Rhapsody of the Seas - July 29 - Aug 5 Mediterranean Cruise Trip Report

Post Cruise

We stayed in Venice for an additional day. The hotel we had chosen was the Hotel Londra Palace, and it was very nice. When we checked in, unfortunately we had to wait for the actual room. On the plus side, we were once again given a free room upgrade to one of their suites with balconies overlooking the Canal.

Since we were early and could not check in, we left our bags and walked over to the Doge's Palace to get in line and to tour. The lines were short at 8:30am, and we were in very quickly.

Going under to see the prison area was neat

When we were done, we bought skip the line tickets for St. Mark's for when the lights were on, and wandered around for a few hours ...

Random grasshopper shot

Here is the room we were upgraded to at Londra Palace

Closet:

And the balcony view

The view from atop St. Mark's

Inside the church, you are not supposed to take pictures. Everyone was taking pictures. Some were so blatant about it with the flash on that they were actually yelled at, and in one instance thrown out. It is worth the extra money in my opinion to go upstairs and see the original bronze horses, and other artifacts. Plus you get a great view both inside and outside of the church.

After we were done we did some more wandering. Ended up checking out the Opera House, which had some weird exhibit going on - pretty cool looking, although I have no clue what it was supposed to be about haha.

Super review and amazingly beautiful photos - thank you for taking the time to post. We have our first B2B planned next summer on Rhapsody with many of the same ports including 2 stops in Kotor but are going to have to re-schedule due to a family commitment. Montenegro and Santorini are both on my bucket list. Your review has motivated me to get with the program and re-book. Thanks much!

I have many more pictures to post, and if anyone is interested I've got all the Cruise Compasses to post as well.

Just need to stop work from getting in my way of finishing

Thanks for the report.

Since we are on a BtB this October with the same itinerary, I have very much enjoyed your posts.

Question about the taxi in Katakolon. Did he wait to take you back as part of the 80 euro or did you find a different taxi there to take you back?

I would also be interested in where you docked at the end in Venice and how you got to your hotel.

Thanks for posting this. It is most helpful and amusing.

Great report and pictures. Seeing Cruise Compasses would be good

I have many more pictures to post, and if anyone is interested I've got all the Cruise Compasses to post as well.

 

Just need to stop work from getting in my way of finishing ��

Yes! Stop going to work and post the Cruise Compasses please. :D

I booked a similar cruise next November. The deal looked great and Greece is somewhere I've always wanted to visit. Thanks for the fantastic review. Now I am super excited about my choice. Thanks

Since we are on a BtB this October with the same itinerary, I have very much enjoyed your posts.

 

Question about the taxi in Katakolon. Did he wait to take you back as part of the 80 euro or did you find a different taxi there to take you back?

 

I would also be interested in where you docked at the end in Venice and how you got to your hotel.

 

Thanks for posting this. It is most helpful and amusing.

The taxi driver waited for us to be done in Olympia/Katakolon. At the end of the cruise we docked at the same cruise terminal we started at,I believe it was #107. We took a private water taxi again from the cruise terminal straight to the front door of Hotel Londra Palace. Since we had private transportation arranged they allowed us to haul our own luggage (which I much prefer) and we were off the ship by 7:30am with no waiting.

Yes! Stop going to work and post the Cruise Compasses please.

Here you go ... this will have to span several posts since I can only do 6 pics at a time. Also, my scanner is not working, so I had to take pics of all of them:

Here you go ... this will have to span several posts since I can only do 6 pics at a time. Also, my scanner is not working, so I had to take pics of all of them:

You are a wonderful person.

We are booked on this same cruise next year, and I want as much information as I can get. Thank you.

Great review and pics.. thank you

So loved this. We are going on the exact same cruise is 2 weeks. Can't wait. Thanks very much for your review.

Water taxi:

 

Well worth the money in my opinion. Yes, it is expensive. Round trip from airport to hotel, and hotel to cruise port was nearly 200 Euros. Still, the ride in was amazing for someone who has never been to Venice, and the convenience really could not be beat. We saw countless others struggling to roll their luggage over cobblestone or lug them up the bridge stairs, and it looked awful.

I agree, water taxis are worth it. I too did it on my first trip to Venice when we stayed near St Marks!

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Thanks for the great review and awesome pics! We will be on Rhapsody at end of October, sailing out of Venice and going to Dubrovnik and Kotor before heading back to Italy for 3 more ports. Just like you...we have a junior suite, we plan to do Dubrovnik without the help of a tour or guide, we have dinner booked for Giovanni's the first night, and we have the same 6 hour tour booked with Milo in Kotor! Your trip report gave us a great preview of our future cruise!