Morocco and Canary Islands booked for next month all advice is helpful thanks

[fvandewouwer]

Hi,

 

we are from Belgium and love to walk and being in the nature

we are doing our first Canary Island Cruise with NCl next month

 

although there is a roll call there is no one on it :rolleyes: so I hope to get some information here.

stops are Casablanca ( we would do the ships tour, for safety reasons / or walk on our own to the mosque not sure yet as I have seen so many mixed reviews about safety )

Las Palmas, Gran Canaria ( decided to walk to Vegueta and walk or bus back )

Santa Cruz Tenerife : not sure yet, hope to find a local tour rep who can bring us to El Teide and back or is there enough to see/ walking from the ship ??

Funchal Portugal : hoho bus seems not that bad to see a little bit from the area ??

Malaga Spain : have been there a very long time ago, can't really remember should I stay or go to Granada

Alicante Spain : seems to be a lovely port is thisone walkable ?

we love to walk all day long so distance is not a problem but we do hope that if this is just "another" town we would love to see the area by jeep /4x4

we are not really interested in shopping ( but I would never skip a nice shop ) and we are not looking for a nice restaurant and a local drink just love to see the area

all your ideas are more then welcome

thanks for your time

br from Belgium

[ColinIllinois]

Check out the Ports of Call forum. Lots of information that should be helpful for you to plan your cruise. Here is the link:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=5

[notes21]

I just got off that cruise today & did a live review. The thing I noticed about all of the ports is that they were a long walk to the city center. Two of the ports had shuttle buses but the rest didn't. I know one was Alicante but not sure of the other as we didn't use them. It is a wonderful cruise! You'll really enjoy it.

[Da-Painter]

On the Canary Islands we used the ships tours, also to Morocco.

Yes, they are more expensive, but there is a lot to see that is quite fascinating. Time is limited, not really a 'hop off the ship' and walk cruise.

 

Spending all the money to get there, the cruise cost, don't skimp on the shore excursions. Take the excursions which encompass the most sites, there are things on the C.I. which you will not see anyplace else.

Good luck.:)

[12kadet]

Was i Casablanca last year. It was a total nightmare. We never use the ship tours but if we ever come back to Casablanca we would do that or stay at the ship...

 

 

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[12kadet]

Funchal was a positive surprice. The town is very charming and the cable car is a must.

 

 

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[CruiseMGM]

Hi,

 

we are from Belgium and love to walk and being in the nature

we are doing our first Canary Island Cruise with NCl next month

 

although there is a roll call there is no one on it :rolleyes: so I hope to get some information here.

stops are Casablanca ( we would do the ships tour, for safety reasons / or walk on our own to the mosque not sure yet as I have seen so many mixed reviews about safety )

<snip>

all your ideas are more then welcome

thanks for your time

br from Belgium

 

Hi br from Belgium!

 

I don't know if this will be much help to you or not, but we visited Morocco on a land-based trip in November, and we LOVED the country. We were on an escorted tour with Gate1Travel, as I didn't really feel comfortable going it on-our-own, and we honestly saw more and did more than we ever expected. We had only one night in Casablanca, at the end of our trip, and it seemed to me to be a very cosmopolitan city. The Hassan II Mosque was absolutely gorgeous but we didn't go inside it, just viewed it from the amazing square. We also visited the Notre Dame des Lourdes cathedral (very modern outside, tons and tons of stained glass inside), the palace (outside visit only) and had our farewell dinner along the Corniche. We did not make it into the Medina (I think we might have been Medina'd out after 12 days of travel). The ship tour will likely give you a good overview of the city, and you'll see more than if you were walking alone. I know that I wouldn't have been comfortable outside of a group when we started our travels, but by the last day of our tour, I felt like we could have gone on-our-own in some of the cities. We absolutely loved the country and all that we saw. If you ever have the chance to spend a little more time there, I'd highly recommend it.

 

Drop me a line at mgm530 "at" aol 'dot' com if you'd like to ask any additional questions about Morocco or Casablanca, or to see a few pictures, LOL! I'll do my best to answer any questions you have.

 

Hoping you have an absolutely wonderful cruise, enjoy!!

[fvandewouwer]

WoW so many answers Thank you all so much I will check all of your ideas starting with reading notes 21 live reviews

Good night from Belgium

 

 

 

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[fvandewouwer]

On the Canary Islands we used the ships tours, also to Morocco.

Yes, they are more expensive, but there is a lot to see that is quite fascinating. Time is limited, not really a 'hop off the ship' and walk cruise.

 

Spending all the money to get there, the cruise cost, don't skimp on the shore excursions. Take the excursions which encompass the most sites, there are things on the C.I. which you will not see anyplace else.

Good luck.:)

We do not mind to pay for a tour but we really like to be independent ...that is why we mostly never attend ship's tours tooo busy for us We also love to go Off the beaten trails ...

 

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[fvandewouwer]

I just got off that cruise today & did a live review. The thing I noticed about all of the ports is that they were a long walk to the city center. Two of the ports had shuttle buses but the rest didn't. I know one was Alicante but not sure of the other as we didn't use them. It is a wonderful cruise! You'll really enjoy it.

Started to read your reviews seem yiu had a wonderful cruise

 

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[fvandewouwer]

Hi br from Belgium!

 

I don't know if this will be much help to you or not, but we visited Morocco on a land-based trip in November, and we LOVED the country. We were on an escorted tour with Gate1Travel, as I didn't really feel comfortable going it on-our-own, and we honestly saw more and did more than we ever expected. We had only one night in Casablanca, at the end of our trip, and it seemed to me to be a very cosmopolitan city. The Hassan II Mosque was absolutely gorgeous but we didn't go inside it, just viewed it from the amazing square. We also visited the Notre Dame des Lourdes cathedral (very modern outside, tons and tons of stained glass inside), the palace (outside visit only) and had our farewell dinner along the Corniche. We did not make it into the Medina (I think we might have been Medina'd out after 12 days of travel). The ship tour will likely give you a good overview of the city, and you'll see more than if you were walking alone. I know that I wouldn't have been comfortable outside of a group when we started our travels, but by the last day of our tour, I felt like we could have gone on-our-own in some of the cities. We absolutely loved the country and all that we saw. If you ever have the chance to spend a little more time there, I'd highly recommend it.

 

Drop me a line at mgm530 "at" aol 'dot' com if you'd like to ask any additional questions about Morocco or Casablanca, or to see a few pictures, LOL! I'll do my best to answer any questions you have.

 

Hoping you have an absolutely wonderful cruise, enjoy!!

Thanks i might do that, I know Marocco is a beautiful country we have our reasons why Morocco and Tunesië are 2 places who were never on our Travel -bucket -list nothing to do with religion or culture as we have visited Dubai and Oman and many more Islamic countries (on our own ) ...

 

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[LondonTowner]

I think most of your itinerary is fine. In Las Palmas Vegueta is very nice with lots of Canadian colonial style houses and lovely interior patios. On your way there you may wish to stop in the Parque Doramas (Catalina Hotel) and on certain days they have displays of Canarian dancing. There is also a museum dedicated to Nestor de la Torre, a local artist.

 

You may also enjoy a stroll along the Canteras Beach with has a long promenade and is considered one of the best urban beaches in Europe.

 

In Santa Cruz why not hire a car from CICAR, very reliable, good prices and have an office in the port. You could then drive yourself to Teide, but I think you would like Masca. Places like Garachico, La Laguna, Tacoronte, La Orotava, Puerto de la Cruz, Icod de Los Vinos etc would all be accessible.

 

In Funchal there are two HOHO buses and the ship's dock near them.

 

In Malaga I would stay in Malaga itself as there is lots to see and do. Although I love Granada and have visited quite a few times.

 

It's a while since I was last in Alicante, so can't help there.

 

I have never been to Casablanca, so maybe somebody else can give you suggestions.

[SquishTheWhale]

In Las Palmas you can walk to a lovely beach, which then has a paved walkway several miles long stretching along the beach. It's a lovely walk with lots of places to stop for a drink or something to eat.

 

In Funchal I'd suggest walking along the sea front until you reach the cable car, and taking that up to Monte. From there you can visit the tropical gardens, take a toboggan ride or just take the cable car back down if you want. Once back in Funchal, there is lots to see just walking around, but we did a circuit on the HOHO bus. It took around 90 minutes and was a nice way to see a little more of the island.

 

Malaga is lovely- don't miss it! You can just wander here and lose yourself in the maze of streets. Try and find the cathedral and the main shopping street, and visit one of the many tapas bars. There is also a castle, which we didn't have time for but looked interesting. The port area here is lovely and well developed, and also you can visit the beach easily which makes for a nice walk.

 

In Tenerife we took an excursion to Loro Parque. I don't think there is much in the port area so you'll probably want an excursion here. Not sure if you'd have time for mount teide, I'd book through NCL to be safe with returning on time.

 

If you want some more information and pictures I have a link in my signature to my review of this itinerary on the Epic- there is lots of photos from the ports. Hope that helps!

[4774Papa]

We did this cruise on the Jade in 2011.

It was a great cruise.

 

Here is my review:

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=80907

 

For Malaga, I strongly recommend going to Granada to see the Alhambra. It is a special place.

We took a ship's excursion in Casablanca to Rabat, it was excellent.

Too bad you don't go to Agadir, Morocco that was really nice.

 

For Funchal recommend taking tour into the island that goes up a mountain, very scenic.

[Da-Painter]

For Malaga, I strongly recommend going to Granada to see the Alhambra. It is a special place.

 

If you go to the Alhambra, do not use the cruise ships shore excursion, absolutely terrible, too expensive. Its all day, little time to see the Alhambra, but wasted on everything else.

How you do it, rent a car and drive there yourself?, or maybe someone else has a better way to see it? It is worth seeing. :)

[CruiseLovininIL]

Was i Casablanca last year. It was a total nightmare. We never use the ship tours but if we ever come back to Casablanca we would do that or stay at the ship...

 

 

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We are doing this cruise in 2 weeks. We are planning on just looking around Casablanca on our own. Or at least we were. Now not so sure. Can you tell more detail about your experience there? Thanks so much

 

 

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[12kadet]

We are doing this cruise in 2 weeks. We are planning on just looking around Casablanca on our own. Or at least we were. Now not so sure. Can you tell more detail about your experience there? Thanks so much

 

 

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No problem...

The port is a very uncharming industrial port. It had rained during the Night so we had to walk through a lot of mud for about 1 km to get out of the port. Outside the port we were approached by about 50 very aggressive taxi drivers. I had researched that a taxi to the mosque would be about 5 USD but they wanted at least 20. When someone finally agreed to taking us the poor taxi driver now had the rest of the taxidrivers following us and screaming at him. Our kids got really scared.

 

The mosque was very beautifull but the line to get in was very long so we went on. Again starting to bargain for a taxi to take us to the market. We agreed on a price but when we came to the market the price was more than twice as much. From the market we walked to the old medina which was ok but nothing special. Here the shop owners was very eager to sell but you had to bargain for ages to get a fair price. I was offered a pair of fake Calvin Clein boxers in poor quality for 30USD :-)

 

Safely out of the medina i took my iPhone out to find our location and was approached by a guy simulation to have a gun and wanted to steel it.

 

Normally we love new cultures but at this time we had enough and hurried back to the ship.

 

 

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[SquishTheWhale]

I'm afraid the above is very similar to my experience of Morocco. We went there as a land based trip years ago, just me and my sister. The hotel and area was nice enough, but we ended up hiding in the hotel most of the time because of the treatment two women alone recieve in Morocco. We would be followed everywhere by groups of men, shouted at and grabbed. As well as that, small children would try and pick pocket us while their mothers begged, and you didn't dare enter any shops. We took a trip to the souk (market) and were actually scared. The sellers are so aggressive, if you tried to leave their stall they would chase you through the market shouting at you. In one shop they wrapped my sister up in a traditional dress and wouldn't let her leave as she couldn't get it off. The only way to enjoy the beach was to pay for a roped off private beach, as you were hassled so much by aggressive men on the public beach- both trying to sell you things and making lewd comments about you wearing swimwear. I would never visit again- and this was before the added threat of terrorism.

 

Our cruise was scheduled to stop in Tangier and we didn't fancy any of the excursions so were going to stay on the ship. In the end we missed the port anyway due to high winds. If you want to take an excursion in a Moroccan port then fine- do an ncl one. I wouldn't wander on my own or rely on a locally provided excursion!

[hawkeyetlse]

Last time we stopped in Casa with NCL there was a free shuttle from the ship into town. But it was mostly to get you out of the port, which is very large and unpleasant. The shuttle dropped us off at Place des Nations Unies, which is not anywhere near the mosque or any other interesting sites for tourists. There were banks there, so we withdrew some dirhams for the day and walked back towards the port to catch a train to Rabat.

 

There may be buses from the shuttle bus drop-off point to the mosque, otherwise you should probably take a taxi because it's a long walk. Check the website for the mosque to make sure they are even letting people visit that day (but you can still take nice photos from the outside if it's closed).

 

All of the other ports on this itinerary (not sure about Alicante), you can easily walk into town. In Las Palmas, Vegueta is a long walk from the ship, but there are lots of buses going that way. As for Malaga and Tenerife, it depends on your port times, but if you have enough time, heading to the Alhambra and Teide is much more worthwhile in my opinion than just staying in town. You can ask if anyone on the roll call is setting up private tours, but in cases like this where the destination is a couple of hours away from the port, a cruise ship excursion is justifiable.

[4774Papa]

For Malaga, I strongly recommend going to Granada to see the Alhambra. It is a special place.

 

If you go to the Alhambra, do not use the cruise ships shore excursion, absolutely terrible, too expensive. Its all day, little time to see the Alhambra, but wasted on everything else.

How you do it, rent a car and drive there yourself?, or maybe someone else has a better way to see it? It is worth seeing. :)

 

We took the ship's excursion to the Alhambra and had plenty o time at the Alhambra.

[fvandewouwer]

thank you : renting a car was my first idea for Santa Cruz but we are only in port from 8 till 4 so we'll have from 9 till 3 = 6 hours seem so little to drive around the island and hiring a car is always tricky (we have friends who's car went broken and they missed the ship :eek: )

all other ports seem to be walkable from the ship ( or local transportation /hoho bus )

We will cruise again this year(TA) and have another stop in Malaga maybe we"ll need to go to Granada on that stop

have a wonderful weekend

 

 

 

I think most of your itinerary is fine. In Las Palmas Vegueta is very nice with lots of Canadian colonial style houses and lovely interior patios. On your way there you may wish to stop in the Parque Doramas (Catalina Hotel) and on certain days they have displays of Canarian dancing. There is also a museum dedicated to Nestor de la Torre, a local artist.

 

You may also enjoy a stroll along the Canteras Beach with has a long promenade and is considered one of the best urban beaches in Europe.

 

In Santa Cruz why not hire a car from CICAR, very reliable, good prices and have an office in the port. You could then drive yourself to Teide, but I think you would like Masca. Places like Garachico, La Laguna, Tacoronte, La Orotava, Puerto de la Cruz, Icod de Los Vinos etc would all be accessible.

 

In Funchal there are two HOHO buses and the ship's dock near them.

 

In Malaga I would stay in Malaga itself as there is lots to see and do. Although I love Granada and have visited quite a few times.

 

It's a while since I was last in Alicante, so can't help there.

 

I have never been to Casablanca, so maybe somebody else can give you suggestions.

[fvandewouwer]

if you are cruising in 2 weeks I hope you can tell me more as we cruise in 5 weeks :)

we would appreciate it a lot !

thank you

 

We are doing this cruise in 2 weeks. We are planning on just looking around Casablanca on our own. Or at least we were. Now not so sure. Can you tell more detail about your experience there? Thanks so much

 

 

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[hawkeyetlse]

A big part of the Alhambra visit is the Generalife gardens, so if you have a choice, it's much better to go at a warmer and sunnier time of year.

[fvandewouwer]

I'd loved reading your review and it came handy planning our Canary Island cruise Hope you'll have many more wonderful cruises.

 

In Las Palmas you can walk to a lovely beach, which then has a paved walkway several miles long stretching along the beach. It's a lovely walk with lots of places to stop for a drink or something to eat.

 

In Funchal I'd suggest walking along the sea front until you reach the cable car, and taking that up to Monte. From there you can visit the tropical gardens, take a toboggan ride or just take the cable car back down if you want. Once back in Funchal, there is lots to see just walking around, but we did a circuit on the HOHO bus. It took around 90 minutes and was a nice way to see a little more of the island.

 

Malaga is lovely- don't miss it! You can just wander here and lose yourself in the maze of streets. Try and find the cathedral and the main shopping street, and visit one of the many tapas bars. There is also a castle, which we didn't have time for but looked interesting. The port area here is lovely and well developed, and also you can visit the beach easily which makes for a nice walk.

 

In Tenerife we took an excursion to Loro Parque. I don't think there is much in the port area so you'll probably want an excursion here. Not sure if you'd have time for mount teide, I'd book through NCL to be safe with returning on time.

 

If you want some more information and pictures I have a link in my signature to my review of this itinerary on the Epic- there is lots of photos from the ports. Hope that helps!

[fvandewouwer]

ok convinced we will take the ship's excursion

thanks

 

 

I'm afraid the above is very similar to my experience of Morocco. We went there as a land based trip years ago, just me and my sister. The hotel and area was nice enough, but we ended up hiding in the hotel most of the time because of the treatment two women alone recieve in Morocco. We would be followed everywhere by groups of men, shouted at and grabbed. As well as that, small children would try and pick pocket us while their mothers begged, and you didn't dare enter any shops. We took a trip to the souk (market) and were actually scared. The sellers are so aggressive, if you tried to leave their stall they would chase you through the market shouting at you. In one shop they wrapped my sister up in a traditional dress and wouldn't let her leave as she couldn't get it off. The only way to enjoy the beach was to pay for a roped off private beach, as you were hassled so much by aggressive men on the public beach- both trying to sell you things and making lewd comments about you wearing swimwear. I would never visit again- and this was before the added threat of terrorism.

 

Our cruise was scheduled to stop in Tangier and we didn't fancy any of the excursions so were going to stay on the ship. In the end we missed the port anyway due to high winds. If you want to take an excursion in a Moroccan port then fine- do an ncl one. I wouldn't wander on my own or rely on a locally provided excursion!