HUGE amount of info for Eastern Med independent travel

[mlbcruiser]

ger,

A super duper thanks to your for a very informative post! Although we have been to Rome and the more westerly ports you mention, we'll be sailing w/Celebrity in a few months to the more easterly ports, incl. Istanbul, Kusadasi, Mykonos & Santorini. I do have a few questions for you:

 

We'll be arriving in Rome after spending a wk. in Spain, and catching our ship in Civitaveccia. (We have boarded a ship there before, but drove to Civitaveccia from Siena, so this time it'll be different.) We plan to spend 1 nt. before and one nt. after our cruise in Rome. I don't yet know which part of the city we will be staying in. Are we out of our minds to consider just taking a train from Rome to Civitaveccia? (I read your info. on where the train station is w/interest! I am aware of the possibility of strikes and we are not timid travelers.) Re: luggage, I'm sure we'll each have a large, stuffed, rolling suitcase and carryons that are fairly good sized. (We were able to manage on the vapretto in Venice w/them before, though not having had to drag them w/us would have been nicer!) I have seen suggestions to try and share a limo to the port and we may yet try that, but am just fact finding right now. (I wonder if the train fare would be significantly less than sharing a limo???)

 

Additionally, we will probably be looking for a clean, well located, 2 star hotel(due to prices I've seen for 3 star ones so far and the fact that we will only sleep in it one night on each end of the cruise), in Rome. Doesn't have to be fancy, though. Any suggestions?

 

Thanks again for all of the information!

[geri]

To answer a few of the questions:

 

GA-Peach:

Regarding walking from Piazza Roma to the ship - From the train/bus/boat convergence area walk about 3/4 mile (25 minutes) to the ship. The walk is easy as the terrain is flat and there are no bridges. Just follow the main road (the road which goes in/out of Venice for all land based vehicles) up towards where the cruise ships are docked, which will be on your left hand side.

 

Re Sunday at the Vatican - I think pretty much every day at the Vatican is busy. Since it is a Sunday there will be morning Mass going on inside St. Peters. During weekdays Masses are held in corded off areas inside St. Peters, but I'm not sure if there is the same on Sunday or if all of St. Peters will close. As far as the Vatican Museum itself just follow my earlier directions on pre-arranging a tour via fax.

 

 

MLBCRUISER:

Re: train from Rome to Civitavecchia. No I do not think you are out of your mind taking a train from Rome to the port! It's the only way I'd go!! The train ticket will be 9 Euro for a 24 hour pass, which allows you to use all Rome public transport too....so that means you can get great use out of it during your night in Rome as well as your transport to the port. Taking a limo to the port will cost you big $$$$...way more than 9Euro! If you managed fine on the Venice vaporettos with luggage then you'll have no problems at all on the train. Once you arrive at the station in Civitavecchia you'll want to get a cab to the port. Set the fare before you get in the cab. Should be about 5-10 Euro.

Can't help you with Rome hotels as I've never stayed in a hotel there. When I travel to Europe I'll use venere.com for research purposes and at times to book. Their site gives a lot of good information, pictures, etc.

[jini]

Geri,

Thanks a lot for all the great info. My wife and I will be taking our first cruise on May 14 leaving from Venice and ending in Athens. We will be spending three days in Venice (first time) before we board. Your tips will help immensely. Thanks again, Ed.

[2 Long 2 Retire]

We are planning to travel with Celebrity Nov 10, 2006 Eastern Med cruise. Your notes have been a huge help to me. We are hoping to do all of the ports independently with the exception of Kusadasi.

 

How far of a walk is it from the Piazza Roma in Venice to the cruise ship dock?

 

Do you think that Sunday morning is a good time to visit the Vatican? Will it be very crowded?

 

Thank you

 

The Vatican is closed on Sunday's except for the last Sunday of the month.:(

[Mark_in_Colorado]

The Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel will be very crowded with mile long lines to get in! Waits can be up to two hours! You can hopefully not deal with this by sending a fax to the Vatican requesting a tour of the Vatican museum and Sistine Chapel. You can do this 30 days out from your trip. English guided tours are done at 10:30, 12:00 & 2:00. Send your name, time and the number of tickets wanted to 011-39-06-6988-5100. Hopefully you will get a response back within 2 weeks. The Vatican will send you a response back via Fax. You take this information and go to the exit door for the Vatican museum. Tell the security guard you are there for a pre-arranged tour. Enter and there will be a counter on the right side. Give the person there your name. At that point you will be sent through security and you will then need to pay the 21.50 Euro for the tour.

 

The entrance for this tour is on the left side of the basilica. We were amazed at how crowded the Vatican Musesum was. We never got a reply to our request for a private tour even tho we sent 4 faxes so we did it on our own.

 

I just thought I'd offer another option re: Vatican Museums tour. For various reasons, I wasn't comfortable booking the official Vatican Museums tour by fax, so I used goporta.com to make the reservation. For us, the extra fee (€ 6.00 per each) was worth it to be sure we had a reservation, and the tour was worth it to avoid the long lines. We were in Rome on a Saturday in early June and the line for the museums was very, very long. By getting off the train from Civitavecchia at the San Peitro station, we were able to arrive at St. Peter's Square by 9am. The first thing we did was take the elevator/stairs to the roof. We then did the 10:30 am tour of the Vatican Museums, and then at the end of our tour, we exited directly from the back of the Sistine Chapel to return to the basilica. There was long line at that time for the elevator, so we were happy we did the roof first thing.

 

Mark

[sable1]

Geri

Thank you so much for your excellent information. I am particularly interested in the Venice details.

Could you please give me an idea of the Hotel Corte Contarina you mentioned?

We are touring Italy for a month before our Splendour which leaves from Venice. We will either stay when the plane arrives or just before the cruise leaves. So, due to the extended time, we are looking for very cheap, but clean, accomodations, around $80-100. We have no need for fancy ammenities, just a place to sleep and shower.

Thank you in advance.

Joanne, the chocoholic

[geri]

sable1,

Re: Corte Contarina

Sounds like it might be just what you're looking for!

Here is their website: http://www.hotelcortecontarina.it

Lots of local restaurants nearby that are well off the tourist track too.

 

You can also get other peoples opinion on this hotel by checking:

http://www.tripadvisor.com

 

As I mentioned earlier I also use venere.com for European hotel bookings.

Great pictures and I've found them to be right on target with the way they categorize hotels. (3 vs. 4 star etc.)

[tdcruise]

Geri - My husband & I will on an identical itinery in May. We see the ship getting into Barcelona at 3:30AM. When will we be allowed to get off the ship? Our flight out is at 10:30AM. How long does it take to get to the airport? Thank you for your insignt.

Thananya

[geri]

tdcruise,

If I recall they started letting people off by 7 am....maybe even earlier (I was still asleep). Since many people stay on in Barcelona they are in no hurry to get off the ship right when it docks. I recall that the lines I saw waiting for a cab at 7 am were much shorter than when I got off around 9:30.

 

The ride to the airport from the ship is about 30 minutes.

[geri]

Bumping up for Jasminedog.....scroll to the section on Venice. I talk about taking the city water bus (ACTV) to Piazza Roma and then walking over to the Grand Princess.

When you exit the ship walk through the port area and when you get to the main road make a right. Now follow the road down towards where you see all the buses waiting. Don't go as far as the buses...instead look at your left hand side and you'll see the waterway and the ACTV's lined up. Go to the one which will take you closest to your hotel. (Check your hotel website for instructions on which boat to take.)

[Ashlea13vb]

geri - Thanks so much for this! I would really try to try most of the ports on my cruise this summer on our own - I know we'll have a better and more memorable time going at our own pace.

 

Your information is invaluable!

[Jasminedog]

Thanks Geri.

Your post is the first time I've come across it and worth the bump up.

[kenlin67]

Excellent post. Lots of good information. A question about the Livorno-Florence train and the Rome-Civitavecchia train. Do they have bathroom facilities on them.

[cruisetvl]

Thanks Geri for your wonderful post.

 

Does anyone know whether the 24-hour transit pass includes the ATVO bus to the airport, or is that a separate ticket?

[geri]

Regarding the trains & bathrooms: Yes, there are bathrooms, but they were very dirty and without paper. I suggest packing your own toilet paper and sanitary hand wipes.

 

 

Regarding ACTV vs. the Alilaguna from the airport. These are two seperate modes of transport. Buying the ACTV daily pass will not get you to/from the airport. You'll need to pay seperately for the Alilaguna ride.

[herbshopgirl]

Geri - Thank you so much for all that information. Since local transportation is paid in euros, any tips on how much to carry and where to get the best exchange rate?
Thank you,
Susan

[Mike073]

The best exchange rate is generally via ATM machine with your check debit card. See what your bank charges per withdrawal though as it may be as much as $5.00. There are machines readily available most everywhere.

[X-ring]

[quote name='2 Long 2 Retire']The Vatican is closed on Sunday's except for the last Sunday of the month.:([/quote]

Lest anyone be inadvertently misled, the above refers to the Museum only ... not all of the Vatican (e.g. St. Peter's).

[B][SIZE=4]Thank you for sharing your great info, Geri![/SIZE][/B]

[ADVENTURESOMETWOSOME]

[quote name='Mike073']The best exchange rate is generally via ATM machine with your check debit card. See what your bank charges per withdrawal though as it may be as much as $5.00. There are machines readily available most everywhere.[/quote]

You may want to check with your banks and see which one will reinburse the fees back to you when you get home, that you're charge at the ATM's - I know Compass bank will. Also be sure to let your bank/Visa co. know you will be using them in Europe so that you don't have a delay or embarassing moment trying to use it somewhere.

[ADVENTURESOMETWOSOME]

[quote name='Mike073']The best exchange rate is generally via ATM machine with your check debit card. See what your bank charges per withdrawal though as it may be as much as $5.00. There are machines readily available most everywhere.[/quote]

Geri, All of your information is priceless...thank you so much for taking the time to share it. We've printed it out and will be using it on our Med Cruise from Venice on Aug. 30th...again, it is awesome
adventuresometwosome

[geri]

Herbshopgirl:
I get most of my foreign currency will I am still home in the U.S. Just call your bank and ask for the foreign currency department. They'll give you the best exchange rate. There is usually a minimal transaction fee (about US$5) no matter how large the amount you are requesting. (Of course this may differ between banks.) I have a bank card to use if needed overseas, but so far I've always situated myself with the right amount and have never needed to use an ATM or currency exchange facility. Of course I travel quite a bit overseas so coming home with Euro's or British Pounds are never a problem. I just file it away for later use. You might feel differently if you have no plans to return to Europe.
As far as how much to carry on your person at any given time. Well...that's kind of up to you to decide how much you want to use a credit card vs. cash and how much you intend to buy. My general rule of thumb is always hide large amounts in a money belt and carry a small amount (under 50 Euro) in an easy to reach coin purse. Use this purse for quickie purchases and it will keep you from looking like an easy target with big bucks by a pickpocket.

[mobyduck]

Thanks so much for all the information. We will be on our first trip to the Med on the Golden Princess leaving Venice on October 5, 2006. We end up in Rome and will stay a few extra days there. We were thinking of using Angel Tours to see the Vatican. Anybody have any experience with their tours? If you go with them do you avoid the 2 hour lines?

[bankofdad]

[quote name='kernow']Thanks for the info.

We are doing Splendour of the Seas next October that leaves from Venice.

Julie[/quote]

Hi Julie,

Which sailing are you on? We're on the October 1st sailing, and have a group exchanging info on the roll call forum.

BTW - we just completed a British Isles cruise last month, and really enjoyed our afternoon tea at the Idle Rock Hotel beachside in St. Mawes. A very nice day, to say the least!

[aussieonwater]

This is the best post I've ever read on Cruise Critic. I'm bumping it back to the top of the list - Thanks for all of your hard work putting this together purely for the benefit of others. You are very gracious..