birdman518

38 minutes ago, BOB999 said:

 

My assumption is that you are in business class all four flights. 

 

In Boston, you'll have access to the Lufthansa Business Lounge in Terminal E.  The lounge will have decent food/beverages/wines/spirits.  With a relatively short transatlantic flight you may consider eating more in the lounge then trying to sleep on the plane or enjoy the meal service aboard.

 

In Frankfurt you will go through Immigration/Passport control as that will be your first point of entry in the Schengen zone.  My suggestion is to find your connecting gate terminal (probably A) and follow the signs, there may be a priority lane for business class.  Your luggage will be checked through to Budapest.  You'll have access to one of the many Lufthansa Business lounges in Frankfurt if you have time, you can find the one nearest to your departure gate.

 

Intra-European business class is different than the US in that it is really an Economy seat with the middle seat blocked.  You will receive a meal and drink service regardless of the length of flight or time of day..  

 

In Budapest you'll reclaim your luggage and go through "customs," which is really just exiting through the green door..

 

On the reverse, you'll have access to the lounge Lufthansa uses in Prague.  At Frankfurt you'll follow the signs to your connecting terminal (likely Z, B or C) and go through exit Passport Control/Immigration where there is likely a priority line for business class.  You'll have access to one of the Lufthansa Business lounges.

 

In the US, you'll find the Global Entry area and either enter your information on a kiosk or (hopefully) just have it take a picture and get waved in, reclaim your luggage and you're done.

 

Lufthansa Lounge Locations:  https://www.lufthansa.com/fr/en/lounges

Excellent!  Thank you...

14 minutes ago, edinburgher said:

and you could also check the official websites of the individual airports as they usually give lots of info on airport amenities and services.

Yes, I did that.  I was hoping for personal stories or recommendations...  

Leaving tomorrow from BOS to BUD, via FRA.    This is our first

time traveling business class.   I would appreciate any information

about the amenities offered in any of these airports (we will be returning

from PRG).

I looked at Lufthansa's site, but would like to hear from fellow travelers.

Also, will we be going thru customs at FRA and then we will be all set

for the trip?   We have Global Entry for our return to the US...  but

that is new as well.   Any anecdotes about it (esp. in BOS) would be

helpful.

1 hour ago, Mary229 said:

We have highly mineralized water at home and even though we have an extremely healthy diet on ship, even healthier than at home I have issues.  As a friend who is a food industry chemist explained : Ship water is devoid of minerals and is not all that hydrating as it has been stripped of all mineralization.  

 

First thing upon rising is a cocktail of powdered vitamin/electrolytes and Metamucil.  Every morning.  

I am doing Metamucil now every morning... "things" are going much better, and I will certainly continue on our cruise.

It turned out that (per DW) it doesn't matter.  We would do them anyway, so it will end up being (at most) 3 tours x 2 people x €149 on top of the cruise.   

I was just getting ready to sign up for our optional excursions on our upcoming

Danube cruise.   We are taking the pre- and post- stays in Budapest and Prague,

respectively.   I know I can ask AMA or our travel agent, but I am up early and figured
I would ask here for people who may have done this.

Selecting the optional tour for Godollo, it states that it is 149 euros.  Is that per-person?
It is not clear.   Similarly for all of the other 2 optional... all are listed as the same price...

The Vienna Mozart concert and the Folklore Dinner in Prague.

So all  3 for two people would end up being about 900 euros extra.   Just checking.

15 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

My GI doctor feels that Magnesium Chloride liquid should only be taken if a person has not had a bowel movement for 8 days.

I use Magnesium Citrate liquid similarly only as a last resort.. it is like a colonoscopy prep.  Not something I want to do while vacationing, esp. on a cruise.

Quick update:  This has been working quite well for me: 
1.  Daily dose of Miralax + Metamucil.

2.  500mg Magnesium Citrate capsule daily.

This has been producing as close to "normal" as I have been for a while.

I would like to see if only doing the Magnesium on an "as needed" basis would work, 

i.e., maybe two times per week.

The results have been "not too urgent", which is a good thing.

Thanks to all again!

4 minutes ago, edinburgher said:

Hungary IS a member of the EU and as far as I am aware, is also a SCHENGEN member country.

My bad.. thanks!

Thanks... the liquid is not necessary, so I will probably just skip taking it, or buy something abroad..

We are going to be taking the AMA Waterways Danube cruise in May from Budapest to (ending in)
Prague.  We fly into and out of Frankfurt.

Fortunately, neither of us are on prescription medications, but we do take some supplements, such
as a generic multi-vitamin, Vit. D3, Curcumin, and a few others, and we would like to take them on our trip.

1. Do these need to be in their original bottles?  If so, this will take quite a bit of room for a 10 day trip.

2.  Will we have to go thru inspections both in Frankfurt AND Budapest?  I know that Hungary is not in the EU,
and will that make a difference?

3.  Our previous trip with AMA on the Rhine was easy, going into and out of Amsterdam, and all countries

part of the EU and Schengen area.

4.  I don't HAVE to bring an OTC liquid, but if I did, can it be in a greater than 3.4oz bottle?

Any other suggestions welcomed...

Thanks to all for replying.  I have just been trying a Magnesium supplement tablet, with only 

a little (not enough IMO) success.

The whole issue is that I would prefer not to miss a whole day of my cruise/trip in the bathroom, which is what happens if I used either Dulcolax liquid or Magnesium citrate liquid.  Both work, but after 4 or 5 days of constipation, it takes a while.  

As I tried to indicate before, this is an ongoing problem that I believe has to do with my spine issues...  it is pretty common to read that nerve problems can be indicated for constipation, presumably because nerves work muscles, including the colon.

10 hours ago, clo said:

I'm guessing you work from home. If not, how do you handle it when going about your regular outdoor routines?

I am retired.  Normally if I have to block out most of the day for a "solution" to work, it is not a problem, although it is still annoying.

33 minutes ago, Elaine5715 said:

I also take Miralax daily for a high fiber diet.  Constipation when traveling is common., people don't want to talk about it or haven't connected it to travel.  Happens to me all the time with any type of vacations.  There is something to losing "home field advantage" especially if you experience a "release" once back at home.  People mistake constipation and the accompanying nausea/discomfort as sea sickness.  I do take Magnesium 250 mg twice a day during vacations which helps.  Prunes and apples, not juice help and lots of water.  Sometimes I overcorrect and my system settles back into regularity and sometimes not until I get home. 

Thanks!   Which OTC magnesium supplement (and dosage) do you use?

21 minutes ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

have you tried introducing daily magnesium supplements? they do wonders for leg cramps and spasms, constipation and sleeplessness.

No, but I plan to start based on feedback from this forum....

Thanks again to all.  Yes, I am about ready to set up a visit with my PCP or gastro-enterologist...

Thanks to both of you.  Sorry I should have made several things clear:  I eat a healthy diet of mostly home-cooked foods with lots of vegetables (and garlic).  I also take Metamucil and some Miralax daily.   I used to take a stool softener each day, and I drink a fair amount of water.   I have tried prune juice regularly.   It is probable that my constipation could be caused at least partly because I have neuropathy issues for my cervical and lumbar spine, and this can be related to constipation, as the nerves need to all work properly to move things through.

So my question is not about "constipation in general" as all of these ideas can be found online.  But on a cruise, where every day is planned, I would prefer not to be stuck on ship because I had to take a more drastic laxative which could take all day to work.   I was hoping for someone who might say they had the same issue...

Okay, this will be our 2nd AMA cruise, but, we still feel like new cruisers!
I just spent time looking here for the keyword "constipation", but did not see exactly
what I am looking for.

For people who have chronic constipation, how do you manage it on a cruise?  Even
when OTC products work, they can create a situation where one is disinclined to stray

too far from the toilet.   And even if not an emergency, one does not really want to 

find a public restroom in many large cities.

So: does anyone have a recommendation for a real overnight remedy?   One that will

not endanger the entire next day?

Thanks to all, and sorry for raising this!

FWIW, we just booked our 2024 Danube cruise with a TA... we used the one from before, and it was a good experience.  Thanks again to all for help and advice.

As it turns out, there is a funny outcome here.  While I was awaiting a callback from the cruise company (I was really only expecting a quote), I also reached out to my TA.  By the time I got the call, the room I wanted was gone.  My TA had grabbed the last one for us.  We are going to meet with her on Friday, and I am 99% sure we will commit at that time.

Thanks again to all!

Thanks all, for your replies.   At this point, I am only getting a quote from the cruise company.  But I am a little anxious not to lose a place for the cruise and date I want.   I suspect we will go talk to a TA on Friday. (soonest).

We are looking to book another river cruise (Europe) soon.   Last time, we used a local travel agent, and we were generally pleased with her help.
But to be honest, there was very little that we could not have done easily ourselves.   What is the general opinion here about "doing it yourself"?

I really only see 4 big items:
1.  Book the cruise

2.  Book the airlines

3.  Book extra-cruise activities

4.  Book travel insurance

Obviously, the more stuff that the cruise package includes, the less of the above may be applicable.

I am not really crazy about this, but the wife (?) wants to.

In a similar vein, does American Express travel (we recently got a Gold card) have any advantages for this?

Thanks,

Mitchell

Thanks, GeezerCouple...  Yes we are in the USA.   We will deciding exactly what we *want* to do and when very shortly.  I will take your advice!   FWIW, we plan to go back with AMA Waterways because it was a top-notch experience, in every way.

My wife and I took our first cruise (AMA Waterways Rhine) last April.   At that time we did not book until
February, partly because we just decided to do it.   We had no problems getting a spot on the peak

Amsterdam part in early April.

We want to do another one (Danube), next May, but I have a few health issues that might pop up.  I do understand
that trip insurance may be one way to cover this, but what if the problem is (like mine) cancer, where although
everything looks clear now (it does!) one does not know what could happen (mine has already come back

once).   My understanding is that travel insurance may not cover pre-existing conditions.. what about something

like this?

The second part of my question is:  what is the latest date you would recommend committing to this?   E.g. I 

will have scans every 3 months, so the next one will be Feb. 1, then one around May 1.   With cancer, any

scan could have you in surgery within a week.

I would think I am not the only person to be in this position....  Thanks!   P.S.  I am clear now and do NOT expect
any problems.