Tender and port questions Regatta Rome to Venice - October/09

[jaw501]

We are an early 50s couple - seasoned independent travellers - now looking at cruising. (Have only cruised about three times before - Alaska, Caribbean, European river cruise). A couple of questions.

 

A number of ports on this wonderful itinerary are tendered (if that's the right word) - Portofino, La Spezia, Amalfi, Sorrento, Taormina. Does it ever happen that ports are abandoned due to bad weather? How choppy are the boat rides in to port (seasickness worry).

 

Second, we keep reading on forums and hearing from others that it is definitely possible to go off on your own in ports, and not have to rely on shore excursions. If we weren't on a cruise, we'd be making all these arrangements anyway. And we have lots of experience doing that. But I guess we're just a little uncertain about how it works from a cruise?

 

Hope these questions aren't too silly! Thanks for any help.

[lcand1923]

Can't say about these particular ports, but overall can state that ports are skipped if the captain feels that the waters are too risky for tendering operations. Also, the tenders stop running earlier than scheduled if the water gets choppy. Have not experienced motion sickness because of choppy water because the tenders stopped operating prior to it getting that bad.

 

We normally stick with the ship-sponsored shore excursions, but most members of these boards do independent excursions. If you SEARCH on the Oceania boards for your ports, you will probably find a lot of information about these ports.

[nparmelee]

We're doing the Venice to Rome this May. Yes tender ports can be missed, they are either substituted with a sea day or an alternative dock or port is selected. For Amalfi and Sorrento if they can't tender you will likely dock in Naples. For Taormina an option is to go to Messina and dock. For La Spezia the alternate option is possibly Livorno, and for Portofino the dock option is likely Genoa. It is always possible that if the weather is bad enough you may get a sea day instead if those ports can't be docked at for some reason. Some days the sea is very calm and the tendering is no big deal. Other days it can be a little iffy, sorry can't help bout sea sickness, its never bothered me.

 

We are doing almost all of the same ports on our own on our May cruise. The Europe boards are a great source of info for planning what you want to do in each individual port. With a cruise, at a tender port you either mix in with the shore excursions tendering or tender after they are all off. With a docked port you just walk off when you are ready. No difference really than leaving your hotel to go on your excursion, you will have to be back to the ship 30-60 minutes before the scheduled departure time so watch your time. Take a copy of the daily newsletter that has the port contact in case you are running late for some reason. Always have back up plans for the tender ports in case you do have to go to one of the other locations instead, and for the other ports as well in case of unexpected strikes, traffic, etc. With this cruise it is pretty easy to catch up to the ship at the next port if you need to, but you want to avoid that if you can since it would be added expense.

[ShopperfiendTO]

We are an early 50s couple - seasoned independent travellers - now looking at cruising. (Have only cruised about three times before - Alaska, Caribbean, European river cruise). A couple of questions.

 

A number of ports on this wonderful itinerary are tendered (if that's the right word) - Portofino, La Spezia, Amalfi, Sorrento, Taormina. Does it ever happen that ports are abandoned due to bad weather? How choppy are the boat rides in to port (seasickness worry).

 

Second, we keep reading on forums and hearing from others that it is definitely possible to go off on your own in ports, and not have to rely on shore excursions. If we weren't on a cruise, we'd be making all these arrangements anyway. And we have lots of experience doing that. But I guess we're just a little uncertain about how it works from a cruise?

 

We were at all of the ports you mentioned on our past mid-May cruise and tendered at them (rather than dock at an alternative, although we had to abandon another tender port that's not on your list).

 

Taormina was really choppy but the others were fine. The tenders usually last less than 10 minutes (closer to 5) so you should be fine unless you're really susceptible to seasickness.

 

As to your second question, it's always possible to do your own thing while in port. The question is your level of risk and comfort in planning your own day trip (directions, timing etc.) so that you get back before the ship leaves. For example, docking in Livorno, it takes a good hour or so to get to Florence by train - can you navigate the system to get there an back in time (if you did land trips previously as seasoned independent travellers, I would think the answer would be "yes")? People generally take ship shore excursions so that they don't have to worry about that.

 

I'm curious how this wasn't encountered in your Caribbean cruise... did you just go to the beach and sun tan? Also, may I ask how you enjoyed the river cruise? Thinking about one in the future, but don't know if they're worth the higher cost (I understand food is definitely better on liners).

[jaw501]

Thank you all for the wonderful information.

 

I have never tendered before or been on a cruise where it's likely you want to make your own port arrangements. In Alaska, the shore excursions were a great, obvious way to go. In the Caribbean, oh so many years ago now, I unfortunately was ill for most of the week.

 

As for the river cruise you asked about - it was absolutely superb. We did it last early October on Uniworld for a 16-day Eastern Europe cruise from Vienna to Bucharest. It's an all inclusive line (including wine with dinner and shore excursions) and pretty high end - sort of like many small European boutique hotels we've used. They also do the Rhine, Moselle, etc. If you want to contact me, I'm happy to tell you more. I am a huge fan of river cruising now. And our weather was astonishingly good. The ports were fabulous, and you just walk off a gangplank into the centre of a city, usually, although a few of the stops were bus rides.

 

Anyway, we really appreciate all the suggestions - especially about thinking ahead in case you have to orient to a different port.

[CintiPam]

The one tender port which I have read most often is missed is Mykonos, but because that is not on your itinerary, not to worry!

[sweep]

Jaw

 

We did the same cruise this last October and it was brilliant. We were lucky that all the tenders operated as per schedule but on a previous cruise a few weeks earlier there were problems with many of the tender ports missed out. I would endorse the advice given earlier to make substitute arrangements just in case. The seas were very calm for the whole of our cruise.

 

We did our own thing in each port after extensive research using guide books and advice on these boards. We took a local ferry to Cinque Terre and it was lovely to see each town from the sea. The only problem with going so late in the year is that the public transport is far less frequent than in high season so, for eg, had we wanted to return to La Spezia on the ferry we would either have had to stay on the ferry and not get off at any of the towns as the next ferry got back 30 mins after the ship was leaving. Luckily we had planned to return on the train and these were plentiful. Nevertheless it is something to check.

 

At each port, Oceania brought on board a representative from the local tourist bureau and these people were mostly excellent and spoke good English. They were armed with maps and timetables.

 

It was quite gratifying to realise that you were often sharing the same public transport as those people on organised excursions but were paying a fraction of the cost, could take as long as you liked at museums and churches and stop for lunch when and where you wanted.

 

Please contact me if you want any information on any of the ports.

 

Sweep

[roothy123]

We were on a similar cruise with Oceania 4 years ago. The ship didn't visit La Spezia, but DID tender at the other places you mentioned. There were no weather/tender problems, the water was calm, and the tender rides usually took only a few minutes. We didn't have to wait long, if at all, to get on a tender, even though we were doing the independent thing and not the ship's shore excursions. In Portofino, you can just walk off the tender (like those wonderful river cruises!) and have a great time on your own. In Amalfi, we did some research and found we could take a bus to Positano, and a boat back, then use the rest of the day exploring Amalfi. Taormina was a little challenging, since I had a little trouble finding the bus that went to the hill-top town with the Greek Theater. (The name escapes me now, but everyone knows what I mean!) Then, coming back, I got off at the wrong place and ended up having to walk for a half hour. However, if you allow plenty of time for that kind of thing, you can do things independently and have a great time. In Sorrento, we took a train to Pompei. Lots of people on this board hire drivers for the day. That's a wonderful thing if you can afford it. If not, I would probably recommend doing some things on your own. Just research well, and follow the advice of posters before me!

[AJ W]

We are an early 50s couple - seasoned independent travellers - now looking at cruising. (Have only cruised about three times before - Alaska, Caribbean, European river cruise). A couple of questions.

 

A number of ports on this wonderful itinerary are tendered (if that's the right word) - Portofino, La Spezia, Amalfi, Sorrento, Taormina. Does it ever happen that ports are abandoned due to bad weather? How choppy are the boat rides in to port (seasickness worry).

 

Second, we keep reading on forums and hearing from others that it is definitely possible to go off on your own in ports, and not have to rely on shore excursions. If we weren't on a cruise, we'd be making all these arrangements anyway. And we have lots of experience doing that. But I guess we're just a little uncertain about how it works from a cruise?

 

Hope these questions aren't too silly! Thanks for any help.

We are on this cruise Oct.5 Rome to Venice. Did I miss you ?

This is our third O cruise. If I can help let me know. Are you staying in Rome precruise?

We are planning most tours not with the ship.

Wolff711@aol.com

HADI

[KathyPet]

We are currently booked on a April 2010 14 day Venice to Barcelona cruise however we have decided to switch to a 12 day Venice to Rome cruise so we can spend a couple of days in Rome (a city we love). We can do the June 5th on the Insignia or the October 18th on the Nautica (can't do Sept 5th due to a family wedding). So which should we choose? The way I see it the June 5th date will probably give me nicer weather (warm but not too warm?) and the advantage of longer days with a lot more sunlight. However we are getting into the start of the heavy tourist season. The October dates might start to get some wet, cold weather towards the end and timetables for such things as ferries might be less frequent. Also it will be dark earlier but the crowds will be gone by then. So which date would you choose?

[lcand1923]

We were on two different land tours that included Italy (2000 and 2004). Each tour started towards the end of May and went through mid-June. Each tour experienced HOT weather - well over 95 degrees - and HUGE crowds.

 

Our guides told us that the weather wasn't that unusual.

 

Based upon our experience, we would go with the October dates. (We've done some European travel in September and October. The weather was delightful!)

[orchestrapal]

We have spent time in October in Italy several times and had great weather with the very occasional shower and snow in the mountains one year. Early June can be warm and beautiful or very hot. As for crowds, early June will be more crowded than October. You'll love whichever you choose.:)

[CintiPam]

We are currently booked on a April 2010 14 day Venice to Barcelona cruise however we have decided to switch to a 12 day Venice to Rome cruise so we can spend a couple of days in Rome (a city we love). We can do the June 5th on the Insignia or the October 18th on the Nautica (can't do Sept 5th due to a family wedding). So which should we choose? The way I see it the June 5th date will probably give me nicer weather (warm but not too warm?) and the advantage of longer days with a lot more sunlight. However we are getting into the start of the heavy tourist season. The October dates might start to get some wet, cold weather towards the end and timetables for such things as ferries might be less frequent. Also it will be dark earlier but the crowds will be gone by then. So which date would you choose?

 

You have summed up the considerations very well; you really can get some lousy weather in October in Venice and Dubrovnik. We lucked out in Venice in October 2006, but we found our June 5, 2009 Athens to Rome cruise last month had simply gorgeous weather and definitely still not crowded.

 

Also, the seas are much calmer in June, especially on the Adriatic if you are a queasy sailor like me!

[StanandJim]

we found our June 5, 2009 Athens to Rome cruise last month had simply gorgeous weather and definitely still not crowded.

 

Pam is correct there (we were on the same cruise), but we'd like to offer a caveat:

 

While you're on the ship, weekdays and weekends can tend to blend into one another, but it is worthwhile to consider that early June is very popular vacation time for budget minded Europeans (think students).

 

This is especially true for weekend jaunts to (for them) local attractions.

 

Some of those attractiions are simply swamped by the mobs of people and should be avoided.

 

Interestingly, other attractions, those in Florence come to mind, deal with "the legions" on a constant basis and at least have the capacity.

[~Fianna]

We were on two different land tours that included Italy (2000 and 2004). Each tour started towards the end of May and went through mid-June. Each tour experienced HOT weather - well over 95 degrees - and HUGE crowds.

 

Our guides told us that the weather wasn't that unusual.

 

Based upon our experience, we would go with the October dates. (We've done some European travel in September and October. The weather was delightful!)

 

We were in Europe last November and also found the weather delightful. It was cool, but not cold - and since I live in Las Vegas, my idea of cold is not like most other Americans' idea of cold. There were absolutely NO crowds and everything was less expensive. We enjoyed it so much that our big vacation in 2010 is another November in Europe (we're doing the 11/13 Venice to Barcelona sailing).

 

The downside is that in smaller towns, you'll run in to the problems of off-season - things close earlier and transit schedules may change due to weather. We were supposed to go from Porto to Penafiel in Spain and the bus that we were planning on taking wasn't running due to freak heavy snows in Northern Spain. We took an extra day in Porto (and time for more Port Houses!) and an extra day in Madrid instead.

[~Fianna]

You have summed up the considerations very well; you really can get some lousy weather in October in Venice and Dubrovnik. We lucked out in Venice in October 2006, but we found our June 5, 2009 Athens to Rome cruise last month had simply gorgeous weather and definitely still not crowded.

 

Also, the seas are much calmer in June, especially on the Adriatic if you are a queasy sailor like me!

 

That is a fair consideration. On the Splendor of the Seas last November, the seas were great from Venice to Dubrovnik and from Dubrovnik to Santorini. After we left Santorini on the way to Tunis, the ocean was at 10-14 feet for most of the rest of the cruise and the evening between Malaga and Morocco was so bad that one of the waiters told us that they'd had about $3,000 worth of china break in the dining room. That was very late November, though.

[triviaplayer7425]

I will be on the October 5th Rome to Venice cruise on the Regatta. Hope we can meet up and maybe there will be a Cruise Critic get together like we just had on the Liberty of the Seas August 29th.

See you there.

Joyce (Triviaplayer7425)