SunDapple

October weather in northern CA is some of the best weather we get, but mornings start out cool, very cool, especially in the city (SF). Your rain jacket is a good idea as coastal fog from the marine layer can take the whole morning to burn off, but once the sun makes it thru it is lovely.

The Pacific coastal part of the cruise can be cool as well. We went in December and got some fairly rough seas with lots of wind. Once we were a good distance past Acapulco, in the Huatulco area, it warmed up and was beachy nice. Costa Rica was like Caribbean weather, warm and humid. Hope you have a great cruise! [emoji4]

I'm in the Havaiana's camp. The most comfortable flip flops I've ever worn! I live in them in the summer. Great colors and footbed patterns too. Before Havaiana's I loved, and wore out, several pair of Reefs and FloJo's.

Thanks, Ducklite, much appreciated.

...

 

My crossbody held travel documents, jewelry, camera gear, iPad, chargers, my GPS (needed in LA), a couple paperbacks, and my makeup bag--which I pared down before I packed it.

What kind of crossbody do you use for travel? I've been looking at the Travelons as well as regular crossbodies, but haven't found the right combination of size, security and stylishness that I want. I can live with 2 of those 3 requirements but can't decide which I should give up. :)

Any tips on crossbodys for travel will be greatly appreciated.

Jacquie

.....

 

Large pashmina--used as blanket on plane and wrap several times when it was chilly in the dining room, on deck in the evening, and even on the overcast/rainy day we spent in Venice where there was a chill in the air.

 

Hi Ducklite,

 

Just wondering, what color pashmina did you take? My guess is black, but a nice colored one would be a good accessory! :)

One has to live one's life. I wouldn't want any ISIS fanatic or any other fanatic to keep me from trying to fulfill my bucket list dreams. What happens happens, it's the cost of following one's own heart.

Great review! Helpful answers! So happy to have found it. We are contemplating this cruise for 2015 and it's really so helpful to read your review. Thank you so much,

I was on the Quest for it's 3rd sailing, just after having been acquired. They were ok but certainly did not have it together. Nevertheless if the itinerary and date worked for us, judging by what I've read on CC I would try them again.

Is the smoking policy similar to O's? I seem to remember a lot of smoke near the pool, perhaps it was because of where I was sitting.

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts.

I see Marianne that no one has responded to your request of contact for the taxi. we will be on Oceania's Marina, in Le Havre next Fall. I am reading the thread and have exactly the same wish as you do, for simple transportation from Le Havre to Honfleur, for the better part of the day, and then a return to Le Havre.

I am posting, to bump this topic to the top again, and hoping some one can give a better contact for Radio Taxi. If you've found another taxi service, Marianne, please post here. It would be very helpful.:) I am off to search the forums on TripAdvisor. If I strike gold I will post here.

In terms of using an iPad to backup/store photos *while* you are on a trip, please keep in mind that iPads have limited memory/storage space (16-64GB for the new iPad).

 

I recently watched a travel photography webinar presented by a National Geographic photographer, and that was one of the big cautions that he mentioned when he was discussing how to back up photos during a trip. He said an iPad is great for looking at images (and indeed it is), but not great for backing up images while traveling because of the limited memory, and that a laptop or external hard drive would be best.

 

Of course, if you don't take that many photos and the iPad works for you for this purpose, go for it! :)

My iPad is 64GB, which was more than enough for my 890+ photos, but you are correct, limited storage. Still, I find that one hindrance insignificant when compared to lugging the laptop.

Does it backup the pictures in the same size and resolution they were on your camera card?

Yes, it did. You don't need wi-fi to download the pix into the iPad, and as soon as you hook it up to your computer at home it immediately pulls up iphoto and pops them right in there.

I also downloaded the Kindle app (free) into the iPad, and iCloud made it possible to read on either device. Whenever iPad picked up a wi-fi connection it would sync the two, so I could pick up either device and be in the same spot where I left off. Plus I was reading a book which had color pictures of paintings, Kindle Keypad is only black & white, but the iPad showed the paintings in color. Really nice. I took my KK because it has 3G, so when there was no wi-fi connection I could still check my e-mail on Kindle.

I haven't yet figured out how to caption the pictures in iPad, but I also haven't sat down to read the instruction booklet. I let my kids guide me through its uses just the night before we left. It's pretty easy to use, I'm thinking there must be a way to caption I just haven't looked into it. I captioned photos on my laptop when I got home.

How safe/secure is it to take my laptop? I know most of the hotels will have wifi, but what about the ship?

May I suggest taking an iPad? My husband and I just purchased an older version of the iPad from a family friend and then went to the Apple store and bought a camera "kit" for $30. The kit is actually a little card reader that plugs into the iPad and down loads your pictures into the iPad in a matter of seconds, which are then backed up on iCloud. Works like a charm.

Of course the initial investment in the iPad is not cheap, but as I said we were lucky enough to get one from a friend who was upgrading. I can't say enough about how much we liked traveling with the iPad vs. taking our laptop. First of all, size, the iPad fit in the safe both onboard the boat and in all the hotel safes, plus it's very light weight, and takes up so little room in the carry-on. When we went through airport security and others had to take out their laptops for inspection, the TSA person told us that an iPad did not have to be inspected separately and we could leave it in our carry-on. Our little iPad worked anywhere there was free wi-fi, ours does not have 3G which would have been even better, but nevertheless we will not be traveling without it ever again.

We've just returned, last Wednesday. We used GV TOurs on Feb 7th. Fernanda was our guide, she was young, but well informed, and we too had great weather.... clear and sunny. We got some awesome shots of the volcano and the lake. Shopping in Puerto Varas at the artisan stalls was great. (I'm not much of a shopper, but I can tell quality.) The lunch was tasty, and the entertainment delightful. As was previously said, Gail and Veronica's daughter performed some folkloric dances. She was lovely. I highly recommend GV tours.

I recommend walking Montevideo. Some city reps give you a walking tour map as you get off the ship. It took us about 3 hours to do the tour and breifly visit some of the museums, then we had a nice lunch at the market (mercado del puerto).

 

There were quite a number of police around but do watch for pickpockets - one guy on our cruise got some dirty kleenex pickpocketed.

Ha ha ha ha. The old dirty decoy trick. :D Thanks for the heads up, I'll wear my bra stash.

 

We travel frequently, rarely hire guides but were glad we did in Montevideo. We later found out several of our shipmates were robbed in Montevideo, so having a local, knowledgeable guide was an added plus.

 

Segrio's contact info:

email: ToursRus2008@yahoo.com

Cell number: 099 219 680

I have been searching both CC and TripAdvisor for suggestions, but only came up with the above names. I'm really happy to have a "recent" recommendation.

I have heard of some problems in Montevideo which is exactly why I am thinking about a guide.

Thank you so much for your suggestion.

Jacquie

Just wondering if anyone has used any of these 3 private tour guides recently?

Ronaldo Steiner

Ricardo Wall

Jaime Gutierrez

They are culled from the wealth of information here on CC but I am not certain how old the information is . If you've recently traveled with one of them please post how the service was, and if you don't mind, the approx. amount you paid for their services. Thanks.

Since you have, what appears to be, the same opportunity to go to the beach house (same beach house?) I will elaborate on this tour. Living in CA for many years, making quesadillas is nothing new to me, but what was nice on the tour is that we made our own tortillas first, in a tortilla press, and then cooked our quesadillas on a large comal. The beach house we went to had a really nice tile pool in the patio area, which was available for our use all day. When we first arrived at the house we were offered cold cervezas, and later after lunch there was an opportunity to taste a few different tequilas. Interesting, but not my thing. Upon departure we were presented with a small, colorful, typically Mexican "pot" (open jar?) as a souvenir. Very cute, my girls stand their make-up brushes in them.

I don't remember if the chocolate tour was offered to us, but we have been to several ruins in Mexico, and to Machu Picchu in Peru, so probably wouldn't have done another Mexican ruin if it were offered. Good luck with your decision. :)

Thanks for all the lovely information. I am debating whether to hang out at the beach i Huatulco or take the cataman tour of the bays.

We stopped at these two ports on an Azamara Quest Panama Canal cruise . In Chiapas we did a ship's excursion to a lovely beach house for the day. It was one of the best ship's tours I've ever done. It was billed as an opportunity to learn how to make quesadillas (pretty simple), but the time at the beach house was the best part. It was a small group, less than 20 people, and a magnificent private house. We walked on our own from the house to the beach, which was, for the most part deserted, private and beautiful. Took some memorable photos there and hung out, then walked back to the house for lunch (those quesadillas).

Huatulco was, for us, a beach hangout day, although we did some good shopping in the area. Can't say that we got any bargains, but we were very pleased with the lovely black ceramics we brought home, and we enjoyed lunch and margaritas at one of the many beach restaurants.

All in all I'd have to say that, without any high expectations, these were two very enjoyable ports.

Sundapple, I've gotten different prices from different agencies and have rentals reserved in 4 countries for our upcoming trip. For sure EVERYTIME the highest rates were from the larger, well known agencies, of which Hertz, Avis, Sixt and even (surprisingly to me since we've gotten good deals from them before), Europcar and AutoEurope. The best rates have usually been offered by: Economycar.com; Fastcarhire.uk (I can't get that one straight up by just using.com);Budget and National have come in SOME places, surprisingly - something straight from their website and sometimes through a booking agency. You can do Priceline and BID on a car; run it through Yeego.com (I've gotten different agency options each time) and there is one called something like Spaincarhire or Spain-something, which sounded great but they were a bit higher priced than the lowest; just not as high as the highest.

 

Now, here are some things you should know, but don't let them discourage you. They will make renting sound way more complicated than it is: I've had issues trying to find out WHERE a particular office is located in places where I've wanted to get the car somewhere inside the city (Barcelona, for instance) and not right from the airport. (Can require a lot of legwork - putting address onto Mapquest or Google first, etc.), but when it's an airport, no problem. Watch for opening and closing hours and days. Some of these places close mid-day (siesta) for a few hrs. and while you might be able to access them, it could be of extra cost. Some you save money on if you pay in full ahead of time, or else pay a deposit at the time of booking. But mostly you get all the money back if you cancel by a determined date. Some right up to rental time. (In one case it was a 2 euro fee to cancel.) There was one called Holidayrentals.com or something out of the UK (I THINK?) that was inexpensive and the background seemed good, but I cannot seem to access online myself!? It came up through Yeego.com (a discount booking site) once. Just be SURE to read the terms of each contract THOROUGHLY! One more thing - in the past we have never obtained an int'l. driver's license. Never needed one, either. Often they are required in the country but the rental agency never makes you have one. This time I talked my dh into getting one because IF you get into an accident, THEN you need one. There is translation into even Arabic inside the one he got from AAA and that is the main reason. Plus, in the fine print of the automatic cdw insurance that often comes with a rental (though not usually from Hertz, Avis, etc.) the ins. is invalidated if you wreck and do not have an int'l. license! If you have a credit card and want to waive cdw (we have coverage through our credit card IF we initial/decline it on a contract, but SOME of agencies will not let you have a car if you decline the insurance - Hertz, etc., will, usually). We never knew any of this stuff until we rented in the UK in Oct., when I carefully researched the insurance stuff. Never ever had the int'l. license before this time. So it will be a bit of a risk when I drive, which won't be much - but as long as I don't wreck . . . ! LOL (We did have a side mirror torn off once by a young parking valet at our inn in Positano several yrs. ago. AutoEurope contract included ins. So they never charged us a dime and didn't give us one bit of trouble on the return!)

 

Well, I think that is enough to get you going. Hope this helps! Go have fun and I think you will be glad you got a car. (Just be prepared for a few "discussions" over directions. ;) Good luck!

Hi, Don't know if you will even see this as the original post was so long ago, but I want to thank you for your encouragement in renting a car and Doing It on Our Own. We did rent a car from Hertz in Monte Carlo, and drove to Eze, Nice and St. Paul de Vence. It was not difficult at all, except for, as you said, "discussions" on directions. :)

MY DH got an international license, but we did not need it. We could have used GSP but our car did not come equipped with it. Hertz in Monte Carlo does not come equipped with maps either, so we used a map we picked up onboard from the local TI rep. It was ok, but not great since its focus was Monte Carlo and we were leaving MC to go into France. We did get good directions to get out of MC and found Eze easily.

Once in Eze, which was charming, we got a better regional map from the TI at the base of the town. (Good clean bathrooms at the TI center too, although they charge 40 cents for the use of them.)

So in a nutshell, it was an adventure and great fun, and we thank you for the help you, and this board provided. We wouldn't have done it without you. :)

If we were in your shoes we would (a) have lunch onboard the ship (saves a good 45-60 minutes on land) and (b) be the very first ones off the ship and immediately grab a taxi to the station. You should be able to catch the 13:27 train (Vernazza 13:47). If not, take the 14:00 direct to Monterosso and the 14:20 back to Vernazza.

 

You could also take the 14:00 to Riomaggiore, and switch your direction of travel to Northbound. The schedules on my train site are current. Those in the CT writeup have not been updated as of yet.

Thank you GSPLover, I was afraid of that. I am hoping we will be one of the first ones off the ship, but one can never tell, as ship's tour participants will disembark first, and my guess is that most will take ship's tours in order to maximize both what can be seen/done with the small amount of time. Thanks for your help anyway, I never thought of taking the express train and doubling back.

Jacquie

I should probably post this as a separate thread, but I thought the community of independent thinkers could help me in more creative ways. :)

Due to certain circumstances, our cruise line switched our port day in La Spezia from a Monday to a Sunday, but the switch means that we will only have 6 hours ( 1pm to 6pm) in the Cinque Terre. While 6 hours may seem like a decent amount of time, considering the fact that it is a tender port, that we must allow for 20 minutes from the port to the train station, waiting for the train to Vernazza (2:06 pm), 20 minute train ride, etc, our actual time in Vernazza dwindles down to about 2.25 hours before we have to start the trek back (train schedule being what it is). Less than ideal, in fact a total bummer. No time really to see anything but one town, and probably no time to walk the Via del Amore.

From what I've read the ferry isn't any better than the train, so the question is this: is there another means of transport between LaSpezia and Vernazza that may get us there faster? We are mainly interested in Vernazza and were thinking we would, after lunch, take the train from Vernazza to Manarola for the Via Del Amore walk to Riomaggore, but this has become negotiable. Are taxi's from the pier to Vernazza an option? Of course, lots of things are options if money is no object, so let's just say money is an object to a certain degree, (less than the ship's tour of $109 pp). :) What say you, of the independent, experienced minds?

If you look at the tour of the old town at this link, we got out to number 29 and then just walked along the base of the wall from there. Both places are on your left if you go this way.

What a great link! Thank you so much. :)

Taking a taxi to the Ploce (plo-cha) entrance, which is the eastern side of town you will find an entrance located on the walk down into the old town. If you take the ship shuttle bus into the old town, yo will arrive at the Pile (pill-eh) entrance. The main entrance to the city walls is located just inside this entrance, however it is usually very busy.

I walked the wall yesterday with friends, it was hot and there is very little shade. Bring water, a hat and very good walking shoes. As we approached the Pile area, we noticed about 50 people just waiting. Why bother to wait for 1/2 hour when you can go right up, at either the Ploce or another near to the aquarium.

The walls open at 0800 and it's best to get up there as early as possible. Bring your camera with lots of memory, the views are spectacular.

Enjoy your time here.

Zdravo Dubrovniktravelady,

In another thread you recommended the Orhan restaurant. I have two questions about that place, 1. Is it near the Ploce gate or the Pile gate? We are planning to eat there after walking the wall, so with that in mind at which gate would you suggest we finish our walk? 2. Do they serve the grilled squid there too? I can't wait to taste that dish. I love squid.

Hvala for your help. (I'm training myself to use it) :)

Sundapple, as I mentioned the first time, DO NOT let all of that info. scare you. It isn't as complicated as it sounds. I think I overloaded you w/stuff that I didn't even know the first time we got a rental car in Europe!

While I find booking the car daunting, ultimately I know that it will solve a lot of logistical problems for us, so I'll do my due diligence and get us a car, and then he'll do his when he's got to drive. :) He's already started some "discussions" about insurance and international driver's license with me, and I keep reminding him that what was what 25 years ago is not necessarily what's happening today. :)

Thanks again for all your help. Have a wonderful time on your trip. I'm sure it will be fabulous. :)

Jacquie

Sundapple, I've gotten different prices from different agencies and have rentals reserved in 4 countries for our upcoming trip. For sure EVERYTIME the highest rates were from the larger, well known agencies, of which Hertz, Avis, Sixt and even (surprisingly to me since we've gotten good deals from them before), Europcar and AutoEurope. The best rates have usually been offered by: Economycar.com; Fastcarhire.uk (I can't get that one straight up by just using.com);Budget and National have come in SOME places, surprisingly - something straight from their website and sometimes through a booking agency. You can do Priceline and BID on a car; run it through Yeego.com (I've gotten different agency options each time) and there is one called something like Spaincarhire or Spain-something, which sounded great but they were a bit higher priced than the lowest; just not as high as the highest.

 

Now, here are some things you should know, but don't let them discourage you. They will make renting sound way more complicated than it is: I've had issues trying to find out WHERE a particular office is located in places where I've wanted to get the car somewhere inside the city (Barcelona, for instance) and not right from the airport. (Can require a lot of legwork - putting address onto Mapquest or Google first, etc.), but when it's an airport, no problem. Watch for opening and closing hours and days. Some of these places close mid-day (siesta) for a few hrs. and while you might be able to access them, it could be of extra cost. Some you save money on if you pay in full ahead of time, or else pay a deposit at the time of booking. But mostly you get all the money back if you cancel by a determined date. Some right up to rental time. (In one case it was a 2 euro fee to cancel.) There was one called Holidayrentals.com or something out of the UK (I THINK?) that was inexpensive and the background seemed good, but I cannot seem to access online myself!? It came up through Yeego.com (a discount booking site) once. Just be SURE to read the terms of each contract THOROUGHLY! One more thing - in the past we have never obtained an int'l. driver's license. Never needed one, either. Often they are required in the country but the rental agency never makes you have one. This time I talked my dh into getting one because IF you get into an accident, THEN you need one. There is translation into even Arabic inside the one he got from AAA and that is the main reason. Plus, in the fine print of the automatic cdw insurance that often comes with a rental (though not usually from Hertz, Avis, etc.) the ins. is invalidated if you wreck and do not have an int'l. license! If you have a credit card and want to waive cdw (we have coverage through our credit card IF we initial/decline it on a contract, but SOME of agencies will not let you have a car if you decline the insurance - Hertz, etc., will, usually). We never knew any of this stuff until we rented in the UK in Oct., when I carefully researched the insurance stuff. Never ever had the int'l. license before this time. So it will be a bit of a risk when I drive, which won't be much - but as long as I don't wreck . . . ! LOL (We did have a side mirror torn off once by a young parking valet at our inn in Positano several yrs. ago. AutoEurope contract included ins. So they never charged us a dime and didn't give us one bit of trouble on the return!)

 

Well, I think that is enough to get you going. Hope this helps! Go have fun and I think you will be glad you got a car. (Just be prepared for a few "discussions" over directions. ;) Good luck!

Oh my goodness, so much to think about! :eek: I started with the search yesterday evening and ran into the problem of where to pick up in Monte Carlo. That took more time than I thought it would.

Thank you for the volumes of information and guidance. I think DH and I will be having more "discussions" about this rental before we even get there. :) Seriously, I cannot thank you enough for your help. I shall persevere.

Jacquie