Save Time and Money in Zurich

ZürichCARD
Your City Travel Pass

Tip: With the ZürichCARD, you can enjoy Zurich in all its diversity – and save time and money too. 

We arrived in Zurich, Switzerland one day before our Avalon Waterways river cruise so that we could be accustomed to the time change and have some time to explore the area.

Since we planned to use public transportation, including trams, trains, and boat, plus we wanted to see at least one museum, it made sense to purchase the ZürichCARD.  We purchased it at the airport tourist information counter.  It can also be purchased at train stations and online on their website.

Validate Your Card

Prior to using your card for the first time, you must validate it at a machine in a train station. Since our hotel had a shuttle, we didn't need to use the card for transportation right away, but we decided to do the validation at the airport's train station. You can find an orange machine, like the one pictured, in the lower level of the train station across from the baggage claim (and tourist information counter).

 Purchasing at Train Station

We met another couple, who were also going on our cruise, when we checked in at the hotel.   We talked about sight-seeing together and we explained the benefits of purchasing the ZürichCARD.

They purchased the cards, using a credit card, from an automated touch-screen terminal by the train tracks.   The validation rule still applied - either insert in the orange validation machine (which might be on the opposite side of the tracks) or in the slot to the left of the screen.
(click on images above to enlarge)

Benefits of the ZürichCARD

• Unlimited 2nd class travel on all forms of public transportation in the city of Zurich and surrounding region
• Free or reduced admission to the majority of Zurich’s museums 
• 10 to 20% discount in various local stores 
• Culinary surprise in selected restaurants 
• 50% discount on public city tours organized by Zurich Tourism
• Many more discounts on a variety of cultural and leisure activities

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You can purchase the card for 24 hour or 72 hour periods.  As of this writing, the price for Adults was CHF 24 (EUR 24) and CHF 48 (EUR 48) respectively.  We only needed 24 hour period in our case.

We'll tell you more about how we used the card in additional posts. 

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Trasnportation Strikes in Italy

24 Hour Transport Strike

For Italians hearing about a transport strike, they would ask "Where is the News?"   Strikes like the current one have become part of the culture - a fact of life in Italy.  Those on vacation in Italy would see things completely differently.

Paralyzes Rome

Public transport unions' strikes have paralyzed Rome. The strike kicked off at 0830 hours CET and is scheduled to last 24 hours.  Strikes like this are unpredictable, sometimes they never actually happen and other times they end early.

The protest involves all of Rome’s public transport services including buses, trams, A and B metro lines, Cotral coaches and the Rome-Giardinetti and Rome-Civitacastellana-Viterbo light rail links.

According to Rome's transport authorities the majority of the Metro lines stopped running between 0830 - 0900 CET. Buses and trams were running on a looser schedule.  Local transport strikes were suspended between 1700 and 2000 hours to ensure minimum mandatory service. Union rallies kicked off at 0900 hours from Piazza della Repubblica heading for Piazza SS Apostoli.

Elsewhere in Italy

The rail strike in Venice was called off, but the vaporettos (water buses) went on strike. The public sector strikes occurred in Milan, Rome, Florence, Naples, Turin and Genova. 

The 24-hour strike affected Actv water and bus transport, and the Hellovenezia ticketing and call center services. During the strike , buses ran in these time bands: 6.00 - 8.59 a.m.; 16.30 - 19.29. Essential water services also ran during the strike.

Airport handling staff were on strike 22 June at Milan Linate, Milan Malpensa and Venice airports and many flights were cancelled.  Passengers flying to/from these airports should expect delays and/or cancellations and should check with their airline before traveling.  Other airports in Italy appeared to be unaffected.

Know Before You Go


The interesting thing about transport strikes in Italy, and other parts of Europe, is that they are generally pre-announced and follow strict guidelines.  As you can see from above, transportation resumes between peak travel times and essential services are not impacted.   That would be of little comfort to you as a visitor should you find yourself in need of transportation during the active strike hours, so it best to be aware of pending actions before you travel.


Here are some useful resources that can help:

Venice - Actv SpA (water and bus transport)

FCO (UK) Travel Advisory - Italy

U.S. Embassy to Italy - Demonstration Notices

Trenitalia Railway - In Case of Strike

In addition, consult your transportation carrier's website for latest information.

Royal Caribbean ChoiceAir

ChoiceAir Promotion
Starting December 14, 2009

Alaska, Caribbean, Bahamas Offer (click) Cruisetour Offer

Dubai, Europe, Mexico, Hawaii Offer (click)

Royal Caribbean International introduced a new air/sea program called ChoiceAir this year. It is a new way for guests to buy their air transportation to and from their cruise vacation. Guests are able to purchase their airline tickets at the best available prices, when they are booking their cruise.

The program is different than traditional air/sea programs in that customers select their own flights from all published airline schedules and fare types. Guests may book directly on the website, over the phone with Royal Caribbean, or through their travel partner. No matter who makes the ChoiceAir reservation, the guest is assured the best value for their cruise by tying their airline reservations to their cruise.

When guests use ChoiceAir, Royal Caribbean can monitor travel to the ship, and step in to help should they run into trouble in transit. They will ensure the Guest makes it to the ship or if necessary work with the airline partners to get them to the next port-of-call, whenever possible.

The ChoiceAir website filters air displays to fit the cruise time parameters, allows a guest to use different credit cards to pay for each guest in a reservation, links the air reservation with their cruise reservation, and provides optional airport to seaport transfers.

ChoiceAir is offered for Domestic flights and also in many International Markets. There is a $15.00 per person non-refundable service fee for domestic North American destinations and $25.00 per person non-refundable for International destinations.

Purchasing your flights through ChoiceAir is similar to doing so directly with the airline. All tickets are subject to the airline's rules. Generally on a nonrefundable ticket, the guest may re-use the ticket, subject to any fees imposed by the airline. You will be subject to any penalties or restrictions imposed by the airline. Guests may call the ChoiceAir Support desk and change or cancel the reservation.

For more information about ChoiceAir consult the website or call your travel consultant.

Flights can be added to a cruise reservation via ChoiceAir up to 7 days before your cruise. From time to time, Royal Caribbean will have ChoiceAir promotions, such as the one which is currently in progress.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Itineraries

AMA Amalegro - Amsterdam, Netherlands

Port Information:
Amsterdam

In Amsterdam, river cruise vessels dock behind the Central Station, along a street called de Ruyterkade. This is very close to the city center. You can walk along the waterfront to the back side of Central Station. When you cross through the Central Station building you exit the station in the center of the city.
Unless you want to drag your suitcases on public transportation, the best way to get from Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport to de Ruyterkade is by taxi. You'll be able to hire a taxi from the taxi stand in front of the airport. You might want to negotiate price with the driver before you enter the taxi. We paid 51 euros (including tip) from the airport to the ship. The taxi back to the airport was arranged by our Cruise Director for a flat fee of 35 euros (plus tip). We also shared the taxi back to the airport with another couple, which reduced our cost more.

The ship may also be located at Veemkade, which is behind the Central Station to the left, or further down at the Passenger Terminal Amsterdam (PTA). The PTA is where the larger cruise ships dock. We docked there on our past cruise vacations that included Amsterdam.

We were able to easily explore Amsterdam from where we were docked. As I mentioned in my earlier post, we walked along the waterfront and Central Station and into the heart of Amsterdam from our ship. When we returned to Amsterdam later in the week, we were also docked in the same location. This time, we used the Stop/Go Bus to take us to some shops near Anne Frank's House. From there we walked back to the ship, shopping along the way. It only costs 1 euro for an hour on the Stop/Go Bus - this is a great deal.

Amsterdam is a very easy city to get around on your own. There are several public transportation options. For those that wanted some exercise, the Amalegro also had bicycles that you could check out if you desired.