MeHeartCruising

I'll concur with those urging you to plan ahead and go to Ephesus instead of just wandering around Kusadasi. Because it is a short day, I think you should probably purchase a ship excursion to Ephesus. When I looked at this itinerary, they were not offering the optional Ephesus tours that included the Terrace Houses, but they still were offering tours to see the rest of Ephesus. Many would consider Ephesus to be the crown jewel of this itinerary.

I am a single guy who travels solo a lot. Fortunately, I learned how to tolerate this during my many years of solo business trips around the country. Now that I'm retired, I have zero problems traveling solo. Sometimes I barely say a word to anyone else on my trips. Sometimes I socialize some. I rarely socialize a lot. OP, don't you think you'd be more comfortable traveling solo than traveling with a near-total stranger? I certainly would. The chances that going with a total stranger will work out without some form of issues seems pretty slim to me. If you really want to find someone to cruise with, between now and July 20th, I'd be out and about in social places every night and weekend in Chicago looking to meet someone and develop a friendship/relationship with them and then ask them to join you.

Many report, including myself, that booking yourself online does not send a full invoice. You just get an email confirmation that is empty of useful info. You need to call the main number and request the invoice. There is an automated prompt way of requesting it so you don’t need to wait for a person. I don’t have the keys to press, however, off the top of my head. You can also wait for an agent and they can send it to you.

A good call if you have location preferences. The Club Balcony Suite, isn't a true suite (and doesn't get all the good perks that go with suites) and really isn't worth much more money than a regular balcony. I would do what you are thinking.

Even if you really, really need "downtime", I would not do it on the ship. At least get off the ship and find a nice cafe/waterfront/shady location/whatever on these wonderful islands to sit and do nothing. Or take casual, non-intensive strolls. These are memorable locations and I would not want to miss them by staying on the ship.

I cancelled a September 2022 cruise under Cruise with Confidence a month ago or more -- well before final payment was due, but mine was with a non-refundable deposit. It took about 3 weeks, but Royal sent me an email with the FCC details. The FCC expires one year from the sail date of the cancelled cruise. So mine expires on September 25, 2023.

Yes, that is an indication that the category is either sold out of already allocated to some travel agency groups. Those cabins may re-appear to be sold as other people cancel or travel agencies release their group blocks back to NCL. Also, as people upgrade to better cabins, the category will become available for your cabin to be assigned. If you take the "guarantee" cabin, you will eventually be assigned to a cabin in that category OR what NCL considers to be a better cabin. What NCL considers "better" may not coincide with what YOU think is "better". It may be on any deck that has higher category cabins. It may be closer to the front or rear of the ship or near the elevators or under the dance club, etc. Your actual cabin may be assigned next week or it may be assigned any time between now and your cruise, including up to the last minute.

If you truly want an excursion for transportation only, the cruise lines almost always offer a "Rome on your Own" excursion which does that. You will need to find your own transport between the sites in Rome. When I did this years ago, the drop off point was very near the Vatican. If that is still the case, then you would need then only need to get to the Colosseum on your own. I would use taxis for that. Although, I have walked it before, but it's quite a walk and not time-efficient for a port day.

I agree with the OP. I don't see any hint of a solo discount on that cruise even though it is marked as having one. Looks like a website error. You could try calling them.

What ship/date are you looking at?

Do you have experience with land-based trips and independent travel in Europe? If so, you might feel comfortable doing your own thing in some or all ports. What are the ports? We may be able to offer you hints as to a few that you can easily do with minimal risk. If this is your first time in Europe, I might suggest that taking the ship excursions would be less stressful for you. I am now a big DIY excursion person in Europe. But I've now been there many times both on cruises and on land vacations. But, for my first cruise ever, I also chose the Mediterranean. So, I chose to use ship excursions to make my life simpler for me. At that point, I only had European experiences in London and Paris. I found picking from the ship's Mediterranean excursions to be less stressful than trying to figure out how it was all done.

Most NCL ships I’ve been on clearly do not have one single line of a buffet. There are different sections/stations and people roam about as needed to get what they want. As you approach the roast beast, look to see if others are waiting for some. If so, get behind them. Get yours, then move on as you want. I always just look to make sure I’m not stepping in front of someone in the immediate vicinity. I’m not going to feel bad stepping in to get a pat of butter if the closest person is 4 feet back at the French fries. If, however, there is clearly a line, then get in it and take your turn.

I think this appears to be the "official" website for the Mt. Etna national park. https://parcoetna.it However, it doesn't seem to have an English translation. But even if it did, I don't think there is anything on the site about booking various tours and activities. As near as I can tell, you need to buy those tours and activities from vendors. Google seems to show a a lot of them. As euro cruiser says, I would start by asking Rome in Limo. Then move on to the likes of TripAdvisor.com perhaps.

If the itinerary says they dock at 6am, they will likely be there shortly before that time. Weather or other situations can sometimes change that. You won't know that until that day. There will be little to no immigration/customs to deal with upon arrival, so walk off passengers will be able to leave the ship quite soon. I would think by 7am or perhaps a little earlier IF the ship is on time and all goes well. Only your transfer company can tell you if they will wait for you if you or your ship is late. You should ask them their policy.

I was also staying at Ca’Doge. I did a “test run” without luggage the day before I left just to learn anything that would help. I discovered a ramp entry way to the side of the front entrance of the train station that helped avoid some steps. As long as you’re able to decently manage your bags, it’s not that difficult of a trip. Have fun.

I spent a few hours in the Taksim Square side of the water on a previous trip where we had an overnight in Istanbul. I think cruisemom42 has given good suggestions. I went to the top of the Galata Tower and it offers nice views of Golden Horn waterways and overlooking city. There is a funicular that you can ride from the Taksim area to the Galata area. I was coming from the other direction that you will be so I rode the funicular up and walked back down the hill to my ship. But you could go the other direction to get to Galata. There's an interesting historical statue in the center of Taksim. There was also an outdoor exhibit of some sort off to the side of the square when I was there, so maybe you'll experience something similar. Other than that, it's mostly just shopping and eating and businesses around the Square itself. I enjoyed the walk between Taksim and Galata. Lots of things to look at, but nothing remarkably historic that I found, as this is the more modern part of the city. While exploring the Galata area on foot, I was somewhat startled to see a collection of about 40 well-armed, riot gear type police marching down a street headed somewhere. I decided I didn't need to follow them to see what was going on. So I kept going the other direction. The locals also cleared the way very quickly as they moved through the crowded street.

I get it, BUT… I would not assume that my bags would necessarily be delivered to my new cabin at any particular time unless the steward promised that. Ideally the steward would do it ASAP, but as noted, things are very busy that day. If they hadn’t been delivered by, say 4:00 pm, then that’s a different issue. As an added protection, I still printed and brought the baggage tags for the second leg of my B2B and I put them on my bags in my cabin when I left them for the steward to move. I also choose to repack everything just to make the move easier for them.

I just did a test booking and it seems to be the same as it has been recently for me. I was able to change to a different cabin and found plenty at the same price to pick from. Norwegian Joy in February. Of course I was also permitted to select better location cabins for a higher price. The deck plans looked fine to me too.

Personally, I would skip Sorrento and the ferry ride. I found Sorrento underwhelming and not worth the stop that my excursion did (lunch). Spend more time at Pompeii as cruisemom42 suggests. Then return to Naples when you've had enough and get a late lunch in Naples and explore Naples some and walk leisurely back to your ship.