My wife and I are traveling to Europe for the first time to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary, and we're booked for the July 1 - July 12 "Essential Europe" tour, with an extra day in Rome prior and an extra day in London after.

Anyone else going on this tour? Any suggestions/tips you can provide?

You will enjoy your extra day in London. Look out for the pickpockets and Gypsies in Rome.

Cheers

General Max

You'll want any extra time you can have in Rome, there is SO SO much to see and it's all wonderful. (Hubby and I celebrated our 30th anniversary in italy last month). .

As for pickpockets and gypsies . .. .. .. . we were in many cities and towns Italy, from Rome to FLorence, Venice and Milan. I never felt threatened by a pickpocket or gypsies. You have to be aware of your surroundings like anywhere else, but don't let anyone make you paranoid.

Tell that to the lady on our tour that had her wallet stolen out of her purse while visiting the Sistine Chapel. Also another woman that was on our Westerdam cruise had her wallet lifted from her purse at the Rome airport on day of arrival. The wallet had $800 cash in it. During the cruise , they won a free 7-day cruise in a raffle which partly made up for the unpleasant experience at the Rome airport.

Cheers

General Max

Well General Max I didn't say it never happens (I live in NYC, it's a big city where the occasional negative thing happens), but it's nothing to get crazy about and certainly isn't the norm. And why in the world would anyone carry $800 cash with them as a tourist, that's just unnecessary. Like I said before, be aware, carry your personal items close, keep purses closed and you'll be fine.

Traveler

We will be in New York City in February 2006 for the inaugural sailing of the Noordam. We will use the same precautions we used in Rome and other cities in Italy. I understand the subways can be a problem in New York City. I hope to see a lot of the NYPD around as a security measure.

Cheers

General Max