Magical Mystery Tour - Live from the Norwegian Spirit April 12th

[sassyb69]

I always keep the dailies and scan them when I return. I wasn't going to bother posting them online from this trip as the itinerary is so different, but will be happy to do so if you want.

 

It may be a little while before I get them scanned as I'm only back for a couple of days and then I'm heading off for my walk. I'll try to do it asap though.

 

Jetlagged's ones will obviously be of more use to you.

Thanks Keith, happy to wait till you are back and have time. Just nice to have an idea of the sort of things taking place and the timings

Edited April 19, 2017 by sassyb69
Addition

[Jetlagged787]

Thanks Colin, that would be great. Would love to hear your feedback on the ports as well

Sarah

 

No problem Sarah.

 

Colin

[Jetlagged787]

Great photos Keith. Thanks for sharing and keeping us up to date with your progress so far. That was a surprise about Israel but not enough to put me off a visit if I were in that part of the world.

[bmwman]

I don't think the security is anything to do with events recently in Jerusalem. From what I've seen that was a random act from a local. The security at the port is about what I would have expected and to do with who they are letting in the country.

 

My info about the train times is from the Israeli railways web site. It proved to be correct, as I would have expected. It's been showing as running until 2pm for some months now, but in the last week or two the service was extended to 3.30. The trains were certainly running until then.

 

Keith it may have been random but security was and has been stepped up. We are very close to the situation. The trains only ran slightly later and certainly not to Jerusalem

[bmwman]

As we sail into Rhodes, I've got a chance to update on a few bits.

 

For the second day on Israel, we stayed fairly local. Haifa is built on a hill, so I saw the opportunity to get some walking done up it. I set off early and did 10 miles around the city. Before we all went back out in the afternoon.

 

We had planned to take the train to the top of the hill in the afternoon, but it wasn't running as it was Easter.

 

I have to say that I didn't particularly warm to what we saw of Israel. I'm really pleased we went and Acre was really interesting, but I was quite surprised at how run down much of it was.

 

This is all obviously personal opinion (we really liked Casablanca, which many people hate), but from what I saw I don't feel the need to rush back, although I would like to get to Jerusalem some time.

 

In Haifa there is a nice beach area where the facilities looked good, and the road leading to the bottom of the Baha'i Gardens, the Gardens themselves and the promenade at the top was very well kept. However outside that area there is lots of litter, dogs mess and quite a few dead animals laying around.

 

Our son really wasn't impressed, and he would rather have stayed onboard on the second day.

 

I probably sounds quite negative there, which is unfair. It certainly isn't a bad place and the people were generally very friendly. If we had done the tours then we may have had a different opinion. Certainly the people we spoke to who had done tours were pleased (although people did seem to think it was more run down than they expected).

 

One last thing. I don't really know the exact details, but there seem to have been some problems with the NCL tours. I don't know whether it was because of when we were here or whether they overbooked tours, but I've heard stories of tours being changed and, for example, people who were booked to go to Jerusalem on Sunday having the day changed to Monday instead (which obviously created conflicts with other tours).

 

We were late leaving Haifa on Monday and there were lots of people still boarding quite a while after sail away time. I assume that was a combination of tours running late and the slowness of getting through security in port.

 

The change was due to early close down for Passover - that simple

 

I hope you do get the chance to go back and spend some more time is the big little country!!! (Not at the time of a religious festival which most keep I would add.

Edited April 20, 2017 by bmwman

[CoffeeGoddess]

Just got back on the ship after Rhodes.

 

We agreed that it is our favourite of the Greek ports that we've visited. The old town is lovely and we also visited the Grand Master palace.

 

We spent some time just wandering the passageways, did some shopping. A really fantastic day.

 

That sounds like my kind of day, just wandering and exploring. I'm glad you and your family are having such a good time.

[Cassicruiser]

Happy anniversary to you both!What a pity you only saw Haifa and Acre. There is so much more to Israel and Haifa is just so so. Jerusalem is magnificent, as is Tel Aviv beach front, Dead sea, Tiberius and so much more. Amazing hikes, museums, Ancient history and modern technology all in one tiny country. Its a wonderful, vibrant and diverse country and definitely warrants a proper visit.

 

 

Enjoying your thread, thanks for posting.

[KeithJenner]

I certainly understand that we didn't get the most out of Israel, and we were never really expecting to. A trip to include Jerusalem etc will certainly have to happen in the future.

 

I was, however, surprised that we didn't warm to the place at all.

 

Acre was really interesting, but I can't say that I liked it, as I had been expecting to.

 

I certainly won't write it off based on this short experience, but it did surprise me.

[KeithJenner]

Kotor is another port which is challenging as one of my favourite ever.

 

The old city is so compact, the people so friendly, and the walk to the fortress on the hill is one of those experiences, like the walls in Dubrovnik, which turns into something of a community experience. Everyone is discussing the views etc, encouraging those who are struggling. It was probably the highlight of our whole trip.

 

As I'm training, I did the walk twice, once with the family and then again by myself afterwards. It's 1,350 steps to the top, but worth every one of them.

 

Afterwards we had some lunch (the food was just ok, but the setting was fantastic), and a couple of local beers.

 

Overall, an almost perfect day.

 

The ship docks literally just outside the city gate. As you walk out it really looks like it's just been parked up there. It means that you can get from cabin to the city in a couple of minutes.

 

I'm just uploading some photos.

[KeithJenner]

We got up at 6.30 to watch the sail in to Kotor, which is spectacular. It was freezing though.

 

 

These are some pictures from the walk up the hill.

 

 

And some other ones from around the town.

 

 

Apologies if the quality isn't great. I'm doing all of these pictures from my phone.

[Jetlagged787]

 

Apologies if the quality isn't great. I'm doing all of these pictures from my phone.

 

And we are grateful that you are taking the trouble. Keith, if you think the quality is poor, I would love to see some that you think are great.

 

That's Kotor added to my bucket list.

[KeithJenner]

Some pictures from Split:

 

 

This was our second visit to Split, and I could just spend days walking round the place.

 

We met some friends from the ship whilst waking round and had a few local beers with them. Another fabulous day.

 

For us, the final three ports were the highlights of the cruise. Absolutely stunning places.

 

We have a bit of a rule not to drink too much on the last day, but that went a bit wrong yesterday. I don't think I embarrassed myself or annoyed anyone, but a couple of people who I don't recall seeing last night stopped me this morning to ask how my head was. :)

 

Perhaps the highlight was my wife waking me at 4am when she realised that she had packed all her clothes in the bags that we had left out (they don't allow self walk off in Venice). Luckily, we were able to find the bags in the storage area, so the crisis was averted.

 

Waiting at the airport for our flight home now. I'll try to do a bit of a round up in the next couple of days.

[jvsnana]

Enjoyed your live review and looking forward to your "round up" :)

Can you tell me what the weather was like in Kotor and Split while you were there?

And while you are at it, how about Venice weather?... lol!

ETA...did you take a private water taxi from the Hilton to the port? Cost please, if you don't mind :)

[Jetlagged787]

Perhaps the highlight was my wife waking me at 4am when she realised that she had packed all her clothes in the bags that we had left out (they don't allow self walk off in Venice). Luckily, we were able to find the bags in the storage area, so the crisis was averted.

Love it Keith. Sounds like you were not the only one to drink too much!

 

I hope your return home goes smoothly and look forward to the "round-up" once you have recovered.

[KeithJenner]

I have a friend on the same cruise. Mad welsh guy, Kevin. Enjoy Keith.

 

I missed this post previously.

 

I met Kevin at the M&G, and we bumped into each other a few times during the cruise. Nice guy.

[KeithJenner]

BTW is Almando the HD

 

I answered yes to this earlier, and just remembered that I had done so.

 

He isn't onboard anymore. I never actually saw him (which is unusual as he's usually everywhere onboard), but said that he was the HD as the comments box was "Dear Armando".

 

Anyway, that changed after a few days. I can't remember who the new HD was, but it seems that Armando got off either in Venice or at one of the first ports.

[KeithJenner]

Enjoyed your live review and looking forward to your "round up" :)

Can you tell me what the weather was like in Kotor and Split while you were there?

And while you are at it, how about Venice weather?... lol!

ETA...did you take a private water taxi from the Hilton to the port? Cost please, if you don't mind :)

 

The weather in Split and Kotor was sunny, but not all that warm. It was nice enough for us to sit outside when eating or having a drink (although our food in Kotor went cold fairly quickly). It was mid teens Celsius (about 50 Fahrenheit). We were very comfortable with a t shirt and a light jacket.

 

I believe that is a bit colder than would be expected at this time of year. When we were in Croatia previously, it was August and it was really hot.

 

Venice was warmer than that before the cruise, but again it had cooled down when we got back.

 

We did use the water taxi to the port. It's a crazy price, but we decided to go for it. I booked both the water taxis in advance and it was €62 to the port (€107 from the airport to the Hilton).

[jvsnana]

The weather in Split and Kotor was sunny, but not all that warm. It was nice enough for us to sit outside when eating or having a drink (although our food in Kotor went cold fairly quickly). It was mid teens Celsius (about 50 Fahrenheit). We were very comfortable with a t shirt and a light jacket.

 

I believe that is a bit colder than would be expected at this time of year. When we were in Croatia previously, it was August and it was really hot.

 

Venice was warmer than that before the cruise, but again it had cooled down when we got back.

 

We did use the water taxi to the port. It's a crazy price, but we decided to go for it. I booked both the water taxis in advance and it was €62 to the port (€107 from the airport to the Hilton).

Thank you for all of that info Keith!

Getting ready to pack for our Star Venice cruise, so layers seem the best.

We will plan on a private water taxi from the Hilton to the Airport...will probably book with the hotel Concierge. Thanks again for posting the prices.

[KeithJenner]

I've just uploaded the pictures I took of the various menus on another thread:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2491535

[Jetlagged787]

I've just uploaded the pictures I took of the various menus on another thread:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2491535

 

That's brilliant thanks Keith.

[tjt87]

Some pictures from Split:

 

 

This was our second visit to Split, and I could just spend days walking round the place.

 

We met some friends from the ship whilst waking round and had a few local beers with them. Another fabulous day.

 

For us, the final three ports were the highlights of the cruise. Absolutely stunning places.

 

We have a bit of a rule not to drink too much on the last day, but that went a bit wrong yesterday. I don't think I embarrassed myself or annoyed anyone, but a couple of people who I don't recall seeing last night stopped me this morning to ask how my head was. :)

 

Perhaps the highlight was my wife waking me at 4am when she realised that she had packed all her clothes in the bags that we had left out (they don't allow self walk off in Venice). Luckily, we were able to find the bags in the storage area, so the crisis was averted.

 

Waiting at the airport for our flight home now. I'll try to do a bit of a round up in the next couple of days.

 

Hi Keith,

I notice you say they don't allow walk off I'm Venice. Is that just on the Spirit or all NCL in Venice.

 

We have a 12:30 flight and were hoping to be one of the 1st off. So what is the earliest time they let you disembark and do you think we will be ok getting the 12:30 from Marco Polo?

[KeithJenner]

Hi Keith,

 

I notice you say they don't allow walk off I'm Venice. Is that just on the Spirit or all NCL in Venice.

 

 

 

We have a 12:30 flight and were hoping to be one of the 1st off. So what is the earliest time they let you disembark and do you think we will be ok getting the 12:30 from Marco Polo?

 

 

 

It is a rule of the port, not just the Spirit or NCL.

 

They don't actually police it. We walked off with the bag that we collected during the night.

 

However it shouldn't be a problem for you anyway. 12.30 is plenty of time. Our flight was at 11.30 and we would have had plenty of time to get to Marco Polo for that flight using the People Mover and bus, which is how we usually do it. In fact, as we were a bit hung over we grabbed a taxi, after leaving the ship after 8.30 and we were at the airport by about 9.

[tjt87]

It is a rule of the port, not just the Spirit or NCL.

 

They don't actually police it. We walked off with the bag that we collected during the night.

 

However it shouldn't be a problem for you anyway. 12.30 is plenty of time. Our flight was at 11.30 and we would have had plenty of time to get to Marco Polo for that flight using the People Mover and bus, which is how we usually do it. In fact, as we were a bit hung over we grabbed a taxi, after leaving the ship after 8.30 and we were at the airport by about 9.

 

Thanks Keith, good info as ever

[KeithJenner]

I'm not sure whether I'm allowed to do this. If not then hopefully the Mods will just delete this post rather than the whole thread.

 

Anyway, as I mentioned a few times during this thread, a feature of our cruise was my training for the sponsored walk I am doing this weekend. I am just getting everything together to head off for it (posting the dailies will have to wait until next week I'm afraid).

 

I'm having a last push for sponsorship, so will just post the link. I'm sure that people who know me on here will appreciate that I post to try to help people make the most of their holidays, and there is no ulterior motive to try to get people to support me, but it's a great cause so if anyone fancies donating anything then it would be greatly appreciated.

 

Feel free to ignore this if you don't think it's appropriate.

 

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Keith-Jenner

[Jetlagged787]

I'm not sure whether I'm allowed to do this. If not then hopefully the Mods will just delete this post rather than the whole thread.

 

Anyway, as I mentioned a few times during this thread, a feature of our cruise was my training for the sponsored walk I am doing this weekend. I am just getting everything together to head off for it (posting the dailies will have to wait until next week I'm afraid).

 

I'm having a last push for sponsorship, so will just post the link. I'm sure that people who know me on here will appreciate that I post to try to help people make the most of their holidays, and there is no ulterior motive to try to get people to support me, but it's a great cause so if anyone fancies donating anything then it would be greatly appreciated.

 

Feel free to ignore this if you don't think it's appropriate.

 

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Keith-Jenner

 

Just want to wish you all the best for your walk tomorrow Keith and hope that you have some decent weather.

 

To all other forum members, Keith is walking for a very worthy cause in Macmillan Cancer Support and I do hope that you can find it in your hearts to support him. Keith has a target to raise £2000 and is getting soooo close to achieving it. Let us all remember the amazing contribution that Keith makes to these boards. Please support him now and see if we can crash through that target.