notoryous

... There are free coffee, tea and flavored water options almost everywhere on board.

Awesome to hear this. I would assume that I would only need to buy water every now and then, juice for breakfast and coke for dinner when applicable.

Thanks to everyone and your input!

Hi everyone! I will be travelling to the Mediterranean on the Brilliance of the Seas during October 2017. This will be the first cruise for my future Wife and I as a Honeymoon trip. Seeing as this trip has a good amount of stops, we were evaluating if its really cost efficient to buy a beverages package for both, as it would be somewhat costly for both at 12 nights.

Our drinking situation is the following: I (Husband) do not drink alcohol and my future wife drinks very little. We even think that with the 1 or 2 bottles allowed would be sufficient for her. Given that, we were only considering the refreshments package ( the one that includes Juices, coffee, etc). However, it may seem that paying for that package when 7 of the days we will be in land consuming outside drinks. Is there some way to know how much are the average prices (I've found a couple of sites that give estimates)?

Also, assuming that I dont buy any package, how does the purchasing process for drinks work? For example, if we are at the Dining table and order 2 cokes, would they just charge my room and I pay at the end? How does this process work?

Thanks in advanced for any input or suggestions on the matter! :)

I've done 3 12 niter Mediterranean out of Barcelona on both Serenade & Brilliance. Also, have an upcoming Brilliance cruise with the same itinerary which includes Venice. IMO, this is the best of the Medit. cruises. The Brilliance class is the largest allowed in Venice and it's the most memorable entrance of any ports. Sailing in on the canal is simply breathtaking.

 

Other stops on this itinerary are, Nice/Villefranche, Livorno/Pisa/Florence, Civitavecchia/Rome, Salerno/Naples, Venice, Ravenna/Bologna & Kotor. The beauty of this itinerary is no VAT as Kotor (Montenegro) is not part of the EU.

Im considering this exact itinerary on Oct 2017, do you have any tips, recommendations, experiences to share?

1. Question for you OP.... are you dead set on Royal Caribbean? Or are you willing to look at another equivalent cruise line?

 

2. Greek's best are Santorini, Mykonos, Athens and Rhodes. Corfu is just ok. Crete I can do without.

 

3. Definitely a smaller ship (not too small) and with decent amenities. Both Vision and Radiance Class are perfect sizes for the Med.

 

 

Most important question OP is regarding what I've hilighted.... you've never been to the Med.... are you dead set on Greece? If so that's cool, however only Santorini for me falls into the top 10 ports/cities in the Med to visit. And what time of year are you planning?

Hi: Im on a similar boat ( Get it?! :P) What recommendations do you have besides RCCL? I dont have a lot of wiggle room on the dates as it will be for my Honeymoon. I needs to depart between Oct 27-30 and it need to go to Santorini (future wife's only request). The only option I have so far is the Brilliance of the Seas departing from Barcelona.

Im all eyes! Thanks in advanced!