dcl999

Chase sapphire covers prepaid costs that aren't reimbursed or given a credit. They also provide an additional $250 for transportation if you're not at the end of your trip. There is no coverage for lodging or increased air. 

I just read that GeoBlue trekker covers COVID medical costs but not evacuation and MedJet does not cover COVID transportation except in US and from Mexico or Canada.

We are willing to do some self insure but also wonder about cost/benefit of an additional policy

What coverage is available if you are not sick?

1. Positive test before your flight

2. Arrive at destination but positive test before boarding cruise and quarantine required

3. Midway through cruise test positive and (a) ship requires cabin confinement or (b) ship drops you in next port for quarantine

4. Test positive so can't return to the US and have to quarantine

In the past we've relied on the coverage through the Chase Sapphire card, GeoBlue Trekker and MedJet. It looks like we might need something else now but not sure which provisions cover the above scenarios. 

We took this tour several years ago. We had recently been to both Florence and Rome so booked different Viking tours. The buses to Pisa had little knee room. Most of the buses were fairly full. We booked an alternate tour instead of Rome that was canceled and refunded a few days before we arrived in port. We didn’t get to stop in Monaco because it was extremely windy. Viking added an extra Night and tour in Livorno. 
We stayed extra days in Barcelona. Getting a cab when we disembarked was no problem. 

Take warm clothes-one of the stops is very close to the arctic circle-about 38 degrees and rainy the day we were there. 

Also if someone is in Moscow in September check into dates and tickets for the military tattoo in red square. 

We went to the armory museum on our own. Great exhibition of the excesses of the tsars. 

Is the dance floor bigger than the ones on their long ships?

If you look at the cabin pricing between the July river cruises with free air and the August discounted fare where you pay extra for air, the total price paying for the air and cruise is about $100 - 200 more than the free air price for many of the cruises. Wonder if the ocean cruises are the same? We get many more river cruise brochures.

Carol

Thanks!

 

Little bits of wisdom like this are great to find. I'm soon to be on the trip and trying to refine my packing list.

 

I'm assuming your meant the sort of funnel-like device for women? I've been wondering if I need this. (I'd have to practice first!:o) How much use did you get from it?

About 2/3 of the off boat, non restaurant happy room stops.

Wished I had taken: swimsuit and swim cap (pools in hotels were inviting), Exofficio type pants, rigid container of some sort to pack fragile market finds (one vendor had some folded ribbon animals that would have made great grandchildren presents)

Glad I had packed: hangers (great for drip dry laundry), antiseptic wipes (to wipe shoes, etc. after plane ride home), casual clothes, female urination device, sunscreen, undercover money holder (one person left passport and cash behind at a restaurant in our group - it was recovered - and one person in another group couldn't find passport, delayed whole bus and affected sightseeing for that bus)

Should have left at home: robe, half my clothes.

Also should have organized clothes so we didn't have to open more than one suitcase at a time.

We should have packed in 2 medium sized suitcases and small carry ons instead of one checked bag and 2 maximum sized carry ons. Transfers in China would have been much easier.

Just got back last week. I was able to borrow a transformer at each hotel and on the cruise ship. All the wall receptacles had two sets of openings. The top one looked like the US plugs but I never could get a polarized plug in and had to use an adapter for the things that didn't need the transformer.

I have seen some references to ballroom dancing. Do anyone know if there are ballroom venues, if visitors are welcome, and if there's any time available to squeeze a dance in? My husband and I took it up as a hobby several years ago and think it would be a great experience. We thought maybe in place of the opera?