Trip Report - Grand Princess Med/greek Isle Cruise - June 7, 2005

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Although I posted this under our Roll Call I realize not everyone reads the roll call boards so I thought it might help fellow travelers if I posted this here. It may be a bit out of sync as I originally posted on June 23rd the day we got back from Rome. Hope it is helpful. Also, check out our Roll Call thread as others have added their experiences to mine so you will have more than one point of view.

 

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We just got back about two hours ago from our post cruise stay in Rome. I'll post a review as soon as I get myself organized and get some sleep but wanted those planning on the same hotels we stayed in in Venice (Locanda Orseolo) and Rome (Residencia Cellini) to know about the hotels. (Kelley, I lit candles for you and your dad in most of the churches we went into in Venice. Lots of good wishes and prayers coming your way for sure.)

 

Venice was absolutely great. We had room #25 and even though it was not one of the renovated rooms it was quite nice with murano chandelier's and sconses and two windows overlooking the canal and the gondoliers (enjoyed the signing each day and waving to the people in the gondolas who took pictures of us at our windows). The breakfast was great with hot choices along with the cold ones (try the chocolate crepes, yummy). The bathroom was very nice with a deep tub for soaking (I took bubble baths each day when returning from walking all over Venice) along with a separate enclosed shower.

 

In Rome, the Residencia Cellini at first seemed a bit strange since it is on the third floor of a building (only 6 rooms here so it is small) and our driver had a hard time finding it as the numbers did not run in any logical sequence. It is actually a couple of doors down from the corner of Via Modena and Via Turino (it is #5 Via Modena). Our room, #5, was large with a nice bathroom and a little terrace which overlooked a courtyard (not too scenic but the terrace was beautifully decorated with flowers), the room was decorated beautifully although we had a problem with the air conditioning not working when we first checked in. That was quickly fixed and we had air conditioning running for the rest of our stay. Due to the courtyard location we did hear the barn swallows that flew around during the daylight hours, not a big problem for us plus someone's canary which we actually enjoyed listening to. However, there was one day that there was a child crying and screaming from somewhere in the courtyard that we could have done without but it is a residential area and a large city so we just chalked it up to "the sounds of the city". The only drawback to this hotel if there is one is the little elevator. Not a problem for getting people up and down to the third floor, but luggage can be another matter. The elevator warns not to have more than 3 people in the elevator at a time and since it is small and you have to get your luggage up two small (5/6 marble steps each) it is a bit of a chore. However, I would not hesitate to stay here again, small elevator or not. Do not be put off by the fact it is on a small side street as just around the corner is Via ****onale, a large and active area with shops, restaurants and the Exedra Hotel, a 5 star hotel. For the price, the Cellini is a good deal and the people working there are very nice and try to be helpful. The breakfast is fine for a morning start even though it is not as extensive as the Locanda Orseolo. We enjoyed our time there and would book again if we were to stay in Rome.

 

We will definitely go back to the Locando Orseolo in Venice as I would like to spend at least a week there and take a couple of day trips (Padua and Verona come to mind) from there.

 

I'll post a more extensive review later in the week and also post a link to my pictures (I have pictures of both our rooms in the above hotels) of the cruise but that might take a little longer as I have a lot of pictures.

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Everyone, here is a link to our pictures. I hope you can access them this way. Be forewarned there are a lot of pictures (over 500) and I just put the port name on the first picture of each port that we visited the following pictures after each port name are for that particular port. Here goes, hope it works.

 

http://www.imagestation.com/album/i...l?id=2124734713

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Here is the start of the trip report.

 

Trip report – Med/Greek Isle Cruise (Venice to Rome) June 7, 2005 (Pre-cruise in Venice and post-cruise in Rome)

 

This trip had been planned between 5 couples who met on the Tahitian Princess last year and we quickly increased our number of Cruise Critic friends on the roll call board. It was a pleasure to have met and spoken with each of our new friends both on and off the ship. We seemed to know people wherever we went.

 

VENICE – 6/5-6/8

 

Hotel: Locanda Orseolo

Corte Zorzi, San Marco 1083

Tel: 39-041-5204827

Fax: 39-041-5235586

 

Saturday, June 4th – We left New York’s JFK airport on Delta Flt. #144 direct to Venice. At the airport we met up with Marty and Jeannie (DramaMama) who were on the same flight. We planned to take the water taxi to the Locanda Orseolo together when we landed. The flight was smooth and we finally landed in Venice. Thankfully all our luggage arrived with us. Rich, I, Marty and Jeannie headed for the water taxis. You were supposed to be able to get a shuttle to the water taxi but we just loaded up the luggage on carts and wheeled ourselves there. It wasn’t too bad of a walk and better than having to load the luggage into the bus and then unload it off again.

 

A lesson to be learned: The water taxi didn’t want to take us directly to the hotel, which has a water window to unload the luggage and people. This was due to “high” tide they said. They wanted to take us to St. Mark’s square but then we would have had to negotiate the luggage over cobblestone streets and bridges. Not acceptable. I insisted we wanted to be brought to the hotel and finally they agreed but said it “would cost us”. I asked what the fare was and they told me 100 Euros (25 Euros a person). We took the deal and were on our way to the hotel within a few moments. They loaded the luggage on the water taxi for us and also unloaded it when we arrived. I had originally had some trepidation about climbing in the water window at the Locanda Orseolo after reading Sandy’s report of crawling in on hands and knees. I am happy to report that we all were able to walk right in with no problem at all. We were warmly greeted by Francisco and Barbara but our room was not ready yet so we went out for our first cappuccino in Venice. We went back in about an hour to check in and our luggage had already been transferred upstairs to our room on the 2nd floor. We had Room # 25 and it was large, bright and airy with two tall windows that looked out over the canal. We could hear the gondolas going by and the serenading they were doing. The room also had a large, bright bathroom with a deep soaking-type tub which was great for bubble baths after a long day’s sightseeing. There was also a separate enclosed shower. There are pictures of the hotel rooms on the link I gave previously for my pictures if anyone is interested. They best way of getting to the hotel is by water taxi but in case you get dropped off at St. Marks square just follow the directions the hotel gives you. However, the trick is that they are located in a small courtyard behind a waist-high gate just to the left of a small café. Once you find that gate and enter the courtyard, they are diagonally across (to the left) the courtyard from where you enter. Look for the stained glass door with two bears (their crest) on it. There are no signs. I have a picture of the gate and the door with the crest on it in my pictures also.

 

Breakfast was exceptional at this hotel and they cooked eggs, bacon, sausage and the best crepes ever (try the chocolate ones) in the morning. We also got good recommendations for restaurants from Barbara and we all met up at night to go to dinner together. I’ll leave it to the others to let you know what restaurants we went to since I just followed where everyone else went. However, one thing about the food in Venice. It was not highly seasoned and lacked the “punch” I was expecting from food in Italy. I did get to try eel again, and that was done well but I remember it being much tastier when my Mom used to make it when I was a kid. You are also charged a fee for bread so expect that to be on your bill. The bread was disappointing in Italy and was much better on the ship. Also be aware of service charges that are added to your bill so that you don’t double tip.

 

We got in a day late for the initial meeting up of people at the Florian Café for Bellini’s so we never did get our bellini the whole time we were there. Seems like we drank quite a bit of beer and wine though.

 

We all went in different directions during the day and Rich and I went over to Dosoduro to see the Salute Church one day and enjoyed that area of Venice. We did get lost a number of times but always found our way back through all the little alley ways. Kathy had made reservations for the Secret Itinerary Tour of the Dodges Palace for Tuesday, Juen 7th at 9:55 AM. The cost of this was 15 Euro per person and the tour was well worth it and very interesting. After the tour ended we grabbed a bite to eat then headed back to the hotel to pick up our luggage and get a water taxi to the ship. I think we got to the ship around 3:00 PM and had no trouble boarding. No time to change though before our 4:00 PM meeting of the Cruise Critic gang up at Al Fresco’s.

 

We must have had about 50 people there and they needed to call in extra help to man the bar. It was great getting to meet everyone from the board and putting names and faces together. We continuously ran into people we knew the whole time both on the ship and in the ports.

 

We had a gondola serenade tour planned with Princess for the evening of June 7th but unfortunately it rained very hard so it was cancelled. We, nevertheless, went into Venice that evening for dinner and when the rain did finally stop we took a gondola ride on our own with our group of 4 couples. Of course the highlight of the evening was playing "butt darts" on the pier while waiting for the Princess tender back to the ship. We were a bit loud at this point (laughing hysterically) and the others on the pier (the ladies working in the spa) were looking to see what it was all about. Unfortunately, Mark could not convince them to play but they did enjoy "watching" the game. We saw some police scanning the pier area and were convinced we were going to be arrested before the cruise even began but they weren't interested in us in the least. Good thing, as we were laughing so hard we probably couldn't give them a coherent sentence. We got back to the ship and enjoyed a comfortable nights sleep after all our adventures in Venice.

 

To be continued…

[NEW YORK LADY2]

The Ship – Grand Princess

 

I had never been on the Grand class ships before and wasn’t sure I would like it. Well, I did like it very much. The ship never seemed crowded except on sea days (and even that wasn’t too bad) and on the disembarkation day. I never really noticed wear and tear on the ship other than some corners being scratched up or knicked (due I’m sure to luggage being dragged around them).

 

Our cabin, C333 was in a great spot for getting to the elevators and we certainly had enough room for all the “stuff” we brought with us. Our two big suitcases didn’t fit under the bed though so we stood them in the closet. I had most of our clothes on thin hangers so everything fit into the closet nicely once I took out the Princess hangers (I just put them up on top with the life jackets). We had enough drawer space too and I took over the vanity with my “girlie” stuff, i.e. hair spray, gel, makeup, etc. The bathroom worked out fine for us too and I didn’t find the shower curtain getting too up close and personal with me on this cruise. I had brought duct tape in case I had to tape the curtain in place but never needed it. Our cabin steward, Oscar, although quiet always greeted us by name and was very efficient earning him an additional tip at the end of the cruise.

 

We had traditional late seating and the food in the dining room was good, with some meals being excellent. The breads were really good on the Grand and the Fettuccini Alfredo was always tasty. We had crab legs one night which were also excellent. The lobster was tasty too but I had a tortellini dish that the pasta was actually raw. Our server quickly changed that for the Fettuccini Alfredo. We did not have the best wait staff at our table, our waiter was a young woman and she was a bit stand-offish which was surprising as this was a very fun group of people. Dinner usually found us just getting our main course while our servers other tables were already being served dessert. A few from our table decided to eat more of their meals in the Horizon Court so there were nights when there were only two or four of us at the table of eight. This was more of a "not having to dress up/wanting to attend some ship event or show" type of thing so probably Personal Choice would have been a better choice for these people. Actually, I think on this ship that Personal Choice would work out well.

 

Rich and I did eat in the DaVinci dining room for breakfast most days and lunch some days and enjoyed that very much. We were able to get a table for two each time we went for either meal and the waiters we had there were much more pleasant than our dinner waiter in the Botticelli dining room.

 

We were also able to enjoy the hot tubs on a sea day by going up to deck 15 where there are two hot tubs and enough lounges to go around. A couple of nights we saw shows - the Piano Man, who was very good; the Salute to Broadway which was also very enjoyable; and the ever classic “crew” show.

 

The temperature on the ship was fine and you did not really need a sweater or wrap although I did bring one with me. We enjoyed the cappuccinos on the ship and thought they were well worth the $1.75 plus tip. My husband had his pictures developed on the ship from his 35MM camera and the processing was excellent. The colors were very vivid and even the photo shop people remarked on how good the pictures were. He also got a disk made each time too and with the processing it was $14.90 for everything.

 

To be continued… (Next stop Dubrovnik)

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Dubrovnik - June 9th

 

We decided to do the town of Dubrovnik on our own. Princess provided shuttles into town at a small fee of $4.00/pp I think (would you believe it seems so long ago I can’t remember the price anymore). Bob and Patty joined us and the shuttle quickly transported us into town (about a 10 minute ride). We paid our fee of 4 Euro(again, not sure of the price so help me out here guys) and walked up the long staircase to the top of the wall. This was really the worst part as this particular staircase went up with no landings in between. However, we were able to do it and just needed to rest a bit when we got to the top. I was glad to see that even people much younger than us walking up had to stop at the top to catch their breath also. After this brief rest we headed off trying to avoid the tour groups. The wall walk provided great vistas and great picture opportunities so if you don’t have any mobility challenges you should definitely do it. After descending the wall (we only went half way but Bob did the whole wall) we walked around town for a while. They had a market where there were vegetables and fruit and everything looked fresh and delicious. Friends we met later in the day had bought some of the strawberries and said they were great. One helpful item for this day were the walkie talkies brought by Bob and Patty. Bob had one with him while finishing his walk and Patty had the other. We headed off to a little café for a beer and Patty was able to tell Bob just where to find us. We ran into Sandy, Ira, Kathy & Mike as we were on our way to the café. They had just gotten there and were about to start touring the town. Bob found us with no problem and joined us for a beer, then we caught the Princess shuttle back to the ship. We had a late lunch (1:30 PM) in the Da Vinci and then explored the ship a bit to get oriented with where everything was. All in all, Dubrovnik turned out to be a very beautiful, scenic port with some good spots for picture taking. Too bad there were so many tourists as it was crowded.

 

Corfu – June 10

 

We had booked the ½ day tour through Princess of the Achellion Palace & Monastery which we enjoyed. We had a very good guide who gave lots of information and was not difficult to understand so I think that made the difference between our tour and Kathy’s (Ocean Queen) tour. Princess had a lot of busses going out and we were on bus # 4 while they were on a different bus. Once the tour was done we stayed in downtown Corfu and headed off to Pizza Pete’s. You need to stay on the side by the water to find it. We asked directions of our tour guide and she pointed us in the right direction. Apparently we weren’t the only ones who decided to head there and we ran into Sandi, Ira, Brad and Michelle who were sitting at one table and Tom and Roger who were at another. Our other CC buddies were supposed to meet us there at 12:30 PM but never made it. Rich and I had a greek salad and a Margarita Pizza with a couple of beers and enjoyed the view overlooking the ocean. After lunch we walked around town for a while and then headed back to the ship via taxi. We found taxi’s the easiest way and not too expensive. Plus, after walking around in the heat it was a relief to sit down and be driven back to the ship. We had very warm temps in all our ports, even Venice although overcast for a couple of days had one really sunny and hot day of walking around.

 

Katakolon – June 11

 

We decided to just have a quiet day today and had a nice breakfast in the Da Vinci dining room, then we headed out to the town which was not a far walk from the ship. We had gotten to town before the rest of the boat it seemed and it was nice to walk the streets and look in the little shops while it was still empty. By the way, there were taxi cabs waiting just outside of the town and I heard prices anywhere from 20 to 80 euros for a tour. We just enjoyed walking around town, having a cappuccino and talking to the friendly residents, many of whom where transplanted US citizens. We took some pictures of the town and its many little cafes right on the water then headed back to the ship for lunch. We went up to the pool after lunch and enjoyed the hot tubs and a bit of a swim. The pool area was not crowded at all since people were on tours or in town and we were able to get a lounge right by the side of the pool. We only stayed an hour or so then went back to the room to shower and nap. (This nap thing got to be a habit with us and I can say I really enjoyed it.)

 

Athens – June 12

 

We had a tour booked with Dennis, the son of George the Taxi Driver

Greektaxi@aol.com

Fax: 011-30-210-963-7029

 

Dennis met us on time and he was a very good looking young man, dressed in a suit and tie (which he later discarded as he got to know us better). We were six people on this tour and he had a new Mercedes van that held 7 people plus the driver. Cost of the tour was 500 E or about 83.50 E/per person. He had the air conditioning running and waiting for us. We headed out to Cape Sojouin first and the Temple of Poisiden. Dennis gave a commentary about what we were seeing and we enjoyed the ride. Next was the Acropolis and what a sight this was. Unbelievable! The climb to the top was a bit of a challenge since everything is made of marble and worn slippery in spots where people have walked and worn down the marble. Also, the steps there are very high which was surprising since back then people were smaller so walking up each step took more effort. Just remember to wear sensible shoes (no slides or heels here) with a good sole and go slowly and you will be fine. We did see some people slip and almost fall so just be careful. Also, as the cruise wore one you would see more people with crutches, casts, wrapped feet, bandaged legs, etc. We also went to a restaurant outside the Plaka area that Dennis recommended. Here is the only part of the tour I would give a warning about. The restaurant was in a nice setting, and the food was good however, we let Dennis choose dishes for us to try and we had some people in our group who were not too adventurous when it came to trying new foods. We would have been better looking at the menu and choosing our own meals. I, however, enjoyed all the different things we had a chance to savor. The appetizers were good, as was the greek salad. When the meat dishes came it was a couple of different lamb dishes and although the grilled lamb chops were great, some of our group didn’t eat lamb so that was a bit of a problem. If you have no problem with trying new and different foods, then let Dennis pick your menu for you. Everyone in our group enjoyed our tour and we felt we got our money’s worth. It was a long day but well worht it. Just remember these people are mostly drivers who have some knowledge of the sights and will tell you what they know. They are not guides in the sense of the word and are not allowed to accompany you into the sites.

 

To be continued… (Mykonos coming soon)

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Mykonos – June 13

 

We decided to do Mykonos on our own too and after breakfast in the Da Vinci dining room headed out to get the Princess shuttle into town. The shuttles had a small fee but it was well worth it and left us off close to the main town. We did have to walk a bit – 5/10 minutes – but soon we were in town. First thing I should mention was that the streets were narrow and cars/trucks were very active and you actually had to duck into a store to get out of the cars way. We decided not to walk down the narrow streets and head to the waterfront area where there were some shops, restaurants (had to have another cappuccino) and fishing boats tied up by the water. There was also a small market going on selling fresh fish and vendors were also selling vegetables on the dock area. A few pelicans were in residence and we enjoyed watching them and the tourists trying to get close and touch them. We got some good pictures of the pelicans and the town itself which was very colorful. We headed back to the parking lot to pick up the shuttle and stopped in a waterfront café on the way there for lunch. We had wonderful crepes with vanilla ice cream that was a light, but refreshing lunch and the best view of the town and boat traffic. After lunch we walked up to the shuttle taking pictures of some interesting things along the way. Once back on the ship we could see a beach to our left and if I returned to Mykonos I would head off to the beach as it looked very nice and the color of the water was beautiful.

 

Kusadasi – June 14

 

We had made reservations for a tour to Ephasus, House of Virgin Mary and Basilica of St. John which was to run from 8:30 to 1:30 PM (it wound up running till about 3:30 PM but was well worth it. Our guide was Nejet who was a wonderful guide and a remarkable person. He had a driver with him and he was actually a guide who accompanied us into the sights and gave us history and descriptions on what we were seeing.

 

Nejet Incedogan

*****@yahoo.com

 

The cost was $300 USD ($75/couple of $37.50 pp) – We couldn’t believe how cheap this tour was and we all put in more money plus tip since it was so worthwhile.

 

We first went up to the Virgin Mary’s House and one the way rescued a turtle from the middle of the road. We learned that you should never bring a turtle into a van as when they are scared they tend to pee. So, if you are the one holding the turtle – look out below. We carefully put the turtle in the grass on the side of the road and went on our way. Mary’s house was a simple brick bldg but was moving in the thought that she may have lived her last years there.

 

The drive into the countryside of Kusadasi amazed us at how green and fertile everything was.

 

Now we were on to Ephasus. What an experience. They have only uncovered 5% of the city and it is just remarkable. Nejet explained the various significance of the sights we were seeing then would let us go off on our own to explore and we would meet up with him at a set place. Again, wear sensible shoes – no cute slides or small heels here.

 

After exploring Ephasus we stopped at a carpet factory just to see how the process went. We saw the silk worm cocoons being steamed (to kill the worm inside) then the extracting of the silk, next the weaving of the finished product. The guys were more interested in the collection of cars and motorcycles the owner had but Patty and Bob did buy a lovely small carpet for their home. After the carpet factory, we headed to a real local place for lunch that was noted for it’s meatballs. So, lunch was meatballs and beer which were enjoyed by all. The call to prayer sounded while we were at the restaurant and this reinforced that we were really in Turkey, sitting having lunch, with the Mosque nearby and a carpet store on the other side of us.

 

After the tour we decided to walk around the bazaar a little bit. However, the vendors were so aggressive, not taking no for an answer and coming at you from both sides, we decided to high-tail it back to the ship. We hadn’t experienced this before in any of the other ports we stopped at. Don’t think it was a safety issue, it was more my not wanting to deal with these type of hard-sell tactics while on vacation, so if you don’t mind it you will probably have fun “haggeling” with the vendors.

 

Rhodes – June 15

 

Kathy had made reservations for two taxis from http://www.greecetravel.com/rhodes/privatetours (Send e-mail: Attention Nick) for a full day tour at a cost of 40 Euro/hr – minimum 3 hours. We only did 6 hours as it was very hot and we wanted to walk around the town. All entrance fees were extra.

 

Now, these are taxis and if you are 4 regular sized people you had better really like each other. Even with one sitting in the front the three in the back were squashed together like sardines – shoulder to shoulder. For some reason they didn’t seem inclined to turn on the air conditioning until we finally asked that it be turned on. Just wanted you to be aware of the size of the cars.

 

They took us to the Palace of the Grand Master first and we paid our admission 6E/ea and walked around to see what was there. Again, these are just taxi drivers, not guides so we didn’t get a historical explanation of what we were seeing., next we headed out to Lindos to see the Acropolis. The coast was very beautiful driving by and when we got to Lindos and saw that there was only one way up and down and you had to walk in a line behind everyone else (there were a lot of busses there already), we decided to just go to a restaurant on the water for lunch and we were glad we did. The people we saw coming down the road looked hot, cranky and unhappy. We enjoyed our lunch and beer while watching the people on the beach in front of the restaurant. Wish I had worn my bathing suit and I would have joined them in the water as it looked refreshing. We now had basically paid for a taxi to wait 2 hours while we had lunch. We headed back to town and our driver was so slow that our other friends got there ½ hour ahead of us. Guess when you pay by the hour they want to get in all the time they can. On reflection, I would have preferred to do Rhodes on my own and you could have easily gone to the Palace of the Grand Master on your own and then walked around the town. I really didn’t feel that we saw Rhodes and the value of the taxi was not worth it.

 

To be continued… (Santorini coming soon)

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Santorini – June 16

 

This is a tender port so don’t forget to get your tender tickets. The seas were rough so getting on the tender was a bit of a problem. You had to wait until the tender stopped bouncing around before you could board. Much rougher than I expected but it did calm down later in the day. We went in early after breakfast in the Da Vinci again. We decided to take the cable car up rather than ride the donkeys and I’m glad we did as I heard some bad things about the donkey ride. It was reported that one gentleman fell off a donkey and broke his foot and we did see him on crutches later that night. The cable car is 3.50 euro for the ride each way as is the donkey. Once at the top we decided to walk up to find the bus to Oia. Unfortuantely, we went in the wrong direction and keep climbing up and up. The good thing is we had some gorgeous views. It was hot so we stopped for a break at a café we found part way up and had a cappuccino while we rested for a while. When we got to the top we did find a bus stop and waited for the bus to come along. When it did come, it was nicely air conditioned and only cost 1 Euro each for the ride to Oia. Oia was much less crowded than Fira and we were able to walk around the stores and restaurants without the crowds. It was very scenic and I’m glad we decided to go there. We caught the return bus to Fira and the line for the cable car was very long (and this was about 1:30 PM). We finally made it into the main part of the cable car bldg where you board the cable cars and we were the next in line to get on. The cable car had some sort of a problem and wouldn’t move up or down the mountain so we waited about ½ hour for it to start again. A lot of the people with us were getting nervous as it was now 2:30 PM and their ship was leaving at 3-3:30 PM. But all’s well that ends well and the cable car started and we all made our way down the hill. The Princess tender was waiting when we got there and it was a smooth ride back to the ship.

 

The next day was a sea day and it was really needed after such a port intensive cruise. We took it easy today and went up to the 15th floor hot tubs to relax. There were lounges up there as well and no chair hogs. I didn’t check out the pools as they looked crowded.

 

Naples – June 18

 

We had a tour for Pompei and the Amalfi Coast booked with Daniele of Driver in Rome for 8 people (8 AM to 5 PM) cost 55 Euros with an additional 110 Euros for the guide in Pompei.

 

http://www.driverinrome.com

 

Although I had made this reservation more than 10 months ago and requested either Daniele or Remo they sent another driver. Just be aware that you will most probably be farmed out to another driver as I think they have just gotten to big to give the personal service they had a few years ago. That’s what happens when we tell everyone of the good guides on Cruise Critic. The driver they sent was Marco, who was a very nice man with a good knowledge of history. However, his driving was making some in our car very nervous and we were advised not to talk to him but let him drive. On those times he did try to give us info about the area he did not use a microphone and only the two people up front (Rich and I) were able to hear him. I felt bad for him since he wanted to tell us all about the area but we were trying not to talk to him so he could concentrate on his driving. The Amalfi Coast is very beautiful but consists of hairpin turns and sometimes when a bus is coming up and you are going down both cars will not fit. Plus, the crazy people on scooters added to the anxiety in the van. The van was air conditioned and easily fit 8 people. We did the Amalfi Coast first, then lunch at a wonderful hillside restaurant in Positano. We had an excellent manicotti dish as well as a cheese crepe dish that we all raved about, but the piece d’resistance was the dessert - cream puffs covered in chocolate sauce along with orange slices accompanied by home made lemoncello. Yum, yum….. I do think it is wise to do the Amalfi Coast before Pompei as it is better to work from the furthest point back so if there is a time constraint you are closer to the ship.

 

We then headed off to visit Pompei (I could have used a nap after that lunch) and met our guide. She spoke good English and gave us a lot of information on what we were seeing. I had been to Pompei before and enjoyed it just as much this time around. We were there about 1 ½ hours rather than the 2 hours we had originally been told but this was because we wanted to be back to the ship early in case there was traffic. Better safe than sorry as none of us wanted to be left behind in Naples as has happened in the past with other cruise critics.

 

Rome – June 19th

 

Again we had arranged a pickup for 8 of us along with all our luggage. We were to get a tour of Rome before being driven to our respective hotels. 6 of us were going to the Residencia Cellini and the other couple were going to the Hotel Quirinale (sp?) right around the corner from our hotel. Again, we had requested either Daniele or Remo and they sent us Aldo who was fine but not who we had requested. The cost of this pick up and tour was 600 Euros. We saw all the major sights except the Vatican and Sistine Chapel since it was a Sunday and they were closed. We were able to see the Pope give his 12 Noon blessing from his window in Vatican City. After this we went into St. Peter’s which is a breathtaking church. We also visited thePiazza Venezia known for the Victor Emanuel Monument, Roman Forum, Colosseum, Pantheon, Piaza Navona, Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. We also went to a local restaurant which was just OK. If you have a restaurant you would like to go to let them know as they will take you to one of their choice and this particular one was not really good and expensive to boot. We had expressed that we wanted to just go to someplace small for a beer and pizza and were met with looks of astonishment and told that you do not eat pizza for lunch in Rome and to leave it to Aldo to take us to a restaurant. Lesson learned…insist on what you want since you are paying for it.

 

At the end of the day we were transported to our respective hotels. The Hotel Quirinale was easy to find as it was located on Via Nationale (actually spelled with a Naz but since an ‘i” follows the z Cruise Critic blocks the word out. Our hotel was a little harder to find. The address was Via Modena 5 and the street numbers were not sequential. Good thing we had the phone number and we had Aldo call to verify where the hotel was.

 

We finally arrived at our hotel, which I discussed in a previous post.

 

Residencia Cellini

Via Medena 5

00184 Rome Italy

 

Tel 011-39-(0)6-4782-5204

Fax: 011-39-(0)6-4788-1806

E-mail: residenzacellini@tin.it <residenzacellini@tin.it>

 

We had a tour of the Vatican Museum scheduled for Monday morning as this was the only time two of our couples could do it as they were leaving for home on Tuesday. Our friends at the Hotel Quirinale left on Monday morning for home but we were staying until Thursday. You can find out how to book a private two hour tour of the Vatican Museum on their website (you need to fax them no more than 30 days before you want the tour). The cost is 21.50 Euro/pp and you pay when you get there. This also allows you to bypass the long line to get into the Vatican. You just show up at the Exit gate with your faxed confirmation and they let you right in.

 

The 6 of us left our hotel at 9:30 AM to catch a cab to the Vatican for our 10:30 AM tour (our hotel tried to call a car for us but couldn’t get through and she tried 4 car services, only to be put on hold). We had to split up into two cabs. Our taxi had no problems and brought us directly to where we needed to be at the Vatician exit. However, while riding along in our cab we saw our friends WALKING – what was going on we thought. We waited as long as we could at the Exit door of the Vatican then the guard told us we would have to go in or lose our place. We explained that we had lost 3 people in our party of 6 but that we were going in for our tour. While we waited for the tour to begin (we had paid for 3 of the 6 tickets) in comes our friends. Seems their cab driver had thrown them out of the taxi about 2 miles away from the Vatican telling them the road was closed and he refused to take them any further. Plus, to add insult to injury he charged them 16 Euros. Our taxi was only 9.90 Euros directly to the Vatican. Another lesson to be learned….beware of taxi drivers who would take advantage of tourists. I would have yelled “Policia” faster than you can say spaghetti if that had been me. At least they made it in time for the tour. This was a great way to do the Vatican Museum and we each had a headphone to listen to the guide while she spoke about the wonders of the museum. Our guide spoke wonderful English and was very knowledgeable. After our tour our group split up as some wanted to go shopping. Rich and I just decided to stroll around and then head back to our hotel area where we grabbed a bit to eat.

 

We met up with our friends in the evening for a nice “last supper” at one of the many restaurants by our hotel.

 

The next day, Rich and I went off to visit St. John in Laterno and Santa Maria Maggiore churches. To say that each one was beautiful is an understatement. Every church we went into in Rome was more beautiful then the next and each had something special to catch your eye. We also found a flea market a little ways from Santa Maria Maggiore and we enjoyed looking at all the wares. This was a large flea market and stretched back for many blocks. We stopped at a little local café for lunch and then took a taxi back to the Piazza de Nationale which was just around the corner from our hotel. We found that was the easiest destination to give the taxi drivers. Also, we had no problems using the taxis and all the drivers we encountered were courteous and honest except for the taxi our friends had to the Vatican.

 

We had found a nice outdoor café right at the Piazza de Nationale where we had been going for cappuccino each day and we decided to have dinner there. We spent a good two hours enjoying our food and drink and watching the world go by that evening. We got a kick out of the people at the table next to us who were obviously well known by everyone who went by. Fifteen people must have stopped by to say hello and chat with these people and eventually a few sat down for some food and drink. We figured they were either the local “Godfather” of the neighborhood or the owners of the restaurant.

 

Our last day in Rome we decided to take a taxi to the Trestevere area to see the small church there. This is a very untouristy area and could be considered a typical Italian neighborhood. Unfortunately, there was a lot of graffiti and a few unsavory characters around but I wouldn’t let that put you off visiting as there was a church that did not look like much on the outside but was stunning on the inside. We enjoyed the walk down the streets where there were neighborhood shops and also some small boutique shops. We stopped off for another cappuccino in a local café and took in the local flavor. When we were ready to leave we were looking for a taxi when, lo and behold, a couple comes up to where we are standing looking for a taxi too and it turns out to be Sandy and Ira. Who would guess we would meet them in Trestevere of all places. We shared a taxi back the Pantheon and joined them for lunch on our last day in Rome. What a nice surprise and end to our time in Rome.

 

We headed back to our hotel to pack for our return trip to New York and had a last dinner at our restaurant on the Piazza. Barbara, who runs the hotel, had made arrangements for us to be picked up at 9:10 AM for our 12:10 PM flight and the driver was on time. Getting the luggage down in the small elevator was a bit of a chore and it took two trips but managed to get everything down in one piece, us included.

 

Before we knew it we were on our way back to NY. Our Delta flight was direct and we had a bunch of Italians who must have been traveling in a group on the plane. They were a lively bunch and it was a noisy, cheerful flight all the way back to NY.

 

It was a wonderful trip made better with good friends, and we saw some wonderful sights and had a lot of fun. This will be a hard trip to top but we will certainly try on our next cruise to Tahiti.

 

Our family we left at home was glad to see us (Maggie our Bearded Collie was especially excited to see us back) and my grandson, Christopher, immediately asked if he could do a sleep over. Guess that means things are back to normal.

 

For all those going after us, we hope you will enjoy your trip as much as we did.

 

The End!

[mountainhouse]

Wonderful review. Thanks very much!

[joandbun]

Hi

Fabulous review. Lots of very useful info.

We are on this cruise starting 9/11 & in cabin C333. Just paid the balance today & very excited.:)

Wondered if you were moored sea-side or coast-side at Santorini & Mykonos.

Did the balcony have chairs with cushions or ...?

Would the steward mind if we put our own stuff in the minibar?

Fisrt time on Princess ... so questions and I`m sure there will be lots more questions..

thanks a million

jo

[Snackdaddy]

Hi NEW YORK LADY2,

 

Great review!!! Thanks for sharing your experiences with us. I am however, having trouble accessing your pictures through the link you provided. http://www.imagestation.com/album/i...l?id=2124734713 We would really love to see them.

[queeng]

Thanks for the review. I had fun reading it to my husband last night and dreaming about our up coming trip.

How did you handle the money situation with your group when you did the private tours? Did you all (each couple) pay the guide seperately? Did one person collect it all and pay them? Approx. how much did you tip?

 

Aloha,

Ginger

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Try this link. I copied it again so hope it works.

 

http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2124734713

 

Jackie.

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Joandbun, In Mykonos we were facing the land as I could see the town in the distance to our right and then a beach area to our left. In Santorini we didn't dock, we tendered and the ship was in the caldera so you sort of faced land on both sides of the ship.

 

Our balcony had chairs but we requested loungers from Oscar, our cabin steward so we wound up with two regular chairs, two loungers and a round table plus a small square table.

 

I don't think there will be a problem with putting your stuff in the mini bar as it was empty except for the ice bucket. There was a bottle of water and sodas on top of the mini bar for sale which we told him to take away because we wouldn't be buying it, but he said to just leave it there so we did and weren't charged. We did keep water we bought on shore in the refrigerator and a bottle of champagne.

 

Queeng, on some of the tours each of the couples paid the drivers separately; on others we gave all the money including tip to one person and he gave it to the driver. Really doesn't matter how you do it. We tended to tip up, especially in Kusadashi where the tour was so cheap to begin with and it was especially well done. Tipping is really very personal and just use your best judgement on what you feel is right. If the tour was excellent and you had a good driver/tour guide give more, if the driver/guide did not give you a good tour then he did not earn a good tip, just give him a minimum tip. Use a guide of 10-15% of the cost of the tour as a guide and work from there.

 

Jackie

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Just bumping this up for those that said there are no reviews on the Med cruises.

 

Hope it helps.

 

Jackie

[Lanz]

Thanks so much for your review, we will be sailing on the Golden in May with the same itinerary. I am trying to book a flight out of Rome, do you know what was the earliest you could disembark in Citavecchio and how long it takes to get to the airport. Thanks and Best Regards

[joandbun]

New york lady - Thanks for the info. Much appreciated. Yes, we like to buy a couple of bottles ashore & keep it cool :cool:

 

Really looking forward to the trip. counting the days

 

regards,

jo

[suntanzi]

You can only get Remo if you have a 12 passenger van, he is the only one with a license so that's the way to get him. :) That's funny about Marco, back in 10/04 he did such a bad job that my friends fired the company for the rest of the week so Daniele offered to drive them every day and said Marco was fired. I guess it could be a different Marco.

[lladage]

New York Lady2 (or anyone else who has taken this cruise),

 

Thanks so much for the wonderful review. We are looking at this cruise for next October. Do you recall seeing any objects suitable for making a rubbing? For anyone who has never heard of this, you find an object with a flat surface that has been engraved in an intricate pattern, place colored (usually black) paper over it, and gently rub with a metallic (brass, gold, or silver) 'crayon'. These can be made in any size and make gorgeous pieces of artwork when properly framed.

 

If anyone can think of any suitable objects, I will bring supplies from home and take home some wonderful souvenirs. Thanks again.

 

Lynn

[Snackdaddy]

NEW YORK LADY2,

 

What wonderful pictures!!!!! Thanks for sharing them with us. BTW your shots are fantastic, what kind of camera do you have?

[NEW YORK LADY]

Snackdaddy,

 

I use an Olympus Digital with a 10X zoom lens (I think it is a model C740 but don't hold me to that). I really do like the camera a lot but looking through the viewfinder took a bit of getting used to as it seems to blue then clear up. Can't explain it but it did take a while to get used to it. I don't like to look at the screen as I seem to "shake" more while taking a picture that way.

 

Lynn, I didn't really notice if you could make rubbings or not. We did see quite a lot of artifacts that were deeply carved but don't know if you would have been alowed to do rubbings of them. Bring your "stuff" and if you can then do it. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

 

Jackie

[kare8ear]

Thanks for the info regarding the Grand Princess; we will be on it on Aug 18 for the Grand Med tour. Can anyone do personal choice dining and is there an extra fee for that? Are you just seated based upon availability and do you get the same menu choices?

 

Re: Turkey...what currency do they accept in Turkey? Lira?

 

Thanks so much for answering my questions!

[Snackdaddy]

Hi Jackie,

 

Thanks for the information.

 

Paul

[Breezey]

Just wondering, my husband is still deciding on whether to take his tuxedo.

I know after a full day of touring, many would rather just relax or be happy to primp.

 

What were formal nights like as far as how dressy people got?

[marp109]

Thank you especially for the identifying pictures for the Locanda Orseola as we're staying there pre-cruise in sept. and it will making finding it so much easier. Your pictures made me so much more eager to get there:)

[NEW YORK LADY2]

Currency in Turkey was Euro's as far as I remember. I don't think Lira are used any more, even in Italy as they are part of the European Union that uses Euros now.

 

Formal nights were pretty dressy although there were many men in dark suits rather than Tuxedos, my husband included (tried to order a tux but they did not carry a 38 Long on the ship). Women ranged from very dressy with gowns to cocktail dresses to dressy pant outfits.

 

Marp109, That was exactly what I was trying to do. Make it easier for our CC friends to find. You will love your stay there and say "hello" to Francesco and Barbara from the June 7th Grand cruisers for us, won't you.

 

Jackie

 

J