Live from Mediterranean Odyssey - March 28 thru April 9, 2022

[Eggtuary]

On 4/7/2022 at 9:01 PM, 20Cruise20 said:

Nice, Eze, and Monte Carlo: Warning! This post might strike the wrong cord with some. Beautiful places, but, this tour wasn't what we expected. A short bus ride to Eze, lots of climbing, beautiful views, followed by about an hour of free time in a few little shops and a cafe or two. (It was way too early in the day/tour for this much free time to shop.)

 

Another short bus ride to Nice. A brief walking tour followed by almost two hours of free time for lunch or to shop. 

 

Another short bus ride to Monaco, a walking tour in a portion of Monoco, and more free time to shop. Finally, the last bus ride to Monte Carlo, including a minute or so drive on the Grand Prix road, and a brief walk to the Monte Carlo Casino. About 30 minutes of free time in the Casino area.

 

We expected more time touring, either walking or via bus, and much, much less time in the shopping areas. I'm a shopper, but, this wasn't my cup of tea. If you want to see a little bit of the French coast, have lots of time in repetitive shops or enjoy a coffee, this tour will not dissapoint you. I do plan to include comments in my feedback to Viking that it would help to align expectations if a tentative timeline could be provided with tours of this nature. Happy to answer more specific questions, if it's helpful.

 

Viking Sea was also in port. Another night with a delightful dinner in The Restaurant. 

 

        

 

 

This is a great example of where the right guide makes all the difference in the world.  You'll see in my comments that this was one of the best excursions of our trip.  But I'm sure it wouldn't have been without Luca as our guide.  Not only did he keep it interesting, but it sounds like we got a bit more time touring than you did, because our shopping and eating/drinking time didn't seem excessive.  Plus, with the right guide, you get better ideas of WHAT you want to do during the free time.

Edited April 9, 2022 by Eggtuary

[junnipper]

Hi everyone. We are booked for this itinerary in November.  This will be our first trip to Europe. I have read that credit cards are accepted widely. I would like advice on how much cash and in which currency to bring or exchange when I am there. This would be when I want to buy something and the vendor doesn't use Interac. From what I have read Euros are not accepted/used in every country.

Thank you 🙂

[Heidi13]

2 hours ago, junnipper said:

Hi everyone. We are booked for this itinerary in November.  This will be our first trip to Europe. I have read that credit cards are accepted widely. I would like advice on how much cash and in which currency to bring or exchange when I am there. This would be when I want to buy something and the vendor doesn't use Interac. From what I have read Euros are not accepted/used in every country.

Thank you 🙂

 

Affirmative, credit cards are widely accepted in Europe.

 

Personally, we order the equivalent of CAN $20 of foreign cash for every country we are visiting, prior to the cruise, as I consider it insulting to tip guides with foreign currency. Part of my cruise research is to confirm each country's currency and current exchange rate.

 

Correct, in Europe, the Euro is not used in every country.

[junnipper]

38 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Affirmative, credit cards are widely accepted in Europe.

 

Personally, we order the equivalent of CAN $20 of foreign cash for every country we are visiting, prior to the cruise, as I consider it insulting to tip guides with foreign currency. Part of my cruise research is to confirm each country's currency and current exchange rate.

 

Correct, in Europe, the Euro is not used in every country.

Thank you so much Heidi.  This is exactly the advice I was looking for.  I am a Canadian as well... Maritimer. ⚓

[Heidi13]

2 hours ago, junnipper said:

Thank you so much Heidi.  This is exactly the advice I was looking for.  I am a Canadian as well... Maritimer. ⚓

 

We give our local RBC Branch a list of the currencies we want, and they usually take less than a week to be delivered to the branch.

[curmudgeon98]

5 hours ago, junnipper said:

Hi everyone. We are booked for this itinerary in November.  This will be our first trip to Europe. I have read that credit cards are accepted widely. I would like advice on how much cash and in which currency to bring or exchange when I am there. This would be when I want to buy something and the vendor doesn't use Interac. From what I have read Euros are not accepted/used in every country.

Thank you 🙂

I've never found a need to do more than draw cash from an ATM on arrival.  Do note that the first couple of ATMs you encounter in the airport terminals are likely to have rip-off exchange rates or fees - you are better off with true bank ATMs after baggage claim and customs.

 

Euro and USD are pretty broadly accepted and usable around the world; in the Med, I would have no problem paying for small purchases in euro if I don't have local currency (rounding the exchange rate in favor of the local vendor), but expect any change in local currency (similar to USD in Mexico or Caribbean).  Even in pre-euro days this was pretty common in Europe for currency of neighboring countries.    

 

There are games that get played with exchange rates on credit card or ATM.  I won't go down the rabbit hole, but you are generally best off being charged in local currency and letting the bank/card network do the exchange at the end of the day. 

[Mich3554]

5 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Affirmative, credit cards are widely accepted in Europe.

 

Personally, we order the equivalent of CAN $20 of foreign cash for every country we are visiting, prior to the cruise, as I consider it insulting to tip guides with foreign currency. Part of my cruise research is to confirm each country's currency and current exchange rate.

 

Correct, in Europe, the Euro is not used in every country.

The exception to this is South America.  While we do try to have local currency on us, we found in South America (particularly Argentina) that everyone prefers US$$.  Our trip in 2019, we ran out of US cash, so the more recent one we took we made sure to have enough.  The shoes I bought in Buenos Aires and the t shirts DH bought would have cost twice as much in pesos or using a credit card as they did in $$.  

[Mich3554]

2 hours ago, curmudgeon98 said:

I've never found a need to do more than draw cash from an ATM on arrival.  Do note that the first couple of ATMs you encounter in the airport terminals are likely to have rip-off exchange rates or fees - you are better off with true bank ATMs after baggage claim and customs.

 

Euro and USD are pretty broadly accepted and usable around the world; in the Med, I would have no problem paying for small purchases in euro if I don't have local currency (rounding the exchange rate in favor of the local vendor), but expect any change in local currency (similar to USD in Mexico or Caribbean).  Even in pre-euro days this was pretty common in Europe for currency of neighboring countries.    

 

There are games that get played with exchange rates on credit card or ATM.  I won't go down the rabbit hole, but you are generally best off being charged in local currency and letting the bank/card network do the exchange at the end of the day. 

THIS!  I ran into this yesterday when I bought opera tickets in Prague for our visit next month.  I was given the option of paying in $$ or Czech currency.  Being charged in US currency, we would have been charged $135.  I chose Czech and conversion hit the credit card at $115.  

[FetaCheese]

Was In Greece, Dec. 2021, Venus. Didn't buy Euros in advance.  Mistake.  Shops didn't take USD, only Euros or cards.  Wasn't a problem.  We tipped guides and driver's in USD.  They graciously accepted. 

[Pegct]

Will be sailing the September 28th Mediterranean Odessy and looked at my itinerary and saw we arrive in Naples port at 12 noon. Just wondering for anyone on earlier cruises if they can comment on all day optional excursions offered and amount of time allotted in Naples and scheduled port arrival in Naples   I have tentatively arranged for a private tour for our group to see Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano but assumed we arrived early in morning like 8am. Not sure how 4 hr time difference will affect sightseeing plans that day.

[millybess]

I am also interested in this. We have been to Florence and Rome and we are considering leaving the cruise in Livorno, taking the train to Naples and meeting up with the ship there. 

[Dukefan]

15 hours ago, Pegct said:

Will be sailing the September 28th Mediterranean Odessy and looked at my itinerary and saw we arrive in Naples port at 12 noon. Just wondering for anyone on earlier cruises if they can comment on all day optional excursions offered and amount of time allotted in Naples and scheduled port arrival in Naples   I have tentatively arranged for a private tour for our group to see Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano but assumed we arrived early in morning like 8am. Not sure how 4 hr time difference will affect sightseeing plans that day.

We are on this same cruise embarking in Barcelona on May 25th.    We are faced with the same challenge.   Since we have done both Pompeii and the total Amalfi Coast on a previous cruise, we decided to focus just on Pompeii this time.   Since one of the things that makes the Amalfi Coast so beuatiful are the views as you drive it  and these views would be missed if you drive it in the evening you would need to do it first.  Pompeii closes at 7:30 pm so it would be nearly impossible to do it after the Amalfi Coast Tour, therefore I believe you will need to chose one or the other.   That said, it may be possible I believe to do Pompeii and Sorrento but it would be so rushed that I don't believe it would be worth the effort. 

[hutch1994]

On 4/7/2022 at 3:01 PM, 20Cruise20 said:

Time to Catch Up!

 

Livorno: Woke up to no hot water on Tuesday. Yikes! Mid-day hot water had returned. Healthsurveys ended. Since we only had a brief window of time between the time Italy opened for independent  exploration and our arrival, we weren't able to pull together my "perfect day" in Florence. So, we stuck with Plan B and enjoyed the included incursion to Pisa. The cathedral was simply stunning. What an unexpected cultural treasure. The cathedral is absolutely worth visiting! The leaning tower was simply fun on a beautiful sunny day. Another fabulous dinner at The Restaurant, too! 

 

Nice, Eze, and Monte Carlo: Warning! This post might strike the wrong cord with some. Beautiful places, but, this tour wasn't what we expected. A short bus ride to Eze, lots of climbing, beautiful views, followed by about an hour of free time in a few little shops and a cafe or two. (It was way too early in the day/tour for this much free time to shop.)

 

Another short bus ride to Nice. A brief walking tour followed by almost two hours of free time for lunch or to shop. 

 

Another short bus ride to Monaco, a walking tour in a portion of Monoco, and more free time to shop. Finally, the last bus ride to Monte Carlo, including a minute or so drive on the Grand Prix road, and a brief walk to the Monte Carlo Casino. About 30 minutes of free time in the Casino area.

 

We expected more time touring, either walking or via bus, and much, much less time in the shopping areas. I'm a shopper, but, this wasn't my cup of tea. If you want to see a little bit of the French coast, have lots of time in repetitive shops or enjoy a coffee, this tour will not dissapoint you. I do plan to include comments in my feedback to Viking that it would help to align expectations if a tentative timeline could be provided with tours of this nature. Happy to answer more specific questions, if it's helpful.

 

Viking Sea was also in port. Another night with a delightful dinner in The Restaurant. 

 

        

 

 

I'm in total agreement.  Want to see interesting sites, not to go shopping for souvenirs.  Never buy any souvenirs on any of our trips.

[austinetc]

23 hours ago, Pegct said:

Will be sailing the September 28th Mediterranean Odessy and looked at my itinerary and saw we arrive in Naples port at 12 noon. Just wondering for anyone on earlier cruises if they can comment on all day optional excursions offered and amount of time allotted in Naples and scheduled port arrival in Naples   I have tentatively arranged for a private tour for our group to see Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano but assumed we arrived early in morning like 8am. Not sure how 4 hr time difference will affect sightseeing plans that day.

The Herculaneum is marginally closer to the Naples harbor and a more compact site. I think Viator offers 3 hour tours. I've been to it and Pompeii and consider it a more illuminating piece of history. 

[sswansen]

On 4/9/2022 at 7:58 AM, Eggtuary said:

Day 12 - Barcelona, Spain

 

I am SO thankful to the folks who suggested using Viator to book our own tour of La Sagrada Familia!  My wife and I got a private tour by a fantastic guide.  Not only was he interesting, easy to understand and super pleasant, but he also brought along a tablet on which he would pull up pictures from time to time to help better explain the points he was making.  For instance, there was a statue from the time of Jesus's life that they ended up using Gaudi's face for, and our guide was able to pull up a photograph showing how true the likeness was.  

 

Of course, with it being a private tour, we could go at whatever pace we wanted.  Our guide also saw that my wife's knees were really acting up on her from all our touring, and he arranged for us to get to the elevator.  Plus, he spent a lot of time outside of the basilica in various places, where we not only got wonderful pictures, but also a better appreciation for how truly amazing the place is.

 

We wanted to sample some local tapas before returning to the ship, and our guide again gave us a great suggestion.  After stuffing ourselves on a delicious sample of unique local flavors, we ended with a dessert that was essentially a crème brûlée on top of a Krispy Kreme doughnut with cinnamon sugar sprinkled on it.  Yum!!

 

After going back on board for a couple of hours to rest and finish packing, we went back out for An Evening of Flamenco.  This was a really cool experience, though they had an awful lot of us crammed into the venue.  The excursion was advertised as providing a "snack," which made everyone laugh because they gave us a ton of food, again in the form of tapas.  Some were much better than others.  

 

Day 13 - Disembarking (Barcelona)

 

I'm glad we paid for the airport transfer with Viking.  They made everything quite simple, including getting our bags all the way up to the ticketing/check-in counters (which were surprisingly far from any available doors).  

Thank you for this information!  We'll be in Barcelona for 4 days before our cruise and based on your experience I think a Viator tour might be a great idea for one of those days.  Can you tell me the name of the tapas spot that your guide recommended?  That dessert sounds amazing!  Thanks.

[lisaatric]

On 4/10/2022 at 5:59 PM, Pegct said:

Will be sailing the September 28th Mediterranean Odessy and looked at my itinerary and saw we arrive in Naples port at 12 noon. Just wondering for anyone on earlier cruises if they can comment on all day optional excursions offered and amount of time allotted in Naples and scheduled port arrival in Naples   I have tentatively arranged for a private tour for our group to see Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano but assumed we arrived early in morning like 8am. Not sure how 4 hr time difference will affect sightseeing plans that day.

We are on the same cruise!  I booked a Vesuvius/Pompeii tour before I noticed the port times as well.  I’ve found a 1/2 day trip through Italy XP tours. Maybe they have something shorter you’d be interested in.  

[20Cruise20]

On 4/4/2022 at 3:58 AM, 20Cruise20 said:

I'll catch up, too!  Sea Day & Naples

 

Sea Day: 

 

WIFI continues to remain sluggish. The winds, however, remain at a fairly high speed and made for very difficult deck 2 walking.    

 

Our noteworthy daily activities revolved around dinner and a show.  A delicious lobster dinner in The Restaurant. Despite the very busy dining room, service didn't miss a beat. Cruise director Jenna's show was nice. Her version of "I'll Always Love You" was magical. Jenna shared her current contract ends with our cruise. She does plan to return to Viking in the future.  

 

Day Six - Naples: 

 

The weather has returned to warmer (around 60) with more sun. Our schedule revolved around a trip to Pompeii. So very, very amazing to see the ruins. Our guide was average, at best, and her habits impacted the pace of our tour. We spent way too much time covering the early walking tour stops and allowing other groups to move ahead of us. Consequently, we were very rushed in the last hour of the tour. We had hoped that we would have a few minutes to take photos in the Forum, but, time expired. (We had no interest in shopping or picking up a coffee, but, others did. Likewise, they were disappointed.) This was also the first time that we were disappointed in our fellow passengers.  Late arrivals to the start time, one passenger would not wear her Quiet Vox, another complained about the walking before we even entered the historical site, and one didn't understand that there was walking involved in the tour. (Before entering the site, the last cited passenger left the group to go shopping and stay at a cafe. She rejoined us at the departure time/location.) Regardless, we were impressed with Pompeii and suggest it. 

 

We enjoyed dinner at the Chef's Table. The crab cake and the halibut were delicious. We were seated in a different section than our previous experience and had exceptional service.

 

The weather and the seas are forecasted for improvement. It's hard to believe that we have been on-board for a week.   

 

 

 

 

[20Cruise20]

Hi All.

 

The last few days of our trip: 

 

Marseille: 

 

A double excursion day for us. We enjoyed a morning included excursion. Nice guide, a couple of photo stops, and a bit of free time to enjoy the beachfront, old town, and market area. After our three hour tour, we headed back to the ship for a lunch break and attire adjustment.  

 

Discover Aix-en-Provence was our afternoon adventure. About a 35 minute bus ride, a very knowledgeable guide who presented history of the area, a really nice overview of the church with features from multiple centuries, a walk through the promenade area, and about 45 minutes of free time. The excursion met our expectations. A little bit more than an included tour, but, not too much more. 

 

Would we complete another double tour day on a future cruise? Yes. Would we do so regularly? No.  

 

Another lovely dinner at Manfredi's with one of us leveraging the half portions. 

 

Barcelona: 

 

Headed out on Gaudi's House of Modernism excursion. A short bus ride to Casa Vicens accessing the property before the general public. Pastries, fruit, small sandwiches, and drinks were provided in a patio area. We chose to forego the snack to enjoy the property and take photos without others in the area. A second short bus ride to Sagrada Familia for a 30 minute exterior overview. Lastly, another short bus ride to Casa Batllio for a property tour. (A significant number of stairs to climb as part of the tour. Some attendees struggled a bit.) A nice tour that met our expectations. Our focus was on the two Gaudi properties and not Sagrada Familia.  

 

We leveraged the ship's shuttle in the afternoon to explore more of Barcelona on our own.

 

Note: it was obvious that the Barcelona port infrastructure would make it very, very east to arrive on your own, tour on your own, and disembark on your own. Clearly marked areas, port staff, and plenty of taxis at the stand outside the exit door.  

 

A final dinner in The Restaurant selecting our favorites from the base menu. (Always ask if there are any additional vegetables available for selection. We enjoyed a non-advertised side of asparagus for at least two of our dinners.)  

 

Disembarkment and more of Barcelona: 

 

Luggage out by 10 PM and cabins vacated by 8 AM. We were scheduled for an 830 AM departure. By 845 AM, we were starting our post-excursion experience. A really nice three hour tour of the city with lengthy stops at Ciutadella Park and Montjuic. (I suspect something very similar to the included Barcelona excursion.) At the front door of the Hotel Nobu by Noon. 

 

The hotel was very modern. The location, however, really was not conducive to self-exploration. (This seems like a city that Viking could find a better hotel partner.) Taxis needed for all of the sights and restaurants. The breakfast buffet was simply average.   

 

For our full day in Barcelona, we had pre-arranged a private guide for Parc Guell and for Sagrada Familia. As expected, the experience was excellent. An absolutely wonderful guide who provided so much insight to the city, the Parc, and the simply amazing Sagrada Familia. 

 

Viking did a nice job with the transportation to the airport and the guide accompanying the guests directly to the check-in area.  

 

Arrived home safely last evening. I'll post some reflective thoughts in the next day or two. And, will review all of the recent topics to share my experiences.

 

 .  

 

 

 

[Eggtuary]

20 hours ago, sswansen said:

Thank you for this information!  We'll be in Barcelona for 4 days before our cruise and based on your experience I think a Viator tour might be a great idea for one of those days.  Can you tell me the name of the tapas spot that your guide recommended?  That dessert sounds amazing!  Thanks.

Ciudad Condal was the guide’s recommendation. However, the outside of the restaurant uses the alternative spelling, Ciutat Comtal. 
 

Enjoy!

Edited April 12, 2022 by Eggtuary

[longterm]

On 3/19/2022 at 11:07 PM, Eggtuary said:

One of my favorite things on the Viking Ocean boards has been following the various live blogs posted here ... so I'm going to try to pay it forward!

 

My wife and I will be celebrating our 25th anniversary by taking our first Viking Cruise later this month, which is also only our 2nd cruise ever (previously did a 3 night Disney cruise to the Caribbean) and will be our first time to Europe!  

 

We fly out Friday the 25th (another first -- lie-flat seats!), arriving in Venice on the 26th.  We will stay two nights at Hotel Antiche Figure directly on the Grand Canal before boarding the Sky on the 28th.  Since we're arriving on a Saturday afternoon and don't want to spend our Monday morning scrambling to get a COVID test, we're taking the rapid PCR test here in the US on the morning of our flight out.

 

Below are the excursions we selected.  We realize we could have booked with independent operators, but we decided to play it super safe and do all Viking excursions.  All are optional, except for the included one in Venice.  

 

Venice, Italy - At a Glance: St. Mark's Sure

 

Split, Croatia - Krka National Park & Dubrava Falconry Center
Dubrovnik - Dalmatian Coast Wine & Food Tasting
Corfu, Greece - Scenic Corfu and Theotoky Estate & Winery
Naples - Sorrento & Pompeii
Rome - Highlights of Rome & the Colosseum
Florence/Tuscany - Cooking in a Tuscan Castle
Monte Carlo - Nice, Èze & Monte Carlo
Marseille, France - Le Castellet & Wine Tasting
Barcelona - Gaudí Architecture & La Sagrada Família (morning)

An Evening of Flamenco (evening)

 

Almost hard to believe we'll be in Venice in less than a week!

You’re in for a treat; we Just returned from a Viking Cruises to Italy, Croatia, Montenegro, and Greece.

 

There are some excellent restaurants in split, which turned out to be one of our favorite stops.  We had lunch at a café just off the Square where excursions generally start in the town; one street over from the large building that faces the bus stop, there is a nice little café on the left. I wish I could remember the name of it; the avocado tzatziki was delicious. 
 

We walked the wall in Dubrovnik; I am scared of heights but managed to do the entire walk, which was exhilarating. Hundreds of steps, so it is not for someone who has trouble with them, but I highly recommend it. Had lunch in the old town at an incredible (but pricy) restaurant called Proto; it’s in an alley on the right off the main Street. 
 

We loved Corfu as well; lots of great cafes on the waterfront. Bought yet e olive oil there, and of course they said it was the best in Europe. 😊

 

We were not allowed to go out independently in Italy (we could do so in Rome because we got there 5 days early and hadn’t gone on the ship yet, but cruise passengers were not allowed independent excursions); I hope that has changed, because we would have loved to wander Venice on our own, but only got about 30 minutes of unsolicited meandering. Even still, we loved being in Venice, and already planned to go back. It was nice to be able to go out on our own in Croatia, Montenegro, and Greece.

[longterm]

On 4/10/2022 at 4:59 PM, Pegct said:

Will be sailing the September 28th Mediterranean Odessy and looked at my itinerary and saw we arrive in Naples port at 12 noon. Just wondering for anyone on earlier cruises if they can comment on all day optional excursions offered and amount of time allotted in Naples and scheduled port arrival in Naples   I have tentatively arranged for a private tour for our group to see Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano but assumed we arrived early in morning like 8am. Not sure how 4 hr time difference will affect sightseeing plans that day.

That sounds like a lot to pack into four hours, especially since the ship doesn’t arrive until noon. If I remember correctly, our excursion to Pompeii took 3 to 4 hours in total, and worth every minute of it. I seem to recall that Pompeii was about 45 minutes from the port.

[Pegct]

Spoke with our private tour person and and will plan on modified seven hour tour going to Pompeii and proceed to Sorrento.  Probably will not make it to Positano this visit.  Ship will be in port nine hours.

 

[20Cruise20]

Final Thoughts

 

Even though we had our mitigation plans in place, pre-trip I worried more than I care to admit about potentially contracting COVID on vacation and I wondered if we were making the right travel decision. Once our plane departed our local airport, I focused on enjoying our vacation and had minimal worry.  

 

Our independent time in Rome was fabulous. Our time in Venice was very nice. Our cruise was very enjoyable. And, our time in Barcelona was nice.

 

In hindsight, am I glad we took the trip? Yes. (Attempt #1 in 2020: Suspended mid-Atlantic when the US borders closed. Attempt #2 in 2021: Postponed. Attempt #3: Successful.) Will we complete next year's planned Viking cruise? Only if the testing and masking protocols are removed and all independent travel is available. All of those things truly had an impact on our Mediterrean Odyssey adventure. (I can deal with all of the EU forms, VeriFly, and other travel paperwork.) Fingers crossed that we cruise next year with Viking.

 

Back to the actual Viking experience: 

 

- Disappointed in both pre and post excursions. 

- Overall ship experience: Very enjoyable

- Service in all ship areas: Not as good as our suspended cruise. I noticed the challenges the most at the Explorer's Desk, the Pool Grill, and The Chef's Table. The potential for stellar service is in place.    

- Ship Food: It exceeded our expectations and overall was better than our suspended cruise.

- Ship Excursions: Regardless of included or paid, we had mixed impressions, but, all were acceptable. 

 

Thanks to everyone who posted over the past few years and helped me prepare for our Viking experience. I'll do my best to watch the respective threads and help future travelers.   

[flyboydad]

On 4/9/2022 at 10:31 AM, Eggtuary said:

I'm really behind on my updates.  WiFi on the ship was pretty horrendous the last few days. As in, loading a page on this site could take a full minute or more at a time. I'm now in the air over the Atlantic, where I have considerably better WiFi.  We love Viking, but we'd sure like to see them make an improvement in that regard, if they could.  

 

Day 9 - Florence/Tuscany

 

I'm so glad my wife pushed for us to do the Cooking in a Tuscan Castle excursion.  Not only was it a fun experience, and a nice change of pace, but it was good to take a break from all the long walks of the previous couple of days (in Pompeii and Rome).  I feel kind of bad telling folks how great it is because it sold out VERY quickly, with only 14 people getting to go.  I was one of the volunteers, who learned how to use the quite long (almost a meter!) rolling pins to make incredibly thin noodles.  The other volunteer made almost perfect dough while I kept tearing mine.  I felt better when the other guy revealed that he's a professional chef!  Anyone who wanted got the experience of cutting the dough into the noodles, which was more fun than I would have guessed.  And then another did all the cooking in a pan for one of the sauces.  We then all sat down for a delicious meal that we'd helped prepare.  And the castle is beautiful!

 

We were also fortunate to have a fantastic guide named Luca.  It was a little unusual that he handed out business cards, but honestly I was happy for it because I would happily use him again.  Entertaining, informative, easy to understand, knew when to talk and when to give us a break.  Can't ask for more.

 

Day 10 - Monte Carlo, Monaco

 

It was hard to believe we had two days in a row of incredible guides.  This time, it was "Nick" from Nice (I'm afraid I didn't catch his actual name, but he said he was okay with us calling him Nick.)  Again, a funny  guy who kept up a good pace, super cool accent, and knew a ton.  This time, our excursion was Nice, Èze, Nice and Monte Carlo.  I had seen on another social media site a number of fantastic reviews of this particular excursion, and they were spot-on.  Èze is just a beautiful, unique location on the French Riviera.  It's kind of a steep climb up a hill, but it's completely worth it.  The roads were narrow and winding, the views were awesome, and the little shops had a character all their own.  Nice also was really nice.  We got some free time there and Èze to shop (though not as much as my fellow blogger in this thread).  It worked out perfectly, as we were able to sample some local foods, buy some stuff, and even sit for a ridiculously good cappuccino.

 

My wife and I weren't as big on Monte Carlo.  It truly has that feel of being the playground of the rich and famous, which some people may like, but wasn't our thing.

My wife and I are on this cruise beginning 5/13 in Venice.  Can you tell me what your Day 10  - Monte Carlo, Monaco excursion was?   Was it "Nice on your own"?  This is what we have booked in the afternoon.  We do the included tour in the morning.

[Eggtuary]

23 hours ago, flyboydad said:

My wife and I are on this cruise beginning 5/13 in Venice.  Can you tell me what your Day 10  - Monte Carlo, Monaco excursion was?   Was it "Nice on your own"?  This is what we have booked in the afternoon.  We do the included tour in the morning.

Nice, Èze & Monte Carlo
 

My wife and I both loved Èze, and this appears to be the only Viking excursion that goes there.