23 Days, getting Nervous!

In 23 days we fly to Venice and then will board the Whisper 3 days after that. This is our first trip to Europe. We are getting nervous!

Please reassure me about getting around airports (fly from Detroit to Frankfort then on to Venice on the way there, Athens to Paris then Detroit on the way back), through immigration/customs, and all the other hassles of travel! I want to enjoy our cruise and our pre and post stays, but today DH and myself were both more anxious than excited!

We decided on 1 check bag each and small backpacks for carryons. Trying to limit hassles. We are hoping that we can drop luggage at the ship on embarkation day and enjoy a few more hours in Venice.....

We’ve cruise with Silversea before, but not on the Whisper. We both NEED this vacation after a rough few months and a difficult year personally, so I’m saddened that we both feel anxious rather than excited!

Any advice, tips, reassurance? All would be appreciated

No reassurance here as Frankfort and Paris CDG are the two most difficult to get around in airports in Europe IMO. I hope you have plenty of time between flights.

You will definitely get your steps in.

But once onboard it will all be worth the hassle.

No reassurance here as Frankfort and Paris CDG are the two most difficult to get around in airports in Europe IMO. I hope you have plenty of time between flights.

You will definitely get your steps in.

But once onboard it will all be worth the hassle.

Silversea booked our flights. We have 1 hour 40 minutes inbetween on the way there and a little longer on the way back. Mostly, I’m worried about the way there. Our SS agent has told us numerous times it is enough, but I am worried.

It might help if you looked at airport maps before you leave. It might help you to get a feel for what you will find on arrival.

Frankfurt.....https://www.frankfurt-airport.com/content/airport-site/en/infopool/download-center.html#endownloadcenter/tab=endownloadcenter_downloadsattheairport

Paris....both Charles de Gaulle and Orly....https://www.parisaeroport.fr/en/passengers/access

Safe Travels and have a wonderful cruise!

Know where you are going after getting off the plane then follow the overhead signs carefully. It is somewhat confusing but very doable. Also, have your passports easily accessible, there could be a passport control station in between gates.

Hi, I sailed Whisper last month out of Venice and had a fabulous time:D…….yes, you can go back into Venice after dropping your luggage on the ship. I chose to stay on board since I had 2 days pre-cruise in Venice.

I cannot help you with the Frankfort airport as I didn't have a Europe connection on my way over...…..I guess I am lucky? I flew Jax to Newark and then Newark directly on to Venice. I can tell you the Venice airport is quite small and easy to navigate.

As for being worried, nobody can tell you how to feel (or not feel) but we can make suggestions to try and help.

The worrying really won't change anything.....so I will say "try" not to worry. Getting worked up and panicked won't change the time. I would suggest to take a breath and try not to stress.

Hope you have a wonderful cruise:D

Hi CC99,

Firstly, your nerves are understandable but I suggest that you completely forget about your return trip. You will get back and you should just go with the flow. I'd share your nerves about the outward bound because the timings doesn't allow too much slack for unexpected delays. Whilst you are well within the normal Minimum Connect Times and conformance tines the issue with a delay is not so much you getting the connection yourselves but whether your luggage makes it. If it were simply a European holiday that might not be such a big problem for a day or so, but a cruise presents a whole set of new more complex potential problems.

I'm assuming you are on one of the couple direct flights eg Lufthansa/United or Delta? Hopefully Lufthansa/United. I assume also that you have a package rather than SS simply acting as a travel agent and booking your flights ie you have included ship transfers at Venice and Paris and your flight are all on one booking number as through flights. If so, then you will be with others and SS are more likely to wait for you. I think you could request SS book you a different earlier first leg but I think they might be resistant.

Just a couple of suggestions to minimise and mitigate.

Firstly, pack enough for one days complete change of clothing in your carry-ons and secondly split all of both yours and your partners packing equally between both cases is split his shirts and your underwear equally between two cases and do that with everything. That means that if both cases go awol you will have a day or so and if one case doesn't make it you can still boogy for even longer. We always do this and on a couple of times over the years one case or both have gone on an adventure and having an overnight and/or one case with enough for both of us meant that we weren't really inconvenienced. If you follow these last couple of tips you can at least know and have the greater reassurance that you have converted what might have been a bit of a catastrophe of losing all or some of your luggage for a while to just a relatively minor inconvenience.

Enjoy your trip.

Jeff, the clothing suggestion is spot on!:)..It is the one thing I do for EVERY cruise, no matter where it goes.

I pack at least 1 extra outfit (normally 2 ) in my carry on bag along with my toiletries, etc...….I got that from Dad many years ago and continue to pack that way. Those clothes/undergarments/toiletries are the "just in case"

whatever happens. It is nice knowing I have clean stuff if need be:)

We are staying 3 days in Venice before boarding. We booked hotels ourselves.

Not at all worried about getting home, mostly just getting there. We are

Planning on 2 days worth of clothes in our carryon.

We are staying 3 days in Venice before boarding. We booked hotels ourselves.

Not at all worried about getting home, mostly just getting there. We are

Planning on 2 days worth of clothes in our carryon.

Great plan:D…….

Following up on Jeff's post: I too think that luggage transfer could be an issue. A possible solution would be to ship your luggage ahead by a company like Luggage Forward. It's not cheap, but you can get a precise estimate on their webpage. If you go this route with them or another company, you need to move quickly so that they can send you labels, etc.

Following up on Jeff's post: I too think that luggage transfer could be an issue. A possible solution would be to ship your luggage ahead by a company like Luggage Forward. It's not cheap, but you can get a precise estimate on their webpage. If you go this route with them or another company, you need to move quickly so that they can send you labels, etc.

Not something we want to do. But thanks for the suggestion.

My wife and I sailed on the July cruise - Venice to Venice on the Whisper

We has a flight from JFK to FRA to VCE (Singapore and Lufthansa airlines) and had a little under two hours to connect at FRA

I was worried about the short connection time in FRA and decided to spend a little extra for the guide service with Lufthansa

The URL is:

https://www.lufthansa.com/us/en/Enjoy-more-convenient-transfers

We found the service to be well worth the money as the guide was waiting for us at the arrival gate, escorted us to immigration (the guide used her crew badge to take us past a very short line while the other lines were long) and then on to our Lufthansa gate. The entire process was seamless and worry-free. We arrived at the gate with around 45 mins to spare and even had a little time in the Lufthansa lounge.

In Venice, we stayed for two nights at the Gritti Palace and found the hotel to be outstanding!

drdcl - this sounds amazing! Do all airlines have a similar program? Do you mind telling us approx what it cost per person?

drdcl - this sounds amazing! Do all airlines have a similar program? Do you mind telling us approx what it cost per person?

American Airlines has a similar service for people traveling to/from certain airports in first or business class.

Details (including prices) here:

https://www.aa.com/i18n/plan-travel/extras/five-star-service.jsp

It's not cheap. But I used it recently to assist with the arrival at a very busy airport of an elderly person traveling alone. It worked flawlessly, was greatly reassuring to all concerned, and was worth every penny.

If you are concerned about the connection on the way over, check the flights that leave FRA later than the one on which you are scheduled. If you miss your connection you will have some idea of the alternatives. If your luggage misses the connection, you can hope it makes the later flight.

My wife and I sailed on the July cruise - Venice to Venice on the Whisper

 

We has a flight from JFK to FRA to VCE (Singapore and Lufthansa airlines) and had a little under two hours to connect at FRA

I was worried about the short connection time in FRA and decided to spend a little extra for the guide service with Lufthansa

The URL is:

 

https://www.lufthansa.com/us/en/Enjoy-more-convenient-transfers

 

We found the service to be well worth the money as the guide was waiting for us at the arrival gate, escorted us to immigration (the guide used her crew badge to take us past a very short line while the other lines were long) and then on to our Lufthansa gate. The entire process was seamless and worry-free. We arrived at the gate with around 45 mins to spare and even had a little time in the Lufthansa lounge.

 

In Venice, we stayed for two nights at the Gritti Palace and found the hotel to be outstanding!

Thank you so much for sharing this! We have decided this is worth the cost for on the way there. Thank you again!!

This might sound really obvious, but consider your shoes for the airport transfers. While slip-ons are great for going through security, you may want to make sure you have shoes that will get you from gate to gate at those big airports. My recent experience with my 80-yo mother showed the need for comfortable walking shoes for what turned out to be VERY long walks. We were in Rome and JFK (different airports than you, but I think equally large and challenging to navigate), and it felt like we were walking for miles. My mother was exhausted by the time we got to the gate with minutes to spare, but was grateful she had opted for function over cuteness. Happily, we made all of our connections.

Also, generally speaking, if you have a tight turnaround, they can put you in an expedited customs/immigration line. Our plane to Rome was quite delayed, so they expedited us so we could make our connecting flight to Catania. Just make sure you ask.

As others have said, once you are in your seat, or on the ship, the anxiety of getting there is so worth it!!!

Remember to breath, and enjoy,

drdcl - this sounds amazing! Do all airlines have a similar program? Do you mind telling us approx what it cost per person?

Etta-the guide service was around $85 for up to 5 people

Not sure if all airlines offer the service but I would imagine some of the larger international airports or airlines do.

Thank you so much for sharing this! We have decided this is worth the cost for on the way there. Thank you again!!

Great! Glad to help

In addition to the cruise, we spent some time in Positano, Italy and then England. Out of all the traveling (flights, trains, drivers) we were most worried about the FRA to VCE connection. The guide service really reduced our anxiety.

Being German who often travels via Frankfort airport I can reassure you that the Lufthansa extra service is a good idea regarding your limited layover time. Due to the growth of the airport changing terminals has become challenging especially for first timers. At the moment airport company has about 2.000 vacant jobs they do not find the people for. That definitely makes it even harder.

You definitely have to pass customs in Frankfort and to change terminals. It is a large airport but expect no difficulties with language or security.

Arriving in Venice should be much easier then. As you already entered EU and the Schengen area there will be no further customs or passport control. But language will be a much bigger issue in Italy than in Germany.

So good luck for your travel and your cruise on Whisper. We will follow about two weeks later for a cruise on Muse.

Frankfurt airport does offer a guide service to meet you at arrival and help you get to your next flight. I believe it’s around 60 euros. Frankfurt is a bit of a pain, but very doable if you have a relaxing few hours layover. The walks can be long. That being said, since it’s your first time there and you are nervous about a shorter layover, the guide would give you peace of mind. In the future, I find longer layovers in foreign airports to be helpful and gives you a chance to venture out on your own.....we are never afraid to ask questions or directions.....Go to the counter of any American carrier...they have agents who work the lines out on the floor and all speak English. Safe & Happy Travels.