megr1125

They should have a shuttle from Venice City Center/Tronchetto. You can get there via vaporetto or private water taxi. Trust me, it's easier to use cruise line transfers. It's far and expensive and there aren't really any other options, maybe rail. Taxis in Ravenna are few and far between too.

I've been on 4 MSC sailings and recently booked a 5th. I'm very picky and I'll say that th service gets better, their specialty dining prices are reasonable and overall their fares are excellent. Plus, I'm tiring of Royal's astronomical fares and Celebrity's new pricing policy. Is MSC perfect? Far from it. Have I had any horrible meals? No. Maybe I'm lucky.

Welcome to CC 🙄

I drink a LOT of water, go out early and when I feel hot or tired, I go try and find a cooler spot or a place to sit. I made a lot of "friends" with shop owners in Santorini by going in to their shop, cooling off (some had decent, by US standards, A/C) and/or asking if I could sit for a moment.

Just so you know, Athens is in Greece. 😄

I did. Hence, I came here for actual feedback from CCers as opposed to Google averages and random people on Reddit and other sites. 🤣🤣🤣 (20+ years here, I research first and come for feedback from fellow cruisers, hopefully smart ones! 😜😜😜)

It does make it fun. Being a late-November baby sort of makes it hard, and sometimes expensive 😅😅. I wish I could make up my mind. Ugh.

Thanks! Not really concerned about beaching lol, I don't do much of that anyway. As much as I like sun and sand, the heat sucks the life out of me! 😄😄 As long as there's a few shops and cafes open, I'd be happy. I was scrolling the interwebs and saw a lot of comments that islands like Mykonos tend to close up at the end of October and this cruise is late November. I can't decide what I want to do lol. It's a big Zero bday so, since I'm not thinking my fam is gonna throw me a party, vacation it is. Somewhere.

Hi Contemplating booking Island Princess from Athens to Rome for my bday in November. I'm wondering about the weather and things being open, especially since the call to Mykonos falls on my actual birthday. My alternate plan is Dublin, Belfast and Paris by land. Figuring the Med is a tad warmer but forgot that everything might be closed. If you've done a similar sailing in November, were things open? Thanks

It took the pandemic to get us semi-caught up with the rest of the world. Still, there are a few merchants who haven't gotten the tap and go part of the machines enabled. LOL.

Knowing what I know about NCL air, that is you have ZERO control over ANYTHING unless you pay to deviate, book your own. You could wind up connecting 3 times each way and arriving at weird times. Their "free" air is "free" because you're taking what they have. They're getting cheap air cheaper so chances are it's not going to be non stop or easy. Just because you're starting in ATL doesn't mean you get a nonstop flight to FCO. IF it were me, I'd book my own.

That's not good especially with WN. You'll be stuck in a middle seat in the back of the aircraft if you can't check in ahead and/or buy Early Bird Check In and/or pay for a better boarding spot. You may want to call them back or try DMing them on Twitter. And probably avoid NCL's 'free" air in the future but I digress. NCL's 'free' air may be free but it's really a hot mess. I never hear any good stories about it.

no

Call Royal and ask as another poster mentioned. If you get someone who says no, call back. They do have a shuttle from the train station but not all reps are well versed in this info. Or ask your TA. (Again, as mentioned above. HUCA is the mantra, Hang Up Call Again! LOL There are not a lot of cabs in/around Ravenna so Royal's shuttle is probably the best option.

I took a water taxi to that hotel from Tronchetto for around 140 Euro. Not cheap but YOLO, part of the experience and TBH I had too much crap to haul on public transit. The walk from the dock to the door of the Hotel Rialto was MAYBE 20 paces. No stress or stairs to climb (well one into the building I think). Nice hotel, but the area is SUPER crowded and my room was very hot so I stayed one night and left. But they were very nice and sent me to a great restaurant a 5 minute walk away. Great food and better prices than the places right on the canal! My water taxi operator did assist me with luggage, and they're also masters of getting people into and out of boats. One time, it was easier for me to sit on the edge of the boat and swing my feet over to the dock. Pretty sure this was at the JW Marriott (hotel I moved to after 1 night)

I actually did take a private water taxi TO the airport. Sorry, I can't help with the shared ones but honestly, while not cheap, it was timely, and kind of fun. (I was solo so it was pricey but I figured YOLO and I'm an overpacker and this was way easier then Alilaguna. I prebooked for both pickup at Tronchetto to my hotel and from the hotel back to the airport. ( I changed hotels and did a 3rd private water taxi). If you're entertaining one from Tronchetto (Venice City Center) to a hotel, I'd strongly suggest prebooking. Several people wanted to get them and the ones that pulled up had been reserved. I jumped into my boat while others on the dock were trying to figure out how to use their phones in Italy. 😄 You are only allowed 1 suitcase per person though and if you're at a hotel on an inner canal, the shared ones don't go there if I understand correctly.

I hated the HOHO in Rome. First, it was super overcrowded, SRO on the top, open deck and people had to duck under trees, traffic signals and so on. Second, as others said, they do not get that close to many things. I wound up getting off someplace, getting in a cab, going back to my hotel and finding a place for a few aperol spritzes. Made much better use of my time. LOL

I stayed there. It's nice enough but my room was VERY hot. I wound up leaving for the JW Marriott due to the heat and it was too peopley around the hotel. That said, great location, very close to Vaporetto and I took a private water taxi and had MAYBE 20 paces to get to the door. Friendly staff and the breakfast was decent. The hotel did try to find me a cooler room (also my first one had an odd smell that they tried to get rid of.) Had I booked a bigger room, I probably would have been happier. Ask them for restaurant suggestions. They sent me on a short, maybe 5-10 minute walk (I move slow) around the corner and it was fabulous. Link to my review Restaurant they suggested Trattoria al Gazzettino

Earliest flight departure that Royal will allow for their shuttle is 12:15 or later so no way on the 11 AM flight unless you prebook a car service and walk of yourself. The Tronchetto/City Center stop is easily accessed via private water taxi. Otherwise, you can get there via vaporetto to Piazzale Roma. I prebooked a water taxi to take me to my Venice hotel https://avm.avmspa.it/en/content/people-mover-0

Many theft proof bags, like Travelon or PacSafe have locking zippers (with little dog leash clips that you have to twist to open). I use one all the time. As to the OP, that's a fantastic, informative post and very well written too! Thanks for sharing.

I am on the NE Corridor. I NEVER take Amtrak the day I need to be someplace. One disabled train in the tunnel or a signal issue or downed branches or wires or trespassers and you're screwed. And at least one of those things happens almost daily. As for getting to the pier, cabs from NY Penn are 100% easier to find versus Uber/Lyft. Too many people, too much mayhem.

Breakfast was included. Dinner was, maybe 30 euro give or take? It was delicious and it'll be something different (and a set menu) when served. There were several places to eat close by as well. I went to one suggested by the hotel, but I can't remember the name.

I stayed, sort of, at Le Case di San Vitale which is more of a B & B and while charming, and opposite one of the mosaic sites, I could not get the a/c cold enough for my liking. Also, as I guess is the case in Italy, the hotel isn't staffed 24/7 which made me a little uncomfortable. I moved to the NH around 9 PM and I agree with the above. It's fine for a night. I'd put it on par with maybe a Hampton Inn or Courtyard in the USA. The staff was very nice, and again, the room wouldn't cool off enough for my liking, but it WAS cooler than the B&B. Breakfast was good. I took a shuttle to the pier which picked up just across the street. I'd had dinner near the first hotel which was decent but not particularly memorable. Ravenna is charming though and there are plenty of places to eat. Cabs are very limited so I would be sure to set something up in advance if you can to get to the ship. Fun fact, the Case di San Vitale is in the ZTL (limited transportation zone) and I wasn't sure I'd be able to get a cab to get me to the NH. I asked the kind bar server in the adjacent bar to get a cab for me, which she kindly did on her app.

I priced one and the cabin total for 2, no perks, AQ was around $9500. For the same thing, for a single, it was $13000! Yes, $3500 more. I was advised that there are no longer single equivalent discounts on BOGO sales for solo pax. Whereas in the past, the discount was roughly half of the percent of the sale. Last time, my discount was about 35% and the BOGO was 75% off the second guest.

You're wasting your time making or buying covers. If the bag gets damaged, file a claim with your travel insurance. Buy a new bag. I managed a luggage store for 5 years and when people said "my bag got dirty or scratched" my reply was, what happened to the stuff inside. Their answer, "nothing". Then I said see, your bag did its job. I could buy expensive luggage. I actually buy mid priced stuff because I know I'll need to fix it eventually. My current bag came back missing a wheel. The airline was going to get it repaired but the repair shop, who dealt with the luggage vendor, wound up getting the piece replaced since the luggage vendor was out of the parts and there was no suggested timeframe for them to come in. (It was a new line of luggage, no reason to NOT be able to get parts.) So, I wound up with a brand new bag thanks to the authorized repair shop's persistence. Covers won't do anything and if TSA needs to open your bag, you'll never see it again. (I had 5 TSA locks cut off. Yes they were approved. A TSA trainer I met somewhere told me that sometimes the person with the key is at lunch, or they can't be bothered and will cut the thing off anyway. That's when I started using cable ties to hold the zippers together. Honestly, if someone wants the crap in my luggage, take it. Nothing irreplaceable is ever inside). I changed to hardside after my bag was left on the ramp in a monsoon and the contents got wet. Crap happens. I went to baggage services and asked if there was anything that could be done. The agent said we can cover your dry cleaning bill. I said can I just get $10 bucks for the laundromat. Five minutes later, I had a check for 10 bucks (and a travel voucher since I defended the baggage service agent to another customer, but I digress). TL;DR, if your bag is showing wear or damage, replace it. Use packing cubes if you want (personally I hate them) and get insurance.