Help with disembarkment

[skiladyldp]

We are new cruisers. Our first cruise will be in October Rome to Venice. Our cruise has an overnight in Venice and then we disembark. We are planning a post hotel stay in Venice and I need to arrange for a private water taxi to our hotel. We will have lots of luggage so this is the best option for us. I am arranging the private water taxi with Venicelink for 70 euros which seems resonable. I need to arrange ahead of time and let them know what time to meet us. Since I have never cruised before I have no idea what time I can get off the ship. We are not in a hurry since we don't have a plane to catch. Anybody have an idea what time I can meet the taxi?

[Jancruz]

We are new cruisers. Our first cruise will be in October Rome to Venice. Our cruise has an overnight in Venice and then we disembark. We are planning a post hotel stay in Venice and I need to arrange for a private water taxi to our hotel. We will have lots of luggage so this is the best option for us. I am arranging the private water taxi with Venicelink for 70 euros which seems resonable. I need to arrange ahead of time and let them know what time to meet us. Since I have never cruised before I have no idea what time I can get off the ship. We are not in a hurry since we don't have a plane to catch. Anybody have an idea what time I can meet the taxi?

 

Oceania will start disembarking at 9am..any time after that is good to be picked up..just talk to the concierge and tell him what time you want to disembark..

Jancruz1

[Mura]

Is that timing right, Jan? Usually they tell us we have to be OFF by 9am ... which is when we always plan on leaving since we are almost always independent travelers.

 

Maybe this itinerary is different?

 

Mura

[skiladyldp]

So do you think I should plan on a water taxi pickup at 9:30 am so that I have a 1/2 hour to get my bags to the pick up area? Thank you for your help.

[LHT28]

I agree with Mura they want you off by 9 or 9:30 at the latest

They usually want you out of the cabin by 8:30 & breakfast closes at 8 am

 

should be about the same even when you overnight

[LHT28]

We will have lots of luggage so this is the best option for us.

What is lots ??

 

How much do you really need? ;)

 

We take 1 x 26" bag each & 1 carry-on for the 2 of us

This works for 1 to 4 weeks of cruising

 

enjoy

[Tansy Mews]

And don't forget, you don't need any formal clothes for Oceania cruises! I am not a particularly experienced cruiser but last time I learned not to select too late a time to leave the ship. You must be out of your room fairly early - 8 or 8:30 a.m. I would ask for an 8:30 a.m. pickup. Don't forget that your main luggage will be gone by that time. Since you are novices, you may not know that normally you put your luggage outside in the corridor the night before. It is picked up and held for you the next day when you disembark. Be sure to keep any medicines or other things you will need for the next day as well as your clothing for the next day, of course!

Here's a website that gives you a fairly typical overview:

http://www.travel-tips.us/cruise-tips-embark.htm

[JimandStan]

We are new cruisers. Our first cruise will be in October Rome to Venice. Our cruise has an overnight in Venice and then we disembark. We are planning a post hotel stay in Venice and I need to arrange for a private water taxi to our hotel. We will have lots of luggage so this is the best option for us. I am arranging the private water taxi with Venicelink for 70 euros which seems resonable. I need to arrange ahead of time and let them know what time to meet us. Since I have never cruised before I have no idea what time I can get off the ship. We are not in a hurry since we don't have a plane to catch. Anybody have an idea what time I can meet the taxi?

 

The bulk of the luggage gets put outside the Stateroom on the night before disembarkation and is claimed in the customs area on the pier, as you leave the ship.

 

One only carries hand baggage off the ship on that last morning, which is a good thing because the crew has a tight deadline for getting the cabins ready for the next bunch of anxious cruisers, so most people have breakfast early and are off the ship by 8 or 8:30.

[ohmark]

There are complimentary wheeled luggage carriers (like in the airports) in/by the Venice cruise terminal. The private water taxi embarkation area is easy walking distance (less than a 10 minute walk) from the terminal, and even with a fair amount of luggage the walk is not particularly strenuous as long as you use the luggage carriers. As you leave the terminal area, there are booths and representatives for private water taxi companies who are selling their services. As you near the water taxi embarkation area, there are several more water taxi booths, including a booth for the "alli laguna", which is half way between a private water taxi and a vaporetto. As we were staying at the Hilton Molino Stuckey, which is the first stop after the cruise terminal, the alli laguna turned out to be a very good deal for us. It was about 2/3 cheaper than the private water taxi, and the entire ride was about 15 minutes, with no stops. The attendants helped on and off with our luggage. But, other than the Hilton, a private water taxi is clearly worth the expense.

[OzAbroad]

Only recommendation I would make is that you book a hotel with canal access so your water taxi can deliver you straight there. It makes managing that luggage much easier.

[skiladyldp]

Thanks so much for all this information. We will have 3 large bags and 2 carryons. If I can figure out how to strap one of the carryons to one of the bags then I know it will be more manageable. Great to know that there are luggage carts too. Our hotel does have a private dock so that is why I want to use a private water taxi.

 

Is it better to prearrange a water taxi or just wait until you get there? 70 euros did sound like a good price.

[skiladyldp]

Great link Tansy Mews.

[SonjaWinson]

Thanks so much for all this information. We will have 3 large bags and 2 carryons. If I can figure out how to strap one of the carryons to one of the bags then I know it will be more manageable. Great to know that there are luggage carts too. Our hotel does have a private dock so that is why I want to use a private water taxi.

 

Is it better to prearrange a water taxi or just wait until you get there? 70 euros did sound like a good price.

 

Hi,

 

I have pre-booked with VeniceLink many times for travel from Marco Polo to various destinations in Venice and have always had excellent service at a good price.

 

If you haven't done so already, send an email to VeniceLink to be certain the driver can drop you off at your hotel's private dock. VeniceLink does not provide service to all hotel docks.

 

By the way, the water taxi drivers are not allowed to get out of the boat to help you load your luggage; you must hand your bags to your driver from the dock. When the taxi drops you at a hotel dock, the hotel will send someone to unload the luggage from the boat.

 

 

Karen

[skiladyldp]

Karen thank you very much. I will send an email to them about dropping me off at my hotel. On their website it was not listed as one of the hotels that they did not go to.

[Hambagahle]

€70 is an excellent price for a pre-aranged pickup. Last year we took a water taxi from the Tronchetto (car parking area which is near the Cruise Terminal) to the Palazzo Sant'Angelo hotel on the canale grande. Cost was €80.

 

BTW we were on a Regent cruise that also had a night docked in venice. It was in 2010 and at the time of the "ash cloud". We were planning to drive home on disembarkation day and had booked a Hertz car. We went to confirm this and hertz told us to be at their office as soon as possible in the morning. We then asked the ship about the luggage and were told that, as they were docked there all night, luggage would be taken off during the night and would be available to us as early as we wished. Oceania will likely do the same so if you tell your taxi to collect you at 0830 there shouldn't be any problem with the luggage.

[skiladyldp]

Thanks everyone for the useful information. I have heard back from Venicelink and they do stop at Hotel Ala. So I will be prebooking this water taxi for us.

[ohmark]

Enjoy. The private water taxi ride that we particularly enjoyed was the one from the Hilton to Marco Polo Airport. As mentioned by SonjaWinson above, the water taxi operator stayed in the boat, while the hotel bellman handed him our luggage from the dock.

[Mexfolkart]

Oceania sends out a card asking when you need to be off or when your flight is..we usually stay over so we say we have a taxi pick-up at 830am and they disembark us in plenty of time for getting the luggage and

getting the taxi.

Sherry

[SonjaWinson]

Thanks everyone for the useful information. I have heard back from Venicelink and they do stop at Hotel Ala. So I will be prebooking this water taxi for us.

 

Hi,

 

I just had another thought. It depends on your driver and how well you can communicate with him, but it may be possible to negotiate taking a route to your hotel down the Grand Canal for an extra fee. (It's also possible it's an option when you book your water taxi or that you can add it by emailing the Venicelink people directly.) It's a great experience.

 

Karen

[skiladyldp]

Thanks for that idea Sonjawinson. My husband speaks Italian so I can have him request it.

[SonjaWinson]

Thanks for that idea Sonjawinson. My husband speaks Italian so I can have him request it.

 

Excellent!

[Floridiana]

Just a kind reminder: There are no formal evenings on Oceania's ships. No need for tuxedos and lady's evening dresses. I am mentioning it because on our last Oceania cruise, a German lady was rather upset that she had needed three suitcases because of all her evening wardrobe. Her travel agent had not explained to her what 'country club casual' means.

[Mura]

One one of our first dinners on the Black Sea cruise last month we were dining with a couple who had no idea of the dress code. The gentleman was wearing a nice suit and tie, and he asked us about it.

 

He was SO unhappy when we told him he didn't need his suit or tie.

 

Well, I shouldn't say he was unhappy ... he quickly dispensed with the tie and jacket! He just would have liked to have known before he packed.

 

Mura

[joysav]

If I can figure out how to strap one of the carryons to one of the bags then I know it will be more manageable.

 

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