Perhaps a silly question....but (Rome)

[BNguy]

We are doing the 24 day cruise leaving Venice on the 3rd of October. One of our ports is Civitavecchia (the port for Rome) and our next stop after that is Livorno (the port for Pisa and Florence). Let's just say for arguements sake one wanted to spend more time in Rome, so we'd stay overnight in Rome and then take the train to Florence the next morning and finally back to Livorno that evening and rejoin the ship. Is that allowed or is that a BIG no-no. Come on friends of cruise critic, I'd like a RESPONSIBLE answer, not one of those oh...oh....I can answer, but I really don't know what I'm talking about.

 

Thanks for listening and awaiting a TRUE answer.

[Orlandocruiser]

This isn't a direct answer to your question but a word of caution. On our recent Adriatic cruise followed by the TA ( on Celebrity in Nov. And Dec.) we had a change in our itinerary close to our sailing date switching our stops in Ravenna and Venice so that we were in Venice a day earlier and what would have been our first day in Venice was now our second day. Well someone on our cruise had purchased opera tickets for what was originally the first day but now became the second day. Since we left Venice in the late afternoon they decided to stay for the opera and take the train to our next stop, Ravenna. As you might guess a storm brewed up overnight we were unable to stop in Ravenna. Our next stop was Sicily! We never found out if they met up with the cruise in Naples or gave up and met the ship in Civitavecchia. When we got to Civitavecchia there was another bad storm and we were unable to leave as scheduled, thus missing our next port, Livorno. (The wind was so bad we had a tug keeping us to the pier and the side thrusters ran all night.)

 

So I guess my point is that you never know what might happen if you go off on your own and you need to ask yourself if you could recover your cruise if something like the above happened.

[jtl513]

Yes it can be done.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1382498

Edited January 25, 2014 by jtl513

[E-500]

Straight answer is yes, you can do as you suggest. You will need to advise HAL in advance, both Seattle and then the front desk of your plans. Since in your example all your actions take place in Italy no special arrangements needed with the Italian authorities.

 

Orlandocruiser makes a great point however. Last year on a HAL ship we were supposed to go to Livorno from Rome and then on to Barcelona for the T/A part of the trip. A storm prevented us from going to Livorno and we went to Sardinia instead. Expensive train/plane ticket to Barcelona from Florence. Barcelona was not an overnight stop. So if you messed up your timing you missed sailing the T/A to Florida. Another expensive one-way airplane ticket.

Edited January 25, 2014 by E-500

[Cruzin Terri]

Make sure you remember to take your passport with you. Just in case!

Terri

[localady]

I was also on the Nieuw Amsterdam when it missed Livorno because of a storm. The Capt. explained that the port of Livorno is a very difficult port to navigate in and out of in stormy conditions. He indicated that missing this port in the Fall was not all that uncommon.

 

I too would be careful about checking on the weather before debarking Rome, but it could be a lovely overnight adventure. Of course, notice needs to be given to the ship of your intended overnight itinerary.

[BNguy]

Thanks for all your thoughtful replies, we will be talking to our TA before we do anything. I appreciate your responses.

[kandagal1939]

Once, while on a cruise around the Indian Ocean, 8 (passengers) including DH & myself left the ship in Port Elizabeth & reboarded the ship after 2 nights ashore in Capetown.

[Loreto]

You can take a Eurostar train direct to Livorno from Rome. We did this when our international flight was cancelled and the Noordam sailed without us. The train was a beautiful experience, and first class was cheap. You will have to keep your luggage with you, so travel light!

 

Karen

[cruisemom42]

You should be able to do it. Some lines require you to give advance notice of your plans, I don't know what HAL's procedure is but someone else probably does.

 

Your ship goes from Civitavecchia to Livorno to Monte Carlo (a relatively short hop) so even if something goes very wrong, you should be able to catch up with the ship. Just have a "Plan B" in your back pocket. And as someone else said, be sure to have your passports. (You will need them anyway to check into a hotel in Rome.)