“LIVE FROM” 2019 Oceania Insignia World Cruise, Jan. 11-July 11

[Paulchili]

3 hours ago, Damicom said:

I think you mean the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world.  It’s beautiful and worth seeing. When you buy the fast track tickets, not only do you bypass the very long lines, you go to a higher floor. You’re also served some treats.  I would suggest trying to do this just before sunset so you can watch the lights come on. It’s also an amazing place to watch the Dancing Fountains. The ticket is expensive but it’s a once in a lifetime event. Why waste an hour (or more)standing in line? The Dubai mall is pretty fabulous too. A great place for people watching.

I love Dubai. Have fun.

Totally agree - that is what we did and the line was very long. Glad we didn't have to stand in it.

[Paulchili]

3 hours ago, Damicom said:

Zhujiajiao    water town but now that we’re losing half a day there it leaves little time to see Shanghai.  Has anyone been to Zhujiajiao?  Does it warrant the tour? I believe there will still be some time in the morning or the evening to wander in Shanghai. 

Any opinions?

The water town is interesting and typical of several others in the area but will most likely be overrun like most other touristy places. Google the pictures from the town and see if it looks interesting enough. If you have never been to Shanghai before and your time is limited, I would concentrate on seeing Shanghai with its many attractions - especially the excellent museum (mentioned by Mura) and the interior of the old China Bank building on the Bund

Edited February 8, 2019 by Paulchili

[Paulchili]

1 hour ago, bob brown said:

I’ve never been to Dubai. My “mission” there, will be to visit the now retired RMS QE2, which I had the pleasure of sailing on her final “winter crossing”, in January of 2008.  She has been coverted into a hotel and conference center, sort of like the original RMS Queen Mary, in Long Beach, California.😎🛳

Bob - I understand your interest - in fact the only time we sailed on her was from Dubai to London.

That said, Dubai is pretty special and I would highly recommend at least a HOHO tour, especially if you like interesting modern architecture.

[cbb]

 decafnights,

We were just in Dubai with Nautica spring'18 and were told that the Burj Khalifa observation deck lines depend on how many ships are in port! 

 

we took the HOHO, the kiosk was set up right off the ship (like 50 steps away,) and it was charged to the room bill!  I'm really glad we took the HOHO as the route went several different places.  Sitting on the open top (with cover) really allowed us to see much of Dubai. 

Edited February 8, 2019 by cbb

[Go-Bucks!]

3 hours ago, Damicom said:

Yes. We got an email yesterday that due to the tides the itinerary for Shanghai will be arriving April 9 at 5pm. Departing, April 11 at 6AM.  

We arrive Hong Kong April 13 at noon. Depart Hong Kong April 14 at 6pm.

 

Tours for April 11 have been cancelled.

 

I wan on the Singapore to Rome segment is this cruise 2 years ago. My experience was that by the time the ATW cruisers get to Asia, they’re so relaxed and pampered than any changes or disruptions don’t bother them. It’s all good

 

Thank you...we were just concerned because we have a 4 day private overland tour of Beijing and Shanghai planned and needed to see if it would or would not be affected.  Luckily it will not be a problem.

[Senior Citizen]

You people are sooooo lucky you had good weather while visiting the Hawaiian Islands.  A warning has been posted for possible severe weather this weekend.  It includes monster waves on the North Shore and very strong winds.  Wonder if that weather will impact you since you must be quite south of the islands by now.  If it does, you’ll probably experience some wave action,

[ilsun]

Toscana's crew before the rush

[Go-Bucks!]

5 hours ago, Senior Citizen said:

you’ll probably experience some wave action

 

Today was warm and lovely...we went in the hot tub and laid out by the pool.  We've had some "ocean motion" since dinnertime and it's more pronounced now (about 11pm local time).  But it's not storming.

[decafnights]

21 hours ago, h2so4 said:

Like you, we’ve spent a lot of time in Rome ... most recently a week last year.  Look into a tour of the Quirinale Palace.  This is the presidential palace and can only be visited with an official tour ... pre-booked on the website.  The shorter tour is free (except for a nominal reservation fee), but the longer €10 tour takes in a lot more.  Quirinale Palace was a highlight of our time in Rome.

 

Another option ... is D’Arte Antica museum at Palazzo Bernini ... or even better, the Etruscan Museum at Villa Giulia.

 

Thanks you h2so4,  for these helpful suggestions. We haven't seen any of them and I will definitely check into these options.

[decafnights]

21 hours ago, grmmybtty said:

We stayed at the Rome Hilton Airport after leaving our ship about 2 years ago. We didn’t want to go into Rome because Trump was in town for the G10 (or something) and there were demonstrations. We took the local bus from the airport to the town of Fiumicimo. It’s a nice fishing village with some cute shops and restaurants. We walked around a bit, then had an early dinner before taking the bus back to the airport. No major sights to see, just a pleasant afternoon by the sea.

Thanks grmmybtty. This might be just what we need for a nice change.

[decafnights]

20 hours ago, Go-Bucks! said:

On 2/8/2019 at 8:27 AM, decafnights said:

We will be spending a few days in Dubai before boarding and we have most of our time planned. We would like to see the Burj Al Arab Hotel. There are tickets sold online for a reasonable price and other, more expensive "fast track/ avoid the line" tickets for more money. Does anyone have any experience with whether it makes sense to book this in advance , how long the line is, and whether the fast track ticket is the way to go.

 

This might not be accurate, but when I researched this place (to stop by when we'll be on the HOHO bus), it said that you had to either have a reservation for a meal in their restaurant or to stay in a room in order to be let inside. Their meal prices are outrageous so we just plan to see the outside. 

 

If there's another way to go inside I'd like to know. 

Hi Go-Bucks!,

I did find one tour on Viator called Cocktails at Burj Al Arab. It is at 7:30pm but you can arrive 30 minutes early. It allows you to go to the 27th floor and you get two complimentary cocktails. You can see the public areas of the hotel on your own. It is listed as a 2 hour tour and the price for one adult is $175.  The dress code for ladies is "elegant, no sports or beach wear".  I don't know if your time off the ship would allow for this.

Gail

 

[decafnights]

15 hours ago, Paulchili said:

I think you mean the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world.  It’s beautiful and worth seeing. When you buy the fast track tickets, not only do you bypass the very long lines, you go to a higher floor. You’re also served some treats.  I would suggest trying to do this just before sunset so you can watch the lights come on. It’s also an amazing place to watch the Dancing Fountains. The ticket is expensive but it’s a once in a lifetime event. Why waste an hour (or more)standing in line? The Dubai mall is pretty fabulous too. A great place for people watching. 

Thank you Paulchili and everyone else who responded to my question about the fast track being worth it.  You are absolutely correct that I was confusing Burj Khalifa and the Burj Al Arab Hotel when I posted.  We are looking into both as we will be spending several days in Dubai before we embark. I'm pretty sure we will choose a fast track/ avoid the line ticket to the Burj Khalifa. We will try to go at sunset, or at least watch the fountains from the mall if that doesn't work. We are also planning a half day city tour and a day trip to Abu Dhabi.

[Paulchili]

1 hour ago, decafnights said:

Thank you Paulchili and everyone else who responded to my question about the fast track being worth it. 

Just to set the record straight - you gave me credit for this advice when it was Damicom who posted this - I just agreed with it 

Many years ago we had dinner at Burj Al Arab just to get in. The hotel and restaurant were spectacular - the food was not. Perhaps the tea is more reasonable? Don't miss the mosque in Abu Dhabi and if you can get, in the Emirates Palace hotel.

[Go-Bucks!]

4 hours ago, Paulchili said:

Perhaps the tea is more reasonable?

 

It's not...$172!!  Just for afternoon tea!  I paid $50 once and that's my limit.  We'll just get a photo from outside. 

[Go-Bucks!]

6 hours ago, decafnights said:

Hi Go-Bucks!,

I did find one tour on Viator called Cocktails at Burj Al Arab. It is at 7:30pm but you can arrive 30 minutes early. It allows you to go to the 27th floor and you get two complimentary cocktails. You can see the public areas of the hotel on your own. It is listed as a 2 hour tour and the price for one adult is $175.  The dress code for ladies is "elegant, no sports or beach wear".  I don't know if your time off the ship would allow for this.

Gail

 

 

Our ship leaves at 6pm and we're just there one day.  I'd like to take the HOHO bus and have the combo tour with 3 course lunch in Burj Khalifa for $68.  We'll just have to get an outside photo of the hotel.

 

BTW, in English, is the word Burj pronounced with a hard or soft "g" sound?

[ilsun]

Mixology master class with 
Sebastien Houdemon

[Damicom]

On 2/8/2019 at 2:48 PM, Paulchili said:

The water town is interesting and typical of several others in the area but will most likely be overrun like most other touristy places. Google the pictures from the town and see if it looks interesting enough. If you have never been to Shanghai before and your time is limited, I would concentrate on seeing Shanghai with its many attractions - especially the excellent museum (mentioned by Mura) and the interior of the old China Bank building on the Bund

Thank you

[Paulchili]

6 hours ago, Go-Bucks! said:

BTW, in English, is the word Burj pronounced with a hard or soft "g" sound?

Soft g - AFAIK

[Mura]

About Shanghai ...

 

As I said we were there on a Viking river boat cruise.  We had 3 days or so in Beijing but only about a day and a half in Shanghai.  While I wouldn't have wanted to shorten our time in Beijing, we really wanted more time in Shanghai.  I guess my answer would have been to add on a couple of days to the trip so as to better see Shanghai.  But Viking didn't ask me ...

 

One of the highlights in Shanghai was on the bus heading for the Museum.  We were at an enormous traffic circle which had big traffic signs.  The Chinese said -- well, whatever it said.  The English said something like 7-9am, 3-5pm.  We were glad we weren't driving!

 

Mura

 

 

[bob brown]

Is anyone aboard doing a private tour from Safaga that includes seeing the pyramids, and has space for more people?

[decafnights]

On 2/8/2019 at 1:23 PM, Senior Citizen said:

Sounds like the description is for the Burj Khalifa skyscraper?  They sell tickets online and we used to be able to book for a certain time and skip the lines.  The last time we were in Dubai, the only way to get into the Burj Al Arab was, at a minimum, to buy very expensive tickets for tea.

Yes, I confused them. Thanks.

[decafnights]

On 2/8/2019 at 1:24 PM, babysteps said:

s it possible you are seeing ticket info for the Burj Khalifa (the skyscraper) and confusing that with the Burj al Arab (the hotel)?  

Yes, babysteps, that's exactly what I did. Thanks.

[decafnights]

22 hours ago, Paulchili said:

Just to set the record straight - you gave me credit for this advice when it was Damicom who posted this - I just agreed with it 

Sorry, Damicon. I'm trying hard to thank the right people and give credit where credit is due. Thanks, Paulchili, for pointing that out. I'm relatively new to CC. 😀

[decafnights]

17 hours ago, Go-Bucks! said:

Our ship leaves at 6pm and we're just there one day.  I'd like to take the HOHO bus and have the combo tour with 3 course lunch in Burj Khalifa for $68.  We'll just have to get an outside photo of the hotel.

 

Sounds like a good plan. One thing I found in my research is that the more expensive tickets give you access to the higher floors, in addition to skipping the lines.

[Go-Bucks!]

2 hours ago, decafnights said:

 

Sounds like a good plan. One thing I found in my research is that the more expensive tickets give you access to the higher floors, in addition to skipping the lines.

 

True, but the higher ones were more than I want to spend. High is high to me...I don't need to go to the top.  😂