lhall85917

I know this thread is three years old :eek: but I am trying to find out if Le Havre Taxis is still in business - the link leads to a Japanese page. I am trying to find options for a private tour to Mont St Michel from Le Havre next June.

We also sailed on the Jade in the Mediterranean a few years ago. It was an excellent cruise, would do it again in a second! Here is a link to our pictures - http://lancehall.weebly.com/ncl-jade-mediterranean-cruise.html

We also just returned from the Mediterranean and used RIL for Naples and Rome - hill towns. Both drivers and tours were excellent. We did expect more of a guide service than we received for the Hill Towns. Our driver on the Amalfi Coast did an excellent job informing us about the area, taking us to out of the way locations and making the day a special one. The Hill Towns are amazing; however, we would have liked for our driver to tell us more about the area - it was a long drive and he didn't tell us anything about where we were, the history, or talk at all.

I highly recommend them, I just believe our expectations were different than what was advertised in the tour listing.

Thanks for posting, I am enjoying your review. I have a couple of questions...

Boarding champers is not served when you get on now, it is done at the first sailaway instead.

You mentioned that shampoo and conditioner are included but not shower gel? That's good to know as I hadn't planned on bringing gel but was going to bring the others. Was bar soap available?

Can you tell me where you purchased your Travelers Checks in Euros? Am considering using them also.

Thanks.

We always get them through Wells Fargo, you don't have to be a customer. Just go to https://www.foreignexchangeservices.com/index.html?partnerid=FES&serviceType=order and place your online order. They will overnight via FedEx. Orders under $1000 have a $12 service charge, over $1000 no extra charge.

Has anyone ever done the night climb? It looks like the twilight tour is at approx 4:00pm, but I assume the time changes seasonly.

 

We would be doing the climb the same day/night we arrive in Sydney, especially if we are going to Ayers Rock the next day.

Our climb was considered to be a night climb, our tickets have a time on them of 4:35. It was daylight when we started but completely dark by the time we got to the top and finished. It was fantastic!

How was weather for your cruise? Just wondering if it was warm throughout or not.

We did the first night tour and as you can see it wasn't completely dark when we started. This was taken on the way up the bridge. Timing was perfect, we saw everything by day and night, it was completely dark on the way down. I would also recommend this for anyone with a slight fear of heights, as it got dark you couldn't look down to the water and have a feeling for how far down it was, you were able to mostly just look ahead and across. This was a fantastic adventure, a highlight of our lifetime!

For anyone still debating this excursion, add us to those who did it without regrets. We enjoyed the opportunity to go inland and see more of the countryside. Now we want to return to spend more time there! Our pictures are at https://plus.google.com/photos/101569527514151835454/albums/5742189546010803681?banner=pwa and my blog post for the trip to Queenstown is at http://lanceandsharon.wordpress.com/2012/04/18/milford-sound-to-queenstown/

Let me preface this with the information that we were on the Miracle quite a few years ago so it may have changed. I think I'm in the minority with my opinion on the Miracle because it always gets stellar reviews. I found it to be so incredibly ugly and tacky in design that I would never be interested in sailing it again. I had read so much about the wonderful sevice but that was a disappointment too. Any cruise is a good one, and we had a wonderful cruise, and we choose more for itinerary than ship; however, in this instance I would pass on the Miracle. Even with the price difference and extra day the Miracle offers, I would do the Gem.

I'm glad you're enjoying the review. I'm having a fun time remembering the amazing trip :)

 

I love Jungle Jim's. It's a dangerous store though as I can easily find things and spend way more money than intended. Ha ha!

 

That is a really cute idea for the gifts. Was the cruise a surprise for your husband?

No, but it was our first overseas trip. I did manage to surprise him with an upsell we received from a balcony to a penthouse room. :o I got the call for the upsell a week before leaving but didn't let him know until we were at the ship ready to board!

The banana-cream pie with macadamia nut ice cream in Cagney's is outstanding.

I wish there was a Like button for this, it is my favorite too!

I love Jungle Jim's. They have a HUGE international section and they are the only place anywhere near here where I can get Brazilian products like my coffee (I'm a total self admitted coffee snob) and cheese bread mix as well as other things from there. We went this time to see if they had Chicken Fries (these chips we had found in Norway) but didn't have any luck in that department.

The one we went to is in, I believe, Fairfield, just off Dixie Hwy.

Thanks for the review and pictures. It is interesting to read your discussion with Terry about Jungle Jim's. We moved from Cincinnati a couple of years ago so are familiar with it. I went there at Christmas one year before our Baltics cruise and found something from each country to give to my husband as a gift. It was a fun present to help with the anticipation!

Your pictures continue to be amazing! Did you use a tripod or something else for your night pictures? I still struggle with getting good ones. :o

Great start, I anxiously await the rest of your review! Also, your pictures are exceptional - very professional looking!

Another helpful site is Biddingtraveler.com - it can help with bidding or just looking to see recent hotels won and pricing.

It was also on the Coral last month, the participants performed in the Atrium one evening.

Michele,

 

Thanks for the nice comments on the videos. I’m glad you enjoyed your Ocean Princess Fire and Ice cruise. Iceland and Greenland offer some wonderful photo opportunities. We too enjoyed our cruise to this part of the world.

 

Our next adventure will be a RT cruise from Barcelona in January that has port calls in Morocco, Canary Islands and Spain. We are really excited about the two day stop in Morocco and plan on taking an overnight excursion to Marrakech. For the stop in Malaga, we plan on taking an excursion to Granada and Alhambra. I should have some videos of this cruise posted on CC sometime in early February.

 

Happy cruises,

Ron

We also enjoy your videos - thanks for sharing. When we were in Malaga, we went to Ronda - it was gorgeous! Too bad you don't have enough time to do both Ronda and Alhambra.

I really miss the Compass Rewards!! Not only were the benefits better, they were so easy to redeem. It took me over an hour and 7 different customer service representatives plus 3 different phone numbers to redeem points for onboard credit!:eek: If anyone needs it, the number is 866-954-4077.

It probably would have been much easier to redeem for cash but I like having an obc when we cruise.

Yep, I was way too confident yesterday. My TA says that they show points redeemed but not applied to my cruise. I'm at the 20 minute mark with my 3rd representative so far today

I really miss the Compass Rewards!! Not only were the benefits better, they were so easy to redeem. It took me over an hour and 7 different customer service representatives plus 3 different phone numbers to redeem points for onboard credit!:eek: If anyone needs it, the number is 866-954-4077.

It probably would have been much easier to redeem for cash but I like having an obc when we cruise.

We just got the Caribe Hilton for June 5 - $92 each for 2 rooms. Thanks to everyone for posting your wins, they were very helpful!

The first installment of my Middle East videos has been uploaded to Youtube. The first episode highlights some the more interesting tourist spots in city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. These include: Dhow and Abra stations along Dubai Creek; the Gold Souq; Spice Souq; Palm Island; Burj Al Arab and Atlantis Hotels; Mall of Emirates and Ski Dubai; and a Desert Dune Bashing Safari.

 

To view this video click on the link below or go to www.youtube.com and type my user name – cruzertoo – into the search box. This will bring up the entire list of videos that I have uploaded.

 

 

Enjoy,

 

Ron

Amazing! Love the ski pictures!! There is so much to see in this world...so little time...

We're home from out Middle East adventure. Thanks for the very nice comments. I glad you are enjoying my videos.

 

Dubai was awesome - the amount of wealth is unbelievable. It was everything you've read about and more.

 

Muscat, Oman and Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt on the Sinai Peninsular were two more very interesting port calls. Muscat was the hub of the frankincense trade going back to biblical times. Sharm is mainly a rich, Red Sea, resort town on the southern part of the Sinai. We were disappointed that the port call for Luxor was canceled, but we did enjoy our day in Sharm.

 

The Suez Canal transit was the most interesting sea day that I've experienced. This was a real treat.

 

And of the course the Pyramids did not disappoint - they were spectacular.

 

It will take me a couple of weeks to compose the videos from this trip. I will upload them as soon as possible.

 

The Brilliance of the Seas sails from Barcelona to Dubai in January 2010. I highly recommend this trip. It also includes a stop at the port for Petra, Jordon.

 

Thanks again for you comments and stay tuned for more videos. I will post a note on this thread when the videos from the Middle East have been uploaded to youtube.

 

Ron

Thanks, I can't wait to see the videos. We would love to do the Jan. trip but I'm a teacher and we can't get away in January. Perhaps some day when I retire...

We are off for a few days in Dubai and then a RCCL cruise from Dubai to Rome. Additional videos will be posted on Youtube when we return in June.

 

Ron

You have been on some fabulous trips and this sounds like it will be another one! I'd love to go to Dubai sometime so in the meantime I'll live vicariously through your videos when you return.:D Have a wonderful trip!!

Love the videos - thanks for sharing!!