14th Aug to 23rd Sept. (35 days) Pre-trip planning
3rd August Update
Bank at end of Aug.............. £5,084
Still to be paid ..................... £3,893
................................Credit = £1,191
9 days in europe (€78 a day) so need at least €700 which is $1,280.
19 days in Britain at £70 a day so need at least £1,330 which is $2,840.
TOTAL TO TAKE FROM OZ BANK ACCOUNT IS AT LEAST $4,120 AND MAYBE $4,500 which would leave us with around $22,000 in the bank.
Meal cost approx. £57 a day plus wine @ £20 a day average: eg M&S: £6; Restaurant: £25.
BOOKED AND PAID cruise 11 days Italy and Croatia. Aqua. Not obstructed and no connecting room.
Cost $9,270.10 Deposit $900 paid on 17/03/25.
Balance of $8370.10 paid 17/05.
$10,010 (30/05) obstructed view plus $150
03/07. Nothing left.... all sold.
Checked in Boarding Pass 08/07/25
BOOKED AND PAID Emirates per person. $1,709.16. 24.25 hours. Leave Brisbane 2100. Dubai 3.40hrs transfer and change planes.
BOOKED AND PAID Qatar (both) £1,718.04. Leave London 10.50am. 21.20 hours. Transfer is 45 mins. Doha and change planes.
BOUGHT Simify eSims cards (2) $29.25 each (10 gig for 30 days each card). Register and activate first card on 13th July.
Second card on or before 12th September.
Bought 51 gig actual simcard for me ($31.90). Activate on 23rd in Sicily.
BOOKED AND PAID Venice three nights non refundable Hotel Rialto, €767 (paid).
Celebrity shuttle from Tronchetto, Venice BOOKED AND PAID $137.05 each (17/05)
BOOKED AND PAID Hotel Hermitage Florence: Cost is £247.75 non refundable including breakfast.
BOOKED AND PAID Air France Florence to Paris: £291.30 each including bags and no cancellation. (16/05)
BOOKED AND PAID Hotel Europe Saint Severin Paris: Trip.com: £771 ) + €44.24 Tax. Refundable. Superior room with balcony.
Flight from Paris to Edinburgh
Easyjet no refund (both) inc. bags.
BOOKED AND PAID 12/05: £209.74 - Leave 1420 Arrive 1510.
PAID Airlink Edinburgh Airport to Hanover Street, Princes Street - every 10 minutes.
BOOKED Mount Royal, Edinburgh, Classic room: £938.70. Breakfast and free cancellation.
BOOKED car with Indigo: Alamo/Enterprise: 12 days.
6th-8th. BOOKED AND HALF PAID The Sanctuary, Millport.
Pitlochry, Wellwood Manor Hotel, 8th to 12th (4 nights). BOOKED WITH CANCELLATION. £792.
12th to 15th. BOOKED Brackness House B&B Luxury $907 (3/06)
15th to 16th Broxburn 1.28hr: Macdonald Houston House Hotel. BOOKED AND PAID Hotels.com using free night. $66.95
18th to 19th BOOKED Leonardo Royal Hotel, Jeffery Street: Booking.com. £274.50 (13/07).
19th. BOOKED AND PAID 1st class Edinburgh to Kings Cross. £239.60 both. Leave 11.00 arrive 15.38.
19th-22nd. The Dilly. BOOKED. 30/05. £969.57.
14-15 August Brisbane, QLD, Australia
ACTIVATE THE FIRST ESIM BEFORE WE LEAVE Brisbane to Venice
Flight with Qantas/Emirates BOOKED AND PAID (per person) $1,709.16. 24.25 hours. Leave 2100. Dubai wait 3.40hrs and change planes. Arrive Venice 13.25.
$1,810.76 (6/5): $101.60 each increase.
$1,813 (25/05): $103.84 increase
15-18 August Venice, Italy (3 nights)
Arrive in Venice 13.25 by Emirates.
BOOKED AND PAID three nights Hotel Rialto, Venice. €767.19 (paid) Junior Suite. no cancellation and breakfast. Through https://www.rialtohotel.com/ (15/05) SOLD OUT.
Three days later €845 (22/07)
Getting to Venice from Marco Polo airport
Alilaguna line Arancio (Orange) straight to Rialto. Queues, takes about 1 hour. Cost €22 each.
Look into taking water taxi if we can share. Could cost €35 each. Takes about 25 minutes.
RESTAURANT RECOMMENDED SUGGESTIONS NEAR RIALTO
"Vino Della Casa" is house wine.
Piccollo is an amount around 200ml (glass and a half).
Areas like Cannaregio, Dorsoduro, and Castello (across the bridge) tend to be less touristy.
Osteria Al Vecio Forno
Osteria Al Giardino
Ca Dolfin
Antica Ostaria Ruga Rialto (Recommended)
Antiche Carampane
Da Mamo - hugely recommended
On to Ravenna
Get Line 2 vaporetto to Tronchetto terminal. Leave hotel at 9.15 then take the Celebrity shuttle (11.00am) straight to the ship. (must be at the shuttle 30 minutes before 11.00am). Takes 3 hours and I've put check-in for 2.00 to 2.30.
BOOKED AND PAID $137.05 each (17/05)
18 August Ravenna, Italy
Boarding Celebrity Constellation Room 9073 Aqua Suite
$9,270 (17/03) paid $900 = $8,370.10 PAID 17/05.
01/04 Price is now $10,512.20.
12/04 Price is now $10,210 aft.
02/05 Price is still $10,210 aft.
17/05 Price is $10,188 midship (obstructed view)
19/05 Price is $10,512 midship (obstructed view)
Boarding 2.00-2.30
18-28 August Cruise Italy, Croatia (11 days. Leave after 10 days)
Aqua £4,618 or $9,270
Room 9073
Two bottles of Pinot Grigio bought.
Things to do in each city.
19th: Zadar, Croatia - Town is 2km away. Tuktuk is fully booked. Take the bus or if there is a transfer then do it.
20th: Dubrovnik, Croatia - Dubrovnik City Tour: Panorama Drive & Sightseeing Walk: just outside the terminal. 9.30 aaaaargh. BOOKED AND PAID $161.10 (23/06) both.
https://www.viator.com/reserve/checkout/confirmation?itineraryId=1639796573&storeCard=true
21st: Split, Croatia
BOOKED AND PAID Grand Diocletian Tour: City Highlights Tuk Tuk tour (2 hours) £72.38 for both
22nd: Kotor, Montenegro: 200 metres from cruise terminal so no point booking anything.
23rd: At Sea
24th: Messina Sicily: Arrive 0800 Leave 1800. Maybe just stay in Messina and take the hop on bus. Otherwise get the bus to Taormina.
INSERT AND ACTIVATE MY SIM CARD.
25th: Naples. City is 10 minutes away. Hop on hop off buses are probably best for us. Cost is €28 each.
26th: At Sea
27th: Arrive Livorno for Florence. Stay onboard then leave the ship on the 28th (Permission has been given) and stay Florence 28th-30th.
1. Taxi from the port to the station is around €25 but make sure the price before we start as they try to rip you off. See if anyone else is going to the station.
2. Train to Florence. Cost €10.80 each. Leave 1312 arrive 1433. Time: 1.21.
BOOKED AND PAID (Booking.com) Hotel Hermitage. £257.11 (28-30th). Superior double. Breakfast and no cancellation.
Leave on the 30th BOOKED AND PAID Air France Florence to Paris: £291.30 each including bags and no cancellation. (16/05)
28-30 August Florence, Italy (2 nights)
Hotel Hermitage. Superior Double Room. BOOKED AND PAID (Genius) Booking.com (just 100 metres from Uffizi). Superior twin room with view for 2 nights non refundable INCLUDING BREAKFAST. £247.75 (19/04) + £20 tax.
£374.23 (09/05)
£451 plus £20 (26/05)
£361 ,, ,,, (28/07)
The pizza restaurant we usually go to is called Gustavino. The wine we had was Cormons pinot grigio by Cantina.
BOOKED AND PAID Uffizi 28th August at 10.00am. Cost 29 euros each. Skip the line. Try it on for the 29th as there's no way we'll make 10.00.
Florence to Paris
BOOKED AND PAID Air France Florence to Paris, 1250 to 1440: £291.30 each including seats, bags and no cancellation. (16/05)
£317 (25/06)
30 Aug. - 03 Sept. Paris, France (4 nights)
4 nights
BOOKED AND PAID for Hotel Europe Saint Severin Trip.com: Refundable. No breakfast. Tradition room (Superior room?) with balcony. £771 ) + €44.24 Tax (27/04)
Taxi is €55-€70 and takes 30 minutes - probably cheaper than a shuttle.
£840 (9/05).
£1,094.25 (17/05)
£1,017 (02/06)
£1,368 + €44.24 Tax (14/07)
Paris Seine River Hop-On Hop-Off Sightseeing Cruise by Batobus $96.42 (both). Seems a good idea. Sunset is 8.30 so book for then.
Giverny Monet’s House and Gardens Half Day Tour CANCELLED but I still think we should do it if only taking the bus or train ourselves; although it would take an 1 hour and a half if we could find a bus.
Flight from Paris to Edinburgh
Taxi is €55-€70 and takes 30 minutes - probably cheaper than a shuttle.
Easyjet no refund (both) inc. bags and booked seats.
BOOKED AND PAID 12/05: £209.74 - Leave 1420 Arrive 1510.
PAID Airlink Edinburgh Airport to Hanover Street, Princes Street - every 10 minutes.
03-06 Sept. Edinburgh, Scotland (3 nights)
PAID Airlink Edinburgh Airport to Hanover Street, Princes Street - every 10 minutes.
BOOKED Mount Royal, Edinburgh, Booking.com. Classic room:. Breakfast and free cancellation. Pay on arrival. They said they'd upgrade us so take the email.
£938.70 (20/04)
Cancelled 02/06 and rebooked for £844.61
£883.00 (08/08)
£1,229 (24/07)
06-19 Sept. Scotland (13 nights)
13 nights
It seems that it's something you have to do on your phone rather than a physical card so ACTIVATE SIMCARD BEFORE 14TH using the code I've been given.
Hire car 6th to 18th September - 12 days: Alamo/Enterprise cars.
BOOKED with Matt from Indigo Car Hire
Ford Focus or similar (automatic) = £577.23 (15/05)
Paid £50 deposit and the rest on pickup at Waverley. £200 refundable deposit.
Millport 6th-8th 2.29 hr drive from Edinburgh (6th & 7th)
Apartment booked (above Angela's Nails: the Dairy) and paid £173.34 with total bill £270.34. Cancellation before 7th August BOOKED AND PARTIAL PAID.
I'd like to stop in Kirriemuir on the way down to see Bon Scott's statue but no biggie.
Pitlochry: 8th to 12th (4 nights). Wellwood Manor Hotel, Superior Queen BOOKED WITH CANCELLATION AND BREAKFAST. (30/05) £792.
(13/07) £980
12th to 15th - 3 nights (12th, 13th, 14th)
Anstruther 2.00 hrs. from Braemar.
BOOKED through Booking.com. Brackness House Luxury B&B. Breakfast and cancellation: £435 (03/06)
Ronald's suggestions:
The pub was the Ship Inn in Elie. It’s worth visiting Falkland Palace, Glamis Castle The Crusoe hotel in Lower Largo - Daniel Defoe was born there.
15th to 16th
Broxburn 1.28hr: Macdonald Houston House Hotel. Standard room inc. breakfast. BOOKED AND PAID Hotels.com using free night. $66.95 paid as Royal Bank wouldn't go through.
16th to 18th Distance 40km around 40 minutes away from edinburgh.
Tontine Hotel, Peebles: Own website. BOOKED. £312 (17/06). They matched the booking.com price.
Classic twin room inc. breakfast and cancellation.
£321 (18/06) Genius
(13/07) same price
18th to 19th BOOKED Leonardo Royal Hotel, Jeffery Street: Booking.com. £274.50 (13/07) Genius: Executive Double Room. Breakfast and cancellation.
£328.50 (16/5) Genius.
£360.00 (26/05) Genius.
£349.00 (28/05) Genius
£377.00 (03/06) Genius
£350.00 (21/06) Genius
£374.00 (25/06) Genius
£310.00 (02/08) Genius
Car has to go back on the 18th at 11 am.
19 Sept. Edinburgh Waverley Station, Scotland
19-22 Sept. London, England (3 nights)
All to be refundable including breakfast.
Taxi was £25 the last time so check before going.
The Dilly: Superior Twin. Booking.com. Breakfast and cancellation.
19th-22nd. The Dilly. BOOKED. £969.57 (30/05).
£1,197.00 (3/06).
£1,151.00 (25/06).
£1,726.00 (22/07) Unbelievably.
Reconnect Internet etc through Spintel.
https://www.spintel.net.au/my-account/dashboard
22-23 Sept. Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Flights with Qatar booked (both) £1,718.04. Leave London 10.50am. 21.20 hours. Doha and change planes. Transfer is 45 mins.
I am promised that there will be no problems with the connection as someone will be there taking us to the connection to Brisbane. Brilliant.
