*~ Cruising (travel by Waterways) megathread ~*

mloc123 wrote: »

You travel just for free WiFi? :pac:

What other reason is there to travel? ;-)

Also, the unlimited baggage, not having to go through airport-level security etc.

watch the Irish ferries mobile roaming costs a fortune. didn't even use it and it managed to charge me. I was connected to it but hadn't realised

For me

I'd Tip: Taxi, Luggage person, excursion people, waiters.

Reception worker - only if they gave an upgrade or extra's
Car rental guy - I wouldn't (unless they like drove the car up for you? )

To be honest, you will see signs or they will just say "don't forget to tip" on excursions they had a jar and asked, we gave a tip as it was very welcoming and informative.

fitzparker wrote: »

For me

I'd Tip: Taxi, Luggage person, excursion people, waiters.

Reception worker - only if they gave an upgrade or extra's
Car rental guy - I wouldn't (unless they like drove the car up for you? )

To be honest, you will see signs or they will just say "don't forget to tip" on excursions they had a jar and asked, we gave a tip as it was very welcoming and informative.

Thoie wrote: »

How does it work? Very irritatingly.

I'm still learning the culture. I'm sure I forget people. The ones I've learned so far:

If you ask a porter at the airport to collect your bags and bring them to the shuttle/taxi, they get tipped $1-$2 per bag. (I manage my own luggage).

Taxi driver gets a tip. I do the Irish thing of rounding up, which is possibly highly insulting.

At the hotel, you're supposed to leave a few dollars for the person who cleans your room. There'll often be an envelope on the desk for this express purpose.

In a restaurant, the waiter expects you to add at least 15% on your bill as a tip. And it seems that 15% is starting to become "bare minimum". 18-20% seems to be becoming the norm. I asked how come when I started going to the US first, 10% was the norm, and why has that doubled. They told me "inflation". Could not persuade them that percentages don't work that way.

At the pier, if a longshoreman helps you with your bags, about $1 per bag.

Shuttle bus driver gets a few dollars.

On board, most cruise lines apply a daily "service charge" to your onboard account, and there's usually 15% added to every drink you order if you're paying for drinks as you go. If you've got a drinks package, some people tip the barman extra as well. Not quite sure when or how. Many people also leave an additional cash tip for their cabin steward and waiters and head waiter as well.

On excursions, you tip the driver and the tour guide a few dollars at the end of the trip.


As you may gather, I fecking hate "obligatory" tipping. I'm happy to tip at home when I want to, but in the US it seems like every time someone scratches their arse in your general vicinity you're expected to hand them a dollar. On that note, get as many "ones" as you can for tipping. I save my ones from trip to trip, but if you know someone coming home from the US before you go, ask them to bring you back $20 worth so you're not scrabbling for change as soon as you arrive.

Thanks guys great help

Considering going on a cruise with royal Caribbean next year. Can anyone recommend a travel agent to book with? I have previously booked directly online but I hear it’s a good idea to use a TA.
Thanks in advance

Direct with the cruise ship company , can sometimes yield good results

grind gremlin wrote: »

Considering going on a cruise with royal Caribbean next year. Can anyone recommend a travel agent to book with? I have previously booked directly online but I hear it’s a good idea to use a TA.
Thanks in advance

Mike3549 wrote: »

Check american agents.
Cruise.com, cruisedirect, american discount cruises and travel.
We booked through adct but looks like they have a $50 or $100 cancellation fee.
Seescanner, i think they are german company.
Also check direct through cruise company. I think last year royal caribbeans had flights for €1 euro. Good luck

Yes, i used cruisedirect last year and save 1000 Euro per couple(there were 8 of us going). I used cruise paradise this year, an Irish travel agent, kept an eye on facebook and a good deal came up with them.

Dannyo wrote: »

Well after much research and a very frustrating (to put it mildly) time dealing with a local travel agent, I went ahead myself and booked the 10 day Greek Islands Cruise on the NCL Getaway for June 2020, conveniently in the middle of Euro 2020

FYI, if you are a returning NCL customer, they are currently offering a 20% discount off your cruise. I found this out via my NCL login on their site. My local Travel Agents were not aware of this.

Just had a look at NCL getaway on youtube, looks amazing and will add that to the list. Do you know what kind of age groups go on the likes of this sailing?

I’m considering doing royal Caribbean anthem of the seas northern cruise 29th May 2020. Has anyone ever done this & would you recommend it. First time cruising & one in our group is full time wheelchair user.

Thoie wrote: »

Wheelchair accessible cabins sell out fast, so if you need one of those, I'd get a deposit down asap. There's only about 30 fully accessible cabins on the ship. They have wider doors, roll in showers, etc.

If they're partially mobile (e.g. can walk a couple of steps) it's probably less important, but if they're 100% wheelchair bound, a lot of the cabins are very tight for cornering etc. In general the ships are very accessible for wheelchairs/limited mobility, including, iirc, a hoist for at least one of the jacuzzis. Staff are always very willing to assist as well.

Booked the cruise today, just paid a deposit of €165 per person so looking forward to it now. Have some serious saving to do. Managed to get the wheelchair cabin & it has a balcony as well, it’s on deck 7 & next to the lifts they said. Wouldn’t have managed without the accessible cabin as son can’t walk but has strong upper body strength . Looking forward to it now.

I did it in march for honeymoon (Different port's except Nassau where we just went to the local beach)

Yes you can get public transport as soon as you walk out, but if not savvy make sure its a yellow cab, stupidly we got into a random car and was charged $35 for a 8 minute drive to an airport hotel.

If they are staying over in Miami book the everglades, it was one of the best things we did.

deisemum wrote: »

My son and his girlfriend are going on a Caribbean cruise one the MSC Seaside this weekend going from Miami. Has anyone got recommendations of excursions at the following ports please?

San Juan in Puerto Rico,
Charlotte Amalie in the Virgin Islands,
Philipsburg in St. Martins,
Nassau in the Bahamas and back to Miami.

Can they get public transport from the airport to the port?

Charlotte Amalie is St Thomas, lots of shopping near ship, cable car to top of hill view of virgin islnds, short taxi to beach. No need for tour.

San Juan, beautiful old town to wander, old fort near port.

Nassau taxi to paradise island beach. possible to go to atlantis but have to pay.

St Martean taxi or walk to beach not too far. Lots duty free shopping too.

No need for tours in any of the ports.

I've done this a fair few times including this year. I normally go Carrick Craft and continue to use same as I find their boats, staff and prices really good. From my own experience I prefer taking the boat from Bellanaleck, Enniskillen and heading north into
Lough Erne. Plenty to see and do from Round Towers, historic homes and castles, WW 2 sea plane base, and not to mention mooring alongside some lovely hotels and golf courses where you can normally avail of the facilities for a small fee.

Heading south from Enniskillen brings you through Carysbridge, Ballyconnell and Belturbet. Nice wandering passage with a few locks which are not manned by Waterway Ireland staff but are operated by way of a smart card. Again nice pubs and islands along the way where ye can either pull in for a meal or just sit alongside and cook yourself.

Pick a boat up in Carrick on Shannon ye can head north to Ballyconnell/Belturbet. Lots of locks to manouvere through although these are manned by WI staff however, from my experience far too much work and as the season gets busier the queues at the locks also increase.

Picking a boat up in Banagher, Offaly, ye can head south to Portumna in Galway and from there onto Lough Derg, and zig zag from Co. Tipp to Co. Clare and all the way south to Killaloe. The most southerly point you can cruise to with a hire boat. Heading north from Banagher you can go to Shannonbridge, Clonmacnoise, Athlone, Hodson Bay and back up to Carrick if time allows.

Some practical advice here, from March to early May and from Sept. there are very reasonable deals available, and sometimes offers such as 7 nights for the price of 5 or 10/8 etc. Similar to a hire car, the boat is provided with a full tank of fuel and you refill what's used on return. Depending on class of boat and company, insurances are required either by swiping a credit card or paying a CDW. If ye sign up their sites on fb or email etc you might also get really cheap offers if you are readily available to actually move the boats from one base to another at the start and finish of the season.

If you require any further info just ask.
Enjoy.

Looking at heading on our first cruise in July of next year and ideally thinking of the med starting point Venice.

Anyone any recent good or bad experiences or thatcould recommend the best ship or cruise line ?

So much to choose from.

Late 20's not looking for anything too crazy but definitely not surrounded by 87 year old ballroom dancers.

Looking at just something I suppose as to the traditional holiday we've been going on past few years and said a cruise would be a good alternative as we always tend to go all inclusive. Be nice to see a few different places whilst having the comfort of the ship.

Joekers wrote: »

Late 20's not looking for anything too crazy but definitely not surrounded by 87 year old ballroom dancers.

Looking at just something I suppose as to the traditional holiday we've been going on past few years and said a cruise would be a good alternative as we always tend to go all inclusive. Be nice to see a few different places whilst having the comfort of the ship.

Any of the mainstream lines would probably suit you - Royal Caribbean, MSC (who have much better prices for drink packages if you like a drink), NCL, Carnival.

Prices of drink packages vary from line to line, but can be quite expensive. If you're big drinkers they may be worth it, but if you just want the odd glass of wine, they're not.

Don't forget that there's a per person daily service charge - usually around $14 - that's an extra $200 per week for a couple. You can pay it in advance, or it will be added to your bill at the end of the cruise.

Pullmantur are relatively cheap, but I've heard from friends that the ships are showing their age. P&O are very "Rule Brittania". Regent Seven Seas, HAL and Seabourn seem to be more expensive/older crowds.

Thoie wrote: »

P&O are very "Rule Brittania".

+1 they don't get much mention here, probably because their ships are smaller than the main cruise lines but the advice above also applies to Fred Olsen. Even a travel writer for the Daily Telegraph felt that the ambience was 'too British' for her!

Hi guys,

Looking to book a cruise to the Mediterranean in April for the parents.

Can anybody tell me what ports are relatively easy to reach from either Shannon, Dublin or Cork airports?

From my research so far Barcelona look fairly easy to get too.

Thanks

enfant terrible wrote: »

Hi guys,

Looking to book a cruise to the Mediterranean in April for the parents.

Can anybody tell me what ports are relatively easy to reach from either Shannon, Dublin or Cork airports?

From my research so far Barcelona look fairly easy to get too.

Thanks

Venice might be ok too. Some great cruises from there.

enfant terrible wrote: »

Hi guys,

Looking to book a cruise to the Mediterranean in April for the parents.

Can anybody tell me what ports are relatively easy to reach from either Shannon, Dublin or Cork airports?

From my research so far Barcelona look fairly easy to get too.

Thanks

Exiled1 wrote: »

Venice might be ok too. Some great cruises from there.

I would recommend Barcelona myself, only half an hour from airport to cruise port in a taxi. Costs 40 Euro. You are in the city itself there too so you can easily get in to have a look around. Haven't been to Venice, but flights do tend to be expensive to there, but like Exiled said, there are some great cruises from there.

coylemj wrote: »

Is that not putting the cart before the horse? You need to select a cruise first, that should be the primary factor in determining which city to fly to.

This 100%. When we booked our first cruise we had to choose between better itinerary (from venice) or better ship (from barcelona).
Went with cruise from barcelona also the fact that ryanair or aerlingus flies there 3 times a day compared once every 2 days to venice made it easier to choose.

kilkern5 wrote: »

My husband is not able to walk any great distance and the tours that you book with the ship seem to involve walking. Also my fear is that if we try to book them independently than too much walking may be involved also. Can anyone enlighten me if it’s possible to avoid too much walking.

It depends on the specific tour. The coaches that take you on tours are dedicated to that excursion so in a lot of cases, it will be possible to stay on the bus when it stops to let people off for free time or for an organised walking tour.

But, in bigger cities it's often not possible for the bus to park at the spot where it drops you off so the driver will take it away and come back at the designated pickup time. And the driver may prefer that all passengers disembark. There's no simple answer to your question, you will need to ask on the ship if it will be possible to stay on the bus in respect of each excursion.

For each city, you need to see if there are other options like if the port is a stop for some of the 'hop on, hop off' coaches that do a continuous loop of the city. Or if some of the local taxi companies offer something like a one hour tour of the city.

kilkern5 wrote: »

Thanks for your reply. I suppose ideally it’s easier if we could see each destination in our own way in our own time. The excursions seem to be all or nothing. It would suit us to get the bus into the city and then be left to our own devices but when you pay for a tour it seems crazy to avail of it.

But you said your husband can’t walk any distance - how are you going to square that with your desire to ‘see each destination in our own way in our own time’?

Mollyb60 wrote: »

In some ports there may be a shuttle bus from the port to the town/city centre and back that you could avail of. You'd have to ask the cruise company though.

They will only tell you about the official shuttle to the town which will be a complete rip-off. Experience tells me that you should never ask the cruise company because they only want to sell you official shuttles and excursions. The last thing they want is passengers going independent. If you ask if there is a local bus service, they will pretend not to know, even though the member of staff you're talking to will know if there is. Because that is how she and her mates will be going downtown.

Was on a cruise in the Mediterrean, the cruise company told us the night before that the nearest town to where we were going to dock the next morning was 19 kms away and they wanted €15 for the shuttle round trip. The evening before we docked, they were announcing that tickets for the shuttle were selling out, the implication being that if you didn't buy one there and then, you could be left behind on the boat. We ignored the pressure selling and the next day, we walked 500m to a port information office where they pointed out the bus stop outside from where we got a local bus the 3 kms to the town for €1.50.

Something similar hapened in Dubrovnoik, they wanted €20 for a bus to the old town. When we arrived, there was a line of taxis waiting at the cruise terminal so four of us piled into a taxi (brand new Skoda Octavia) and he brought to us to the old town for €20 all in. We hopped on the official bus for the return trip, nobody asked to see a ticket! Even for two people, a taxi each way was the same price as the official shuttle bus.