Barcelona DCL add on... anyone do it? Reviews?

[Tink rules]

I'm looking into the 3 day addon in Barcelona before the DCL cruise...

Has anyone done it and what did you think?

I'd be traveling alone and I thought it would be good to see Barcelona with a tour.

 

[sayhello]

The Barcelona ABD was not offered when I did the Med in 2010. I did, however, do the ABD that went with the Med cruise, and absolutely loved it. I was also traveling solo, and found it really great to do all my excursions with the same group of 38 people, knowing that the excursions were going to be great, and led by the fantastic Adventure Guides.

From what I've heard, the Barcelona add-on is very nice. They stay in a beautiful historic hotel, and do several of the "top" things to do in Barcelona. Barcelona is a gorgeous city, and I really, really wish I had allocated more than 2 half-days to see it! If I went back, I would definitely do the Barcelona add-on.

ABD is a really great way to travel solo.

Have you checked on the DCL board to see if anyone there has done this add-on?

Sayhello

 

[Tink rules]

Ohhh I'm definitely interested in ABD... I like what they have for the three day in Barcelona... & since I've never been overseas before.

I'm not sure if I'd do it on the ship though... there are some other excursions I'd want to do that aren't part of the tour, but I'm looking into it.

Thanks for the suggestion for the cruise board!

 

[carpenta]

Ohhh I'm definitely interested in ABD... I like what they have for the three day in Barcelona... & since I've never been overseas before.

I'm not sure if I'd do it on the ship though... there are some other excursions I'd want to do that aren't part of the tour, but I'm looking into it.

Thanks for the suggestion for the cruise board!

You are making a wonderful choice of a city for your first trip overseas, We have traveled to Barcelona four times (not with ABD) and return in an instant. The people are wonderful as the food. Rick Steves has books on Spain which will give you a good background on the history. ABD do stay in first rate hotels so you will be getting the best treatment when/if you travel.

 

[Tink rules]

Having DCL there is what's bringing me there... But I hear it is beautiful and I would love to see it!

 

[tracyz]

We did this add-on in 2011. It was FANTASTIC. The price made us pause for a moment before jumping, but in hindsight we have no regrets and it was so nice to have someone to help us navigate the city, particularly since we didn't speak the language and didn't know our way around. The hotel was beautiful. I think they've since changed it, but I trust that Disney found a great place. Front of the line at La Sagrada Famiglia...almost worth the price right there! The visit to the monastery was a great thing to have in the mix, getting out of the city and seeing something unique. It was just a really nice mix of stuff. Another perk was that we got to know some people before we got on the ship. It was fun to share that with other families. We did the cruise add-on as well, but even the families who did not were seated with us at dinner. I hope they still do that...it was a nice way to continue building what have turned out to be some ongoing friendships for us.
If you have any specific questions, please feel free to PM me!

 

[abdgeek]

You will love Barcelona!! I've never done the Barcelona ABD(it wasn't offered before the two Med DCL cruises I did in 2011 & 2013. However, I did Barcelona on my own pre and post cruise and had a great time. I took Spanish in high school, so its been many a year and I am by no means fluent. I was fine. In 2011 I did the Med Cruise ABD add on and I was glad I did! You see and learn so much.

In 2011, one of our ports was cancelled due to a transportation strike so we spent an extra day in Barcelona. I did the DCL excursion to Parc Guell & La Sagrada Familia. Although I got to see them, I knew that I would have had a more complete experience with ABD. I also did Montserrat as a DCL debarkation excursion because I didn't want to waste time figuring out how to get there using the metro(it's an hour from Barcelona).

As you know, there is a lot to see in Barcelona. I've spent a total of five days there between my two cruises and I still haven't seen everything that's on my list. The Barcelona ABD will at least allow you to see the main highlights.

 

[d3boyz]

I'm looking into the 3 day addon in Barcelona before the DCL cruise...

Has anyone done it and what did you think?

I'd be traveling alone and I thought it would be good to see Barcelona with a tour.

We had only a brief time in Barcelona prior to our Med Cruise in 2007, and there was no ABD at that time. In between the Med and Transatlantic cruises, again there was little time, but we had found a Segway tour of old Gothic Barcelona. It was fabulous! We booked everything before leaving home, and there was absolutely no troubles upon arrival. Our boys were younger, 10, 12, and 15, and they thought that was a great adventure. They never did realize it was also a history and geography lesson!

To do again, I would have to be sure to schedule more time for proper tours!

Deb

 

[bliscum]

I did the Barcelona pre cruise ABD in 2011. It was awesome, nice way to see the city and learn history and architecture of the city. I also did it on the boat and the guides are the same. Plus you get to meet more people as most do both adventures.

 

[DisDiana]

I'm starting to think about planning our first trip overseas and would love to explore a Mediterranean cruise on DCL (and am obsessed with trying ABD for the first time). What price point do these add-ons start around?

 

[Poppins2000]

I'm looking into the 3 day addon in Barcelona before the DCL cruise...

Has anyone done it and what did you think?

I'd be traveling alone and I thought it would be good to see Barcelona with a tour.

We did it this summer, in July before the July 25th cruise. It was DH and I and as neither of us had been to Spain before, we thought it would be a great way to see Barcelona. We were with a great group of people (23 people) and two awesome guides, Robyn and Clem. Our only issue was the hotel - very disappointing. While it was in a decent location (we were about a mile from the Gothic Quarter and Las Ramblas), we couldn't check in until 2pm (we got to the hotel at 8am after traveling for 15 hours and with minimal sleep). As well, some families got large rooms or suites with balconies while some (like us) got shoeboxes with a window for a room. The hotel was also booked solid and we couldn't change our room. Seriously, while it did have a King bed and two nightstands, there was no other furniture in the room! The TV was mounted on the wall. We each had a suitcase and carry on and we had to store two of the cases at the foot of the bed (which blocked access to the other side of the bed!), one in the bath and one in closet. As well, our A/C barely worked. It would be ice cold in the hotel hallways but we could never get our room a/c to go below 80. As it was very hot in Barcelona (90's to low 100s) a cool room would have been nice. I will say that the breakfast buffet was very good and they did have a rooftop pool and bar with lovely views but this was our second ABD. We were use to luxurious 4-5 stars hotels and castles like with our ABD to Ireland. The Silken was barely pushing a 3.

With that said, that was our only complaint. The tour was wonderful and I would highly recommend doing this pre-cruise ABD. Keep in mind when you go though. It was ridiculously hot our entire trip, not only in Barcelona but during our entire cruise as well. Temps were in the 100's by noon and it was very humid. While we drank tons of water, the back to back day long excursions in Barcelona and then France, Florence, Rome and Naples BEFORE a sea day, wiped us out. By mid to late afternoon, the portions of our tours or excursions were hard to enjoy...you just need to plan better than we did, hahaha!