May Med Magic - May 15 2010 - Meet thread

[peterpanstout]

DH and DS both own tuxes that I will be leaving at home also. We all love getting dressed up but have decided to be comfortable yet still non-slug like. I will be packing my dirndl and a jacket for DH and a button down shirt for DS.

kehonuamemano, I wish we could all wear princess costumes!

 

[peterpanstout]

I forgot which of you lovely engineers put together a floor plan with FE staterooms. I would love to have a copy.

 

[DopeyFan1966]

DH and DS both own tuxes that I will be leaving at home also. We all love getting dressed up but have decided to be comfortable yet still non-slug like. I will be packing my dirndl and a jacket for DH and a button down shirt for DS.

kehonuamemano, I wish we could all wear princess costumes!

I dont' know if your DH and DS would like wearing princess costumes

 

[sayhello]

I dont' know if your DH and DS would like wearing princess costumes

I'd pay good money to see that!

Sayhello

 

[ebony]

We will be dressing up for formal nights. Carl bought a tux and has to get some wear out of it . We love to dress up and its all part of our cruise experience. We have paid for 1 extra suitcase.

As for tips in Europe, we usually leave 10% at most Restaurants and around 2 euros for short rides in Taxi's.

 

[disneycruisegal]

Thanks for your thoughts about tipping, we're doing some tours from DCL and some private tours. As far as dressing up goes, I have the same 5 dresses that I wear on every cruise. I know it's sad, but I never have any other occasion to wear them...their not super fancy or anything, but I'm usually not a dress wearing kinda girl. I like using the cruise as a chance to play dress up a little.

 

[Greg M]

I am sooooo ready for this vacation! I have downloaded enough Rick Steves, Samantha Brown and DCL videos on the different places that we will visit to cover the flight to Barcelona!

Just a little tip for anyone else worried about exceeding the luggage weight limit. I bought a 50lb fish scale (looks like a smaller version of what you see in the produce department) for $4. It has a hook that fits the suitcase handle perfectly. It is really helping to keep us aware of how close to the airline limits we are getting.

 

[moneyhappy]

If we're talking private tours here, a tip of 10% of the total cost of the tour, split between the entire tour group, is plenty. Drivers/tour guides for private tours in Europe are professional, salaried workers with health benefits and vacations. Think of them as a school teacher, nurse, postal worker, department store clerk here in the States...do you tip them? A tip for them really is a tip...expression of gratitude for excellent service above and beyond the call.

Thank you Jeff!

What about tipping maids in hotels? I have ready it is 1 - 2 euros a night.
We do not stay in hotels often (Timeshare owner) and have not been to Europe in 10 years.

 

[moneyhappy]

for formal night we dress-up - DH in a tux and I have a long dress I've been wanting to wear

 

[MPS516]

Formal ? We may be in whatever we can carry on the plane. Delta changed our flight times so we now have only a 30 minute connection in Atlanta, don't expect we will make it and if we do don't expect the luggage will. Oh Well, I am sure that some of the stores in Barcelona will be more than happy to sell us some clothes.

 

[Jeff Spencer]

... I will be packing my dirndl and a jacket for DH...

I want to see DH wearing that dirndl!

I forgot which of you lovely engineers put together a floor plan with FE staterooms. I would love to have a copy.

That was Travelbee (Connie) and it was for Group A. She sent it to me and I'll be happy to forward to you.

 

[Jeff Spencer]

Formal ? We may be in whatever we can carry on the plane. Delta changed our flight times so we now have only a 30 minute connection in Atlanta, don't expect we will make it and if we do don't expect the luggage will. Oh Well, I am sure that some of the stores in Barcelona will be more than happy to sell us some clothes.

Delta baggage handlers are used to tight connections and I find the Atlanta underground tram to be one of the better ones anywhere. I think you'll be fine though I thought a legal connection was a minimum of 40 minutes.

 

[MPS516]

I thought it was 45 minutes, so when I received flight time changes I called and they told me it is a "legal" connection so if I want to change there is a fee of $ 1,050 for the four of us. Just going to sit back and let whatever happens happen, we did build in an extra travel day.

 

[rguinness]

WOW. My wife Karen and I (Rich) booked this cruise recently and we are very excited!!!!

We've done Disney Cruises before but are totally new to DISboards.

We're on this cruise sans kids ( to celebrate our 20th anniversary ) and we're struggling with figuring out the excursions :-(. We've found Jeff's site (awesome!) and are looking for any suggestions and/or to join folks on private tours.

We'll be spending our evenings looking back through this thread - wish we had found you guys sooner. We look forward to meeting everybody!!!!!

Thanks
-Rich and Karen

 

[Jeff Spencer]

WOW. My wife Karen and I (Rich) booked this cruise recently and we are very excited!!!!

We've done Disney Cruises before but are totally new to DISboards.

We're on this cruise sans kids ( to celebrate our 20th anniversary ) and we're struggling with figuring out the excursions :-(. We've found Jeff's site (awesome!) and are looking for any suggestions and/or to join folks on private tours.

We'll be spending our evenings looking back through this thread - wish we had found you guys sooner. We look forward to meeting everybody!!!!!

Thanks
-Rich and Karen

Welcome to the thread Rich and Karen!

On your previous Disney cruises did you do DCL shore excursions or private tours? Have you been to any of the ports previously? Just start asking questions and folks will be more than happy to help.

 

[rguinness]

Welcome to the thread Rich and Karen!

On your previous Disney cruises did you do DCL shore excursions or private tours? Have you been to any of the ports previously? Just start asking questions and folks will be more than happy to help.

Mostly 3-4 day Carribean cruises. We did one of the Atlantis excursions and it was ok - not great but ok. That's about it.

So - here's our thinking on the excursions so far.

Malta: Either the Historical Hunt or a tour with Touring Malta

Tunis: The Jeep 4x4 or the Medina & Carthage Tour. Jeff - I know you picked the Jeep one - what did you like about it. We're also concerned about being in a Jeep because I had back surgery this fall and I can't be bounced around too much.

Naples: Really want to see Pompeii and Sorrento. We're thinking of joining ahilman (Ashley) but we have to figure out how to get in touch with her (still learning

Rome: We're very conflicted about taking a tour or seeing it on our own. We really want to focus on the the historical sites and get a flavor of the city.

La Spezia: Not sure about the long car ride, but saw Cindy's post (DopeyFan1966) and it looked good. We'll probably contact her tonight.

Corsica: No clue - but read some stuff about Adventure Park - we'll have to do our homework on that.

Villefranche: No clue - haven't even looked at that yet.
______________________________

So there we are..... Any comments/suggestions, etc.

Thanks so much - it's great to be "connected" now. Don't feel so much like we're on our own.

-Rich

 

[sayhello]

I thought it was 45 minutes, so when I received flight time changes I called and they told me it is a "legal" connection so if I want to change there is a fee of $ 1,050 for the four of us. Just going to sit back and let whatever happens happen, we did build in an extra travel day.

OK, that really, really sucks. Doesn't surprise me where Delta is concerned, but it really sucks! I'm glad you're not freaking out over it. I'll keep my fingers & toes crossed for you!

Welcome, rguinness!!! We have a great group of folks here. As Jeff says, ask all the questions you want, and Jeff will answer them! Well, he does seem to know more than most of us put together, but we'll all give it a try, I'm sure!

2 weeks from right now, we'll be sleeping and sailing towards Malta!

Sayhello

 

[Jeff Spencer]

Tunis: The Jeep 4x4 or the Medina & Carthage Tour. Jeff - I know you picked the Jeep one - what did you like about it. We're also concerned about being in a Jeep because I had back surgery this fall and I can't be bounced around too much.

In general, I strive to get away from the typical tourist spots and get out into the "real" country. The tours of Carthage seemed underwhelming to me. After you've been to Rome (which we'll visit later) other Roman ruins simply pale in comparison. From what I've read, Sidi Bou Said apparently was once a charming place to visit but has become a tourist trap. We're not ones to spend time shopping much so that ruled out the Medina and Souks. I've read elsewhere that these Jeep excursions for the most part remain on paved roads so there's really no need for the 4X4s except maybe to make it sound more adventurous.

Naples: Really want to see Pompeii and Sorrento. We're thinking of joining ahilman (Ashley) but we have to figure out how to get in touch with her (still learning

Ashley is also getting married just before the cruise as I recall so I expect she's pretty busy. I'll send her a PM on your behalf. You can't send one until you've made 10 posts in the thread. Oops...here is Ashley's email: flyguy181@hotmail.com.

Rome: We're very conflicted about taking a tour or seeing it on our own. We really want to focus on the the historical sites and get a flavor of the city.

There is the group that is taking the train into Rome, although I think the plan is to split up once there. Having done a private tour there in 2007, I can say it was worth every cent (we're doing another this cruise). Rome is an amazing place but can also be a chaotic place. Having a knowledgeable, professional driver to depend on was great. Having the licensed guide in the Vatican to explain what we were seeing made it so much more worthwhile.

La Spezia: Not sure about the long car ride, but saw Cindy's post (DopeyFan1966) and it looked good. We'll probably contact her tonight.

It is a long ride but I can tell you it's a scenic ride and Florence is well worth it. I'm so looking forward to returning there.

Corsica: No clue - but read some stuff about Adventure Park - we'll have to do our homework on that.

Join the crowd! I'm leaning heavily towards renting a car at the airport and driving to Les Calanches and possibly to the adventure park, though I'm probably the only one in my family that would actually do the zip lines.

Villefranche: No clue - haven't even looked at that yet.

There's a group that is getting together for a do-it-yourself tour of Nice, Eze and Monte Carlo. It is very easy to do on the bus from Villefranche.

 

[Jeff Spencer]

As Jeff says, ask all the questions you want, and Jeff will answer them! Well, he does seem to know more than most of us put together, but we'll all give it a try, I'm sure!

I'm an engineer...I research, analyze, evaluate and examine. I can't help it!

 

[sarahgirl]

I, like most the rest of you have been going back and forth with what to do in Corsica and I think I've finally come to the conclusion that I'm just going to do a quick tour of the town on my own and then head back have some lunch and enjoy the ship some while it is quiet. It's going to be the halfway point of my 23 day traveling extravaganza and I want to be careful not to do too much.