euro cruiser

Hotels do not have North American outlets, you will need adaptor plugs.

While in country in Italy you do not tip, at most you round up a bill to an even amount (for example, for a 38 euro lunch bill leave 40 euro). While on ship shore excursions I know that tipping is suggested/encouraged, that's the cruise line's issue. If on a private excursion no tip is needed or expected. You are dealing with professionals who are often self employed and set their own rates. They do not expect nor count on tips. I realize that this is uncomfortable for Americans who are accustomed to tipping for nearly everything and are begged for tips these days in even more situations. (Side note: I was recently at a ballpark paying for something at a stand where the employee didn't do anything other than hand me my purchase and he did not move more than two steps in the process. As I paid the credit card machine asked if I wanted to add a tip, I had to actually choose "zero" in front of the employee. This mechanized begging is embarrassing for everyone involved.) But back to my point, it's wrong to export the bad habits of the States to other parts of the world. It may make you feel generous in the moment, but please step back and look at the bigger picture. Of course most people will not embarrass you and refuse your tip, that doesn't make it the right thing to do. Please allow professionals to maintain their dignity and show them thanks and respect in other ways, such as asking them what web sites they would like you to leave glowing reviews on, then follow up and leave the reviews. This helps them build their business for the long term.

Trenitalia now offers a train + bus combo, if the timing works for you. Choose Taormina Centro as your destination to see the connection.

Cefalu would be about an hour by taxi, a bit more by bus. You could take the train. Palermo Centrale is a little less than two miles from the port. From there to Cefalu by train takes 45-50 minutes and there's one train per hour in each direction. Fare is euro 6,80 each way.

We did this as well with our kids as they were growing up. They did learn from it but we quickly learned that we needed more than just budget authority, because the lesson about considering everyone in the family's interest was lost on them! Fortunately they've gotten better at that as they've reached adulthood. 😁

We just walked from the port up to the Duomo and Palazzo Reale area, then back through the mercato di Ballarò. It was about three miles in total and we got a cab back from the market because we were pretty beat by then. While we did not have kids with us, I did have one 80-something and one partially disabled family member.

Make sure when you reserve a private transfer that they can enter the port. If they can, they can drop you off right at the ship or the terminal, whichever is appropriate in your situation. All of the providers typically mentioned on these boards can do that.

For either type of transportation, just tell them the flight you are on and its arrival time, they will then know about what time to pick you up.

I could not, in all honesty, describe the train route as "easy and smooth", especially for a first timer using the trains. It's not difficult but it is cumbersome, with so many different segments (taxi, train, taxi or bus). Add luggage and keeping your family together and attitude becomes important. Anxiety would not be a good addition to the situation. I once moved from Rome to Venice with three adults and one child and a month's worth of luggage, but it was really two adults because the third one had to be fully focused on the child, leaving the two of us to do everything else. It worked out but it wasn't smooth or easy.

It's nuts to try and cram all three into one day. Plus I would question their definition of "visit". It could just be a drive by with a quick stop to take pictures of Positano from the road above before dropping you off in Sorrento to get a ferry to Capri. What are your port hours? That might impact the order of things, for example if you have an early arrival there's no point in going right to Pompei only to wait for an hour until it opens.

There are two different underground tours, Napoli Sotterranea on Via dei Tribunali (1.8 km/1.1 miles on foot from the cruise port) or the Galleria Borbonica (1.3 km/0.8 miles from the cruise port). I've only been to the first one (several times) and always found it fascinating. Sorrerranea: Home - Napoli Sotterranea Borbonica: Home Page - Galleria Borbonica - Bourbon Tunnel - Napoli sotterranea

In most cases this means the first passengers can get off between 6 - 6:30, which puts them at the airport between 7 - 7:30. The earliest I would consider for a direct flight to the States would be 11, or only shortly before.

Yes, do keep trying. None of the cruise lines have staff answering the phones who know all of the ins and outs in every port, and for some reason they don't give them access to a database that does have the information. The train is a viable option but it is a bit cumbersome, especially if your starting point is the airport in Venice. You'd need a bus or taxi to the Mestre train station, then a train with one transfer, followed by another bus or taxi to the port. You might try posting on your roll call to see if there are others in your situation who want to share a transfer service. You're not flying in on the day of your cruise departure, are you?

What time does your ship arrive? What time do they suggest? It takes about an hour by car to get to the airport from the port at Civitavecchia. If your flight is direct to the States you need to be at the airport three hours prior to departure. If you will change planes somewhere within the Schengen zone prior to your transatlantic flight you will need to be at the airport two hours prior.

The ticket sold at the newsstand is different than a plain train ticket, it's the BIRG which includes round trip regional train fare plus use of buses, metro, and trams in Rome for the day. Never pay more than the train fare, which is 4,60 euro for a regional train.

I happen to love Siena, to each his/her own. San Gimignano and Volterra are nice but I wouldn't race to either of them if you haven't been to Florence yet, or Siena for that matter. Lucca is another lovely option that can be easily accessed by train from Livorno. You can spend the entire day there or pair it with a stop in Pisa (you have to change trains there anyway to get to Lucca). There is much to see and do in Florence other than museums.

Everything leaves from the same place at Civitavecchia, so that's easy. Once off the train at Termini you'll see signs for the metro, just follow them. There are two lines that meet at Termini, so you'll need to know which one you want to get on, and which direction. Metro directions are given by the last stop on the line (for example, line A, direction Battistini would take you to the Vatican, while line B, direction Laurentia would take you to the Colosseum). Where are you headed first? Here is the map of Rome metro and regional trains: mappa ferro e tram (giu 2022) (atac.roma.it)

That makes sense but you can accomplish the goal of getting seats without the Civitavecchia Express. The only issue is that you'd have to go to Termini station. There is a Frecce train, which has assigned seats and tickets you can purchase in advance, at a discount, departing Civitavecchia at 9:16 (Monday through Friday) and arrives to Termini at 10:06.

I can't answer when they'll get around to a decision on whether or not to continue the CE after the schedule change. Is there a reason you're focused on this particular train?

They offer parking at the Fusina ferry terminal, so unless they are referring to a different Fusina cars can drive there. Edited to add: I did a little more research, it is adjacent to the ferry area but not the same. In the picture here you can see that it's part of the container area and private vehicles may not be allowed there (although nothing is said about it, on either the English or Italian language pages): Fusina Terminal – Commissario Crociere Venezia

Also look at the calendar, given how close these ports are to one another odds are there is no sea day between them. In the summer heat, five days in a row of intense touring can wear down anyone, especially kids. Try to prioritize which sites and ports are most important to you, then build in some easy days between them. We had a trip like this with four kids, after Malta, Naples, and Rome in three days no one had the energy to go to Florence so they kids didn't get to see it. There were actual tears at dinner after leaving Civitavecchia when I detailed what it would take to get to Florence the next morning ... I don't think it would have made a difference to the kids if we toured DIY or in tours. A private car service sure would have made it easier on the adults, but it just wasn't in the budget.

Check with the consolidators for pricing estimates, they often have the best combination of rental fees and insurance packages, plus they always have an English speaking customer service function. https://www.autoeurope.com/ https://www.kemwel.com/

As noted above, the hardest part is getting to the train station in Livorno. Once there it's pretty easy to get to Lucca. One regional train to Pisa Centrale, switch there for another regional to Lucca. Most connection take around one hour. At Lucca the entrance to town is just across the piazza from the station and everything is close, all walkable distance.

Unless something goes wrong (flight is late, unusually long backup at immigration, late baggage) you shouldn't have a problem. That said, I would not buy a train ticket in advance unless you get such a great deal that you wouldn't mind throwing the tickets in the trash if you are late. If you've already purchased the ticket, it will be what it will be. There's a small chance you could make the 9:23 LE to Termini (arrives 9:55). If everything is fairly normal at the airport it's likely you'll make the 9:53 LE, arriving the Termini at 10:25, that's plenty of time to make the connection. You could probably even make the connection if you're on the 10:08 LE (arrives 10:40). The LE arrives to the main track head from which your train to Florence will depart, so if you move quickly you can make this connection in ten minutes. The only time I would buy a train ticket in advance for a trip immediately (or shortly after) after a flight is if the fare was so low I wouldn't mind wasting it if I missed the train, because too many things are out of your control. There is zero change of not being able to get a seat on a train from Rome to Florence, you don't need to worry about that. There are trains constantly between the two cities, on two different train lines. Always check both Trenitalia and Italotreno to be the best combination of timing and fares for your trip.

There's no reason to avoid the vaporetto. If you were travelling with several bags, especially large ones, I could understand hesitating but not with what you'll have. This is how the few Venetians who still live there get around, with their luggage.