Hi Mark and welcome to HT!

For that price difference I would certainly consider getting your own flights which shouldn't be difficult from Birmingham. You should contact RCI for a cruise only price.

Most people would suggest going out one or two days before the cruise incase of any delays. There is a Rome topic in our Italy forum which may have suggestions on hotels.

The port of Civitavecchia is approx an hour to an hour and a half from Rome, but is very easy to get to. See the DIY Excursions topic at the top of the forums.

luci

When we did a cruise with RCI we booked the flights independently and flew from Bristol with Easyjet, way cheaper than doing it the other way around. We flew out four days before though and explored Barcelona as that is where we were catching the shop from

Mark,

I would absolutely echo Luci's comment regarding going to Rome a day or so earlier. Also, it's worth noting that Royal Caribbean have deals with specific airlines, including BMI and Lufthansa.

This means that very often (and particularly from here in Ireland), they won't offer direct flights, but route you through Frankfurt or another European airport, turning what should be a straightforward flight into a whole day of airport travel.

I suspect that the difference between what RC charge and what a provider like Easyjet charge would easily fund a nice hotel and meal in the Eternal City.

We've just come back from a 12 day Med cruise with RCI.

They wanted £1200 for 4 flights to Barcelona

I booked with Jet2 for a flight the day before, hotel room and evening meal. Total cost = £400!

I now book my own flights when travelling with any Cruise Company to the Med. Travel a day early just to be sure you are there and you can choose a hotel which fits your pocket.
Last year Celebrity wanted £320 for a flight return to Barcelona from Leeds/Bradford but we would have had to go to Dusseldorf or Amsterdam. I found a charter with Monarch from Manchester at £79 and X wanted a further £61 to add to the £320.

I fly to from Leeds/Bradford with Jet2 and did a one way to Venice and a return from Barcelona. It was a lot more expensive than usual as it was August but I then discovered why the Barcelona flight was so expensive £130 one way England had been playing on the Saturday. The flight was not full but they obviously pushed the price up. There is only one flight a day and had we stayed an extra night the flight was much less expensive the following day at around £70.

Jet2 is a good airline I feel with good leg room. The Monarch flight was so tight on space that I would never fly with them again.
For those who live in different parts of the Country then it is easy to find a low cost airline in your area.

Sue

keela1eva2 wrote:

For those who live in different parts of the Country then it is easy to find a low cost airline in your area.

Sue

Oh how I wish that were true. From Aberdeen the only low costs flights we have are Ryanair to Dublin and Easyjet to Luton.

We do have FlyGlobespan, but they are not that cheap.

luci

Sorry about that Luci. Didn't know you were living in Scotland. Here at Leeds/Bradford we have Ryanair who only flew to Dublin and Shannon but they have now added Barcelona. Not the best as no seat allocation and also really tight on their 15K allowance.

Jet2 from Leeds which is where their HUB is have now added Manchester. They fly to so many places from L/B anywhere you can think of and unlike Ryanair they fly into Venice for eg Marco Polo Airport.
Just have a look at the dropdown and see how many cities they fly to and have added NY 3 day trips for shopping. I would not do this as I'd want longer and to choose my own hotel and in any case it is more expensive than I probably could find.

Flybe is out of Leeds but only to Belfast Channel Islands but fly to Southampton so for not that cheap and also really strict on the baggage allowance.

Sue

Hi

Just returned yesturday having been on Voyager of the seas, and I booked the flights independant which saved me £400.

I too booked easy jet and had a night in Barcelona prior to joining the ship, we had a lovely time, and quiestions for anyone going on this ship I would be happy to help.

Cheers Liz.

we are going on voyager of seas on 27/09/08 for 1 week med cruise from barcelona any tips for cruise please,

thanks.

stan & lynda simmons

Hi Stan and Lynda

To save going off topic I'd be grateful if you would post any queries on the Voyager of the Sea in THIS TOPIC

Thanks

luci

a word of warning to all, we had a cruise booked with rc, through a travel agent, departing from italy. an hour before our transfer to the ship we had our passports stolen. not being allowed on board the ship we were left abandoned on the harbour. now you would expect assistance some were along the line to be forthcoming. not a bit of it.. the travel agent disapered along with the ship and our insurance, who are refusing to pay out , to make matters worse we were not even allowed to take our return flight, our helpfull agent cancelled the flight as we did not board the ship. I usually diy, but for this particular holiday being our 25th, thought we would spoil our-selves.
If your going to cruise, guard your passports with your life, and learn italian, because believe me when the brown stuff hits the fan, no one speaks english...

Hi and welcome to HT!

That must have been an awful experience. I can't imagine what I would do it those circumstances.

How did you eventually get home, get new passports, etc?

luci

That must have been a nightmare! You would expect some hel and guidence from RCI.

I must admit, we have had better holidays. If you want the long version let me know..
Before our transfer to the ship, we had some time to kill so we took in some sights.
My wifes handbag contained the passports as we would soon have to produce them to get on board the ship.
A thief on a scooter rode up from behind and flipped the bag off her shoulder.
We had a problem in that we could either go to the police in Rome to report the theft or try and board the ship, this we did.
We presented ourselves to the ship but was turned away. At this point you would think the shipping company would notify the agents that there is a problem, but no.
This is the point were we was abandoned. We had no contact numbers, they were in the bag.
From the harbour we made our way to the port police who spoke very little English.
Eventually we understood, that the officer in charge said we should report the theft in Rome.
When I asked about booking into a hotel with no passport, his English deserted him. Also, being Sunday the Embassy was closed.
An hours train ride back to Rome, we reported the theft, then made our way back to the hotel. The police report was examined by the hotel receptionist and before he would let us book in, he rang the police to confirm it.
Anyway, thought we might as well make the most of it while in Rome and tried to organise a flight through the week.I tried the hotels internet but to no avail, I did managed to contact RC and asked if it was possible to bring our return flight forward from Sunday to Thursday. The chap said It is not our policy to do that. I told him we were out on a limb here and could he please help, again he just replied ..it is not their policy.
Fifteen minutes after that call, I received an abusive call from our agents telling me to sought out my own flight, our original had been cancelled as we did not board the ship. They had obviously had their ear bent by RC.
Eventually with the aid of my brother in England we had a flight booked.
To cut a long story short, one hour after sitting down at home and having a cup of tea, I received a call from RC, asking if we were still in Rome.

There was two things that saved us...my mobile phone and my credit card with out which I honestly dont know what we would have done.

On Summit there were 2 episodes of the a similar situation. The first a family of 3 travelling and the daughter had her passport stolen ashore. The Ship was staying over in Venice overnight. They spend the evening trying to find out what they should do. This is only hearsay but they got no support from the Guest Relations. The following morning they were told to go to the Police and then go to the Embassy to get a temporary passport which they did. They sat all day trying to get this before the ship sailed at 3pm. The wife who told me the story said that she was to pack as they could not stay n the ship without the passport.

2nd case an US elderly couple had the Rome excursions cancelled. This other couple at their table from the UK said they were going by train and they would like them to go along. They warned them to beware of pickpockets etc.
At some point they had to push through a group and he was helping his wife who was very frail. Noted then that his wallet passport cash credit cards driving licence had been stolen. He was around 75. They went back to the ship and were told that they must go to the police and then to the US Embassy and sat all day but eventually made it back to the ship.
IN other words if something goes wrong then you are on your own. I was really shocked to hear this but again it is hearsay and I was not there.

Sue

There is also a problem with the temporary passports in that they are only good for one trip, ie back to England or where ever.

We spent the day after the theft rushing round trying to get a temporary passport, but once informed of the usage, it became pointless.

I might add the people at the embassy were really good.