Have you taken an "immersion" cruise in Brazil?

[Artemis]

Quasar1011, RCI isn't showing anything in South America for June 2013, but I think they are still sorting out next year's SA deployment. Sounds like a great idea, and other lines may have options, too!

 

Babyeddiedog, thanks for the Santa Teresa B&B suggestion. I researched that possibility a lot, but rightly or wrongly, gave it minus marks for security and location for a 2-night stay, plus considering all the mixed reviews, a dismal hotel scenario works far better with my husband than Aunt Marta's old house, if you know what I mean!

 

Yes, I would love a personal guide recommendation! I have already done a lot of research about that issue, too. hahaha I am admittedly on the obsessive side when it comes to gathering information. ;)

 

Anyone tried the new tourist bikes in Rio? We've had great success with them in other cities. Sounds like a great way to see a more natural part of the city--lagoon, botanical gardens, something like that (not talking busy streets!).

 

Thanks, all. I am getting so much value out of everyone's contributions!

[TravelerThom]

...

BA--I have a lot of ideas in the works here, but I welcome your suggestions.

 

Punta del Este--that's a blank slate for me, all I know is it's a chi-chi beach resort adored by affluent locals! More cha-ching! :p

BA, PdE and Montevideo are all have nice walking areas.

 

BA: Maybe find a tour to get to La Boca and Recoleta and follow up with a downtown walk. In BA there are a number of now pedestrian streets. Take Calle Florida from Plaza San Martin and you will encounter lots of tourist shops and a number of street entertainers [musicians, tango dancers, etc looking for tips]. The upscale Galeria Pacifico is on Florida, and has a good selection of eateries on the lower level if you are ready for a snack. Walk on down Florida and you will be one block from the Plaza de Mayo, with the National Cathedral [tomb of San Martin], the Casa Rosido, etc. The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo still march on Thursday [you are in on a Tuesday, but we went on a Thursday a year ago]. Casa Rosido is open for tours, but usually only on Sunday - I have a picture of Marilyn waving from the balcony, a la Evita. Evita is of course buried in Recoleta. Plaza de Mayo is a terminal of Subte lina A; lina A is interesting in having nice wooden hundred year old cars with beveled glass etc - worth a ride just to see it. For the evening I suppose a Tango show is typical. Given one day in BA I have not touched on out of town [visits to an estancia for a BBQ can be quite nice, as is the Tigre Delta].

 

PdE action centers on beaches and clubs [these start late and go well past sunrise]. If there is anything spectacular near PdE I missed it when I was there a year ago. I think it is nice to walk south through residential areas toward Punta de la Salina. I suppose no trip to PdE would be complete without a photo stop at Dedos de PdE [giant sculpted fingers sticking out of the sand at Playa Bravo].

 

Montevideo has some magnificent Art Deco buildings. The Tourist Board has maps identifying these buildings and giving a little history. Mercado del Puerto is a converted train station near the dock, with a wide selection of restaurants [maybe not as good as Mercado Central in Santiago, but definitely worth a stop]. The Graf Spee anchor sits right by the pier if you have any interest in WWII history.

 

Enjoy

Thom

[Artemis]

^ Thom, don't stop, I'm taking it all in! Actually, we are lucky to be in BA all day Wednesday and Thursday (a significant reason this cruise appealed to me). I have already hit Chowhound for dinner recommendations! We think alike. While scanning the usual guidebook recs, the fact that the march was on Thursday jumped out at me. I also see the annual international tango conference will be held while we visit--need to check out the program, but could mean a better show than a tourist show. We are cemetery people, so I know I am going to have to put a time limit on that if we want to see anything else! Appreciate the walking tips for post-beach at PdE ; we have only a half day in Mont, 6a-1p, and your mention of Art Deco buildings piques my interest--I may hire a guide for a 2-hour walking tour. We go out of our way to hit WWII sights, so that's definitely going on the list!

 

Have you made estancia and/or Tigre Delta side trips? Having that Day 2 does give us some flexibility that way, although I think I'd have to be really impressed with the offerings to give up the chance to savor instead of buzz through BA.

[TravelerThom]

^ Thom, don't stop, I'm taking it all in! Actually, we are lucky to be in BA all day Wednesday and Thursday (a significant reason this cruise appealed to me). I have already hit Chowhound for dinner recommendations! We think alike. While scanning the usual guidebook recs, the fact that the march was on Thursday jumped out at me. I also see the annual international tango conference will be held while we visit--need to check out the program, but could mean a better show than a tourist show. We are cemetery people, so I know I am going to have to put a time limit on that if we want to see anything else! Appreciate the walking tips for post-beach at PdE ; we have only a half day in Mont, 6a-1p, and your mention of Art Deco buildings piques my interest--I may hire a guide for a 2-hour walking tour. We go out of our way to hit WWII sights, so that's definitely going on the list!

 

Have you made estancia and/or Tigre Delta side trips? Having that Day 2 does give us some flexibility that way, although I think I'd have to be really impressed with the offerings to give up the chance to savor instead of buzz through BA.

I was looking at the wrong schedule for your cruise - I think I've got it now. I see you are scheduled to depart BA at 5:20pm. The Mothers march is scheduled at 3:30pm Thursday, and being South America generally starts a little [not a lot] late. You could probably see the start of the march before you high tail it back to the ship. Be aware that BA cab drivers have a bad reputation for palming large bills and claiming that you gave them a smaller one. There is also an encampment on Plaza de Mayo of Malvinas [Falkland] veterans protesting lack of government support.

 

Since you are in BA overnight you might want to try for a Tango show on your own. Cafe Tortoni has shows and being in business since 1858 is defintely the historical spot, although some other shows may get better reviews.

 

We went to Tigre on the train a year ago - the slow local took almost an hour from Retiro station and cost a grand US$0.30. It is a short walk [maybe 200 meters] to where the Tige Delta ferries are; there are a number of different routes, most an hour or so, and they run a little less than US$10 round trip. Nothing overly exciting, but a nice pleasant way to pass the time. Estancia tend to be several hours from BA, and cater mostly to either groups or overnight guests. We did an estancia BBQ and gaucho show as part of a tour maybe seven years ago.

 

Uruguay was a wealthy country in the early twentieth century, and that was when they built those great Art Deco buildings. Then the economy hit the skids and they had no money to modernize, so they were "stuck" with these. Their loss, our gain. For some pictures of Montevideo buildings check out http://www.google.com/search?q=montevideo+art+deco+buildings&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=1GR&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=TN0pT7eQMMLW2AWAmOXrAg&ved=0CEsQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=664 Most of these are a relatively easy walk from the port.

 

All this discussion is making want to get back to this area

Thom

[Babyeddiedog]

Babyeddiedog, Yes, I would love a personal guide recommendation! I have already done a lot of research about that issue, too. hahaha I am admittedly on the obsessive side when it comes to gathering information. ;)

 

 

Try emailing leweiss@gmail.com - Leandro was excellent. In fact, we got him by mistake as we had booked another guide, who came highly recommended, but also has family problems. We were glad he did because Leandro was tops. Tell him Jeff and Wendy from Italy gave you his details :D

[Artemis]

Babyeddiedog, many thanks for the guide details! I will email him (if we book--thanks to all of you, I'm psyched, just have to get hub aboard when he returns from biz trip. Fingers crossed!)

 

TravelerThom, sounds like estancia will wait and we'll pass on Tigre, too. Thx for tango show rec. And many thanks for the logistical tips for seeing the mother's march...for maybe 30 minutes...and advice to have small bills for cabs.

 

 

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[Mines]

We did the cruise to BA on Splendour in 2007 and had a great time. Nearly all the entertainment was in two languages, but the cruise director was Brazilian, so some of the jokes were only in Portuguese.

 

The food was generally a little bit better than on a normal cruise, but I am a bit biased, because I like Brazilian food. They also have the Guaraná soda drink that is really good and the cheese breads in the MDR.

 

I like to get up early to go to the gym and it was fun to cross with some of the Brazilian party crowd going to bed when I was getting up at 7:00 a.m.

 

Unlike other informed posters here, I have never found Rio particularly dangerous, but we always stay in the tourist areas and not in the "Favelas" (Ghetos). I think that Rio is a great city and would certainly recommend it. São Paulo is a very large working town without anything particularly touristy. Personally, on a short trip, I wouldn't bother going there.

 

One other advise is that the check-in procedure in Santos can be complicated, so take plenty of patience with you.

[Artemis]

Hi, Mines, thanks for the early gym tip--it will be nice not to have to fight for a machine--and for the warning about Santos check-in. Most of all, I really appreciate your thumbs up contribution! :) I hope future cruisers considering this type of voyage will find this thread. It has been the most positive, helpful and, importantly, current discussion vs. the dated reports that weren't very encouraging.

[Mines]

Just for information, the 2012/13 Brazil cruises have been posted on the RCL web site today.

[johnx7]

As you already have plans for BA, I won't suggest you a lot, but only to attend to at least 1 tango show, and instead of using taxis (and having to deal with change, checking the meter, etc) you can use a remis. Remises are cars with drivers available to you for any length you want, taking you anywhere you want to go for a fixed rate. Last time I was in BA it costed me less than U$90 for 8 hours. Google 'remises buenos aires' to book one.

 

In PdE, you should take a picture at the La Mano/Los Dedos sculpture on the beach. A good restaurant I suggest for lunch is the Scarlett (take a look at their site's picutres, and the menu is good as well). For perfume shopping, I suggest the perfume shop on the Conrad casino, where I got some of the best deals on South America. Btw, the Conrad Casino is considered to be the best casino in latin america. It's not a Vegas style casino, but it's worth checking out. On the back of the casino building (there's an exit going right there from inside the building) there is a good small supermarket called Disco where you can buy dulce de leche, alfajors and other quality local items at great prices. If you enjoy sunsets, I suggest watching the sun going down at Casapuelblo - it's truly beautiful. :)

[jbond]

We were on the same B2B as cruisenfever back in 2008. The second part of the B2B was very disappointing. I would never knowingly do an "immersion" cruise again. The food was poor, I don't ever want to see black beans and rice ever again. The food on the second leg of our cruise was totally different to the first leg. The entertainment for non Portuguese speakers was non-existent. If this was supposed to be a cultural experience, then I guess I'm all cultured out. I found smoking to be a major issue, in the Schooner Bar in the evenings, you could hardly see, let alone breath.

As Patti also mentioned, don't forget your visa. We had about 80 people denied boarding because they didn't have visas.

I have our photo album posted at http://family.webshots.com/album/564695088icbspV?start=0 It covers both legs of the B2B.

[Artemis]

Hi, johnx7, whoa, I am sorry to have left the wrong impression--I don't have Buenos Aires fully planned, just a few definites on my list! So please suggest anything you wish. You have been a great source of information. Today, for example, you've touched on two things in PdE that will make my husband very happy--the casino and a good dulce de leche source! :) Actually, both of us really like going to local groceries, and of course, a primo spot to watch the sunset is great to know.

 

jbond, thanks so much for sharing your magnificent photo album! Yes, Patti posted above about your bad experience--what a bummer. It's a shame RCI wasn't transparent about their voyage plans and also that RCI wasn't up to standards on that second leg. I realize it's no solace to you, but your group's complaints likely contributed to RCI's reform. Consequently, post-2008 cruisers have been able to make an informed choice--thanks for that!

[TravelerThom]

... the Conrad Casino is considered to be the best casino in latin america. It's not a Vegas style casino, but it's worth checking out...

I think tenders dock just South of the Conrad near some of the better bay beaches. From the Conrad it is maybe four blocks east to the Atlantic beaches. If you go south of the Conrad the peninsula narrows to only a couple of blocks wide before the peninsula widens out again. Los Dedos sculpture is on the Atlantic at this narrow portion of the peninsula.

 

Thom

[Artemis]

TravelerThom, thank you for placing the Conrad, beaches and sculpture relative to the ship. Convenient! I have just realized that with a 30-minute tender, we won't be able to return to the ship to change for an evening out (sailaway is not until 11PM) so we may have to take more advantage of the Hilton.

 

 

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[johnx7]

One other advise is that the check-in procedure in Santos can be complicated, so take plenty of patience with you.

 

I forgot to comment about this. Check-in in santos was really complicated a while ago, but last december from the moment I got to the port untill I was on the ship it took around 30-40mins. Just FYI, I checked-in online.

 

I was escorted to a short line (maybe 5-8 ppl in front of me), got my SetSail card, went to a longer line to get thru security, got on a bus for a 5 minutes ride and was on the ship.

 

Those who didn't check-in online were in a HUGE line.

 

--

 

Thom covered BA very well and I don't have a lot to add, but if you like shopping, there are some outlets/factory stores on the Cordoba Avenue. Some people may tell you to go to Caminito, where tango was born, but what you'll find there is old houses painted in vibrant colors and some stores selling overpriced souvenirs. I suggest a research before deciding if you're going there.

 

As you said your husband likes dulce de leche, you should try the ice creams of Freddo, an ice cream shop you'll find in Argentina and Uruguay. They sell several dulce de leche flavors, such the Dulce de Leche Tentacion (my favorite, fresh dulce de leche mixed with dulce de leche ice cream) and the Dulce de Leche Granizado. Tell your husband to try Freddo on the first stop and decide if he wants some more on the next cities. :)

[Artemis]

Oh my! This trip is well on its way to being a dulce de leche tour! Thanks for the scoop, John. Freddo, here we come!

 

 

 

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[Mines]

Oh my! This trip is well on its way to being a dulce de leche tour! Thanks for the scoop, John. Freddo, here we come!

 

 

 

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Freddo is excellent ice cream, but we stumbled across an unforgettable experience in Un Altra Volta, who are apparently the original family owners of Freddo before they sold out to a large group. You can check out their stores on unaltravolta dot com dot ar.

[north29]

It is a wonderful city, and we really enjoyed it, but can be a little dangerous for tourist, displaying even modest wealth. Our tour guides in Rio they told us when walking the streets near our hotel, not to wear any watches that are glamorous, or easily seen. They, the female tour guide, wears only silver, when out on the streets in most areas. I had a watch on that was $29 and it looks expensive and was told to cover it up. I do suggest using tours operators, the Christ the Redeemer park, is well crowded, and they can help you navigate the other sights. I,m not saying Rio is totally unsafe, but like any foreign city can be a PITA to navigate on you own and it is not Europe in all conveniences.

The Brazilians are a fun group of people, I really enjoyed them on our last SA cruise, one thing for sure they buy everything on the ship LOL.

One thing do not drink the tap water, only water in bottles, the water is highly processed and wont harm you but, may make your stomach sensitive.

Night tours, do a Samba Show, lots of well butt, but no nudity, speaking of nudity, there are no topless beaches in Rio , skimpy bathing suits but not nudity on the beaches, much to our surprise

Would I go back to Rio, yes, but like many other cities, just for a stop over going some place else.

Do not forget your Visa

[Artemis]

Mines, thanks for telling us about Un Altra Volta. My husband loves doing taste tests, so we are well on our way to lining up a few and choosing a winner!

 

north29, thanks so much for all of the Rio tips! Because I've now taken time away from Rio to add Iguazu Falls to our pre-cruise itinerary, we are looking at just 2 full days + 2 nights in Rio. We intend to make the most of it!