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Glitter and Glam?


vvtible
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My wife and I went on that trip on the Wind Surf last May. It was a fantastic trip which we thoroughly enjoyed. I'd be happy to answer any questions you have. Since you asked about the private event, it was really well done. It was while we were in Portofino. We had plenty of time to explore the town in the morning, then we gathered at the pier in the afternoon. We got on a ferry to St Margarite - about a 10 -15 minute trip. From there we walked to the Villa Darazo. They provided a van for people with mobility issues but the walk was pretty easy. There was a very nice spread laid out on the huge patio with spots to get food and wine. You could tour the estate and gardens and watch a pesto making demonstration. It was a lovely afternoon.

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Great, thank you for replying! The private event in Portofino is the same as on our trip, so that info was helpful. I was trying to confirm that it departs from the land and not from the ship, but it sounds like it does. Do you happen to remember what time it started or how long it lasted? I have emailed and called, but they keep saying they don't have the time for the special event....which makes it harder to plan our day. ;) There is a 3 hour excursion that begins at noon, so it can't begin before 3:00, but I didn't know if they would really have those two things back to back.

 

Here are some more questions if you have time:

 

1. Were there any ports you remember that were ideal for just walking around vs. ports that were really best for a planned excursion (b/c there's nothing to do in the area)?

 

2. Any excursions you particularly recommend?

 

3. We are anchoring in Portofino & Sanary-Sur-Mer. How was the system for getting everyone onto shore? Chaotic or relaxed? Lol. I'm wondering how much time we need to allow. For example, the itinerary says we are in Portofino beginning at 9:00, but realistically, what time do you think we will actually be on land?

 

4. Also in Portofino, did you happen to hear any feedback from other guests about the boat ride excursion (to a couple nearby villages) or the lunch excursion to the fancy hotel....if they had those same ones when you went?

 

Thanks in advance for any info you can provide! I appreciate it.

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No problem. I don't have any problem reminiscing about that trip. It really was a great experience. As for the special event, I do not remember the exact time but it was late afternoon / evening. If your excursion is through the ship, I'm sure they make sure you get there on time.

 

 

 

1. Were there any ports you remember that were ideal for just walking around vs. ports that were really best for a planned excursion (b/c there's nothing to do in the area)?

 

We did our own thing at all the ports of calls. They were all very interesting ports and fun to explore on foot. The only one we travel away from was Cannes. We visit with a friend of ours up in Nice

 

2. Any excursions you particularly recommend? - Didn't take any

 

3. We are anchoring in Portofino & Sanary-Sur-Mer. How was the system for getting everyone onto shore? Chaotic or relaxed? Lol. I'm wondering how much time we need to allow. For example, the itinerary says we are in Portofino beginning at 9:00, but realistically, what time do you think we will actually be on land?

 

It was very relaxed. In fact the whole cruise was very relaxed so we just sauntered down to the tenders and took off for the shore. OF course, we didn't have any set time we needed to be off but I never saw a line. I take that back - I did see a line to get on a tender to go back but that was for the NCL ship that was in Cannes at the same time :D

 

4. Also in Portofino, did you happen to hear any feedback from other guests about the boat ride excursion (to a couple nearby villages) or the lunch excursion to the fancy hotel....if they had those same ones when you went?

 

That was the same ferry system. Besides St Margerite there was another villages you could get a ferry to. Never looked in to it. Loved Portofino - hiked up to Castello Brown with a beautiful view over the town and out to the Mediterranean

 

Let me know if you have any other questions

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Loved Glitter and Glam. Just did it on the Legend. You tender in a few ports. Not a problem. Do not miss the event at Villa Durrazo. Fabulous villa with delicious food. Live band. It was excellent.

Ship excursions are expensive. Took some on other cruises which were good. If ypu have excess OBC, buy some. We used SpainDay tours and Viator to book our excursions.

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Thanks to both of you for the helpful information! I thought I had read about a couple of the smaller ports that there wasn't much to do in the immediate area, so I hadn't really considered just wandering around. But now maybe I will. :-)

 

As for the full day in Monaco (we depart that night at 11:59), do you happen to remember if most people came back before dinner, or if they stayed out and spent the evening in the city? I'm trying to decide if I want to make dinner reservations on shore, or just stay on the ship in the evening. On the one hand, it seems like a waste of money to dine at a nice restaurant in Monte Carlo when it's free on the ship....but it also seems like a waste to not to take advantage of the one night of the whole cruise when we're departing late.

 

Thanks!

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Thanks to both of you for the helpful information! I thought I had read about a couple of the smaller ports that there wasn't much to do in the immediate area, so I hadn't really considered just wandering around. But now maybe I will. :-)

 

As for the full day in Monaco (we depart that night at 11:59), do you happen to remember if most people came back before dinner, or if they stayed out and spent the evening in the city? I'm trying to decide if I want to make dinner reservations on shore, or just stay on the ship in the evening. On the one hand, it seems like a waste of money to dine at a nice restaurant in Monte Carlo when it's free on the ship....but it also seems like a waste to not to take advantage of the one night of the whole cruise when we're departing late.

 

Thanks!

 

The night in Monaco for us was the deck BBQ. It was really a beautiful spread and great food. A lovely meal on deck overlooking Monaco was a really quite special in itself. I would not have passed that up for a meal on land. We did get off the ship after dinner to go to the casino, but that turned in to quite a disappointment. Not at all what I expected and expensive to get in. A good alternative might be a nice lunch somewhere. We did that in Sanary and Nice ( we travelled there from Cannes ).

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The night in Monaco for us was the deck BBQ.

 

 

Interesting! I hadn't even thought of that as a possiblity. I guess I just assumed they wouldn't do it that night since people might stay in town, but yes, I can imagine that it's really beautiful there. It's just too bad they can't tell you ahead of time which night the BBQ will be (I already asked). That would help with planning.

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I just booked the Yachtman's Harbors of the Rivieras Barcelona to Rome in April 2018. It looks like it is the same itinerary, just renamed. I have a few questions.

 

1. In Barcelona my detailed itinerary lists the port as WTC Passenger Terminal. Is this the World Trade Center where the large ships dock?

 

2. Did you do any pre-cruise days? Where did you stay.

 

3. Did Windstar open the watersports platform?

 

4. What was the wifi like?

 

5. Did you use the laundry service?

 

Thanks for your information.

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1. When we embarked in Barcelona the port master changed where we were supposed to embark. All embarkation places are up to the discretion of the port master. I know we arrived at the port and the ship was in another place about 2kms away from where we were supposed to go. Changed the morning the ship arrived.

2. We stayec four days precruise and throughly loved Barcelona. We stayed near Las Ramblas in a small inn with a Catalonian name of which I can not remember. Barcelona is an increcible city with a terrifice art and food culture. Loved the inn very unusual wonderful inn keepers.

3. We were there at the end of October and the Med. Sea was simply too cold and I would imagine in April it will be as well. We were on the Surf in the beginning of May this year and the air temperatures were in the low 70's and it was too cold to swim and the cater in the Med. and the Adriatic.

4. We do mot use WiFI on the ship.

5. Laundry the best, we never check bags and with the WS laundry we never have to.

Happy Sailing.

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1 - We went out of WTC North but I did confirm online before we left the hotel

2 - We stayed 2 nights in Barcelona. It was a beautiful city and great to explore. We stayed at the Ayre Hotel Rosellon , which was right across from the Sagrada Familia. It is a little bit away from the other tourist spots but we found the subway was very easy to use.

3 - We went in May. They open the water platform when they could. A few people used kayaks but only one brave soul did go swimming.

4 - We weren't going to use it, but my brother-in-law was having health issues so we signed up for the package and it worked pretty well.

5 - The laundry package is great. We left stuff out in the morning and it was back in the afternoon. Very convenient.

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Vvtible - a question you may be able to answer now - what airline are you flying?

We usually fly Delta non-stop when we can. I am considering United for this trip.

Thanks.

 

Royal Jordanian. ;) We're not coming straight from North America.

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  • 1 month later...
I just booked the Yachtman's Harbors of the Rivieras Barcelona to Rome in April 2018. It looks like it is the same itinerary, just renamed. I have a few questions.

1. In Barcelona my detailed itinerary lists the port as WTC Passenger Terminal. Is this the World Trade Center where the large ships dock?

2. Did you do any pre-cruise days? Where did you stay.

3. Did Windstar open the watersports platform?

4. What was the wifi like?

5. Did you use the laundry service?

Thanks for your information.

 

Hi Heartfelttraveler,

 

We just returned from our Glitter & Glam cruise, and while I see that others have answered your questions, I figured I would as well. :)

 

1. No, it's not the same area as the large ships. We got a little lost (even though I had explicitly told the taxi to go to WTC North & South!) and ended up taking a couple taxis back and forth before we found the ship. At one point we were dropped off and went inside only to discover that we were in a hotel, who put us back in a taxi and sent us over to the big port where the large ships were. Turns out the ship was a 1 minute walk from the hotel! We could see it when we were driving over to the big port. So we had to go back in another taxi. I would suggest making sure you see the ship before you get dropped off. The hotel I mentioned was the Eurostars Grand Marina Hotel. It was in the middle of the building, and the WTC North & South terminals were on either side of it.

 

2. Yes, we had a couple days in Barcelona, as did most people on the cruise (and most had a couple days in Rome at the end). We stayed at the Renaissance. Good location, but otherwise I'm not so sure that it's worth the price.

 

3. We were anchored in 3 ports (Sanary Sur Mer, Cannes, & Portofino), and I believe that they had the water sports platform open all three times. I saw people kayaking and paddleboarding, but one person I talked to said the water was really, really cold (in the 60s, I believe). So I don't know that people were swimming much.

 

4. We didn't purchase the wifi package, so I can't help you there. We didn't have a problem finding wifi in cafes in the ports, so we just used it every now and then.

 

5. I agree with what the others said - the laundry package was definitely worth it! So nice to be able to rewear things and put on fresh clothes as often as we wanted. We had laundry done a few times and it was always returned the same afternoon.

 

If you have any other questions, just let me know!

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vvtible - thanks for the info, especially about finding the port.

 

We have planned two nights in Barcelona pre cruise, but will fly home directly after the cruise. We were just in Rome in June.

 

We are very much looking forward to our first Windstar experience.

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Another question - when you docked in Rome, was it the standard cruise ship port in Civitavecchia? We are a little over six months out and I want to reserve transit to the airport?

 

Also, what time did you have to disembark? Our flight was just changed one hour later.

 

 

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Hmm. I'm not familiar enough with Civitavecchia to answer your question for sure, but yeah, I think it was the main port. I pre-booked transport and told the company the date & ship name. They pulled right up to the ship, so they must know who docks where.

 

 

Side note: I had no idea that Windstar offered airport and city transfers at the end of our cruise in Rome. I looked all over the website and didn't see that. About halfway through the cruise, they had us fill out a form indicating our disembarkation plans, and you could sign up for transfers then. I commented that I wish I had known because I already pre-booked. They said, "Oh, well you can book it onboard." Too late. :) If you have at least 2 people it might be just as cheap or cheaper to just book a car....I was heading to the airport by myself so the car cost me more. But, it was still nice to have private transportation.

 

Independent travelers (those not booked on Windstar transfers or tour transfers) were supposed to disembark by 8:30. The first tour/transfer was at 7:30, I think, and they started every 15 minutes after that. They didn't tell us the times until we got that form, though. The second day I had specifically asked, and I was told 9:15, so I changed my pickup time to 9:30. I was bummed to see that it was actually 8:30. They told me it should be ok, but I felt bad about staying onboard when they were constantly making announcements that all passengers needed to disembark by 8:30. Luckily my driver showed up early, just after 9. ;)

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  • 2 weeks later...

Another question for those of you who have already done this itinerary -

What excursions did you do?

Windstar just loaded their excursion offerings and they are light.

There is not even anything offered in SNNARY-SUR-MER or PORTOFERRAIO and PORTOFINO.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

 

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We didn't do any ship excursions at those ports. In Sanary-su-mer, it was market day. So we wandered through the stalls and tents, looking at the items for sale. After that, we wandered through town and found a spot for lunch. There is a public beach up the way but we never got there. Portofino was really beautiful. We walked up to Castello Brown, which is right near where the tenders come in. We toured those grounds, also toured the church on the way back down. After that, we went through town and had some wine overlooking the harbor. That was also the day of the trip to Santa Margerita for the discovery event so it was a full day. Portoferrao was also very easy to do on our own. The ship docked at the pier there. We wandered around the harbor. At the tip of the harbor was a historical site which included an old Roman ruin. From there, we walked up to the top of the hill to find a fort, which we toured with some gorgeous views. From there we walked to Napoleon's exile home. From there, we wandered to another big castle/fort. Winding our way the hill in the fort took us to the pier area close to the ship. Some great views.

So I'm not sure what you want to see or how much walking you want to do, but it was very easy to find interesting places to see easily with in where the ship lets off.

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Heartfelttraveler,

 

That's odd. Do you think it could be a mistake or an IT glitch? They multiple excursions in each port on our cruise last month, and there seemed to be a good turnout for most (if not all) excursions.

 

In Sanary-Sur-Mer we did a wine tasting excursion. In Portofino, there were definitely excursions planned (some got changed/canceled because we happened to be there the day of a huge Ferrari event, and the port closed early that day). In Portoferraio, we were booked on an excursion but canceled at the last minute, as we were just tired (last stop) and wanted a day to sleep a little later and relax. So in both Portofino & Portoferraio, we ended up just wandering around.

 

In Port Vendres, I think ours was called Perpignan and Tasting. It was fine and a good excursion for the first day of the cruise. In Cannes it was another wine tour, but I can't remember the name. At first I thought I'd be disappointed by how short they were, but I realized that it was actually perfect to tour for a few hours, then have the afternoon to either wander around town or relax on the ship.

 

 

In Monaco I had prebooked a private tour, and that was great! Definitely pricey, but worth it for us. We had an 8 hour tour, and we asked to see lots of different places. The tour went to an overlook at the top of Monaco, to an adorable little village on the outskirts of Monaco, to Eze, to Nice, to St. Paul de Vence for lunch, and also to Monaco/Monte Carlo to see the highlights there. It was a long exhausting day, but we really enjoyed having our own guide/driver for the day. It was worth the splurge, especially considering that it was like a few of the Windstar tours combined into one. I'm glad we didn't do that every day of the cruise, but it was really nice to have one day like that.

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Thank you for sharing your excursion experience. I called Windstar and they said that they are still signing contracts because all the changes in the Caribbean because of the storms were being handled first.

This trip is for my husband (and I will love it too) and I promised him some wineries and wine tasting.

Vvtrible - what private company tour did you use in Monaco? (Can I ask that here?)

I think it will be too cool for beach and water fun. If the swim platform is opened we will try the kayaks etc. Did the Wind Surf have bikes on board for rent or free?

We are looking forward to our first Windstar cruise and I really appreciate this thread.

 

 

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It was Alcyon Riviera Touring. They were great. I guess I could have cut down on the cost by putting it on the Roll Call boards to see if anyone wanted to share (or asking around on the ship), but we were ok to just have a private tour for just the 2 of us that day. :-) They also do tours out of Cannes, but we picked the Monaco day since it was such a long port stop.

 

We were on the Star Legend, not the Wind Surf, but yes, I saw bikes that could be used at some of the ports. I think they were to rent, not for free, but I didn't pay attention to the prices since we weren't interested in that. I also don't know how popular they were or if you needed to book in advance. Sorry!

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