sippican

I aim struggling to find a highly rated private tour guide. I have used Tours by Locals in many locations worldwide, but their site has been nonfunctional for weeks.

21 hours ago, Judyrem said:

What cruise was it?

Silhouette repositioning August 16, 2025. Iceland to Boston.

silhouette 

Strangely, today when I did a mock booking floor the same cruise I had called about, the promo was applied for one passenger!

Just got told by a CVP to book someone as a second passenger that "will not show up". The e-quotes show the price for 1st/2nd passenger. The promo restriction says solo supplement 200%.  Nothing states not applicable to solo pricing. Completely false advertising.

On 6/16/2024 at 7:53 AM, Hlitner said:

Paris has an excellent taxi company called "G7."  That company has an English speaking phone line and also offers the ability to book taxis online (or via an app).  When we are in a situation where we must have a taxi at a specific time (such as when heading out to CDG for an early flight) we simply book with G7.  Not sure, but I think G7 can also arrange for a larger vehicle (which you might need for 4 persons with luggage).

 

As to the RER, it is similar to a Metro/Subway system.  We use to the RER to/from CDG as long as we do not have too much luggage.  Dragging large pieces through subway/train stations is possible, but not our idea of fun.

 

Hank

Do you recall the rate?

9 minutes ago, HiroPro said:

Yes, this one is 10+6.  BTW, did you earn Celebrity points for ALL nights, including the extension, or just for 7 nights aboard the ship?

What date is that? I know someone who may be interested. THX

16 hours ago, HiroPro said:

I was scheduled to go on a 16-day Tauck/Silversea combo vacation in 2025.  Unfortunately, the ship will  now be undergoing maintenance, so the trip was cancelled.  I’ve been on Tauck trips before and I think the services was fantastic.  I “feel” like that combination of Tauck and Silversea would have to be a notch above, however, I recently noticed that Celebrity Flora also has a 16-day package that includes 10 days at sea and the rest on land in Peru/Machu Picchu.  The itineraries look similar and the pricing is almost the same (about $17k/pp).  Since I’ve never done a Celebrity trip that involved a land portion, I have no idea how the hotels and guides compare to Tauck (which were top notch).  Does anyone have any comparative insights that might help me decide if I should snag the Celebrity trip instead, or just wait for another Tauck/SilverSea opportunity?  Thanks!

 Are you sure the Flora package has 10 days at sea?Their itineraries are usually 7 day sailings with a 2 or 3 day post/pre. I did do the X MP extension and it was excellent in every aspect.

Regarding the licenses. The National Park only issued a finite number of licenses to sail in the area. They have made it pretty clear they will not be issuing more. Celebrity had licenses to sail Xpedition, Xploration and Xperience (sold). They mistakenly believed they could simply transfer the Xpedition slots to Flora, and combine the Xploration and Xperience to Xpedition. They were denied then. sold the Xperience. 

41 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

Well, did you know that during Flora's inaugural year, she had to tow Xpedition which had run aground in the Galapagos (oops!).

Wondering where you found that information? The Flora responded to help evacuate passengers, but I never read that she was allowed to tow the Xpedition.

7 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

I thought that’s what I said.

 

But more importantly, your individual walking excursions will only have what can fit in their very cool zodiacs, usually around 12-14 guests.

 

The reason I even mentioned it was because everyone is making a big deal about the Xpedition now having around half the guests that the Flora has. My point being even though there are more folks on the Flora, which never felt crowded when we were on it, the morning and afternoon walking excursions were made up of small groups, no more than 12-14 guests at the most.

 The number of people on the tours has nothing at all to do with Celebrity, the ship, or the zodiacs. It is strictly regulated by the Galapagos National Park regulations to minimize impact ecologically. It would remain the same no matter which company you sail with.

Where are people hearing that they can just sail with Lindblad as an option? When would they be done with their planned renovations?

I've been twice. There is no best month, that's why it's a year round destination. That being said - North Seymour Island was our very favorite stop.

22 hours ago, Barwick Cruiser said:

We’re booked on Flora with an actual veranda..not an IV. I’m confused as to why Flora holds no appeal for you. 🤔

As I mentioned, I've been on Xpedition twice and loved the feel of the ship, especially since it went to lower capacity. Having had contact with those who have sailed on Flora comparing experiences compelled me to book Xpedition for our second trip. I really feel that Xpedition offered the same experience, with fewer people, at a better price. 

I am thrilled that. Lindblad is buying the ships. They are a cruise company the specializes in expedition-style cruising. In the future, I'll stick with using cruiselines that do their best in the destinations I am going to. (Antarctica and Galapagos for example). Although I've sailed a great deal with them, Celebrity's loyalty program is no longer an incentive to not look elsewhere.

I just don't think expedition travel is Celebrity's niche. 

13 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

Lindblad characterized the sale as an expansion of their Galapagos fleet.  So I assumed that the licenses were sold along with the ships. 

How exciting! I feel they are much more adept at keeping the expedition feel of a Galapagos Cruise. Have always felt they were a little out of their league here.

So the real question is - did Celebrity sell the licenses too? Lindblad currently sails on the National Geograpihc ships. Those licenses are worth gold. I wouldn't hesitate to sail to the Galapagos with Lindblad on the Xpedition. Flora holds no attraction for me after being on Xpedition twice. Infinite verandas are a huge design mistake.

6 hours ago, LyndaMR said:

They were clear in the letter that the compensation offered (75% refund & 75% towards a future cruise if booked by the end of this year in our letter) was *only* for the northbound journey. Whether that’s because they can fix it in Whittier or because they don’t want people to know it can’t be fixed remains to be seen. 

The other reason may be that they don't know if they can fix it or not. They will never offer compensation for a sailing they when they have not determined if it can take place without impact. Why offer compensation if it becomes  non-issue?

4 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

I do hope future passengers have cancel for any reason insurance.  This is just the beginning of the Alaska season.  It is very unfortunate that the Sapphire is experiencing so many issues.  She is a really nice ship to cruise Alaska.  

 

I am glad Princess offered current passengers a nice compensation package. 

 

 

No we don't. In years of traveling have never purchased CFAR insurance.  I would much rather take advantage of whatever the cruise line decides to offer.

Is the mini-bar set up standard, or can you request certain items?

1 hour ago, Alaska05 said:

Yep Cruisemapper shows us going west of Vancouver Island. This is our 9th Alaska cruise so no biggie for us. I think most folks won’t know the difference. Just listening to conversations yesterday lots of people don’t do much research about their destination like we do here on CC. Heard an American absolutely mangle the pronunciation of Juneau. We’re doing a B 2 B so will be interesting how the 14 days play out. We’re skipping Ketchikan. We didn’t have anything planned but I feel sorry for folks who are doing their bucket list cruise of Alaska. 

Please keep us updated. We are scheduled to board on your disembarkation day. Second Alaska trip, first with land extension into Denali. Fingers crossed.

On 5/1/2024 at 11:33 AM, Lane vacation said:

Hi can you tell me what this trip was like please ? I just messaged this company to see if they pick up from the terminal 

was they reliable and good ? 
tbank you 

Tracy 

The tour was excellent. You can personalize the day as you like. Yea, they picked up at the terminal.

I have an acquaintance who is very interested in cruising the Seine with our group next year. She is prone to seasickness and is hesitant to book fearing she'll be miserable, I've never heard of anyone feeling ill from motion on a river cruise, Although I've sailed on a river cruise and don't recall feeling any motion whatsoever, I'm a poor judge because I've ridden out some pretty rough ocean waters with no queasiness. 

Has anyone been affected by motion sickness on a river cruise?

We've booked this tour.  https://www.toursbylocals.com/koh-samui-thai-culture-big-buddha-local-restaurant-shore-excursion-suphot

21 minutes ago, Wayfairers said:

I’m looking at them for Japan (Tokyo, Naha, Omaezaki, Kobe, Fukuoka) and throughout South Korea.  Do you have a favorite guide at any of these?

Sorry, no. We did Tokyo and Seoul on our own. Used a private guide on Jeju Island, and I don't recall the guide in Kobe. Just read the reviews for the guides/tours that are of interest to you. I've found them helpful, then correspond with the guide through the site.

Check out the Tours By Locals website, We have used them extensively for shore excursions with great luck.

FWIW, I wanted to put my two cents in here. I have been to The Galapagos twice. Both times we sailed on the Xpedition. The first cruise it was at capacity, 100 passengers. The second time The Flora was sailing and the capacity on Xpedition had been reduced to 48 passengers. We loved the ship so much during the first cruise, that we decided to rebook. My clients have sailed Flora and absolutely loved it so I'm sure we would have also had we booked it. On Xpedition with lass than 50 passengers, it felt like a private yacht. We noticed no drop in the quality of the crew, guides or offered excursions (in fact, our wildlife viewing was better the 2nd trip). Having had two amazing trips,  I'd only choose Flora if it was much a better deal than Xpedition.

I'd also like to address the misconception that this trip is only for those in good physical shape. Sure, you might miss out on a few activities if you are not a strong swimmer or hiker, but they do offer something for everyone every day. They even did a private zodiac tour for a 90 year old passenger one day! 

I'm often asked when is the best time to go; which itinerary is the best, etc. The Galapagos are a year round destination. There is no best time. Each season has something different to offer. You'll see incredible things no matter which itinerary. We visited some of the same destinations both times, and they seemed completely new.

I'm so glad we didn't put off this trip. And blessed we were able to go twice.