Railer

Big M & Fletch, thank you for the info.

How easy is it to get a taxi at White Bay? When a cruise ship in port are there plenty of taxis available and are they close by?

I wasn't sure because of traffic but it will probably be the ship transfer.

We will be arriving at White Bay Cruise Terminal on the 18th of January, 2017. What would be the easiest or quickest way to get to Sydney airport, Ship's transfer, taxi or taxi to CBD and train to airport. I've heard that traffic to the airport can make it difficult.

We haven't been on O yet but we did a cruise on Cunard that stopped at Volos. I was trying to find some info on what to do or see nearby and finally decided to take the ship's excursion to the Metora monasteries. I don't remember exactly how long it took to get there but I would think it would be closer to a half hour, give or take, each way. We went to two monasteries and stopped for lunch. It was the only thing I could find to do at the time. Volos is an industrial port and in my research, I couldn't find much to do on my own.

When I phoned HAL, I got different information than my TA did when she phoned. I was told that on a btb, you do not have to leave the ship in Ft. Lauderdale but others on CC say that you have to get of and then get back on again. Also when I booked my cruise, it was still flashing the explore 4 promotion. HAL told my TA that the promotion was over that they reached their limit. I can understand if it's on the main site because it's still available for other cruises but it should have been taken off the page that showed that particular cruise.

Careful with some upsells. If you have a promotion like the Explorer 4 package, you might lose it if you take the upsell. This is what I was told last year.

We are going on our first btb in January on the Maasdam. I've been told by friends that we have to get off when we get back to Ft Lauderdale but when I contacted a HAL representative, he said that we didn't even have to get off. From what I've heard, I don't believe HAL.

My co-worker and I have had this same discussion many times. He cruises around the same time every year out of Ft. Lauderdale. He likes it there and takes a week pre cruise. Many of the islands he's been to countless times and may even stay on the boat while in port and the majority of the people are gone. I'm on the other side and like to see different places, not saying that I will never go back to a certain place if I enjoyed it. Living in the middle of the continent, we can't cruise without some travel involved so the total price goes up. Living in a place that experiences -40 degree days in January, it's nice to go somewhere warm. I've been on an Alaskan cruise and a Mediterranean cruise so far. Southern Caribbean is next on the list. Looking ahead to possibly a European river, Pacific or South American cruise next. Maybe it will be a European land vacation next but to get there could be on a TA. So many places to see and so little time to do it.

I keep checking on the price of the cabanas. I originally booked it at $399. When I noticed that they lowered the price to $299 I cancelled and rebooked. We are sailing January 3rd and many of the cabanas are not booked yet. If they lower the price again because they aren't selling I'll be calling them again.

First I'd like to thank Dubrovniktravelady for all of her info. Dubrovnik and Split were two of my favorite stops. We were there October 30th, 2011. We used the ship's shuttle to get to the Pile gate for the convenience. I'm not in the best of shape and I was concerned about all the steps but I was determined to do it. The views were fabulous. The views of the wall and the old city were great. You can look into peoples back yards while on the wall. You could almost reach out and pick the oranges that grew inside the walls. It was warm but not hot, perfect weather to do the walls. We then headed down to the Stradun and wandered around the shops. We lunched at Arka just off the Stradun, very good and reasonable price. My wife had grilled fish and potatoes while I had a platter with a variety of seafood. We really enjoyed Croatia and would like to go back for a longer visit. There was an episode on House Hunters International about Dubrovnik and it brought back pleasant memories.

The reviewer had said that having preference on the tenders didn't matter account they couldn't use the cabana until 11:00. It made no sense to me but just wanted to find out. Thanks for the reply.

I read in a review that you can not use the cabanas until after 11:00 because the attendants are setting it up. Is this true? We leave HMC at 2:30 and I don't want to pay $400 for 3 1/2 hours. Anybody know if this is accurate. Thanks

We used Private Greece Tours. We had Nikos the first day and Spyros the next three days and were quite happy with them.

We went with Ramses last November and had Islam as our guide. Cunard had cancelled the tours to the museum because of safety concerns. I asked Islam if everything was safe and he said that there is nothing going on in Cairo that day. The traffic is something you will not believe. They drive by horn, honk and drive. You have two highways crossing with no traffic control devices. Cars just crept through pushing their way in. I don't think I saw a car without dents. It took 3 hours each way to get from Alexandria to Cairo. We went to the museum, had lunch, pyramids and Sphinx and a little bit of shopping. Islam began to rush us at the pyramids because he was worried about getting us back to our boat. We made it back about 40 mins early but many ship bus tours got back late and we were 2 hours late leaving port. I could of taken more time at the pyramids and done without the shopping.

Just returned a few days ago from our cruise that included a stop in Dubrovnik. Cunard supplied a shuttle bus from the port to the Pile Gate. After seeing others pictures of the wall, that was one of the things that I was determined to do. The steps at the Pile Gate had me a little concerned because of knee problems but I was determined. I made it up with a little huffing and puffing but otherwise no trouble. After that, there were many steps but there were also many places to rest and a few places to buy a drink if required, we brought our own bottles of water. The views are amazing but my photography is not up to the level that I've seen on here so I won't be posting any pictures. We took our time, close to three hours on the wall. After that we wandered around the old town and stopped for lunch at Arka. We very much enjoyed our time there and could imagine spending much more time there after retirement.

Dubrovniktravelady, thank you for all your help and information. It was very helpful in our planning. Unfortunatly we didn't have the time and energy to visit any museums after the wall and shopping.

Russ

We also used Nikos at Private Greece Tours and were not disapointed. Nikos picked us up at the port and drove us around the first day. He was very polite and informative showing us the sites in Athens. The next three days to Delphi, Argolis and the transfer to the airport we had Spyros, a very nice, very large man. My only complaint was sometimes when Spyros was talking, he got a little quite. My hearing is not great so I had a hard time to hear him at times. I very much enjoyed both Nikos and Spyros. They were very knowledgeble and friendly and I would gladly use them again.

Russ

I'm glad to read such good reviews. We have Ramses booked for November and are looking forward to our time in Egypt.

Russ

Other threads talk of free shuttles from Pizzale Roma to the port by some cruise lines. I'm wondering if Cunard has a shuttle and if they do, how much does it cost?

Russ

I recently watched a show on T.V. about cruise ships. They mentioned the port fees that were collected. They were charged according to how many were on the ship, not how many went ashore. The ports make a nice profit on each ship that visits.

Russ

We have booked with Ephesus Deluxe for this November. Ephesus, Terrace Houses and Temple of Artemis for $55/person. Payment at end of tour with no deposit. They had good reviews but I won't know how good they are until after November. Deniz has been very good about responding to my emails.

Russ

Dubrovniktravelady. Is there a tourist booth near the port? We will be there Oct. 30th on the Queen Victoria. Have been reading much of what you post and will be doing our own thing in Dubrovnik. Have printed maps of the old city, just wondering if there are brochures available. Thank you.

Russ

In my job I handle people's bags all the time. In the 15 years that I have been lifting suitcases, I have been offered a tip twice. I thanked them but refused it, asking them to tip my fellow employees instead. I make a good wage but am not wealthy. It is my job and I treat their baggage with as much care as everyone elses. I don't have a problem if somebody wants to tip but I have a problem with the concept of being held for ransom by someone doing their job and not getting paid extra. I tip for good service and I leave the auto tip on but I don't get carried away and think that they will ever remember me the next time I travel.

Russ

I'm getting concerned. I'm going to be in 1086 on the QV in October. It's midship so hopefully the noise won't be too bad.

Russ

To find out what other ships will be in any particular port, you can go to www.cruisett.com and click on ports and it will show what other ships will be in port and their potential load count. It may also show the times that the other boats are there.