badtwin

I really would book it now... this is the type of cruise that typically sells out fast.

Believe me, I know after looking for a British Isles cruise last year and finally giving up. This has been the source of "discussion" for much of the weekend. Unfortunately, (well fortunately but not now) for our last two cruises we found incredible deals on balconies on Celebrity in the Mediterranean and DH has those pp/pd price points in mind. Guess I will just cross my fingers.

Very helpful.

Thank you!

We are new to Princess and considering a British Isles sailing next spring. Cruising with DH and adult DD in one room.

The current pricing has a very good discount for the third in a room, bringing the average per person price down to an attractive level but we are hesitating. (DH likes a bargain.) We are traveling from Washington state so airfare is also a big factor, although we can do better if we travel to Vancouver BC.

Which is a lot of background to ask:

1) Is the third and fourth in a cabin discount a Princess standard or is it part of the current 3 plus whatever promotion?

2) Can anyone tell me if Princess eZAir is competitive. We have never found the cruise line airfares much of a bargain so had doubts that the new sale would help that much.

Thanks

Thank you all so much. This is shortest time frame we have ever considered booking a cruise and on a new line too so I am really overwhelmed trying to learn the nuances of P&O, as well as deal with all the ports. We do plan to get in to London a day or so early and stay a day or so post cruise too so this has been very helpful.

Now if the airlines would just cooperate with some more reasonable fares...

Looking at the July 6, 2015 sailing of Britannia and we are new to P&O - trying to sort out the select/saver issues.

We prefer the fixed late seating for dinner - are we likely to get this or is that popular on this cruise line?

Can anyone explain their favorite benefits of select? We would have liked the port transfer but it looks like we may be too late to use that (FAQs says must book 35 days ahead)

The website says "up to" 180 pounds on board spending credit. How can we calculate how much we will actually receive?

Thank you for any help. We are waiting for that perfect blend of cruise price and airfare and may need to act quickly.

Thank you everyone.

I am scrambling to learn what I can about P&O after discovering this itinerary. Your assistance has been most appreciated.

We are considering the British Isles cruise in July. Am I correct the the dress code is similar to Celebrity, although perhaps more men in black tie on formal nights?

I have not been able to find how many formal nights on 12 night cruise - I assume 2?

We will be traveling from Washington state so luggage is an issue so I would like to try to manage with one little black dress and some different accessories, but wearing it three nights might be a bit much.

I am so thankful for cruise critic providing a quick source for this sort of information.

My family has been eyeing an NCL European cruise for this fall because of the timing and itinerary but have had some hesitation - mostly based on the food on our last NCL cruise and on the freestyle format - we like the formal dining room but understand it is not for everyone. I have been watching the NCL forum for news and advice for about a month now.

This new policy is a deal breaker. On port intensive cruises like Europe, we like to come back to the room after along day of touring, shower and dress and have a glass of wine and some "nibbles" from the buffet while we do so and then enjoy a late dinner. I am appalled that we won't be able to bring a plate of something to the room so NCL can stick us with a room service charge for some sort of snack plate.

It is bad enough that the food on the MDR is so uninspired to get more people into the specialty restaurants. Now they expect me to pay for cheese and crackers??? No thanks NCL. Glad I have not booked yet.

What to leave at home:

 

Money belts

Zip off pants

Phrase books - everyone speaks English

 

 

What to take:

Camera with appropriate memory cards and accessories

Comfortable shoes

Lightweight pants for men

The same items you would use anyplace to avoid exposure to too much sun

 

In other words, take the same stuff you would take for any vacation.

Actually, we found if you got off the beaten path everyone did not speak English. And we further found the locals did not like the ugly American tendency to just speak English louder. A phrase book (or a phrase app) is useful and we found our efforts were appreciated.

The zip off pants are geeky and label you an American tourist. But they are an alternative if anyone in your party otherwise must wear shorts. Besides, they will know you are an American tourist the second you open your mouth, even with the phrase book.

Not using a money belt or secure alternative is just silly, wherever you vacation.

We found zip off pants very useful because some churches do not allow shorts but we didn't want to wear long pants all day. (Skirts are fine for women but not too short) You also need to be able to cover bare shoulders in some churches.

Hats for sun protection.

A money belt or clothes with zippered pockets are good crowded venues. We witnessed a couple of pick pocket victims.

Repeat - good walking shoes

Phrase books if you want to try to communicate in the local language.

Basically what I do is just look at the different cabin categories and count them, easy peasy

So to fully demonstrate my ignorance, where do you look at the different cabin categories?

I tried by "booking" and was offered only three balconies on deck 8 for example. Does that mean there are only 3 balconies left or just three on a randomly selected deck? Do I have to check each cabin category for each deck with that category?

Sorry - I can't seem to figure the NCL website.

I hate to sound like a compete idiot, but how do you tell how many cabins are available in a given category?

I am guessing I need to actually pretend to book the cruise? Is this it or is there some other way?

We usually just wait for pricing to fall and take what we can find from a couple of different cruise lines, but we are particularly interested in a single NCL cruise for its timing and itinerary and I would like some idea if we should book or hope for a price drop.

Thanks

Hope this isn't hijacking a thread - I tried to find one close to my topic.

My husband and I are considering a cruise with a "free" beverage package as an option. But our 24 year old daughter might be joining us in our cabin. The NCL website suggests that if anyone in a cabin buys a beverage package in a cabin, then everyone in the same cabin must also do so. So would we have to buy DD a beverage package in order to take advantage of the "free" offer?

We did Fira to Oia in May 2009 and it is incredible. We did Dubrovnik in November 2013. The Dubrovnik hike is similar in grade to the donkey trail part of the Fira hike, maybe a little more gently sloped, and thankfully without the stampeding donkeys and their "reminders."

Travel lady spends lots of time helping others visit her city and we should not criticize when she feels the rules limit her on restaurants.

Why not try trip advisor or any of the many food and hotel specific websites? We use trip advisor both as part of our planning and also to make spur of the moment decisions based on the Trip Advisor rating signs that are posted in restaurant windows.

I can't help with all your questions but just wanted to pipe in as someone who enjoyed this hike and would encourage others who like to hike to try it. I get very tired of those who say it takes too much time. For those of us who enjoy something more physical in port than shopping and looking at old buildings (if only to justify another crème brule at dinner) it is not a waste of time but pleasant diversion.

The trail was hard to find and I can't recall where I found the best directions - maybe trip advisor? Once on it, you cannot easily stray - it is in most places wide enough for a four wheeler. The trial has a consistent uphill grade for most of its length. I can't recall how long it took us to go up and down but even with the hike we managed to see a lot of the old town afterwards, including walking the walls, during our one day stop.

In the interest of full disclosure, there were a few issues with this hike. While the views are spectacular along the way, this is because you are on a treeless hillside with absolutely no shade and no shelter if it rains. If it is hot you will need to carry plenty of water and there were no good spots for a picnic along the way, although there would probably be someplace to enjoy a lunch on top. The path itself is a series of switchbacks and the trail surface is dirt and cobbles so a hazard if you are prone to twisting ankles. There was more litter than I am used to but maybe it was off season and not well tended.

We are in mid-fifties and in reasonable shape and did not have any trouble managing this hike.

a follow up on restaurants. While cruise critic is great for a lot of things, we found "trip advisor" very helpful for restaurants because the reviews tend to be much more focused and from a broader base.

In addition, we learned that while looking for the "free Wi-Fi" sign, there would often be a sign showing a trip advisor rating in a restaurant window. For a lot of ports we wanted to look at menus and decide when and what to eat more spontaneously and the trip advisor sign was really helpful.

We were there in November 2013. We took the city bus to the old town walls, walked up through town and found the hike up to the top of the mountain, hiked up and back (we intended to ride the cable car down but it was closed due to wind), walked the town walls, walked around old town looking at shops and churches etc, and stopped for the most incredible bowl of mussels (DH) and fish soup (me) at a spot we stumbled into because they had a free Wi-Fi sign- receipt says Restoran Steak House , Od Domina 3. I think it was near intersection of Od Domina and Od Rupa in the walled part of town. We took the city bus back to the port.

Great day even with the wind and rain.

And if you like bridges, be sure to check out the incredible suspension bridge coming into port.

A FYI, our bus inspectors are not trying to trap tourists but looking for those who board the buses without paying. They can board a bus at any stop to check tickets and our local bus passes. Often our younger generation will board a very crowded bus from a rear door and not pay, hence the need for inspections.

I beg to differ. The inspector got on at the stop immediately after the port and checked only the tourists' tickets. This is not unique to Dubrovnick - same thing all over Europe as so many American tourists screw up the validation requirements.

We sailed Celebrity on November 2013. We got local currency at an exchange booths located at the pier. I read there were also ATM.

We took the local bus into town and back. Be sure to validate as it seemed inspector came on at the next stop to trap the tourists.

We found the local bus very easy to use and it did not take that much time to get into town, so might be an option depending on the cab lines. But it drops you at the main gate, some distance from the cable car base.

We hiked to the top of the mountain and down again, but I think a taxi tour is worth considering as an option over the cable car. We went in November and cable car was closed because of high winds so it was the only other way to enjoy a view that should not be missed.

I would be curious about lines and wait times in summer for the cable car - you should check how many other ships are in port for your visit and adjust your plans accordingly. Or at least have options and be flexible. Walking the walls was also interesting but your group needs to be able to do steps.

Lifeguards can be "security guards"- people trained in water safety who are identified as security. Their major role would be to enforce pool rules and the cruise lines can be as strict as they feel they need to be about those rules.

 

One doesn't even have to use the word "lifeguard" or consider it in the typical sense with tall chairs and such. Just security so that small children will no longer be left unattended in any cruise pool.

The problem is that once the cruise line accepts some responsibility for watching the kids by the pool (or anywhere on board for that matter), it is very easy for a lawyer to argue it should have/could have done more to protect the children.

I am cynical enough to believe that the security provided on Princess lines is not there so much to protect the children as it is to protect the adults from the poor manners of "other people's" children.

You might get quicker response in the scuba and snorkeling topic or under the Ports of Call section and the specific ports.

These forums are amazing and it sometimes takes awhile to find the best place to post your specific question.

So what would you cc members be willing to pay for a lifeguard or other measure to keep the kids safe at the pools? I am looking for $ or cents per day. Let the cruiselines worry about the liability issues or they can call Disney cruiseline and get the facts and cost on that.

 

Per cruiser what is the extra cost that you are willing to spend to decrease the number and hopefully eliminate drownings and near drownings of small children on cruiseships? For sure $20 per week would not phase me in the least and I would go significantly higher than that. Where would you draw the line $0, $3.50, $7, $10, $20, $25, $50????

The question really is not what a cc member is willing to pay - the question is what the cc member is willing to require every other cruiser to pay for lifeguards on all cruise ships, many of which do not cater to large numbers of children.

For port specific questions, the "Ports of Call" section is excellent - go to "Europe", then Spain and there were several helpful sections in this topic when we planned our cruise.