gkkapp

20 hours ago, JSandage said:

It unscrews. If it's like mine that is. Mine is a cloth band with a plastic medallion holder, got it on Sky Princess in 2021. If you look at the holder from the side you can see where it's split. Twist the top part to the left and it should open. Hope that helps!

Thank you, Thank you!!!!!

We have been trying to open this band (same as yours) since we got off our cruise in late November.  Thought it pushed out but an easy twist to the left got it out!!!

<<<Karen>>> 

On 6/28/2023 at 1:28 PM, GreenFamily said:

Here is the marathon route: 

https://www.athensauthenticmarathon.gr/site/index.php/en/event-en/races-en/marathon-en/15-marathon-course-maps-en

Thank you for posting the map.  We have decided to take a ship's tour to insure that we will get back to the ship.  Not what we wanted to do but better safe then sorry,

<<<Karen>>>

Thanks mapleleaves-

You are right that I might get an answer on TripAdvisor.  Didn't think to go there so will do later today.

<<<Karen>>>

Just moving this up

We will be in Athens on Sunday November 12, 2023. This is the same day that the Athens Marathon will be happening. Originally, we planned on hiring a cab to take us directly to the Acropolis. After visiting the Parthenon we planned to walk down to the Monaseriaki area, explore around, do some shopping at the flea market (if open) and then catch a cab back to the ship. We are rethinking this due to the marathon. Thinking of taking a ship's tour so we would be sure to get back to the ship. Not what we really want to do. Can someone in Athens give us an idea of how crowded it will be that day. The area we want to visit seems to be away from the area where is marathon is finishing. Will it be hard to get a cab back to the ship?  Any advise you could give would be appreciated.

<<<Karen>>>

I second wowzz!  Spain Day Tours does tours for more then two people.  We took the tour to Montenegro and around Barcelona and it was excellent!!

<<<Karen>>> 

12 hours ago, 57eric said:

I sadly agree.  What other cruise line reserves its best itineraries for its worst ship?  In fact, is there a cruise line that has a "worst" ship as obvious as the Island is Princess'?

The Island Princess took over the itineraries for the Pacific Princess.  Because of this I was able to visit Riga, Latvia last year.  Latvia is the home of my Jewish ancestors.  I had a wonderful tour with a Jewish genealogy researcher (did work for me some years ago).  While I couldn't go to the original village I got to walk where my ancestors walked in Riga and I was able to go to Rumbula, the second largest mass murder site of WWII.  I was able to pay my respects to my ancestors who lost their lives there.  The Island is a nice ship and the itinerary was perfect.

<<<Karen>>>

On 2/19/2023 at 1:41 AM, Nicole&amp;Pete said:

Karen,

 

Thank you for the information. 
 

Did you find the ship crowded at all?

 

thank you 

Sorry not to reply sooner but we were on a cruise.  The ship was only 45% full so I really can't answer the question.  Went back and read your first post.  I would choose the best itinerary.  To me that is more important then the ship.  Once you are on the ship you can work around any problems like dinner reservations etc.  The one thing you can't change is the itinerary.  I thought the Island was very nice.  Just got off the Caribbean Princess which was "packed".  No problems getting dinner reservations or getting on off and on even with all the crowds.    

Hope this helps.

<<<Karen>>>

We were on the Island last summer.  A note on the lack of the IC.  The buffet area had square glass containers with "snack" food in the afternoon, maybe earlier.  They were things like you might find at the IC, chips and salsa, salads etc.  While we didn't get them (prefer pastries or cookies for snacks) friends did and were very pleased.  Just my thoughts.

<<<Karen>>>   

Thanks to everyone who replied to my post.  I haven't paid much attention to the new "packages" as we won't purchase them anyway.  I don't drink coffee or specialty teas and DH does ok with the regular coffee.  Maybe we'll just keep the mini bar and drink what we like.

Thanks again.

<<<Karen>>>

2 hours ago, MissP22 said:

The trade in never included ice cream sandwiches from my understanding.

I haven seen them in a long time. Maybe they still have them on the Caribbean Princess.

They show on the menu for Coffee and Cones on the CB.  Maybe they have added them back.  I hope someone who has been the CB recently will answer.

<<<Karen>>>

We are Elite and thinking of trading in the mini bar for two coffee cards.  I looked for the answer to my question but found nothing.  Does the coffee card we will get include the special ice cream sandwiches available at Coffee and Cones on the Caribbean Princess?  DH likes a good cup of coffee and I like ice cream. 

We will be docking in Cristobal, Panama after we do a partial transect of the canal.  Some years ago there was wonderful area there with lots of native crafts for sale.  It closed but I saw something on the Internet that a new area had opened.  Has anyone been to Cristobal (we are on a Princess cruise) and is there a craft market there?

28 minutes ago, BillB48 said:

While I don't have any direct knowledge as to what is available at the tourist area at the Cristobal piers, it is my understanding that it is not anywhere as nice as it was in the original pier.

Thanks for the reply.  Maybe someone who goes there before we do in February will post about it.  We aren't sure yet whether we will take a tour or not.  The last time we did it was to Monkey Island.  Of course it rained and water poured off the canvas top on the boat.  Soaked us to the skin!!!  Don't plan on doing that again. 

<<<Karen>>>

We have done several partial Panama Canal cruises.  On the first cruise we took the ferry through the full canal.  The next time we stayed on the ship back through the locks and the ship stopped at Cristóbal,  We were really happy to find the large tourist area at the pier with food, crafts and entertainment.  Several years later we went again and the tourist area was gone, we docked at Colon instead.  In February we are cruising again and will stop at Cristóbal.  I saw several things on the Internet that indicate there is once again a tourist area there.  Is this true??  I hope so. 

<<<Karen>>> 

13 hours ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

We were there on August 7.  Our ship was docked.  Our cruise daily said it was a 15–20-minute walk to town. 

 

However, we spoke with several people that chose to walk rather than take a provided bus.  We took the bus [12 euro] They said it was longer and not a pleasant walk.  At one point you must climb a set of metal stairs, cross the road and back down again in the port. One family told me it was almost more than their mother could do. 

 

My advice is to take the bus and walk from the drop-off point.  You will have enough exercise climbing the streets from the sea. 😁

 

We enjoyed Visby.  It is a unique location.  

It is NOT a 15-20 walk!!  It is at least 30 minutes and up hill.  Not a steep hill but an uphill grade.  Yes, you do need to cross over the busy highway on a metal bridge three flights up and over.  Of course you get to do it again on the way back .  We were there in July and did not see a bus there when we left the ship.  It was there when we returned.  This was a 14 day cruise and Visby was near the end.  Over the 14 days I walked between 100-125 miles (my Fitbit told me!!) so believe me I was tired by then.  But I did it!!!

<<<Karen>>>

We were there in July and it is NOT a tendered port.  A rather long walk up the quay, though.

<<<Karen>>> 

6 hours ago, tkwbear said:

Also disappointing on the Enchanted was the internet; it was so bad they refunded everyone's money. How do you find it on the Island? Also, while in port, are you having any issues with your cell phone working (including data)? My carrier gave me roaming rates for every country in the Baltic, but then my phone did not work in any of those countries! So I will be switching carriers before my cruise on the Island. May I ask what carrier you use for your cell phones?

We were on the Island in July and the Internet worked great, much better then on past cruises.  We used Consumer Cellular.  They provided us with a SIM card that worked in Europe and the rate for phone calls was $.20 per minute.  We didn't get data as we didn't think we would need it.  And we didn't.  Made one call to a guide we had booked to touch base and it cost us $.24 total.  Can't beat that!!

<<<Karen>>>

7 hours ago, lynnemac said:

Does anyone know, in Copenhagen, if airport taxi's take credit cards. I do not want to get $60 in Dutch Kroner's just to get to my hotel before our cruise. In Amsterdam I had issues finding such taxi's but had sufficient Euros.

 

Thanks in advance

We were just in Copenhagen and both the taxi to the hotel and the one to the airport the next day took credit cards.

<<<Karen>>>

1 minute ago, SargassoPirate said:

Karen,

 

Many, many thanks.  I was torn between C710 and  B727.  I'll stick with C710.  I sort of figured the door was on the little corridor and I'm always suspicious of blank areas on the deck plans.  Sounds like it will work well for me.

 

BTW, what part of Virginia are you in?  I'm working on a fall "Appalachian Backroads" Harley trip this fall.  I've already ridden the Blue Ridge Parkway from Front Royal to Maggie Valley and looking for something a little different this year.

 

Thanks again.

I live just outside Roanoke.  The area around Appomattox has a lot of Civil War history and the area around Floyd has music and art type places.  Don't get that far south that often but Abingdon has some interesting stuff, too.

<<<Karen>>>  

3 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

 

I am looking at a cruise on the Island in the future.  Would you be so kind as to take a look at an  interior cabin on Caribe for me,  C710, and see if you can tell what the big blank space between C710 and the elevators is?  Are there any scullery or storage doors forward of C710?   From the deck plans, it looks like there is a big blank space forward of C710, a narrow corridor on the other side, and behind C710 is another interior cabin.

 

Many thanks, and the Pirate will owe you a beer or a wee dram.

Funny you should mention that cabin........That was our cabin on our June 29-July 13 cruise.  The blank space is a storage area and we only heard occasional bumping and thumping.  Quiet at night.  The cabin was in good order.  Looked like the carpet was new.  The door is not on the main passage aisle but rather facing down the center.  This was nice as we never heard people passing by the cabin.  Rather a long walk to the dinning room and to get off the ship but still doable.  We liked the cabin so much that we have it booked for a cruise next year.

<<<Karen>>>

In 2012 we and another couple took the "on your own" tour to Paris.  We planed out what we wanted to see and allowed for stops along the way.  Of course, Notre Dame Cathedral is not really there in it's glory anymore but you could easily plan something else.  Do some research and go on your own and see what you want to see.

<<<Karen>>>  

Today we booked a ship's tour – Paris on Your Own. Basically we paid for a bus to take us from the ship into Paris and get us back in time before the ship sailed. We had a very early breakfast in the buffet, and went to the ship's theater to await our tour group being called. The trip into Paris was uneventful and took about three hours. The scenery along the way was nice. Arriving in Paris we rode down the Champs Elysee, past the Arc de Triomphe and were let off near the Place de la Concorde. Luckily, we quickly found a taxi that would transport four people (many taxis won't) and we rode to Notre Dame Cathedral. We walked around the outside, taking pictures as we went. On the north side of the Cathedral under the rose window is a sidewalk cafe we discovered on the Internet called La Rosace. We ate lunch there, a ham and cheese sandwich for us and crêpes for our friends. We took advantage of their free restroom. After lunch we got in the long but fast moving queue to visit the inside of this vast church. In spite of the wall-to-wall people we were able to take a few pictures and admire the architecture. Leaving the church, we walked past the flower market and in front of St. Chapelle. We then crossed the Seine River and started walking along the river towards our bus pick-up point. Karen was able to purchase an oil painting of the Arc de Triomphe along the way. When we came to the Louvre, we walked through a large archway into a courtyard. A second archway took us to the famous glass pyramid. Lots of photos were taken. We continued on through the Tuileries Gardens and around the Place de la Concorde. It was time to return to the pick-up point for our return to the ship. On the way back we drove past the Eiffel Tower, which we had only seen from a distance, so we had a great photo opportunity. Traffic was a bit heavy as we rode back to Le Havre and got worse as we neared the ship. Finally we were there, and quickly made our way to the dining room for our “last supper”.

11 minutes ago, Danish viking said:

Is the cruise business Up and running again.

 

I wonder if it was worth my time doing a 2022 thread.

I am so glad you are back.  I was worried something had happened to you.  We have a Baltic cruise planned for next year, canceled twice.  Hopefully, the third time is the charm.

<<<Karen>>>

We were on an "Around the British Isles" cruise out of Southampton in May of 2019 and there was no kettle in our cabin.  Of course we didn't ask for one but there were plenty of Brits on the cruise so maybe they ask and got them.  I use one at home everyday.  My old one "gave up the ghost" and the new one I purchased in advance did not have an automatic shut off.  Got rid of that one!!!

<<<Karen>>>  

Bruges is easy to do DIY.  Have done it twice.  A good guide book will give ideas of what to see.  Google for some more information.  Not sure but Rick Steves probably has a walking tour you can download.  

<<<Karen>>>