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Hlitner

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Everything posted by Hlitner

  1. Keep in mind that even if the shuttle to Largo della Pace is still free, you would need to transfer to a paid bus (used to be 2 Euros) to get you to the station. If there is truly a 6 Euro shuttle from the port directly to the station, this is the best option for most folks (except those of us who like very long walks). We will again be at Civitavecchia in a few weeks and will admit to being curious as to the current situation. Being Italy, what existed today may well not exist tomorrow. Most long-time independent travelers have learned that in Italy, one needs to keep their sense of humor and flexibility. Hank
  2. With mobility issues, and a scooter, I would agree with the suggestion to arrange a private transfer (Romeinlimo or Romecabs are both good options). While it will be somewhat expensive, a private transfer means you will have the space for luggage and scooter (make sure to message the transfer folks about those items). Either of those companies can alslo handle your transfers from Rome to your ship. The unfortunate thing is that none of this is cheap. Europe is somewhat more expensive than in the past, and this is reflected in higher fees for transfers. Hank
  3. I think that some do not fully understand the airport situation. These days, it is wise to arrive about 2 hours pre flight for domestic flights and even longer for internaitonal. MIA is a large airport and it can be a very long walk from check-in to the gates (depending on your gate). It can take a good 30 minutes just to drive to the airport (from the port or downtown) and even worse when there are traffic problems. So even with a 3pm flight, one would need to be on their way to MIA around noon. If you can buy lounge access (or have an AMEX Platinum Card with Centurian Lounge access) that might make more sense. Most of the cruise line excursions (and later airport transfer) specify how the earliest flight and it is often later in the afternoon. Also keep in mind that a cruise line transfer may not drop you in the most convenient place for your particular airline. Hank
  4. We do quite a lot of travel in the UK (and cruising) and get all of our cash via ATMs. They are easy to find and get you the best exchange rates. Just make sure to notify your issuing bank of your itinerary in order to avoid any security issues. Hank
  5. She might appreciate the lido cuisine on Carnival and other lower priced lines. DW loves PB&J, but it is something she eats at home, not when paying money to be on a cruise. I happen to really like decent caviar and have sometimes mentioned that we probably eat $50-$100 a day of caviar when on Seabourn. That might sound like a lot of money, but consider that some mass market lines do charge around $100 for a single serving of those black/gray eggs. Hank
  6. I think the OP has no clue how it works at cruise lines. "Ring up" the cruise line and you simply get a reservations clerk, in their little cubicle, that has zero power to do anything but follow the various scripts that are on their terminal. In Florida, it used to be possible to work deals through local TAs that had connections at the cruise line. These days I doubt if that is even possible. There are ways to get some pretty decent "last minute" special (unadvertised) deals. But this will usually happen through various high volume cruise agencies (that are part of very high volume consortiums) that are permitted (by the cruise line) to sell some special deals. These are usually limited to their customers (folks on their e-mail list) and have nothing to do with living near the port. The so-called "last minute" deals are generally available just inside the final payment period. Hank
  7. Going to Rouen, Giverny or Paris can be done on the train (the station is about 1 1/2 miles from the port). While I agree with you about trying to do Paris during a port day (we love Paris) there are plenty of folks who will do the long trip to Paris (over 2 1/2 hours each way) since it may be their only change to see that city. We have spent weeks in Paris, and would still return for another few weeks :). Seeing Paris in 5 hours (which is about when you get on most one-day tours) is, IMHO, a bit sad. We have spent more than 5 hours in a single museum! We have long suggested that folks who have Le Havre as their last cruise stop (before ending in England) might want to consider an early debarkation and spending a few days in Paris. There is a good train connection between Le Havre and Paris. Hank
  8. If you are coming back to the port from town, there are a couple of different bus stops depending on the specific bus route of your bus. Both stops are relatively close to Walmart/Sams. Keep in mind that you will need to cross the busy road (to get to the port) and you should do it at the traffic light and be very alert (we often say that the biggest danger in PV is being hit by a bus or car). Hank
  9. We recently returned, from being out of the country, and found our O packet for the Vista cruise embarking next week. The luggage tags are convenient, but we were not overly impressed with the provided booklet. In the early pages are the 35 day itinerary for our cruise, but as one might expect it is wrong! Why? Because even O's own printers cannot keep up with the various itinerary changes. Sad. Since it is our first O cruise, we are hopeful that O will actually stick to their latest itinerary. Hank
  10. Me too LOL. Not sure my waistline will be happy, but the fun of exploring O food is the main reason we booked the Vista. Guess we better bring along some Tums :): Hank
  11. Tours are great for those who love tours. Of course there are differences between large group tour (such as what is sold by cruise lines) and small group tours booked privately. Our own preference, when it comes to the Golden Circle, has been to simply rent a car and drive it on our own. Why? It allows us to go where we want, stay as long or as short as we please, eat where want, etc. Since we also have driven to many of the same places flooded by large bus tours, we do often listen-in on the explanations rendered by the professional tour guides (who often have different things to say about the same sites). I will say that driving the Golden Circle is quite easy given the decent signage and use of GPS (on our phones). Like most DIY driving trips the biggest advantage is not having to wait on others to go to the rest facilities, finish their shopping, their meal, etc.
  12. While it will be interesting (at least to me) to compare O to EJ in terms of cuisine, we do need to consider that O and EJ are truly in different orbits. EJ considers itself a very high end luxury product that tried to replicate fine land based resorts. We are curious to see how O's cusine falls into somewhat of a continuum (for lack of a better term among lines such as Princess, EJ, Seabourn, HAL, etc. No question that the cuisine on Explora Journey 1 was in a class seldom to never seen on cruise ships (except in a few extra priced alternative venues). Some O fans have claimed, for years, that O has the best food at sea. My own quest is to either verify this claim (which would make me a very happy cruiser) or try to fit it among the various cruise lines (16 to date) on which we have cruised. Hank
  13. Ahhh but for those of us who live to eat, dining at various land restaurants is wonderful. Most cruise cuisine is not in the same category although some of what we enjoyed on EJ1 was world class/ Hank
  14. The man that owns that small restaurant is a dear amigo and would laugh if I asked him about serving a "gringo" dish. His tiny restaurant was once mentioned by a NY Times food writer for their amazing "garlic soup with an egg" which is a take on egg drop soup. Since that garlic soup was invented by his dad I guess that makes it Mexican cuisine. Many fellow Americans think of Taco Bell as a good example of Mexican food. Most of their offerings would be considered street food here (I do like that stuff) but things like grilled snapper, cactus salad, carnitas, etc. are not as well known in the USA. Hank
  15. I will confess to not being a big fan of most Mexican beef. Experts would probably say it is pretty healthy beef since it generally lacks the fat/marbling that many of us associate with the best more flavorful beef (think Wagyu). Arrechera (which is similar to skirt steak) is pretty popular here in Mexico and is often served with some delicious sauces. Hank
  16. I think you are referring to the BB King venues on HAL. Unfortunately, they have now gone the way of many HAL cut-back. BB King venues have been (and some will soon be) replaced by their new version which is called the Rolling Stone Lounge. Apparently, HAL did not want to keep paying the BB King estate for use of that name. HAL has also disbanded their BB King groups (some were better then others) and reformed Rolling Stone Lounge groups (somewhat like the BB King groups but with a different vibe). Even though I am "old as dirt" I would love to hear a "Dan" group on any cruise. If they also had Pink Floyd and an Eagles group it would also make me happy. On HAL, we would expect something akin to Glenn Miller :). Since we have yet to take our first O cruise (coming up in a few days) we cannot comment on O entertainment. Hank
  17. I think beef is more traditional then you might think. Parts of Mexico, including near here, have a long tradition of cowboys (vaqueros). In fact, they actually have their own style of rodeos (primarily attended by Mexicans) in this area. Yesterday, we were surprised to see about 30 vaqueros on the beach, in front of our balcony, as they had ridden into town (from a nearby) exhibition, to show their horses and have some fun. These guys are very similar to our US cowboys and they make their living herding livestock (including cattle). In the 18 winters we have lived in Mexico, we have grown to understand that Mexican beef is leaner than what we normally get in the USA, but it can be quite good. The problem when we talk about "traditional" Mexican cuisine is that what is traditional in Puerto Vallarta (such as fresh fish, tacos al pastor, etc) might not be found in other parts of the country. The tradition of this country is to take advantage to what is readily available in the region...which varies all over the country. Hank
  18. We live in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (10 weeks a year) and dine out over 60 times in dozens of eating venues. It is difficult to say what is Mexican cuisine since it varies from region to region throughout the country. For example, last night DW and I split a grilled large red snapper which was served with a helping of rice and a selection of vegetables all cooked al dente. The fresh fish was seasoned with some garlic and I am sure the usual salt. pepper..but not much else since the fresh catch fish should not be overpowered by spices. So, folks, would you consider grilled fresh red snapper "Mexican food?" Here in PV it is a popular item since a lot of the cuisine here is based on seafood. Yes, we also have the usual Tex/Mex stuff and the locals routinely eat tacos at numerous street stands. In another :"Mexican restaurant" I really enjoy the "Black and Blue Filet" which is a filet mignon with with half covered with a balsamic sauce and the other half a blue cheese sauce. Does that sound Mexican? The owner of that place is a 2nd generation owner and 100% Mexican. Hank
  19. Hmmm you think anyone talks at a Steely Dan concert? LOL. I have a close friend who is not a classical music lover, and she thinks classical music lovers are pretentious when it comes to keeping quiet in the presence of live classical music. But put many of those folks in a Jazz Club/bar (such as Take 5 on Princess ships) and they will talk loudly without any consideration for the jazz lovers. And how about in a piano bar? Should folks have conversations when an entertainer is playing/singing? While I think most agree that it is proper to be quiet when in a theater setting, it is very open to debate about doing so in a bar/lounge where there is some entertainment. Speaking about classical music lovers, on some HAL ships they used to have classical (often chamber music or perhaps a violin/piano duo) that would play in a room that had an adjacent main corridor. Folks would come walking along (it was a main route after leaving the MDR) that wide corridor chatting away and "disturb" the classical music lovers sitting in the adjacent lounge (which was completely opened to the corridor). Some of the music lovers would try to "shush" the masses coming from dinner, and it was almost amusing. While many of us would show respect for the audience and not make much noise, there were others that could care less that some folks (the audience might be 100) want everyone to be quiet. So what is the proper decorum? You will likely get all kinds of answers. Hank
  20. We really dislike group tours of museums, and the situation is even worse in a large museum like the one in Athens. Professional guides are working with a schedule which only gives them enough time to choose certain attractions within the museum. These may, or may not be what you want to see. Athens is relativley easy to do on one's own with a little homework. You can pre-purchase timed entry tickets to the Acropolis (and you should also visit the nearby Acropolis Museum). You might later want to grab a taxi or take the longish walk over to the large Archeological Museum, where one could easily spend an entire day. Even private guides may need some direction at a museum. DW and I once hired a private guide to walk us (and one other) through the Hermitage. This guide had previously been a guide at that musuem but had quit to freelance (and make more money). He walked us through the facility for about 3 hours and it was an excellent experience. As we were finishing, DW asked our guide if there were any Impressionist Paintings at the Hermitage and he answered that there was a large room full of that kind of art, but most folks did not come to the Hermitage for that kind of art. He took us upstairs to see the collection (which was pretty good, but the works were not in the best condition). Since DW and I are both big fans of the Impressionists, we both still talk about that particular collection and the poor condition of many works (due to sun damage from a skylight in that room). Hank
  21. It truly depends. As has been posted, there are ferry piers all around the harbor (which is over more than a 1 mile). And there is various Ferry Gates (where you enter for certain ferries) so the answer is going to depend on where your ferry docks in relation to your ship. On our most recent visit to Pireaus we debarked from a Seabourn cruise and needed to board the ferry to Naxos, which was docked in the ferry area nearest the train station. That would have been more then a 1 mile hike (just to the entrance gate) so we hired a taxi at debarkation. By the way, if you do book a ferry you should do your homework as to where that ferry docks. The taxi drivers do not always have the answer so it is helpful to give them a hint on which gate/pier. Hank
  22. Ahhh, so now the waiters and cooks are cleaning cabins and moving luggage? Hmmm. Lets call it like it is....just one more HAL cut-back.
  23. I think vloggers should be banned on cruise ships. Folks have an expectation of reasonable privacy, on a cruise. While we do not personally care about the privacy thing, we do not appreciate the annoyance. It is bad enough having to deal with official ship photographers/videographers on mass market cruise lines (one more reason why we prefer small ship luxury lines where this is not an issue). Hank
  24. As a long time frequent cruiser (over 50 years) I would offer these words of advice. If decent Internet is a strict requirement for your travel, do not get on any cruise ship! Even the best Internet (which we have found with the newer Starlink systems) are prone to onboard failure, reception problems, outages, etc. We were recently (December) on a large ship that had Starlink, and yet we had nearly two days of outages (due to onboard failures). I think many cruisers (including moi) look forward to the day when onboard Internet is as reliable and fast as we expect on land. We are slowly (too slowly) getting to that point, but not there yet. Hank
  25. We have spent time driving through the UK (except Wales) and have also done a couple of circumnavigation cruises around the entire island. We enjoyed both modes (cruise and driving) and it is actually a great combination. Doing the cruises has given us a chance to visit some far flung places in the North that we would generally not visit on a driving trip. Driving (outside of London) has given us an opportunity to appreciate the UK, interact with some friends (who we met on previous cruises) etc. Much of the UK is not going to be visited if one simply takes a cruise. A word about London, which is actually one of our least favorite places in the UK. It is a very large city and worthy of a few days visit. I have sometimes joked that although we have traveled throughout the world (far more then 100 countries) it is in London where we faced the most language barrier problems :). London is also a very expensive city for tourists. Lots to see and do, but we prefer being outside this large metropolitan area. Even our English friends (who live in Hampshire and near Brighton) avoid London. Hank
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