I have had a horrible time logging into the nest lately and seem to have been going through withdrawals as I am so excited about our impending trip that I am about to bust. BUT .... I feel like I am missing something in our itinerary and plans.
Itinerary:
Sept. 6 - leave LAS for LAX
Sept. 7/8 - fly from LAX to Berlin - 23 hour layover, hotel booked for night and quick trip into Berlin to see Checkpointe Charlie's, Bradenburg Gate and Museum Island
Sept. 9 - depart Berlin at 6:55AM for flight to Rome, transfer to port and board RCL's Navigator of the Seas.
Sept. 10 - Messina, Sicily port ... still need to do booking/research of way to Taormino
Sept. 11 - day at sea
Sept. 12 - Ephasus, Turkey ... private tour booked
Sept. 13 - Athens, Greece ... private tour booked
Sept. 14 - Crete, Greece ... not tour booked, just going to walk to Old Town and explore
Sept. 15 - day at sea
Sept. 16 - back in Rome and disembark, check into hotel in Rome ... maybe an open air bus tour today?
Sept. 17 - Vatican Highlights booked with Walks of Italy at 1:30PM
Sept. 18 - Coloseum, Forum and Palentine Hill tour booked with Walks of Italy at 2:00 PM (hoping underground tours open up)
Sept. 19 - flight out of Rome to Dusseldorf, Germany with a 23 hour layover, train ride down Rhine to see the castles, night in Bingen
Sept. 20 - train ride back to Dusseldorf, flight from Dusseldorf to LAX
Sept. 20 - arrive back in LAX and drive back to LAS
What could I be forgetting? We leave in 72 days and I am bouncing with excitement. If anyone has been to any of these locations, pointers would be greatly appreciated. DH and I are not doing formal night on the cruise as that is just not us, but on the other nights when going to the dining room, what is acceptable dress?
TIA ....
Kim
Re: E. Mediterranean cruise
where are you staying in rome?
and i've done the vatican tour with walks of italy. it's very very good.
You'll probably be tired on your first day in Rome so I would take it easy on the sightseeing and avoid museums. I would just plan to tour some of the neighborhoods and piazzas. Campo de' Fiori, Piazza Navona, and the Pantheon are all within a 20 minute walk of one another. You could also visit the Trevi Fountain.
I have two entries in my blog on Rome. The first is on sightseeing and the second is on our accommodations/restaurants.
We got a great rate at the Hotel Napolean which is abotu 5 blocks or so from the Coloseum.
I am going to definitely check out your blog entries!!! Our first real day in Rome will be after having been on the Navigator of the Seas for 7 days. I am thinking of really taking is low and easy that day as well. Definitely want to see and do the fountains and piazzas.
As of right now, we are planning on taking the train into Rome from the port. All I know is that the Hotel Napoleon is somewhat northeast (?) of the Coloseum and Forum area and somewhat southwest of Termini (if that makes sense by looking at a map). There is a metro stop right in front of the hotel as well. I think the only time we will use the metro/bus will be to go to the Vatican.
Any ideas of things to do / restaurants would be awesome!!
that's fine. the trains are only about an hour and are pretty cheap euro5 a person.
in that area it's close enough to walk to trevi fountain and spanish steps. i mean it's a walk but not diffucult and both are great in the evening and at night. piazza barberini has a great statue/fountain in it.
i'm not familiar with restaurants in that area (right near your hotel) but i can give you for other areas of rome if you want. how many nights will you be there?
We are in Rome for 3 nights and do not have to dine near the hotel. For the first night though, if we could find something near Trevi it would be perfect as I have heard the fountain is GORGEOUS at night. On Monday we will be near the Vatican and Tuesday, the Forum.
Any help is awesome .... you rock!
ok near trevi there is a small family run place called La Rosa on vicolo scanderburg that's about 2 small blocks from the fountain. it's on a quiet street, very cute, with tables outside.
the other days you'll be at the vatican and forum at night? normal dinner time is 9pm.keep that in mind
Have a great time and definitely let me know how it was. I cannot wait for our cruise
9PM for dinner??? OMG ...
yes. a lot of places in europe have much later dinners than us here. we found a lot of places didnt even open until 7 or 8