ukdeblarz

Just got back, We did Lady of the Rock and Perast and would highly recommend it. It was a good price and we loved every minute of it. It also included a walking tour inside the city walls. Kotor has to be one of my favorite places ever!!!!!

Yes, we just did it a week or so ago. It was incredible. Make sure you are super physically fit to be able to do it. We saw lots of older folks really struggling. Drink lots of water and wear very sturdy shoes. It is worth it!!!!!!

Just got back last week. One of my favorite ports. Did not feel overcrowded. Wish I had extra time there as the shopping looked great. Lovely people too!

Just got back.

Montenegro and Croatia were my favorite ports of all. Are you a Game of Thrones fan? Even if not, the Game of Thrones tour were pretty good.

In Dubrovnik we walked the city walls and saw the Game of Thrones sites. Good for active folks as lots and lots of walking.

In Montenegro we did the Lady of the Rock boat tour and loved it. It also included a walking tour inside the city walls. One of my favorite days.

In Split, we did the Game of Thrones Mareen castle and Dragon's Dungeon. Once again, a fabulous day. I would recommend it.

Just got back a week ago.

We did the ship tour of Best of Athens and its Scenic Coast. Would not do the scenic coast part again as it was multiple hours sitting in traffic on a bus. They took us a restaurant in a small village as part of this tour and the meal was something we will never forget. The food just kept coming and coming and coming. The staff had so much pride in sharing their food.

The acropolis was amazing. Yes, lots of slippery steps and walking in hot weather, but worth it. There is a toilet at the top (always helpful to know). Make sure you wear sturdy shoes. Saw young people in flip flops falling over.

Just returned from Venice.

We did a ship transfer to the airport and had a 2:50 p.m. flight. We were dropped off at the airport by about 11 a.m. The cruise rep at drop off told us that there is a rule at Venice airport that you can't check in with your luggage until 1:19 p.m. for a 2:50 p.m. flight. This was a bit weird. We didn't find the airport overwhelming or crowded though while we waited. We went to go check out how long the line was at noon, and we actually were allowed to check in then as we had priority status.

Once through security, there are lots of nice shops to look around. We ate lunch at a burger bar upstairs and there were also lots of deli type places.

There was a super long 2nd line after going through security before going to the gates. However, if you were a U.S. passport holder you got to skip this line and just had your passport scanned then stamped.

I was expecting much worse chaos than we actually experienced.

Just got back from Venice a week ago. We stayed at the Hotel Olimpia 2 nights pre cruise based on recommendations on cruise critic. The recommendations were right one. Great choice. Easy to get to and from the train station and the people mover that takes you to the cruise port. I liked how it was a bit quieter over by this hotel than the San Marco area. Felt a bit safer too. The customer service at the hotel was wonderful. Very clean too. Our room was on the ground floor and felt a little like a dungeon, but to be honest we did not mind. The air conditioning worked very well as did the internet. The garden out back is lovely. There are multiple restaurants that are reasonably priced nearby. No major complaints and I would recommend to others.

We were in 10726 - I posted a review of the cabin in the main review section.

Was just in Aft penthouse 10726. On the maps it shows a side wrap. This is a service area. You can't get to it, but the perk is no neighbors on that side. The balcony is a decent size just narrows slightly on the right side. No equipment blocking views or anything. The suite to the left appeared to have a very slightly larger balcony. It has two loungers, two chairs, and a small table. It is in the shade sometimes and full sun sometimes, depending on which way the ship is facing. Chair pads got soaked one sunny day in port - probably from windows above being washed - and it took 2 days for them to dry. Maybe bring them inside the suite if you are not using them to keep them dry.

The room is a nice size, lots of closet and drawer space and very quiet. No noise concerns at all. It is tucked back in a corner. If you book this suite watch out for the crazy balcony door. Every when open 2 feet wide, it would spontaneously slam shut on its own and lock itself, while we were outside on the balcony. We got locked out twice and it was not a pleasant experience having to yell for neighbors' help very early in the morning.

I would book this cabin again.

Just off the star penthouse aft deck 10. Loved the size of the suite compared to other cruise lines' suites. Balcony size was good with two loungers, two chairs, and a small table. Lots of closet space.

Perks of suite - made to feel very special by Monica the concierge. Getting on and off ship with her assistance was a plus. Also felt was treated differently by staff on board at various places when they saw the suite colored ship sailing card. Our butler didn't seem very good at all. He really did nothing for us and we never saw him (except when neighbors had to call for help for us because our balcony door slammed shut and we were locked out on our balcony). He showed up day one and told us we had no choice about snacks, you get what you get. When we got back from port each day there were perishable snacks on the table in the cabin (cheese plate, tuna sandwiches, mini tarts, chocolate covered strawberries) but they were very warm by the time we got back. We were afraid to eat some of them because it appeared they had been sitting in the room for hours. Our room was not hot - cool actually.

Lunch was in Cagney's and it was good. Only thing is that it was the same menu each day.

Would we do a suite again on NCL. Absolutely! Just the two minor issues with the no show butler (but to be honest we didn't seek him out for things) and the balcony door issue.

Just off the star too. We had an aft penthouse. New carpet, appeared to be new furniture, and definitely new light fixtures. We had two light fixtures that were broken, and they came to fix them within 1/2 an hour and said they were new from the dry dock. We did have a major problem with our balcony door, which they also blamed on the dry dock changes. It would slam shut spontaneously and lock on its own when we were out on the balcony. Got locked out there twice. Very embarrassing to have to yell for neighbors for help late at night and very early in the morning when this happened. Other than that, the dry dock upgrades on board looked nice. I found customer service (except for butler) to be exceptional.

So here's the thing . . . I book a suite for the size of the suite, the size of the balcony, and the location. I really don't need nor desire the services of a butler or a concierge. I can do those things myself. How do you politely tell a butler that you don't need his or her services?

Is using an ATM in Europe the same as using one in the U.S.? That is, do you use the pin the same? Don't have to do anything unusual?

Thanks everyone for the replies

BillB48

Your reply was very helpful. Thank you.

Yes I am from the UK and I live in Iowa, but I am a U.S. Passport holder.

Thanks again

Please help with some advice.

Just booked Island Princess for Dec 20.

1. Do we need a visa for any of the ports? Costa Rica, Columbia, Panama?

2. For the day that we are in the canal (Christmas Day), it says Scenic Cruising 6a - 330p then Colon Panama from 5 - 8 p.m.

Do I understand it correctly that you can stay on the ship as you go through the canal and then just get off in Colon for the shops? I wonder if they will be open on Christmas Day? Or you get off at a lake to go on an excursion then get back on the ship in Colon?

I saw some people say for the first time doing the canal not to take an excursion. Why is this? Is it because she get off at the lake and miss some of the canal?

I'm confused so any advice would be highly appreciated. Thank you

We are on the Star June 3rd. We are in a suite so we booked our specialty dining yesterday - 100 days out. It was easy to book. Other cabins can book specialty dining 90 days out.

You can also make reservations in advance via the website, right?

We are in a suite with the 3 specialty dining plan. If I understand correctly, we go onto the NCL website 100 days prior and book all our dining then? Please help with any advice.

Thank you

Going on the Star in June in the Med. Do we need to reserve entertainment/shows in advance? We are in a Penthouse suite.

wonderful wonderful information.

Thank you so much

Buchhalm,

Wow, thank you so much for all that information. It is very, very helpful.

Can you really book 6 months in advance? I read somewhere else that it was only 92 days.

Yes, I had seen that previously and that's why I was worried. I like the tips of the locking them together and going to stand by them whenever approaching a station. Does the train stop often between Munich and Venice?

Ok so leaning towards taking the nonstop 11:30 a.m. train.

How hard is it to make sure you get on the right train in Munich?

We would do first class seating.

Do we need to worry about the size of our suitcases? We can carry them fine ourselves, but for two weeks of travel we will have large collapsible duffle style ones. Will they fit anywhere on the train? Gotta have my cruise clothes.

We are staying in a Penthouse Suite for NCL Star Med cruise. Please need any advice on laundry. Will be traveling for a week prior to the cruise.

Are there machines on board passengers can use or do you have to send it out?

With suite pax, how much do you have to pay per bag of laundry?

Thanks for any advice.