Jump to content

kimlovesfl

Members
  • Posts

    639
  • Joined

About Me

  • Location
    Orlando
  • Interests
    theater, theme parks, travel
  • Favorite Cruise Line(s)
    Celebrity and Princess
  • Favorite Cruise Destination Or Port of Call
    Mediterranean

Recent Profile Visitors

The recent visitors block is disabled and is not being shown to other users.

kimlovesfl's Achievements

Cool Cruiser

Cool Cruiser (2/15)

  1. We sailed out of Ravenna last year, on Brilliance of the Seas (I know, a Royal ship). We LOVED Ravenna. We had wanted to spend some time in Rome, so we flew in and out of Rome, spent 2 nights prior to the cruise, and 1 night after, and a night in Ravenna before the cruise left. We took the train from Termini to Ravenna, and walked from the train to our hotel. The hotel, the Casa Masoli, recommended a transfer company, and he picked us up early (!) and got us to the port with no problems at all. We booked the cruise line transfer back to the train station, and that was a mess and I won't do it again. Do your research on the location of this "new" port, and spend a night or 2 there. It is a delightful town. The port feels slapped together though.
  2. Our TA booked us a Hertz car, pick up at LAX, and drop off about 10 minutes from the port. We can Uber or something if needed. Our last night, we are at a Fairfield Inn in El Segunda, and it has a free airport shuttle. Not fancy, and that's fine, looks close to some restaurants. We'll figure something out. I booked the Comfort Suites North Hollywood for pre-cruise. As I think I noted before, we work for Universal in Orlando, and can go to Universal Hollywood for free. Also plan to visit the movie museum. We will have a car and can drive where needed. Thanks for the suggestions.
  3. How far from the port are these cities?
  4. Thanks for the info. For as much as Uber costs, it will be cheaper to rent a car. I might just book us before and after cruise at the Doubletree. They have a car rental drop off there. I guess it's kind of like coming to Orlando; it isn't easy to get around without a car.
  5. It doesn't appear as though we have a discount, although I suppose I could call and find out. The Sheraton is over $300/night, and the Hilton is is $273. I was looking at the Embassy Suites in Glendale is $205/night, includes breakfast and a manager's reception in the evening. I'm thinking of that hotel for our 2 nights pre-cruise, and the Doubletree in San Pedro for after our cruise, since that hotel has free port shuttle. I still have some time to plan, but I like to get my stuff booked ASAP.
  6. Oh, I do have questions. We are sailing from the San Pedro port on Discovery Princess, January 6, 2024. We are looking to stay 2 nights prior to cruise, and 1 night after. We have been to LA before, and don't care to rent a car; however, we do want to visit Universal Studios Hollywood (we work at the one here in Orlando, and can get in for free), and perhaps visit the AMPAS museum. We have no idea where we should stay, how to get around and how much it will cost. The greater LA area is so spread out, and we have no idea if there is public transportation. The one other time we were there, we rented a car, and stayed downtown LA, for a convention there.
  7. Our tour took us right down to the tender area, where we began our tour.
  8. We were there Oct 5. 5 or 6 ships were in port, and captain told us there were 13,000 passengers. The captain AND the cruise director both warned us how crowded it would be. We took a shore excursion that visited a winery, Oia, and Fira. You had the choice of taking the bus back down to tender area, or go on your own with the cable car or walking path. Especially in Oia, it was wall to wall people; so many that leaving a shop or restaurant and getting back into the flow of people was like crossing a busy highway at rush hour. Fira was a bit better because the pathways are wider, but not much. It's a beautiful place, but the crowds made it not so enjoyable. Other passengers told us the wait for a cable car was over an hour. 45 minute walk down the donkey path. We chose to stay with our bus. So, be prepared for more people than you can imagine if there are several ships in port.
  9. We were on a Royal Caribbean shore excursion that took us to Oia and Fira. We did NOT have to take the cable car down. Our bus went right down to where we picked up the tender, on that long, winding, road with the hairpin turns. You had the choice of taking the cable car on your own. We were there almost 2 weeks ago, and 5 or 6 ships were in port (about 13,000 passengers). Several people we talked to said the line for the cable car was over an hour, and that the hike down the donkey path took 45 minutes. The towns were extremely busy that day. I am very glad we took an excursion.
  10. We are flying from Orlando to Rome on Wednesday, picking up Brilliance in Ravenna on Oct 2. I changed our flight into IAD from afternoon, with short connection, to a morning flight, with over 5 hours connection, just to be safe. If we get hit, we'll get hit while we are on vacation. Our "daughter" lives with us, and I'm not too concerned. The last time we sailed the Mediterranean, in Sept 2017, we flew to Barcelona the day the airport opened after Irma. I guess me and the Med bring hurricanes. We have had land vacations affected by hurricanes as well, and yet we still plan travel at this time. It's much less expensive, the weather is typically still warm no matter where you go, and there are fewer tourists around.
  11. I would say, give it a try! I don't know if Princess still does this, but they used to do theme nights in the buffet- German, Brazilian, etc. We always loved German night. Great food. If you enjoy eating in the buffet, then go ahead and do it! There are always lots of options for food. When we cruise, we usually do breakfast and lunch (when not in port), in the buffet, and dinner in MDR, although we will eat dinner in the buffet from time to time. Princess has some great deals and lovely ships and excellent service. We have never sailed MSC or Carnival; I don't know if it would be a good fit for us, but if the price or itinerary is right, I would certainly give it a try.
  12. One of the reasons I chose Celebrity as our first cruise, was that it did NOT cater to kids. We travel off season for the lower prices; I have never seen more than about 2 dozen kids on our cruises, and it has usually been less than 10. They have all been well behaved. I don't think going adults only would be a good move for them. If I truly wanted an adults only cruise, there are a couple options. A Disney cruise? Now that would drive me crazy, and they are far too expensive.
  13. We have only cruised on Celebrity (5 cruises) and Princess (4) until our first RCCL this October. I have found the officers to be MUCH more visible and personable on Celebrity. Our last Princess cruise was on the Coral in Alaska, May 2019. On our day in Ketchikan, passengers from the Royal were in a midair float plane collision, and several were killed. The captain made the announcement before we left port, and we never heard from him again. We had 2 days left in our cruise. We love both lines, although we do prefer Celebrity. We are booked on the Beyond in January, and I really want to do Mexican Riviera on Princess in January 2024.
  14. And still, if you can afford a cruise of that length, you can afford the cost of gratuities. I look at it as the TOTAL cost of my vacation.
  15. I really do wish the US would go the way of Australia, and include gratuities in the cost of the fare, but we don't, and aren't likely to do so any time soon. That being what it is, if you can afford to cruise, surely you can afford the relatively small amount per day for the automatic gratuities, and if you wish, pay the room steward, etc, a little extra on top of that. So many people share those tips, some you may never have contact with. The crew members work so so hard to make our vacations wonderful. They deserve that extra money.
×
×
  • Create New...