Silhouette May 9 2013 Italy and Croatia

[leela14]

Well we got back from our cruise last Wednesday and more depressed I could not be. . . . . . to be off the ship that is. Wow, what an amazing time we had. This was our fourth cruise - 2 RCCL (Carribean) and 1 Norweigen (Med) and this was by far the best one.

 

The ship was amazing, the food was SPECTACULAR, the ports were awe inspiring, we had a ton of fun at night, it's hard to find anything to complain about.

 

We did Qsine and for us it wasn't that great - esp. for the $45 cover charge - seemed to be a lot really. But I was so impressed with the dining room food Qsine just didn't seem that much better. I think the cover charges for the specialty restaurants are way too high now.

 

We were in Stateroom 9294 with the slanted bigger balcony and it was awesome. We never heard a peep from out our neighbors - so peaceful.

 

If anyone has any questions ask away. The Captain was great too - so funny!

 

We did have someone taken off the ship in Italy due to an illness (we had to redirect to another port). I sure hope she is OK. Thought about her many times now. Does anyone that was on the cruise have an update?

[lhall85917]

Thanks for posting, we will be on the Silhouette June 15 for Italy and Croatia - first time on Celebrity. What were your ports and what did you do at each?

[librarylady19]

Thanks for the report - glad you had an amazing time. Please add your cabin report to the sticky when you can.

 

Any port highlights to share?

[leela14]

Thanks for posting, we will be on the Silhouette June 15 for Italy and Croatia - first time on Celebrity. What were your ports and what did you do at each?

 

You will have such a good time!! Be sure not to miss the brunch on the second sea day - it will be in the daily but isn't advertised very well - lots of people missed it.

 

Well you asked so here goes (ports not in order):

 

Venice - just walked around the city (and walked, and walked and walked!!). Took the Celebrity Water Taxi at $20 per person on the last day. First day we were there on our own - pre cruise. The sail in on the last day is AMAZING.

 

Dubrovnik - Picked up a taxi right off the ship and he drove us around the city for an hour for 50 euros. Split it with another couple. Definitely WORTH IT!! He dropped us at the entrance to "the wall" and we walked that - then it poured raining so we went back to the ship.

 

Naples - took the Celebrity excursion to Capri and I would HIGHLY recommend it - and TAKE THE CHAIR LIFT to the top - it's AMAZING!! I think this excusion was worth booking through the ship because you had to get a ferry to Capri (an hour), then a bus to the chair lift, and then the chair lift tickets. The guide did it all for us. I think it was $150 per person. Capri is amazing. We did Amalfi/Sorrento on our last Med cruise which is also amazing but personally I liked Capri better.

 

Sicily - Taormina and Mount Etna. I had seeing an active volcano on my bucket list so I loved this but it may be be for everyone. We did not have nearly enough time in Taormina and it was sad. We had like 45 mins tops on our own and it was not enough - although I did manage to buy a gorgeous Italian bag there. :D

 

Split - on our own - just walked around. Did a walking tour that we booked at the Palace for about 10 euros - it was worth it. It was about an hour but we learned a lot - I would recommend it. Learned so much about Diocletian - sounds like one very interesting dude.

 

To be continued in another post. . .

[leela14]

Rome - did the "Renaissance Tour" via Celebrity. Meh. It was OK, nothing great. It was a 3.5 hour walking tour and we visited the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona (awesome) and outside the Vatican. I think it was meh because we visited before and did pretty much the same thing but on our own. If you just want to see these landmarks I would take the "Rome on your Own" bus tour and not bother with the walking tour. But for me, I was so exhausted after walking all day I was glad to have the transportation back to the ship instead of doing a train on our own.

 

ETA - I forgot to mention the Pantheon and it was one of my most favorite places!! I had seen it before though but it's such an amazing place to visit!! The first time I saw it, it brought me to tears - the history is awesome.

 

Valetta, Malta - probably my favorite place. It was such a gem, such history and just beautiful. Absolutely loved it. Just did it on our own walked around the town and so glad we did. We had done 3 Celebrity excursions and it was so nice to just be on our own.

 

Kotor, Montenegro - the sail in and out of here is probably the most spectacular one you will ever see - so take the advice and wake up early to see it. The town was very cool to walk around as well - just did it on our own and were back on the ship pretty early. There is nothing to see by foot outside of the old town.

 

I feel like I'm missing something. . . .

[Tenn4ever]

Hi Leelah, we were on the Silhouette the cruise before yours that ended in Venice on May 11. Is that when your cruise began? I'm guessing a typo since you have May 9 in your heading. Maybe and admin could change it for you.

 

Glad you had a great cruise. I was sick on our cruise (12 days) from about the 3rd day into the trip. It wasn't a gastro illness but upper respiratory.

 

We liked Malta too. It was our 2nd favorite stop after Mykonos.

[leela14]

Hi Leelah, we were on the Silhouette the cruise before yours that ended in Venice on May 11. Is that when your cruise began? I'm guessing a typo since you have May 9 in your heading. Maybe and admin could change it for you.

 

Glad you had a great cruise. I was sick on our cruise (12 days) from about the 3rd day into the trip. It wasn't a gastro illness but upper respiratory.

 

We liked Malta too. It was our 2nd favorite stop after Mykonos.

 

You know what it is - we flew out on May 9 so that is the date that is burned into my memory, but of course you are right, the actual cruise started May 11 but my vacation started May 9 LOL! :o

[leela14]

Hi Leelah, we were on the Silhouette the cruise before yours that ended in Venice on May 11. Is that when your cruise began? I'm guessing a typo since you have May 9 in your heading. Maybe and admin could change it for you.

 

Glad you had a great cruise. I was sick on our cruise (12 days) from about the 3rd day into the trip. It wasn't a gastro illness but upper respiratory.

 

We liked Malta too. It was our 2nd favorite stop after Mykonos.

 

Funny about the respiratory infection - it was going around on our cruise too - lots of people got sick but thankfully we were spared. Sorry to hear you got it, that doesn't make for an enjoyable vacation. :-(

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[B17]

Hi

We are doing a similar cruise on Silhouette at the end of June.

Just wondering what days they did the formal nights on - particularly as its so port intensive.

Can you remember which ports had shuttle buses laid on and what Celebrity were charging?

[TLCOhio]

Venice - just walked around the city (and walked, and walked and walked!!). Took the Celebrity Water Taxi at $20 per person on the last day. First day we were there on our own - pre cruise. The sail in on the last day is AMAZING.

Dubrovnik - Picked up a taxi right off the ship and he drove us around the city for an hour for 50 euros. Split it with another couple. Definitely WORTH IT!! He dropped us at the entrance to "the wall" and we walked that - then it poured raining so we went back to the ship.

Kotor, Montenegro - the sail in and out of here is probably the most spectacular one you will ever see - so take the advice and wake up early to see it. The town was very cool to walk around as well - just did it on our own and were back on the ship pretty early. There is nothing to see by foot outside of the old town.

 

Glad that things worked well on your cruise. Sorry you got rain in Dubrovnik. For those planning future trips there, below are some more details, access to lots of visuals, etc. Agree so much on the values of walking around in Venice, doing that pre-Dubrovnik cab ride, getting up early for the sail-in, etc.

 

Super loved Dubrovnik!!! See more details and lots of great visual samples/examples at this link. Have had over 15,266 views on this posting and appreciate those who have tuned-in and dropped by.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1439227

 

More on wonderful Kotor and nearby, check these postings. Have had over 12,072 views on this posting and appreciate those who have tuned-in and commented.:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1439193

 

Since Venice is one of your key stops, you might look at this earlier posting that I did on the Italy board that shows many options and visual potentials for this city that is so great for "walking around", personally sampling the great history and architecture. This posting has now had over 21,375 views and I appreciate those who have dropped by and tuned in. Don’t be shy in sharing any questions or comments.

Venice: Loving It & Why??!!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1278226

 

THANKS for your review and sharing! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 131,289 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[Keith1010]

Welcome home and glad you enjoyed the cruise.

 

Did you book another cruise?

 

Keith

[leela14]

Welcome home and glad you enjoyed the cruise.

 

Did you book another cruise?

 

Keith

 

Not as of yet. It's funny - cruising is by far my preferred method of travel, but not my husband's. He enjoys it, but likes to do land based vacations too, so I suspect our next vacation won't be a cruise. Boo Hoo - I would never tire of cruise vacations!

[leela14]

Oh I read all your material and that is how I found out about the Dubrovnik taxi and the sail into Kotor!! :D And the info on Venice was great too, although I don't think it matters how prepared you are YOU ARE GOING TO GET LOST LOL!!!

 

Thanks for all your in depth reviews - it certainly helped us out a lot!

 

Glad that things worked well on your cruise. Sorry you got rain in Dubrovnik. For those planning future trips there, below are some more details, access to lots of visuals, etc. Agree so much on the values of walking around in Venice, doing that pre-Dubrovnik cab ride, getting up early for the sail-in, etc.

 

Super loved Dubrovnik!!! See more details and lots of great visual samples/examples at this link. Have had over 15,266 views on this posting and appreciate those who have tuned-in and dropped by.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1439227

 

More on wonderful Kotor and nearby, check these postings. Have had over 12,072 views on this posting and appreciate those who have tuned-in and commented.:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1439193

 

Since Venice is one of your key stops, you might look at this earlier posting that I did on the Italy board that shows many options and visual potentials for this city that is so great for "walking around", personally sampling the great history and architecture. This posting has now had over 21,375 views and I appreciate those who have dropped by and tuned in. Don’t be shy in sharing any questions or comments.

Venice: Loving It & Why??!!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1278226

 

THANKS for your review and sharing! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 131,289 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[leela14]

Hi

We are doing a similar cruise on Silhouette at the end of June.

Just wondering what days they did the formal nights on - particularly as its so port intensive.

Can you remember which ports had shuttle buses laid on and what Celebrity were charging?

 

We had formal nights on the first sea day and then the day we visited Split (I think, it's soooo much to remember). I was quite surprised that the second formal day was not the second sea day - it was the following day.

 

Believe me, Celebrity puts on shuttles on every port possible. They are usually reasonsably priced from what I recall - $12 to $20 per person and usually run every 15 minutes or so throughout the day.

[leela14]

May as well post on that most touchy of subjects - dress code in the dining room. On the non formal nights I found everyone dressed casually but nice - I actually found that I dressed up a bit more than most. Casual blouses and capris were the norm for ladies with a golf shirt or short sleeve button down and khakis for men. One night we had a couple sit next to us and the man was in jeans. It was one of the best conversations we had, we laughed and talked forever. I'm one of those that the isn't bothered by what others wear though. But clearly they let him in and led him to the table.

 

Formal nights I saw everything that's been mentioned - a few tuxes and ballgowns, some dark suits and LBDs (little black dresses) and jackets with ties and without. I'd say everyone dressed up to a point, but that the tux/ballgown thing was in the minority but looked very nice.

[crazygirl!]

 

Kotor, Montenegro - the sail in and out of here is probably the most spectacular one you will ever see - so take the advice and wake up early to see it. The town was very cool to walk around as well - just did it on our own and were back on the ship pretty early. There is nothing to see by foot outside of the old town.

 

First off, thank you for your review! We are definitely looking forward to the sail into Kotor. What time did you get up to see it?

 

Also, how far is it to get into town? Can you just walk there from the ship?

[drarill]

Thanks for sharing your review!!:):)