Twolittleboys

Couldn't get two pictures to properly attach so here is the second one:

If you have only limited time in Cannes I personally would stay there. You could just soak up the atmosphere. The newer, flat area of town reminds me a bit of Beverly Hills but you could also explore the old part of town with winding streets and a great view (I did not personally have time for this). If your time isn't extremely short I highly recommend a trip to one of the Iles de Lerins. At least on my Celebrity cruise the boat tours left close to where the ship docked. I took a boat across to Ile Sainte-Marguerite and had a wonderful time! You can tour a small fortress, go on a scenic walk, or swim. A great relaxing day that would even work if it is hot.

I have not been on the Viva but have been on several Med cruises with my two kids at various ages. Med cruises can be exhausting, especially with no sea days (and not just for kids)! Personally, I would probably not skip any ports but would plan some more relaxed activities in most of them. If you go for independent touring you won't be locked into an activity and if it gets too much can just stay on board after all. Here is my recommendation for the ports: Lisbon - Great city - spent several days there (without kids) last year. If you have a couple of days prior to the cruise I recommend a day to Sintra. Looks to be straight out of a fairy tale and may appeal to your kids (depending on tastes) Gibraltar - Not been yet (upcoming in 3 weeks!) but should be fun with kids climbing around on the rock, looking at the monkeys etc. Cadiz - Actually haven't been there yet but will be in a couple of weeks. With kids I would not take a long day tour to Seville (have been) but enjoy Cadiz instead. If you have a horse lover in your family you could consider a trip to Jerez (I am planning to go there) with horse show etc. Motril/Granada - I have been to Granada on a land-based trip years ago and it is very nice. This is the one place I would book a ship excursion if you are interested in seeing the Alhambra (and your kids are likely to be interested) Ibiza - Would just do a beach day there Majorca - Love Majorca! A day trip to Soller and Valldemossa is great fun and easy to do but with kids I would probably split my time between Palma (maybe tour the cathedral) and the beach Barcelona - Lots to see and do there. Would not book an excursion but have several options ready depending on how everyone is holding up. Prebook Sagrada Familia though if you hope to visit! Marseille - Lots of great destinations nearby. With kids I would go to the Calanques or maybe visit Aix-en-Provence Villefranche - One of my favorite ports! Again, no need to preplan. You can hop on the train to go to Monaco (did this on a prior kids with kids and had a great time) or Nice. Or just take a walk around Cap Ferrat and spend some time at the beach Livorno - We took a ship excursion (Florence on your own) and it was great but as it is towards the end of your trip you will likely be worn out and Florence is very crowded. So unless you really want to see Florence I would possibly skip this. After writing all this I just realized that you will be going in August. Unfortunately, it may well be very hot. I did a July cruise recently and it was too hot to do much of anything. So my recommendation would be to have a possible plan for each destination (or best two different ones) but not pre-book a lot of excursions but stay flexible. Lots of these destinations are great for spending some time at the beach or just hanging out. Hope you have a great time!

I bet they would (my kids had a great time but were a bit younger). The quality of the magic shows varies (it is more of a training ground so don't expect a Las Vegas show) but the atmosphere is incredible and everyone is so nice! Also, the Magic Castle Hotel is THE best hotel in all of LA for families in my opinion. It is a converted apartment building (rather similar to the place you stayed at) but offers all kinds of goodies. For example kids (and adults) can go to reception and get an unlimited supply of various snacks/candies. There is a free soda machine, free laundry (they do it for you and deliver to room), free soft serve ice-cream and they even have a special phone at the pool from which kids can order popsicles!

Just in case you do visit LA/Hollywood again in the near future: If you stay at the Magic Castle Hotel (right next to the Magic Castle) and book your hotel directly on their website, you can buy a pass to visit the Magic Castle! Not cheap but not outrageous either. I have been twice, once with kids (only possible for brunch with minors) and last summer on my own in the evening. I can highly, highly recommend the experience. Fun magic shows and a really cool vibe!

I have stayed in Nice before (and taken trips both to Monaco and Cannes) and I have taken the train from Cannes to Villefranche during a cruise. It is quite straight-forward and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it as long as you have a fairly long day in port and have checked on any planned strikes. Make sure to take your passport when going to Monaco as you will need it for going into the casino (if you want to check it out). I forgot mine in my hotel room... Monaco is fun to visit but there are plenty of other great destinations closer to Cannes, like Eze, Nice, or Villefranche (my favorite). Let me know if you have any specific questions!

I think you may be? Like I said, I only have vague memories but I do remember walking from ship into town (fairly long but even), visiting the Alcazana, checking out the bull fighting ring, walking through town, and the returning to ship. I believe I wanted to still see the Castillo but that did look like a steep climb and kids were not willing... I have a preliminary booking on a cruise that will stop in Malaga in May - if I go ahead and book it I can double-check and report for sure.

Huh, we only did Alcazaba (not Castillo de Gibralfaro) and I don't remember it being especially steep. Looking at Google Maps it also seems to be basically right at the port? Like I said, my memories are kind of hazy but definitely don't remember it as being difficult. Kids were 11 and 9, I think.

We did Alcazaba a couple of years ago. I don't remember the details but it was easy to do from the ship by just walking (and I was traveling with kids). Very nice experience!

I remember there was a lot of back and forth about how NCL handled the Free at Sea beverage package in Europe last year. Sometimes it was valid, sometimes no drinks could be had at all, sometimes tax was charged... I am currently considering an April Med cruise and was wondering what the last status was? I don't think European cruises have started up yet this year but I lost track so don't remember how they handled it at the end of 2023. If anyone who was on a European NCL cruise in late September/October last year (or anyone keeping better tabs on this) could let me know I would really appreciate it! I would be booking from Europe.

I assume the rationale for charging more for one passenger than for two is that cruise lines make most of their profit on extras (beverages, excursions, casino, shops, etc.) and not with the cruise fare itself. So assuming that a solo passenger will only spend half as much extra as a couple (on average), they need to charge more on the room than it would cost for two passengers (as they can't really charge a solo passenger double for drinks etc.) if they want to make the same profit as they would if the room had two passengers in it. Obviously, that reasoning only works if they can be sure to fill all cabins with at least two passengers as empty cabins are much worse than just having one guest in it. That being said, I do cruise solo and would not pay inflated prices. Actually, I don't look much at the solo supplement but at the total cost so might book a cruise with a high supplement if the base fare was very low. Still, all things being equal it is unlikely I would often cruise on a line with a high solo supplement as the total price will generally be higher than I can get elsewhere. And of course high supplements will make a line less "solo-friendly"

Biggest differences in my opinion: Medallion use, still twice daily cabin service, less activity facilities (like water slides, climbing wall etc.), somewhat older demographic.

Picture opportunity was free on Sky Princess a couple of days ago. And personally I don't think there is any need to have the medallion ahead of time (luckily as living in Europe I couldn't get it shipped anyway).

They may well have hoped that the strike gets cancelled but I do think at a minimum they should have announced right at the beginning of the cruise that there was a good chance the stop would be cancelled.

Thanks everybody. I am a bit surprised by this as on most other cruises I have been on you either had set dining or could just go whenever. I don't think I have ever had to wait more than 5 minutes. Anyway, I think I will just try my luck without reservations. The "prime times" are mostly gone already as I have booked so late and as I am okay with sharing it sounds like it should be okay.