CADIZ...i was wondering about that...

[joanagain]

to ekerr19

read this on the cunard forum:

"The port of Cadiz, Spain has been removed from the QM2's ininerary on the "Royal Mediterranean" cruise because of "security matters." I was told "not to worry, it's not due to terrorism." That is all Cunard would tell my agent..."

wonder why...from my notes, cadiz is one of our november 3 med ports...oh well, not to worry.

[ekerr19]

joanagain-

Yes, it is one of our ports... I will be disappointed if we have to for go it - but rather be safe than sorry. My MIL has been worried about several of the ports, but from our past experience, we know HAL will either detour elsewhere or add an extra sea day. We had this problem with Columbia several years ago.

Let me know if you hear anything from HAL, I will call my TA and see if she's heard anything.

[Jacqueline]

Having just been there I am suprised that it has been removed... Vigo is clser to where the ETA has been more active.
I felt very safe in Cadiz. It is a lovely city and a great jumping off point for touring Andalucia.

[Mary Ellen]

My cousin (owns a Travel Agency) recently had a group on a Mediterranean cruise. A problem developed because the cruise stopped in Gibraltar and Spain. From what he told me, the current (new) Spanish government has decided that ships that stop in Gibraltar can NOT also dock in Spain – due to the disagreement with England over the ‘rights’ to Gibraltar. Whether this is the same situation – I don’t know. If it is, there is nothing a cruise line can do but change/drop ports.

[elmorejj]

Its a shame when all of these political things have to make port changes in your Itinerary. We were in Spain recently and we had no problem just driving over the border into Gibralter. ..jean :cool:

[dakrewser]

Its a shame when all of these political things have to make port changes in your Itinerary. We were in Spain recently and we had no problem just driving over the border into Gibralter. ..jean :cool:
But then its hard to drive into "Gibbo" without going thru Spain! :rolleyes: (unless you take a ferry from Morocco)

[dakrewser]

Cadiz is, evidently, a favorite target of illegal immigrants headed to Spain from North Africa. It may be that stepped up security in the port (which is a freight port, as I remember) makes it difficult for the cruise lines.

But it would be a shame to have to skip visiting Seville (which you can do when docking in Cadiz), one of Spain's prettiest cities.

[ekerr19]

I hope we don't have to skip any of our ports... :confused:

We are so looking forward to our Med cruise it would be a shame, but I'd rather be safe than sorry too, so we'll have to wait and see.

We thought if anything were cancelled it would be Morocco. Oh well. I will post once I hear something definitive.

[dakrewser]

We thought if anything were cancelled it would be Morocco. Oh well. I will post once I hear something definitive.
We found security in Morocco (both Tangiers & Casablanca) to be tighter than any of the European ports. Not that I'd wander around Tangier without a bodyguard, though! :)

[ekerr19]

We found security in Morocco (both Tangiers & Casablanca) to be tighter than any of the European ports. Not that I'd wander around Tangier without a bodyguard, though! :)

Dave-

What did you think of Casablanca? DH & I are planning a day trip (if we make it to Morocco) I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts...

Thanks!

[dakrewser]

Dave-

What did you think of Casablanca? DH & I are planning a day trip (if we make it to Morocco) I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts...
We were very fortunate to be guided by my daughter-in-law's sisters (her family lives in Casa), so we did get to visit some places off the beaten track. But I can definitely recommend the Grande Mosque of Hassan II as one of the most beautiful buildings we saw in the Med. See our pix (http://vquill.com/gallery/casa.html) for some views of it. I did feel much "safer" in Casa, even when by myself (waiting for the ladies to do some shopping in the souq), then in Tangiers (or Tijuana, or Manhatten, for that matter!).

[ekerr19]

Dave-

Thank you for sharing your photos - WOW, amazing. :)

I can hardly wait for our cruise. The Grande Mosque of Hassan II looks so beautiful. As soon as DH gets home, I will show him your link - neither of us has been to this region, so we had no idea what to expect.

Thanks again for posting these.

Laura

[Jacqueline]

I woiuld be interested to see any hard evidence of problems in Cadiz. Our shipboard lecurer LIVED there for 2 years. It is a very family friendly, authentic Spanish town. We felt safer there than most other of the ports we visited,

[dakrewser]

Dave-

Thank you for sharing your photos - WOW, amazing. :)


Thanks, I'll be sure to let the photographer know!:rolleyes:
The one thing to be careful of in Casa is the traffic. Don't even think about renting a car, and be wary of taxicabs. I swear the cars have no brakes - just horns and accelerators. NYC would be considered a training ground for Casablanca taxi drivers!:)

[hmg]

Jacqueline, I'm glad to hear your comments about the safety of Cadiz and I'm especially happy that I didn't read this a few months ago. :)

My teen was there for 10 days on a school trip in which they were allowed tremendous freedom to roam the city. He is a sheltered suburban kid, but has traveled extensively and is very wary about safety. He never once felt uncomfortable in Cadiz. In fact, he wants to take us all there next summer. I honestly cannot imagine that our school, or the local Spanish group sponsoring the trip, would take 15 high school students into an unsafe environment and allow them the freedom to explore on their own.

[ekerr19]

I don't think the reasons are related to terrorism - it seems to be political more than anything else...

As far as I know, we are still scheduled to visit Cadiz. :)

[Jacqueline]

HMG- I actually read about the language school in Cadiz ! WHat is your opinion ? I would definitely think it is an appropriate choice for a teen in a supervised program. I would have no qualms sending my own kids there. I felt very safe Also, I had a few chances to work on my rudimentary spanish and the locals were great.
There are some lovely SQUARES and at night they are filled with people/
What is wonderful about cadizis the fusion of new and old. Its the oldest continuously habitated city in Europre from what i read. But the stores have all the newest electronic gadgets !

[fb0075]

Loved Cadiz---My favorite port of last months cruise---even thought about going back for a couple days!
FRANK

[ekerr19]

Frank-

What did you do while you were there? We are unsure of what we'd like to do yet...

Thanks!

[fb0075]

We took a all day tour of the area---but it was a beautiful area!Their is an OLD -and New town with a LONGGGG beach in between! Wasnt expecting such a scenic place
FRANK

[ekerr19]

Did you do the ship's tour or go out on your own?

We've heard it is quite beautiful, especially the beach area... we are looking forward to it - I hope it is not canceled. :)

[Jacqueline]

felt the same way. And it was so convenient from the ship !

[fb0075]

We did a tour on our own and it was very inexpensive but the ship does them ,also
FARNK

[ekerr19]

Frank and Jacqueline:

Any suggestions on what NOT to miss?

Thanks. :)

[sailorbill]

I seem to remember that Queen Mary 2 cancelled Cadiz and Gibralter on a Mediterranean cruise last spring not because of any security problems but because she is just too big with a deeper draft than any other cruise ship. The ports of Cadiz and Gibralter are too shallow to accomodate QM2 and neither port was willing to dredge the port in order to accomodate just one ship. In comparison Queen Mary 2 has a draft of 32.8 feet while the next biggest cruise ships in the Mediterranean, Grand and Golden Princess, have a draft of 27 feet. The Westerdam has a draft of 22 feet.

I also read off of another thread that the recurring tiff between Spain and Great Britain over possession of Gibralter had heated up at the beginning of this year and a few months later cooled back down to the usual lukewarm simmer. Spain considers that the territory is a part of mainland Spain and doesn't like a foreign power owning it. Even though its strategic importance has diminished to insignificance, Great Britain is unwilling to give Gibralter up. Consider what the attitude would be in the United States if, for example, the penninsula of Cape Cod was in the possession of say France or Denmark, had been that way for 300 years and the foreign power was not willing to give it up. That is pretty much the situation in Spain.

Bill

[hmg]

Jacqueline- I thought his experience in Cadiz was wonderful, as did he. He and two other boys lived with a family that spoke very little English so he was forced to speak Spanish. At one point he called me from a pay phone somewhere in the town. A person walked past and asked him directions, in Spanish. Without a thought he responded to them in Spanish. His only complaint was that their house mother wasn't the best cook. :rolleyes: