May 5, 2010 Magic of Barcelona

[strawberryblonde]

I have skimmed the thread and saw mention of a FE exchange but I can't remember who is heading it up, sorry. I asked the kids if they would like to do this and they said they would enjoy it, especially my 10 year old daughter, her creative juices are already flowing! So please add us to the list, if it isn't too late. Any ballpark figure on how many are participating? Thanks!!

 

[strawberryblonde]

Interesting to see the many ideas for what to pack. It will be hard for me to stay within the limits, but that is our goal.....45 pounds each....so hard to narrow down the shoes!!

 

[everafter1]

Welcome, New Cruisers! It's exciting to see the group getting bigger.

If anyone is still looking for flights that leave after 12pm on debarkation day, try Kayak.com. It looks like they have a few that leave later. Some of them have really long layovers, so you have to skim though a few pages to find the ones that have normal layovers. When I looked there are a few that were somewhat reasonably priced (and several that were not too).

 

[Kaleigh]

Finally able to book my excursions/Palo today!!! Got Palo on my birthday (Tunis night) and excursions of Dougga for Tunis and Florence on Your Own. Palo Brunch was booked up, but hopefully a spot will open up. Question- Florence on your Own had an end time of 5:45. You don't think that means we will be forced to head back to the ship that early, do you? I was hoping that we would have until pretty much the last tender to explore Florence. Maybe the 5:45 is the time we have to meet in Florence for the bus ride back?

 

[everafter1]

I think (and I'm not sure) that the end time for the excursion is the time they expect the bus to get us back to the port. Usually, they drop you off at the port near the ship, but you can stay in port and explore a little more if you're not ready to get back on the ship.

One thing to keep in mind with Tenders, is that you may want to avoid waiting until the last tender of the day just to be safe. Plus the last one of the day is usually very crowded.

I'm glad you were able to get the excursions you wanted! I think we'll all be running into eachother at Palo on the Tunis day

 

[Goofy Mum]

I have skimmed the thread and saw mention of a FE exchange but I can't remember who is heading it up, sorry. I asked the kids if they would like to do this and they said they would enjoy it, especially my 10 year old daughter, her creative juices are already flowing! So please add us to the list, if it isn't too late. Any ballpark figure on how many are participating? Thanks!!
Here's the link Tara started for the FE's

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=34044564#post34044564

Hope to have more participants!

 

[strawberryblonde]

I have skimmed the thread and saw mention of a FE exchange but I can't remember who is heading it up, sorry. I asked the kids if they would like to do this and they said they would enjoy it, especially my 10 year old daughter, her creative juices are already flowing! So please add us to the list, if it isn't too late. Any ballpark figure on how many are participating? Thanks!!
Here's the link Tara started for the FE's

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=34044564#post34044564

Hope to have more participants!

Thanks for the link Goofy Mum

 

[sabrecmc]

I think (and I'm not sure) that the end time for the excursion is the time they expect the bus to get us back to the port.

That's what I thought too. I thought the time given for the excursion (say 10 hours) was the total time from port back to port. Not time in the city once you got there. Of course, you can do it on your own and take the train back for the last tender. A day in Rome or Florence is obviously not enough time, but that's the way it is. My mom is doing the Florence on Your Own tour and just basically going to walk around and shop. We've been there several times though. My daughter and I are going to that castle with the dinosaurs. Not something I'd ever do on my own, but I think it will be fun for her. I try to keep everything to half-day excursions so she can get back to nap before dinner and the show.

 

[abdmom]

Hey everyone. I'm peeking in from the May 15 cruise. I was just over on cruisecritic and someone who is on the May 5 cruise mentioned seeing a significant price drop on the cat 6's. Are you seeing price drops in your booked categories?

 

[erinandfamily]

Does anyone know when the pirate show will take place? Thanks! I picked up some fake earrings and patches today.

 

[downtick]

What are you all doing for money exchange? I just called my bank, and they charge 3% transaction fee on everything, even atm withdrawls! I did some research and only capital one does not charge foreign transaction fees, so I just applied for one for this alone. I thought atm was always the best to use, but I guess not.

 

[tarald]

Does anyone know when the pirate show will take place? Thanks! I picked up some fake earrings and patches today.

Pirate night is day 7 when we are in La Spezia.

 

[everafter1]

What are you all doing for money exchange? I just called my bank, and they charge 3% transaction fee on everything, even atm withdrawls! I did some research and only capital one does not charge foreign transaction fees, so I just applied for one for this alone. I thought atm was always the best to use, but I guess not.

I am wondering about this too... My husband usually just uses the ATM, on his overseas trips, but I don't think we're charged for the ATM transactions. (Possibly because it's usually on a military base, I'm not sure.) I spoke to my credit card company and they said that all American Credit cards are now (or will be) charging foreign transaction fees. Apparently, this is something new in the last year, because I've always used my card for large purchases when we are traveling.

 

[dsedwards]

Hey everyone. I'm peeking in from the May 15 cruise. I was just over on cruisecritic and someone who is on the May 5 cruise mentioned seeing a significant price drop on the cat 6's. Are you seeing price drops in your booked categories?

I was recently curious about this too (whether I should have booked now as opposed to months ago) but we booked while the kids sail free promotion was on so it appears a Cat 6 is now a lot more expensive than it was then for a family of four.

 

[downtick]

I am wondering about this too... My husband usually just uses the ATM, on his overseas trips, but I don't think we're charged for the ATM transactions. (Possibly because it's usually on a military base, I'm not sure.) I spoke to my credit card company and they said that all American Credit cards are now (or will be) charging foreign transaction fees. Apparently, this is something new in the last year, because I've always used my card for large purchases when we are traveling.

Capital one is the only credit card company that does not charge the 3% transaction fee. You can call them and ask. I just got mine the other day. I was going to use my atm, but they also charge 3%, plus an atm usage fee, plus the foreign bank atm usage fee. They are small fees, but you better believe they add up fast! In fact I booked a hotel in barcelona with a citibank visa. I got charged about $30 in charges, plus the euro was at 1.44 to the dollar. I just emailed the hotel and am switching to my capital one card, so they are going to reverse my charges on citibank, so I get the $30 back. I don't know if getting another card is worth it to you or not, but for every 1,000 you spend, that is $30 in fees. Also, the euro is at 1.35 now so I get even a bigger discount on the new charge! I hope that euro keeps on dropping!!

 

[sabrecmc]

On the money thing, I still plan to largely use ATMs. I'm just more comfy with that than with carrying large amounts of currency around. My checkcard fees aren't terrible. I've used it to pay for several things for this trip already (hotels, European air travel) and it hasn't been outrageous. For big purchases, I'm sure it can add up though. I used my checkcard on my last couple of trips and the fees weren't terrible. If your bank charges you foreign ATM fees, you can call and tell them you'll be out of the country and they can waive those (the $2.00 per withdrawal charge YOUR bank charges you, not the fee the foreign ATM charges). I used to work for a bank and we did this all the time (lots of military customers).

I don't think DCL has an ATM onboard, correct? Wonder if Guest Services does cash advances or anything.

Banks can order currency for you. It can take a bit of time and there is a fee involved, but it is usually pretty reasonable. In large cities, you can go in and purchase the currency right there (I did this in NYC, for example, when I needed pounds). If you have an Amex card, you used to be able to cash a check at the Amex places free of charge. I haven't tried that in several years, so I'm not sure if that is still available and it may be only for certain types of cards. That was how I used to get all my money when I lived in London, since the Amex place was right down the street.

 

[everafter1]

Capital one is the only credit card company that does not charge the 3% transaction fee. You can call them and ask. I just got mine the other day. I was going to use my atm, but they also charge 3%, plus an atm usage fee, plus the foreign bank atm usage fee. They are small fees, but you better believe they add up fast! In fact I booked a hotel in barcelona with a citibank visa. I got charged about $30 in charges, plus the euro was at 1.44 to the dollar. I just emailed the hotel and am switching to my capital one card, so they are going to reverse my charges on citibank, so I get the $30 back. I don't know if getting another card is worth it to you or not, but for every 1,000 you spend, that is $30 in fees. Also, the euro is at 1.35 now so I get even a bigger discount on the new charge! I hope that euro keeps on dropping!!

That's good to know! I'll have to look into it. Those little fees really add up. I plan on carrying some cash, but the card is nice to have for a large purchase. I think the reason he doesn't get charged a fee at the ATM is because it's on the military base, so you can take out dollars or Euros.

That's good to know, as well, Sabrecmc! One bank tried to tell me it was not them charging the fee... so I'll have to see if I can speak to someone else there I think DCL has ATMs onboard, but it's been my experience with cruise ships that the ATMs tend to run out of money before the end of the cruise. I think I also read that DCL will do currency exchange at guest services. It didn't say if there was a fee or a limit to the amount that can be exchanged, though.

 

[Kaleigh]

So, quick question... do you think DH will be okay not bringing a jacket if he brings a dress shirt and tie with slacks etc for Palo and formal night? We really want to keep it to one carry-on a piece and a jacket just takes so much space.

 

[sabrecmc]

So, quick question... do you think DH will be okay not bringing a jacket if he brings a dress shirt and tie with slacks etc for Palo and formal night? We really want to keep it to one carry-on a piece and a jacket just takes so much space.

I think you're really going to see a huge variety. Some will be in tuxedos and military dress...others will be just in a nice shirt. If your dress matches his outfit as far as level of formalness, I think it will be fine. Not like they won't let you eat!

 

[laydee314]

I agree - it's whatever you feel comfortable with. Noone's going to kick you out of the dining room. I was on a Celebrity cruise and on one formal night, there was a gentleman with a bright leather jacket with USA embroidered on the back - def not formal by any means. Dress shirt and tie should be good enough.