So angry with ABD right now

[sayhello]

We did 1 ABD and I did enjoy it but I agree with you -- DCL is more my touring speed. I like to do a lot but then relax a lot!

Everybody's different. I find DCL cruising boring. But then, I find most ocean cruises boring! The only DCL cruise that wasn't boring was the Med cruise I did with the ABD add-on.

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[laceltris3]

I enjoy both. For us the cruises are about mainly relaxing and really superficially seeing the places we visit. We really enjoy Tauck for the ability to really see and enjoy the culture of the places we visit. I have considered DCL Mediterranean, as we did the Baltic, but I think we would be better served by a land tour of Italy, which we would do anyway, and see the same things (and much more) than we could on the cruise.

 

[2-pointdoe]

We are reaching the end of our viva Italia trip. Great guides. 43 people (the trip was NOT full!) trying to squeeze down single file in already packed Rome or St Marks square. Guides pulled it off-but this was an adults only-I would not bring my kids in a group this large in venues this crowded. Lanyards are not worn. No name tags. Despite my best efforts I still haven’t met everyone in this group as the locations are so crowded you can’t visit. Our numbers were simply to large to fit in some of the places like walking in the winery and mask making. The whole trip was the whisper phone in-ear devices. That’s fine inside but in places where you are supposed to be a group they were still necessary. TOO MANY PROPLE. Again, our guides and local guides have been exceptional - but so were some of the ones we found on our own for the pre-days (Dark Rome tours Pompei and Sorrento-wow).

I give the ABD back office and customer support a zero. Comcast has better customer service-they may be late but at least they reply. We love Italy. This is our last ABD trip.

We had 41 one our Italy trip with like 14 kids. I did not find we were too big for any of the places we visited. I also didn't mind the whisper ear. With the bigger group, my daughter had tons of girls her age that she could mix and mingle with at different times and we had fun sitting with different families at the group dinners. We made some fabulous friends.

 

[sayhello]

I enjoy both. For us the cruises are about mainly relaxing and really superficially seeing the places we visit. We really enjoy Tauck for the ability to really see and enjoy the culture of the places we visit. I have considered DCL Mediterranean, as we did the Baltic, but I think we would be better served by a land tour of Italy, which we would do anyway, and see the same things (and much more) than we could on the cruise.

See, I don't find cruises that relaxing. That's probably why I find them boring. I don't like sitting in the sun or by the pool. I find deck chairs immensely uncomfortable (especially with my bad back).

And I'm totally with you on the land tours vs. the cruises.

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[mmmears]

See, I don't find cruises that relaxing. That's probably why I find them boring. I don't like sitting in the sun or by the pool. I find deck chairs immensely uncomfortable (especially with my bad back).

And I'm totally with you on the land tours vs. the cruises.

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I think it depends on the cruise. We did the Iceland/Norway/Scotland (plus a few days pre/post cruise in London and Copenhagen) and loved it. In fact we were exhausted and could have used another sea day to rest up. There was no chance to get bored. I'm enjoying this discussion because I'm trying to think about what to plan next and I'm open to either something like ABD/Tauck or another cruise like that one (not a sun yourself in the Caribbean cruise) plus some time on land. I did like that we weren't "on the move" during the day, and that we didn't have to pack and unpack as frequently (although it was still 3 moves).

 

[sayhello]

I think it depends on the cruise. We did the Iceland/Norway/Scotland (plus a few days pre/post cruise in London and Copenhagen) and loved it. In fact we were exhausted and could have used another sea day to rest up. There was no chance to get bored. I'm enjoying this discussion because I'm trying to think about what to plan next and I'm open to either something like ABD/Tauck or another cruise like that one (not a sun yourself in the Caribbean cruise) plus some time on land. I did like that we weren't "on the move" during the day, and that we didn't have to pack and unpack as frequently (although it was still 3 moves).

Yes, and that's what I liked about the Med cruise. The days were really busy with the ABD, so there wasn't much sitting around on the boat time. We did have a sea day in the middle, and that was nice to just be able to sleep in. I totally can't imagine doing something like the transatlantic or Hawaii cruise with SO MANY sea days. I'd go insane.

Although I do agree the unpacking/packing less is a good thing! That's one reason that I thought the River cruise was a good compromise between the 2.

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[AdamEfimoff]

please delete comment

 

[AdamEfimoff]

For the people have done Peru how fit do you have to be?

 

[OhanaCuz]

See, I don't find cruises that relaxing. That's probably why I find them boring. I don't like sitting in the sun or by the pool. I find deck chairs immensely uncomfortable (especially with my bad back).

I've never been on an ocean cruise and one reason is I think I'd be the exact same way. Now river cruising and watching little towns go by as we float down the river? That's heaven.

 

[sayhello]

I've never been on an ocean cruise and one reason is I think I'd be the exact same way. Now river cruising and watching little towns go by as we float down the river? That's heaven.

I totally agree!

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[DCPhotoGal]

For the people have done Peru how fit do you have to be?

I would probably recommend starting a new thread for this so it doesn't get hidden. But to answer your question, there is a lot of walking/hiking on this trip and the altitude makes it tougher than normal. The salt flats require some hiking and the other historic sites require being able to climb uneven rocky stairs.

 

[DCPhotoGal]

We had 41 one our Italy trip with like 14 kids. I did not find we were too big for any of the places we visited. I also didn't mind the whisper ear. With the bigger group, my daughter had tons of girls her age that she could mix and mingle with at different times and we had fun sitting with different families at the group dinners. We made some fabulous friends.

I can see this. I think it depends on the location. Alaska didn't work in such large groups primarily because of bathroom issues in the more remote parts.