Queen Elizabeth November 7th-21st Med Cruise Review

[travelplus]

Hello fellow Cunarders. I am here to begin my Blog about our cruise. My Father and I are embarking on the November 7th 14 night Mediterranean cruise from Athens-Rome.

 

Working in Travel and Tourism does come with its perks. Having completed many of the online training programs gives you an insight on the cruise industry. Please note that per Cruise Critic Forum Terms and Conditions I will not be mentioning my agency information. I do not endorse any services mentioned here. You are getting a review from a Travel and Tourism Specialist point of view.

 

Please also note that I do not take any responsibility if you use a service mentioned and it does not provide the services promised etc. You read this review at your own risk.

 

I was the one to introduce my Father into cruising after planning and booking a Trans Atlantic in 2012 on Royal Caribbean from San Juan Puerto Rico-Barcelona. We enjoyed that cruise a lot that we booked a New Orleans-Rome for 2013 and then a Santos(Sao Paulo) Brazil-Barcelona for this past April.

 

As a graduate of the Commodore Travel Agent Program which takes a considerable amount of time to complete we as graduates are allowed to book a cruise. It has been in the back of my mind for years to take a Mediterranean cruise but it had to be on the right ship.

 

Our ports of call are as follows:

 

Valletta Malta

La Goulette(Tunis)

Palermo Sicily

Naples Italy

Rome Italy

Livorno Italy(Florence and Pisa)

Monte Carlo Monaco

Toulon France

Barcelona Spain

Ending in Rome.

 

So you might ask why are we doing this in November? The answer is because when you book a graduation cruise you are given a survey to fill out. You are then called to book a cruise that is available. In order to get the first or second choice one has to book off season.

 

I get a voicemail on a Monday and had to gather the options again and was prepared to book. I called back on Tuesday and was offered this cruise either as a 7 night or 14 night hence why you see Rome in the middle of the cruise. I chose the 14 night cruise due to the extra port of calls.

 

We are given an interior cabin for the port taxes which is fine due to the port intensive cruise. We are rarely in our cabin as we have noticed on previous cruises and we are up on deck 99 percent of the time.

 

As you will see I love planning every aspect of the trip. The next part of the puzzle was to find airline tickets. If this were in summer we would have had issues finding a good price at the last minute. Most of these cruises are booked 45 days in advance.

 

The fun begins when I had to find the best airfare and work on the arrival and departure dates. It would be a true waste and stressful if we arrived Athens on the day of the cruise. Since we are flying from San Francisco to Athens and Rome-San Francisco we had to find flight that leave and depart at reasonable times.

 

I went online to Expedia and a travel consolidator. I found out that the best flight was on Lufthansa(which is my airline of choice) for $1,300 per person. The flight schedule was perfect as other airlines had us arriving at 12:00 AM. We leave SFO at 2:40 PM and arrive the next day in Athens with an almost 3 hour layover in Frankfurt. The return flight leaves Rome at 12:05 PM with a 2 hour layover in Munich arriving SFO at 7:00 PM.

 

The next ordeal was finding hotels. I went onto Expedia and saw 3 star hotels going for $80-$100+. So I then went onto Hotwire and saw the neighborhood map and was willing to give up knowing the name and location of the hotel in advance.

 

Did we luck out or what? We got the Airotel Parthenon in Athens which is located very close to the Parthenon, Plaka, Parthenon Metro Station for $80 a night. This does not include the City Tax. Breakfast is included and the rooms are large enough for our needs.

 

In Rome I got the Marcella Royal Hotel for $90 which is a very nice Boutique 4 Star Hotel with a roof top terrace with 360 degree views of Rome. The rate also includes breakfast as well.

 

Both hotels are Boutique Hotels and got a 90 percent rating on TripAdviser. The location of the hotels are perfect for our needs. We are a 15-20 minute walk to Termini Station in Rome , a 10 minute walk to the Republica Metro station as well.

 

So we are staying 3 night pre-cruise in Athens and 4 nights post-cruise in Rome. During the first stop in Rome we plan to tour Civitiavechia(sp) as the reviews stated if you have seen Rome or are going to Rome this is a nice historic town. We shall see.

 

I then went onto Worldwide Airport Transfers and found us shuttles from the Athens Airport to our hotel and our hotel- Rome Airport. For $50 for 2 in Rome and $45 for 2 in Athens we got a shared shuttle ride. We don't want to deal with the rush hour traffic in Rome and in Athens we would be too tired to deal with haggling for a taxi or taking the bus offered.

 

Now we are in the process of deciding which ship tours to take.

 

As always please give me feedback and tips for the Queen Elizabeth. We look forward to dressing up Formally on Formal nights etc.

 

I'm not sure if I will post photos but at least I will give you a rundown on how the trip goes. I do not anticipate this to be a "Live" report but it will be as detailed as possible.

 

As a Travel and Tourism professional we are required to do onboard events such as taking a ship tour,filling out a worksheet and attending other events. I look forward to doing this as travel has always been a passion. I am a hands-on learner and I firmly believe in actually experiencing the ship first hand before selling it to clients. As I live in an affluent area there would be a good possibility that future clients will book on Cunard.

 

As stated above I will not be divulging any contact info or endorsing any services. I will not be giving you inside trade information with regards to Cunard. I also do not take responsibility if you chose to use a service that I mention. You are free to use the information for your own personal booking needs.

 

Looking forward to your comments.

Edited September 26, 2014 by travelplus

[jakd4]

Hello:

My name is Jack and my wife's name is Kim, we are also doing her Commodore Cruise and will be staying in Athens 3 days prior and Italy 10 days after. we fly out of Venice. Is this the only correspondence on Cruise Critic for this Cruise? I love your idea of a live blog. We are from Toronto around 50 in age, I am a firefighter and my wife is, of course, a Travel professional. we are still open as to what we are doing in each port and tend to try and stay away from Ship booked excursions unless absolutely necessary. It was nice to find someone who is on the cruise and hope to chat further.

[balf]

Hello:

. Is this the only correspondence on Cruise Critic for this Cruise? I /QUOTE]

 

I see that there is a roll call for this cruise. You are on it.

 

David.

[balf]

Looking forward to your comments.

 

You say you are "allowed to book a cruise" how does this work, is it part of the course. Who pays for it (silly question really because obviously you do one way or another) Could you give some details as how the course is formulated. Do you end up as a qualified travel agent. Do you have letters after your name.

 

This will be an interesting blog from an unusual viewpoint.

 

David.

[jgd3rdbcfd]

Jack and Kim, My wife and I are on QE 14-28 Nov, Rome to Venice. I am a retired BC from Baltimore. See you on board. Are we going to have 'a meet' during your 2nd week? Greg

[travelplus]

Hello:

My name is Jack and my wife's name is Kim, we are also doing her Commodore Cruise and will be staying in Athens 3 days prior and Italy 10 days after. we fly out of Venice. Is this the only correspondence on Cruise Critic for this Cruise? I love your idea of a live blog. We are from Toronto around 50 in age, I am a firefighter and my wife is, of course, a Travel professional. we are still open as to what we are doing in each port and tend to try and stay away from Ship booked excursions unless absolutely necessary. It was nice to find someone who is on the cruise and hope to chat further.

 

Hello Jack it's so nice to meet a Commodore connection(your wife) here on the forums. I look forward to connecting with your wife the travel professional. I have booked the Ship Excursions to help my clients and it would be nice to share notes.

 

So far we have booked the Introduction to Florence, The Best of Tunis with lunch and a tour of Carthage, Nice and Cannes, Pompeii On Your Own.

 

There is a Roll Call here on the Forum if you go under "Roll Calls" for the QE November 7th Cruise.

 

There has not been a lot of information with regards to the Commodore requirements other than there will be a form that we must fill out. Perhaps your wife knows more and you can report on the other requirements. All I know from speaking with Cunard is that the activities happen on Sea Days since they want people to experience the ports for their clients.

 

We do get Platinum Status with their Loyalty Program which gives you 4 hours of Internet, Invitation to the Senior Officer Party, Past Loyalty Party, Priority Embarkation/Disembarkation Lounge and other features.

 

What grade of cabin did you decide to book in? I chose the interior since this is a port intensive cruise.

 

My name is Daniel and my Father's name is Charles from the Silicon Valley in CA.

 

This will not be a "live blog" because of the port intensive nature of the cruise. I was able to book airfare on Lufthansa.

 

Looking forward to meeting you both.

Edited September 30, 2014 by travelplus

[travelplus]

You say you are "allowed to book a cruise" how does this work, is it part of the course. Who pays for it (silly question really because obviously you do one way or another) Could you give some details as how the course is formulated. Do you end up as a qualified travel agent. Do you have letters after your name.

 

This will be an interesting blog from an unusual viewpoint.

 

David.

 

David there is no silly question in the Travel Industry. I have graduated from a Travel and Tourism Program and recently joined a Host Agency. Part of being a Host Agent requires me to take the various online Cruiseline trainings which I love to do.

 

In the first month I completed the Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Azamara, Princess,Cunard as well as Viking and Uniworld River Cruises.

 

The Commodore Program is a training program specific to Cunard. Princess also offers a Graduation Cruise. We are responsible for paying the port taxes if we want an Interior cabin. For upgrades we are responsible for this.

 

In addition we are responsible for airfare, gratuities and incidentals just like you are. We do get Platinum Status on Cunard and must take refresher courses every year to maintain our status.

 

Being a Commodore means that we have clout over other "mill agents" who purchase a travel degree. When I tell future clients that I'm Commodore Status with Cunard and that I have taken my Graduation cruise that gives them confidence that they are working with a reputable agent.

 

I'm the person who works hard and as I'm a hands on person this graduation cruise is right up my alley. We are required to take a ship tour and attend various programs onbaord as well as fill out a sheet depending on the cruise the requirements can vary.

 

In addition to my Travel and Tourism training I have a Masters in Education with an emphasis in E-learning/Corporate Training and a BA in Liberal Studies as well as a Certificate in Assistive Technology(for individuals with disabilities).

 

Bob's Your Uncle.

Edited September 30, 2014 by travelplus

[jakd4]

Hello Daniel:

My wife and I are both Travel consultants so I will be joining her on all shipboard requirements and we have an inside room, looking forward to meeting you. We do not know anything about the commodore requirements. At the moment we have not booked any excursions but we are trying to do this on our own so we may have some openings if we find good deals on shared excursions. Nice chatting and talk soon.

Jack and Kim

[travelplus]

Hello Daniel:

My wife and I are both Travel consultants so I will be joining her on all shipboard requirements and we have an inside room, looking forward to meeting you. We do not know anything about the commodore requirements. At the moment we have not booked any excursions but we are trying to do this on our own so we may have some openings if we find good deals on shared excursions. Nice chatting and talk soon.

Jack and Kim

 

Jack and Kim,

 

So glad you are both Travel Consultants like myself. I'm sure we'll have some stories to share and learn the trick of the trade. What I was told when I called Cunard that the Commodore Requirements happen on sea days or in the evening. Perhaps we will just fill out a worksheet and attend some events and take a ship tour.

 

Let's plan on "teaming up" and making the work we have to do as fun and educational as possible if that is OK with you.

Edited October 1, 2014 by travelplus