timolin

We stayed at the Hampton Inn last month and it was great. Everything was handled well.

When I was pricing the stay, I compared it to the Hilton. The Hampton was cheaper and included a free hot breakfast.

Took the tour last week and I highly reccomend  it. Hear are some pointers:

St. John, New Brunswick -  https://www.saintjohn.ca/en/home/cityhall/transportation/transit/services/citytours.aspx

Saint John Transit City Bus Tour is a 2 hour tour on a city bus with full narration of the city with two stops (City Market and Reversing Falls). First bus out is at 10:00 AM  and they determine how many tours to offer based on how may ships are in town. Call them a few days before your arrival to see how many buses will run. They are scheduled every 45 minutes starting at 10:00 AM. The cost is $25 US or $30 CN which sure beats all other tours in town. Bus stop is on Waters St. and is a few blocks from the ships. Look for a sandwich board on the sidewalk heading toward town for tour times. There were 3 ships in town and we didn't catch the first 2 buses but got on the third bus. Great tour.

St. John, New Brunswick -  https://www.saintjohn.ca/en/home/cityhall/transportation/transit/services/citytours.aspx

Saint John Transit City Bus Tour is a 2 hour tour on a city bus with full narration of the city with two stops (City Market and Reversing Falls). First bus out is at 10:00 AM  and they determine how many tours to offer based on how may ships are in town. Call them a few days before your arrival to see how many buses will run. They are scheduled every 45 minutes starting at 10:00 AM. The cost is $25 US or $30 CN which sure beats all other tours in town. Bus stop is on Waters St. and is a few blocks from the ships. Look for a sandwich board on the sidewalk heading toward town for tour times. There were 3 ships in town and we didn't catch the first 2 buses but got on the third bus. Great tour.

St. John, New Brunswick -  https://www.saintjohn.ca/en/home/cityhall/transportation/transit/services/citytours.aspx

Saint John Transit City Bus Tour is a 2 hour tour on a city bus with full narration of the city with two stops (City Market and Reversing Falls). First bus out is at 10:00 AM  and they determine how many tours to offer based on how may ships are in town. Call them a few days before your arrival to see how many buses will run. They are scheduled every 45 minutes starting at 10:00 AM. The cost is $25 US or $30 CN which sure beats all other tours in town. Bus stop is on Waters St. and is a few blocks from the ships. Look for a sandwich board on the sidewalk heading toward town for tour times. There were 3 ships in town and we didn't catch the first 2 buses but got on the third bus. Great tour.

Inexpensive ideas:

Portland - Casco Bay Mailboat - 2.5 hour boat ride around the islands of Casco Bay. See seperate posting for details but the adult price is &16.50 US or Seniors at $14.50 pp. Kids are even less.

St. John, New Brunswick -  https://www.saintjohn.ca/en/home/cityhall/transportation/transit/services/citytours.aspx

Saint John Transit City Bus Tour is a 2 hour tour on a city bus with full narration of the city with two stops (City Market and Reversing Falls). First bus out is at 10:00 AM  and they determine how many tours to offer based on how may ships are in town. Call them a few days before your arrival to see how many buses will run. They are scheduled every 45 minutes starting at 10:00 AM. The cost is $25 US or $30 CN which sure beats all other tours in town. Bus stop is on Waters St. and is a few blocks from the ships. Look for a sandwich board on the sidewalk heading toward town for tour times. There were 3 ships in town and we didn't catch the first 2 buses but got on the third bus. Great tour.

Took the Casco Bay Mailboat last week. We were on the NCL Escape. Very short walk to the ticket office/boat.

Best deal in Portland!

2.5 hour boat ride with a few short stops on about 2 of the bigger islands. Great narration about the history of the area.

Buy tickets in the ticket office building/waiting room.

Adults $16.50 US and Seniors $14.50 US.

Boat holds 300 to 400 people so it is unlikely to be full unless there are a lot of ships in port.

Thank you all for your responses.

Great information. Thank you. We will probably try it week of 9/15/19.

Has anyone taken this tour already?

Has anyone taken the Saint John transit bus tour? Did you like it? What is the official name, website and how far is it from the cruise dock? Thank you.

Would someone please provide more information about the ferry boat ride across they bay in Halifax. Would like website, official name, address, approximate distance from cruise dock and did you like it. Thank you.

I know breakfast and lunch is free at the buffet, O'Sheehan's  and at least one MDR.

I read there is a modified breakfast buffet line in Margaritaville and I assume it is free.

Are any of the premium restaurants free for lunch or breakfast or have a special free breakfast or lunch menu. 

Question is specific for Escape but all other ships are of interest.

Is the morning coffee and sweet rolls room service still complementary? It was last year even though the cruise line info indicated all room service had a charge. Thanks.

Medicare does not cover you outside the US. Some supplemental policies do cover incidents outside the US but others do not.

We have Medicare and a Plan N supplemental policy. We are not covered for any medical coverage outside the US. We therefore buy a travel insurance policy that has medical coverage that covers us outside the US. Just going to the ship's doctor is tremendously expensive. On a cruise, my wife had a few visits to the ship's infirmary and receives some medication. The bill was well over $1,000 and the medical part of the travel insurance covered it all..

In our case the travel insurance part of the policy is incidental to the essential medical coverage.

Please suggest good places to wait for the room to be ready at embarkation. I think there are spots that are kind of out of the way but near the food but have not found any recent information on this.

We plan to buy a BIRG Day Ticket and take the train from the cruise port, get off at the Roma S. Pietro train station (closest stop to Vatican) and hopefully take a bus from the train station to the Vatican. An old 2012 post said there was a bus but not sure if it still runs. If no bus is there a taxi stand at the station?

While it is only about a 1 km. walk, my wife has walking difficulties and uses a cane.

Thank you in advance for your suggestions.

Timolin

Thank you very much for your success in getting to the Papal Audience from a cruise ship. I think we will also try this but will use the train to Rome and then a cab to the Vatican.

What do others think of this plan?

Your input is appreciated.

Timolin

Which is the better site to visit for someone who uses a cane and has walking difficulties?

I understand that Herculaneum is closer to the cruise port, smaller and better preserved. I also read there were some closed exhibits so am not sure if this is best choice.

All input would be appreciated. Thank you.

Which is the better site to visit for someone who uses a cane and has walking difficulties?

I understand that Herculaneum is closer to the cruise port, smaller and better preserved. I also read there were some closed exhibits so am not sure if this is best choice.

All input would be appreciated. Thank you.

Our cruise ship docks in Civitavecchia at 6:00 AM on Wednesday October 26 and departs at 7:00 PM. Has anyone with a similar schedule made it to the Wednesday morning Papal Audience? If so, how did you get there in time?

Ideally we want to see the Papal Audience, tour St. Peter's Basilica and see the Vatican Museum. My wife uses a cane and has trouble with steps and walking any distance so our transportation choices are limited.

All input is appreciated. Thank you.

Timolin

Tickets can be ordered in advance from the Vatican only via fax. I've tried faxing from a UPS store multiple times on 3 different days without success so I plan to follow plan B. Tickets can be picked up the day before or on the day of the audience from the Swiss guard staion in the attached site: http://www.papalaudience.org/tickets

I thank everyone who has replied and even given specific train directions. Can someone using a cane and having trouble with stairs follow this route?

I was trying to find a taxi fare between Naples and Pompeii and came across the site below. It provides the taxi fare between any two locations in many countries.

http://www.taxiautofare.com/it/Default.aspx?LocationID=266&Distance=67.72&Source=cruise-ship-port-civitavecchia&Destination=saint-Peter%27s-Square&Time=3689

Has anyone used it and is it accurate?

Thanks for your input.

timolin

Our cruise ship docks in Civitavecchia at 6:00 AM on Wednesday October 26 and departs at 7:00 PM. Has anyone with a similar schedule made it to the Wednesday morning Papal Audience? If so, how did you get there in time?

Ideally we want to see the Papal Audience, tour St. Peter's Basilica and see the Vatican Museum. My wife uses a cane and has trouble with steps and walking any distance so our transportation choices are limited.

All input is appreciated. Thank you.

Timolin

Do all Hotels, Restaurants, taxis and shops accept Visa or Master Card credit cards with the chip?

I'd like to minimize the cash I carry whenever possible.:)

Thank you in advance for your help.

timolin (Tim and Linda)