Lisbon - Heck Why Not

If you have been following along you know we are heading to the Mediterranean in the Fall.

One of our dear friends Antonio Pimpao is retiring from Princess.  Antonio has been with Princess forever! We first met him on the Diamond many years ago at the Most Travelled Luncheon as he was the officer at our table and we hit it off.  

Since then we have sailed with him numerous times. In fact we specifically seeked out which ships he was on and jumping on board. A few times we even met him in Vancouver when he docked here.Delivering Portuguese special treats to him.

When he informed us he was retiring we were happy for him, but sad we may not see him as often. His response: "Why not come and visit me." "Why not come see me this Fall."

So we discussed it and agreed we should add a few days to our Fall trip and fly to Lisbon to spend some time with Antonio.

So after the wedding in Sardinia we are now flying Olbia to Lisbon via Rome.  

We will stay at Antonio's for five nights before flying home from Lisbon.

We are excited, neither of us has been to Lisbon!

South America Here we Come

Today Princess started their Sip and Sail program and we have been tossing out the idea of going back to South America.  

When we heard earlier this Spring that the Royal would be doing the 49 day trip, we knew we would be going back. We love the Royal Princess.

Both our cruise trips to South America have been very memorable and our land trip in January cemented it.

Today after checking prices and the added bonus of the sip and sail included we decided to book.

We ended up booking it as two legs instead of the total 49 day trip for a couple of reasons.

• We wanted to change cabins from Valparaiso up.  So as the saying goes P.O.S.H. - Port Out, Starboard Home. We are sailing in a port side cabin down and a starboard cabin home.  This will guarantee we have shade during the hottest parts of the day. The cabins are on the same deck just opposite sides.
• Price was a little cheaper as two legs, but not by a whole lot.
• On board credits work out much better as two legs. Stock Credit for two sailings at $250 each leg instead of $250 for a 49 day.  Also loyalty credit for two legs instead of one.  And Future Cruise Deposit credits as well for each leg instead of two.

So even though this trip is not until February 2019 it was key to book early.  Cabin selection is minimal but still quite a bit out there.

Care to join us?

Venice and Lucca Accommodations Booked

Now that we are settled in our new home I have been focussing on our next grand trip.

Final payment for the cruise is due soon and it looks like it is going forward so we now need to make accommodation reservations for Venice and Lucca.

I love Airbnb and I secured a great place in Lucca for three nights.  We will head here right after the cruise.  

Lucca being situated near Florence and the port of Livorno, but we have never been there.  I insisted that we spend some time here.

We needed a place that accommodate us, but possibly another couple who may join us.  Prices in Lucca are quite reasonable compared to some of the other busy cities.  So we splurged and are still paying less per night than we will be spending in Venice.  

Here is a link to our apartment.  Edited.  After staying here I can highly recommend this place.   Read my blogs from mid sept to learn more.

After three nights in Lucca we will take the train to Venice for five nights.

Again the options are endless.  Hotels are great but boy are they expensive and even though they included breakfast it was out of our price range.  So again we reserved a nice place in Venice close to an area we really enjoyed when we were there last time.  

A link to our apartment can be found here.  Edited, after staying here i really can not recommend this place, read more in my mid sept. posts.

We didn't want to be in a busy area, like near the Rialto or Saint Marks Square we wanted more of a residential area. 

We wanted someplace near Santa Margherita where we spent some time on our last day in Venice.  Read about that great day here.  Oh and that wine store! 

Remember if you are interested in booking an Airbnb at some time, make sure to sign up and register here and you will receive a discount off your first booking for reading about it here.