Suggestions needed for Noordam Med. excursions

[Adventure Addict]

This is our first time on the Noordam. We are taking the Roman Empire trip from Rome to Dubrovnik, Croatia; Corfu, Katakolon, Santorini, Greece;, Kusadasi (Euphesus),Turkey; Valletta, Malta; and Messina, Sicily.

 

Has anyone else taken this cruise (I think it was here in 2006) and can you make excursion recommendations? Thanks

[Sea Island Lady]

Hey Adventure Adict,

 

Glad you found your way over here. :)

 

When is your cruise? We are sailing June 8th on the same ship.

 

Are you staying over in Rome, either pre or post cruise?

 

We have arrange both private and ships tours, but also plan on doing a few of the ports on-our-own.

 

To help you get started with recommendations, go to the main page of this Mediterranean forum and put a simple word into the "Search this Forum", in the yellow tab - under the page numbers. For instance type in "Santorini". If you try to put in a complicated search, the function will not work. You will get all kinds of interesting and helpful threads to read. ;)

 

Let me know if I can help further.

[Adventure Addict]

Thank you for your kind message. My mother and I are on the same cruise -- June 8 Roman Empire! She and I take 1 trip a year together. She's a terrific travel mate. I think my husband and kids are a little jealous.

 

We will be arriving in Rome the day of departure and are departing on the 19th. We hope to get some touring in Rome done on the 18th.

 

Thanks for the tips on searching threads. I'm new to this and feel a bit unsure of myself.

 

Faith

[Sea Island Lady]

I am traveling without my husband, too. I will be with my parents and other family members. ;)

 

Are you taking the cruiseline air? Hope you don't have any trouble getting to the cruise on time. :eek:

 

Come on over to our roll call!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=694903

[Adventure Addict]

We're flying on Alitalia and expect to arrive at noon. It does sound risky. Yikes.

 

It looks like you're traveling around Italy before you get on the cruise. I've traveled Northern italy and Tuscany twice in the last two years. I loved it so much we're going back again this August. Cinque Terra is our favorite. :p

 

Thank you for the link to the Roll Call.

[Sea Island Lady]

No, we are flying into Rome just a day prior and heading straight for Civitavecchia. Never been to Europe! We will head to Rome for a two night post stay after the cruise.

 

I will give you more information on our Roll Call thread. ;)

 

I would really be worried about Alitalia right now. :eek: Do you take them all the way from California, or do you have stops and change of planes? Did you book your air on-your-own, or through the cruiseline?

 

I guess you know that Delta and Alitalia are partners. We almost booked with Alitalia, because they were $100 pp less, but decided to go with Delta. We are taking a direct, non-stop flight from Atlanta. You might want to call and see if you could switch to a Delta flight.

[sfnew2sail]

Good morning! I'm flying Delta from Atlanta to Rome. Should that be a problem? Also what time will I be able to board the Noordam? I think we arrive in Rome around 8 AM.

[Sea Island Lady]

You must be taking the 4:30/5:15 PM flight (for my dates, they recently changed the departure time, so you may want to double check your departure). Hopefully, we will not have any problems with Delta. ;)

Alitalia is in limbo right now.

 

By the time you get into the airport, go through customs, get your luggage, and find your driver, it will probably be close to 9:30 AM. The drive to the port is approximately 1 1/2 hours. That should put you at the port around 11:00. Under normal conditions, you should be able to check-in, however I am not sure about the European ports and what time they allow check-in. Perhaps someone else can answer.

[sfnew2sail]

Thanks, Sea Island Lady! Yes, we're taking the 4:35PM out of Atlanta on the 17th. Supposed to get to Rome 8:30 AM. I think since it's a chartered cruise and our company is setting everything up for us, we'll be able to board shortly after we get to the ship.

[Adventure Addict]

Should I be worried about Alitalia? Our flight from LA is direct to Rome, no changes.

 

We just went through being stuck in Hawaii when Aloha air went bankrupt. Then we were delayed 2 more days when United grounded it's 777s. I would hate to miss our cruise because of another cancellation. :confused:

[Adventure Addict]

Yikes. I just researched Alitalia and see they are likely to file for bankruptcy. I'm gong to see if I can change carriers. Grrrr. All this airline trouble is playing havoc on us travelers. :(

[blondie1234]

For Dubrovnik, I would recommend taking the city tour and then going out to the countryside to see the seaside town at Cavat. There is not much to do in Katakolon itself - use the time there to go out to Olumpia. For Corfu, we took an island tour and then took a cab into Corfu town to walk around. For Kusadasi, we took the tour to Ephesus, Virgin Mary's house and St. John's.

[Sea Island Lady]

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Join Date: Apr 2008

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Thanks, Sea Island Lady! Yes, we're taking the 4:35PM out of Atlanta on the 17th. Supposed to get to Rome 8:30 AM. I think since it's a chartered cruise and our company is setting everything up for us, we'll be able to board shortly after we get to the ship.

For a charter, maybe the ship will even wait if you are delayed! :)

 

Should I be worried about Alitalia? Our flight from LA is direct to Rome, no changes.

 

We just went through being stuck in Hawaii when Aloha air went bankrupt. Then we were delayed 2 more days when United grounded it's 777s. I would hate to miss our cruise because of another cancellation. :confused:

 

YIKES!!! You have had the bad luck...if you want to call being stuck in Hawaii bad. :rolleyes: :D

 

Direct with no stops, or direct with a stopover to pick passengers up? That's a LONG flight!

 

blondie1234's suggestions sound similar to what we plan on doing. ;)

[Adventure Addict]

Yep. From LAX to Rome should be 12 hours. Woopie! We'll have saddle sores by the time we get there. Truth is I've traveled to Europe 4 times in the past 12 months and have grown accustomed to the travel. I have not, however, done it in one straight shot.

 

I'm starting to think of creative ways to get myself into 1st class. Maybe I could feign labor pains. Naw, that will never work. Maybe a kidney stone? Or, perhaps I should dress like someone famous and have my mother claim to be my agent once we get on board. With a wig, hat and sun glasses I could be any white 5'4" woman (who weights roughly 180 lbs., Ha!) Ideas?

[Sea Island Lady]

:confused: Only 12 hours? Our flight from Atlanta is almost 10. :confused:

 

I've thought about trying to get my parents into First Class. The last I looked, there were about 4 seats left. Are there any left on your flight?

 

The last time were in first class, my (then teenage) daughter ended up sitting next to Naomi Judd. She was in heaven!

[Adventure Addict]

Naomi Judd -- awesome! She's so beautiful and talented.

 

I upgraded to 1st class on my recent Aloha Air flight to Hawaii. They offered an upgrade at the gate for just $300. I WANT MY MONEY BACK! :mad:

 

I'm going to research available seats. I don't know if I'll have much luck on the Alitalia site. And frankly, I wouldn't pay for an upgrade given the risk. I waiting to hear if I can change airlines and if my insurance covers bankruptcies.

[Sea Island Lady]

Naomi Judd -- awesome! She's so beautiful and talented.

 

And gracious! Talked to my daughter and gave her an autographed photo.

 

I'm glad you have insurance! Even if your air is not covered, you will be able to re-coup your cruise cost.

 

Did you see the thread on Alitalia that talks about the code that your tickets are issued by? One code means that Delta is responsible for your flight, so if Alitalia folds, Delta should refund your money. The other code means that Alitalia is the holder and you may be out of luck with a refund.

 

Check your credit card policy (assuming you paid with a credit card) and see if they will refund airfare if the airline goes debunk.