LadyStone50

Hank -

Monte Carlo doesn't interest me, Everything I have read or seen about Eze and St Paul, however, does (grin).

Having never done this before, I am assuming we need to:

1) get international drivers license (easy-peasy and we have plenty of time)

2) Research car companies that do day rentals near the port (we are cruising. Not my favorite way to see the country, but my two girls love it) Any suggestions?

3) Plan an itinerary that makes the best use of our time. We only want to see one to two cities at most so we can relax and enjoy them. It seems to make the best sense to go to the furthest town 1st then backtrack slowly. Again, any advice here would be wonderful.

Lastly, how much time should we factor in to check in and out of the rental car office?

Side Note: Hugely disappointed that the museum in Sante Marguerite will be closed. Both kids are big fans of "The Man in the Iron Mask" and it would have been fun to surprise them with that.:p

We are looking for interesting side trip from Nice on a Monday. I have discovered that many sites are closed on Mondays (including Musée Bonnard in Le Cannet and the museum in Sante Marguerite). We are a family of 4 (children are 15 years and above), interested in getting away from the port and exploring a quiet village or two and soaking up a little of the beauty of France.

Right now we are leaning toward renting a car and driving to St Paul de Vence and Eze. From what I have read here, this is a do-able day.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Found the answer to my own question ... it is closed. Drat!

is the Musée Bonnard open on Mondays? and if so, what are its hours?

Thank you for pointing out the error in my description of the Accademia and Uffizi. I noted down the Uffizi because it's their website where you purchase tickets for the Accademia (at least that's what google sent me to!). I've read that it's a good idea to book your tickets in advance to avoid the queues? I would be interested to hear from other people's experience whether this is in fact necessary.

 

I visited the Uffizi 16 years ago! It's an amazing gallery, but I do remember the long queues and throngs of people. I don't think we will be able to fit it in on this trip unfortunately.

It is not only necessary, it is imperative that you pre-book tickets into the Uffizi. HUGE mega lines there, especially in the summer.

Can we eat at the sushi bar in Jasmine using the UDP?

We've bumped non Haven guests several times.

I totally hope you are not on my upcoming cruise (grin)

- LadyStone aka "non-Haven guest who will be making specialty reservations"

We will be on the Jade in 2015 and the roll call board has been amazing! Lots of people doing a repeat sailing (which is a great recommendation of the ship and its itinerary in itself). We cruise often - and I am a compulsive vacation planner. I have found my rival in planning on the roll call board and we have scheduled several private tours together. We are very excited and are looking forward to hearing about your experience once you get back. Please post a review of your trip!

I have traveled by train in Italy...Venice to Florence 1st class...we had assigned seating. We boadred early enough to put our luggage in the area by the door (carry on was with us overhead).I had no problem,BUT I looped a wire through the luggage and around the pole and was comfortable leaving it. You can buy these things at Magellan's.com or a travel store.Sure takes the strss out of watching your luggage.

Perfect! Thank you so very much for this tip.

I have never travelled the trains in Italy with as much luggage as we will have. I know 2nd class gets really crowded - standing room only at times. Is it an issue if the luggage blocks the aisle while the train is moving?

When I asked them about 2015, I received the following E-mail from them:

 

We can manage booking only for the 2014

 

Sent from my iPhone

OK that really makes me nervous .. I am looking at my vouchers right now - definitely says July 2015 ... This site has changed their page at least 5 times over the last three weeks. I paid through PayPal so I suppose I can dispute it if there's an issue and everyone's reviews of actually using the service have been pretty favorable. *crossing fingers*

We have been to the station in Florence - it shouldn't be too difficult as long as we give ourselves enough time. Is there an advantage to booking 1st class? The price difference is minor - which class has better accommodations for traveling with large pieces of luggage?

We end our cruise in Venice then plan to take the train from Venice to Lucca to visit family. Has anyone done this? Will we need to transfer in Florence? Any advice would be much appreciated.

Y'all are making me nervous. We paid for 2015 transfers through this company already (there were less than 20 spots still available for a July 2015 date ... gasp!). I am hoping its all good :D

Pardon my interruption, but I am spending our Livorno port day in Volterra and absolutely love ceramics. Could you tell me the name and location of the shop you recommend?

 

Thanks :)

Pam - I do not remember the name of the shop, but as you come up from the underground parking, it is one of the first shops on your right as you walk into town. Across the street is an alabaster shop. The look of the ceramics there was kind of like Primitivo pieces - very simple and vibrant.

aaaand, my apologies to sonvoltken6 for hijacking your thread. I will hush up now (grin)

There was one small studio in Volterra near the wall that had amazing ceramics - hand painted but very different from traditional designs. I would post pictures but we gave them all away as Christmas gifts. We are buying for ourselves next time!. Volterra is also known for their alabaster objects. So beautiful -

There was another place in Siena in the piazza where the Cathedral is located. The shop was a series of connecting underground caves - so much fun to explore.

We did a whirlwind tour of Orvieto. Spent MUCH too short a time there. No shopping at all, just a crazy drive through the town to the cathedral (GASP! hands down my favorite cathedral thus far in Italy ) on the bus you can pick up in the lower parking lot then back down to the car. I felt like I was doing "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride". I very much want to revisit that town again and spend some time there wandering those gorgeous streets.

http://www.autoeurope.com rents all over Europe - fairly decent rates

and an excellent Route planner http://www.viamichelin.com

You will also need an international driver's license and you need to get it before you travel.

Also, be aware that the autostrada is filled with crazy fast and aggressive drivers.

OhMyGosh - Exactly!!

on my working itinerary it says in big red letters,

"Train to Venice:* Book 3 months prior - earliest train possible ***Note: HUGE problem - where can we store bags for the day?"

hehe I came online looking for something else and saw this thread at the top of the queue and thought, "BINGO!" ... then saw the post date :(

just wanted some clarification and even though its an old post I am guessing there are still a whole lot of people who would be interested in the updated info.

Yes - realized I could check for myself RIGHT after I posted .. went back and edited it but you were too fast for me! Thanks for keeping me honest (grin)

Laminator - you might want to check your plan carefully. We have unlimited data, texts and calls internationally also but this only works for calls from the US (meaning I can call my relatives in Luca, Italy any time I want from the USA - but not if I was calling them from Italy)

Cool fact for WiFi though: Every McDonalds in the world is a WiFi hot spot. ;) The last place I would EVER eat while I was in Italy is a McDonalds ... but its good to know you can get the connection if needed.

Hi Mary- We used Limo in Rome! (Yes, I wrote that correctly!)

The owners name is Claudio and he is a very nice guy with very trustworthy people who work for him. We have used him a few times for excursions and often for simple transportation to/from the airport or hotels to/from the port.Very dependable,always on time,offers great suggestions for itineraries if asked and has led us to some of the best food we've ever eaten. He actually gave me his wife's recipe for their favorite pasta sauce that I now make all the time! Sometimes I've asked if he could do better price wise from another company. If he can,he does! He has always given us a discount when we are using him a few times in one trip,for example…airport to hotel,then hotel to port and port back to hotel. If you tell him what you are looking for he can help with ideas then you can research if it's what you want. We wanted medieval towns,ceramic shopping,and a real tuscan winery with lunch. So I can live vicariously through you, please let me know where you decide to visit!!Even the scenery as you drive is beautiful!

kadey - you mentioned ceramics. Last year we were on a mission to find some great ceramic pieces (and we found so many of them - our favorite spot was in Volterra) where did the limo take you to purchase ceramics?

Here is the information about luggage storage at Piazzale Roma:

 

LUGGAGE STORAGE

 

At Piazzale Roma is available a service of custody and storage of the luggage, daily from 6.00 AM to 9.00 PM at the cost of € 4,00 per piece for each 24h from the delivery, to allow our customers in transit to be able to move freely in town.

Tel: 0415231107

 

Link to the company and web site this information came from: http://www.trasbagagli.it/en/index.shtml?services

 

I agree that it would be easier to leave it at Piazzale Roma, vs. the cruise terminal.

 

 

The web site this information came from: http://www.vtp.it/pages/navi/crociera.jsp?nomeInfo=P&iconaInfo=ico-passeggeri&idm=Q3WY8Z7H8DZN9P8U7752DEI9E67U403N8K9V6027J1KF1816W68B49336AUO464J&prg=5

Update: this is still in existence but the new posted price is 7,00 Euro per piece of luggage. Small price to pay for freedom to walk in Venice unencumbered!

I have never seen anyone post re taking a sailing day in port,but that doesn't mean there is not someone out there. It sure looks like it could be a fun way to spend the day. I would look to see if you can find another review other than TA on Google just to compare if you don't get a reply here...it just sometimes TA can be onesided even tho they own CC. Just saying.

cberge - that was my thinking exactly.

sgcass is correct. Even with the ticket you may have to wait in a line to visit the Duomo. It goes quite quickly though and it is worth the wait. While you are in line, it gives you time to marvel at the glorious OUTSIDES of the buildings. They are incredible.

The link above gets you a ticket into 5 places; The cathedral, Baptistry, Bell Tower, Cript, and the Museum attached to the cathedral. We used this ticket last year in October - after the summer crowds , and still waited in lines for the baptistry and the cathedral.