Just booked transatlantic cruise...

[elvispursley]

and have already come up with questions just booking my airfare!! So there wasn't a lot of airfare available flying from the west coast to Barcelona that didn't involve giving up an extremity or 2 (or 4)! So I ended up booking DH and myself on Norwegian Air. As I'm finishing up my reservation, I'm getting a message saying that passengers traveling to the UK need a ESTA (we have a 6-hr(ish) layover in London, and here's the first question...
1) I shouldn't need to apply for the visa waiver/ESTA since we're not actually staying in the UK, correct? I can just ignore this message?

2) for all those who've done Barcelona before, any must-see things to do? Just curious as we will arrive on Tuesday and will have a few days to sight-see before the cruise.

3) any locations that are the best for lodging/hotels? I'm most interested in something safe with good English (given that I already have partial hearing loss, foreign accents give me grief and DH is such an introvert, I'm generally left up to checking us in to hotels, getting directions, etc )

I generally have 12+ months to plan this kind of stuff so for me to spring the day before final payment is "last minute" for me and feeling somewhat stressed (especially since DH has NO idea we're doing this. It's a surprise for a 15th wedding anniversary--haven't had a big "vacation" in 10 years)

TIA!!

 

[Chirple]

and have already come up with questions just booking my airfare!! So there wasn't a lot of airfare available flying from the west coast to Barcelona that didn't involve giving up an extremity or 2 (or 4)! So I ended up booking DH and myself on Norwegian Air. As I'm finishing up my reservation, I'm getting a message saying that passengers traveling to the UK need a ESTA (we have a 6-hr(ish) layover in London, and here's the first question...
1) I shouldn't need to apply for the visa waiver/ESTA since we're not actually staying in the UK, correct? I can just ignore this message?

2) for all those who've done Barcelona before, any must-see things to do? Just curious as we will arrive on Tuesday and will have a few days to sight-see before the cruise.

3) any locations that are the best for lodging/hotels? I'm most interested in something safe with good English (given that I already have partial hearing loss, foreign accents give me grief and DH is such an introvert, I'm generally left up to checking us in to hotels, getting directions, etc )

I generally have 12+ months to plan this kind of stuff so for me to spring the day before final payment is "last minute" for me and feeling somewhat stressed (especially since DH has NO idea we're doing this. It's a surprise for a 15th wedding anniversary--haven't had a big "vacation" in 10 years)

TIA!!

We are doing the WBTA this year and are booked on Norwegian, but we have a nonstop from EWR to BCN. I just checked their website, and it said that visitors to the U.S. needed the visa waiver/ESTA, not traveling from the U.S.

We are taking the red-eye on Tuesday night and landing midday on Wednesday (cruise leaves Saturday). We are going to explore on our own the first half day and adjust to the time difference. Our second day we have a full-day tour of Barcelona/Montserrat with Barcelona Day Tours booked. Our third day we will again explore on our own. We are staying at Hotel Jazz.

If you check the cruise meet thread for this year (September 16), @RedSox68 has compiled a great list of places to stay and things to do for our group.

 

[BadPinkTink]

Electronic System for Travel Authorisation is the tourist visa issued by USA Department of Homeland Security and the United States Customs and Border Protection to citizens from countries who participate in Visa Waiver Program who wish to visit USA for 90 days or less. I am from Ireland and I need an ESTA to enter USA. You as an American citizen do not need an ESTA.

 

[elvispursley]

Thanks for clarifying

 

[elvispursley]

We are doing the WBTA this year and are booked on Norwegian, but we have a nonstop from EWR to BCN. I just checked their website, and it said that visitors to the U.S. needed the visa waiver/ESTA, not traveling from the U.S.

We are taking the red-eye on Tuesday night and landing midday on Wednesday (cruise leaves Saturday). We are going to explore on our own the first half day and adjust to the time difference. Our second day we have a full-day tour of Barcelona/Montserrat with Barcelona Day Tours booked. Our third day we will again explore on our own. We are staying at Hotel Jazz.

If you check the cruise meet thread for this year (September 16), @RedSox68 has compiled a great list of places to stay and things to do for our group.

Great! Montserrat was definitely on my list. Will check out the meet thread as well--thanks for the tips

 

[jrabbit]

Barcelona:
Look into the Old Town Walking Tour - through the Tourist Information folks in Placa Catalunya (top of Las Rambles).
La Sagrada Familia
Parc Guel
Tourist Hop on Hop off Bus
Picasso Museum

 

[ludari]

I've done WBTA twice and I loved it. I also spent a week in Barcelona both times prior to the cruise to enjoy the sites. Without a doubt my absolute favorite place is Sagrada Familia (public transportation will drop you off right across the street). I also enjoyed visiting the various locations such as Park Guell (public transportation will get you close to the park but it's worth it), Casa Amatller, Casa Batllo, Casa Lleo-Morera and Casa Mila (three of these casa's are on the same city block). You can obviously take tours of these buildings (which I've done) but nothing is stopping you from enjoying them from the street. I also enjoyed visiting Montjuic during my first visit to Barcelona but I skipped it on my second visit. Montserrat is amazing and this tour will take a full day but definitely worth it. I took the train which was convenient and the cable car up to the mountain and after my visit I took the funicular down to the train just so I can experience both modes of transportation. During my last visit to Barcelona I took a bicycle tour of the city which was great although I've seen most of the sites already.

As far as accommodations they are plenty of hotels near La Rambla which is your typical tourist hotspot and everyone speaks english. On my second visit to Barcelona I decided to stay away from the more touristy areas to blend in more with the locals which was fantastic. The hotel staff spoke english but the people in some of the surrounding restaurants, shops, etc did not. I would definitely suggest that you check to see if your cruise creates group page on the Disboards because on my last trip to Barcelona someone from the group arranged for great group rates for a hotel and transportation to the dock. I took advantage of the transportation to the dock but preferred to book my own hotel (since I wanted to be away from touristy areas).

Feel free to asks me any questions. Have fun planning your trip.

 

[gilsan]

I am also going to recommend seeing the Sagrada Familia, it is so beautiful on the inside, pictures do not do it justice.