MATHA531

How do you have a bbq place without ribs?

I live in NYC. I have taken 3 trips to Europe since December 2014. The last time I spent cash for anything, and trust me I don't live lavishly, was when I visited Disneyland and bought a mickey bar at a sidewalk kiosk. (I am told they take credit cards now and for all I know may have taken them then but I wasn't aware or didn't give it a thought). So in this country, we are not very far from that. I always get a kick out of reading so much misinformation in various publications or the reluctance of some to enter the 21st century. I read of idiotic advice to use credit cards only for large purchases and the quest of so many to acquire foreign currencies and pay asinine fees before arriving in a country in the 21st century. Then of course there are the short sighted merchants who do things like establish minimum purchase amounts for use of a card. Go to the movies? Credit cards. Buy refreshments at the movies? Credit cards. Dry cleaners? Barbers? They're smart in Sweden; wish they were so smart here.

I have used several options in my travels.

 

The first time I went i did the train on my own but the ship seemed to be closer to the train stop then it is now cause we walked and it only took like 15 minutes. Im still confused about that. I know a lot of people did the train this past June on my cruise and had no problem, although a lot got stuck because there was a major issue on the train track which I won't go into because it was very sad.

 

The second time, I booked private with Joe Banana Limos which was Excellent.

 

The next few times, I found my roll call and shared with italytoursharing.com which to this date is my very favourite way to get and see the sites. You get the most out of your time and dollar in my opinion and you get to meet other travellers which become life long friends especially if you share 3 excursions with a lot of the same people on your cruise.

 

This past June I used Smartcruisetours and booked just the bus transfer. It was very reasonable but I felt we missed a lot of time in Rome. The bus didn't leave until almost 10 o'clock and out ship was in port at 7 am so I watched all the people leaving the ship and getting their tours and on their way while I waited -that was tough - lol. The price was very good but again, when you don't have a lot of time in the port, I say spend the extra $$ and see as much as possible but that is just me.

 

Lots of options I just mentioned. It is up to you what will suite your needs. Enjoy your trip!! Hopefully, it doesn't become an addiction like me because Im broke and its putting a wedge in my retirement fund, hahaha!!

You sound like you were on the early June Vista cruise I was on. I decided to take the shore excursion that consisted of a transfer to a special siding and an express train to Rome. This was to San Piedro station and a 10 minute walk or so to the Vatican where they gave you a whole bunch of options. I chose one of the HOHO buses but that also involved a 15 minute walk to the nearest stop.

It was a pleasant enough day but I hadn't realized there was as much walking involved. In any event as I finished my activities a bit early, I decided to walk myself back from the Vatican to San Pedro station. The problem is that the walk from the station is downhill for the most part but the walk to the station is uphil after a day of a lot of walking but I made it with some time to spare waiting for the express train back. At the time the guide was due back he arrived out of breath and told the few of us who had made it to the station ourselves that a person had done herself in on the tracks and the trains would not be running back to the port. After a series of frantic phone calls with Carnival, they arranged buses to take us back to the ship...somewhat longer than the train would have been. But we met some passengers who had done it themselves and now had no way, so they said, of getting back to the ship.

I don't how it was finally resolved but the ship waited for them and we left the for Livorno late but the stranded passengers all somehow made it back before the ship left.

Cash will not be obsolete any time soon albeit that it is not used a lot in parts of a Northern Europe. I believe cards are still not as popular in Germany and I think, Japan. Also I am afraid that places with a big cash economy will always use cash. I doubt if ours is the only country where an occasional plumber asks for a cash payment and where one is so grateful to find a plumber, any plumber, that one weakens and agrees.

Here you can pay for most things with a card but as we know the business is paying fees, we would not pay for a single cup of coffee with a card, as we saw in Norway. Some places have a minimum of about $10 for cards.

I left my Amex card at home on our trip to Italy. Not sure about the US but here and I think in Europe the fees are much higher so it is not popular.

Germany and the Netherlands are probably the best two examples where modern 21st technology has not taken hold

I can say this. The last time I was forced to use cash for anything was December 2014 when I visisted Disneyland and bought a mickey bar from a free standing stand. Since then, I have used credit cards for every last purchase which included 2 trips to Europe from the US which includes paying my mobile phone bills via credit card, my ez pass tolls by credit card. In some cases because of the stupidity of some, I'm forced to pay for things like my rent, auto loan and taxes via automatic debit from my chequing account since they want to charge me a surcharge for using my cards. I have about $20 in my wallet which I pulled out of an ATM about two or three years ago. To me, this is modern 21st century way of life.

On T Mobile's simple choice plans, as you probably know, you get unlimited texts, calls at a very reasonable 20¢/minute and unlimited 2g data in 128 countries (it may have gone up to 140) certainly every European country one might reasonably visit. For this summer, sort of to sell their service, they had a special that included unlimited 3g and 4g data where such service was available and your phone had whatever lte bands the local roaming partner was using and making available. That promotion is scheduled to end 31 August 2016 when it is assumed the package will revert to 2g although the whole industry is in a state of flux and nobody really knows how things will continue to shake out. Those who have been to Europe this summer have reported they do get 4g data on many roaming partners although sometimes you might have to do a manual search for the carrier with the best data available. In Italy, my phone usually defaults to TIM.

So...at this point in time, unless you will be in Italy or indeed anywhere in Europe in the next 2 weeks, you can count on 2g data and perhaps have to buy a package for higher speeds (or perhaps not).

Not looking to argue with anybody...Amex is widely taken in Europe although not quite as widely as mc/visa. Many amex cards have dropped ftf's, some retain them. Many amex cards are issued by the same banks issuing mc/visa; others are issued by amex. So the reality is there is no general rule. You have to investigate your card with the issuer and decide whatever fees it charges are justifiable. The simplest answer, of course, is to take several cards, make your decision on which one you want to be your primary card and not worry about it. The one thing one can say with certainty, discover is next to useless. They had tied in, outside North America, with diners club international (as opposed to diners club in North America which is a glorified mastercard with some good perks for travellers such as airline club entrance. But in the last year, I am afraid, diners club has gone into a death spiral is no longer offered in North America for the most part and is hardly taken anywhere in Europe (where in theory discover cards should be acceptable anywhere diners club is taken). The problem is today, next to nobody takes Diners Club. Too bad. It had a very fine history as the world's first T&E card.

Thanks for the info, Hank! We're traveling to Southern Europe with our Tmobile phones and I was hoping that we could get 4G service - Nice to hear about your firsthand experience:)

Bear in mind, we are still in the two month period during which T Mobile is providing free 4g data in Europe. That will end 31 August. I have seen no annoucements nor frankly do I expect any that this will be extended past the end of August. I hope I'm wrong but would expect t mobile's simple choice plans to go back to 2g unlimited data, too slow to be all that useful.

I am not trying to be argumentative about the article. However, knowledgeable people such as myself realize it is full of poorly empasized things.

There is hardly any travel writer worth his or her salt who doesn't feel that on the whole, credit cards with no foreign transaction and no annual fees are the best way to travel. That should be the emphasis. Now if you want to add the caveat that from time to time there may be places that don't take cards or that every so often, you might be able to negotiate a discount for cash, that would be fine. Also anybody who mentions Discover again doesn't know what they're talking about. Discover is taken almost nowhere outside the USA. For a while it had a tie in with Diners Club International outside the USA, but that seems to have passed.

The same is true of travellers cheques. What the article should have said is that once upon a time, long long ago, travellers going abroad were advised to take travellers cheques in lieu of cash. That time has long since passed. Next to nobody will touch them today. Since this is a cruise board, yes, cruise lines will, in general, take them to settle one's account. But rarely does anybody else touch them, even in local currency. I used to take 1 $10 American Express travellers cheque to use Amex offices as a mail drop. Today, there are hardly any Amex offics left. (I remember trudging to the Haymarket in London to use the Amex office; long since history). Does Amex still try to sell them? Yes they do but most people are extremely disappointed to learn how useless they have become.

Again, this is buried in the article. What I would say is that throughout the article, there are errors and emphasis on the wrong things. I would give the article a D- and not recommend any novice use it to learn about the best ways to handle money matters when travelling.

Ah, well you will notice this is the Italy Ports board. ;)

But the article was about travel in general.

Not sure I fully agree with this. There are still a number of taxis that do not accept credit cards, depending on what city you're visiting. Also, some smaller museums and sites will not accept credit cards. Can't buy a bus ticket in Rome from the bus driver with a credit card, although you might be able to use one if you purchase it in a store elsewhere. And for small charges, many places will prefer that you use cash (e.g., a bottled water, a couple of small souvenirs, etc.)

 

And small mom-and-pop restaurants (particularly in more southern European countries like Italy or Greece) may not accept cards -- or may not accept the card you have. I ate in a busy and popular lunch spot in Rome a few weeks ago. When I went to pay with my Visa, I found to my surprise that the only card they accept there is Amex. Go figure. (My Amex is my "just in case" card and so it was in the safe in my hotel room...) So I had to pay cash.

 

Finally, it's worth noting that some places will still give you a discount for paying in cash. With non-chain hotels in Italy it can be a 5-10% savings.

Not arguing with you but I think you will find that in the 21st century, these places are fewer and fewer in number. Besides in a country like Sweden, cash has all but been done away with.

Here's a USAToday article covering a popular topic on this board: Currency exchange 101: What to know before you go

 

Enjoy...

 

The article is horrible and filled with misleading information.

Credit cards are by far the best way to go for all purchases large or small. Are there a few, very few places that don't take cards? Yes but they are few and far between. And also anybody who mentions Discover in an article about credit cards and foreign travel know nothing. Today there is next to no place which takes Discover; even though for a while it allowed use of Diners Club cards. Few people today have Diners Club cards.

Also any article that even mentions travellers cheques as an option today again doesn't know what they're talking about. Travellers cheques were an alternative...40 years ago. I remember my first trip to Europpe when it was advantageous to have some travellers cheques, when I took Karl Malden's advice no to leave home without them. It also allowed me, if I took Amex cheques to use American Express offices as a mail drop. But that was 40 years ago. Today, next to nobody takes them. Some cruise lines do to settle onboard charges but outside of that, next to nobody wants to touch them. Not merchants, not banks, NOBODY even if they're in local currency.

ATM's can be a good way to go but you have to check the fee structure mostly of your bank. Not every bank, as a matter of fact, few banks charge fees like $5/withdrawal. Many banks have the proper fee which is $0. Some banks charge foreign transaction fees, some don't. Few foreign banks at their machines charge a fee, like is almost universal with American banks, have chargs for having the gall to use their machines in Europe. Some privately owned machines do, most bank machines do not. Of course there are ATM cards which will rebate these fees.

I wouldn't rely on much of the information in that article. If this person is a travel editor, she doesn't know what she's talking about.

Yep, that's my understanding too.

Not from personal experience (cos my cards are chip&PIN), but from talking to US visitors with chip&sig they can use their card at manned tills but not in ticket machines, gas pumps & such.

 

JB :)

Actually going along with the game plan in the USA, mc/visa/amex passed regulations about a year and a half ago prohibiting kiosks from out of hand rejecting pinless chip cards. Based on my experiences this past June, my cards (which are chip and signature preferred) worked on every kiosk I used them on including the SNCF machines at CDG, the machines on the British National railroad at Gatwick, the tfl machines, the RATP machines on the Paris metro, the tfl machines in the London underground. Like I said, chip and signature cards will work 99.9% of the time whereas until a couple of years ago, there were problems at kiosks.

I may be wrong here, but I believe that when chip and pin was introduced in Europe there was a lot less fraud using CCs.

 

So, in the US does contactless payment exist?

It exists. It just hasn't caught on. It's been hard enough trying to get merchants and consumers to be happy with inserting their cards rather than swiping. You are quite correct, though. Credit card fraud has increased dramatically in the past few years as hackers have become very good at what they do alas and have adopted the old Willie Sutton motto (Sutton was a famous American bank robber in the 1950) is reputed to have said when asked why he robbed banks answered by saying that's where the money is. Credit card fraud, especially in the USA before the introduction of the emv chip, is where the money was. The bad news is I just read an article in a British paper saying they expect hackers to be able to counterfeit emv chips within a year. Then what?

How antiquated, even new cards not having chip and pin.

It's been a contenteous thing to many in the USA. The bottom line is the American banks had to be dragged into just having the emv chip. For a long while they simply shrugged their shoulders and said not necessary. They were willing to eat a certain amount of fraud (understand the banks in the past have been responsible for credit card fraud not the individual). They set a date where responsibility was transferred to merchants if they did not upgrad their equipment; even so many American merchants still do not have the equipment to process chip cards. The banks further argue, remember I am just the messenger here, that as long as the card itself is not lost, chip and signature is as effective in preventing card is present fraud as chip and pin, that customers prefer not having to bother to memorize more pins and that lost card fraud is very modest. Some retailers have considered suing the credit card network to implement chip and pin but that has gone nowhere.

The imortant thing is chip and signature cards will work virtually everywhere in Europe; many get a new card with a chip, think the card is chip and pin and are disappointed when they arrive in Europe, use their cards and are asked not for a pin but a signature.

As with so many other things, our country always seems to want to do things differently. This is just another example. :mad:

Everyone has been so polite here, to help you out. Using a bank ATM in Europe is dead easy. Using a credit card if you're from the States may be problematic. It's getting harder to use a card without a chip. I don't know the status of this issue since I'm Canadian and all our cards are chip&pin, but others here can chime in.

Although the conversion is not complete, all new cards being issued in the USA have the emv chip. Many banks have replaced chipless cards either at their expiration date or even earlier so I would say at least 70% of USA credit cards today have the emv chip. HOWEVER...

The USA banks have chosen to introduce emv chip card known as chip and signature. 99.9% of USA credit cards will not call for entering a pin but rather will require you to sign just like the old cards lacking a chip. There has been a lot of misinformation about this by travel writers and the like. For the most part, USA credit cards with a chip will absolutely work everywhere in Europe no matter what some ignorant writers say. They will work even at kiosks despite the fact until recently pins were required at kiosks due to revised mastercard/visa/amex regulations. They will work withut pins at automated fuel pumps they will work on toll roads. There may be a few isolated exceptions but they almost certainly will not affect the vast overwhelming majority of people.

Don't waste your time trying to get a chip and predominantly pin card if you're from the United States. With the exception of two small fcu's, they simply don't exist.

:rolleyes: Indeed... lol!

 

I live on the Continent and I've never heard anyone refer to it in plural as "euro" only "euros." The only time I've heard "euro" used is if referring to "the euro." So most of the eurozone must have it wrong :rolleyes:

The original documentation issued when the euro was introduced did indeed proclaim the plural of euro should be euro.

Later on, a "clarification" was issued giving English speaking countries the liberty of using euros (in this case, it would apply to Ireland) in official national documents. So, yes, it is unclear.

However, when visiting Japan, one doesn't say yens.

When visting Italy pre Euro, one didn't say liras.

So it is hardly unpresedented. :o

The simple answer is that in general, you need euro (note the official plural of euro is euro not euros).

The simplest answer is to use a credit card for all purchases and you won't have to worry about it. Even there, one has choices. The first choice, and there are lots of them available today, is get a credit card that has the proper foreign transaction fee which is 0%...not 1%...not 3% but 0%. Credit card issuers are supposed to tell you when they issue you a credit card whether they have a foreign transaction fee. If you bank has a 3% ftf, get another card which doesn't have one. Period. Easy to do.

I never understand why people say to use a credit card for large purchases. Use your credit cards for all purchases wherever you see the infamous credit card decals. Some people do claim they can get discounts for using cash but in most places, at least in Europe, that is not generally true. Also, unfortunately, there exist some merchants who insist on establishing minimums for use of a card. I don't use merchants like that. Luckily, that is far from a majority of merchants.

Also watch out for a scam called dynamic currency conversion. If you are following the advice above and using a card with no ftf, your credit card company will give you the best exchange rate. Some merchants scam you by doing the conversion for you and it is always at a rate far above what the banks offer. You know this scam is being pulled on you when you get the charge slip which they pressure you to sign without reading and it shows the amount both in euro and in your case US dollars. Politely tell them no way Jose or whatever. Insist they VOID the transaction and do it properly in euro. The merchant agreements of the credit card companies allow this scam with the consent of the scamee namely you. That is why before the transaction is completed, they have to push a button on the machine indicating you want to be scammed. Many have the decency to follow the rules and ask you euro or dollars. Tell them euro. If they present a slip that has both a euro amount and a dollar amount, you tell them you don't want to be scammed and insist they VOID the transaction. They may tell you they can't (a lie), that the US dollar amount is only shown for your convenience and that you are being charged in euro (another lie) or the infamous no speak English (usually a lie). If they refuse to void the transaction and do it properly in euro, ask to see the manager. If they still refuse to do the transaction properly, do not under any circumstances pay with banknotes. Rather write on the slip local currency option not offered and when you return home, dispute the charge for not following proper procedures. Your bank will then chargeback the transaction hopefully charging the scammer a fee.

I must report to you that DCC is metastasizing throughout the travelling world and it is incumbent on everybody to put an end to this scam by following the above suggestions.

Did you read this?

 

Quoted from the article below........

 

Pig & Anchor, which is free to all passengers, also serves side dishes like cole slaw, mac and cheese, baked beans and collard greens as well as Fieri's signature barbecue sauces. One item that's missing? Ribs, which Fieri joked was the source of some "fist fights."

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=7149

I won't argue or bet my bottom dollar but why would ribs cause fist fights any more than any other food? I would wager a nickel, it's more like the cost factor (ships usully have ribs on one or two days when not in port and I don't see any more fist fights but maybe I'm just blind. I'll ask again in good humor. What is a smokehouse or bbq place without baby backs?

I was gold on my cruise on Vista at the beginning of June. On the first night, I went to the 5th floor check in and was told I have reserved seating and to go directly to the restaurant. Went directly to the restaurant from then on and was always seated quite promptly. Don't know if it was gold or done for some other reason.

Too bad Guys BBQ does not carry ribs. What is a smokehouse bbq without ribs?

In Central London, there are train arrival boards which cleary indicate the destination of each Picadilly line train. Those not going to Heathrow may have various destinations listed. Ignore them. Trains ging to Heathrow will either be going to Heathrow Terminals 1,2,3 and then to Terminal 5. Others will go to Terminal 4 first, wait for about 10 minutes and head back to Central London, stopping at the Terminals 1,2, 3 station first.

I thought that is how it is on most lines. We never even try the MDR when we get on because we assume its closed. Always go to the buffet and then explore.

I only have comparison with NCL. On almost every NCL cruise I have taken, they try to push you into the buffet as you enter but on every ship, one of the mdr's has been open on embarcation day which is why I sort of expected it on this particular cruise. Interestingly enough, I have found lunch menus listed on some web sites for carnival so on some ship somewhere, a mdr is open for lunch. On this particular cruise, however, there was only one sea day (day 2) so it is understandable there were no opportunities to do a lunch in a mdr.

Is Tmobile 2G in Europe or for the US as well?

T Mobile unlimited data is 2g in Europe (4g is available this summer through 31 August depending on your phone and its abilities). It is 4g in the USA through its LTE network which has been very much upgraded in recent years.

The RC web site has it right now and yes it was the BOGOH promotion that caused the glitch; I hadn't checked the RC web site first. Which RC ships have single cabins other than the new mega ships?

But in any event, there is no need on anybody's part to be nasty. It was an honest question and asked in all due respect.

What is the definition of a troll?

 

Someone who posts a provocative or pot-stirring initial post and never returns?

 

:rolleyes:

Troll? I asked a question, got answers (and yes I think it's the BOGOH promotion that's causing it. What more was there for me to say. I still think a 100% single supplement is discriminatory...it should be capped at between 50% and 75% but then again in life, all sorts of groups are discriminated against and great strides have been made. Cruise lines in their construction of these new mega ships should provide some single cabins but if you're not a member of the group being discriminated against, you feel differently.