tomatospice

We were in Ashdod in Nov 2022. We took the shuttle out of the port (which they made wait to leave until after the ship's tour buses so be aware). It dropped us off in Ashdod just down the street from the bus station. The bus left right on time and moved right along into Jerusalem. We spent the day and then retraced our steps. The bus from Jerusalem to Ashdod also left right on time. I had not seen such on time buses in my life! We had purchased the Rav-Kav cards at the airport when we flew into Tel Aviv and we used those on the buses and then the light rail in Jerusalem. There is an office at the bus station in Ashdod where you can buy tickets though as a lady from our port shuttle did that.

On 11/5/2022 at 7:04 AM, dritan said:

I second that - We took the free shuttle to the bus station and got our tickets easily to Jerusalem.  In Jerusalem the electric railway/tram was just across the road from the bus station and a 10 min ride later we were at the old city. 

Thank you!! 

On 10/12/2022 at 4:58 AM, fvandewouwer said:

Being in Asdod at this moment

No need to take that expensive taxi to Jerusalem 

The port shuttle puts you in front of the bus station a bus ticket is inexpensive ( it is,a 24 h pass)it takes around 1 15 h to reach the train station in Jerusalem from there the metro (same bus ticket) brings you everywhere.

Enjoy!

So does the port shuttle takes you to the Central Bus Station in Ashdod or does it take you to one of the port gates where the #2 bus runs along that road? I will be in Ashdod on the 16th of November and working on a way out of the port since they won't let you walk out. Is the port shuttle free or is there a cost? Thank you!

Hi

 

The lift is easy to get to. You disembark and leave the small gated port area then you walk to the right about 200 yards to the archway through the wall to the Barrakka lift. There is a man there to help, you put change (Euros) into the machine which gives you a ticket then he directs you to the lift. Buy a return, it's cheaper and saves messing about at the top when you want to come back.

 

By the way the cannons on the wall are normally fired at 12 noon.

 

Hope this helps

 

 

 

 

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When I was there last summer, the ride back down the lift was free, so no need to purchase a return ticket.

I am very excited to see the Turkish ports being added back into some of the cruise lines' itineraries. Kusadasi and Istanbul are some of my favorite places to visit. I felt very safe in Kusadasi each time I was there. The ruins at Ephesus are wonderful. There had been a bombing in Istanbul about 10 days before we were there, so we were on high alert as we wandered around, but it is never a bad idea to be aware of your surroundings and it turned out to be my husband's favorite port. Hoping to get a cruise booked soon with a return to Turkey.

Lucca is very easy to do by train and very cheap, but we have also used the rental car company that Hank suggested above. They are wonderful. They even had programmed into the GPS where we should park in Lucca, etc. They were a delight to work with and dropping the rental car right back next to the ship was a bonus.

Stephanie

If you decide not to go to Florence, Lucca is a beautiful city with its own wall around it. You can walk on the wall or rent bicycles (regular or multiple person). It is a beautiful 2.5 mile walk if you go all the way around the wall, but there are several places to come down off the wall if you don't want to walk to whole thing. It makes for a very relaxing day when so many ports stops are so hectic.

That's not precisely true, pedestrians can enter at the southern entrance/exit (near the fort) but the cruise shuttle bus does not stop there. If you are berthed at one of the close in southern points you can easily walk in and out.

 

The shuttle bus stop near the fort is for ferry passengers only.

As mentioned above, passengers can walk in and we did so when we were there in August. We walked from the train station into the port. There is a small checkpoint that you go through (just past the Fort on the first curve) where they will want to see your passport and your boarding documents for your ship so that they know you are supposed to be in the port.

Definitely walk the wall around Lucca. It is 2.5 miles around, so you can walk part or all of it depending on your level of fitness and your time constraints. There are several places where you can get up onto the wall and go back down. You can also rent bikes to ride on the wall if you like.

I was just there in August and we bought our tickets at the Palatine Hill entrance and then accessed the Forum through there. Still the same ticket as they have always had on my previous visits.

I have been to Civi twice since they moved the port entrance and I agree with cruisemom that it is probably money related. Both times, we walked out of the port on our own instead of taking the shuttle (even though it was free). We docked at 7 a.m. and the shuttles didn't start running until 7:30 or 8, by which time (8:00) we were on a train heading to Rome. Not sure if you are walkers or not, so this may not be an option for you. Depending on where you are docked, it takes a good 20 minutes to walk out to the "old" port entrance at Fort Michelangelo and about another 10 minutes to the train station. On the way back in, you have to go through the little white guard building that is around the first turn as you walk back in and show them your passport and your cruise card so they know you are supposed to be in the port.

Thank you so much. I am planning on a 2019 cruise on the Star and your review was very helpful in making the deck plans of the ship come alive. I appreciate your time.

We did both Pisa and Lucca on our trip in August. We were in port from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. We took the first shuttle from the port into town, took the bus to the train station and then took the train to Pisa Centrale Station. We walked through Pisa to the Leaning Tower (about 30 minutes if you just stroll). We did climb the tower, but it was my daughter's first time there. Afterwards, we went outside the square and took a bus to Lucca. We walked the wall all the way around (about 2.5 miles) as well as a fair amount of walking in the old town itself. We walked to the train station in Lucca (just a few blocks outside the walls) and took the train back to Pisa and on to Livorno where we took the bus back to the shuttle drop off point and then took the shuttle back to the ship. We were back in plenty of time and took advantage of the free wifi in the Livorno Terminal building.

I did a Sail Away booking for our cruise in August and we ended up on Deck 11 in a sideways inside...great cabin. Would do that again in a heartbeat as it saved a lot of money and I don't really care much about most of the perks. I was given the opportunity to bid on upgrades within a few days of booking.

I was on the Epic April 2016 and November 2017 - both times there was a shuttle that went directly to the train station. There were several shuttle buses at the port and I think that we had to ask which one to board for the station. I can't recall if we paid with euro or our room card (Rome and Livorno were different).

Oh wow. Lucky you. We were on the Spirit and so maybe since it is a smaller ship it didn't have shuttles that went directly to the train station? There was only one queue for our shuttle buses that day and not multiple shuttle buses. When we got our tickets, the lady told us that they were all going to Piazza del Municipio and that we would have to take the bus to the train station from Via Grande (in front of the H&M store). I feel slightly left out :rolleyes:, but I do enjoy the smaller ships. I guess it could have something to do with how many other ships were in port that day as well. I saw several mega ships and maybe there is a limited number of shuttles and those mega ships got them and not us.

We paid with euros and not our room card.

As a side note, thank you for all your comments on Gibraltar. I have used many of them to plan a future trip. Very useful :)

 

3. If you're with NCL, no problem :) They offer a payable shuttle to the rail station.:)

This info isn't recent, needs someone who's done it this year to confirm or tell you of any changes.

 

 

 

JB :)

I was on NCL this summer (August) and their shuttle just went to the drop off site where you had to take the city bus to the train station. I had read that they used to offer a shuttle right to the train station, but that wasn't the case when we were there.

You could also go up to the top of Mt. Vesuvius. We did this when we were there in August. The tour company takes you to about 800 meters from the top and you walk up the rest of the way. Great views of the Bay of Naples and the surrounding area from up on top. It is a fairly steep walk, but wide paths and you can rest whenever you want. The tour company we used was right outside the train station at Ercolano Scavi. I know there are other tour companies near Pompeii as well. Not sure about right in Naples. The train ride to Ercolano Scavi from Naples is a short one. Ten euros per person for the bus ride up Vesuvius and ten euros per person to get into the park on Mt. Vesuvius.

And I agree with the previous poster that Herculaneum is not the same as Pompeii. Much smaller and better preserved. Depending on your time in port, you could do Vesuvius and Herculaneum as they are both at the same train stop.

When we were embarking in Athens, we flew in that same day (my first cruise, I didn't know any better ;)). We took the train/metro to the port from the airport. It does require a change at one of the stations. Once we were in Piraeus, we walked to the port. Depending on where your ship is docked, this can be a 20 or more minute walk. It is up to you whether you want to do this with suitcases. I have been back to Athens several times and we have always walked the distance between the metro and the port, but I know some people would rather have transport right to the port.

In Barcelona, we did a combination of metro/train to the airport. I believe since we were there that there is now a metro line that goes all the way to the airport (orange) without having to use the train. There is a port shuttle for 2 euros (2015) that takes you in and out of the port area to near the Christopher Columbus monument. The Drassanes (can't remember how to spell that) metro stop is near there.

We have always taken our own water bottles ashore...no problem in any ports (including Mexico).

We were there in August and really enjoyed Mdina. We walked up to the bus station from the port. This is a steep walk, but we enjoy the walking. Took us about ten minutes. The bus takes about 30 minutes to get to Mdina. We enjoyed walking around that old town very much. It had amazing buildings and very interesting doors in all colors. It's very compact and easy to walk around. We rode the bus back to Valetta and wandered through those streets, the Upper and Lower Barrakka Gardens, etc. We took the lift back down (free going down) and walked back into the port. We were only in port from 12-8 and were back on the ship about 6. Sail in is something you don't want to miss. Beautiful!

In Santorini, there is a cable car that takes you to the top of the cliff to Fira/Thira. The bus station is an easy walk and has buses going to Oia and back quite frequently. Less that 2 euros per person one way. Buses also go from that station out to the black sand beaches which we enjoy doing in the afternoon after we have visited Oia in the morning.

To return to the ship, the cable car also goes down :) Alternately, you can walk down the donkey path if you don't have limited mobility issues. We have done this every time we have been in Santorini. You do have to avoid piles of donkey poop and watch your footing (the places where they have patched the path with cement are slick-just avoid them), but there are beautiful views. Occasionally, people ride the donkeys down the path, so you need to be aware when they are coming up behind you.

I always take ear plugs as I am a very light sleeper. The foam ones that can be bought at Walmart or other stores like that. Make sure you roll them between your fingers repeatedly until they are thin and skinny before trying to put them in your ears. Good luck!

When we were on the Pacific several years ago, all aboard time was 30 minutes before departure. I loved that we were able to stay in the ports a bit longer due to the smaller amount of people on the ship, thus making reboarding a quicker affair.

Thanks for the review. We are sailing on the Royal later this summer and I appreciate your insights and balanced review of what you liked and did not like.

I read on a review from a Med cruise last summer that the formal nights were nights 3 and 6 on a 7 night cruise. Perhaps they will follow suit this summer?