Ditching the ship?

[Ashlm85]

Hello Everyone,

 

I am a little bit of an inexperienced cruiser :) My husband and I are taking a 7 night Med. cruise this coming October through Princess. We are going to be at the Portofino port for a day and then the Livorno (Florence) port the next day. We were thinking about leaving the ship for a night to stay in Cinque Terre. Does anyone know if this is allowed? Any advice about doing this? We're not quite sure about luggage both staying on the ship and taking with us to Florence. I don't want to have bags with me while in port for the day. Any and all information would be really appreciated!

 

Thanks for helping a newbie :D

 

PS.. We are going to be in Amalfi for 4 days prior and Rome for 4 days after, so there shouldn't be any immigration issues :)

[paul929207]

You would need to contact the cruise line to see what needs to be done. THere may be additional immigration requirements for an overnight stay.

[John Bull]

Hello Everyone,

 

I am a little bit of an inexperienced cruiser :) My husband and I are taking a 7 night Med. cruise this coming October through Princess. We are going to be at the Portofino port for a day and then the Livorno (Florence) port the next day. We were thinking about leaving the ship for a night to stay in Cinque Terre. Does anyone know if this is allowed? Any advice about doing this? We're not quite sure about luggage both staying on the ship and taking with us to Florence. I don't want to have bags with me while in port for the day. Any and all information would be really appreciated!

 

Thanks for helping a newbie :D

 

PS.. We are going to be in Amalfi for 4 days prior and Rome for 4 days after, so there shouldn't be any immigration issues :)

 

As Paul's reply, you need to check with the cruiseline, but it shouldn't be a problem, since you are going Italy-Italy.

I'm pretty certain Portofino is a tender port, sometimes calls are cancelled if the weather is too rough for using tenders.

But I think Livorno is all kerb-side parking, & I've never heard of a cancellation there - the last-minute cancellation of the re-boarding port :eek: is the big worry when you plan to play catch-up.

 

You'll probably have to confirm & sign a disclaimer when you reach Portofino, so that the ship doesn't have to inform the authorities that you are missing - presumed drowned :D when you fail to show by back-aboard time, and to indemnify the ship if for any reason it doesn't call in at Livorno. And it would be good manners to inform your cabin attendant, & any dining companions if you're on a shared table.

Try to book a hotel with a cost-free late cancellation policy in case the ship's itinerary does change, or some other force majeure thwarts your plans.

 

John Bull

[ehfl]

It should be fine....just make the arrangements with the cruise line, so everyone knows what to expect.

[Gonzo70]

This might not be permissable; Italy does have cabotage laws similar to the PVSA in the U.S. that place restrictions on cruise ships from transporting passengers from one part of Italy to the next. Doing what you propose may violate their cabotage laws. As such you need to check with your cruise line to see if it it possible. Do not plan on doing this without advanced approval as it may result in your being denied admission back onto the ship and possibly incur fines if it does violate local cabotage laws. Hopefully it can be arranged, but be sure to work out all the details with the cruise line in advance of the cruise, and then confirm once you are on the ship.

[BIG_Steve]

Cruiseline call centers are notoriously misinformed. If you don't get an answer here from someone that has actually done what you ask, then I would talk to your TA if you have one (and are confidant in them.) Failing that, I would call the cruisline several times and see if you keep getting the same answer. Calling a cruiseline once, and accepting what the operator told you as fact, is like playing Russian Roulette with your vacation.

 

Those folks work hard, but they just don't seem to get/give consistant information. But that's just the modern business world.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

You definitely need to check with your TA and your cruise line (multiple times) considering that where you want to get off and get back on are not the listed on your itinerary as regular departure and embarkation ports.

[BruceMuzz]

Hello Everyone,

 

I am a little bit of an inexperienced cruiser :) My husband and I are taking a 7 night Med. cruise this coming October through Princess. We are going to be at the Portofino port for a day and then the Livorno (Florence) port the next day. We were thinking about leaving the ship for a night to stay in Cinque Terre. Does anyone know if this is allowed? Any advice about doing this? We're not quite sure about luggage both staying on the ship and taking with us to Florence. I don't want to have bags with me while in port for the day. Any and all information would be really appreciated!

 

Thanks for helping a newbie :D

 

PS.. We are going to be in Amalfi for 4 days prior and Rome for 4 days after, so there shouldn't be any immigration issues :)

 

P.S. If you do not work out the details with the ship before you do this, there WILL be immigration issues. Your visa changes when you go on a cruise. The visa is issued through the ship - and is valid only so long as the ship is in port. When the ship leaves without you, you are in Italy illegally - unless the ship has notified local immigration authorities, who will issue you a proper visa.

[luvs2travl]

P.S. If you do not work out the details with the ship before you do this, there WILL be immigration issues. Your visa changes when you go on a cruise. The visa is issued through the ship - and is valid only so long as the ship is in port. When the ship leaves without you, you are in Italy illegally - unless the ship has notified local immigration authorities, who will issue you a proper visa.

 

Thanks, BruceMuzz, for reminding everyone of that. This issue came up a while back on another thread, and the poster got royally flamed for even suggesting such a thing might happen!

[sail7seas]

...and get it in writing by e-mail or fax.

 

Do persons traveling on a U.S. passport need a Visa to enter Italy/EU ? We never got a Visa and have traveled to Italy many times. I realize I am making an assumption but OP lists Michigan on her ID. (Doesn't necessarily mean a U. S. passport.)

[room010]

Apart from making the necessary visa/immigration arrangements to spend a night off the ship you must make double, triple sure that the staff on board know that you won't be returning until the following day or else the captain may delay departure waiting for you and it will cause all kinds of aggro.

[navybankerteacher]

...and get it in writing by e-mail or fax.

 

Do persons traveling on a U.S. passport need a Visa to enter Italy/EU ? We never got a Visa and have traveled to Italy many times. I realize I am making an assumption but OP lists Michigan on her ID. (Doesn't necessarily mean a U. S. passport.)

Technically, in many countries as a US passport holder, you are (essentially automatically) granted a visa upon passing through immigration control at a port of entry. While a formal visa, obtained in advance, is not required to enter Italy through normal channels, you could be seen as in illegal if you "enter" by failing to re-embark at a cruise stop.

[sail7seas]

Now that you mention it, I seem to recall we always had to say what hotel we were staying in and indicate our flight number/date scheduled to leave the country.

 

[5326jan]

Even if you could do this, why would you want to spend so little time in such a beautiful area? :confused: You could easily make a full day of Portofino and Santa Margherita. I think a lot of cruise lines offer tours of cinque terra from Livorno, not overnight, but you'll at least get a taste of it.

 

While you're in Amalfi, I hope you'll get to Capri and Sorrento! Sorrento is my favorite Italian town!:)