Spain & Portugal - October 29-November 11, 2023
Hi, hoping to “meet” other Tauck guests on this tour date. Who else is going?
John and Susan
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Hi, hoping to “meet” other Tauck guests on this tour date. Who else is going?
John and Susan
Comments
We just got back. Fabulous trip. The attire was a lot more casual than we expected. No men wore a jacket to the reception or farewell dinner. It was hot when we were there so people were in shorts, but just make sure ladies arms are covered if you are going to a Cathedral. Hope you have Isabel as a guide, she was awesome.
Hi Bonnie,
So glad you chimed in!!! We are getting very excited - leaving Friday evening to arrive in Porto a day early.
Wondering if we'll need electrical adapters in hotels to charge cell phones, iPads, camera? Looked through all the info on Tauck's Final Documents but don't see that addressed. Would not be happy to arrive and find out we can't plug in our chargers!!
As soon as I read your post, I went and pulled out my husband's jacket - so relieved to know it was a more casual tour. Anticipating warmer weather than here in NY, so shorts, short sleeve tops will be mainstay. Have shawls to cover arms in Cathedrals. Thank you again Any other tips you think might be helpful, please feel free to share!
Susan
Carpese -- You do need adapters, but not converters.
You may be lucky to find a hotel or two that has both Euro and US receptacles, but don't count on it. Bring at least one or two adapters. But, if you have multiple devices, so you don't need an adapter for each device, bring along a small power strip. (not visible, but there are two more receptacles on the back for a total of 4. Some newer power strips have multiple USB ports- if you decide to go that route make sure you get a power strip with the correct USB (USB-A or USB-C) for your device(s))
Carpese - So as not to confuse, you will not find U S receptacles in either Spain or Portugal. Tips? Eat lots of tapas and drink lots of wine! It is, indeed, a remarkable tour. Enjoy.
Most definitely NOT true. I only checked one hotel, the InterContinental Porto – Palacio das Cardosas, but according to this photo from their website, they certainly do have 110V (and labeled as such) US receptacles at least in bathrooms though they may not look like one to the uninformed. I suspect you might find similar multi-function receptacles at the nightstands)!!! The other high end hotels on this tour may also have similar US receptacle setups.
One independent review states, "Room amenities include a safe, coffee maker, bottled waters, towel warmer, mini bar, lots of USB outlets, televisions, and very comfortable beds. Turndown service is offered." Many of the hotels have 5.0 V USB ports which obviate the need for 110V or 220V receptacles for charging tablets and cell phones.
I stand by my original post and recommendation.
Those outlets in the bathroom are for very low power devices. You can see the plate is labeled "Shavers only". You might get away with plugging in your smartphone charger in that outlet but anything much more is not going to work.
I travel with adapters so I never worry about whether there's a US outlet in the room.
AlanS made a good suggestion about taking a short extension cord device if you want more outlets. I take adapters that allow two devices to plug into them and that's usually enough for me (one on each side of the bed). For charging devices, especially now that everything is going to USB-C, I have multi-port chargers. Most of mine are two ports, but I have at least one that I take that has four USB-C ports.
Here's a link to the 2-port charger - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08M9M2V7X/?th=1
Here's a link to the type of adapters I take - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I100KEC/?th=1
Here's a universal adapter (European, UK, US, and Australia) with four USB-C and one USB-A ports - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0C9Q11WFH/?th=1 The fourth USB-C port is on the side.
The only problem with the last one is that it's physically big.
As Mike says, the outlet in the bath is labeled "for shavers only", however, my Braun shaver requires more watts (more power) than my iPad or wife's iPhone so it is totally OK to use it to charge either. Again, back to my original post.
"For Shavers Only" can be found in some bathroom hotels, but those are not the same as standard, all purpose receptacles found in the United States and in all rooms. USB ports (operative word being universal) are found virtually everywhere. They are not U S receptacles. I have lived in the region. Moreover, it seems rather unusual to scour the internet to find something in an attempt to prove me wrong. I prefer to spend my time differently and more productively.
carpese - You are embarking on a wonderful tour and I hope you have the good fortune to have Patricia H as your tour director. Please consider posting a review afterwards. Safe and wonderful travels.
Just an added comment. While the world is going to USB-C, most of the public USB ports are USB-A. If you don't want to carry multiple cables, there are small adapters you can purchase that will adapt a USB-C cable to be able to plug into a USB-A port.
Here's one possibility - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079LYHNSR/
It's going to take a LONG time for public (and hotel room) USB ports to fully convert to USB-C.
For the Luddites who want to stick with USB-A, there are adapters that will convert a USB-A plug to a USB-C plug. Sort of the opposite of the link above.
Thanks for the information. I was unaware of that. I have a very dumb question for MikeHenderson...How does one tell the difference between USBs, -A, -C. ??? Thanks in advance.
The shape of the plug is significantly different - USB-A is much larger than USB-C. Also, USB-A has to be inserted "right side up" while USB-C can be inserted with either side up. USB-C provides significantly more power than is possible with USB-A, so you'll find that a USB-C cable is bigger than a USB-A cable - it has to have a larger metal core to carry the increased power. Note that modern laptops have chargers that plug into the laptop with USB-C and some of those chargers are 130 Watts. A USB-A cable cannot safely carry that much power.
Here's a link to a cable that is USB-A on one end and USB-C on the other end.
https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/visiontek-usb-31-type-c-to-type-a-cable-1-meter-m-m/apd/a8606250/pc-accessories
Is gives a pretty good picture of the difference between the two.
[Added note: Since USB-C can provide more power, it may be able to charge your device faster. Depends on whether your device can take the extra power.]
Thank you, sir. I was making it much more complicated than it needed to be. I appreciate your helpfulness.
Beautiful dog by the way. Bernese Mountain?
How do they differ? voltage- NOPE!! 110 volts is 110 volts the world around!! Plug configuration- NOPE, they may look slightly different, but they accept standard US plugs that have two parallel, often polarized, prongs. Almost every cell phone, tablet, etc. and shaver module, made and sold in the world, comes so equipped.
Since you haven't figured it out yet, the reason they are often labeled "shavers only" is so people don't try to use them for 110 volt, high wattage devices like a curling iron or hair dryer, etc. which often require 1000 times or more the wattage shavers, cell phones, and tablets require! (It probably will just pop a breaker, unlike trying to plug a 110V US curling iron or hair dryer into a 220v outlet, which will likely let the smoke out!)
I didn't "scour the internet," I just went to the first hotel listed on the Tauck tour page! When you are wrong or posting incorrect information, you are wrong, just admit it and move on!
My comment was not wrong, nor will I respond again.
No, just a mix, but beautiful and very special to me. Unfortunately, I lost him a year ago to old age – 17. He was always with me. If I went to the store, he rode with me and waited in the car. If I had to leave him home, he would curl up on the rug by the door and wouldn’t move until I got back home.
I miss him a lot.
[He was a small dog, about 20 pounds.]
I am so terribly sorry. Seventeen (17) years! May you find solace in the memories you have of him.
Thank you to everyone for your helpful info!! Have ordered from Amazon what we needed and are set to go. Looking forward to a fabulous trip with Tauck.