Your opinion - which trip would you pick given the circumstances?

We had to cancel our cruise because of dh's health, nothing real serious, but he does need knee surgery, and because of his other health issues he can't even start to get it until Nov of this year. Then after surgery they say the rehab will be 4 - 6 months. So some time by mid 2016 we may be able to go. We are looking at 4 different cruises. And one of my BIG concerns is dh's walking ability and to be fair I am not a tour person. I am a beach, snorkel kind of person. I only want to go one of all the places for tour and that is St. Petersburg Russia, but we will get back to that later.

1) The first is a transatlantic its about 25 days it leaves from here in Florida and does the usual Baltic route with two days in St. Pete. The only down side besides all the tours except St. Pete is we will need to fly home from Copenhagen Denmark. I really, really want to see St Pete, but both of us really, really hate to fly. Ship is Zuiderdam. It is cutting it close with dh's health as it leaves 4/18/16. This may need to be taken off the list and done later in the year or the following year if we decide to do it.

2) The second is a transatlantic of 42 days to the Mediterranean on Rotterdam. It goes to so many, many places in the Med. that I don't think I could list them all. The most wonderful thing is that there is no flying The cruise leaves from Ft. Lauderdale and returns to Ft. Lauderdale. The down side for me is tours. There are 20 or so stops and I know dh wants to see some of the places and I am not interested in any of them. I think there will be some beaches, but I have not read of people doing any snorkeling tours there.

3) The third option is a cruise To SA. 30 days on Maasdam. At least there are beaches on this cruise, but the most important part Machu Piccu we will not be able to do at all with dh's health issues. And to be truthful it isn't high on my bucket list. The down side is we have to fly to Dan Diego.

4) fourth and fifth choices is either a 48 day cruise on Amsterdam which not only goes to Hawaii and Tahiti, but also Fiji.. Now this is my kind of cruise. The only land tour I want to go to is Pearl Harbor. The cruise we went on last time when we got to pearl harbor it was too late to go to the Arizona so this time we could try again. I also want to go to Fiji and see that. DH says we have already done this trip and he wants to do something different. Or 33 days on Maasdam. This trip goes to just Hawaii and Tahiti. It would be ok with me, but dh says we did it, do something else. The down side to both of these is we will need to fly to San Diego.

Pricing all these trips out, they appear to be pretty much the same as each other generally. I haven't gotten into the specifics. I am sure the tours in Europe are going to be a lot more then the other trips but I need to do some more research in that area.

I guess what I am trying to do is get an idea from people who have done some of these trips. Did you like the Med? If you started out not wanting to do any tours after you started to do them did you start to enjoy them? Or were you bored out of your mind? Did being in historical places make you forget that you are really not a tour person. Or did you just wish you were on a Motu sipping a rum drink?

I am also interested in anyone who did an Med or Europe trip who had a full knee replacement surgery. Did you have any problems with doing the tours? Any input would be helpful.

BTW: this trip will be for our 45th Anniversary! We don't want to wait until 50 to do this.

I've done the Baltic, the Med and South America. I'm not a beach/snorkel person nor have I had any issues with my knees (yet).

The Med is extremely port intensive. We were totally exhausted at the end of the cruise (21 days east and west). If you choose this one, don't try to do it all. I won't kid you, one can get more than enough of ruins, churches, etc. in the Med.

The Baltic was also busy but not as busy as the Med. We were going to do a fair bit of DIY but that changed when my DM came down with sciatica after the first port so we ended up with HAL tours, with the exception of the private tour I booked for St Pete. If you go, book a private tour at a more moderate pace to accommodate for your husband's knee. We had only four people on the private tour; all of us had some sort of physical disability.

South America was really one of the best cruises I've ever taken and it was not even on my radar. DM wanted to go and it was the first thing she said after I asked her what was on her bucket list. It was a great mix of sea days and port days. The flights were brutal but the cruise was wonderful (and it was on the Veendam). However, it took my well padded butt 3 days to recover from the flight down! Since you're obviously considering a different itinerary than we did (BA to Santiago), if you're leaving from San Diego, do consider that it's a shorter flight to San Diego than to BA or Santiago.

For any of the flights on these cruises, why don't you splurge on business class seats? Or start collecting airline loyalty points through credit card purchases so that you can get business class seating. That's the only way we'll fly now for long haul flights; the Houston/BA flight in economy was the last long haul flight in economy for us!!

I would eliminate the Med if walking isn't your thing! The best things to see, IMHO, will involve walking; extensive walking and/or walking over uneven terrain, even in the best circumstances. Sure there are bus tours for less able-bodied folks, but with that many ports/tours, it would still be exhausting. And there isn't a beach to be had...maybe in Dubrovnik.

Personally, given the circumstances described, I'd choose the Hawaii/Tahiti option.

There are many factors at play here - your DH's knee, not wanting to fly, your and DH's tour preferences.

My DH (who is 74) just had a full knee replacement 3 weeks ago and was told he should be walking close to normal in about 6 weeks. He is already walking up and down the block with a regular no-wheeled walker, and uses a cane to help him get around in the house. Hopefully your DH will be right as rain at the 4 month point.

If not flying is a deal breaker, then obviously the choice is #2 and you can forget about snorkeling. We've done the Eastern Mediterranean 3 times in spring and fall, and enjoyed wandering around the ports on our own as well as on organized tours.

To be perfectly honest, the first time we went to the Mediterranean I wasn't all that excited to be going, but it meant we were going on a cruise, so I just held my tongue. DH is a history/geography prof, and he was over the moon excited when we received the brochure in the mail, as it meant he would finally see places he'd taught about all his life. When we got to our first port and I started seeing the various ruins, thinking how old those beautiful frescoes, and buildings were, I was smitten. As a result, we've been back twice since then.

If you look at the shore excursions feature of the HAL site, I'm sure you'll find some beach offerings in the Mediterranean - I can think of 2 right now, Kusadasi, and Dubrovnik - that may make you happy as well.

If #3 isn't high on your bucket list, then I'd say forget it - why waste the time and money going to places you didn't really want to see in the first place. You're going for the ship experience and to see some new scenery, that's about all.

If #4 is your choice and not DH's, you might be happy, but find you're travelling with a sulking, unhappy partner. Either that or you can expect to take a trip of his choosing next time, so be sure to purchase FCD's onboard.

You have a big decision ahead of you; please let us know what your decision will be. Regardless of where you go, please make sure DH has a cane with him - my DH has already purchased a fold-up version for our next trip.

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

Gerry

Well I would do your #1 - the top of your bucket list. If that is the Baltics then I would book it and then book one of the Cunard ships that travel all year between England the New York. That minimizes your flying.

I too would avoid the Med only because those cruises are very port intensive in older ports where there is little accessibility aids (escalators, flat ground, etc). Very hard walking on uneven pavement or cobblestones.

If it is snorkeling you want to do as the only excursion then perhaps you could look at a sailing that goes to Australia? Long flight home but you could do it in a few short hauls up to Japan and then fly to the West coast. I know - too long. But I did a whole week on a small boat on the Great Barrier Reef out of Cairns and it was amazing! You could do it as a 3 day or a 4 day voyages.

Good luck in your decision and finding that happy medium!

Based on what I think I understand about your husband's health situation and your personal preferences I'd recommend Option 4. I would think the best beach and snorkel opportunities would be on these itineraries and probably the least walking. I think the relatively least attractive would be Option 2. Don't get me wrong, the Med is wonderful. Med cruises are usually quite port intensive and give you the chance to visit some of the most wonderful historical sites in the world. The downside is almost every port and their associated sites mean walking, a lot of walking. To the best of my knowledge, while there are some good beach ports in the Med, snorkeling is not as attractive as say the Caribbean or South Pacific. With 60 days in the Med and some 35-40 ports in the past three years I don't recall many if any mentions of snorkeling.

Saying you don't want to go to the Med because there's no snorkeling is like saying you won't go to the Caribbean because there's no glaciers!

If snorkeling is the only thing you want to do, take snorkeling trips in the Caribbean and the Gulf - do the thing you want to do, not what you think you ought to do.

Would hopping on a ship from FL and going through the canal to San Diego be an option to cut out the FL to CA flight(s)?

Assuming the surgery is to be in November, a mid-April transatlantic departure should work. Lots of relaxing and low-impact sea days to do agua-therapy in the pools! It gets you to St. Petersburg. To minimize the flight home, see if you can find a Cunard sailing to get you back to New York. From NY, there are lots of options to get home!

We are no longer beach people.

Think of your DH -- he doesn't want to do Hawaii and beaches.

I would go for the Transatlantic on HAL.

Then find a Cunard ship to get back to New York.

Have you looked at April 02 on Westerdam? Leaves from San Diego ends Seattle? It tours Hawaii and Tahiti plus 1 stop in the Cook Islands. The Cook Islands are a snorkelers dream and beautiful beaches. I would agree with others about taking a splurge and flying 1st class. I travel with elderly parent and the extra room and not having to wait in a long line to use the restrooms is worth the price alone. Was planning on doing this my self with mom, but in the past few months she has gotten more frail and have decided that its to much for her.

thinking about your DH and knee surgery, I just want to alert you to St. Petersburg. The sites are not handicap friendly (like many places in Europe) and it can be tiring standing, walking, maneouvering steps, etc.

It is not easy walking in St. Petersburg and there is a lot of walking.

St. Petersburg is glorious as are the Baltic countries. Tallin is a beautiful spot but again, you are dealing with cobblestones, hills, etc.

We love the Baltics and highly recommend going (in fact, we have been twice) so not trying to discourage you, but to inform.

Normally taking Cunard's QM2 back from Europe would be a great option. Unfotunately for the OP, QM2 is going to be in drydock from 27 May-21 June.

 

1) The first is a transatlantic its about 25 days it leaves from here in Florida and does the usual Baltic route with two days in St. Pete. The only down side besides all the tours except St. Pete is we will need to fly home from Copenhagen Denmark. I really, really want to see St Pete, but both of us really, really hate to fly. Ship is Zuiderdam. It is cutting it close with dh's health as it leaves 4/18/16. This may need to be taken off the list and done later in the year or the following year if we decide to do it.

 

We don't want to wait until 50 to do this.

I love the Zuider....:o

Perfect size. Easy to get around, very friendly staff and good food.

And a realxing ta is a perfect way to get a knee used to walking againg on a ship.

In Baltic it is also very easy to find a taxi.

Yes, costs some dollars, but baltic money is low now, because you have got a "strong" dollar so now is the time for you to go baltic.

Taxi is easy as you get to see only what you want to see, and our taxies are used to guide tourists around.

Flight home fra Copenhagen is a peace of cake.

http://www.norwegian.com/us/flight/select-flight/?D_City=CPH&A_City=FLL&TripType=1&D_SelectedDay=19&D_Day=19&D_Month=201605&R_Day=01&R_Month=201605&dFare=260&AgreementCodeFK=-1&CurrencyCode=USD&rnd=10192

There are directly flights from Cpoenhagen, cph to both Orlando and Fort Lauderdale.

From only 225 dollar one way for one person with Norwegian Long Haul.

New Dreamliners. Very good seats. Ok food and very good safety.

I second everything Alberta Quilter posted. I can add that I had a chronic health issue when we did these cruises and I had to skip the shore excursions for some of the ports. Although it would have been nicer to see those ports, it wasn't earth shattering that I didn't participate with my cruise companions. The Baltic and Mediterranean cruises are port intensive and the St. Petersburg stop was especially tiring for me.

By flying business class, the flights are not that bad. Getting through the airport can be a challenge for your dh so you could arrange for a transport through the airport. If your dh is having a knee replaced, rehab can often take longer than what you might think so you may want to put a port intensive cruise off for another year.

thinking about your DH and knee surgery, I just want to alert you to St. Petersburg. The sites are not handicap friendly (like many places in Europe) and it can be tiring standing, walking, maneouvering steps, etc.

 

It is not easy walking in St. Petersburg and there is a lot of walking.

 

St. Petersburg is glorious as are the Baltic countries. Tallin is a beautiful spot but again, you are dealing with cobblestones, hills, etc.

 

We love the Baltics and highly recommend going (in fact, we have been twice) so not trying to discourage you, but to inform.

I second the above. Europe (Or at least the places I've been) have no concept of ADA guidelines. DH was hampered by a badly sprained right ankle during our trip to the Baltic's this past June. We managed because I scaled back on all I wanted to do, but still saw my "Must See" & we had Thermal Suite passes that helped his aching foot. That said, he is the beach/snorkel buff & I am the history buff. My DH was enthralled by everything he saw. The Baltics offer so much more than St. Petersburg (Stockholm is lovey, and best seen by the water, so little walking). Another option is that many of the major tour operators in St. Petersburg offer a "Comfort Tour" that shows you many of the major sites, but at an easier pace. I know Alla Tours, & I believe SPB Tours offer this option.

I realize this wasn't on your list of options, but if St. Petersburg is all you really want to see, have you considered a river cruise in Russia? Yes, you will have the dreadful flight, but unless you can cross the Atlantic both ways by ship I don't know how you can avoid the long flight.

I hope your husband's surgery is a success, and that you both enjoy whatever you decide. Oh yes, Happy Anniversary!

If I were you, I would give serious consideration to the round trip cruise from Florida. Here's my reasoning:

It totally eliminates the flights, which is to the good.

Since this will be after the surgery, and a decent period of recovery, your husband should be able to walk a lot more, and more comfortably, than he does now. On the sail over he will have an opportunity to continue his walking therapy under conditions with no pressure.

Once in Europe, you can both take things at a slower pace if you like. You can have half-day tours, mix it up on how much walking is involved, and play it by ear. There is no need to feel compelled to see it all.

This is something he wants to do. Looking forward to it, making plans for what he would like to see while there, will help motivate him through his recovery and physical therapy. He will have something to look forward to.

Then you pick the next cruise. ;)

Oh my goodness!!!! We had to make almost the exact same decision. DH had had to have a total hip replacement. We had booked the VOV because we didn't want him to have to fly too far. Then we decided to do the Baltic and Viking Adventure. We did have to fly to Copenhagen. The more we talked about the walking and the fact St Petersburg was the big draw, we said "nope". Then we found the 48 day South Pacific and the decision was made!!!

DH had his surgery in May. He is doing great. We are thrilled with our decision. Facts be facts, we LOVE ISLANDS.

Good luck with your decision!!

Denise

I just had a total knee on June 2nd. I am very driven and motivated to do well. Having said that, it truly takes 6 months or more to recover. I can walk 4 to 5 miles, do twenty flights if stairs but then I am in pain and need to take it easier for a few days. Sitting for an extended period, such as flying or driving long distances, is actually worse than being active.

Which cruise? I would do the round trip from Florida. Even if there are not beaches or snorkeling at every stop there are sure to be sightseeing trips that do not involve a lot of walking. I am like you in that I love to be in, on or next to the water but when in Europe I sightsee my heart out and am in awe of the sights and sites! You could skip the ports that truly don't interestyou and look for a water based tour. You and DH could also do separate tours. DH and I find that gives us something more to talk about.

Good luck to your husband. I cannot stress enough the importance of PT, even though PT causes more pain. There is a great website called bonesmart dot org that has very good, medically sound advice. I really found the chart predicting the trajectory of recovery to be very helpful.

Helen, the only thing I can tell you is that there were practically no beach options at all on the Incan Treasures tour with the exception of Mexico and Costa Rica.

Personally, I don't think one can go to FP too many times but that is just MHO. LOL Whatever you decide on I hope your DH's surgery goes well and you have a wonderful time.

Well, I've been to all the options you've mentioned, and recently returned from a cruise to the Baltic. I loved the Baltic trip and hope to take it again some day. However, --- you mentioned a keen interest in St Petes which isn't really conducive to folks with any type of physical challenge. You will have been post-op surgery for a considerable time, but the streets and areas you will have to walk on are almost always cobblestones or very uneven surface. It is easy to turn your foot even when being very careful.

St Petersburg sites have no elevators, many stairs, uneven pavement and long lines. Standing can be tiresome. Altho using a walker is sometimes possible, the sites do not lend themselves easily to this.

One could do South America but Macchu Picchu is in really high country, and walking in the area would be difficult also. If MP is your main reason to go to South America I would delay a trip there too.

So, I think I like like Kazu's suggestion to do a transAtlantic both ways. You can as suggested easily do the tours or half day visits to the ports, and recover back on the ship. This new surgery will be well along the way of being healed but irritating it in some way or spraining it will not make your trip so pleasant.

Doing beaches is not my thing, so I rarely consider cruises with only those options.

I found the tours in St Petes to be very tiring, difficult to walk, many stairs to climb and then often with considerable distances back to the parked vehicle.

I do hope you have a fab cruise, no matter which one you select. Just am concerned for you after a surgery and hope for all the best.

Marianne