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Man I wished I have the time to take vacation now and go on cruise ships. It'll likely be empty and get much lower prices.
I just got an offer from NCL for a 15 day Transatlantic cruise from NY to Rome in April for $27 pp/ per night.
I believe it totaled $498 per person, Inside, or $699 per person in a Balcony.
If it wasn't for the Coronavirus I would go. Then again, if it wasn't for the Coronavirus it wouldn't be that cheap either.
Cruise fares are expected to plummet for a while. Some ships may even be mothballed or drydocked for upgrades until this is over.
Airlines are already cancelling multiple flights and offering "vacations" to their flight crews, which may ultimately become layoffs.
I've taken trips to Europe on my own many times. The last one was Edinburgh with a couple of days in Paris in late 2018- I got an Airbnb in Edinburgh and used Marriott points in Paris. I'm 67.
I'm a bit of an introvert so happy with my own company, and there's a ton of info on the Internet so you can find things you'll like. One of my favorite excursions was spur of the moment- I'd planned to visit Dunblane on a day trip, looked at the entry on Dundee in the guidebook, and found that they'd restored the ship "Discovery" which had explored Antarctica 100 years ago, and it was a museum. Dundee was an hour away by train. Fantastic experience. I could go on and on with examples of times I decided what I was going to do when I woke up in the morning!
Sticking to one major "base" and using it for day trips works well. (I'm considering Munich this fall.) There are always local tours, too, that you can schedule before or after you get there, so if you want people around you and someone to explain things that's an option.
I'm not worried about catching the Corona virus. Everyone is overreacting. More people die from the flu, and the people that do die are elderly. The fatality rate is very small. My concerns are being quarantined though or it causing any complications with my trip.
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Berteau
I'm not worried about catching the Corona virus. Everyone is overreacting. More people die from the flu, and the people that do die are elderly. The fatality rate is very small. My concerns are being quarantined though or it causing any complications with my trip.
Seriously, rates are low now. I have a trip to Central America this spring, and with airfares going down I'm looking at adding one to the UK in August for a music fest. Bargains out there right now.
I did something called a Contiki tour years ago when I was 33 (I was among the older in the group). I was a group of people between 21-38 who tours Europe for 10+ days. It was one of the best experiences of my life. Now at 38 I'm getting the itch to do a similar tour called top deck, but I'm struggling talking myself into doing it. (No I do not want to tour solo) https://www.topdeck.travel/tours/europe/the-med-runner
Here are my concerns.
1. When I did it before I was younger, but still one of the oldest in the group. Now I will be even older in the group.
2. I would have to take 1.5 weeks off from work. I would just worry about that. I hate taking a lot of time off from work.
3. It is kind of exhausting to do, which is easier when you're younger and its your first time in Europe. Just the travel, jet lag, being around the whole group for weeks, sleeping arrangements, partying, everyone gets sick, etc are all tiring.
4. I'm now at the point in my life where I just like to lay low and not take as many risks and do as much. I get excited when I first think about doing it, but then I feel exhausted just thinking about what a whirlwind it will be.
Has anyone else felt the same way and gone or not gone?
1. Provided you are healthy, I see no significant difference between 33 and 38 or even 48. You know the detailed itineray. Do you think you can handle it?
2. It would be really rushed to do Europe in less than 10 days since you're killing a full day on either end and maybe more with travel. So this concern is really about whether to do Europe at all. Why is this a worry? You think it would jeopardize your job?
3 and 4. Essentially a variation of 1. You have to change the hotels and ride the buses to stay with the group but you don't have to do the excursions. If you're tired, you can skip the afternoon walking tour and relax in the hotel pool.
Do you have any friends or family that would be interested in doing such a trip with you on your own? You'd have more work to do making the arrangements but more flexibility to take it at a slow pace.
I did something called a Contiki tour years ago when I was 33 (I was among the older in the group). I was a group of people between 21-38 who tours Europe for 10+ days. It was one of the best experiences of my life. Now at 38 I'm getting the itch to do a similar tour called top deck, but I'm struggling talking myself into doing it. (No I do not want to tour solo) https://www.topdeck.travel/tours/europe/the-med-runner
Here are my concerns.
1. When I did it before I was younger, but still one of the oldest in the group. Now I will be even older in the group.
2. I would have to take 1.5 weeks off from work. I would just worry about that. I hate taking a lot of time off from work.
3. It is kind of exhausting to do, which is easier when you're younger and its your first time in Europe. Just the travel, jet lag, being around the whole group for weeks, sleeping arrangements, partying, everyone gets sick, etc are all tiring.
4. I'm now at the point in my life where I just like to lay low and not take as many risks and do as much. I get excited when I first think about doing it, but then I feel exhausted just thinking about what a whirlwind it will be.
Has anyone else felt the same way and gone or not gone?
If you are worried about being too old, why not try a group like Intrepid, that is all ages but still tends to attract younger, more active people? I think they have a ton of tours and you might be able to find one that is 8 days. It might also have less of a party atmosphere?
I did something called a Contiki tour years ago when I was 33 (I was among the older in the group). I was a group of people between 21-38 who tours Europe for 10+ days. It was one of the best experiences of my life. Now at 38 I'm getting the itch to do a similar tour called top deck, but I'm struggling talking myself into doing it. (No I do not want to tour solo) https://www.topdeck.travel/tours/europe/the-med-runner
Here are my concerns.
1. When I did it before I was younger, but still one of the oldest in the group. Now I will be even older in the group.
2. I would have to take 1.5 weeks off from work. I would just worry about that. I hate taking a lot of time off from work.
3. It is kind of exhausting to do, which is easier when you're younger and its your first time in Europe. Just the travel, jet lag, being around the whole group for weeks, sleeping arrangements, partying, everyone gets sick, etc are all tiring.
4. I'm now at the point in my life where I just like to lay low and not take as many risks and do as much. I get excited when I first think about doing it, but then I feel exhausted just thinking about what a whirlwind it will be.
Has anyone else felt the same way and gone or not gone?
38??? LOL!!! That is "older"??
I did a 10 trip to Greece last year and I am 64. Not one single issue - had a total blast and I was in front of the group most of the time. Are you not well??
If you are worried about being too old, why not try a group like Intrepid, that is all ages but still tends to attract younger, more active people? I think they have a ton of tours and you might be able to find one that is 8 days. It might also have less of a party atmosphere?
Rick Steves is also a good choice. His tours involve a lot of walking, so while they attract an older crowd (50+), it's a fit and active group.
It's old enough to not want to hang out with the "party hard" crowd that Contiki attracts (and that's the only tour experience the OP has had to date).
It's old enough to not want to hang out with the "party hard" crowd that Contiki attracts (and that's the only tour experience the OP has had to date).
Okay - I missed that about Contiki. Then pick a different tour group. Why would you consider a tour group of all young folks if you are not interested in those younger activities??
We had mostly younger folks on our tour, lots of drinking (a group of nurses was hungover most of the trip LOL) but we didn't need to party any harder than we wanted, and we still had a great time. Would I take a tour that was designed with 18 to 35 year olds in mind?? At 64? Nah...I would pass. But at 38? Probably.
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