jc foster

For your return flight, is it operated by United or a code share partner? If it is operated by United, you should be able to get your seat in advance. If it is operated by a code share partner, you may have to contact the partner to get your seat assignment. I have never not had my seat assignment for long haul, trans-Atlantic flights.

Agreed, I also have never not had an assigned seat for a Trans Atlantic. Try the United website. Some Airlines now charge around 40 U.S.D. for early seat assignments. We are flying British Air to Rome in May and the charge is 38 U.S.D. per seat or they will assign you a seat for free upon 24 hours before departure. Lufthansa early seat assignments for a T/A flight next month were free and we chose our own seats. We were once assigned a seat on the very back row of a T/A flight. It had ZERO recline and it was a very painful flight.

Weather charts online show March- July as the months with the most rain in the Rhine area with May and June having the most precipitation. Rain then show to drop off with Oct.- Dec. being the driest months other than Feb., however, in the end you are simply playing the odds and it is just mother nature and a roll of the dice. Be flexible and if something happens just sit back and enjoy the bus ride.

No, they don't and if you want to cancel the culinary tour, I would do so asap, so you don't get charged for it. I have taken 6 trips with Vantage and the only time I purchased a tour ahead of time was in Russia for the ballet, which would have been a trip destroyer had I missed it! But they had tickets available on the boat the day before the ballet. You don't save any money by waiting, BUT make sure they do not increase your trip insurance. Three tours shouldn't make a difference, but on my second trip to Egypt there were quite a few with a few that were quite expensive and they did increase our trip insurance by a few hundred dollars. When I called Vantage and complained they told me it was a "glitch" in their software and took the charge off immediately, but I've heard it's still there, so keep an eye on your invoice. Their optional cancellation policy has always been pretty lenient, although for a culinary, as with a performance in a theater, I would give them as much time as possible. Where are you going?

We are leaving in eight weeks on a Vantage cruise and today received an email from Vantage which stated the optional tours were filling up fast. When I went to the Vantage website only three tours were available. I booked all three tours but will probably cancel one as it is a culinary tour not to my wifes liking. My question is to any Vantage previous cruisers. Do the optional tours usually fill up so fast? I never saw some of the tours listed in the brochure listed on the website. thanks

With ISIS and all the craziness in the world, we are getting concerned about going to Europe. We have booked Viking"s Paris/Normandy trip for next May. After reading a newspaper article today that says they are focusing on Americans, French, Australians and Canadians, we are getting uncomfortable about flying home from Europe. ISIS is also focusing on blowing up planes.

We still have 8 months -so hopefully it will calm down- or we will get them before they can carry out their threats! We are experienced travelers and have never felt uncomfortable or thought about these issues!!

Curious if others traveling to Europe are concerned?

Well everybodys gotta die of something so why not die doing something that you really enjoy. When these people get you that afraid they have won.

I think Delta may be part of the Star Alliance and if so, they may be able to do more for you once you get to Boston. They may have other Alliance members that can pick up some of the slack. If nothing else, at least you will have more options and Vantage is based in Boston so make sure you take their phone numbers with you. I'll be praying to the travel Gods tonight for you and everyone caught up in this. I've seen some posts from people booked on Viking's France who are in the same predicament as you are. Good luck, and let us know when you get there. :)

 

PS: I don't know how you feel about this, but if you get to the airport tomorrow and Delta will fly you to Boston, I think I would go. You might have more clout if you're in Boston as opposed to your home airport. If nothing else, you'll have more options.

I'm a little put out by Vantage right now. Apparently, Air Canada has released it's schedules now. So we've been sent our air itinerary for our cruise next July. Only one of the flights has a seat assignment on it. I checked out those seats, and they are in the very back of the plane. In looking at the Air Canada website, practically all seats of that category are available. I don't want to be in the very last row on the plane!

 

Plus - of the 5 flights necessary for this trip, the one that's 10 hours long is the only one that doesn't have a power connection at the seat. I guess we'll be running our little travel computer down on that flight. I mean, even the short 2 hour flight has a power connection at the seat. I don't need the computer so much on that flight, but I will on the loooooong one. :mad:

I can not comment on Viking since I have never sailed the line, but I have stayed twice at the Moevenpick Amsterdam. Once was in a standard room and the other was in a suite. I found both rooms to be larger and nicer than most other 4 star and 5 star hotels in Europe. Although overpriced we also enjoyed the breakfast buffet. I guess its all a matter of personal choices and expectations. I am sorry Viking did not meet your expectations and hope you have a much better time on your next cruise.

As of 9:04am on Aug. 24, they have lowered the alert level to Orange and now say there was no eruption yesterday.

 

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_ICELAND_VOLCANO?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Also all air traffic restrictions have now been lifted. It looks like someone jumped the gun.

Uh OH, As of fourteen hours ago the AP reports the volcano has gone to code red alert and a major eruption maybe imminent. All air traffic has been banned from the area. I got this info. off Yahoo. Hopefully the airlines will have revised their routes and found a more effective way to deal with this situation.

We have only sailed once on Uniworld and the cruise director accompanied us on the tours which were led by a guide and I think thats about it. Just what are the duties of a concierge and a cruise director?

I have one quick question please. We usually take enough cash and have used a debit card only once and that was on a med cruise. A regular bank debit card with pin# will usually work and it does not require the pin and chip. Is this correct?

O.K.. After a reread I think I found my answer in Post#2. It appears the answer is maybe. Sorry, guess I need a couple more cups of coffee this morning.

I have one quick question please. We usually take enough cash and have used a debit card only once and that was on a med cruise. A regular bank debit card with pin# will usually work and it does not require the pin and chip. Is this correct?

Wow!that sure is a significant savings. I also noticed on the Douro Spirit they listed category A, B etc they seemed to be the same size room but a different level! I know on Uniworld we paid a good amount of money for our upgrade to a French Balcony. I don't think I would do that again. We will be happy with just a large window. What did you book for a room on this cruise? Also what is the best month to cruise? It can be very hot in Portugal in the summer.. Thanks for your input..

I booked cat.d which is a 150 sq.ft. french balcony but plan to upgrade to the 165 sq. ft. balcony. There does not appear to be any of the single (aquarium) rooms on the Douro Spirit.

JC. Is the Douro Spirit Wine Cruise cruising Portugal ? What month are you going? Is this cruise less expensive than Uniworld?why did you chose Vantage?

The choice was based primarily on price and reviews read on this forum. This is the Portugal Douro River Wine Cruise on the Duro Spirit in the last week of October 2015 . The price was 2699.00 PP + tax vs. 3999.00 pp + tax for the same week on Uniworld. Also all cabins on the Douro Spirit have french balconies although four of these cabins are 150 sq. ft. while the other french balconies are 165 sq. ft.. This does not include the suites of course. We are booked in the smaller cabin, but we will probably upgrade to one of the larger cabins at a later date. Uniworld is great and is of course all inclusive now including gratuties ,and even hard liquor. Uniworld prices appear to have increased significantly and since we drink only occassional wine we believe Vantage to be a better deal for us. The pre and post cruise on this trip will be Madeira and Barcelona, but we have spent several days at each of these previously and will skip these this trip.

Well we have been on three River Cruises two Uniworld one AMA and considering itinerary of Douro River with Vantage. I know the Doura Spirit had been charted by Uniworld and Vantage is now leasing this ship. We are skeptical about Vantage only because we loved Uniworld. Will we be disappointed? We are looking at Vantage only because of their itinerary. Need feedback of cruisers who have enjoyed Vantage. Anyone been on the Douro with Vantage?

We will be sailing on the River Splendor soon and have booked the post cruise extension in Prague. Vantage will try to use the Hilton (Old Town) in Prague, but I have heard that sometimes they must use a similar rated hotel due to booking problems. We are flying in a couple of days early to Budapest and will be staying at the Sofitel near chain bridge. I hope this will be close to where the ship docks. I have heard good things about Vantage's pre and post extension and think you will really enjoy them. The tours in the pre and post extensions are supposed to be by local and well informed guides .

The problem with this cruise is that the information was given to some passengers on the ship and others while on the busses back to the ship. Two busses had no Viking people on them so they did not get the information. They also were not informed before dinner and this information "was available" and given to some of the passengers. There was no excuse for withholding this communication, we could have budgeted our time accordingly. It is inexcusable to make this announcement after cocktails and dinner with wine. "Pack your bags tonight and be ready to board busses for 8:15 departure" for a 3 hour bus ride back to the same city we came from.

These posts sound almost identical to the hundreds posted on this forum in June 2013 during the flooding. It sounds as though the Viking staff is really trying but for some reason there is miscommunication, no communication, and misinformation. Perhaps it is because Viking is building so many ships and growing so fast that the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing. It is true that Viking has many more ships than anyone on the river, but they seem to receive many , many more complainants than any other river cruise line. We have taken only one river cruise on Uniworld and have two others booked with Vantage. Almost every week we receive a Colorful Viking brochure with 2 for 1 offers , free air, and other perks in the mail. I have been very tempted and may very well book a Viking cruise at some later date, but all these negative posts are very concerning. If I do book it will not be in the rainy season. I realize theres always a chance of flooding,low water,etc.,but if I decide to book with Viking I will try to play the odds.

We usually save at lease 200 usd per person by booking our airfare using one of the large online airfare websites. We have traveled from Schiphol to Central Station by train and then taking a tram or walking to our hotel. However,the train can be tough if you have large luggage and it is rush hour. This past November we used "Connexxion Hotel Shuttle" . They have a booth inside Schiphol and use eight passenger Mercedes vans. The cost was about 17 euros per person to the Moevenpick hotel which is located near Central Station and almost next door to where several riverboats dock. GOODLUCK and GOOD HUNTING.

As another poster mentioned he keeps his wallet in his front pocket. A professional pickpocket could easily get your wallet with little tricks like this in crowded tourist areas. My husband who usually keeps his wallet in his pocket does not bring his wallet when we travel and uses the neck pouch for money, credit cards and passport. There are other types of belt pouches, pants with special pockets as another poster mentioned that keep your valuables safe from pickpockets. Check out www.pacsafe.com for other ideas.

My wife and I both purchased the packsafe neck wallets after I was the victim of an attempt pickpocket in Barcelona. While on another trip to Barcelona I was loading our luggage into the trunk of a taxi when I noticed two young men hanging around as I placed the last suitcase into the trunk I felt a slight tug and pulled the pacsafe wallet back in front of me. This all happened in the blink of an eye and I thought the wallet had just shifted as I was moving the luggage. Once inside the taxi I noticed that somehow one of these culprits had managed to undo the flap on top and then unzip and partially remove the money. They got nothing. I swear these guys are like magicians. We have pacsafe backpack, neckwallets, and my wife has one of their purses, however, we now use scottevests with the inside pockets when we are out on the streets.

We visited both Mt Pilatus and Mt. Rigi during a four night visit this past November. These are two completely different mountain types. Mt. Pilatus is higher, rougher, and steeper than Mt. Rigi, however, we enjoyed Mt. Rigi better with it beautiful valley and views of the town below. You can get tickets at the train station for both journeys, and they are easy to do on your own. We also enjoyed the Lion Monument and walking the old Roman wall. Food is very expensive in Lucerne. If you want a less expensive meal then try the snack stands at the train station or the CO OP market inside the train station. By the way a meal at a nice restaurant can easily cost 200+ u.s.d..

My wife and I are both non smokers,but I have a friend who is a smoker, and he said he will now use smokeless tobacco(snuff) while onboard. Personally I think that stuff is nasty, but as long as its not against the rules he can go for it.

I think one of the worst/most confusing part of CDG is that they call so many things "Terminal 2" when in reality it's not at all the same terminal. Different wings and/or different buildings completely. Maps are really helpful!!

 

http://www.aeroportsdeparis.fr/ADP/Resources/0d7e29fd-1ad5-45b8-b406-648deb82fbb8-0d7e29fd1ad545b8b406648deb82fbb8massecdg_g.jpg

Agreed, the things you mentioned along with a rude and unhelpful staff. Sorry, guess I am still upset about that ten dollar 8oz. cup of regular coffee my wife purchased at CDG.

I would allow at least two hours change time at CDG. CDG is huge and the airport staff is less than helpful. What happens if your plane is a little late? We made a short changeover at CDG a couple years ago on Air France with a connecting flight to Barcelona and we literally ran thru the airport . We made it , but our nerves were shot. That is no way to start or end a vacation.

Remy Diva, those are nice photos. We read of the flooding on this forum, but I never realized that the water got that high. Sad.