MeHeartCruising

I would just pay the 6 euros/person and ride the bus from your ship directly to the train station. I rode it the other direction and it was great to be taken door-to-door, so to speak.

It’s poorly written, but I think it sounds like there will be a bus involved. Even so, it would be nice if they told you more details. I looked back at the excursion description from my day. It was way back in 2008! In the description, they told us the Hilton Hotel was our drop off and pick up point. That allowed me to make specific plans in advance. Good luck

Can you post a description of your excursion? I can't get to it without having a cruise booked. It was years ago, but when I was on an excursion that did this, it didn't matter which train station we were taken to because once at a Berlin train station, we were put on a bus and then taken into the city center. We were dropped off at the Berlin Hilton (near the Stadtmitte U-Bahn station). Pickup was at the same location. This info was included in the excursion's description, so I could plan accordingly.

When I was there in 2023... It is indeed a 10-15 minute, mostly downhill walk from the visitor center to get to the site itself. Once down there, you will be able to see a lot of the site without walking difficulties, however, as mentioned, you probably won't walk out on the rocks that much. There was also a small trolly car run by the site that would transport people back up the hill if you want to use it. It arrived just as I was finished seeing what I wanted to see, so I rode it back up the hill. I can't recall if it also took people down the hill but I would imagine that it did. Especially someone with mobility issues. Quickly looking thru the linked document above, I didn't see mention of this "shuttle" service. But maybe I just missed it. Or maybe it's not always offered. I'm not sure. But I know I rode it back up the hill.

Did you see the "Important Details" section of the page you linked to? It seems to spell things out nicely. EVERYONE has to pass thru the same security line at the Colosseum, even if you already have tickets (and a guide) to get into the colosseum. There is no skipping this line. If that line is long, it sounds like your guide may decide to not take you inside. If the line is reasonable, it says you will go inside. At the Basilica, they mention that strict dress codes are in place. That would not apply unless you were going inside the building. But it also lists reasons why you might not go inside.

It’s been years, but when we visited Malta, there was a line of taxis waiting at the port. There was a booth set up as you walked along the pier where you explained where you wanted to go. A person helped estimate the time needed. You paid that person an hourly rate. I believe we paid 65 euros for 3 hours, but I could be wrong. And there has been inflation. They gave us a slip of paper with the destinations written on it. We gave the paper to the first taxi in the line. Off we went. Our driver was not a guide, but we were lucky that he was engaging and there was no language barrier. He took us everywhere we wanted plus one more stop he said we had time for. He dropped us off at the bus station in Valletta since we spent the morning with him and still wanted to explore the city. We did not need to pay the driver since we paid earlier. However our day was very successful, so we gave him a tip (as Americans do). I have no idea if this service is still offered. But you might look into it.

I wondered as I wrote that if I was going to be proven wrong. Sorry. I made an assumption that I shouldn't have. 🫢

On our RC cruise, they offered transfers to/from both Bologna and Venice airports. In fact, when our disembarkation in Ravenna was switched to Trieste due to horrible flooding in Ravenna, they still managed to get the transfer passengers to both Bologna and Venice airports. The transfer bus to Bologna airport left at 3:30 am to get people there in time. They also offered other transfers to Venice city center and Ravenna rail station.

I did Amsterdam to London via Eurostar service after a cruise a couple years ago. I loved it. It was far less stressful/annoying than involving the airports. As mentioned above, verify your timing and how it relates to the service interruption. Even if the direct service is not running, you could still take a regular fast train from Amsterdam to, say, Rotterdam and then transfer to the Eurostar service from there.

Definitely do the Titanic Experience and the Heritage Center. Walk JFK Park. Walk up the hill and photograph the colorful row houses with the Cathedral behind them. Walk up to the Cathedral and visit. Look at the statues/monuments memorializing the historical events of the town. Shop a little. Have a Guiness at a pub. Sit along the waterfront and soak it in. Take a boat tour to Spike Island. You can easily reach Cobh via train from Cork. The train station is right in town beside the Heritage Center. I didn't find a need for a formal tour for any of this.

Did you already explore Cobh while in the Cork area? Lovely little town to spend a day.

While it obviously can be skipped as proven by post #2, I haven't seen a significant quantity of people on this forum mention this in my years on Cruise Critic. Perhaps get a travel insurance policy that protects you if it is a worry to you. Myself, I'd put a cancellation in the "it's part of the adventure" category that I simply accept when I do major trips.

I agree with the above. There should be a bus. Free or a few euros. And while not the best port in the world, it makes for a nice day. Enjoy!

Given the cruise is in a few months, I would assume that NCL has sold out for all the other tours that cruise lines typically offer. It's not that what you are seeing is all they offer. I'd spend the money and get the private tender boat. Splitting it with another couple makes it a little more acceptable. Given the likely overall cost of your trip, it will hardly be noticed in the big picture. 😀 I will add that staying on the ship is not something I would do. However, it is a beautiful location no matter whether you are on the ship looking around and up at the caldera or up top looking down at the ship and water.

This thread may prove helpful. I used the forum Search box at the top of the screen to find it. There were other threads on the topic you might also want to look thru.

I've never walked it. But I just took a look at Google Maps in satellite or aerial photograph mode and it sure looks like there is no reason it can't be walked. There are even covered walkways in multiple places. You a see the painted crosswalks across the entry streets into the various terminals. Have a look, you can zoom in quite close to see how it would be done.

I did a B2B a few years ago that had Kusadasi on both cruises. So I was there twice, one week after another. This was my first visit. On the first visit, I did the ship excursion which spent the most amount of time at Ephesus. This included the Terrace Houses. On the second trip, I didn't see any excursion that interested me other than one that went to Ephesus. But this time it was a shorter time at Ephesus. Basically just a walk down the main drag. Then we proceeded to another ruin site called Magnesia. Then we went on to Miletus where there was a very impressive theatre. Finally we went to Didyma, which had a very impressive Temple of Apollo. I actually enjoyed the second trip to Ephesus as well. It was good to hear 2 guides version of what I was seeing. So while I saw Ephesus twice, I still spent much of the day at other very worthwhile ruin sites. This was a Royal Caribbean excursion named "Best of Antiquities". If you can find a way to get to the non-Ephesus sites mentioned above, it would be an enjoyable day. Assuming you're into Antiquities! 😀

I walked from the metro station back to Terminal B last year. I had walked to Terminal A previously. On the previous trip, there was a shuttle bus taking you from Terminal A to B. However, when I arrived at Terminal A this time, there was no shuttle bus running. Terminal A was dead (no ships docked at that time on that day). So I started walking to Terminal B. I started to walk along the route that the shuttle bus had taken me on the previous trip... along a roadway close to the water. I was stopped by a guard and told that I could not do that. He made me leave the port area and walk on the elevated street (Akti Miaouli on Google Maps) toward another port entrance (for Terminals C and B). This route took me MUCH longer than I would have anticipated. I would not have wanted to be dragging luggage along for that much time. And it was along an uphill/downhill street due to the elevated roadway. I would pay a taxi a significant premium to take me to the Ferry Pier. I think I would do this even if I was permitted to walk along the waterfront route. It's further than you would think.

Have you called Royal Caribbean to ask about purchasing a transfer to the ship from Ravenna? In previous years, it has been available. A shuttle bus that leaves from the back side of the train station. It runs throughout the morning picking people up from the train and dropping off people just getting off the ship from the previous cruise. Call Royal multiple times if you get an agent that tells you NO. All agents don't seem to know how to figure this out.

Perhaps your agency has its own fees on top of the cruise line fees? I would ask your agency your questions. They own the reservation with NCL.

Well, it certainly can be walked. I did it years ago from near your location. But Google Maps shows it to be about 1.8 miles of walking. I would take a taxi if I were to do it again.

Dorsoduro is near P. Roma, but not immediately close to it. You certainly can walk it, but depending on you hotel location you’ll likely need to go up and down multiple bridges with luggage. I would ask your hotel what the recommend.

I would also agree you MIGHT have time for a visit to Parc Guell, but it probably depends on what you want to do in the Gothic Quarter. When I responded above, I assumed you might visit the Cathedral, maybe the Picasso Museum, etc. in addition to shopping in the Quarter and along Las Ramblas. You might want to allow a 2-3 hours for that. The only challenge might be that the logical order to do these would be Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell, and then the Gothic Quarter.

$58 is about the "normal" price for the transfer in past years. I have no idea why they also sell a higher priced excursion that does the same thing, apparently. I just wanted to make sure you are clear on where the transfer that you booked drops you off at. They don't usually drop you at the train station. In fact, the Venice train station can't be reached by motor vehicle. They usually drop you off at the People Mover station on the island of Tronchetto, which is one of the islands of Venice, the city. The People Mover is sort of like an elevated, above ground subway. You would get on it and ride it 2 stops to Piazzale Roma, which is closer to the city center and its hotels. From Piazzale Roma, you will need to figure out how to get to your hotel. Is this your understanding too?

On the newer ships that use the touch/tap locks, I have been able to leave the card in the plastic holder attached to my lanyard. Did it a couple weeks ago on the Breakaway. No problems. For older ships that don't have touch/tap, obviously you need to pull the card out and slip it into a slot. Note, however, (most?) newer ships also require you to insert a card into a slot once INSIDE the cabin to keep the lights/power on. Most cabin stewards provide blank card that you can keep in that slot full time. But if they don't, you need to use your card (out of its lanyard holder) to put it in the slot. This room "feature" is supposed to help conserve costs by shutting off the room power when no one is home.