nolegirl01

Just be aware i read from another OP that they arrived early at the hotel the room was not ready but the front desk attendant offered them another room they could have fine, but when they received the final bill it had another day included he did not tell them they would have to pay for the extra day, they spoke with the MGMT. but would not correct the bill. so be careful if they offer you a room if you arrive early you may be charged for a extra day.

Oh wow thank you! I will be sure to ask them and make sure if they offer me another room. I would be upset to be charged another night just for a few hours difference. I will definitely keep this in mind, thank you for that!

Thank you all for your responses! I definitely don't expect any special treatment I was just wondering if it was possible and was wondering what do most people do. I can't call the hotel and find out exactly since its an international number but I'll call once I'm there. Hopefully like you all said if the room is available they will let us in, if not I'll ask to store our luggage, no biggie. It's a Marriott hotel so me being a loyalty member hopefully will help my cause, if not it's no worries, I won't be too upset. Of course if they are sold out and there is nothing they can do then understandable. I didn't know that when the ship docks at 5am you have until 9-9:30am to leave, so we'll definitely take our sweet time! Thank you all!

Thank you all for your responses! I definitely don't expect any special treatment I was just wondering if it was possible and what do most people do. I can't call the hotel and find out exactly since its an international number but I'll call once I'm there. Hopefully like you all said if the room is available they will let us in, if not I'll ask to store our luggage, no biggie. It's a Marriott hotel so me being a loyalty member hopefully will help my cause, if not it's no worries, I won't be too upset. Of course if they are sold out and there is nothing they can do then understandable. I didn't know that when the ship docks at 5am you have until 9-9:30am to leave, so we'll definitely take our sweet time! Thank you all!

For those of you that booked a hotel stay right after your cruise, have you ever had any problems trying to check in so early at a hotel on disembarkation day? We booked a stay at a hotel in Barcelona post-cruise and our cruise docks at 5am on disembarkation day. I'm worried that us trying to check in at 6am or even 7am, they would either charge us a night or not let us into our room until check in time. Any one have any experiences with that? thank you!

For those of you that booked a hotel stay right after your cruise, have you ever had any problems trying to check in so early at a hotel on disembarkation day? We booked a stay at a hotel in Barcelona post-cruise and our cruise docks at 5am on disembarkation day. I'm worried that us trying to check in at 6am or even 7am, they would either charge us a night or not let us into our room until check in time. Any one have any experiences with that? thank you!

I guess it depends on what the offer is. We booked a haven spa suite back in Feb and because of the promotion that was going on at the time we didn't have to pay the service charge on the "free" offers. They waived it for us. I have not seen that offer again since then and they are charging the service fees on the "free" offers now. I would book it now if you feel you are getting a good deal. You can always cancel and if anything you can always have them adjust if it gets any lower up until final payment.

It all depends what country your MIL is from and what country you are going, that will tell you if you need a visa or not. If you do not need a visa then just bring your passport and green card and you are fine.

My husband is a US citizen and I am a permanent resident (green card holder). I was originally born in Brazil and have a Brazilian passport. We have gone to the Caribbean multiple times and even Mexico and I did not need a visa. But I did check with the embassy of the countries just to make sure I didn't need one. We are going on a cruise out of Barcelona in Oct and I checked the embassies and was told I did not need a visa so I am just bringing my passport and green card.

Now for example, if my husband wanted to take a cruise out of Brazil, then he would need to apply for a visa because Brazil requires US citizens to have visas. I'm not sure where your MIL is from, but just to be safe I would call the embassy of her country and ask if a visa is required for her to travel to where you will be traveling. If it's in the Caribbean more than likely she won't need a visa since the Caribbean pretty much accepts everybody, but I would do some research just in case!

So yes, there is that caveat. You must initially open and deposit into a brokerage account. But you can completely transfer all funds from it and not use it once you have opened the free checking account. It's a small hassle, but the fees (or lack thereof) from this account made the hassle worth it in my opinion.

 

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Yeah I agree. They were the best for fees while traveling while doing my research. I appreciate the info I will look into it! Thanks! :)

Charles Schwab Bank is the best for international. No atm fees anywhere in the world and they will refund those charged by the ATM up to $30 per month. I opened an account just for international traveling

 

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I've heard good things about Charles Schwab, my only question is it says you have to open up a brokerage account in order to open a checking account. Do you know if you have to use that brokerage account? or can I just let it be and just use the checking portion of it?

Okay let's try this again, this time without the judgement (I bank with who I want to bank, please refrain from judging, I just asked a simple question).....Those of you that use debit cards abroad, which debit cards do you guys use that won't charge fees for using ATM's that are outside your network? especially international ATMs? I know any debit card will work but they charge fees, especially international. I would like to maybe open an account with a bank or credit union for when we travel that won't charge fees when taking money from an ATM that is not in your network. Just wondering if there are any banks or credit unions that won't charge fees?

For those of you that use your debit card in ATMs in Barcelona to take out cash, which banks are your debit cards from? Those that don't charge fees? I have Wells Fargo and I know they charge fees so I was wondering which debit card would work good out of country?

Anyone stay at the Cotton House? how was your experience?

This is my first time traveling to Europe so I'm looking for some tips and tricks as well when it comes to currency and exchange to Euros. (I've heard all about the pick pockets just need some advice on exchanging currency).

Do most restaurants/bars take credit cards?

Where would you say is the best place to exchange currency, where the rate is the lowerst? In the US or in Barcelona?

So AMEX was both cheaper AND had better coverages than NCL. $490 included trip cancellation, interruption, and delay. It also included lost or late baggage. Plus it included the evac and medical. And because we booked the entire trip with our AMEX card we got death/dismemberment coverage, which hopefully no one ever needs.

Yeah we booked our entire trip with Amex as well that's why it was the more obvious choice and also I agree they were offering a bit more in terms of coverage.

1. Cruise line insurance:

 

CONS: Usually more expensive. Usually less coverages. Conflict of interest if you have a claim because its against them/cruise line.

 

PROS: Can usually buy right up to cruising time with cancellation coverages. Cancellation may be in the form of a cruise credit (not a refund). Will insure older & high risk travelers.

 

 

 

2. Credit cards

 

WIDE range of differences in your credit card coverage but generally limited versus travel insurance providers. Credit cards generaly outsource the servicing (emergency) and claims. This info may help:

 

https://www.generalitravelinsurance.com/travel-resources/why-credit-cards-not-good-for-travel-insurance.html

 

 

 

3. Travel insurance providers:

 

PROS: its their core business. You will be working with the travel insurance company for a claim directly so buy directly to establish your records with. Alot of different options on coverages & pricing.

 

 

 

CONS: May not let you buy cancellation up to cruise departure. Look for fine print on pre existing conditions. This helped us: https://www.thediabetescouncil.com/diabetes-travel-insurance-guide/

Very helpful thank you!

You can also check out usaa travel insurance online. It describes in details the different options.

 

 

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Thank you!

Thanks everyone for the tips! Amex was offering almost the same as NCL and theirs covered deployments. I just like how they can insure my entire trip not just the cruise.

I'll check USAA as well as someone mentioned. I did call them once and their insurance didn't really cover too much but I will try again and see if I can talk to someone who can give me more info but I think for now I might be leaning more towards amex.

Has anyone had any personal experience with using either? NCL's travel insurance is so expensive! NCL for us would be about $800 for 2 people vs AMEX $490 for 2 people. Amex will cover flights, hotels and cruise while I'm not sure if NCL's will cover only the cruise. Husband is in the military so I just want to cover my bases in case something happens and he gets deployed all of a sudden, but just not sure which would be better! Any tips?

Thought I would take a few minutes to write a brief review of our cruise on the Epic leaving from Barcelona on June 4th. First, my wife and two young adult son's arrived in Barcelona a few days before, so we had some touring time in this beautiful city. We used Franscisco of "Tours by Locals" for a fabulous day tour of Barcelona including the Gothic area and works of Gaudi. Had a great time and Francisco was an excellent guide. We were fortunate enough to have booked a Haven 2 BR suite which we enjoyed tremendously. Everything about the Haven was first class and it was well worth the money for 4 adults. Embarkation was smooth and we were on the ship and taking a tour of the Haven within 50 minutes of arriving. The service in the Haven was truly second to none and they catered to your every whim (keep in mind, my family and I are easy to please and typically are not complainers by nature). We found the food at the restaurant in the Haven to be very good and we especially enjoyed the breakfasts in the morning (small filet with eggs and crispy hash browns done to perfection each time). My two son's (ages 23 and 21), enjoyed the private hot tub and lounge area along with easy access to the bar. :cool: Even though we used private tour companies for all of our excursions, we had priority getting off the ship, which saved a tremendous amount of time and stress. The staff ensured that we saw every show we wanted to see and had reservations for the specialty restaurants for the times that we preferred. As far as food and entertainment, both were very good. We totally enjoyed Burn the Floor while Pricilla was good, but not really our cup of tea. The Epic Beatles were excellent while the Four Sea Sons were awesome (saw them twice). We ate in Moderno, Tepynyaki, and le Bistro, and all were very good. I don't think we had a bad meal on the ship. We only went to the buffet once and it was extremely crowded, so we avoided. As stated above, the Haven restaurant was very good and we took advantage often. The Circque Dinner Show is also not to be missed. The only downside is that day long tours wear you out and there is no relaxing time on this cruise. We all wished it was a day or two longer so you could rest in between tours. I would not hesitate to book this cruise again and look forward to cruising NCL in Europe in the future.

Thanks for the short review! We are booked on the same cruise in October and we have a haven suite as well! We are super excited! Can we get more information on what excursions you booked? I've been looking at a few but nothing like someone who has experienced them!

IIRC, it was about half before final payment and half after. It was a different cruise line that has a fare you can book where you can take advantage of price drops up to two days before the cruise. But, if you cancel at any time--even before final payment--there's an administrative fee and the rest of your deposit isn't refundable but can be credited to a future cruise. NCL doesn't have a fare like that, so my experience isn't applicable to what NCL does after final payment.

 

 

 

So far since I've been sailing with NCL (three NCL cruises so far), I haven't had a price drop after final payment. What I've read here is that usually they won't do anything for you but sometimes you could get a small amount in OBC or an upgrade.

Oh I see, yeah I would think NCL wouldn't really do anything after final payment but if it does happen I'll definitely be asking for at least OBC or upgrade :)

Good for you...your price won't go up! It's all about supply and demand. The prices fluctuate accordingly. Four years ago on my Baltic cruise, the fare went down more than $2,500 (for the cabin, not pp) about six or eight months after I booked it, and I walked on the ship with the difference in OBC. :D

Did the price go down after your deadline to pay the cruise in full?

Our cruise that we booked a few months ago went up in price (glad we booked early) our and full payment is due July 1. I'm interested in knowing what happens if the price goes down after we make our full payment since we won't really be able to cancel and rebook.

A British view from someone who did this cruise in 2015, a few comments.

 

A whole extra week in Barcelona is quite a lot. Have you thought of a few days in Barcelona before the cruise and then the remaining few days elsewhere afterwards. Trains are good in Spain if you want to travel elsewhere.

 

Pickpockets - yes unfortunately common in Barcelona and Naples. If it happens let it be a nuisance rather than the end of the world by only carrying what you need. You lose €20 and need to make a call to one card company, OK. You lose €500 and all your cards, not good.

 

Get data roaming (or a local sim card) for your phone. Local information on your phone is really helpful. Google maps now has public transport information for the whole of Europe built in. So, for example, if you are in Rome and want to get from A to B, instead of trying to decipher an Italian bus stop sign, Google will assist.

 

Pompeii - If you make your own way there (easy by train), go early and be there before the gates open. That way you will get an hour or so before the coach trips arrive. Do take a guide book, otherwise it a load of falling down buildings.

 

Rome - You can easily do it by train, loads of information on the 'Ports of Call' section of the forum, but obviously easier by organised tour. Work out what you want to see. Obvious I know, but Rome is big and hot. Check to see if you can pre-book tickets for places like the Colosseum to avoid horrible queues (same for Florence). Again guides, otherwise it is a larger falling down building.

 

Florence - You can do it by train or by coach from Livorno, though not as easy as Rome. Again planning, as hot and busy.

 

Cannes - Either stay in town for a stroll along the prom and a swim in the sea, or head out elesewhere. Depends what you want to see. Cannes is a tender port, so there can be queues to get back on the ship.

 

Palma - The ship docks a long walk from town, but there is a public bus just outside the terminal. Old town nice to stroll around (the cathedral may be closed on the day Epic docks) or some nice beaches nearby.

 

Enjoy.

 

And as an aside, I knew I was in America when I got on Epic and the chips I ordered with my burger were not chips. One language and all that...

Thank you for all this info! I really appreciate it! Really helpful! We aren't planning on staying in Barcelona for the whole week, just for a few days after the cruise then planning on maybe taking trains to other cities and maybe make a stop in Paris. I'm still in the planning stage so not sure what to do yet but definitely not staying in one place for the whole week.

Thank you all! The only part of this trip that I am already bummed out is the day we will be in Rome, it will be All Saint's Day and so the Vatican will be closed and so will the museums. The biggest let down is that the Sistine Chapel will be closed also. I got so upset hearing that. I think the Colosseum and St. Peter's Basilica will be open but I can imagine how packed that's going to be.

Hey Everyone,

We are booked on the Epic cruise on Oct. 29 and one of our port calls is Naples. My husband and I were wanting to see Mt. Vesuvius, Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast. I was going through NCL's website looking at the excursions but saw that they only offer one excursion to Mt. Vesuvius/Pompeii and another to the Amalfi coast but not both.

I was wondering if you guys recommend maybe a third party tour company that might offer excursions like the one we want or just a great tour company in general.

It's our first time going to Europe so husband is a bit weary of booking a tour with a third party company rather than through the Cruise line, so in order for me to convince him, I told him I would ask my wonderful friends here at Cruise Critic for their recommendation on a great, safe, trust worthy tour company. I know that prices are cheaper booking through a third party rather than the cruise line so that helps my case! ;)

Thank you all in advance! :D

Thank you all for your tips!!! I really appreciate it! I will be writing everything down and will probably ask again as it gets closer to the date! but I thank you all for your responses!