mathladyca

Sounds like the op should have done some research on CC before booking. Same situation with floods happened in 2013 and would have provided him with some insight.

Anti - malaria are taken 3 days before you go into an infected area and follow through to 3 days post area.( from my travel clinic doc) Some people on our trip took started taking it 3 days before they left the US and then they did not have enough left.

I would also take dukoral or something similar before trip and cipro with you.

Bugs can be picked up anywhere, even on star ships.

I stayed at the Hilton in Milaflores- great location and the usual Hilton standards in room.

Try any of the Tanta restaurants- including the one in Laromar mall.

I took a private tour by Haku tours to Barranco - bohemian type architecture, bridge of sighs,good pubs and restaurants,

If you are taking the San Francisco monastery tour, make sure you check the times- some tours are spanish , some English and you cannot do a self guided tour.

I always do my own extensions no matter where I travel- usually save alot of $ depending on the number of days.

I went basel to amsterdam-that was all that was available. Spent 3 days in

lucerne and three in dam. Why Lucerne? The mts! Also went to Bern for a day. Had time to spend 5 hrs in Basel and was very glad about my decision to go to Lucerne.

Enjoyed 'Dam but no comparison to Switzerland. Completely different but great museums.

If time and $ allow do both.

This October I went on my second cruise -- a four day sail on The Aria with Aqua Expeditions. It was one of the best travel experiences of my life! I loved exploring the Amazon and doing so in such fantastic surroundings. I write a detailed report with photos on my blog:

 

http://www.alexinwanderland.com/2013/10/28/the-aria-amazon-review/

 

http://www.alexinwanderland.com/2013/10/31/aqua-expeditions-amazon-review/

 

Hope that is helpful to anyone considering an Amazon cruise!

Fantastic photos. Making me more excited for May to get here! Although our boat will not be as luxurious. All the best on your next adventures.

Cruzsnooze

Thank you for all the great tips. Will definitely stock up on bug spray.

Did you get yellow fever shot before going?

Cruzsnoose- I am doing this trip in May. Do they have a hairdryer in the rooms? Did they offer to do laundry?

Sankt Peter was a very small village with a church. We could not go into the church because it was Sunday and mass was being said. Nothing else to do there. The drive through the Black Forest was interesting. I took the guided walk into the hills at the cuckoo shop/cake place and it was far more enjoyable than the shops even in the rain. There is a small chapel in the woods that would also be an alternative to cake.

I just wore a pair off merrells. Keep in mind in oct to was still about 15 celcius.

my jacket was waterproof bur not winter lined. Had a few wool sweater but not really heavy.

I di Basel to Dam. I recommend doing your own research online before you leave home todecide what you want to do in Strasbourg/Cologne especially since you are there most of the day.While you do a walking tour through petit france onroute to the Cathedral, you may want to go back or take the 1 hr canal tour. Some museums close mon, others tues-catering to tourists. I really enjoyed the pub crawl in Colonge at night but you can easily do it yourself.

Dress in layers. Bring gloves/scarf for adventuring out at night or for mts in Lucerne. Bring a small umbrella that fits into handbag. Viking has large ones at gangway but it may not be raining when you start out.We had rain in Black forest, cologne and dam, although only for a few hrs.

Buy some wine in the ports-wine at dinner was mediocre at best. So we started buying it.

Don't worry about dressy clothes for dinner-everything including captains dinner very casual. I found food good but not exceptional and was disappointed in lack of local fare at dinner especially comparex to what friends had on another viking ship.

If you have enough time in Dam to go to AFH or Van gogh, book on line before you leave.

I did the optional tour to Colmar on a Sunday (just 2 wks ago) and was very disappointed that the guide did not take us to the Petit Venice area. Stores open included the customary souvenirs, some bakeries, some chocolate, a few cheese/wine stores if you are interested in buying wine for the ship. There is a very interesting church in Breisach that those who stayed in town certainly enjoyed and the Yanks enjoyed the military trip.

I was hesitant about the BF tour but the countryside was spectacular ranging from rolling farm country to deep forest. When we go to the "tacky tourist shops" there was an optional walk up into the hills following a torrential stream (since it was raining) but the canopy of trees provided great protection. There is also another walk that takes you to a quaint church but we were not given that option and guide did not seem interested in even telling us how to find it.

Cuckoo clock store and glass blowing did seem to interest some people.

Dinner on board but found it odd that the chef on the Forseti did not even have black forest cake on the menu that night. But then again the desserts were not a highlight of the trip.

JUst returned from our Basel to Dam onboard Forseti. Unfortunatley we did Colmar on a Sunday and most stores were closed except fora few bakeries, sweets shops, Guide did not take us to Petit Venice, saying itwould take too long but many did walk there.Those who did WW2 trip really enjoyed it, Time 2to6

Marksburg 1030 to1(arrival by bus) in Koblenz.Marksburg not suitable for those with walking difficulties.

Did Kinderdijk in pouring rain. Fortunate that we were only ship there. Only 1 mill open and people got very wet waiting in rain.2 groups did museum first,2 dike area. Tacky tourist shop. Alsonot alot to do in town but picture taking and cafe.

Did not dooptional wine tour in Strasbourg-those who did very disappointed. We choose to stsy in Strabourg rather than going back to ship for lunch. Did same in Koln. Local fare much better than Americanized food on board.

People who worry about if, ands or but should really not travel. Acts of nature and violence can happen anytime and anywhere in the world. Travelers should be the adventurous type, yes? I am still hoping to get to Baghdad before I die!

I just asked this on the "cruise air" site, but thought I'd try here as well, as it may have already come up with some of you, or you might already have an answer----

 

I would like some advice please on customs check and security check at Schiphol. We are arriving at 0730 on KLM from Basel (A Schengen country airport) , and must transfer to another gate to catch another KLM at 0900 on to San Francisco. We plan to check all our luggage straight thru from Basel to SFO, and only carry a couple of very small bags onto the plane. Will we have to clear customs and/or other security, and if so, how far apart are they and ballpark how long will it take? Have heard mornings can be quite crowded at Schiphol. Thanks for any assistance here.

Since NL and Switzerland are both Schengen countries, my understanding is that you will just walk from one gate to the next. No immigration control other than showing passport at boarding gate. Make sure you get both your boarding passes in Basel.

Trip advisor air travel forum has much more threads than the cruise air.

tulok ~ t I'm going to look into the possiility and check if the cog train and gondola run in the winter. Maybe save info just in case. We're just there 2 days and I'm sure time adjustment and the Christmas Markets will keep us busy!!

Gondola runs but not cog train , in winter

Thanks for the insight...... never can have too much information. I will also check out TripAdvisor specific to Amsterdam. I have been on Trip Advisor, but don't recall looking at Amsterdam info... duh :(

 

If you wouldn't mind....may I ask you what the guide book was called? I have seen some of Rick Steves books, but I just don't want to pay a lot for just a 3 day visit.

 

Thanks once again....and if you have any other suggestions, feel free to pass them along ;)

Mine is called Frommer's Amsterdam Day by Day. You can go to Frommers website and they have some of the walking guides (for free) on their site. Another source of used books is Amazon.com They have lots of used travel books. I usually go to the library and go through all the available guides and then decide which to buy.

Not sure if you know this but tickets for Anne Frank House can be purchased online (you need to specify a date and time) but this allows you to by-pass a queue that is sometimes 1 to 2 hrs long.

 

Any suggestions on how to get around?, or of any other sights to see while there would be greatly received. I can walk fairly well, however I do have to be careful and not overdo it with my 2 replaced knees. (hate getting old - :))!

 

Thanks for your posting information.

I am going to Amsterdam in Oct and have done alot of reading. Walking, Canal boats and trams seem to be the best way to get around. There is a great canal boat that is hop-on, hop-off with many stops near the main sights like AFH.

Another great resource is the Amsterdam forum on Trip Advisor. There you will find a ton of info.

I also bought a guide book that has 3 or 4 neighbour walks mapped out of the main tourist areas. Small enough to carry in a purse with a great maps, restaurants listed etc.

Eurorail is not the main provider of train transport in Switzerland. Go to http://www.sbb.ch.

The destination on Trip advisor do not recommend buying tickets before you get to Switz. It is simply not necesssary. There is at least one train per hr from zurich to Basel,

There is a train station right at the Zurich airport. Check to see if there is a non-stop to Basel or if there isn't you catch the train from the airport to downtown Zur and change there.

The website takes a little getting used to. (if you were to buy ahead of time it only lets you do it 30 days prior)