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SeaThruU

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    Santorini - how long to get back to ship?

    in Greece Ports

    Posted

    All ships anchor off-shore.

    Folk on ship-sponsored tours are tendered some distance to the inter-island ferry port at Athinos, where a road comes down to the sea. (but I think that at the end of their excursions all those folk are dropped at Fira and have to mix it with the rest of us to get back to the ship).

     

    Independents are tendered to the pier at the bottom of the cliff below Fira. From there they have the choice of cable-car to the top (might be a line) or ride a "donkey" (actually they're mules) up the zig-zag path to the top (might be a line), or walk up that path (laborious & unpleasant going up) or local boat to Oia.

     

    Coming back to the ship there's no ferry from Oia, everyone has to use the cablecar or walk the zigzag path (there are a few donkeys late in the day, but they're not so comfy or sure-footed going down). Hence the long lines for the cablecar.

     

    On this aerial view

    https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Santorini/@36.4000179,25.4126461,5491m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x1499ce86adfd9ff7:0xb2a761f740d68afc!8m2!3d36.3931562!4d25.4615092

    - The ferry routes shown are to Athinos (where ship's excursion tenders go)

    - The cruise ship at anchor is pointed at the tender pier (where independents are tendered in & everyone is tendered back) at the bottom of the zig-zag path up to Fira. Zoom in and the zigzag path is very clear, and the cablecar is to the left of it.

     

    If your ship's routine is the same as ours, there's no tender priority for those on ship's excursions cos they use different tenders. And any priority for certain cabin classes shouldn't be much of a concern.

    But there's the usual scramble for early tender tickets.

    Then the potential lines for cablecar or donkeys.

     

    If you're the only passenger on the ship, the tender ride to the pier plus the cablecar ride will probably take no more than 20 minutes.

    But the waits for tender & cablecar are pretty-well impossible to forecast.

    Best to pass the buck & get your tour operator to figure a meet-up time. And swap cellphone numbers with him/her.

     

    JB :)

     

    Thank you! This is very helpful.

    Luggage tags

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    You print however many copies you need from your cruise documents and then fold them. Some people get the clear plastic luggage tag holders and attach to their luggage and others simply staple them around their suitcase handle.

     

     

    Sent from my iPad using Forums

    St. Kitts vs St. Thomas?

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    You may want to consider the major damage that hurricane Irma did to both St. Thomas and St. John, USVI. Excursions may not be the same as before the storm hit these USVIs. St. Kitts had no major damage from Irma or Maria. So it may be a better choice for cruises for several months.

     

     

    Sent from my iPad using Forums

    Playa Mia or Isla Passion???

    in Cozumel

    Posted

    Thank you!! I'm leaning toward IP... do they have a menu to order food as well? My kids have food restrictions and can't do the cross contamination at a buffet.

     

     

    Sent from my iPhone using Forums

     

     

     

    I have never seen a menu there. I’ve only seen the buffet.

     

     

    Sent from my iPad using Forums

    Playa Mia or Isla Passion???

    in Cozumel

    Posted

    Need some help...

    We're a multigenerational family traveling over New Years and are thinking our itinerary is about to get rerouted from eastern to western.

     

    We're looking for a nice beach day, NOT a party, but still good options for food (some of our party has hefty food restrictions), drinks for the adults, and water activities like paddleboarding for the kids (ages 6-12).

     

    I've seen Playa Mia is good for kids, but is it busy?

    Aimed at younger kids?

     

    Isla Passion looks more rugged, which we don't mind, but how are the facilities?

     

    We went years ago to paradise beach and loved it but don't want something that busy with this group, especially in light of how many ships are likely changing course soon.

     

     

     

     

    Sent from my iPhone using Forums

     

    We have done both of these in the last 5 years. Playa Mia is great for kids, but can be very crowed. It has an inflatable waterpark that is fun to climb around on and a good snorkel course. It also has a nice pool and a good buffet.

     

    Isla Passion is hard to get to if your ship doesn't offer tours there. When it is offered it is either the Twister Jet Boat tour or a Catamaran sailing tour. I have seen it available on other excursion booking sites, but it is land transport only that takes 30 minutes each way followed by a short flat-boat ride to the island. The beach is a lot less crowed, they have some inflatables for kids to play on and a good buffet. I was there last January and the service was outstanding, but the chairs and tables where really looking worn out. We've gone there twice and both times were by Twister Jet Boat. That was a lot of fun and gets you there really fast, but it does have age restrictions.

     

    Both are good all-inclusive day trips. Isla Passion is a very relaxing place however, if you're going with multiple age groups, Playa Mia may be the best choice.

    RCL Emergency number to contact Paxs on ship/cabin

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Can someone please tell me how to enable the WIFI calling on an iPhone 5S?

     

     

     

    I have bought the Voom and Stream package and I am sailing on the Oasis.

     

     

     

    I just get confused when it come to this WIFI phone usage.

     

     

     

    Also, can I use ship WIFI to Facetime and Skype or are these separate charges?

     

     

     

    Thanks for your help.

     

     

     

    Nancy

     

     

     

    On board ship and connected to the ship's WiFi in Settings put iPhone in Airplane Mode and then turn WiFi back on. Then scroll down through your Settings and select Phone and then Select WiFi calling and turn it on.

     

     

    Sent from my iPad using Forums

    Question for those that have done the land tour first

    in Alaska

    Posted

    On our last RCL pre-cruise tour, our tour guide met with us and others on our tour the first evening in Fairbanks at the hotel. He handed out things like luggage tags and info on additional excursions available to our group at that meeting. The next morning they took our tagged suitcases that were going directly to the ship? Our land tour suitcases were placed on our bus and taken to our next hotel. They then tell you what time you need to set your suitcases outside your hotel room door the next morning for collection. It's all well organized and they explain it all on that first night.

     

     

    Sent from my iPad using Forums

    Question for those that have done the land tour first

    in Alaska

    Posted

    We have done two cruise-tours in Alaska and both were land tour first. On both, we packed one suitcase each for the land portion and one each for the cruise portion. The cruise line took our suitcases for cruise on the first day and we didn't see those bags until we boarded the ship 6 days later. The land suit cases are collected by the tour assistants each morning and taken to the bus/train and you get it back each night at the next hotel. We also carried a backpack each for our daytime touring.

     

     

    Sent from my iPad using Forums

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