melusina

In May.

Me too. So this is the only port where we're taking a ship's excursion because of the cable car problem. We chose a morning sail of the caldera which will leave us in Fira ( we hope, in the town not the port). Then we'll have half a day free. We're on Celebrity Infinity and there are 2 smaller ships with a tital of about 1,000 in port that day. Lovely as Santorini is, I don't do crowds well so we'll just have to see. We should be able to get to Imerovigli and back, if not to Ouia.

Up- oh, we're taking our first cruise on Infinity. Did rhe door lick because of how hard he shut it or because it automatically locks when tbe doir closes,? That seems insane. I can see us both going out there to watch the sun rise but would hate to have to remember not to completely shut the door

Has anyone had an aft facing cabin on a transatlantic in April? We thought it might be too cold to enjoy sitting out.

I am thrilled to see that on our April - May Mediterranean cruise we're now showing as the only ship in each island port. However, when we first booked Cruisemapper showed one or two other ships in each ( fortunately, smaller ships). Our ship's itinerary hasn't changed since we booked in November so I'm wondering what might have caused these changes and if i can have confidence 3 months out. I am particularly happy because one of our stops is Santorini, and it sounds like escaping from and returning to the tender port could be awful even with just the 2000 on our ship (Celebrity Infinity). Thanks for any insight!

We're looking at a 2025 HAL from Ft Lauderdale to Barcelona in April 2025 and I'd like advice from people who've been on the Atlantic in April. Ship is Oosterdam. Choices are: 1)midship, an officially unobstructed but still limited oceanview. We have a hold on one of the last with an " unobstructed" view ( but it's really somewhat obstructed), midship. We're taking our first cruise this spring (Mediterranean) so neither of us knows how motion will affect us, so midship seems a safe choice. 2) A veranda cabin at the very back, so you'd see the ship's wake and sunsets. I assume it will be too cold to really get a lot of use from the veranda, though perhaps somewhat sheltered from wind. I also worry a little about feeling the motion on the Atlantic. We are introverts who probably would prefer spending more time in the cabin than many people would, if the experience is worth it. 3) An inside cabin plus cabana but i assume it really would be too cold and windy to enjoy that. Any advice? What's your experience? Things i haven't thought of? Thanks. ( Just don't say the cabin's only to sleep and shower! That's not us).

Thanks all for good tips. I amready have the info i need.

I ferl like this is the silliest question ever but - luggage tags holders are sold as being cruise - line specific. Our first cruise is booked on Celebrity but we're looking at Holland America next year. Is there some reason I can't re- use the same tag holders?Yes they're cheap but they're also plastic and i hate plastic that isn't re- usable. Or is there a way to find generic tags holders? Thanks for humoring me.

Turkey just eliminated the need for visas for US cutizens: https://www.travelandleisureasia.com/global/news/turkey-announces-visa-free-entry-for-six-countries/. This just happened so it will take a little time to be reflected in google searches.

Never mind, I just saw your explanation above. Can you say more about why you don't l7ke Galataport? And why do you think some lines have dropped Istanbul?

Thanks. Thats5the impression i got. Maybe we'll have a relatively quiet day and just do Ephesus and old town Kusadasi.

There's a comparison thread on the Holland America board, about 3 days old now. We've booked our first ever cruise on Celebrity for the spring, based on itunerary and timing, but the more i read about the 2 linesrhe more i think HAL would be better for us. Thinking about doing a transatlantic with them next year.

Some people want to talk to strangers, others to read. Different strokes.

What did ypu think.of Sirince village?

My husband will likely try to do that no matter what i tell him.

Those few quiet spots are what I'll hope for.

We booked our fitst ever cruise on Celebrity for May because of the itinerary and if we like cruising are considering a transatlantic on HAL in 2025. But i have to say, after seeing YouTube tours, that as you say the forced urban chic of Celebrity makes me think we'll be more comfortable on HAL. But - new experiences!

Regent or Silversea less expensive than Celebrity? From what I've seen much more expensive so I'm interested in learning more details.

This is helpful to me. We've booked our first ever cruise on celebrity this year, based on itinerary. If we like cruising, HAL has a transatlantic in 2025 which wiuld be perfect for us to do Spain afterward. We're not really much intetested in tbe evening entertainment but want to be comfortable and reasonably well fed, and orefer a quieter experience. I think we'll like HAL.

Thanks, that's reassuring!

As far as i know, Infinity is schefuled for refurbishing in January- February. I looked at the deck plans, and they have some oyt that show the layour afterward. We'll be on tbe Greece and Turkey cruise that starts April 26.

We've booked our first for next spring. I feel now just like you did. I had fun reading your countdown and I'm so glad you had a great time!

Thanks. Good to know rhete are some small.spaces. YouTube walkthroughs make it look like a series of huge open spaces.

Thank you, thank you! I am 71 with little endurance fir standing in long lines. This will be a game changer.

We're on Infinity in April, now I'm REALLY looking forward to it. Maybe I'll just doend the whole cruise there.