moking34

Hello all!

 

Seems there has been some very lively conversation to date. I can see everyone is going to have a great time on the ship!

 

My partner, Jon, and I are VERY close to booking this cruise. We're a couple from Toronto. We wanted to do the Equinox TA last year, but ended up backing out due to work schedule conflicts. Jon may have an exam in December this year; however, we will know in the next week. If he doesn't, then we're booking!

 

I'm really hoping that we can get on this ship. I've been waiting to do a TA for a while.

 

Cheers,

 

Dan

Hey Dan & Jon. Fellow Ontarians here. Hope to see you on board!

There will likely be quite a few people walking from the train to the port. When you exit the train and are facing the sea, just be sure to walk to the right towards the town! You're also welcome to walk with us.

Thanks! Have seen some of the information on here about turning right when getting off the train at the station. Just look for two bewildered Canucks. I'm sure we'll be easy to find... LOL:D

Hi everyone,

I booked seats on the 12:10 Frecciabianca train to Civitavecchia. Sadly, I seem to have lost out on the less expensive tickets, I paid almost $39 for the two seats. I'm in Coach 8, seats 1C & 1D. Someone else on this board is also in Coach 8, but right now I'm too lazy to look to see who it is. See you on the train ;)

 

From my research, I've got Simon Boccanegra playing at the Teatro Dell'Opera on 11/30, but I haven't found a way to book seats for anything beyond October. Anyone have any clues there?

 

I love the fact that, accidentally, the opera house is within walking distance of my hotel!

We're in coach 7. Going to have to follow everyone else. We have no idea where to go once in Civitavecchia. LOL

As of yesterday it is possible to purchase tickets online for the train trip to Civitavecchia from Rome Termini. At the moment the Trenitalia site has ticket availability in the Super Economy category for the express trains. These Frecciabianca are former intercity trains that have been refurbished, have space for luggage and have comfortable reclining seats. They travel between Roma and Genova. If you want to see what the interior of the cars look like you can google Frecciabianca. The normal price for riding one of the express trains rather than the slower regional trains which are uncomfortable and have little luggage capacity is 14.5 euros. This includes the seat reservation which is mandatory. The super economy price which is now available is 9 euros for second class. As the allotment of these tickets is exhausted the price rises.

If you are interested - here is the procedure:

Google Trenitalia and click on the English version. In the "From" box type in Roma (not Rome) Termini. In the "To" box type Civitavecchia. Indicate number of tickets and fill in the time box with the number 12. The date of course will be 1-12-2012. This will pull up the complete list of trains around noon to Civitavecchia. There are two Frecciabianca trains that are available for getting to Civitavecchia in time for the cruise. The first is train #9786 which leaves at 12:10 and arrives at 12:51. The second train #9770 leaves at 13:29 and arrives at 14:07. Click on the train you prefer and the 9 euro per person economy fare. The seat allocation is automatic when you purchase your ticket(s). Scroll down to the bottom and there is a box you can click which does not require registration. After completing each screen click on "complete". You will have to give your name and e-mail and you have to click on the box that indicates that you have read the rules and regulations. After completing the purchase with a credit card there will be an instantaneous message sent to your e-mail which has the ticket with electronic code printed on it. I used my credit card that has no foreign transaction fee but any major card will work.

I have used this site twice in the last week. Once for my tickets from Florence to Rome since I will be in Florence for a week before traveling to Rome and now once again for Civitavecchia. It worked perfectly.

At the station on the day of travel make sure you validate your ticket in the box before getting on the train or there could be a 50 Euro fine.

Thanks for the information on booking the train. We finally decided to book it today.

I have posted this notice on the main roll call board also but here is the good news again:

 

Good news for those of you who are transferring in Frankfurt. The new Terminal A Plus will be opening next week. All flights from the USA will arrive in some part of Terminal A. No more tarmac debarkation and buses. Several new Business, Senator and First lounges are part of the new terminal.

Legal transfer times will be reduced from one hour to 45 minutes.

I am hoping that signage will also be much improved since that has always been a negative aspect of FRA.

Here is the announcement:

FRA/sp-rap> Frankfurt Airport’s (FRA) new Pier A-Plus – the 800 meter-long westward expansion of Terminal 1 – opened on schedule after about four years of construction. Flight operations begin on October 10 at the new pier, allowing Germany’s biggest hub to serve up to six million additional passengers per year – thus a total of approximately 65 million passengers per year. This €700 million terminal complex will be exclusively used by Deutsche Lufthansa AG and its Star Alliance partners. In particular, Pier A-Plus provides more docking positions for serving widebody aircraft like the Airbus A380 superjumbo and the Boeing B747 family.

Jay

Thanks for the update! We're travelling Air Canada through FRA so looks like we're going to have close to 4 hours to experience the new terminal!

We're staying at the IQ 11/29 for 2 nights. We've stayed there before and it's a great choice. It is directly across from Rome's opera house, walking distance to Termini, and an even shorter walk to the metro.

 

For opera house schedule and tickets, try www.operaroma.it/en. Macbeth is playing on 11/29.

 

We're with Aquafest. We've never sailed on a gay cruise or with a group before, so really looking forward to it!

 

Jim

Glad to hear you enjoyed the IQ Hotel before. I haven't been to Rome for about 12 years. Hubby hasn't been, so we weren't sure which one to pick and thought it would be a decent pick, as the Trip Advisor reviews seem fairly consistent.

Have you arranged transport to the pier though the hotel?

Just wondered how you are going about getting tickets. I think we are attending Turandot in Florence on the 28th but our tickets have been cancelled, refunded, the dates changed, etc. A usual Italian nightmare. After four days in Florence we will be traveling to Rome on the 29th so we might be interested. I don't think my partner will sit through two operas in two nights but he does like Muti - so maybe. I guess we can always run across the plaza if we want to leave the opera before Simon dies :) since our hotel is just opposite the opera house across the plaza. Because it is the premiere the tickets are more expensive but perhaps upstairs would be a consideration. Please let me know where you are planning to sit and if you are buying your tickets online or through a hotel concierge.

 

Jay in Tucson

Just curious, are you staying at the IQ Hotel? We're booked there for the 30th. I think it's across from the Opera house.

I can't find a paper clip symbol.

From the main board>Special Interest>Gay & Lesbian Cruises>Gay & Lesbian Roll call.... Look for this thread. If you're subscribed to this thread you'll see a check mark to the right of this thread heading. There should be a paperclip to the left of that check mark....

How many private parties is Aquafest providing?

 

David

I know you were directing this question to johhnnyt, but, we haven't been informed yet of the official itinerary. Maybe he has. If we hear anything soon will let you know. Are you booked through Aquafest also?

Well, our final payment was processed. Good news is thanks to a high Canadian $$ against the US was less than $28 extra in the exchange rate! Gotta keep stocking up on that USD!!! Now waiting to see what the EUR is against the CDN for some of the shore excursions...

Spoke to Tom on some unrelated matter today and he said 52 in group total

That's not too big, should be good to get to know everyone!

16 weeks to go.... :D

Yahoo! We can hardly wait! Just got a new suitcase for our suits for my birthday. Can hardly wait to use it!

Are there any new Aquafester's yet? Noticed they no longer have pricing on their website and wonder if the group is full? Also has anyone decided to do Aquafest's tours? We've decided to go with the Genoa and Provence tours.

Just cancelled my original one and signed up for this one

Booked ours also! Just wish the departure day was sooner! We need a vacation now! Lol

Hey everyone, not sure if you're following the main roll call for this cruise but drink packages are 10% off right now, and includes our cruise! Here's the link:

http://www.celebritycruises.com/genericHtmlTemplate.do?pagename=beverage_promotion&ICID=CEL_12Q2_HPAB1_Beverage_PkgSale

Hey everyone. This will be our 2nd cruise. Our 1st was only a 5 day teaser. Go big or go home eh? Lol

Geb and Blair here and maybe you can tell we're Canucks from our sentence above. Flying to Rome from Toronto via Frankfurt and arriving on the 30th. Staying at IQ in Rome. Booked in Aquaclass for the cruise. Prefer to stay somewhat mysterious for now!

Looking forward to a great cruise!

Wow. Hard to believe that there are almost 100 from Aquafest on this cruise and that there are so few of those commenting here. Anyhow, thanks for both messages. We usually do our own thing rather than partake in most group ventures but I think it is at least worth a call to Aquafest.

I'm fairly certain Tom had told me close to 100. I seem to remember he said he had 99 cabins set aside. Hopefully I'm remembering properly. I don't want to be thrown overboard if I'm wrong! :p

Used points to pay for hotels in Brisbane, Auckland and Sydney on the Australia cruise in January. Only word of advice is book them early. Like the airlines, they "sell out" quickly on the points available rooms/flights early. I booked them 8 months in advance and hotel people (Hilton/Four Seasons) told me I was LUCKY that something was still available.

Thanks for the info. Have been poking around Tripadvisor also and have found a few interesting hotels. Can't decide to use points or pay. I guess if the rooms available with points are gone, our decision will be made for us! LOL

Just curious about Aquafest. We have a balcony cabin on hold with our regular Travel Agent for this cruise but just looked at the Aquafest site. Prices seem lower than most but in fine print is says that there is a $30. charge per booking and that if the group does not reach 50 persons the rates can be adjusted upward. Those terms make me uneasy. And our regular travel agent provides a very large OBC. Does anyone know how many are now in the Aquafest group for this cruise? I would appreciate it if anyone who has past experience with this group can provide information. We leave next week for Hawaii on the Celebrity Century and would like to make a decision about this cruise before we leave. Thanks.

On the last conversation I had with the organizer, he had mentioned that he had close to 100 people at the time booked. As for the booking fee, nothing showed on our invoice from them, so assuming it hasn't been charged and won't be in the future. Have done an Aquafest group about 5 years ago, however it was an organized group with entertainment, so my understanding is that this will be a bit different as there is not any scheduled entertainers. It is nice knowing you have the option to partake in the group activities or doing your own thing. Plus saving the extra $$, compared to the going online rate isn't bad either!

Have read the last 3 novels from Christopher Rice. All 3 were excellent reads, and all have gay characters or themes to the murder mystery plots. Will have to check out the first two. Oh, and he's Anne Rice's son.

Bad news, we were told our original flight was getting in too late to get to the ship in time. Good news, now we're an extra day in Rome! Has anyone ever used airline points to book hotel? Had any issues with that?

My friend Brian and I are traveling with Aquafest as well, and I know i haven't even started to think about excursions yet. Can tell you we did the Florence/Pisa one a few years ago and it was good....to a point

The 1/2 day Florence portion was really a mad dash through Florence where didn't see much of anything other than the outside of a lot of places, 1/2 day really didn't give time to see much at all (we didn't even get to see that handsome Italian marble David).

The Pisa is really a nice photo op, but nothing else there in the vicinity other than the tower, and a village of souveneir places.

Was that particular excursion done through Aquafest? Has anyone arranged something on their own, ex: hiring a taxi and winging it?

Have any of you yet looked at or made choices concerning shore excursions? We have been looking at them and are forming some thoughts on what we want to do. However, there are two Florence/Pisa trips that seemingly vary only by 30 minutes in length and little else, but have wildly different prices. Does anyone know what the difference is exactly?

We've been looking at the excursions but haven't decided on anything yet. We're travelling with Aquafest and they are planning to offer excursions to the group, so I think we're going to wait and see what they come up with before deciding.

Are you doing the two day pre-cruise hotel package with Aquafest as well?

We'll be flying in the day of the cruise. :(

Couple from SW Ontario, Canada. Looking forward to the TA with Aquafest in December!