Advice Needed from Royal Veterans

[Rubyfisch]

Everyone reacts to jet lag differently - so there is no one size fits all answer. I pretty much do not get it. I just went to London for a week, probably only got two hours sleep on the plane, but felt pretty decent all day, went to bed around 10 pm, and work up to my alarm at 6:30 the next morning. Other people are miserable for three days. I would do Rome before the cruise if it was me, but you may also want to look into the places you want to visit and see if everything is closed on a particular day (for instance, we stopped in Stockholm on a Monday and many of the museums were closed).

[Pencruise]

As someone who has never traveled in Europe, this didn't cross my mind, but I will look into it! Thank you!

 

 

 

 

That is definitely something I am trying to think about. We will only have one at-sea day, so we won't be speding long periods of time on the ship. My son will definitely want a basketball/sports court, and both my son and daughter are up for things like rock climbing/flow riding/mini-golfing, etc... But, there won't be enough time to do all of the activities with this itinerary for sure!

 

Look at Easyjet too, they do some inter European flights, that way you would get to experience two wonderful cities for a few days.

[Rubyfisch]

Look at Easyjet too, they do some inter European flights, that way you would get to experience two wonderful cities for a few days.

Google Flights is a great option to compare base fares and see what is available.

 

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[trvlgirlmq]

My family suffers horrible jet lag and have never been able to stay awake all day after a red eye. We prefer to spend at least 3 days pre-cruise in order to get over the jet lag. I think if you want to spend more time in Rome then, yes, go there first. So you would fly USA-FCO, spend 3/4/5 nights, fly FCO-BCN, spend 2/3 nights, cruise, fly BCN-USA on the morning you debark the cruise. This makes for an approximately 2 week vacation which is a nice entry into European travel.

[Markanddonna]

You've been given a lot of good advice here. Glad you know about Rick Steves. Be sure to visit his website and look under transportation options. Flying is usually better than trains. In Europe, the nonstops are cheaper. We usually do transatlantics and then hop on a flight to get to where we really want to go. Ask questions on Rick's forum. Also, tripadvisor has city experts. I use them before and DURING my trip (hey, where's a good place to purchase Polish pottery in Krakow?, etc.) I get a response within an hour, often multiple replies.

 

In Barcelona, be sure to visit the Sagrada deFamilia and then a day trip to Monserrat. We did this trip using the subway, train, and then a cable car. We stayed at Hotel Continental Barcelona on LasRamblas.

 

My favorite day in Rome was a day trip to the countryside to see the catacombs, Roman aqueduct, and the Appian Way. We stayed at Hotel Sonya with lots of other cruise critics!

[pspercy]

Just FYI I've found Melatonin to be a great aid for jetlag.

[baseballsandbows]

UPDATE: So...turns out that Royal hadn't attached the 30% off to the Rome sailings! My TA told me to hold on, so I am waiting to see.

 

I'm sure Rome will be more because the sailing will be in late June--peak travel season.

 

Now I decide between sailing from Rome for a higher cost (but hopefully not too much higher) without having to fly to or from Barcelona, but also dealing with crowds and heat; OR, sticking with Barcelona to have better crowds and temps with the hassle of flying to or from Rome.

 

As I have never traveled in Europe, I lean towards the ease of sailing out of Rome, but all of you have been so great with your tips--let me know if I am crazy to go late June/early July! Guess I will also know which way to lean when I see the prices!

 

(If you saw the first version of this post, I thought they had already adjusted the price, but it was the wrong ship--I am waiting for specific numbers, but I have a hold on staterooms for the Barcelona sailing.)

[mlbcruiser]

I agree that you have already received some very good information. For your kids’ sakes Oasis is the ship. The older Royal Caribbean ships simply do not have all the bells and whistles that one has. There might be times when some or all of you want to come back to the ship early, or to take a break and then head back out into your port city. So it willne nice to have so many options. The teens may get tired of some of the sites and might prefer to go back and play basketball or hang with new friends at times. Even if it’s just for one afternoon – you just never know.

 

If you travel in late May or the first half of June you will be doing yourself a big favor. Crowds in the major cities can get stifling. ( in my own experience, Venice was wonderful at the very end of May. At the end of August, we could not move! Every time we tried to take a picture there was someone standing in front of us- especially in plazas and on the little bridges with everyone trying to take pictures and showing their way in front of each other. All of the vaporettos were jampacked. Very tough to find a seat. Just think of standing in and overcrowded bus at rush-hour.) Additionally, the airfares are less prior to about June 15. But that changes a couple days this way or that each year.

 

Regarding jet lag, if you can arrive and take a rest of an hour two, then hit the pavement and try to go to bed at a time that is normal for that destination, you will get off on a better foot following day. Also be careful because airlines like EasyJet truly nickel and dime you to death. You must even pay to make a reservation and for your seat and for your carry-on and for your checked baggage and so on. You even pay several dollars to charge your flight! When I almost booked them once, the charge card was the only way there was to pay so to be charged for that was ridiculous! Any of the low-cost, non-legacy, major airlines in Europe have maximum luggage weights that are less than the major airlines. Like about 40 pounds to legacy carriers 50 pound limits. The partners of American, United, etc. usually have the same baggage allowances and weight restrictions as The major US intl airlines they are affiliated with. (For instance, Iberia from Spain is affiliated with American and their rules are pretty much the same. Italy’s Alitalia is affiliated with the US airline as well. In Barcelona, if you stay anywhere within many blocks of the Gothic quarter or the main tourist ave, Las Ramblas, You can walk or just take a cab to the foot of that Avenue near the Christopher Columbus statue, and get a quick and very cheap bus to the port. For that you can check on tripadvisor or in your Rick Steves book. If you are on the street in either Rome or Barcelona, if you need someone that speaks English while you are walking down the street, just stop people that are around college age. Many of the young people in Europe speak English but you won’t have much problem in either of those cities anyway. We have stayed on land on both sides of a cruise in noth cities in the past. I used to always think staying on the front end was best until I started doing it on the backend! Now we often do it on both ends, LOL. If you can, hook up with some other people on your role call who need a ride from Rome to the port, you might be able to save yourself some money. My husband and I hooked up with a group of four people and did this the last time we cruised from Rome. (Be sure to exchange cell phone numbers and hotel phone numbers to be able to contact each other and touch base in that city prior to your ride. )

 

 

As for which city, there is so much to see in both and they are both beautiful and vibrant. It can seem very daunting when you haven’t traveled internationally before, but if you do your research, it will be a lot easier than you think. Also, everyone wants you to like their city and most people are more than happy to help you if thry can. it can seem very daunting when you haven’t traveled internationally before, but if you do your research, it will be a lot easier than you think.

 

Also, if you do choose the Oasis, research that ship well. You would be wise to make your show reservations in advance. Just look on your cruise planner, and then go to entertainment, to find what shows are being offered at what time. You can always change them when you are on board, assuming there is room or else wait list for the show if you go early. The comedy club is an exception in that the venue is small and it always gets packed. Also, don’t count on being able to walk right to the dining room and get seated immediately if you do anytime dining. It does not work that way all of the time. A lot of times, especially on the first night, everyone is lined up to get into any time dining at the main times like seven and 7:30 PM. you can make advance reservation times even for any time dining, and sometimes it’s helpful to do that as you are working around show times. ( Tip of the Day: your kids probably will not enjoy the play Cats that is still the show on Oasis. Frankly it is an a good musical to be playing on a ship. Many people walked out well before the end The time we saw it on this ship. I saw the community musical theater version of it 2 weeks later an& understood much better and enjoyed it much better. Your teams are not into musical theater, they probably should skip it. )

 

Whatever you choose, have a great time!

[Pstreet12]

We've spent quite a bit of time in Barcelona and in Rome, and never run out of things to do in either. Unlike some others, I would recommend starting in Barcelona a few days early. It is a very walkable city, has all the things people think of as "European:" wonderful sidewalk cafes, great art, markets, wonderful walking areas, and food, food, food. La Sagrada Familia itself is worth the trip; obviously, there is simply nothing else like it in the world. Then seeing a Gaudi home and deciding that despite the "odd" exterior (which you will probably come to appreciate), you'd love to live there. Then, there's the Picasso museum which features his early work, and you'll see that when he was 9 years old, he could execute "conventional" paintings, and see his growth; you'll emerge actually understanding Picasso, even if you've never considered attempting it. In short, Barcelona is truly one of the world's great cities--but it's a great deal more manageable than Rome.

I'd do Rome at the end after you've experienced Barcelona and the Med. ports; you will have more appreciation for all there is in Rome. The old city is actually quite small, and it, too is walkable, but there are so many other things you will want to "just tack on, since we're there."

For me, a week in Rome, or as close as you can get, will be crammed full. 4 days in Barcelona will be full, but not seem "crammed full."

[ditmar2007]

Take it as an adventure. Barcelona is also a wonderful city.

 

And one hour train trip south there is an amusement park (Port Aventura) with some seriously large roller-coasters.

[xpcdoojk]

Just a short pitch for Easy Jet (and other low cost airlines) a lot of the things that mlbcruiser posted are true. That said, I have actually flown them multiple times. Luggage weights on most of these airlines are 20KG which is 44.4 pounds. If you are flying there before you fly home, you probably won't have all that many gifts you have purchased anyway, I.E. you are probably saving some space for other gifts still. I am looking at the last flight I made on Easy Jet in November 2015. I paid 134 euros for a flight for the wife and I from Paris to Prague which included 2 checked 20KG bags we were allowed 2 personal items in the plane. Our seats were not assigned but we were seated together near the front of the plane. The flight was good, with no problems. We have flown Ryan Air, Air Europa and Air Berlin in the past, my experiences with them was similar to Easy Jet. Yes, they nickel and dime you, but I have booked Easy Jet for as little as $10 per person which makes using them a no-brainer for me.

 

JC

[Snit13]

Have you checked out Celebrity cruises? The Solstice class ships are great (our favorite) but Oasis class would be better for teens.

 

We have traveled Europe via train which we loved, by car and just one flight-Barcelona to Copenhagen. Love, love, love train travel in Europe. Have only done one TA on NCL Jewel and then Baltic on Star Princess. Have flown over on a number of occasions.

 

I wish we had spent more time in Rome. We just did ships tour but did see quite a bit in the one day.

 

Keep researching and enjoy your family time exploring the world. Buy daughter a spinner suitcase and what fits goes and what doesn't fit stays. Let her decide what is most important.

Edited December 14, 2017 by Snit13
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[Norwich Cruiser]

From my point of view I would definitely arrive in Barcelona two or three days pre cruise and explore it really is an excellent city there is so much to do.The port is far easier to get to also.

If you should decide to travel from Barcelona to Rome to pick up the ship no way would I consider the train pack light and fly.