LEtue

vacation isn't about mimicing what you do in your normal life. You want to operate differently in a vacation environment.

 

Very well said and oh so true!!!!

There are some large TA's that offer 50% deposits often but one of them has cancellation penalties. Might not matter to you if you don't expect to have to cancel or if you buy cancel for any reason insurance.

 

Just an FYI in case it is helpful in the future.

Yes, those are the things I think we will miss most, but we need to see if we can do this. I read a lot of posts from people that are happy just to be sailing and that's what I am hoping to accomplish. Stay busy all day with excursions or on board activities until I am ready for bed and then head off to our cubby hole. If this is not for us then fine. At least we tried. It might mean the difference between cruising 2-3 times a year or 5-6 times a year.

 

Yup, I'm one of those that is just happy to be aboard! Over the years I have had to cut back on my cruise budgets (grandkids in multiple states now). But I still manage to get at least one in per year.

 

I love a balcony cabin when it is affordable and have upgraded when price reductions start coming along but if they don't I will be perfectly fine in my inside cabin and enjoying the open decks or a seat on the promenade (poor man's balcony) :D

We got a lot rain of this trip . The outside glass had a big hole in it . The inner pane had a steady leak into the lining of the ceiling and dripped onto the carpet on the floor. The leak supposedly been leaking for a few months.

 

This is really disappointing!

 

No one is available to fix a leak for months or replace a window? Do these repairs require a drydock?

I wish I could find better fares out of Tampa since it is way more convenient for us, but all the fares I see out of Tampa have been at $100 higher per ticket and often more like $200-$300.

 

Ya, I'm sure it is hit or miss out of Tampa. My son and his family live in Boca now so flying from MIA wouldn't be too bad for me and I can combine it with a short visit.

 

I like what I see out of MIA - especially the non stops!

we were never advised by anyone to have a guide for the Colisseum. We were advised to buy our tickets in advance, which we did and that helped with the lines. The second time we went to Rome we reserved the "underground tour" of the Colisseum on line at the Colisseum site, that has nothing to do with RIL. It was very interesting, but we had to do the leg work for that.

 

Just to add for the benefit of others visiting Europe. It is always a good idea to do your own research and not rely on the description/recommendations of companies that provide a driver only. Then based on that decide what is best for you and what you want to get from the experience.

 

If you posed a question on Cruise Critic and I saw it I would definitely recommend a guide for the Colosseum or any other major site in Rome - especially for a first time visit. There is so much to be gained by using a guide especially since it may be a once in a lifetime trip. I still use them on every trip and still get something new from each one :)

Check out TAP Portugal. They have really reasonable flights to Barcelona. We flew them from Miami last time. Great food too. And the orange juice is the best I have ever tasted! :p You can find them on all of the major search engines (kayak, expedia, cheaptickets, etc.)

 

Thanks so much for posting about your experience on TPA Portugal! I have been wondering about them since they have such awesome prices to BCN.

 

Even though I can often get great fares out of TPA I will watch MIA too :)

 

Wish I could help with May flight info but the last time I flew overseas in May it was May 2000 and we paid $463 RT from ATL. Now I always travel in the fall and fares tend to be lower. I bought RT Rome in March last year for travel in October and it was only $736 with one stop in Phily each way. I hope to get close to that for 2016 :)

We booked Izmir through Ephesus Shuttle. They have good reviews on TA and here. Several tours to choose from and the prices are very reasonable.

 

We have 4 private tours currently booked just due to ease factors in certain ports. We will DIY the others. I am sure Carnival can come nowhere near the per person prices we got for groups of 8.

 

I will have to research it a bit more, but some of the reviews I have read about local guides have been less than wonderful saying that whole buses of tourists are taken to sketchy places that are obviously in cahoots with the tour guides and they try sell them stuff. One said they were taken to a "fashion show" that was creepy and then after people tried to hard sell them leather goods. Another review had a similar experience except they were taken to a carpet place.

 

I just wanted to post a quick recommendation for Ephesus Shuttle! We toured with them last October during our Serenade OTS cruise and they were absolutely wonderful to work with - from start to finish. We toured from Kusadasi and did the Tour 4 -A1 and added the Terrace Houses (don't miss them). We did not have to do the stop at the carpet factory and it was a wonderful day! They are rated #1 on TripAdvisor and it is well deserved :)

I just don't see why they can't take it off the itinerary - at least for a couple of years? I wanted to sail with them in 2016 but booked the Harmony because I want to know before I book.

 

Granted things can change with any of the other ports too but Tunis just needs to be omitted now.....IMHO anyway.

RCI never collected our passports last year on the Serenade and we stopped in Kusadasi, Turkey.

 

So, you should be able to leave them in the safe. It is recommended that you keep a photocopy with you when you go ashore.

I agree with you about the Dawn - our first NCL cruise was last year on the Jade and we loved it, so we quickly signed up for the Dawn, and were disappointed - the food was bad in the MDR and the buffet, the service was also bad in the MDR. Had the Dawn been our first NCL experience, we would not try again. Since we have had the Epic booked for awhile we'll see how we feel about NCL after that cruise in January.

 

Interesting. The Dawn was my first NCL cruise and I haven't been back. The food and service in the MDR was just horrible. I thought it was just me since the Dawn always got great reviews.

 

May have to try NCL again someday.

Really enjoying your review since we are sailing SB on the Star in a few weeks :D

 

Thanks for taking the time to post about your trip!

Really enjoying your review and the pictures! Can't wait to get back next year myself :)

 

Too bad there weren't others on your roll call to share excursions with or you could have signed up for trips on one of the tour share sites like RomeinLimo. They offer some great options and very nice pp prices. I plan on doing that when I go because I will be solo - unless I meet enough people on my roll call again (then I will gladly set some up again).

 

Nonetheless, it looks like you had a wonderful time and thanks for posting :D

I am anxious to see pictures of the SI category cabins on the Harmony which I booked for 2016. The pictures here would be similar to an SO (outside).

 

The cabin layout will be different on the Harmony too since they aren't attached to other cabins and are located all alone on deck 4. Based on the pictures in the link at least I can get an idea of the size and it doesn't look too small for one person :) Thanks for posting!

All I can say is wow!

 

After seven cruises on Princess I can't believe your comment "I just sometimes feel like I am cruising on a Senior Citizen Retirement Home".

 

That hasn't been my experience at all......

Ive heard of such a thing because many complained of the same. I also had this issue on a ship several cruises ago (I think it was Princess).

 

I was in 9023. I didnt do anything because it bothered me but not enough to complain as I knew there wasnt much they could do. I was more concerned with the lack of very a/c in my room. I also never make complaints looking for compensation. To be honest, I hate when people jump to wanting that resolution so quickly. I find it happens so much lately with people who cruise.

 

Not having hot water for an entire cruise isn't a complaint but an issue and has nothing to do with compensation :confused: The cruiseline would like to know about it and I feel bad for the people coming into the cabin after you....

We have two options going from Tampa - JFK - FCO on Delta which gets in at 10:40 a.m. or Alitalia which arrives at 8 a.m. They are the same price but we have never flown on Alitalia. They are a partner with Delta. I am presuming we will get the same amount of FF miles towards our flight. Can someone tell me about Alitalia? Both flights leave Tampa at the same time on Delta.

 

Thanks for any advice.

 

A quick search on Kayak revealed that the Alitalia flights are operated by Delta. You didn't say what day you are flying but it is more than likely the case with all? You may want to check closer because if this is true you will be on Delta aircraft with a Delta crew.

 

Enjoy Rome!

FWI Aldo's Limos out of Sorrento also does this, taking each party's info and credit card no. although actual payment is made at the end of the tour. We did this for the Almafi Coast and really liked the driver. Aldo himself met us along the way to ask how the day was going. Sweet guy.

 

Good to know and thanks for posting!

It’s unfortunate, but there are times when the organizer DOES get stuck.

 

On a previous cruise, I guaranteed the numbers on my credit card and I had everyone’s names, e-mail, cabin numbers, personal assurances that they were going, etc. Well the night before the tour, I received a call from Stranger A who told me that she had dinner with one of the couples on my tour who told her that they weren’t going on the tour and that Stranger A might be interested. Well she wasn’t, so I called the couple and they said that they changed their minds. I explained that I had guaranteed the numbers with my credit card and told them they would need to pay their share. They refused, saying they “hadn’t signed anything”. They screwed me 2 ways – first by not even telling me they weren’t coming (found out from Stranger A) so I could find a replacement and then by not paying their share.

 

I got stuck paying for them since I had guaranteed the numbers with my credit card (and the others on the tour weren’t willing to pitch in for the No-shows)

 

Lesson Learned – I now collect for the tours on the first day of the cruise and anyone that doesn’t pay is no longer on the tour.

 

That is awful and I can't believe people would do that!

 

We did the same thing and collected all monies at the M&M. I guess that would have given us tour leaders time to find other interested people and we did have waitlists.

 

I am getting ready to set up tours for next year and I will definitely use RIL or Joe Banana (which actually seems to have some better options in Naples).

 

Glad I found this thread!

On my Serenade cruise last October I organized 3 tours and someone else did 3 more. In our case we collected the money at the M&M so we could make up envelopes and store them in the cabin safe for the appropriate port. It worked fine. I just exchanged $$$ for euros through Wells Fargo (best rate that I found) before I left home.

I actually felt better not using an ATM overseas or a CC in the ports (even though my Capital One card didn't charge fees).

If there are just two of you paying for the excursions before you leave home the 5% might not be a large amount. I wouldn't anticipate any isses if you use Pay Pal and you will have receipts for the payments.

:eek::eek::eek:

 

Not on your life would I even remotely consider this! Open my balcony so strangers can walk though it? Ain't happenin'.

 

On a positive note though, if I knew my cabin was between a large group I would want to trade rooms so that I could avoid all the cross talk between the group over my balcony - that would be annoying.:rolleyes:

 

That is exactly what I was thinking and I would be grateful for a phone call from RCI or my TA!

Ooohhhh I didn't realise the harmony had solo cabins! Which date are you sailing? I had an email through for her maiden voyage, so tempted!

I am going on my first solo cruise next Sunday so if I get hooked maybe I will look at the harmony for next year!! Exciting :)))))

 

September 18, 2016. There is one last inside single cabin left - category SI. The oceanviews are about $300 more and the category is SO.

 

I took a serious look at the Epic and it was a close call. If I hadn't found an inside cabin the price difference would have been too much and I would have booked the Epic myself!

 

I was hard to find insides still available - you should go for it!

I just booked my first solo cruise....LoisR will be proud of me :)

 

Once I heard that the Harmony of the Seas had solo cabins I fgured it was a sign that I should book my next Med trip :D

 

I normally meet so many people on the roll call thread that it won't be a problem finding dinner mates and coordinating independent shore trips - so decided to go for it!

Ever been in the Oasis elevator and looked out at the view. See that 14 story towering piece of artwork and wires? I think that's what the empty space is.

 

Could be....I have never been on an Oasis Class before so this is a first for me :D

They have just used the same generic deck-plan from the Oasis and haven't properly modified the hallway to be able to accommodate these additional cabins.

 

Thanks, that makes sense!