Flopsy

Hi there

I've just looked on Thomsons website- there is no asterick against any port on this itinerary which would normally indicate it's a tender and I haven't got a brochure to check it out.

We had tender at Split last year but you go to Korcula instead this year.

When I first went on this cruise two years ago we docked at Dubrovnik.But last year when i went on it we couldn't dock as another ship was already berthed in the dock so transfer was by tender.

So I suggest you have a look in the brochure to be sure.

Flopsy

Hi Scout

We didn't change any currency for Koper- they took euros for coffee and thats all we bought.

The only place we exchanged currency was Dubrovnik.We got £50 of kuna on the ship, but we didn't spend it! The shops and the market had dual pricing so I used euros to buy souvenirs,pay for taxi etc.If you intend to take the local bus here I believe they ask for kuna coins (but you only have notes) so you get lots of kuna coins back which you have to spend!

The walk around the walls is payable in kuna at one of the access points but they accept euro at the other access point! We had to have a couple of large lagers to use up some kuna, then we exchanged the rest back into sterling on the ship.

So I think you could get away with euro everywhere!

We found very few Greek staff on board- there was Dimitrious running the bar in Hemingways- I liked him.A bit on the slow side but hey he was still learning.And old George on deck around the Lido outsde bar- he seemed to have a bit of a problem understanding English and feet that we rather tired lol.We witnessed the odd error when he misheard the drinks order but as long as you speak clearly it shouldn't be a problem!

Flopsy

Reply to old posts- but just to say thanks to all above who commented and especially to flopsy whose initial post helped us decide this would be our cruise choice this year. Have a happy and safe holiday all wherever you decide :)

Hi there

I am so pleased to have been able to assist you in your choice.This itinerary was my first ever cruise and I would love to do it again next year.The ports of call were all, without exception, lovely places to visit.

I am confident that you will come back and tell us that you thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to go again lol.

Flopsy

hi hun fab review, we r going on this trip in may, how was the embarkation and disembarkation, we have a late flight, were u hanging around waiting for the airport transfer? thanks hun x

Hi there

I'm not sure what you want to know but on arrival we were sent out to a waiting coach as soon as we came through the baggage collection.The only delay is in the baggage retrieval area which has only two carousels.It is then only a short journey to the port where you register a credit card, and have your photo taken for the boarding passs in the port building,then a short walk to the ship and we were soon on board having a welcome drink..

On the last day we didn't leave the ship till 6pm so we treated it as an extra day and went on a trip.

Corfu Airport is the problem-it can't handle the numbers going through as it is only small.Consequently when we got off the coach for our flight home we had to stand in a queue outside the terminal building for about half an hour.The smokers didn't mind!

But nobody explains why you are left outside as others walk straight in, so I am trying to explain that each flight is called into the terminal building in turn, as the space inside is so limited and the security process is so thorough!

We were glad that we were not stood outside in the hot sun! So if you have an evening flight be thankful!

Flopsy;)

http://s557.photobucket.com/albums/ss17/grannypops/Thomson%20Spirit%20cruise%20Mar%202010/

You'll be surprised, I know I was.

 

Berwyn

Hi Berwyn

I see what you mean.My granny never looked like that lol....

Flopsy ;)

It's always the same, anything that looks a good idea is out of stock, or if clothes not in your size, but every other size you can think of.

 

Lovely new piccies of you both and thanks for the comment on the burgers.

 

Berwyn

Hi berwyn

Wheres the photos of grannypops - I'm curious now....

Flopsy

Oops Kruseeka has already answered.....

Flopsy

Yes you are so right tee hee!

This year on the Celebration I decided to prebook a cabin - 370 on deck 3.It was at the end of a row and right next to Reception and the stairs etc.

There were no cabins opposite our door- or so I thought from the deck plan.Little did I realise that there was a cabin directly opposite our door which was used as a general 'staff room' by the cleaners etc so the door was wedged open at 6am and there was a constant stream of staff laughing and chatting from 6am till late into the evening.

Never again.Who wants to be woken up every morning at 6am!

So chose your cabin wisely!

Flopsy

Thank you for all the wonderfull information Flopsy, I am bit puzzled on all the tenders to shore as the brochure only says tender for montenegro. Did the £20 last you for your day's in croatia as will give us some idea how much money to change up....

Hi Aligarter

Yes my info re tenders is correct.

Split was transfer by tender.

Last year we docked at Dubrovnik but this year another ship was in there so we anchored in the bay and transfer was by tender.

So both Croatian ports were by tender.

At Kotor in Montenegro we docked- no tender there despite what the brochure may say lol.

Well did the £20 worth of kunas last all day? In Split we only used kuna to buy a beer, then we went into the market where my hubby got talked into buying a sunhat for which he handed over kuna- it worked out at £13 so he regretted that silly move, and never wore the hat anyway lol!

In Dubrovnik we paid for the taxi in euro(e10 each way) and used euros in the souvenir shops in Dubrovnik Old Town.We just used kuna to buy a drink.The market took euros or kuna and showed dual pricing on the products- lavendar bags etc so I used euro.

It depends whether you intend to have a meal ashore I guess.

Flopsy

Glad to hear that you had a great holiday Flopsy looking forward to hearing about the rest of your trip. did you have any problems with the staff changeover as i heard that some people said were a few problems the week before you went?

Hi Aligarter

Yes we got talking to the barstaff in Hemingways Bar on the Celebration and they told us that many Fillipinos had been sent home the month before to allow Greeks to take jobs on board.

They said that Greece had brought in legislation to say that Greeks must be allowed to take jobs on ships cruising round Greece.

The Greek in charge of the Hemingways bar, Dimitrious, was a hairdresser till he joined the ship.He was clearly struggling at the start of our week but by the end of our trip he had come on in leaps and bounds.The existing staff were being quite helpful showing him how to operate the till etc and he was such a lovely guy you wanted it all to work out for him!

We saw very few Greeks actually-two in Hemingways, Dimitrious and Papa.They had been given 6month contacts whereas the Fillipinos were on 10month contracts with two months back home.As the cruise ships only do Greece over the Summer months I guess this was understandable.

Flopsy

Thank Flopsy,

 

Good to hear that you enjoyed yourself and that your hubby did too! I habve been worried about my suprise for hubby as he told a friend recently that a cruise would be his last choice of holiday.....oops!! So good to hear that your hubby had fun :)

 

Look forward to the next instalment. Where have you booked for next year?

 

Louise :D

Hi Louise

I spent months worrying whether hubby would like this cruise but within two days he was hooked and admitted that he had been a fool to refuse to go on a cruise for so many years.He now thinks this is the best type of holiday and can't wait to go again!

we have booked Med Discovery on the Island Escape next May 1010.

Relax- my hubby told people he was 'only going to please me' and like your hubby he 'couldn't think of a worse type of holiday'- till he tried it lol!!!!

Flopsy

Heres the rest....

Kotor, Montenegro (it's euros here)

This destination has to be the most stunning port of call on this cruise!

I was blown away by the journey though this amazing fiord- steep mountains loomed up all around as the ship glided quite a way inland to reach Kotor.This place is steeped in history and is so unspoilt.Although the ship had meandered to this destination at a slow pace of 5 knots, as it was the ship's first visit to this port the captain took us on a tour of the bay before docking.This unfortunately delayed our arrival by almost an hour and the knock on effect on trips was a bit calamitous as everybody tried to disembark at the same time, but lets not worry about that!

We went on the 'Kotor,Heritage & Budva' trip.I recommend this trip- it was a wonderful mixture of experiences.

The coach took us to Perast- a Unesco protected small town nestling on the waters edge surrounded by mountains.There we got a boat to the manmade island just offshore 'Lady of the rock'.We had a conducted tour of the beautiful tiny church and museum.(There is one toilet and a lengthy queue but take this chance- our young guide allowed for very few 'toilet stops'!) But make sure you keep sight of your group as another three boats docked at this tiny island after us and hundreds of people were milling about.We arrived on one side of the island but left from the other side- on a different boat! So don't just go back to the spot where you landed in the expectation that that is where you will leave from!

Back ashore we walked to the museum and then contued on the coach through dranmatic scenery to the drive on ferry across the mouth of the bay to pick up the road to Budva.This is a beautiful resort and the guide takes you into the old walled town to see another church.We asked to give this a miss and instead went for lunch at a beach cafe as time was limited.The journey back to Kotor was only about 20mins.Then a conducted tour of Kotor would finish off this interesting trip.The ship was an hour late leaving because of the trips.This is the beauty of Thomson trips- the ship won't sail without you! Consequently our voyage down to Corfu was at 17 knots!

Be on deck for the sail out of Kotor -it's stunning.Montenegro is the hidden jewel.

Corfu Town

As we had a late flight we booked the 'Bella Vista' trip.Wow the views on this trip are amazing- don't miss this one.

First stop was a visit to a small monastry.Cover your shoulders and knees or you will be asked to put on a skirt (several piled on a table) so that the monks won't be attracted to you lol.

Then it's back on the coach for the journey to a beautiful bay where you can take an optional boat ride to see some caves where the water is of diffrent hues -this costs around 7euros.Or you can just sit and have a coffee.

Then it's a toe curling climb in the coach through narrow hillside villages and to reach the high point known as Bella Vista where you can see for miles- you can even see our ship in the distance! There is a cafe where you can buy delicious home made cakes and coffee.

Then its back to the coach for the scenic ride back to the ship about 1pm.This trip is well worth the money.

I hope you enjoy your cruise as much as we did.Treasured memories!

Flopsy:)

Adriatic Explorer review continued....

Split,Croatia (NB Croatia requires that you carry photo ID, eg, take your passport)

Before going ashore we exchanged £20 into Croatian currency-7kuna to the £.

This was the first tender port.Three tenders provided a continuos shuttle from the ship anchored in the bay to the quayside.Trips went first,then others, who had to collect a coloured coded ticket from a desk near reception- a huge queue!Each colour was called in turn to descend to deck 2 to catch the tender.It worked quite well.

On the quayside a local firm offered sightseeing tours around Split at 70kuna (£10).

We did our own thing and explored Split.If you turn right at the quayside you come to an interesting local market where the veg, fruit and flower displayed provides a colourful feast for the eyes- well worth a visit.

Dubrovnik,Croatia (Take your passport!)

Another tender port however this was poorly organised and chaos ensued as hundreds of people filled the stairs! Hopefully the staff have learned from their mistake by the time you go! But we all got ashore eventually -the tender drops you at the quayside near the New Bridge.It's a 3mile walk, a local bus (you need kuna), or a taxi (10 euro), to Dubrovnik Old Town.Go through Customs before you get a taxi! The taxis alongside the tender are 40euros- so wait till you get through Customs and get in one outside that building- they charge only 10euros- same as last year!

The taxi drops you at Pile Gate which is one entrance into the old walled town.Wander the ancient streets,explore the old churches, walk the walls if you are feeling energetic (hundreds of steps) - there is a charge around 7euro/50kuna I believe - some gates insist on kuna-easily obtained at the cashpoint.Then wander out onto the harbour where you can get a boat trip for 10euros, to see the outer walls.

The taxi rank to return to the tender point is just accross the road from Pile Gate.

Don't miss the evening sailaway from Dubrovnik- a beautiful sunset in a gorgeous setting.A memorable sight.

Flopsy

Hi guys

At last I have time to write my review!

Well I dragged my reluctant hubby onto his first cruise and he loved it.Already booked for next year...

The ports of call:-

Koper

As we disembarked at the Passenger Terminal we were met at the port exit by a 'Welcome to Slovenia' group- a guy playing an accordian, gift stalls, leaflets were handed out about excursions, taxis stood by,tasting of wine & olive oil, a market, etc.

The town as seen from the quayside had a lot of Italian style buildings.We headed for the coach as we had booked to go on the 'Piran & Portoroz - Little Italy' trip with Thomsons.

(The 'Countryside' trip which I had planned to go on was not offered in the excursion guide)

It was a short and scenic journey to Piran which is bursting with Italian charm.We got off the coach and walked in a group to the main square (this used to be the harbour but was filled in to create a lovely square).The guide told us lots of interesting historical information and we then walked along the coast to the lighthouse where we had 30mins for coffee (I was asked if I wanted a large or small cappucino-I made the mistake of asking for small, thinking i would get a small cup- oh no it was a teeny cup-barely a mouthful lol).

We walked back to the main square where our guide showed us a shop selling the local speciality- chocolate covered salt! Then we walked through the narrow passageways to the original square which had interesting architecture and the rainwater was collected in a reservoir beneath the square for residents use.

Soon it was back to the bus and onward to Portoroz where we had over an hour freetime.We made our way to the seafront which was still 'under constuction' - man-made beaches with dozens of sun umbrellas, new jetties and roads etc.But the promenade was complete and there were lots of low walls to sit and watch the world go by in glorious sunshine on the huge bay, bars and cafes to have a meal or just a drink.We were too far from the main beach- time constraints.

The coach route back took us to see the old salt pans, and we turned homewards just before the border and travelled back though beautiful scenery.We were back at the ship soon after 1.15.

A lovely trip- everyone enjoyed seeing other parts of Slovenia.

Venice

My previous advice to get on deck for the sail into Venice was marred by thick fog.It was bright and sunny as we passed Venice Lido beach but then as we entered the main canal the fog descended- the captain later repoerted that it was one of his worst experiences but having committed the ship into the canal he had to keep going.Happily the sun soon burned off the fog and we had a clear sunny day, with a superb sailaway with stupendous views over the city from the higher decks.

We got the 'Venice on your own 4 hour' Thomson trip.We boarded a privately chartered launch right next to the ship and the guide pointed out lots of landmarks on our route to St Marks Square.

It was long enough for us, as we have been to Venice a number of times before, so we saw the main sights again and bought some Murano glass jewellery (who can resist) and by 1.30 Venice was becoming increasingly hot and crowded.

I will add more reviews tomorrow but duty calls.....

Flopsy