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What a dream!! What a great chance to relax! Enjoy and come back & tell us how the suite life really is!! :D

Thank you! We have boarded and are enjoying getting reacquainted with Princess. Embarkation was a breeze and we took advantage of a delightful club class dining lunch. None of which we would have had without this wonderful upgrade gift.

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Well, we received our stateroom tonight just in advance of sailing tomorrow. We had booked a mini-suite guaranteed and tonight we were very pleasantly surprised to see that we had been upgraded to a suite. :D

I am also of the view that upsells, rather than upgrades, are the norm. No idea why we were selected, but we are quite excited.

Catherine

We are on the Ruby for a Mexican cruise. Looking forward to celebrating.

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Thank you for the advice. This is our first time having booked a guarantee cabin (not sure I will do it again). Your advice is incredibly valuable - especially since we are boarding tomorrow.

Catherine

Alas we leave this Saturday and still no assigned cabin yet. And I am like your wife. The suspense is also killing me

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Our best day during our Romantic Danube trip was our post cruise visit to the market. I had arranged a cooking lesson that included a tour of the market (they also do a market only version) with lots of tastings including palinka including the guides homemade one during our lesson. The four of us thoroughly enjoyed our time at the market and while we could have done it on our own, I know we got much more out of it by having a guide.

 

 

 

We did take advantage of Viking's market tour with the chef in Vienna which was announced on board only. It was complimentary and also include lots of tastings of both food and wine. If you enjoy markets or food or wine, then I recommend it as a great way to experience Vienna after the half day walking tour.

This sounds so interesting. We have a couple of extra days in Budapest before our cruise and would love a cooking class and guide through the market. Can you share how you found this cooking tour and guide?

Catherine

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The Uniworld walking tour in Vienna shows you the main sights and finishes about 11am. We then had the option of continuing with the guide to see the palace. There were buses that took you back to the ship at noon, 2pm and 4pm. If you are considering a private tour why not arrange somthing for the afternoon and enjoy the walking city tour in the morning.

Thank you everyone for the suggestions on what to see and the excellent idea to mix the boat's tour with our own private tour in the afternoon. And alas, assuming I read our itinerary correctly, we are only in Vienna for one day, so I want to try to make the most of it.

Catherine

Question for my experienced river cruising travelers: should we take the excursion Uniworld offers in Vienna or DIY? Vienna is only a one-day stop on our cruise from Budapest to Prague.

We are very excited about our first river cruise aboard Uniworld this coming summer along the Danube. We have cruised a number of times and traveled independently through parts of Europe, but we have never been to Vienna. We nearly always arrange private tours and DIY experiences. We look forward to taking some of Uniworld's excursions, but I was wondering whether we should arrange our own guide for Vienna or go with the ship's excursion.

Catherine

Probably an autocorrect from 'bathtub' to 'bathroom'. Almost as good as the one I saw earlier this morning, 'dismemberment day',:')

Thank you everyone for the info. I must admit that my heart stopped for a moment when I saw "no bathroom" [emoji1]Glad to hear of the positive experiences.

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To my CC gurus on Princess. We have always selected our cabins when we have cruised on various lines, but on our Mexican Riviera cruise this December we decided to take the offer of a guaranteed mini-suite. Would love experiences on what I should prepare for and when we will be alerted to our cabin - week of sailing? day before?

Thanks

Catherine

We had an excellent itinerary, to be sure. We started in Portugal. During the cruise, Our ship docked in Le Verdon where our wine guide met us. We toured the day in Medoc region and then joined the ship when it repositioned in Bordeaux. The next day was St Emilion.

We are looking forward to our first river cruise from Budapest to Prague. JP and Chris, I just read your outstanding blog on your trip last year with a similar itinerary. Thank you for all the helpful information. We are excited!

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We were "ships" passing when you were in Bordeaux. We were on the Oceania Sirena docked in Bordeaux at the same time. I am thrilled to be reading about your Uniworld trip. We take our first river cruise and it is with Uniworld next summer on the SS Antoinette.

Catherine

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Hi,

 

yes, its pretty strange, they usually have all the train schedules loaded 60 days prior to the departure date. I notice that April 29 is a Friday, the first Friday I see that lists all the trains is this coming Friday 1/15. But that will give you an idea of what should be available on 4/29.

 

With regard of what to do, I suggest that if possible you get a map from Santiago ahead of going there. This will highlight all the main monuments that you should see. Of course, the mos important one is the Cathedral. In the past I've found very useful to email/call the closest Spain Office of Tourism in the US, and they have sent me maps/ brochures of the cities/ areas I'm planning to visit: This link gives a list of those offices:

http://www.spain.info/en_US/reportajes-portales/estados_unidos/about_us.html

 

You can walk from the train station to the main square, Plaza do Obradoiro, where the Cathedral is, but it'll take you about 20 mins. If there're taxis at the station I suggest you take one, to save time. If you have not been able to secure a map before arriving there I suggest you visit the Tourism info office in Santiago at Rua do Vilar ( Google its location). The staff there can circle on a map the main attractions. I suggest you also visit their central market , the Mercado de Abastos. And do try their local specialty, pulpo (octopus). Its delicious!!

 

The Botafumeiro (the giant incense burner that swings side wise above the altar) sometimes swing at the noon mass. If you're interested in seeing it, I suggest you go into the Cathedral upon arrival. If you see the Botafumeiro hanging above the altar, it means that it''l probably swing at noon. However to get a seat you have to arrive at the latest at 11:30. Seat on the pews on the sides of the altar, not those in front.

 

Good luck, if you have any questions let me know. I love Santiago and have been lucky to be there many times.

Thank you for this wonderful information! We will be coming off a cruise ship this summer that is in A Coruna from 9-7. Counting travel time and buidlign in time to get back to the ship by 6 pm, do you think that this will be sufficient time to get to Santiago and see a few sights? And if you have any café or place to recommend for a quick bite, that would be terrific.

Catherine

When a ship stays overnight in a port that is quite distant from the places people really want to visit, a some cruisers leave the ship overnight and check into a more centrally-located hotel. What you're proposing isn't exactly the same, but it certainly works on the same basic principle. You will have to notify Oceania in advance that you intend to "miss the ship" when it departs from Le Verdon. However, I don't see any fundamental difference between a policy which we know gets approved and yours that is simply a small variation.

 

Call Oceania and explain your plan in terms that the people already understand.

 

Two overnight examples:

 

Oceania does a cruise that includes an overnight in the port of Kobe. With Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara near by, cruisers often stay overnight in one of those cities for more convenient access to the other cities the next day.

 

Overnight port calls in Haifa or Ashdod typically produce many cruisers who leave the ship to stay in hotels in Jerusalem overnight.

Thank you for that important tip. You are correct, it is similar to an overnight trip without the overnight part. We will definitely contact Oceania about leaving the ship if we choose to go that route. Now I wonder if anyone has done this kind of day trip and whether it is really manageable to do. Sometimes things look great on paper...but not so much in action!

Catherine

to my traveling gurus out there!

Our itinerary next summer (Lisbon to Bilbao) includes a stop in Le Verdon (Bordeaux) on Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., with the ship moving to Bordeaux and arriving in Bordeaux at 8:00 p.m. that evening and leaving the next day Sunday at 6:00 p.m.

I was thinking of setting up a wine tour that starts in Le Verdon and ends in Bordeaux with dinner that evening tin Bordeaux to make the most of the region on that day. The ports are about 2 hours apart. Like Long Beach to San Diego, I am thinking. It would be a long day of fabulous eating and drinking (sigh!). I have researched the French port boards but have not found an answer to the question of whether this makes sense. I know that the next day in Bordeaux I can arrange a full wine day but am also focusing on Saturday.

Has anyone done that? Your thoughts are always appreciated.

Catherine

I was also a little concerned about that. Our previous cruises have been on deck 10 on the larger ships sandwiched between two floors with staterooms. We are currently on board Insignia in 8010, which is roughly below Waves Bar and it is quiet as can be.

Thanks everyone for all the great tips. That is why I love CC. Looking forward to opening one of the bottles very soon, sitting on our balcony enjoying the sound of the water.

Catherine

Thank you both for the great advice. I had not known about the ship's cellar. I had visions of the bottles on the floor of our closet.

We are excited to begin our cruise in a couple of weeks from our hometown of Los Angeles. I want to take advantage of that and plan to bring a number of nice bottles of wine from home to enjoy at dinner and in our cabin. We have often brought wine onboard from a port, but those have been a couple of bottles at a time - never 10-12 at one time.

The question for those who have done it...What is the best way to go about doing this? In a dedicated suitcase with the bottles wrapped? Or in a crated box? Any tips on this very important issue :) is most welcome.

Catherine

Cynthia

My thanks as well for your beautifully recounted trip and the extremely helpful to-do list of items. We have all benefited from this thread and we know the time and effort it takes to write so often and with such care. Marty and I look forward to joining everyone in Los Angeles, where the RTW'ers will be completing their last segment of the journey through the Panama Canal and we will starting ours!

Best to all and counting the days until June 15

Catherine

we have only had a problem once disembarking at POM the CDC held up the works

 

We have been at the airport by 9-9:30am on all other times

 

if you have time to kill this might work for some

http://eng.bigbustours.com/miami/ship-to-shore.html

Lyn

Thank you for this excellent suggestion. Looks like a good way to spend our time before the 6:00 flight if we choose not to take the 11:50 a.m. flight.

Catherine

Thanks everyone for the excellent advice. That is why I am an unabashed fan of CC. Since United flights are only up to 11:50 a.m. to LA and then again at 6:00 pm, we will do as suggested and take the later flight so as not to worry. My days of running through airports are long over! (Indeed, I never did it much to begin with)

Thanks again everyone

Catherine

First time to Miami port. Need help from CC gurus on catching flight from pier. Would 11:50 am flight work? We would make advanced reservations with a car service and we are TSA pre check. Can we do it?

Catherine

I share the thoughts of others. We are joining the RTW cruise in June in Los Angeles and I was looking forward to meeting him at our meet and greet just so I could thank him for his His contributions to CC touched many whom he never met but who were affected by his wonderful common sense and grounded observations. My prayers go out to his family and friends on such a loss.

Catherine

After months of watching the RTW16 group plan for this trip on the roll call, it is exciting to see it is here. Have a fabulous trip. We look forward to joining for the last segment and hearing about all the adventures you have had.

Catherine