our excursions are unavailable for purchasing at this time (this one in particular), I am hoping that this person is incorrect. Because that is exactly the excursion that we are looking for (something that includes the inside of St. Mark's ... along with a gondola ride). That said, if indeed NCL does not provide this excursion for us, are there any RELIABLE & reasonably priced options out there for us? I know we could probably do all of this on our own, but the convenience of someone buying the tickets for us and setting things up for us is why we are seeking an excursion. The last thing we want to do in Venice is to stand in a line. Thanks.
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We're in the process of making reservations for the 'must do' excursions for our NCL Star April cruise. (Venice, Rome, Naples, Florence, Sicily, Florence). We will do these excursions come rain or come shine unless they are cancelled for some reason. However, there are other days at port in which the 'to do list' is not necessarily a top priority... and I'll use this as an example: One of our ports of call is Split, Croatia. We really look forward to seeing Split and we want to...but not in a big way if it looks as though the weather forecast is calling for undesirable conditions. That said ... should we see on the day before that the weather is going to be good on the day we are in Split, will we have trouble finding excursions 'at the last minute' ... excursions that would 'bus us around town' to some of the local hot spots. These could be with the ship or possibly even independent of the ship. I realize we could arrange for private tours in advance...but we feel that it just wouldn't be worth it if the weather was inclement .. (and then it would be too late to cancel). I look forward to your tips/suggestions. FYI: Our other ports of call include Kotor, Slovenia; Cannes, France; Ibiza, Spain; Cadiz, Spain; Portimao, Portugal (We will probably venture out in Cannes and Cadiz ... even if the weathy is a bit unpleasant).
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We are thinking that we can do Venice without an excursion. To me, it appears that the highlights are St. Mark's Square and taking in a gondola ride. Some friends of ours took an excursion to a 'glass blowing' establishment. They enjoyed it ... but it just doesn't sound that appealing to me. I'd rather just take the city in with my own eyes...the canals, the architecture .... and then take time out to enjoy a nice restaurant (this would be our 'excursion expenditure' for the day). What do you all think? Is a guided tour of the city worth it? Anything that you think we really should include in our day? FYI... I don't think we'll be dealing with any time-crunch issues.
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We will be on the NCL Star in April. Two of our ports are Cadiz & Motril. I think we have just about decided to skip the excursions in Cadiz and just enjoy the city of Cadiz itself. I've just read too many positive comments about it for me to change my mind. The city of Motril, on the other hand, has me a bit stumped. It just doesn't appear to have much of a draw in and of itself. Please correct me if I'm wrong. We will probably hold off on making the Motril decision until we are midway through our cruise. (It's Day #13 of our 15-Day Mediterranean Cruise (Apr 15-30)). I know that there are excursions to Granada/Alhambra. But if Motril has a lot to offer, we may just opt to spend our day there. I have a feeling we are going to be very tired at that point any way. Ibiza is Day #12, and I think we plan to lay back and just take it easy that day for sure. While I've got you....we do Portimao, Portugal on Day #14. Feel free to comment if you've been there.
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Seeing the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel is the one thing we ABSOLUTELY want to do. Since there are tickets involved, we prefer using an organized tour as opposed to doing it "On Our Own". Were tickets not a big factor, we probably would have been tempted to choose the "On Your Own" excursion. That's what we're going to do in Sicily -- "Taormina On Your Own".
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Other than "Exclusive Rome and the Vatican" being $80.00 more expensive, what is the major difference between the two excursions listed in the title? The only thought I'd like to mention here is that we're not all that excitied about losing time going into the interior of the Colosseum...when we could see other things instead. Some in our party have already been to the interior ... and the rest are not all that excited about being forced to see the interior. If both excursions do take us inside the Colosseum, then so be it...we'll still have to choose one excursion or the other. Also ... you do need to know that we prefer doing excursions through the ship ... Oh yes, we could do a private tour ... but I've been around long enough to know that mishaps do occur every now and then. That said, we do like knowing that by doing the ship's excursion, we do have the assurance of knowing that we'll get back on the ship.
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This 2 1/2 hour tour looks very good to me. Our group is about to 'go for it'. (Tuk-Tuk is open-air....very similar to a golf cart) Looks like we'd get to visit the Diocletian Palace (among other things) and then go up for some free time with a great view of the city at Teraca Velidica. And since it's such a short excursion that is a big plus to us because we would then have plenty of time to go out on our own once we return to the port ... maybe sample a little Croatian food (suggestions welcome there) The only concern I would have is the possibility of riding around in a Tuk-Tuk in inclement weather. But we always take that risk on these sorts of things. So.... Has anyone done this Tuk-Tuk tour? Hopefully so. Because I look forward to hearing from you.
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This 2 1/2 hour tour looks very good to me. Our group is about to 'go for it'. Looks like we'd get to visit the Diocletian Palace (among other things) and then go up for some free time with a great view of the city at Teraca Velidica. And since it's such a short excursion that is a big plus to us because we would then have plenty of time to go out on our own once we return to the port ... maybe sample a little Croatian food (suggestions welcome there) The only concern I would have is the possibility of riding around in a Tuk-Tuk in inclement weather. But we always take that risk on these sorts of things. So.... Has anyone done this Tuk-Tuk tour? Hopefully so. Because I look forward to hearing from you.
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I know that Alhambra is the big 'go-to' place while in Motril, but several in our party of four do not seem all that interested. That said, what about the "Alpujarras Mountain Drive" excursion? It looks both relaxing and interesting. Or perhaps Motril, itself, has something to offer. I look forward to your input.
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I know that Alhambra is the big 'go-to' place while in Motril, but several in our party of four do not seem all that interested. That said, what about the "Alpujarras Mountain Drive" excursion? It looks both relaxing and interesting. Or perhaps Motril, itself, has something to offer. I look forward to your input.
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Our ship's Rome excursions have yet to be posted for our April cruise. Two in our party have been to Rome before, and we look forward to seeing the Sistine Chapel, Trevi Fountain, and Colosseum once again. However, we did not get to see the Spanish Steps and a few other highlights. So...we are wondering if there are any reputable private shore excursion companies that could pick us up at the port in Civitechhia and provide tickets to the Vatican for us ... along with allowing us to see some hand-picked sites in Rome (especially those mentioned in the title). Seeing only the exterior of the Colosseum is adequate. We could save time by not having to go into the interior. We look forward to your input.
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NCL "Highlights of Taormina" Shore Excursion Question
ajtraveler66 replied to ajtraveler66's topic in Italy Ports
Thanks, Cruisemom. I remember you talking about this a few months ago. I just don't think I ever asked about the free time. The wording on our excursion is a bit different than this one, but surely it hasn't changed that much from your experience. I'm now hopeful we'll have that free time to enjoy some cannoli or granita. And doing the tour, we won't have to mess with getting the amphitheater tickets on our own. We are excited! -
For those who have taken the 4 1/2 hour shore excursion "Highlights of Taormina" ... did you have any free time or was it a regimented tour. (We realize that to-and-fro travel accounts for some of that 4 1/2 hours). We are trying to decide between "Highlights of Taormina" and "Taormina On Your Own". I know for certain that we will choose "Highlights" as long as we know we'll have at least a little time on our own. If not, we'll have to think on it. Also ... Is "Highlights of Taormina" tour fast-paced, easy-going, or somewhere in between? One in our group has moderate knee issues. So we have to consider that as well. Thanks ... Regardless of what we choose, we are VERY MUCH looking forward to our 2+ hours in Taormina. Praying for a beautiful April Day.
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For those who have taken the 4 1/2 hour shore excursion "Highlights of Taormina" ... did you have any free time or was it a regimented tour. (We realize that to-and-fro travel accounts for some of that 4 1/2 hours). We are trying to decide between "Highlights of Taormina" and "Taormina On Your Own". I know for certain that we will choose "Highlights" as long as we know we'll have at least a little time on our own. If not, we'll have to think on it. Also ... Is "Highlights of Taormina" tour fast-paced, easy-going, or somewhere in between? One in our group has moderate knee issues. So we have to consider that as well. Thanks ... Regardless of what we choose, we are VERY MUCH looking forward to our 2+ hours in Taormina. Praying for a beautiful April Day.
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We will be at port in Motril, Spain, on April 27, 2023 on the NCL Star. We realize that seeing Alhambra and Granada are high on the excursion list options. But we were wondering about the Nazari Garden/Winery excursion that is offered by our ship, NCL Star. It sounds very relaxing...even without the wine. 🙂 . Wondering if any of you have ever taken this. Your input welcome ... or anything else you'd care to suggest for the Motril port.