map70065

Happy to say that my daughter and I were on the Viking Mars this summer - the Chairman's Cruise finally came true.  We had a WONDERFUL time.

5 hours ago, MarkTapley said:

OTJ,

 

I know I’m rather late to this discussion, but I’d encourage you to consider doing an extension on your own if Viking doesn’t offer one.  Barcelona is truly an amazing, unique place to visit and very easy to maneuver, on foot or via their subway or taxi.  If an such an extension on your own is too daunting, then I think it would be fairly easy to book a local tour company to arrange entry tickets and take you around for a few days from a hotel of your choice.

 

You won’t regret deciding to go on this trip!

 

Jerry

I agree - I can always spend more time in Barcelona and not get tired of it.  Unfortunately for this trip that's not going to happen.  I'll have to return home either the day we land or the next day.

12 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

Probably mostly due to my crappy (and worsening) memory, but I must sheepishly admit that I don't remember a single person from that cruise - passenger or crew (other than the staff person telling everyone to "stand back...it's gonna get worse" while things were going crazy up in the lounge). The only people I "know" are the ones that have been posting on some of these threads ever since the event. Wouldn't know any of them face to face with the exception of the passenger who was our neighbor on deck 5. DW and I are admittedly not overly social on any cruise...no "meet and mingle", etc. So the "reunion" aspect of it is probably less meaningful for us compared to others who knew each other well and may have personally kept in touch via more than just usernames on a forum. 

I was traveling with my daughter, but there were 2 couples that we knew also on the cruise.  One can't go on this one, but the other can and it will be nice to cruise with them again.  We did actually run into one of the bartenders on our Sky cruise in Iceland.  I wouldn't have remembered him - but HE remembered my daughter and she kind of remembered him.  Wonder if our staff will be on the ship with us.

7 hours ago, Mrs Miggins said:

This is a lovely itinerary.  One of the issues with Viking is that their Mediterranean offerings are very predictable.  Many of us have visited the ports usually offered on numerous occasions so the opportunity to offer something a little different would be welcome.

I'm excited that this is a DIFFERENT itinerary than I've ever done in the Mediterranean.  All of the ones I've been on (except Greece) have stayed along the shoreline of Italy/Monoco/France/Spain.  I've never been to the islands here.

My daughter and I are looking forward to it - looks to be a great cruise.  We'll have to do some schedule shifting to make it - but we can do that (hopefully).  I'll actually already be in Europe for another tour then (if things work out right).  We've already done another Viking cruise in Aug. to Iceland - on the Sky.  One of the bartenders that was on that cruise was also on our previous Sky voyage. The cruise was very well planned and I felt very safe the whole time.  I also have 2 European cruises planned for next month.  I'm doing what I can to keep myself safe - vacced, boosted, distanced (as much as possible) and masked.  Can't pass on this opportunity.

On 8/24/2021 at 9:24 AM, johneb2 said:

Were you also on the infamous NL cruise in March of 2019?  We have a trip planned on the Sky in January and are not sure how we will feel the first time we set foot on that ship again after that experience.  I am sure we will do just fine very quickly after we experience some of the wonderful Viking offerings again.   JohnEB

Yes, my daughter and I were on that one, too.  This is the first cruise we've taken together since.  I have cruised with others and solo since, but she hasn't.  I was kind of shocked on the first cruise after that I got a little choked up during the emergency drill and was a little upset that others weren't listening to the instructions.  After that everything was fine - and I didn't feel that way on cruises after that.  Looking forward to Iceland on this one.

Hope to be heading out on the Sky again in a couple days.  I know this adventure is going to be different than the last one.  

I find it ironic that the CDC is warning people from the US not to travel to Level 4 countries and yet the US is a Level 4 country.  Daily percentages of new Covid cases is much lower in Iceland than  US and number of people completely vaccinated is higher in Iceland..  And Iceland's numbers are going down rather than up (ours hasn't peaked yet).  Of the states, Louisiana (where I live) is ranked 7th for the number of new Covid cases.  It is ranked 47th for the number of people vaccinated.  Where do you think I'm more worried about catching Covid?  As for being quarantined - I'll take my chances - bringing a couple extra books just in case.

Not sure if there are drugs that are illegal in Iceland - but if it's prescription medication be sure you bring it in the original bottle/package.  

Just signed on to the Aug 28 cruise and I have a couple questions.  I have heard that the only excursions allowed are the ones from the ship - is that true?  I can't find it in writing anywhere.  Since I'm a bit late signing on for the cruise most of their excursions are sold out already.  I know that they will probably add some others - but on past cruises if I didn't see anything I likes I just booked something locally.  

I just got the official invitation.  It's an e-mail FROM Viking explaining the cruise.  It asks for a RSVP to it to let them know if you're planning on going.  

I got the information forwarded to me by my TA (who is a GEM!!)  When I informed the people I traveled with they contacted their TA, and were able to get the information from them.  Once she sent me the information she said I would have to handle anything further with Viking - because they had made all the arrangements.  Airfare and gratuities are to be included.  Our room isn't exactly the same number - but is in the same area and same configuration (ship may be slightly different).  People we traveled with got exactly same cabins they had.  

The Whale lot is also the parking lot for the Riverwalk Mall.

On Mar 3 there are 3 day parades and a night parade.  So the parades run pretty much all day - but they don't get to the downtown area until after noon.  If you get to the port area before 11ish you should be fine.  No problems on the 8th - by then the party is over.  The parades do end not far from the port in case you're interested in seeing one or two.

You'll be there for what we call "Mardi Gras Lite". It's the weekend before the big Mardi Gras parades - but there will be some parades that weekend - just not the big ones.

I don't know what Hilton Garden Inn on St Peters you're talking about - I don't know of one. I'm a local and there are Hilton and Hilton Garden Inns, but not on St Peters. You're coming at a good time for prices (but it will be HOT and HUMID!!) The best hotel depends on where in the city you want to stay. If you want to be IN the French Quarter, the prices are higher because that's where everyone wants to be. If you want to be downtown you don't have to stay IN the French Quarter, you can be close and that's good enough. If you don't care where you stay, the burbs are cheaper, but your savings will be eaten up on transportation. The best "all purpose" hotels would be on one of the streetcar lines or close to them. Any of the hotels on Canal Street between the river and Baronne/Dauphine (street names change at Canal) would be good. Probably the least expensive, but good one is the Crowne Plaza - on Canal and Carondelet/Bourbon. There are a couple that are just off Canal on St. Charles, which you may want to check out - the Royal St. Charles and the Courtyard by Mariott. All three of those are on or close to both the St. Charles streetcar and the Canal Streetcar - and the French Quarter.

If you're on a tight schedule I'd say Uber. Streetcars and bus service are not exactly "on time". They have a schedule, but more often than not it's an approximation. During the day, they usually run every 20 minutes or so, but can be longer and have frequent stops. If you're not on a tight schedule the streetcars are great. $1.25 per ride - $3 for an all day ticket (seniors ride for $.40 per ride). I would also say Uber for to/from port. From the Quarter to WWII isn't a long walk (about a mile) but you can catch the St Charles Streetcar on Canal Street and it take you almost to the entrance. However long you've set aside to see the WWII museum, double it - it is HUGE!

I have yet to book shore excursions for our last minute Mediterranean cruise (in one month!! Yikes!) and I'd like to thank everyone for this informative thread! :) Italytours is by far the most affordable tour company I've seen by comparison.

A couple of questions, are the "skip the lines" ticket expensive? And what do people usually tip on these tours? I want to make sure we'll have enough cash on us during the tours.

I can't remember how much extra the "skip the line" option was, but in hindsight I think we could have bought tickets online. I tipped the tour guide $10 and the driver $10 for each tour, which is high for Europe, but the tours I took were really great.

map70065 - thanks so much for sharing your experience. I am getting more and more excited with each passing day. I am so happy we booked all three Italy ports with this tour company.

I wish I would have - booked the Pompeii tour with another company and it wasn't good - I know now!

We just returned from a cruise with NCL. We did tours with Italy Tours.EU in Rome and Florence/Pisa. BOTH tours were great. There were 6 of us traveling together. In Rome we were joined by another couple from the ship (this was someone else who had booked the trip through the company and we didn't know). In Florence/Pisa it was just the 6 of us. I love the fact that they keep their tours small (I think they cap at 8) because they can get into places larger groups can't go - and a smaller group is easier to work with. In Rome we ran into a problem due to the fact that we were there on a national holiday, so many places were closed (including most of the Vatican). We weren't aware of this until we heard from Italy Tours - who informed us that their "usual" tour would have to be changed because of this - and at that time we had the option of canceling with a refund or accepting the changes. We accepted the changes. Instead of going to the Vatican spots we were given a walking tour of the Palantine Hill and Forum area. IT WAS WONDERFUL!! For both tours we were met at the port by our driver in an 8 passenger van. In Rome this was a good thing because the port is a little ways from the city. In Florence it was GREAT because Florence is over an hour away from the port. Both places the driver took us to meet our guide. In Rome we met the guide at the Colosseum (we had gotten the optional "skip the line" pass, which is WELL worth it). The "ship" based tours had made an announcement that the Colosseum would be closed and many people canceled those tours because of it, but it was NOT closed. Our guide did a walking tour of it, which was really good. From there our guide took us on a walking tour of the Palatine Hill and Forum area. I've been to Rome before, so had seen the area on my own, but the guided tour was GREAT! Our guide was very knowledgeable and answered all questions. She was easy to understand and went at our pace. Our group requested a stop at the Vatican, knowing that most of the sights would be closed, we still wanted to see the Vatican. Our guide finished the walking tour in time for our driver to take us for lunch. We were given the choice of going for a "sit-down" lunch or a "fast" lunch. We picked the fast lunch, to leave more time to tour. The place he took us was a "fast" pizza place - with very few seats. He apologized several times for the lack of seats, but the pizza there made up for it. I'm not a pizza fan, but this was SERIOUSLY good pizza!! He then drove us to several short stops to see other places in Rome, including a short stop for us to see the Vatican before returning us to the port. In Florence/Pisa we again were met at the port by our driver with an 8 passenger van. He drove us to Florence, explaining points of interest along the way. We met our guide about a block away from the Accademia Gallery. We again had gone for the "skip the line" option - and again, it was WELL worth it. I have also been to see David on my own, but it was MUCH better with the guide with us. From there we did a walking tour of the historic Florence area. After the tour we were told where the guide would meet us and were give a little over an hour for lunch and shopping on our own. We met the driver at the assigned time and place and he drove us to Pisa, again mentioning points of interest along the way. We had a short stop in Pisa to see the tower before being returned to the ship. Both drivers and both guides were EXCELLENT. I have taken many tours both solo and with groups in many places and I have to say this group does it right. Professionally run, understandable and knowledgeable drivers and guides, based on the wishes of the group. I would DEFINITELY use them again! I only wish I would have used them in Pompeii!

It's been a couple years, so things may have changed, but I think the fares are set - I never saw them fluctuate when I was looking. Can't help with anything but difference between first and standard class. The biggest difference we noticed was air conditioning. We went in the fall, so it wasn't important to us (although some days we would have liked it) on short trains but in summer I'd go with first class.

We are staying on Prytania Park on Prytania St.

 

1. Closest place between there and the port to purchase a bottle of wine?

 

2. Do you buy street car passes directly from the cars or is there a ticket office?

 

3. Is a taxi just $7 for 2 for the port or $7 per person?

 

4. Opinion on best 'sit down and order' breakfast place near to hotel. They only have the muffin/coffee thing offered.

 

5. Where would be a quick, easy to get to place that sells decent t shirts? We want to purchase, box, and send them home before we sail.

 

Thanks for anything you can answer and feel free to offer other suggestions. :)

1. As previous note said, liquor can be purchased just about anywhere - grocery store, drug store, convenient store, etc. You won't have any problem finding somewhere to buy it. Grocery stores have the best variety and prices.

2. Streetcar passes are $1.25 per ride. You put your money (correct change - you don't get any money back) in the machine on the streetcar. You can get a 1 day pass for $3. With that you can ride any streetcar or bus for 24 hours from the time you buy the pass. That's also available on the streetcar. There are also 3 day passes and monthly passes - but those have to be bought somewhere other than on the streetcar.

3. Not sure on this one, but I think it's the same fare for 1 or 2 people. I know it's that way from the airport to downtown. It wouldn't be $7 each, even if it's more than 2 they just add an extra person charge.

4. St. Charles Tavern on St Charles & Melpomene (about a block away) has excellent food. Place isn't much to look at, but the food is good. Open 24 hours. Menus available online.

5. Your best bet is in the French Quarter - either on Royal Street or Decatur Street. There is a mailing center in the French Quarter - http://frenchquarterpostal.net/services/ who have packing and shipping stuff.

We are looking for a Sunday Jazz Brunch post cruise. I am looking at House of Blues, Commander's Palace, and Court of Two Sisters. Any recommendations or preferences. We are a family of 5, kids 18-24.

Wow, you couldn't have picked a more mixed group. I've not been to House of Blues for their Jazz Brunch, but haven't cared for the restaurant when I've been there.

As mentioned before Commander's Palace is expensive, but IMHO, well worth it. I go there every day if I could afford to. Eating there isn't just fine dining, it's an eating experience. The best of everything. Brunches are a bit less than dinner, so a good time to go. Will definitely need reservations.

Court of Two Sisters is a buffet. I don't like buffets, but I think it's a bit above the normal buffet. Great venue, good service (usually), good food. Reservations probably a good idea.

Now to muddy the waters for you I'll toss in a couple other ones. Palace Cafe on Canal Street have a great Jazz Brunch - and it's in an old music store. Little Gem Saloon is the only place that can actually trace it's history back to when Jazz was king.

All of the above have a jazz band playing, but where they play differs. At Court of Two Sisters they are stationary, playing in one place, so depending on where you sit you may not hear them much. Commander's and Palace have a Jazz trio that goes from table to table playing. Little Gem is a small enough place that the band is on stage and plays the whole time you're eating.

If I had to rank them I'd put Commander's first, Palace second and third would be a toss up.

 

Is it just me, or has anyone else fallen in love with New Orleans and can't get that place out of their system too?

It's not just you! When we moved here 15 years ago I had no expectations. I'd been here for the world's fair, but that was fast and furious. After we'd lived here about 6 months I told my husband that I wasn't leaving. If he got transferred again I wasn't going. New Orleans sucks you in!!

I have many friends for many different places who visit often - and I love it!!

map70065- I will also be in new Orleans in april. I am staying at the bourbon Orleans. I love your suggestions for Jackson square. I use a mobility scooter. how accessible is the area

 

thanks for all your advice/suggestions

Jackson Square itself isn't accessible (there are a couple steps to get into the square), but you really don't need to go into the square itself. It's a park, with benches and grass and statues - but not much else. Nice to look at - and good place to relax at times, but not a necessity.

You're going to want to be AROUND the square and that is very accessible. The streets on 3 sides are closed to traffic and there are wide walkways along the shops. It's a great place to see - lost of art, some musicians, some mimes, some fortune tellers, some bums (usually harmless). You can scoot all the way around at your speed.

Royal Street is closed to traffic during the day, which also makes it easy to travel along there - where you'll also see musicians (from folk to rock to jazz to opera) mimes, fortune tellers, sometimes magicians - you never know just what will show up. Royal is my choice of streets to travel the majority of time. It's safe and well traveled.

Bourbon Street is closed to traffic at night (sometimes) - but is full of drunks. It can be an obstacle course, especially on weekends. If I have to go more than a block I usually go over to Royal to get close to where I'm going and then return to Bourbon.

Decatur Street is a busy street, but has wide sidewalks - lots of shopping there.

You really shouldn't have any trouble getting most places with a scooter. You DO need to be careful of the potholes - both in the streets and on the sidewalks. They can swallow you up <G>.