maryann ns

If you do a search on the Ports of Call - Canada page you will find many previous reports. Just look to the right of the blue bar at the top of the page.

For Sydney, it depends upon when you are going. The two main things I recommend are Louisbourg and Baddeck.

If you are going before Oct. 15, I suggest going to see Fortress Louisbourg. The quickest, most economical way to get there is to rent a car. There are many posts about this. You can also reserve a taxi or probably pick one up at the dock. The ship's tours from what I have read do not give you enough time. Once you are inside the Fortress you will not need a guide, as people acting the roles of actual people who lived in Louisbourg in 1744 will explain things. If you go there, try to have lunch or at least a drink in the pub.

http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/lhn-nhs/ns/louisbourg/index.aspx

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortress_of_Louisbourg

https://maps.google.ca/maps?saddr=Port+of+Sydney,+60+Esplanade,+Sydney,+NS&daddr=Fortress+Of+Louisbourg,+Cape+Breton,+NS&hl=en&sll=46.027005,-60.077362&sspn=0.24219,0.676346&geocode=FeQWwAIdlG1p_CFVQ_v0LVL7zymDSwr7K_tnSzFVQ_v0LVL7zw%3BFWt2vAIdZ8hr_CnfpPkNVqhCSzEQdCafkpSbcQ&oq=port+&mra=ls&t=m&z=11

If it is after Oct. 15 and/or you would like a fairly short scenic drive, then I would rent a car and go to Baddeck and Iona, returning to Sydney another way. This will take you around the scenic Bras D'Or lakes (really an inlet of the sea).

In Baddeck you can see the Alexander Graham Bell Museum and walk around the village. There are shops and restaurants there.

In Iona (which is one of the most beautiful places I have been) you can tour the Highland Village.

https://maps.google.ca/maps?saddr=Port+of+Sydney,+60+Esplanade,+Sydney,+NS&daddr=Baddeck,+NS+to:Alexander+Graham+Bell+National+Historic+Site,+Baddeck+to:Iona,+NS+to:Christmas+Island,+NS+to:Port+of+Sydney,+60+Esplanade,+Sydney,+NS&hl=en&sll=46.026905,-60.07716&sspn=0.24219,0.676346&geocode=FeQWwAIdlG1p_CFVQ_v0LVL7zymDSwr7K_tnSzFVQ_v0LVL7zw%3BFc1tvwIdDPVg_CnPkSNJLGJdSzHz0SeXSM56XA%3BFWF8vwIdARdh_CGgaKDXZTcWmimRaNcULGJdSzGgaKDXZTcWmg%3BFZJPvQIdijBg_Cl3_U_XX2hdSzG-umoFiqZDow%3BFRVTvQIdPNpg_CmLNVmJ_mddSzHgrABkv7cAyg%3BFeQWwAIdlG1p_CFVQ_v0LVL7zymDSwr7K_tnSzFVQ_v0LVL7zw&oq=port&mra=ls&t=m&z=10

http://museum.gov.ns.ca/hv/en/home/default.aspx

For Corner Brook, you could rent a car and drive into Gros Morne National Park. The scenery is beautiful.

http://www.bbc.com/travel/feature/20120604-canadas-most-beautifully-built-city/1

This gives a good idea about the charms of Quebec.

Congratulations on your new granddaughter!

I am so loving this thread and your so very romantic ideas. I hope you can stretch this out. If your wife is not on cruise critic she may not be able to find the exact cruise. Don't let her near a travel agent!

There is no need for a guide. We were dropped off in town by the free shuttle, walked to a post office to get cash, walked to the ferry to go see the volcanic park. later we walked to the shopping centre and rode the huge ferris wheel.

If you can find me on Trip Advisor, send me a PM and I'll send you my notes.

When you go into the cruise terminal in Nagasaki you can buy an all day pass for the trams and you will be given a map.

We had a great day, seeing more than what I thought we could, including going up the cable car across the harbour from the ship, and up the hill to the Glover Gardens which were above our ship. The Peace Park and the museum are impressive. We also had time to do some shopping and eat lunch in a place with local people.

I would take the cable car in the morning and wander around the old town. Then after lunch you can walk the walls with fewer people.

If walking all the way to the fort is too much you can go just as far as the church (you can't miss it!). The views from there are excellent. It was hot the day we were there in October and my balance is poor on rough terrain so we stopped at the church. It is a bit more than halfway up.

You walk more beside the walls than on them.

With some internet searching I was able to find a company, christours which took two small busses of us to Paphos and then to Kourion. The ancient mosaics at both these places rival those in the Terrace Houses in Ephesus. Paphos is a lovely little tourist town. We had no problems with this company at all.

However, other cruisers have had no luck with Christours. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1015268

If you cannot find a tour company, I would rent a car. Because they drive on the left, i had been reluctant to do that, but there is almost no traffic, at least outside of Limassol. The scenery in places is beautiful. Or perhaps you can find a taxi at the port.

Here is a site which lists taxi companies. You may be able to work something out: http://www.yourcyprusportal.com/cyprus-general-info-transportation-taxi-services-paphos.php

Thanks for a great post full of useful information. I agree that renting a car is a viable option. You had the luxury of doing what you wanted.

We are in Dubrovnik today and the cabrio bus is no longer running.

What a beautiful city! We walked the walls today and took our time to take in the wonderful views and the old town.

Check out Tom's Port Guides for some good maps and information: http://www.**************.com/Halifax-06-15-2011.pdf

You can easily spend your day just strolling along the waterfront. There are benches to sit on and places for a snack.

Pier 21 is about immigration to Canada, particularly by ship to Pier 21. http://www.pier21.ca/about Check the links here for other things to see in the waterfront area.

The Maritime Museum is about ships and related history, including a Titanic exhibit with artifacts from the Titanic. http://museum.gov.ns.ca/mmanew/en/home/default.aspx

The Citadel is a Fortress and also contains an army museum, barracks showing the life of a soldier and a film showing of the history of Halifax. You can roam around the Fortress and get some good views of the city as well. http://www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/ns/halifax/index.aspx

We went with Hello Ephesus in 2009 and had a great full day. Bill Bulent was our guide and he is special.

The carpet demonstration was very interesting and there was no pressure at all. It gave us a good idea what to look for if we ever want one. The lunch outside the carpet school was very good.

Thanks Hank, I will keep your information in mind. We have been to Egypt for one day so far but hope to get back. However there are so many places we want to see!

Are you sure that wasn't kilometers? (Which would be about 62 mph.)

It had to be 100 km/hr and if that is all he was going he would be considered slow. I believe the speed limit on most autoroutes is 120 km/hr. 100 mi/hr would be about 160 km/hr and a reputable driver and company would not allow that!

Wow! That is the way to travel. I wish I lived near your TA. I know when we go back to Egypt that we will want to do something similar.

Istanbul at night:

When we overnighted in Istanbul I organized for a large group (busload) to go to the dinner and show at Sultanas. This included a tour of the old city afterwards to see the lights.

The dinner was barely OK (cold fries and rice), the show was hokey, but fun, and the tour of the old city was great, albeit spoiled by one passenger who just wanted to go back to the ship.

If I were going again I would not hesitate to go out and about on our own. I would love to take the tram and see Hagia Sophia and the blue mosque and surroundings all lit up.

Hank does not seem to be around at the moment. I do remember he has said that Ephesus is one place where it is advisable to have a guide. There are many posts here on which companies and guides are good.

I arranged for a tour for 12 of us with Hello Ephesus (guide was Bill Bulent who is excellent). We had a great day and it was very inexpensive, especially when compared with Italy.

If you can walk a block up a steep hill, the Stanford Hillview is just fine and very reasonable. We paid just over $100 in March. It is very close to Nathan Road and the Star Ferry and Ocean Terminal.

Tell them you cannot pay in advance and see what they say. I have had companies waive the deposit. Otherwise, I agree with the others. Go with someone else.

Le Patriarche is a great upscale restaurant in an old building inside the walls in the upper town. It is closed Mondays.

And I am pretty sure that if the cabins are for four people you would need to pay for four to have it to yourselves.

You can borrow from libraries with Nook or Kobo. The Kobo is much like the Nook. It has wi-fi and the same e-ink.

e-books cost less than their print counterparts and there are frequent sales. I took advantage of a 20% off sale today from Kobo.

I love being able to have a big book without the weight and the often small print. I just finished Ken Follet's Fall of Giants. It is a great way to learn the politics of the early 20th century. It is the first of a trilogy and I am already hooked.

My new Kobo is comming with me. It is smaller than one paperback and I will at least read on the plane. I have downloaded travel pdf files too.

If you have done some reading and have a good guide book (I also recommend Rick Steves) you will be fine on your own, and to me it is much more of an adventure that way. Be sure to get to Topkapi Palace, especially the treasury and the harem. We loved Istanbul and our other four ports in Turkey) and are planning a return trip to Turkey for a much longer time.