sweetpea222

Just checked...84 days!!

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I don’t recall loud doors closing being a huge concern but those who talk and laugh at full volume at 1 am going back to their rooms when others are trying to sleep are very inconsiderate. It’s not just on cruises, we have had people shouting down the hall to each other at 3am in a hotel that woke us up. Very frustrating.

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We're travelling to Europe this summer for a month, including an 11 night cruise from Rome through the Adriatic. We travel carry on only and I like to pack as light as I can. I plan to bring 3 pairs: 1 pair of cute and comfy white sneakers, like chuck taylor shorelines that I will wear on the plane, one pair of walking sandals with a good tread that are also pretty (they do exist!) that I can wear with skirts and dresses, and my very comfy black croc flip flops (I love the ones called Capri, they are really cute, comfortable and easy to walk in and can double as a shore shoe if we aren't going far and a pool shoe). I don't dress up for dinner, prefer to wear a simple black shift dress or similar, so both the sandals and the crocs will go with that. Some of my cute summer dresses look great with the chuck taylors and the sandals will hopefully go with everything else.

Plus I'm in Italy and France, I can buy a pair of cute shoes if I need to! :)

Just curious, did they give you a reason for why they moved you in the first place, or why they were unable to move you back to sit with your group? Seems crazy when you pay extra fees to reserve a specific seat and then the airline just up and changes it.

My daughter wore a pair of go walks all over Europe one summer, and her feet were never tired. BUT they do get dirty/stinky as they are closed toed and it was so hot she didn't want to wear socks (plus she was 13 and socks with these would have been totally inappropriate she says!). So my suggestion would be to take along some thin inserts to use and then discard if they get sweaty or smelly. The shoes themselves if you don't have arch support issues are very comfortable and soft, and were cute to boot, even with skirts.

I'm trying to decide on a carry bag that will work for the plane ride, as well as market days / beach days / etc while we're in Europe this July. I don't like the idea of the big gaping cavity though, as everything seems to fall to the bottom and I can never find what I need when I need it. I thought about those purse inserts that organize your things into pockets. Has anyone used these? Suggestions for a bag? It doesn't have to be a fancy bag, even a cool canvas bag will do as I will also be taking a smaller cross body for the days when I don't want to be the family pack mule. Would like it to have a zipper top though. Any ideas?

In 2013 we sailed on the Spirit from Venice to Barcelona and loved it immensely. It gave us the opportunity to see where we would like to come back for a more in-depth stay. We capped our trip off with two weeks in Paris because I have always dreamed of going there. It did not disappoint, and remains my favorite city on earth. This summer we will return to spend more time in Rome, explore more cruise ports in the Adriatic, and yes we will return to Paris for a week because we cannot bear to be so close and not go. Any time you can spend there is time well spent, and you will likely find that you will return because it is indeed that magical.

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Loving your review and incredibly beautiful photos. Thank you!

Is this allowed only at embarkation? We board the Spirit in Rome and will likely bring some on with us there and pay the corkage fee, but I don't fancy the idea of lugging bottles of wine with us on the train to Civitavecchia. On european sailings can you bring wine on after a port day and pay the fee? We did that on the last sailing we did on the Spirit and it was great. Found some good Italian wines that were not very $$ and enjoyed them for happy hour when we boarded after a long day of touring. Hoping to do the same this time around.

Thank you for the reply. I didn't realize evacs like that affected the itinerary.

 

We were on a Celebrity Alaskan sailing a few years ago when we had to double back to meet a rescue helicopter and evacuate a passenger and her family. In this case it was a young girl with an obstruction in her colon so very serious. It was truly amazing to see them be airlifted onto the helicopter. We did miss Sitka as a result and ended up with another sea day. The Captain was kind enough to update passengers later on to say she was ok and in hospital. It's very scary and I really felt for that family. Nobody expects that kind of situation to happen when at sea.

We do have laundry facilities in our Paris apt and have stayed there before so I am comfortable using the combo washer/dryer there. I think I will take advantage of the laundry special once on the cruise, probably towards the end of it, as by that time we will have been in Rome for 4 days and over a week on the cruise. We are staying in an apartment in the South of France after the cruise so will be able to do laundry there, and then again in Paris. We are again packing very light for this trip, probably even less than the first time we went in 2013 when I originally made this post. I've been researching like crazy and feeling very comfortable with the list I'm creating.

Thanks for all the continued suggestions. It's so helpful to hear what worked and didn't work for others.

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We flew AC from Vancouver to London in 2013, and will fly them again this summer to Rome. We fly coach (business is too $ for our family of four) and thought the service was more than fine. Much better than when we flew Delta and Southwest in the States. Oh, and we're Canadian, no bad-mouthing here. 😀

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Good job Kierste! Gives you peace of mind and reduces your stress. If your first leg were to be delayed you could easily miss your connection.

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198!! Didn't even realize we'd passed into the 100's! We'll be in Rome before we know it! :cool::p

That sounds like an amazing trip! I can't wait to start planning our next Europe trip.

Yes, the planning is such a big part of the fun for me! I booked the cruise well over a year out so I could come here and browse to my heart's content :cool:

Thanks for such a wonderful review. We spent a month in Europe in 2013 and we'll be back next July, with 4 nights in Rome and a week in Paris, plus a week in the South of France on top of our Adriatic cruise on the spirit. You are giving us lots of great tips!

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Thanks for posting a review. Can't wait to read more!

300 days today! :D

I'm looking at that cruise too! Last summer we spent two weeks in Europe, and the entire time we were in Paris we just kept saying "I wish we could stay longer" so this year I made sure all my clients were good with 100% virtual work, and it all worked out. This was such an incredible experience (even though it's rainy and cold in Paris right now) it sort of almost feels like home. I hope that you get to do this too one day, it was really life changing in an amazing way.

My girls will graduate high school this year, the Adriatic cruise is a graduation present (for all of us!)...after that my husband and I hopefully will get to do what you've done. He works from home and I work for a school district, so we potentially have two months every summer to travel and staying in Paris is definitely at the top of our list. We're so looking forward to going back next July! :)

The summer we were in Europe, in 2013, we were there for 35 days. Flew into London, then to Venice for two nights and to meet extended family and do the 12 night Grand Med cruise on the Spirit, 3 nights in Barcelona, then two weeks in Paris. It was just amazing and I agree, life changing. Now my girls have seen many of the world's capitals and both of them have a hope to travel and possibly study overseas (which would give us an excuse to go and see them haha).

I'm following! We sail out of Civitavecchia next July with our teens, albeit on the Spirit for her 11 day Med & Adriatic sailing. We sailed the Spirit in 2013 from Venice to Barcelona and like you mentioned about the port in Civi, some of the ports were very strict with checking/scanning our bags after our day touring, and some were, as you say "laid back" about it. Glad things worked out for you with the bottle! We are also spending a week in Paris (in 2013 we ended with 2 weeks there) so I am envious of your lengthy stay. That is a dream of mine! Can't wait to hear more. :)

Kodidog, do a search in pinterest for capsule wardrobes for an Alaskan cruise. It's amazing what you can find and might help you put a plan together. Good luck!

So, not exactly a cruise but we leave for Los Angeles on Friday and we're again just taking a carry on bag. I found the 5-4-3-2-1 rule to be really helpful when packing for this trip! Basically the one I used was:

5 tops

4 bottoms

3 dresses and 3 shoes

2 bathing suits / 2 bags

1 hat, sunglasses

Funnily enough, when I compared this packing suggestion with my packing list, I had basically followed the rule without realizing it. :)

We are flying Wesjet from Calgary next week, to Los Angeles. They definitely stressed to us that we need at LEAST 2 hours to get through US customs and immigration, so I would definitely be looking at a later flight if you cannot guarantee you will get off the ship early enough. Keep in mind, YVR is a busy, busy airport so 2 hours could likely be best-case-scenario.

Well, I know I'm a tourist but I prefer to think of myself as a traveler ;) I always try to dress comfortably on vacation but that (for me) does not include shorts or bright clothes since I don't wear either at home. I tend towards dresses and skirts for summer travel as that is what I am comfortable in and I find it much cooler. I don't necessarily try to dress as a local but I don't want to stand out as a tourist either if I can help it. I would never dream of wearing loud tee shirts, shorts, fanny packs or sneakers with socks while in Europe but if others feel comfortable in these clothes and if that is what they tend to wear at home, then go for it.

More important than the clothes we wear are the manners we display is what I believe. So I dress semi-casual, comfortable and try to have a quiet voice and a smile on me at all times. :)

We head to California in just over a week (yay!) and our entire family is travelling carry on again. Should be fairly easy since we're there for 9 nights and really, what do you need in Cali but cool beach clothes, good walking shoes and a hat!? LOL

And it will likely be a pretty big celebration as it is Canada's 150th Birthday. :)