Barcelona, Marseille, Nice, Florence, Rome, Corsica, Valencia, Gibraltar

[WebStir4]

I just returned today from a Celebrity cruise that left November 2, 2007. Bring tissues and hand-santizer. Toilets but no toilet seats in a lot of places. Also, no flush toilets, no toilet tissue, and no soap in a lot of the places. It is six hours later in Europe than it is in New Jersey.

 

BARCELONA--We are a group of four that left Newark on November 1st. We arrived in Barcelona on November 2, 2007 early in the morning. We ate breakfast at the airport and then got on line for a taxi. It cost us about $40. Watch out for pickpockets as one seemed like he was going to try and grab one of our carry-ons at the airport while we were eating breakfast.

 

You cannot just walk around by the port since there is nothing near it. We thought we would check our luggage and then walk around Barcelona! We took naps instead.

 

Marseilles--We took a cab to Aix-en-Provence about $60. We walked around and then had lunch. We also took a cab back for another $60. Aix-en-Provence is a very nice town, but I doubt if I will ever go back there again.

 

Nice--We used Relevation Tours. Cecile was our tour guide and she was very darling. We were picked up at 8:00 a.m. It was 600 Euros for six people. We went to Nice, Monaco (Monte-Carlo where the casino is), and Eze. It was very hilly in all the places we went. We had a very nice lunch at a restaurant and saw the changing of the guards.

 

Florence--We used Rome in Limos. Phillipo was our tour guide. He picked us up at 8:00 a.m. Florence is about 1-1/2 hours from the port. First we went to Pisa and then we went to Rome. That tour was about 550 Euros for four people. We had a very nice lunch in Florence.

 

Rome--Watch out for pickpockets here too. We used Rome in cabs. Mauro was our tour guide. He picked us up at 8:00 a.m. He was better than excellent. We saw too much to list, and well worth the cost. We only had to stand in one line for a few minutes at the Vatican. Our tour guide inside the Vatican is named Sarah. Sarah stood in line before we got there so we did not have to stand in line long. Her cost was 120 euros and was well worth the money. We didn't have time for lunch and that was okay. The total cost for Sarah, Rome in Cabs, admission fees was about 150 euros a person.

 

Corsica--Walked around for awhile and then went back on the cruise ship. We won't be returning to this port again.

 

Valencia--Got off ship and had difficulty getting a cab. Ended up taking the #4 bus to the center of the city. We took the double decker bus and toured around in it. We were in Valencia for only five hours so this was perfect. We were able to get a cab back to the ship for 10 euros. Take the ship shuttle at 10 euros per person.

 

Gibraltar--Walked along the streets and had an English lunch at a restaurant.

 

Barcelona--Took a cab from the port to Royal Hotel, Ramblas 117 119 Plz Catalunya. Booked it through Travelocity.com. Very nice room and sound proof with safe in the room. We took Superior Room with views to Las Ramblas. It was 150 Euros and would definitely recommend the hotel. We took the double decker bus which was a block away. You can catch the red or blue bus there and I paid 19 euros to use the bus all day long and able to transfer to any of their buses--red, blue, green. You can also get off and on all day long if you choose to.

 

The only bad part about the trip is the nine hour plane ride home. We had a direct flight to Newark, New Jersey. It took quite a while to get our luggage.

[judybee]

Ahhh (sigh of relief!), how nice to hear there will be one less tourist returning to my favorite town! ;)

[WebStir4]

Aix-en-Provence is a very nice town. The reason I would not return is not because I didn't like Aix, but because I would rather spend more time in places like Rome or Paris where eight or nine hours are just not enough. If I was a frequent visitor to Europe I probably would return to Aix. It took me 57 years to get to Europe for my first visit. At this point, I would prefer to spend a week in a place like Rome, or Paris, or London. If you came to the United States, would you prefer to spend a week in Manhattan or a day in Manhattan and also small towns?

 

I apologize if you felt that I was saying anything negative about Aix, which I was not!