BuckeyeMark

This thread is tremendous!!!!  So many informed folks and so many kind and nice people here!  WOW

I am bringing a church group to Istanbul in May 2024.  We are very interested in viewing items relating to the Bible at the Istanbul Archaeology Museum.  We'd like to see the famed Temple Balustrade. Also the Gezer Calendar, and the panels from the Assyrian Gate and the Siloam Tunnel inscription (and other items but these are the biggies).  However, I am seeing that some galleries are closed when I look at the museum's website.  However, it's all kind of confusing because there are three buildings that make up the museum. I'm not really sure what is housed where or what is closed. Can anyone help me out?  Will we be able to see these great artifacts?

12 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

The Retreat is an area on board for suite guests to use.  You need to look at suites.  Note there are only a few sky suites.  Depending on where you are looking to they might call them Aqua Sky Suites.   All suites are much more expensive than any of the others.  Would a handicapped room help?

We'd take any room with a bathtub. DW has neuropathy, needs to soak.

Not sure we're up for the expense to get in one of those suites ... she may just have to visit the hot tubs!

Well there it is... someone wasn't even trying The Retreat because that is a little beyond our budget...  Thanks everyone!

This is very helpful.  Thanks!

The cruise we are looking at has INSIDE, OCEAN VIEW, VERANDA, CONCIERGE CLASS, AQUA CLASS and THE RETREAT as accommodation options.

I don't see Sky Suites anywhere in that?  I've chosen different room options and I can't find Sky Suites.  What am I missing here?

Looking at Celebs website and its a little confusing - lots of different categories.  Am wondering if any of those sunset verandas have a bathtub?  What's the lowest class (ie cheapest!) cabin we can book and get a bath tub?

Like the title says, if I'm just feeling sleepless at 2 AM can I go jump in the hot tub for a soak?

Did a 12-day, 9 port on Princess.  Last stop was Paris.  Two hour bus ride into the city.  Toured the city on the bus, got on a marvelous Seine River cruise (with lunch served) to see more of Paris and then had some free time around the Eiffel Tower.  IT WAS MARVELOUS.

No, it wasn't everything. No, we didn't see everything. No, it wasn't long.

Guess what? It was a day in Paris and that was more than I'd ever had before.  We got to experience the city, the feel, the ambiance, a coffee at a sidewalk cafe, and see the massive-ness of the Eiffel Tower, and the incredible bridges over the Seine and ... more.  Much more.

More than anything, now we know if we want to go back and get all that we missed. 

It was wonderful. Just wonderful.  For me and my DW it was greatness.  YMMV!  But we loved it!

Just gonna drop this back in here for future readers ... the Battle of the Atlantic museum in Liverpool is amazing.  It's a MUST-DO in my opinion, esp if you're a WW2 buff.

https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/battle-of-atlantic/liverpool

15 hours ago, Ashland said:

We just returned from an RCI Jewel Arctic Circle itinerary cruise and some of our ports were very disappointing but, Geiranger & Bergin were the highlight !!

What disappointed and why?  NEED MORE INFO PLEASE!!!!

We did the Paris excursion from LaHavre - 2 hours in a bus, get to Paris, do a drive around to see many of the sights, board a boat on the Seine for lunch and more sightseeing, free time around the Eiffel Tower for about an hour (not enough time to go up) and then back on the bus and "home."

Totally worth it.  I've been to Paris now!  It was fantastic.  Would I love to have had more time?  Of course!  Was it better than nothing!  Absolutely!  DO IT!  Then you'll have been there and you'll know if you want to go back for a longer stay.  Go for it!

On the Emerald end of June and first of July.  Room had a mini fridge.  No USB ports.  We were in a junior suite.  Don't know about lunch on embarkation day.  Prolly not would be my guess - things were a little haphazard still on the Emerald.

On the Emerald last of June and first of July.  Internet simply dreadful.  Often unusable at any level.  The app wouldn't even connect and show the daily sked.

Train station is quite close to where the tenders dock (as you can see on the map).  It's a good idea to look at the train website and be ready with where to go, connections etc.  You can get off quite to Trinity College and the book of Kells.

We used Uber in early July to move around London. It worked fine. Don't know about extensions etc.

16 hours ago, leugerst said:

what ship were you on--Buckeye Mark?

 

Emerald Princess. The tour with Mercat was not a Princess excursion.  We booked it ourselves.

Not sure about "no tour guides inside."  We did Mercat Tours Royal Mile/Edinburgh Castle tour a couple of weeks ago and it was terrific. The guide most certainly took us inside EC and told us all about it.

Can't say enough good about this company:

City Sightseeing Belfast | Irish Tour Tickets  

City Sightseeing Belfast: 028 90 321321

Irish Tour Tickets: 02890 310101  

ian.mckitterick@citysightseeingbelfast.com

ian.mckitterick@irishtourtickets.com

They took our group on a fabulous tour, and when the weather looked bad for the afternoon flipped things around so we got to Giant's Causeway before it rained.

I started this thread so maybe I can add to it now that I've been over to the UK.  I was more than a little surprised at the places/people where there was no tip jar, and no one put their hand out expecting one. The folks here who said "nope, it's not much of a thing" were (not surprisingly) spot on. Tipping is nothing like what it is in the US.  Nothing!
That said we tipped all our excursion guides and they seemed to appreciate it.

Did Twelve Transfers from Southampton to London earlier this month (July 2022).  Very good. Excellent service, very professional, nice car.

On the Emerald end of June to first week of July.  Interior of the ship is good. She has a dated feel and there are always places she could use a little updating but all in all, good.  

The outside?  Wow.  Needs a sanding and paint big time.

And the Internet?  Maybe they will install it BECAUSE I COULDN'T TELL SHE HAD WIFI AT ALL.

13 hours ago, MissP22 said:

Has the buffet returned to self service?

Was on the Emerald June 26-July 9.  Yes, World Marketplace has self-service.

44 minutes ago, Capt_BJ said:

is Midnight Sun a big thing?

 

well first is is good to understand the Arctic Circle .... WIKI: The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at which, on the December solstice, the shortest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, the sun will not rise all day, and on the June solstice, the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, the sun will not set. These phenomena are referred to as polar night and midnight sun respectively, and the further north one progresses, the more pronounced these effects become. For example, in the Russian port city of Murmansk, just 3° above the Arctic Circle, the sun does not rise for 40 successive days in midwinter.

 

So the circle is about 66.5 Nort and the further north you go the more 'pronunced' Midnight Sun is ....

 

Lofoton is about 68N

Tromso about 69.5

here we're near the marker at Honningsvag

 

 

 

this marker sits on the Artic Circle on a small island of Norway

 

 

That is very helpful ... and I love that marker.  So ... how cool is it to be there and see it?  Is it just a "I was there" thing or is the scenery, the light, the fjords all absolutely can't miss this, best thing in the world stuff?  Am I going just to take a pic of the marker, do the Arctic Circle ceremony, etc. or is the reward for going that far north some unbelievable scenery and sights?  I can't go everywhere. Must I go to the Midnight Sun or would doing some deep fjords further south in Norway be about the same?

1 hour ago, Capt_BJ said:

Viking 15 days Jun Jul Aug 23

 

bergen > geiranger > narvik > lofoton > tromso > honningsvag > longyearbyen > isafjordur > reykavik

................ fjord ................................................mid night sun ............WAY NORTH    .... iceland

 

think we're gonna book it next week . . .

That looks amazing but Viking is a bit beyond my price range ... I'm over here with Princess and Royal Caribbean.  Might have to dig down in the couch cushions and see if I can come up w/enough spare change to make that Viking trip. 😉  That is one special itinerary!

1 minute ago, hallasm said:

The good news are that no deep fjords when midnight sun - the deep fjords are in southern Norway - Well sunset can be 11 pm in the fjords but no midnight sun. I’ll still recommend to be up early in the morning to enjoy the fjord views at sunrise -  you will however navigate the same fjords in the evening but often dinner and shows.

I can already tell that I'm going to have to make some tough choices ... there are some really nice cruises that get these deep fjords and also get over to Iceland (wow - that'd be a great trip).  But you can't do Iceland AND the midnight sun in a 12-14 day cruise. So I need to prioritize... just how great is the midnight sun? Is that worth building an entire itinerary around? It is that spectacular or is it just the novelty of being where the sun never sets, going that far north, the ceremony when you cross the Artic circle, etc?  

I know what to do in Alaska.  Glacier Bay is so incredible you build everything around getting there. 

Is the midnight sun that kind of thing for Norway?
 

This is extremely helpful.  Hallasm I have read and made notes from your posts in the sticky - just great information.  

Here's another question - there's a lot of talk of getting up early to see the fjords and I'm kinda worried this cruise is just going to be exhausting.  Up at midnight to see the sun, up at 4:30 AM to see a waterfall in the fjords ... does anybody get to sleep on these cruises?!