dolphingirl47
In Search of the Tag Fairy
- Joined
- Dec 25, 2007
Your plans sound great. The excursion in Cartagena, is this The Best of Cartagena? We enjoyed that tour last year. Have you decided on a hotel in Miami yet?
Corinna
Corinna
Fred and Wilma 'Wonder' Through the Panama Canal - With a Couple of Stowaways Updated 3/2
- Thread starter wilma-bride
- Start date
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
Looking forward to this Joh. No doubt a few drinks will be involved
There will undobutedly be many drinks Lesley - we have the Kentucky Derby, May the Fourth, Cinco de Mayo, Mother's Day and many other reasons to celebrate
Boring?????? As Tee would say "that was as exciting as a herd of giraffes"!!!! I loved it, all the excitement of the trip came flooding back.
Did I miss it? I can't see Typhoon Lagoon in there?
Aw thanks, I often think people don't tend to read if there aren't loads of photos - I will do my best to find some pictures to make the next segment more interesting.
Great plans Joh, I can't wait for this trip report as I've always fancied a Panama Canal cruise
Welcome aboard Mandy, we are currently planning another PC for 2017 (on the basis that we enjoy this one) if you fancy joining us. Looks like there may be a few UK DISers onboard, hey Corinna and Claire?
yes yes yes to the horse riding
Have you done this Elaine? Or are you just keen on horse riding. What is putting me off currently is that the reviews I read say it is a bit boring as you don't go very fast, like donkeys plodding along the beach. Not sure I fancy that.
Hi Corinna, the excursion is actually called 'City Drive, Shoping and La Popa Monastery' - it was about the only one which appealed to us. Yes, we decided on our Miami hotel we are at the Hampton Inn & Suites. More on that coming up in the next update.
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dolphingirl47
In Search of the Tag Fairy
- Joined
- Dec 25, 2007
As far as 2017 is concerned, absolutely.
They did not offer that excursion last year. I had a look at the description and they are virtually identical apart from that the tour you booked only includes an exterior visit of La Popa. That is such a shame as the courtyard inside the monastery is so stunning. The tour we did adds a visit to a really stunning church and one of the shopping stops is shorter, but I had amble time to get what I wanted.
Corinna
They did not offer that excursion last year. I had a look at the description and they are virtually identical apart from that the tour you booked only includes an exterior visit of La Popa. That is such a shame as the courtyard inside the monastery is so stunning. The tour we did adds a visit to a really stunning church and one of the shopping stops is shorter, but I had amble time to get what I wanted.
Corinna
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
We did consider the tour you took but we weren't actually too bothered about going inside the monastery (heathens, I know) - we really just wanted to see a bit of Cartagena and take in the view from outside the monastery.
Hopefully we will have a nice little group of UK DISers in 2017 then
dolphingirl47
In Search of the Tag Fairy
- Joined
- Dec 25, 2007
The stunning views are all from inside the monastery, too. The only view you get from outside La Popa is of the hill you came up on and the slum underneath.
Corinna
Corinna
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
Oh, I didn't realise that - bummer!
RobynPrincess
Looking around
- Joined
- Nov 14, 2010
We will be in DL the same time as you
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
I am looking forward to visiting a few new ports on this trip
Me too - keep working on Mike for that 2017 PC cruise
We will be in DL the same time as you
Really? Have you been before? I am excited to see Carsland, in particular.
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
I have been instructed by Tony that I need to work on an update this weekend so I should hopefully be able to post som emore news about our plans by Sunday.
RobynPrincess
Looking around
- Joined
- Nov 14, 2010
No we haven't ever been before, very excited!
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
hope you have a great time
Welcome and thanks for reading, are you going to be writing a trip report yourself? I love to read about other people's trips.
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
I've thought about attempting a trip report--never done it before. There are so many I enjoy reading--don't know if mine would be nearly as interesting...
I would definitely read it if you decide to write one
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
Miami Madness
We are down to less than 2 months
So, as I mentioned before, the cruise departs from Miami and we are flying in the day before. Our flight is due to land at 17.05 local time and we have a Port Arrival Time, as I mentioned before, of 12-12.30.
So, with such a short time – just 18 hours – in Miami, you would think that we might take a slightly relaxed approach, maybe a quick dinner on arrival night, a late breakfast the next morning before dropping the rental car back to Miami Airport and catching the shuttle to the port.
Uh-uh! Not the Alcock-Buckland party. No, we are hitting the ground running. Here is the run-down of what we have planned for the 18 hours – 12 if you count the fact that we will be asleep for some of it (although I am not sure Tony has allowed time for sleeping in the busy schedule).
Thursday 30th April – Land approximately 5pm, collect rental car (from Dollar) and drive to the hotel. We did have a group booking at the Doubletree set up by somebody who was originally on the same cruise, however that person is no longer sailing and it all got a bit complicated. We were concerned about the risk of turning up and finding we had nowhere to stay so decided to book elsewhere. We got a great rate at the Hampton Inn & Suites Miami Brickell downtown. It is currently rated No. 1 on TripAdvisor, has a free breakfast and, most importantly, complimentary tea and coffee 24 hours a day (a must for anybody travelling with Gary)!
After checking in, there is just enough time to drop off our bags before heading out for dinner at a local restaurant, Burger and Beer Joint. There are two in Miami, one is a short walk from the hotel and the other is on Miami Beach. Which one we go to will depend on how late it is and how tired we are.
If we go to the Miami Beach location, we will be dropping in to Shake Shack for dessert in the form of the famous Concrete.
Gary and I discovered Shake Shack on our visit to New York last summer and fell in love with the Concrete – frozen vanilla or chocolate custard ice-cream with added mix-ins (think McFlurry on speed!) I am particularly keen to try the Vice Crispy Treat while I think Gary might opt for the Shark Attack.
Then, and only then, we may retire to bed as we have an early start.
Friday 1st May - Back when we began planning what we might like to see and do in Miami, I mentioned that I have always had a hankering to walk down Ocean Drive (blame the Lighthouse Family for that one). We discovered a few options that have good views over the ocean and port area, particularly South Pointe Park where, allegedly, you can view the cruise ships moored up at the port. Being a keen photographer, Tony suggested that it might be nice to head over to South Beach early enough in the morning to catch the sunrise – 6.44am people!
In reality, we know we will be up early so it shouldn’t be too much of a stretch to drag ourselves out of bed and over to Miami Beach to see the sunrise. Gary has opted out so will remain in bed until we come back for breakfast, after which we will load up the car and drive back over to Miami Beach to explore.
On our list of places to see are:
Miami Holocaust Memorial
Britto Central Art Gallery
Ocean Drive
We will also make time to visit Shake Shack for a Concrete fix if we didn’t have time to get here the previous night.
At around 11.30 we will set off for the port, where Theresa and I will be dropped off with the bags while Tony and Gary return the car to Dollar at the airport. They will either catch the shuttle back to port or grab a cab if the wait for the shuttle is too long. To alleviate the risk of repeats of previous years’ issues, the guys will stick together and will have mobile phones (switched on) and cash with them. Plus, of course, they will have their photo IDs to allow them access through security at the port. Hopefully, by the time they arrive, Tee and I will have checked us in and we will be ready to board. What can possibly go wrong????
We are down to less than 2 months
So, as I mentioned before, the cruise departs from Miami and we are flying in the day before. Our flight is due to land at 17.05 local time and we have a Port Arrival Time, as I mentioned before, of 12-12.30.
So, with such a short time – just 18 hours – in Miami, you would think that we might take a slightly relaxed approach, maybe a quick dinner on arrival night, a late breakfast the next morning before dropping the rental car back to Miami Airport and catching the shuttle to the port.
Uh-uh! Not the Alcock-Buckland party. No, we are hitting the ground running. Here is the run-down of what we have planned for the 18 hours – 12 if you count the fact that we will be asleep for some of it (although I am not sure Tony has allowed time for sleeping in the busy schedule).
Thursday 30th April – Land approximately 5pm, collect rental car (from Dollar) and drive to the hotel. We did have a group booking at the Doubletree set up by somebody who was originally on the same cruise, however that person is no longer sailing and it all got a bit complicated. We were concerned about the risk of turning up and finding we had nowhere to stay so decided to book elsewhere. We got a great rate at the Hampton Inn & Suites Miami Brickell downtown. It is currently rated No. 1 on TripAdvisor, has a free breakfast and, most importantly, complimentary tea and coffee 24 hours a day (a must for anybody travelling with Gary)!
After checking in, there is just enough time to drop off our bags before heading out for dinner at a local restaurant, Burger and Beer Joint. There are two in Miami, one is a short walk from the hotel and the other is on Miami Beach. Which one we go to will depend on how late it is and how tired we are.
If we go to the Miami Beach location, we will be dropping in to Shake Shack for dessert in the form of the famous Concrete.
Gary and I discovered Shake Shack on our visit to New York last summer and fell in love with the Concrete – frozen vanilla or chocolate custard ice-cream with added mix-ins (think McFlurry on speed!) I am particularly keen to try the Vice Crispy Treat while I think Gary might opt for the Shark Attack.
Then, and only then, we may retire to bed as we have an early start.
Friday 1st May - Back when we began planning what we might like to see and do in Miami, I mentioned that I have always had a hankering to walk down Ocean Drive (blame the Lighthouse Family for that one). We discovered a few options that have good views over the ocean and port area, particularly South Pointe Park where, allegedly, you can view the cruise ships moored up at the port. Being a keen photographer, Tony suggested that it might be nice to head over to South Beach early enough in the morning to catch the sunrise – 6.44am people!
In reality, we know we will be up early so it shouldn’t be too much of a stretch to drag ourselves out of bed and over to Miami Beach to see the sunrise. Gary has opted out so will remain in bed until we come back for breakfast, after which we will load up the car and drive back over to Miami Beach to explore.
On our list of places to see are:
Miami Holocaust Memorial
Britto Central Art Gallery
Ocean Drive
We will also make time to visit Shake Shack for a Concrete fix if we didn’t have time to get here the previous night.
At around 11.30 we will set off for the port, where Theresa and I will be dropped off with the bags while Tony and Gary return the car to Dollar at the airport. They will either catch the shuttle back to port or grab a cab if the wait for the shuttle is too long. To alleviate the risk of repeats of previous years’ issues, the guys will stick together and will have mobile phones (switched on) and cash with them. Plus, of course, they will have their photo IDs to allow them access through security at the port. Hopefully, by the time they arrive, Tee and I will have checked us in and we will be ready to board. What can possibly go wrong????
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2005
Tony, we have a plan - remember
Linda, looks as though there might be a few UK DISers doing the PC in 2017 - hint, hint.
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