cruisemom42

If you are trying to book far in advance they won't answer until closer to your requested date.

It shouldn't be a problem. What time is your ship scheduled to depart? I would be confident in arriving later, but not less than 2 hours before departure.

Tons of hotel recommendations at all price ranges in this thread: Hotel rooms in decent locations for less than $300/night are going to book up quickly.

Trying to compare the interior of the Colosseum with the interior of the Pantheon is like apples and oranges. The Colosseum interior is much like the exterior -- by that I mean that the original facing and decoration is mostly gone. By contrast the Pantheon interior is largely intact (with a few changes and restorations over the years) because it was converted into a Catholic church fairly early. So it's extremely difficult to compare the two. If you book a tour that might give you free time for lunch in the vicinity of the Pantheon or Piazza Navona, you can buy your own ticket from their kiosks outside the building or at the desk (both accept credit cards I think), but you will still have to wait in a line probably. Depending on what time of the year your visit is, the wait may be long or short. Or you can buy a timed ticket in advance online -- but you may still have a wait to get in due to capacity controls.

Are you sure that the Hilton has returned to offering their shuttle? They discontinued it during Covid and I see no mention of it on their website any longer. From either the Hilton or the Hilton Garden Inn you can go back to the airport and take the train into Rome inexpensively.

Have a great time with the family Melody! You deserve it after your year so far...!

I also haven't been to Barcelona since about 2017 and the food scene there is so vibrant that I'd probably look for recent recommendations. This site usually is trustworthy (though I'd skip the Asian recommendations): https://www.eater.com/maps/best-restaurants-barcelona-spain Dinner is very late in Barcelona for locals. I seem to remember a lot of places don't even open until 8:00 pm. Unless it's a really hot place, showing up when they open will probably get you a table as long as it's not a big party. Given the crowds in Europe these days, if there are any places you really want to be sure to go to, I'd try to reserve in advance.

Yeah, I'm just finding out my retiree dental coverage isn't as good as it was pre-retirement. 🙄

Hi Lois -- hope you enjoy your upcoming cruise!! Sorry I've been so absent lately, it's been a heck of a week. Found out today that I need a dental implant PLUS a root canal and a crown. 😭

How long ago did you go, Hank? I ask because in recent years they have opened up almost all of the tombs in the necropolis outside Tarquinia. There is also Cerveteri (sp?) and another very interesting necropolis just outside Orvieto.

Do you happen to recall where the tender in Oban drops you off? Is it near the North Pier Ferry terminal by chance?

I used the regional train to and from Lecce when docked in Brindisi, it was a pretty easy and straightforward thing. There were some taxis at the port and taxis at the train station, so if you wanted to forego the walk in either direction, it shouldn't be a problem. Here's a map I found while researching it online; it handily shows both the spot where ships dock and the train station (bottom left; not labeled as such but look at the icons):

Gosh that ship was ugly back then. I wondered who thought red and orange and bright pink in the same area was a good idea. I had no idea it was Farcus, but that makes perfect sense.

Heck, I still remember the "old" push for families when Zuiderdam, the first Vista class ship, was launched. Sailed on her with my son and parents shortly after she launched. All the marketing hype was about HAL's new family-friendly ships.

Some used to refer to them as the "Hellcats".