edinburgher

I suggest you consider cross posting your question on the forum for your cruiseline, whichever it is, as that is where pax who have previously taken this excursion will be more likely to see it and respond.

and hi back at you too.😀 Your biggest issue will be that you are spoiled for choice, not only in Italy, but also in the towns and cities in Provence mentioned by cruisemom42 Provence actually merits a stay of at least a couple of weeks and a lot of driving to move from place to place. On the other hand, finding a base in IIaly from where you can venture out on full or half day trips is more relaxing. Piedmont is not as famous as other areas, but has a central location which would offer up a number of possibilities in different directions. And of course you could fly to most countries in Europe on short flights from Rome which will make your decision even more difficult, alhough it would be an opportunity to visit somewhere you could not visit when cruising, such as Vienna, Budapest or Prague, even Krakow, Poland.😁

if you were quite comfortable with the costs in Switzerland, you will be in Iceland too. if not, and this will be your first visit, at least you are forewarned.😀

You may not get many recommendations as few would be happy to spend that amount on a city tour , some shopping and a transfer. Reykjavik itself is compact therefore quite easy to explore independently for minimal cost and with a little pre-trip homework. There is also a HOHO but do read revews before deciding as reviews are mixed to say the least.. And if this will be your first visit to Iceland, shopping in Iceland will be quite the shock for you given the cost of everything there, as Iceland is regularly in the top three most expensive countries in Europe, the others being Switzerland and Norway. and if ordering any alcohol, check the cost first as Iceland has very high prices for any alcoholic drinks. Take your duty free bottles with you.😀

gumshoe958, have forwarded your helpful info to friend, who, per my post #1 is leaning towards 2 nights in Victoria as the Princess shuttle will most likely be morning and friend thinks would be better to be closer to the coach station, have a more leisurely start to the day, and not need to travel from St Pancras to Vctoria with luggage at a busy time of day. globaliser I am aware of the "best area to stay in London FAQS", which is why I noted only 2 areas together with the practical reasons for each (and sightseeing was not a consideration) as my/our London knowledge is close to zero these days as we have neither visited nor stayed there in around 25 years..Embarassingly, could actually tell you "best areas to stay in" in some European cities which we visited a number of times more recently. and where we have notched up as many as 13/14 days in at least three of them .as we enjoyed them so much. (and Edinburgh too of course) Thanks to all who took the time to respond.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. I have forwarded your hotel suggestions to our friend, although I think the Goring will fall into the Ritz/Savoy price range. I assume by "station" you mean the train station rather than the coach station? If so, no worries as I do know that Victoria train and coach stations are only a few minutes walk from each other.

They are independently run and you will see "gondola ranks" (sort of like taxi ranks) as you walk around and you simply approach one which is available to hire. They are regulated and have fixed prices for fixed periods of times but you should check the cost before you get in. My understanding is that gondolier singing comes at an additional cost but as we never did one I cannot be certain although the info should be online. We were put off when we saw the gondolas following what appeared to be a fixed and somewhat crowded route with the gondolas all in convoy, all nose to tail with the one in front.They are more expensive after 7pm. You could find lots of info online, also reviews, by googling "Venice gondola rides" or similar.

If you need an alternative and didn't do it on your first visit, there may be another option worth considering. Both the little tourist train and the HOHO run to the end of the coastal road and the big car park, for Les îles Sanguinaires, (see Tripadvisor reviews)and a public bus can also run you there from town for a nominal cost.. The bus route number should be easily found online. All vehicular traffic must stop at that car park where there are also public toilets, and from there you can walk the peninsula to Les îles Sanguinaires. We had taken the HOHO as we wanted an overview of the town but that only gave us 20 minutes at the car park, not nearly enough to do the walk.

Reading past threads might give you some ideas as will online searching for "Bar Montenegro tourist Info" or similar. And the usual Tripadvisor, YouTube and others. And looking at ship shorex, even should you not want to book one, will give you an idea of highlights and what could be possible within your timeframe. Past threads, not all of which will be relevant :https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?q=bar montenegro&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=149 And Montenegro is not in Greece, usually found on the "Other Med and Black Sea" ports forum to where your thread may be moved by the Mods.

As August is the hottest month and hiking could be more challenging should temperatures be uncomfortably high on the day you will be there, make sure you are well prepared with plenty of water. And maybe have a "Plan B" should it be so hot you decide against hiking. Ajaccio is actually a lovely place to spend a day with a number of sightseeing options either on foot or by the little tourist train or a HOHO.

apologies for not being more clear. Given travel timings, friend will only have one full day in London and has visited a good number of times in the past so is used to public transport of all types and getting around so that will not be an issue.Of more interest is convenience (with luggage) for either arrival at St Pancras or departure from Victoria, although Victoria would be more convenient for the Princess shuttle which will likely be morning. Budget is fairly high but not at Savoy/Ritz level. As mentioned in my post #1 an actual hotel name not really necessary, but area or even better, certain streets would be much appreciated. Thannking you all for your efforts even at this stage.

And yes, I do know there is a large, very large, "pinned" thread re London hotels at the top of this forum, but a friend has sent me this request and my knowledge of London is close to nil as we have not stayed there in over 25 years. As I know a few of you reply to similar questions in detail, thought I might ask for your time as you may already have the info in your heads. Here is the actual question. Will have a couple of nights in London after the Transatlantic in November. Coming into St. Pancras on the Eurostar and going out of Victoria Coach station on a Princess transfer. I’m leaning towards staying closer to Victoria Station but don’t really know that much about the different areas of London - what would your thoughts be between the area around King’s Cross/St. Pancras and Victoria Station? There look to be nice hotels in both areas, and I’ll really only have one full day to explore around, as I’ll arrive on the 26th, probably fairly late in the day, and leave on the 28th, most likely either in the mid-morning or at worst by noonish. Will have luggage of course but could take a cab if that would be the easiest option. Thank you for any advice and/or info. Actual hotel names are not necessarily needed, but areas, or street names where to look would be helpful. .

There are many really attractive and/or interesting areas to visit in Italy, and as you know, there is a good public transport system to move you around, which means the entire country can in theory be considered. Have you thought about visiting areas such as Puglia, or Lake Como (close to the Swiss border for day trips by train, also Milan ) or Lake Garda, (beautiful lakeside towns and villages also close to the Dolomites and Verona)although there are many others, even historical Sicily were you to consider a ferry journey or a short flight. Lake Como and Lake Garda would be more of a base with side trips, and no car would really be needed as boats have regular routes and there are also trains and public buses depending on the area.. Puglia you would likely want a car rental to visit many of the towns and villages and with that you could also venture to Matera, (where many scenes in big movies have been shot. and where you could stay in a cave hotel) Look up Matera for info and images if not already familiar with it. You could look at interesting towns or cities anywhere in italy you could use as a base and from where you could find attractive day trips. Having a base from which to venture out means no trailing luggage with you as you won't need to move from place to place. We stayed in both Lake Como and Lake Garda areas but if pushed would put Lake Garda and Verona slightly ahead of Lake Como and Milan, the latter probably our least favourite European city so far. Have fun researching.😀

A long, lightweight floaty dress or skirt (even a sarong) for ladies would be a lot cooler to wear in hot weather. Any men in your group might want to wear a pair of those long pants with legs which can be unzipped when not in a religious environment.

Of course it is. There have been many many past threads discussing the pros and cons of balcony V OV and opinions remain divided. You could use the search tool to find them and read a few. If scenery and sealife are important to you, you may find that the narrow view from a balcony on only one side would not have been the best experience and you may find that open deck viewing is superior as you can see much more, and sometimes the bow areas which are usually barred to passengers are opened up for additional viewing. And positioning yourselves outside in a location from where you can easily move from one side of the ship to the other will give you the best viewing opportunities. The other bonus is that many pax on outside decks keep a close eye out for sealife and will give a shout out if/when any whales are spotted and you would not hear that if sitting on a balcony. I think you will find that you spend more time outdoor viewing.

Sounds like a plan. Wishing you well with the various challenges you may encounter.😀

In addition to any responses you might get, you could browse a few of the small number of past threads for info and ideas. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?q=ponta delgada&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=465

it may be that your cruiseline has booked all slots that day for their excusive shorex as that is quite common in smaller places where there are fewer operators. You could check your shorex to see if these tours are being offered, and if so, that would explain why neither company can take individual bookings..

We have twice enjoyed sunset views from our ships, usually on an upper open deck,(both times the deck which is just above the swimming pool) but you could consider asking this on the Celebrity Board where past or current pax would be more familiar with the layout of this particular ship. Do remember that ships will be at anchor and as a little movement can be expected, you may be better off on an outside deck where you can reposition yourselves should it be necessary. .

Even the Natural History museum didn't appeal? Usually little kids love the animal exhibits.

And neither you did! My senior moment as the first "quote" on my post #4 was indeed the OP, but my second was actually yours in error.☹️

This "pinned" thread at the very top of the Spain/Portugal forum is a Q and A about all things Majorca, including beaches. Member rogerb who lives there can usually respond to any new qestions on it, but beaches close to Palma have been asked about numerous times but as the thread is super long you might want to search for "beaches" on it using the search tool. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2697012-palma-de-mallorca-diy-new/page/25/#comment-67161216 Your ATV question is probably best answered by looking at results from when you google "Palma ATV (rentals/ tours/ ? as you didn't say) And do check your travel insce will cover you in the event of damage or medical bills should you have an accident as many insurers specifically exclude ATVs, scooters, motorcycles and similar vehicles.

i already replied to your very recent thread about travel from Genoa. As already suggested, read up on each, also past threads. Online info for all can easily be found by googling eg "Tourist Info for (name of town)" Tripadvisor, YouTube, Frommer's, Fodor, Rick Steves and any others which appear in your search results. if you have not already searched for and read any past threads using the quick and easy search tool, you could make a start with these. Camogli https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?q=camogli&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=464 Santa Margherita https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?q=santa margherita&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=464 Portofino https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?q=portofino&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=464 And la Spezia as a bonus as the above names are frequently mentioned in la Spezia threads. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?q=la spezia&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=464

With a 10pm sailing, another option might be that you could actually dine very early either ashore or in a speciality restaurant onboard before enjoying the sunset views from your ship without the stress of worrying about lines for the cable car and a tender.

You say you already tried the internet but appear to have had no results which I think is odd, so maybe you didn't search with relevant words? Have you tried googling something like "le Havre for kids" or "Honfleur for kids"? there will surely be something either indoors or outdoors in one or both towns. I included Honfleur as it is very easy to get there from le Havre, approx 30 mins in a taxi, and so pretty the adults will love it too. And just so you know, le Havre has a few quite attractive beaches should the weather gods smile on you, and they are actually in the town itself..