Splinter

Lots of spots along the Embarcadero walk-way. Even the construction site fenced off for tearing down the old Anthony's restaurant does not keep you from standing right on the edge of the pier along the Embarcadero. The view from the Midway is actually not as good, because the new cruise ship pier is in between the Midway and the Broadway pier. Shelter and Harbor Island are good spots to get the ship coming into harbor, but that will be around 6:30AM.

If you enjoy enrichment lectures on sea days, I highly recommend you look at Crystal Cruises, where they have several (3-4) interesting lectures each day at sea. They also offer a nice range of other activities on seas days (like language or bridge classes, or how to make movies on your iPad). And I believe Crystal offers one of the best values for solo passengers, with window cabins at about a 30% supplement on virtually every voyage. If you run the numbers (compared to paying double on mainstream lines), you might find the luxury price tag for a solo isn't really that much more. The last time I compared a transatlantic cruise, I could travel Crystal for less than 10% more than traveling Princess, and I think that's worth it.

I have traveled on Crystal, and while at one time their single supplement was about 50% (I never saw 30%), those days are pretty much over. It runs 70-100% now. On the other hand, it is now all-inclusive so includes wine and alcohol, and free Wifi. Not yet free shore excursions though as on Regent. I am leaning more toward river cruises now as I can find these with no single supplements.

Can you tell us what it cost you all in?

$8,093.00. That includes airfare ("free"), transfers, shore excursions, and insurance for a 27 day Eastern European river cruise with Vantage in July 2019.

When we went on the old Statendam, that's what we did. In fact, the Special Needs department arranged for someone to go into the cabin, take digital photos with measurements, and e-mail them to us. Great service.

We found that the flip down seats were not ideal for my mother. She was short, and not having her feet on the floor caused balance problems. We invested in a travel rolling shower/commode chair and it was perfect for rolling into the roll-in shower, and rolling over the toilet. The toilet seat is NOT ADA height.

Keep in mind that Hoyer is a brand name of lift. They may or may not be the brand that these companies rent. We bought our own lift to use for travel. The two best ones on the market (which can also be used as your lift at home) are the Hoyer Advance and the Molift Smart.

I was on the Trollfjord in May 2015 and they were planning on redecorating/refurbishing her that next winter.

The prime NL time is late October through early March. April may be stretching it.

the drive from Hollywood to Disney is about 35 miles each way through the heart of metropolitan LA...

This can sound deceptively simple, but keep in mind that during heavy traffic times (which is pretty much all the time in LA) this can take you anywhere from 1-2 hours on the freeway. People in LA usually talk about how long it takes to get somewhere instead of how many miles it is.

Not cheap, but I got a good price for a single cabin, with free airfare, for a 27 day Eastern European river cruise with Vantage for July 2019. Very limited number of single cabins.

I don't like dining alone on a cruise. I always sign up for a large table in the MDR, and avoid the buffet (I like being served and dislike buffets). On my most recent cruise on RCI I requested sharing at a large table, and was assigned to a table for 8, only to find a note in my cabin the first afternoon that I had been reassigned to a table for 2. I immediately went up to the dining room and complained to the maitre d' who found a table for me with 2 couples. We had a very nice cruise together. I also eat in the dining room for breakfast and lunch (again, I dislike the buffets) and always ask to be seated at a shared table. I have met a lot of very nice people this way. If you are assigned to a table and don't get along with the others there, go immediately to the maitre d' and ask to be moved to a different table. It is done all the time by both solo and other experienced cruisers.

The only time I had to do that was on a Hurtigruten coastal cruise on the southbound voyage. Northbound I had been at a great table with a couple from the USA and a couple + MIL from Canada. They flew home from Kirkenes and so I had two other couples assigned to my table for southbound. Both were German, denied any knowledge of the English language, and totally ignored me for the entire meal, even ignoring my attempts to introduce myself and ask their names. I went to the maitre d' and was reassigned to a 4 top with a lovely couple from Australia for the remaining cruise.

Otherwise, for sea days, I do a lot of reading, play trivia (I am not shy about approaching another team to see if I can join them), watch the ocean for sea life, go to enrichment lectures (the few that are held now days), and things like the napkin folding and towel folding demonstrations/lessons. I may take a nap by the pool after a swim. In the evenings, if I am not interested in the show, I like to go to the bars with nice music and it is a plus if there is dancing. Although I don't dance myself, I enjoy watching the dancers (and remembering how my parents loved to dance). I find that I have to be a bit more assertive to get service from bar staff as a single...I think they think I am waiting for someone to join me before ordering!!!

I actually prefer going ashore and exploring on my own in ports, although I may take a ship's tour occasionally, and often arrange tours through other companies if available for what I want to do.

No, my luggage would not go under the bed on the Trollfjord. I had an inside cabin, and the bed is actually a fold out sofa. I stowed my luggage in the closet. I only had one suitcase and a knapsack (which I used for shore excursions to carry coat, gloves, etc.).

I’ve been looking at Norwegian cruises and have been reading about Hurtigruten. People seem to like them, but I’m wondering if most of the stops are only 15-20 minutes, what is the draw? I like the idea of a small, casual boat, but 15 minutes is pretty fast.

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A Hurtigruten coastal cruise is all about the beautiful scenery between ports; ports are a minor addition. The same goes for excursions. I would have been perfectly happy never leaving the ship. The 15 minute stops are often most entertaining watching the single worker manage lines, fork lift freight on/off, direct cars on/off, and take a bow to the passengers watching from on deck. If you need a casino, bingo, art sales, production shows, etc. to be entertained, then Hurtigruten is not for you.

The Old Town Trolley Tours stop is about 100 yards from the cruise ship terminal. They have lifts on some of their buses. You should speak to them directly by phone before your trip to be sure that there is one available at the time you will want to go.

I would NOT recommend doing it as a hop-on-hop off tour though...just take the round trip route, which will take you about 2.5 hours. You will see a lot of Boston, and the drivers do a continuous narration of the sights being passed. Buy your tickets on-line before the trip.

Harbor Island (really an artificial peninsula in San Diego Bay) is close to the airport, and has some nice views of the Bay, but not much else to recommend it. Two Cohn Family restaurants (Costerra and Island Prime) are good for lunch or dinner, but are not inexpensive, and about a mile from your hotel.

If you can't get out of this, you might want to consider renting a car to see some of the sights such as the Zoo, USS Midway, Coronado Island, Zoo Safari Park, and the beach areas. The closest place to shop for groceries from Harbor Island is the shops at Liberty Station (west of the airport), which you could get to in a rental car easily (free parking) and where there are many good restaurants, shops, and galleries. There is a Trader Joe's and a Von's supermarket there. Little Italy is about the same distance in the other direction (east of the airport) and has lots of good places to eat, shops, etc. but can be a challenge for parking. They do not have a supermarket though.

Parking at the Zoo is free, but it is $10 at both the USS Midway and at the Zoo's Safari Park. Free parking in Balboa Park, but it can be a challenge to find it, esp. on a weekend. If you don't want to rent a car, we have both Uber and Lyft here in San Diego. Our public transportation system (buses, Trolley, etc.) is not very good. I use the Trolley a lot to go downtown because parking there is very expensive, but it doesn't go to most of the tourist spots except the Gaslamp Quarter and Old Town. Parking in Old Town is free, but can be difficult to find.

One silly question: Do they have bottled sparkling water?

And Diet Coke?

Or should we try to pick some up in Bergen?

 

GC

Yes, there is sparkling water for sale on the ship, as well as diet Coke, but I purchased some in one of the small grocery stores that are near the pier in just about every port (and which you can get to with the 15 minutes in port nearly always) and kept it in my room. You can't take these into the dining room and you have no frig in your room, but I found that the bartenders were always happy to provide you with a glass of ice.

I agree with the above. Perhaps the OP was referring to a room steward as a "butler"? Anyway, your room will be serviced once daily, not the multiple times you get on a regular cruise ship, and don't be surprised to see your room steward also serving in the dining room. Not luxury, but I found all the crew friendly and never felt pressured to tip. It is also not common to tip in restaurants in Norway as we do in the USA.

Yes, the Longshoremen union is very strong in the USA, and they have the contract for managing cargo and luggage for all cruise ships embarking/disembarking at USA ports. The cruise ship employees are not allowed to touch either cargo or luggage on the pier.

We always made a point of NOT arriving at the terminal as soon as embarkation starts. The big crowds are going to be then, even for the Special Needs check-in. For example, if the ship leaves at 4PM, and embarkation starts at 11AM (which is common) we would arrive no earlier than 1PM. Most often we had no wait for the Special Needs check-in and also got better attention from the boarding staff this way.

When purchasing trip insurance, it is critical to do this within 24-48 hours after booking your trip. In that time frame, pre-existing conditions will be covered, but not if you wait longer to book. I usually book my trip insurance through this site: https://www.squaremouth.com/

hmmm.....I have to figure out how to resize the pictures before I can post them.

Here is a good free site for resizing photos: http://www.shrinkpictures.com/

You might find a place further out that has free parking. I doubt you will find anything close to the port as most charge +$40 a day just for parking even when you stay there. There is a parking lot directly across from the port that I recall was pretty reasonable.

No longer a parking lot there...they are building a new Intercontinental Hotel there and the lot has closed. You can park in any of the airport off-site long term parking lots; most will shuttle you to the cruise ship pier as well as the airport.

You could get one of these to take with you (can be checked free as "medical equipment"):

https://www.amazon.com/Outdoor-Elderly-Disability-Walking-FAST/dp/B01KYJMO1O

Or consider one of these cane-like devices:

https://www.supportplus.com/supportplus/Item_s-EZ-Step-Stair-Climbing-Cane_FG1712.html

If you choose to stay in Laguna, check out The Tides motel. It is in a good location, nice rooms (not fancy) with a pool, and an easy walk to restaurants and the beach: http://tideslaguna.com/

Mistake.

Can she use an oxygen concentrator instead of tanks (this will depend upon the amount/flow rate/dose she requires)? A concentrator is fairly portable, and does not require separate tanks of oxygen. Certain brands/models can also be used on the plane.