First time cruisers need advice!

[malteserdani]

Hi Everyone. We are set to cruise with Royal Carribean on the Navigator of the seas to Le Havre, Bilbao and Gijon in August and need some advice.

 

Has any of you been on this cruise before? If so did you do the excursions offered onboard or did you make your own plans and trips?

 

We want to do things ourselves (to save money) but need some advice on where to go and how to get there!

 

Also, any info on what to expect onboard would be great too!

 

Thanks :D

[Clarea]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

Some of the resources you might want to check out are the Ports of Call forums here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=19

[GUT2407]

We haven't done a ships excursion, in years (over 10).

[paul929207]

A few years ago, we rented a car in Le Harve and went to Honfleur, Caen and Bayeau. We met another couple on the ship and the joined us and paid half the cost

[Sequim88]

RCCL's Brilliance of the Seas stopping at Le Havre was on our first TA and we did bus tour to Paris with lunch on a river boat. Being our first European experience we opted for cruise line excursion. Also we sort of have a rule even now that the farther from the ship a destination is the more likely to use their services so they have to get us back or the ship will wait. Although later we became more independent and took trains on our own from Livorno to Pisa and from Villefranche to Monaco and Nice. First timers I usually advise to get their feet wet with cruise line tours even though a lot more money than on own there's peace of mind.

 

If you really want to to it yourself then get the appropriate Rick Steves guides and also view his videos - most all are available on his web site or YouTube. You don't really have to make a sustaining donation to your local PBS station to get them (unless you really want to ;) ). But the guide books are a wealth of info for self touring.

[malteserdani]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

Some of the resources you might want to check out are the Ports of Call forums here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=19

Thank you for the link I'll have a look through and see what I can find. I'm very new to all this

[malteserdani]

We haven't done a ships excursion, in years (over 10).

Do you have any advice on what to do in any of the Ports we're visiting without doing the planned excursions? Thanks

[Dieks-STL]

I did the bus tour and river cruise on the Seine. Was a nice intro to Paris and the river cruise was much fun despite the rain. If you've never been to Paris this tour will leave you wanting more. Have fun!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[malteserdani]

RCCL's Brilliance of the Seas stopping at Le Havre was on our first TA and we did bus tour to Paris with lunch on a river boat. Being our first European experience we opted for cruise line excursion. Also we sort of have a rule even now that the farther from the ship a destination is the more likely to use their services so they have to get us back or the ship will wait. Although later we became more independent and took trains on our own from Livorno to Pisa and from Villefranche to Monaco and Nice. First timers I usually advise to get their feet wet with cruise line tours even though a lot more money than on own there's peace of mind.

 

If you really want to to it yourself then get the appropriate Rick Steves guides and also view his videos - most all are available on his web site or YouTube. You don't really have to make a sustaining donation to your local PBS station to get them (unless you really want to ;) ). But the guide books are a wealth of info for self touring.

Thank you for your reply that's really helpful. We were going to do the d day trip but it's so expensive. We found we could do a 3 day holiday for not much more! So we're going to do that instead 😂. I'll have a look for the guides though!

[malteserdani]

A few years ago, we rented a car in Le Harve and went to Honfleur, Caen and Bayeau. We met another couple on the ship and the joined us and paid half the cost

 

Was it easy enough to rent a car at the port? And not too easy to get lost?? :D

[Grandma Dazzles]

You might want to post questions on the Royal Caribbean board in addition to the ports of call board, especially any questions relative to Rc or the Navigator.

[cb at sea]

A guidebook will set you in the right direction. Most things are easy to DIY...but you MUST have info! Read up on your ports! You'll have a great time!

[malteserdani]

You might want to post questions on the Royal Caribbean board in addition to the ports of call board, especially any questions relative to Rc or the Navigator.

Ah ok thank you ill do that as well

[Krazy Kruizers]

Have you joined your Roll Call to see what private tours others on your cruise may be doing?

[malteserdani]

Have you joined your Roll Call to see what private tours others on your cruise may be doing?

 

Hi how do I do that please?

[Floridiana]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=268

 

These are the roll calls of the Navigator of the Seas. Look for the date of your cruise and join in the conversation. It is very likely that other passengers have already arranged for private excursions or know how to get to the important sites with public transportation.

 

You could also check Google maps to find out where the cruise port is located in, let's say in Bilbao. Maybe it's a river boat or public bus ride away from downtown with the famous Guggenheim museum. Sometimes, cruise lines provide a low cost shuttle into town.

[malteserdani]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=268

 

These are the roll calls of the Navigator of the Seas. Look for the date of your cruise and join in the conversation. It is very likely that other passengers have already arranged for private excursions or know how to get to the important sites with public transportation.

 

You could also check Google maps to find out where the cruise port is located in, let's say in Bilbao. Maybe it's a river boat or public bus ride away from downtown with the famous Guggenheim museum. Sometimes, cruise lines provide a low cost shuttle into town.

 

that's great thank you for the info!