bobalink

Good Morning America had a segment on the infestation of bed bugs in New York City. They are everywhere. Niketown is closed down to exterminate.

There is a convention specifically for addressing the problem of bed bugs.

http://www.examiner.com/us-headlines-in-national/north-american-bed-bug-summit-conference-sells-out-as-bed-bugs-sweep-the-nation

Earl Rosebery -

Thanks for the tip! We do enjoy Rick Steves' information.

I like the suggestion for the book, too. It sounds like a great book to read prior to visiting Venice. I will check that out!

These pictures are beautiful. Thanks so much for sharing them. We will be in Venice in July 2011 for 2 days precruise. We already have our hotel booked, from a recommendation of friends.

We plan on DIY tours, as it seems easy to get around.

Did you DIY ? What are some good resources for walking tours? Any suggestions you have would be very much appreciated.

Thanks

Eeeewwwww... I can tell you for sure there were no bugs on the Noordam last month.

We stayed at the Hotel Artemide in Rome for 4 days pre-cruise and there were no bed bugs there, either! Lovely hotel, delicious breakfast included.

I think bed bugs can be a problem at hotels, but I have not heard of any on a cruise ship yet.

bobalink.....just curious wat the price tag on all of that was. Do you recall wat the transfer to the port from rome was as well? Thanks.

 

Duman was excellent. Used them last year as well and will next year for return trip and greek isles.

 

TD

Hi tdtanc -

Duman is great, very professional and gracious. All of the people we met through RIL were excellent. All the prices for the tours we took are listed on their website.

In my previous post I forgot to list the transfer from Civitavecchia to FCO on the day of disembarkation. We opted to take our own luggage off, and we were off the ship by 7:30am. Our driver was there waiting for us, and we were at FCO in less than hour. Smooth! We had an early flight and we had plenty of time.

Private tours are expensive, no doubt. But we are not "do it on your own" travelers. With the limited amount of time we have for vacation, especially the few hours in each port, we want to make the best use of our time and see as much as possible.

Of course when you can share the cost of an excursion with CC folks from your Roll Call, it is all the better! We had really good experiences with our shared excursions, and made new friends!

We prefer private tours over the cruise line tours, although we did take HAL excursions in Palma de Mallorca and Tunisia. The tours were good, the guides were nice and well informed, typical huge bus, and as always, a stop at one of the cruise line affiliated stores.

We used independent tour companies in Barcelona and Cannes. They were very good, too. Not of the caliber as RIL, but good.

Happy sailing!

So what did you think of Sarah for a guide? She took us on a tour of the Vatican back in May and that is something my wife still talks about. For us, she was amazing, so knowledgable and she was able to keep our group of eight moving so we could see so much in the limited time we had.

Sarah was excellent. Very well informed, and articulate.

Our experience with Sarah and all of the people at RIL was great.

We just returned from a Western Mediterranean cruise on the Noordam. We spent 4 days in Rome pre-cruise, and booked 4 tours with Romeinlimo.

One of our ports was Trapani, Sicily, and we used RIL there, too.

I give them my highest recommendation.

Rome Day 1 - On arrival at FCO, a driver was waiting for us in a beautiful, air-conditioned Mercedes, and took us to our hotel. We checked in to our hotel, freshened up and were waiting in the hotel lobby for our next driver to pick us up for our Vatican tour. We were surprised when the owner of RIL, Duman, came to our hotel along with Sarah, our guide for the Vatican, to drive us to the Vatican.

Rome Day 2 – Full day tour of all the Rome highlights. Our driver, Angelo, was punctual, professional and very accommodating. He maneuvered the car around all the little streets that a big tour bus could not possibly manage. We saw so much in one day, and never felt rushed. Angelo always had cold water for us, and took us to a great place for lunch. He took us to the secret door with the keyhole view, too. At the end of our long day, Angelo gave us a nice bottle of Chianti to enjoy.

Rome Day 3 – Tivoli and Villa d’ Este tour and Borghese Gallery. Angelo was our driver again for this. I told him in the morning that I would like to see Borghese (not realizing I needed advanced reservations) and he made all of the arrangements for us to have the last tour of the day. We also went to the Catacombs. Again, his knowledge and communication skills were excellent. He truly knows his way around Rome, and the backstreets and shortcuts of getting to the best sites.

Rome Day 4 – Etruscan tour and transfer to port. We shared this tour with some great people I met on our Roll Call. Salvatore was our driver, and he was great. After visiting the Etruscan tombs, he took us to a local wine and olive oil tasting, and then to a restaurant. The restaurant had a beautiful view, and the BEST food I ate in Italy. After a wonderful day, Salvatore dropped us off at the port in Civitavecchia.

While in Trapani, Sicily, we used Romeinlimo for our tour. There were 7 of us from our Cruise Critic Roll Call. Our driver was right at the port waiting for us in a new minibus. We visited the salt mines and Marsala. We went for a wine tasting at the Pelligrino winery. It was a wonderful day.

In planning for our trip, I communicated regularly with Jany at RIL. She always replied to my questions and offered suggestions so we could make the best use of our time.

We will definitely use Romeinlimo in the future.

Hi Joanie,

I shot this picture on August 12, 2010, from inside Noordam VF 5128, looking out to the veranda.

It shows how the light and lifeboat can be seen.

Thanks for all of your work on Cruise Critic. The information you provide is very useful.

Bobbie

My first cruise was on the Diamond Princess in 2006. I thought it was so beautiful, I loved it and got hooked on cruising.

I think all the Princess ships that I have sailed on are beautiful. Diamond, Coral and Emerald.

Carnival Elation and Royal Caribbean Monarch... not so nice. They looked old and tired, like something out of of Las Vegas in the 70's.

Looking forward to my upcoming cruise, first time on HAL, on the Noordam.

Lots of people on CC really like the Noordam.

Okay, thanks for the restaurant suggestion.

You have been very helpful!:)

lots of places have great food nearby. Was there a specific genre you were looking for? Frankly there's a ton of great restaurants by many of the stations, like Yaletown, and Broadway/City Hall

We like everything! Seafood and salad or burger and a beer. Moderate prices, and a view would be nice, too.;)

Thanks!

Thanks, scottbee!

What a terrific help you are! I knew I had seen your post before, but I could not find it when I did a search. I am "directionally impaired" so the photos and map are perfect.

Some of the posts I read earlier today had me concerned. Some people describe Canada Place as chaotic.

What tips do you have that may help us avoid the crowds? We arrive at YVR at 9:30am. I am not one of those who have to be the first one on the ship.

I was thinking we could have lunch at a nearby restaurant and then make our way to the Golden Princess at Canada Place. Any suggestions?

THANKS again!

I know I have seen a thread on this before, but I can't find it now.:)

I think there were pictures, too.

I just read some information that has me concerned about embarking on our cruise in Vancouver/Canada Place.

We are arriving at Vancouver Airport on the morning of Sunday, Sept 26, the same day that our ship will depart. I would like to take the Canada Line SkyTrain from the airport YVR to the pier. I believe the stop to get off at is Waterfront Station.

How far is Waterfront Station to Canada Place? Is it difficult to get there?

Thanks for your help.

We are booked for two full day Rome tours with RIL @360eu per day. Since it's just the two of us what would be the customary tip?

I just asked Duman from Rome In Limo this question. He responded that 10-20% for good service is the usual tip.

After reading all of the glowing reviews, we can't wait to use RIL in August.

We are using RIL exclusively for our 4 days in Rome. We have booked these transfers and tours:

Pick up from FCO to Hotel

Vatican

Full day tour of the city, all the main sites, including Catacombs and the Appian Way

Tivoli, Villa Adriano, Villa D'este

Etruscan tour and transfer to pier

I think we will get a good sampling of Rome and the surrounding area.

I am sure that it would take years to see everything in this part of the world that is so rich in history.

We will toss a coin in Trevi fountain and hopefully we will return someday!;)

We are using Rome In Limo for all of our tours when we are in Rome in August. I received an email from them this week and they advised me to purchase Vatican tickets on-line and gave me this link:

http://biglietteriamusei.vatican.va/musei/tickets/do?action=booking&codiceTipoVisita=26&step=2

Just wondering if anyone has seen Arnotts Tim Tams for sale in USA - specifically Fort Lauderdale or Los Angeles?

 

Tim Tams are available in the Los Angeles area at Cost Plus World Market.

We love to do the Tim Tam Slam. Bite off opposite corners of the cookie and quickly dunk in coffee, slurp it up, pop in your mouth and enjoy.

OMG, so good.

 

Check out the link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Tam_Slam