08/08/07 Well, Olbia Monkey's Uncle! We're cruisin' on the 10nt Med Cruise!

[Disney Ak Cup]

Arica480,
Sorry to hear about the Med cruise, fight fight fight! Anyway my husband and I are booked to do the west bound Panama Canal cruise. Which one are you going to do?

 

[corinnak]

Arica,
Sorry to hear you may not be joining us. I hope you win that one!

We are just starting to get our head in the game on this trip (too many others have been intervening for us to really focus on this one until now- I know, so sad!) However, DH is finally getting things lined up and we are getting excited.

He has booked us an apartment in Barcelona for 3 nights before the cruise, so that hopefully we all will have shaken off the worst of the jet-lag by the time the cruise starts AND we can explore Barcelona a bit. We are also planning on staying one night in Barcelona before flying home, but just at a regular hotel.

We have airfaire for all four of us plus my FIL. DH doesn't seem to be wishlisting excursions yet, though I am sure that is coming up.

I am still concerned about the heat on this trip, but I guess it will be what it will be. We had a somewhat miserable trip to Disney World in October where it was in the mid 90's and humid and we were just kind of miserable....

We are going to get passports this Tuesday - it has been in the plans for months, but we seem to always have some conflict that nudges it another week. Cross your fingers that this is the week it really happens!

 

[bellelinus]

Arica480,
Sorry to hear about the Med cruise, fight fight fight! Anyway my husband and I are booked to do the west bound Panama Canal cruise. Which one are you going to do?

We're booked on the eastbound Panama canal cruise . . . but we are still doing the Med this August, too! We already had passports, have booked our flights and hotels, etc., and most of the excursions (on our own) are planned.

 

[scrapycruiser]

We booked the eastbound Panama cruise Aug 08 ,also ! I've put that on the back burner and started thinking again our Med cruise. We will be in Barcelona 3 days before the cruise. Have made plans for most ports except Palermo, Olbia and Villefrance. May go to the beach in Olbia and maybe Palermo. Does anyone know anything about the beaches there ? Are any of you on the Cruise Critic boards ?

 

[bellelinus]

We booked the eastbound Panama cruise Aug 08 ,also ! I've put that on the back burner and started thinking again our Med cruise. We will be in Barcelona 3 days before the cruise. Have made plans for most ports except Palermo, Olbia and Villefrance. May go to the beach in Olbia and maybe Palermo. Does anyone know anything about the beaches there ? Are any of you on the Cruise Critic boards ?

I'm on the cruise critic boards, and have seen you posting about the dreaded La Spezia versus Livorno issue! As I posted over there, we plan to take a taxi to a beach on the Costa Smerelda in Olbia, walk around the city in Palermo (and maybe splurge on a horsedrawn carriage ride through the city if I can negotiate the price to 40 euros or so for an hour!), and in Villefranche we will go to Monaco and Eze village via either bus or train. We will get into Barcelona the morning of August 6 after an overnight flight, so we will have a few days to enjoy the city and adjust to the time change, too. After the cruise we are going to Paris.

 

[4fosterkids]

I have not been on the boards in a while, you probably lost me in the first 10 8-10 pages!
We decided to cancel this Med cruise and we booked the Eastbound Panama canal cruise in 2008! We are excited. The Med cruise was just getting too overwhelming and too expensive for our family of 6, in addition to the other families booked with us.
I wish you all very safe travels and I hope it is a truly Magical Mediteranean trip for you all!!
Hope to see some of you in 2008 on the PC cruise!

 

[bellelinus]

We'll be on the eastbound Panama Canal cruise too -- so we'll see you there! Sorry you won't make the Med this summer . . . I think it's going to be terrific, but I do know that it is an expensive trip with airfare and excursions.

 

[UMTerp]

We were on the 2005 EB Panama Canal repo and loved it! I think you all will have a great time!

Haven't done much planning for this cruise yet. It's still kind of overwhelming to me!

Just wanted to pop-in and say hello!

UMTerp

 

[corinnak]

So......who's still going on this trip? Anyone thinking of excursions yet? I have been looking at the lists on the disney website and find it a bit overwhelming - it's nice there are so many options, I suppose. I wonder how quickly they will book up, and if I will be at a terrible disadvantage not being a Castaway Club member.

Having a 4 year old in the mix makes me lean a little more towards the shorter day trips in most cases (probably not Rome, though) and maybe staying on the ship (horrors) for one or more of the ports that require a longish bus ride to get anywhere interesting.

We are starting to get excited, though, now that we have airfare and an apartment booked!

I am even starting to vaguely think of packing. I still wonder what the surprise theme night instead of Pirates will be.

 

[bellelinus]

I will probably not do a single Disney excursion . . . I have planned out what we will do on our own (using trains, just walking, taxis, etc.) in tentative form for every port. I actually feel as though I'm pretty well planned for this already, although with these ports one can never be completely prepared! This is going to be an amazing cruise . . .

 

[UMTerp]

bellelinus - I saw on the other thread that you are staying at the same apartments in Barcelona pre-cruise that we are! We will be staying only one night. How long will you be there?

UMTerp

 

[bellelinus]

bellelinus - I saw on the other thread that you are staying at the same apartments in Barcelona pre-cruise that we are! We will be staying only one night. How long will you be there?

UMTerp

We have an overnight flight on Aug 5, getting in the morning of Aug 6, so we are there the nights of Aug 6 and 7th, heading to the Magic on the 8th! I think the Hispanos 7 Suiza will be nice despite its distance from the port . . . we want to see La Sagrada Familia and I believe we will walk from the hotel to La Placa Catalunya and on down Las Ramblas on the 7th, perhaps all the way to Barceloneta. We are big walkers, and walk all over Manhattan, so I think it will be a fun way to experience Barcelona.

I'm sure we will see you there!

 

[pclare]

Just a quick bump to check in and say hello as I tend to be a lurker It seems as if you are all far more organized than us who have no airfare and no idea when we are leaving or where we are going!! Ahhh, the joys of disorganization. How many are planning DLP before? We are also on the EB repo so there is no opportunity for after.

Thanks for all your sharing keep it up...it inspires me to get thinking!


Also, do we have a list of cruisers and ages, if so I would love to add us on.

Thanks

Pauline, DH, MIL, DD 16, DS 13 and DD 8.

 

[bellelinus]

Just a quick bump to check in and say hello as I tend to be a lurker It seems as if you are all far more organized than us who have no airfare and no idea when we are leaving or where we are going!! Ahhh, the joys of disorganization. How many are planning DLP before? We are also on the EB repo so there is no opportunity for after.

Thanks for all your sharing keep it up...it inspires me to get thinking!


Also, do we have a list of cruisers and ages, if so I would love to add us on.

Thanks

Pauline, DH, MIL, DD 16, DS 13 and DD 8.

Welcome Pauline and family! I don't know if anyone plans to go to DLP before the cruise, but if they do I'm sure they will speak up. You are lucky to be stayng on the ship after we get off . . .

Maybe we should start a formal list of cruisers and ages, of everyone who is definitely going?

 

[UMTerp]

Hi pclare - my DS 13 and DD 9 will also be on this trip!

We are not going to DLP on this trip. Lots of folks from our Panama Canal repo will be on the repo home too. They are a good group!

Have a great long weekend everyone!

UMTerp

 

[pclare]

Hi pclare - my DS 13 and DD 9 will also be on this trip!

We are not going to DLP on this trip. Lots of folks from our Panama Canal repo will be on the repo home too. They are a good group!

Have a great long weekend everyone!

UMTerp

We were also on the repo and loved it. My DD 16 is still in touch with people she met! All we can hope for is amazing weather and lots of fun both at sea and on land. Do we have any idea of formal/semi formal and theme nights yet?

Pauline

 

[bellelinus]

We were also on the repo and loved it. My DD 16 is still in touch with people she met! All we can hope for is amazing weather and lots of fun both at sea and on land. Do we have any idea of formal/semi formal and theme nights yet?

Pauline

I think I read on another thread that our formal nights will be the 2nd (day at sea) and 9th (Villefranche) . . . no word on theme nights other than that we will not have pirate night. Luckily we will be able to learn a lot from people who go earlier in the summer. I believe they were told that the packets would be sent out soon for those sailing in May.

 

[UMTerp]

Anyone have any information on Olbia? So far I haven't been able to find out much except that it is an old industrial port with not much within walking distance. Not much on Trip Advisor or other sites.

TIA!

UMTerp

 

[bellelinus]

Anyone have any information on Olbia? So far I haven't been able to find out much except that it is an old industrial port with not much within walking distance. Not much on Trip Advisor or other sites.

TIA!

UMTerp

I got this neat book at Barnes and Noble, called Authentic Sardinia, by the Travelling Club of Italy. It seems to me that Olbia will be a terrific beach day (and this will not be a tremendously beach-centered trip, so that's good). The beaches both to the north (Costa Smerelda) and south of Olbia are some of the most beautiful in the world. Rather than taking a Disney excursion, I am hoping to find a taxi at the port and get someone to take us to a beach. Earlier cruisers will be able to tell us if in fact that was possible. If we are really the only cruise ship heading to Olbia this summer, money making opportunities would suggest that there will be plenty of people waiting to drive us to the beach!

 

[jrabbit]

We would like a beach day in Olbia too-preferably a snorkeling trip. I have also read that the small islands north of Palermo Sicily have some fantastic snorkeling / scuba areas.

I have not had any luck finding an outfit that would be able to snorkeling at either location