Batewolf

My travel agent has asked us to choose between early or late seating on the main dining room but when I log in to my account I get the option to book My Time Dining and select times for each individual day.  Is this right?  I hope so as early is fine unless we've been out at a port all day...  We'd like early when there's a show on but not sure how to find out what's on on what day.

Half of my party (5) want to visit the Nou Camp and the other half want to do more general sightseeing incl the Sagrada F.  I've seen guided tours of the Nou Camp at 50 euros each which I can pre-book.  Before I book a specific time, anyone have any idea how long it takes to get to the Nou Camp by taxi?  Also, how long does it take to get from the ship to the taxi rank?  Any idea how much a taxi is from the port to the Nou Camp?

For the 5 wanting to do general sightseeing incl the SF,  Are we best booking an audio tour or guided tour?  Are we best getting a taxi there?

Would appreciate any advice you can give.

On 6/18/2018 at 10:10 PM, CG3H said:

 

Thank you so much for this. As someone who has a fear of heights this view terrifies me. I shalll stay athe bottom.

Me too!  So glad you posted that photo. I had a panic attack years ago on the cable car at Gibraltar!

On 1/5/2019 at 9:51 PM, jocap said:

A fellow cruiser called at the Travel desk at the dock gate in Cartagena and was advised to take a taxi tour. The driver played a tape in English relevant to the sites he stopped at, such as the Roman theatre. Not a long tour, but the man was pleased with what he saw.

There's a marine museum near the dock- take your passport if you're a senior for a discount.

In Gibraltar, if you walk up the street to the bus station, you will find everyone is eager to help you on to the right bus for the cable car, or beach etc... and it's cheap, and in £££ Even cheaper if you're a senior. It's a great time to chat to the locals as well.

Cadiz has  marked trails round the city; if you go on a tour to the horses in Jerez, you'll probably end up spending half the day in a sherry building... ok for the drinks after, but can be tedious. I'd think of going on a private tour there.

Oh, there's usually HOHO buses near the dock .

Brilliant thank you.  My dad can't walk too far so will use HOHO buses where possible I think.

On 1/5/2019 at 1:59 PM, Essiesmom said:

Okay, that changes things a little.  It sounded as though you were asking advice about the beaches, but if you are asking about touring the sites in those ports, I suggest some reading on the Ports of Call boards here, as well as joining the ROLL CALL for your cruise, where you can connect with others sailing with you, and see what they are planning.  Cadiz is a very walkable city, you dock right downtown.  The big draw in Malaga is a trip to the Alhambra.  In Barcelona, don't miss Sagrada Familia, and you must go inside.  It is very different from your Norman or Gothic cathedral...EM

Thank you.  Will look at doing them DIY I think.  Am looking at using the hop on hop off bus in Barcelona.  Have you used this?  Some in our party want to go to the nou camp stadium.  I can pre-book our own tour of the stadium and get a taxi I think.  Have you visited nou camp?

On 1/13/2019 at 10:51 PM, Hlitner said:

You will get differing opinions on cruise ship excursions vs private tours vs Do It Yourself (DIY).  Must depends on your spirit of adventure and other personal preferences.  DW and I fall into the DIY camp, and we have been mostly doing our own thing around the world for many decades.  For us, being stuck on a large tour bus and herded around like cattle is close to torture.  But others love the ease of just booking a ship excursion.  And for the record we have been to all of your ports (some...many times) and DIY in them all.  Lots of options for most of those places although those options are really impacted by the length of your port stay.

 

Hank

That's reassuring thank you.  I'm looking at hop on hop off buses in Barcelona  and have pre-booked a private taxi tour at gibraltar through the tourist office at a fraction of the cost of the RC price.

Am going on RC Independence of the Seas in July to the med.  I thought we'd have to choose between early or late dining slots but on the website I appear to be able to book specific times for each day.  How can I find out what times the shows will start?  We'd like to eat earlier on those days but probably later on days where there isn't any evening entertainment that we fancy.

The UK  has beautiful beaches especially in Cornwall but we don’t always get sunny summers and the water’s freezing. Millions of Brits head to the med for sunny beach holidays. However in this instance, Mediterranean beaches is just the name of the cruise. We picked it because we haven’t been to many of the places it stops at.  What I wanted feedback on was whether it’s better to do the cruise line’s excursions or visit the areas independently. 

Gibraltar 

Cartegena

Valencia

Barcelona

Nice

Ajaccio

Malaga

Cadiz

I'm booked on the med beaches cruise this summer and could do with some advice about excursions. I've felt ripped off on package holiday excursions before. What excursions are worth the money and what ports could we do ourselves independently?