QueScaisJe

2) When we come back, it is on a weekday so I think the bus #26 is available but can somebody tell me approx how far it is from Oceankaj C330 to the bus #26 stop? Since we will have luggage, if it is quite a walk, it might not be worth it. And it seems like there is quite a long wait for the bus too?

If there are no other negative factors (i.e. many ships already in port), then I think the #26 bus would work out well. The bus stop is just around the corner from the terminal buildings--a two minute walk. Regarding the wait, getting off the ship as early as possible might help, or if you are staying in Copenhagen and are not very time-constrained then leaving later might work as well.

When we were there earlier this May, there was a shuttle service from the pier to outside the National Library. This cost €10 p/p return; I believe they also took USD and GBP. This was quite convienent and worth the money to us. Note this is for a single round-trip.

You could also walk west to the nearest bus or LUAS stop, but it seemed to be a fair distance. On our return the shuttle driver very nicely picked up people walking back to the pier. They were quite thankful!

What about the Biergarten?

I don't know. There were several spots to have food & drink, but as I said they looked kind of pricey* for what you got. Most of the natives were there just to drink, carrying around 5-packs of beer to the viewing spot for the soccer match.

*Pricey for Copenhagen, which is already very pricey compared to N. America.

You may want to eat elsewhere. Rick Steves writes "Inside the park, expect to pay amusement-park prices for amusement-park-quality food." We were in Tivoli Saturday night for the Champions League game, and didn't find any good-value food options.

Here was our experience debarking the morning of Friday, May 23. We were on the Celebrity Infinity, and wanted to take public transportation to our post-cruise hotel (Bella Sky). Being experienced travellers, we had researched our options: bus #26 to Kongens Nytorv then metro, with a backup plan B to take a taxi to the Nordhavn train station if the bus was unavailable. We travel relatively lightly, and had one roller suitcase plus one rolling carry-on. (Total, not each. Yes ladies, you can do this too!)

We arrived in bright sunshine at C330 Terminal 3 sometime after 7am, with our debarkation at 8am-ish. Two other ships were already berthed, the Royal Princess and HAL Eurodam. From our balcony we could see heavy construction trucks working at an unfinished area far beyond C330. They looked to be bringing in fill for a new pier, not connected to C330. Little did we know that that was a foreboding omen.

Terminal 3 is the furthest out of the three cruise buildings, but walkable to the #26 bus stop. When we got to the stop, there were already about 30 people queuing, all with luggage of various sizes. One bus arrived after about a half-hour, and seemed to only take about 15 folks on board with all their luggage. Not great given this was the terminus for the (empty) bus.

OK onto plan B. Many taxis were coming into the area along the only port road, but none would stop for us. We walked back to Terminal 1, and saw the massive queue for taxis. This was even worse than the bus line, so we hauled ourselves back to the bus stop... where the line had grown to maybe 50 people. Although we weren't time constrained, we didn't want to spend our morning waiting for a bus either.

We decided to walk. There were sidewalks for almost all of the route, and occasionally we'd roll along the bike paths when that was easier. It is quite a journey on foot, maybe 30-45 minutes depending on your fitness level. We encountered incoming taxis and buses marked "Ikkerute" (out of service?). We passed some other cruisers who walked partway and needed a rest, plus beat all the traffic on the road out. Read that again: we walked past all the other traffic, taxis, HOHO buses, and the #26 bus. The problem was a huge traffic jam caused by the construction trucks coming off a side road which had right-of-way over the port road. This snarled all the outgoing port traffic for at least a kilometer. Nothing was moving outbound, except us (albeit slowly) and some locals on bicycles.

Once out of the port area, there was good signage to the Nordhavn train station, through an underpass and maybe another 200m south following the elevated train tracks. At the station we could purchase tickets via an automated machine, which strangely did not require a PIN. I had planned to buy the 72-hr passes, but they didn't seem to available, so got 2-zone klippekorts instead. (These worked out well for the rest of our 3 days in Copenhagen.) A 10-minute ride to Norreport and a 10-minute metro ride got us to our hotel at around 9:30am.

Takeaways from all this?

(1) Until the port authorities fix this problem, do not plan a time-constrained transfer. Since all traffic must proceed along the one port road, nothing gets out if it's clogged--not taxis, not buses, not shuttles. Then the only options are walking, and maybe biking.

(2) Try to do the transfer when the road isn't slammed. We talked with a couple from the Eurodam, and they said the previous day there was no serious delay getting around on the #26 bus. So the problem seems to vary with time of day, and likely the number of ships in port.

(3) Copenhagen's public transport system is great, even with their limited metro lines. We didn't have any difficulties using the buses, metro, or s-tog trains, other than this sobering initial ordeal. Note that there is construction going on all through downtown Copenhagen due to the new metro stations; Kongens Nytorv is definately not a photo opportunity.

(4) Pack light. Have a plan C.

Just to confuse matters, here is our recent experience in Copenhagen. We have a chip & PIN card (as all cards issued in Canada are). There was no problem using it anywhere we went. The unmanned ticket machines at train/metro stations accepted the card and approved purchases without needing a PIN--a bit surprising as I was expecting to enter a PIN--so perhaps only the stripe was read. Also merchants that had clear signage that they would charge extra (up to 4%) for foreign credit card transactions did not do so. I just checked my online statement and the amounts in DKK had no surcharges.

Q: When don't Oyster cards make sense?

A: When there's a transport strike ongoing. (Only slightly cheekily :( )

'Fishy,Fishy' its set back a little from the quay front. Just beyond Actons hotel. Type of food.....there's a clue in the name! :)

Has the Fishy Fishy chippie reopened (at the original restaurant location)?

The 2-for-1 rules say that you have to have a valid train ticket to use the promotion. So if your train trip starts in the future (or has completed in the past), you cannot use the 2-for-1 voucher. If you have a one-way ticket, you can use the promotion on the day. Otherwise you might consider a travelcard issued by a National Rail office.

Do away with "tipping" altogether--on board, ashore, everywhere.

I read recently that the main rationale for tipping, encouraging good service, is far less correlated than with other factors such as the age and ethnicity of both the client and service personnel. Despite what you may think, tipping is not an effective incentive for service personnel.

That's why tipping should be added on as a service charge to the cost of the cruise.

At one time I thought it wiser always to have the passport securely on one's person when in port (for all the abovementioned reasons). I've since changed my habits and now only carry ashore a photocopy, leaving the actual passport in the cabin safe unless the local authorities require otherwise.

If you do plan on visiting inside the Colosseum, I recommend booking the underground tour. The tour lasts for about 75 minutes and gets you access to several restricted areas off-limits to most visitors: the subterranean level where the gladiators and exotic beasts were kept; the ground-level stage where the gladiators fought those beasts; and the upper third-level with magnificent views over Rome. Great photo ops! Very much worthwhile even if you've "done" the Colosseum before.

You can get more info from the official Colosseum ticket site http://www.coopculture.it/en/colosseo-e-shop.cfm

When we visited in 2012 we could book/buy the tour online, but it appears that you have to call them now.

I'm reading A Year In The Life Of William Shakespeare: 1599 as this is the 450th anniversary of his birth. Great historical background of the Elizabethan era, as well as Shakespeare's life and times. Highly recommended.

What does your credit charge you for overseas purchases? What does your ATM card charge you for overseas withdrawals? What does your US bank charge you for foreign currency purchases? You will investigate all these if you want to make rational foreign currency decisions.

This.

There are no definitive rules. You need to balance cost with convenience.

If you can find a good rate at home, bring as much currency as you feel comfortable carrying. Use credit cards without usurious FX fees. ATM's are usually my backup option, but only as they have occasionally let me down when I needed them most.

We've done it, and would do it again if flying out of BUF. The long-term lot is outside and similar to the one in YYZ (except much cheaper, as you know). We were amused at the quantity of Ontario plates parked there. And returning to Canada was a cinch, since you pass through customs at the Peace Bridge rather than at the airport.

Hi Texas, I agree that with the limited time you'd have, the excursion would not be worth it. Have you considered staying in Paris before or after your cruise?

Try Cofoco or one of its sister restaurants (Trois Cochons, Höst). Their set menus are under DKK300 (USD55 or so). Remember that the restaurant prices include tax and tip, so they're a bit easier to "swallow". The big value killer in my experience is drinks. A moderate bottle of wine or wine pairing can easily be as pricey as the meal in Copenhagen.

Cheapest Danish meal? Grab a hotdog at a pølsevogn and have a picnic with a cold beer.

Experienced cruisers: Do prices fluctuate constantly? Or was this likely the bottom rate, and now prices will continue to rise?

Yes the prices are adjusted due to supply and demand. Think airline fares.

Is this the bottom rate? Who knows? I can tell you for sure only after the ship sails ;) Often the rates come down after cancellation penalties kick in, and especially from about 8 weeks out as part of an Xciting deal: http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Exciting_Deals/XcitingDeals_cel_tues.pdf

YMMV of course.

Fantastic review SailorJack! Antarctica is now officially on my bucket list. And I say that despite the 20 cm of fresh snow outside my window...

Here's hoping that Royal Caribbean will reprise the recent Celebrity 1-2-3 Go! Promotion. We're moderate drinkers so the package is only worth $25-$30 per day for us. But free works!