Aha! Yes, it was Manu. And loved that al fresco lunch at the fort, in addition to Porcao. Just two great days of private touring that make me want to keeping building wonderful memories with my lct buddies!

Ah yes, Cedric was great, we had great tours with him, but he's moved to Salvador. We didn't go with Fred and Pat to Porcao (too much food), but wish we had, it sounded so great. Next time--wish I was doing this cruise, I am pining to go back to Rio!

Pat & I are booked on the cruise to BA but I don't have my cabin # handy.
Marius is the other upscale churrascaria restaurant. One is on Ipanema and the other is on Copacabana and both have fancy decor, too much food and charge a small fortune. I understand lunch costs $100.00 pp or more. An alternative is Churrascaria Cruzeiro Do Sul. It isn't on the beach, it is not fancy and the buffet isn't as extensive but the food is excellent and the price is about a third of the other two. Our Saban guide took us there.
Jim

Joan & Joe - Spending a day in the wonderful city of Rio sitting in a day room or just going on the two-hour bus tour offered (maybe) by the ship seems like a terrific waste of time there. I would echo the previous recommendations of engaging a private guide for the day.

Even though Cedric is no longer in Rio, his close friends, Manu (whom Peggy cited) and Rafa (whom we know and who is frequently recommended on CC) are still in the business in Rio. Rafa and Manu refer clients to each other if one of them is already booked up.

Here's contact info for Rafa (Rafael Torres):

donrafainrio@yahoo.es

Rafa's interesting blog (which also features Manu in a couple of sections) is:

Rafa\'s Rio Blog

We had a grand time having lunch at Porcao, with a fantastic view of Sugarloaf and the bay. It isn't cheap (about $200 total for the three of us) but was worth the $$ for the view and the experience. If you go to Porcao, be sure to specify the one in Flamengo, as that is the one with the great view.

If you contact Rafa, tell him that his buddy, Freddynho, recommended him.

Have a good day in "A Cidade Maravilhosa" (the marvelous city), which is how Cariocas quite justifiably refer to Rio. They have a most apt saying there that, "While Paris may be the most beautiful city designed by men, Rio is the most beautiful city designed by God." That saying is a reference to the magnificent setting of Rio between the sea and the mountains.

Another great thing to do during a day in Rio is to take a helitour. If you want info about that, let me know.

Cheers, Fred

Another great place to visit during a Rio tour is Samba City. It's where all the Carnival floats are built and you can see them under construction as well as costumes from previous years.
Jim

Sadly, most of Samba City (along with many floats and costumes) was destroyed by fire this past February. Perhaps it will be rebuilt or relocated before your TA next year.

A lot of 2012 cruises have reduced fares, but our fare seems to have gone up a bit, not down. Am I missing something, or are we stuck with the fares that we signed up for when we booked?

Regent raises fares quarterly. If a cruise doesn't sell well, they seem to be providing price cuts. Too early for them to consider discounting our cruise. BTW, our cruise is one of the few late 2012 cruises with H and G waitlisted and F guaranteed. A lot of cruises still selling H guaranteed.

Regrettably we are going to cancel this cruise.....too many bookings for 2012 and something has to go! We'll miss all of you...for sure!

Sorry to hear this Kathy, you and Al will be missed !!

:mecry: :mecry: :mecry: We will miss you Kathy!

I really had second thoughts tonight......emailed Lisa and she had not cancelled us yet, so we are still in!!!!! Thanks, Marcie and Arlene for your kind words! Sorry Marc, can you put us back on the roll call?

Go Kathy!!!

Okay, Lee! Get your name on this list! :hug:

:app: :app: :app: :app: :app: :app:

That's good Kathy !! Sure hope it works out for you. :3smile:

Me too - thanks!!!! :lct:

Price of Monte Carlo to Rio Nov. 2012 has jumped significantly according to email from Regent today. NINE categories are waitlisted!

Ted, we chose the best value of the season; that is why so many have booked. ;)

When prices increase 1 October, I wonder how many other cruises will stay the same or also increase?

Marc, I think it was 'thanks to you' we booked while on Kangaroo...you're a super sleuth $$.

Could it possibly be a little over 6 months since KANGAROO?
Where does the time go?
I've meant to say Hi and express our excitement at traveling with all of you LCT'ers on this cruise! We will be first timers in all of these ports, so we'll appreciate feedback and suggestions about what to do and what to avoid.
Marc..please add our cabin # 741 and we are going all the way to Buenos Aires.
Like Marci...thank you, Marc, for seeing the value in this trip! So glad we booked early!

By the way Marc & Arlene....I love the penguin video.....

Kathy, it will be so good to see you and Steve again. Nice to see you drop in here...drop in more often!

It is going to be a great cruise, with so many fun LCTers. Lots of these ports are going to be new ones for us too, but there are a lot of LCTers that have already done many of them so we'll have plenty of advice as it gets closer.

I just placed LCT on my desktop so I'll be reminded to check in more often!

You don't have it as your homr page? :D

We have unfortunately had to cancel our GRAND PRIX cruise :( Fortunately we were able to book SHAMROCK instead. :D Heading over to that Roll Call now to get ourselves added.

I added a few more names to the list but forgot cabin numbers so I will need to add later; any more additions :) or deletions :( ?

Pat & Jim 881

Marc -
We are in 1071, and Jack and Laura are 1075. We got the last two categories E, no choice but to take Concierge level, but will keep and eye out and if we move will update.
Woohoo looking forward to it, this is the 2012 one I wanted to do all along.

Kathy - hope you and Al stay on this, as we signed up while on CANADA and would love to cruise with you again.

Kathy (and Steve) looking forward to seeing you both as well, we hardly got to know you on un-TUT.

JoAnn and Frank - so happy to see that you have booked this cruise! It'll be great to see you again!

Thanks Kathy and you will enjoy our friends Jack and Laura, they fit right in with the LCT'ers. Now of course all I have to do is come up with the funds!!!! LOL. :eek:

Marc - another update, Jim and Jill also are on now, cabin 826. Ours and Jack and Laura are listed above.

Great news! I owe Jim a backgammon rematch. ;)

Marc -

update on ours and Dreyfus's cabins. They are now 963 and we are 962.

I'm sure Jim will enjoy a rematch.

Best wishes to everyone for a Happy Chanukah, Merry Crhistmas, Joyous Solstice, Auspicious Winter Festival, and Happy New Year (and any other pending holidays that we failed to list). We're finally well under the one year mark. Joan and Joe

We are staying on until Buenos Aires. Does anyone have suggestions for where to stay for 1 night. We haven't been there before so would like to stay somewhere central and safe, within walking distance to restaurants, shops, sights etc.

Hi Sheila, I thought someone else would have answered your question by now, but since they haven't, I will. I'm sure others will chime in. We usually stay at the Park Tower in Buenos Aires because it's a good location near Florida street and we usually have SPG points. The Park Hyatt and the Four Seasons are also really nice hotels in the Recoleta area. There's a good Hilton hotel in the Puerto Madera area where there's lots of restaurants and nightlife. You can also check Trip Advisor for lots of good information about hotels.

Thanks Peggy for all your good advice about hotels. Are there any others staying on to Buenos Aires?

Marc -

when you get a chance you can change us and Dreyfus's to gty. Yay, finally got a lower rate.
Getting more reasonable by the day. LOL.

Wow:

This cruise has really filled up, very low availability so far out...