Good hotels in Barcelona and Venice / using courier for luggage

[Lynniepoo]

Hi everyone!

 

DH and I are (God willing) going on the Ruby May 6, 2012 from Barcelona to Venice. We plan to fly in early and stay at a hotel in Barcelona, and then stay one day late at a hotel in Venice.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions for good hotels? We are looking for something nice but don't need anything too extravagant.

 

Also, the last time DH and I went overseas, we had the most miserable flight experience and our luggage was lost. So, this time we are thinking of sending our luggage by UPS or Fedex and having it shipped to the hotel. Just wondering if anyone else has tried this and how it has worked?

 

Thanks!!!:D

[Sunviking]

We have stayed a couple of times at the Hotel 1898 in Barcelona and at the Al Ponte Antico in Venice. The 1898 is on La Rambla and convenient to the Gothic Quarter, the Boqueria Market and the metro. Al Ponte Antico is on the Grand Canal with views of the Rialto Bridge. The location is only a few minutes walk from San Marco, the Rialto Market or most any other sight in Venice. We love both of them and have reservations for both again for upcoming cruises.

[vantec]

We always stay in Hilton Hotels and can highly recommend The Hilton Molino Stucky Venice - we stayed there last September and it was wonderful.

[partymaker]

We did The Rbuy last May from Venice to Barcellona. In Venice we stayed at The Abazzia which was wonderful. In Barcellona, it was the Onyx Rambla. Both were in great locations and moderately priced. We would atay at both again.

[CruzR887]

Both times we've sailed from Barcelona we've stayed at Hotel Jazz. Great location just two blocks from La Rambla and Placa Catalonia. It is also right by a subway station that is a few stops from the train to Monserrat and the funicular to Montjuic.

 

Placa Catalonia, by the way, is the place to catch the best hop-on hop-off tour we've ever been on. There are two companies that operate in Barcelona. The one with the blue busses is really very good: lots of busses and three different route that take you across the whole city.

 

Barcelona is a fantastic city I'm sure you'll your vist wherever you stay.

 

Cheers,

 

Rod

[MERLOTCHAMPAGNE]

We stayed at Al Ponte Antico in Venice in Oct 2009 and Matteo and his staff were wonderful. Their location near Rialto Bridge was great and the view on the balcony for breakfast and evening drinks was breathtaking. We just made reservations there for Oct 2012 and can't wait!

 

With regard to luggage, we used Princess Valet for our Baltic trip as we did a brief pre cruise to Germany to visit friends and didn"t want to carry our luggage up their 4 flights of stairs and on the commuter train to the airport. Our luggage was picked up at home and we didn't see it again until we walked into our cabin. We just used a carryon for our precruise and didn't have to lug bags anywhere. Since we were going straight from the ship to the airport, we only used Valet one way. It worked perfectly for us. Just an option you might consider...

[boone2]

We too stayed at the hotel Jazz and found it to be in a great location and agree with the above comments on the HOHO buses in Barcelona. Watched for offers and got it for 99 euros per night

In Venice we stayed at the Hotel Al Ponte Mocenigo, wonderful location in a very quiet area and not far from the Rialto Bridge. It is near the San Stae vaporetta stop and there are no bridges to lug your luggage over. We are staying there for 5 nights pre Ruby cruise again this year.

Terry

[Jassy]

While it is a very nice hotel (especially if you get one of the few rooms facing Venice proper, see below), the one thing I did not like about the Hilton Molino Stucky is that the hotel is on an island and the ONLY way you can get back and forth from Venice to the hotel is by boat (water taxi (like a private taxi or limo) or waterbus (the public transportation option). While the hotel has a water taxi that goes to Venice once an hour, it does not run for at least an hour during lunchtime and also during dinnertime. At the other times, there is often a line of guests waiting for the taxi and it can fill up before you get to the head of the line (as happened to us). To get to the cruiseship area from the hotel by water taxi can easily cost $50!

 

 

Regarding sending luggage ahead, while we have not used Princess's Luggage Valet, we have used Seabourn's twice to Europe (and since they are both under the Carnival umbrella, I'm guessing that the programs are similar). It was a wonderful experience! The nice thing with using the cruise line's service is that they will guarantee arrival, and if the suitcase does not arrive in time, the cruiseline will make sure that it arrives at the next port of call. I highly recommend this service and will be using it on our Princess Canada/New England cruise in May. The only downside is that, for a Europe cruise, you must have the bag packed and ready to be picked up two (!) weeks before the cruise date. If it is a shoulder season and the weather can be unpredictable, one ends up having to pack a little cold weather and a little hot weather attire. But that's a small price to pay for avoiding all the hassles of handling large, heavy suitcases and for the peace of mind. :) A hint: Be sure to write down the tracking number, especially on the shipment back home, and track the passage of your luggage. We had a little problem with ours in leaving Barcelona, but we contacted Seabourn and they took over and handled everything to get our suitcase safely home.

[Mrs Charmin]

I can't give a recommendation as I haven't been yet, but we've got Hotel Montecarlo booked in Barcelona, as well as the Hotel Miramar for one night precruise. We've also got Hotel Ponte Antico booked in Venice for our last night post-cruise.

 

To those who have stayed there (Venice), could you explain how to get to the airport from that location? Boat, taxi, shuttle? I don't think it is as easy as taking a taxi, or is it? Also, how long should we give ourselves to get to the airport for a 1:30 p.m. flight to London? Any information you can provide is appreciated.

 

Thanks, Norah

[Lynniepoo]

Actually, I hadn't even heard of Princess Valet!! Will go check that out. Seems like a good option, except that I don't know if I can part with a large chunk of clothing and personal items for two whole weeks prior to departure! ;)

 

Thanks for all the tips on hotels. I'm getting excited just thinking about it!!

[KaththeTaff]

We stayed at the Expo Hotel in Barcelona pre cruise, and we found it very acceptable. It's handy for the train station on arrival from the airport, and away from the noise and bustle of the centre and The Ramblas.

 

There are some very nice little restaurants around the hotel, plus a supermarket (not open Sundays) for supplies. The local restaurants will provide a great taste of the region, rather than the more international ones in the cnetre of the city.

 

A nice touch was a complimentary welcome drink at the Expo. The room was big and had a cute little balcony with a great view, as were on floor 9!

[STUR]

Hi everyone!

 

DH and I are (God willing) going on the Ruby May 6, 2012 from Barcelona to Venice. We plan to fly in early and stay at a hotel in Barcelona, and then stay one day late at a hotel in Venice.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions for good hotels? We are looking for something nice but don't need anything too extravagant.

 

Also, the last time DH and I went overseas, we had the most miserable flight experience and our luggage was lost. So, this time we are thinking of sending our luggage by UPS or Fedex and having it shipped to the hotel. Just wondering if anyone else has tried this and how it has worked?

 

Thanks!!!:D

We have just booked the Ruby for May 30,2012 to June 11,2012

We plan to do the same as you Arriving in Barcelona Two days B/4 and staying in Venice One day after

 

We are also booked on the Emerald this summer (sister ship to the Ruby) (Baltic)

 

We will start looking for Hotels when we get back

 

STUR DAYTON,OHIO

[Lynniepoo]

We have just booked the Ruby for May 30,2012 to June 11,2012

We plan to do the same as you Arriving in Barcelona Two days B/4 and staying in Venice One day after

 

We are also booked on the Emerald this summer (sister ship to the Ruby) (Baltic)

 

We will start looking for Hotels when we get back

 

STUR DAYTON,OHIO

 

Stur, I'll be back just in time to tell you how terribly wonderful it was. :D

[kdooley]

We stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott in Venice a few years ago on a land based vacation. It was off the island, but near the airport and had a bus stop out front. We were able to hop on the bus in just a few minutes and it dropped you off by the Rialto Bridge or took you to the airport saving us tons of money on taxi fares. I'm not sure how it will work coming off a ship, but it worked out well for us, plus we got to use our Reward points so it was free!

[AlexandNessa]

We had a Mediterranean Suite at Le Meridien on Las Ramblas in Barcelona. Loved it. Got a special rate. I should see if I can summon up my pics.

[BosoxI]

If money is a concern, don't stay in Venice, stay in Mestre. Hotels are much cheaper, and the #4 bus will wisk you into Venezia for a Euro or so. A 5 Euro bus ride from the airport drops you at the train staion in Mestre and going back to the airport is even less expensive

[caribill]

Regarding sending luggage ahead, while we have not used Princess's Luggage Valet, we have used Seabourn's twice to Europe (and since they are both under the Carnival umbrella, I'm guessing that the programs are similar). It was a wonderful experience!

 

Are there any restrictions as to what may be in the luggage shipped this way? I remember reading somewhere that only clothes could be inside in order to satisfy customs regulations. For example, no souvenirs shipped this way back to the USA.

[Jassy]

Are there any restrictions as to what may be in the luggage shipped this way? I remember reading somewhere that only clothes could be inside in order to satisfy customs regulations. For example, no souvenirs shipped this way back to the USA.

 

I just got off the phone with Princess Luggage Valet and their restrictions are pretty tough -- clothing and shoes only (e.g., no toiletries, no electronics -- we usually ship a battery charger but guess we won't on our upcoming trip). When I asked about books, the rep said that paper was also permitted, at least when the shipment is totally within the US.

 

That being said, when we used Luggage Valet with Seabourn (which, granted, appears to be a slightly different program), they provided a long list of dos and don'ts. We included lots of paper, souvenirs, even several 50 cL bottles of booze ('tho the booze was not listed on the contents manifest ;)) in our suitcase home from Barcelona and didn't meet with any problems. So, I guess one could try it, with the understanding that some things may or may not make it.

[somogirl]

We always stay in Hilton Hotels and can highly recommend The Hilton Molino Stucky Venice - we stayed there last September and it was wonderful.

 

How did you get to the cruise ship from Hilton Molino Stucky?

[vantec]

We always stay in Hilton Hotels and can highly recommend The Hilton Molino Stucky Venice - we stayed there last September and it was wonderful.

 

How did you get to the cruise ship from Hilton Molino Stucky?

 

We ended our cruise in Venice. Princess offered a transfer, they made sure our luggage made it to the hotel, they took us to Venice, where we caught the free hotel shuttle to the hotel. It was very nice not to have to mess with our luggage, but if we were to do it again, we might consider hiring a water taxi.

[grandmaa]

We stayed at the Le Meridian on Las Ramblas when we were in Barcelona. Great location.

We were able to walk to the Plaza which had great bus transportation and Hop On/Hop Off buses. La Bouqeria (Grand Central Shopping Market..amazing market) is down the street.

Good restaurants also near by. Have a great time where ever you choose to stay.