Review Vista May 24 - June 3 Med Cruise

[BaseballMomof4]

Ok, so first stop Kusadasi, Turkey!

 

Everyone with the willies about going to Turkey take a deep breath and relax. We had a FABULOUS time there and never felt unsafe. Annoyed by salesman maybe, but never unsafe.

 

We had booked with Ephesus Shuttle on their "relax" tour which essentially means we got to decide where we went and for how long. This was FANTASTIC! Our guide, Emre (who was an absolute gem by the way) met us at the port and took us first to the Virgin Mary House. This was a great call as it gets crowded as the day goes on. Only those of us who wanted to tour it did and others sat down for a cup of tea and a snack at the lovely little restaurant they have there.

 

The Virgin Mary House is an experience, particularly for Catholics. There is little to see but I would not have missed it for the world.

 

 

We had a quick snack and bathroom break and then headed off to Ephesus. Emre's knowledge of the area (he said it was his office!) was wonderful as he kept us one step ahead of the large tour groups without us having to miss a thing. His commentary was fun and engaging and our whole group genuinely enjoyed this tour. Ephesus is truly breathtaking.

 

 

Edited June 10, 2016 by BaseballMomof4

[BaseballMomof4]

Having issues putting photos in this thread. If anyone can assist, please let me know. When I try to insert the link from facebook I just get the little boxes like you see now. When I try to insert from photobucket the pictures are huge. When I try using the link for email and IM from photobucket, I get those little boxes again :eek:

[BaseballMomof4]

After Ephesus we, at our request, went to a leather outlet. The prices were a bit more than we wanted to pay on our first stop of the cruise but the quality was out of this world and the jackets were definitely worth the price they were willing to come down to (remember to bargain wherever you go!). In hindsight, we wished we had purchased them.

 

After that we had Emre take us back to the port area. He recommended a restaurant that was EXCELLENT and after lunch some of us shopped while others returned to the ship.

 

Lesson from this stop:

 

The country side from this port to Ephesus is beautiful and the port area is lovely as well.

 

Ephesus Shuttle (and Suzan) are fabulous and their "Relax Tour" worked wonderfully for us.

 

Emre is the guide you want! Fun, funny, knowledgeable and a total joy!

 

Leather merchants are pushy and the ones in the port shops get really angry when you don't buy. :rolleyes: They wait until you leave and then they throw things. :p

Edited June 10, 2016 by BaseballMomof4

[micabrooks]

Hello! What restaurant did you enjoy in Turkey?

We're looking forward to trying an authentic Turkish meal in two weeks.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[bluwes]

Looking forward to your review.

We have the same ports in September. Already noted the Athinaikon, we are staying nearby at the Athens Status Suites. Same Plaka district

[BaseballMomof4]

Hello! What restaurant did you enjoy in Turkey?

We're looking forward to trying an authentic Turkish meal in two weeks.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

There is a waterfront square directly across from the shopping area with a fountain in the center. I have aphoto of the fountain but am having issues uploading pictures right not. As you face the water, the restaurant is on the left and has a large vertical sign that says Restaurant with blue lettering. Unfortunately, since our guide pointed it out for us, we never got the name.

[BaseballMomof4]

 

The restaurant we ate it is under that awning to the left of the fountain.

[shark&minnow]

more! more! More!

Thank you for posting. I appreciate your tip about the taste bar and the hub app. I have the app, but didn't think there was much to it.

[BaseballMomof4]

The hardest part about using the Hub app is remembering to reconnect to the Carnival wifi after being in port! One of my kids kept forgetting to do that and would say "it doesn't work!" :p

 

So, next day was a sea day and not too much to report there. As I said above, I was pleasantly surprised at the ability to find chairs! I am used to having to do battle for a chair on sea day but not this time! The weather was perfect and we had a nice day. Some played trivia, some laid by the pool some shopped. It was elegant night so we all dressed up and had a great dinner!! Food was excellent in the dining room that night. And our photos were on our phones immediately!

 

Next port was Rhodes.

[BaseballMomof4]

Ok, so Rhodes, sigh, I dropped the ball big time on this one. It looks very easy to DIY so that was the plan. We wanted to get to Lindos and ride the donkeys. Got off the ship that morning and there were the usual large groups of taxis waiting. Only what I didn't understand was how expensive they would be. The cheapest one was $67 per person one way. Not happening. So we set out to find the HoHo. Doesn't go there. We were very disappointed.

 

We did; however, walk around quite a bit and it is beautiful right there near the port. Tons of cute shops and great restaurants. And we found the clock tower. For 5 euro you can enter and climb the clock tower and your ticket buys you a drink at the little bar attached so totally worth the 5 euro. The views from the top are stunning and we got some great photos!

 

Here is a view of the ship from the top of the clock tower

 

[BaseballMomof4]

There is plenty to do right after you get off the ship in Rhodes. Beautiful views, shopping, food and history. But if you have a specific thing in mind that you want to see I would say plan ahead. We could have taken the local bus for 5.50 euro each but my kids were uncomfortable with that and I had not done the research, that one is on me.

 

Here's a couple of photos from Rhodes

 

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Edited June 12, 2016 by BaseballMomof4

[seabeelarry]

Great reviews so far, can't wait for more, as we sail out of Athens very soon.

[BaseballMomof4]

Our next port of call was Malta. Get up early and make sure you are watching as the ship enters this port - it is breathtaking!

 

For this port we had planned to take the HoHo. There are 2 companies that are very similar. We chose MaltaSightseeing. Some friends of mine chose the other line, I believe CitySightseeing. Both lines had issues.

 

Be aware they will say each routh is 2 hours, so we thought we had plenty of time to do both routes. This is simply not the case, and it worked out the same for both companies so neither performed better than the other.

 

Thinking we could do both, we chose the blue line first and went to Mdina. While the rest of the trip was simply rural vistas on the way to Mdina and sea views on the way back. Mdina was totally worth the trip. If you want to see Hagaar Qim, take the red line. Just be advised that it is more than likely going to be either or unless you book some kind of private tour.

 

After Mdina we simply went back to Valletta and had a nice lunch at the waterfront. There are several shops there as well and they are not horribly overpriced. I got a nice Maltese Cross for about 30 euro.

[BaseballMomof4]

Some photos from Malta

 

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[BaseballMomof4]

Backtracking for a moment.

 

If you go to the Virgin Mary House and have an opportunity to stop in their little ship BUY THE APPLE TEA!!!!!!!!!!!! It is delicious!!!!!!! I tried it for the first time yesterday and I will be searching online for a way to buy it!!

 

YUM!

[BaseballMomof4]

Okay, next stop - Messina.

 

I had a pre-planned tour of Mt. Etna and Taormina. We were picked up promptly by Rome in Limo's driver - Luca right outside of the gates and off we went. Luca planned a quick stop in a small town on the way for a honey tasting.

 

The honey here was phenomenal and we wound up buying a small jar. They also had infused olive oils of which we bought 2 bottles - the onion and the oregano, delicious! In addition they had wine, of which I purchased a bottle of almond wine which I stupidly got taken away from me because I forgot to take it out of my carry on and put it in my checked baggage on the way home :mad: and then they had some rocket fuel - LOL! Whatever it was, it was 70 percent alcohol and trust me when I tell you it will cure what ails you! LOL!!

 

We left the honey place and headed for Mt. Etna. It is quite a sight to behold. On the way up, Luca explained to us the different floral that grows at each level and we could watch as it changed. It really was very interesting. When we got to the top there was plenty of time for photo ops and even going into one of the craters. When I came out there was a man sitting there with a small goat and for a donation you could pet the goat and he gave you a piece of lava with a ladybug glued on it - Luca said he was a local who quit his job at a grocery store, adopted the goat and makes about 100 euro in half a day doing that! Hahahahahaha! Good for him!

 

Mt. Etna

 

[southerngirl8]

I will add my review to Amy's link... as we traveled together and as much as we did together, we did equal things apart, once I am feeling better! I got sick right after I came home!

[BaseballMomof4]

When we left Mt. Etna, we headed toward Taormina but Luca asked if we would like to make a short stop in a town called Giardini Naxos. It was a lovely sea side town where we got out of the van and walked around for a few minutes. Great photo ops. Luca explained that the name is part Italian, part Greek and essentially means "Garden Garden" and is an homage to the habitation by both Italians and Greeks over the centuries.

 

As you can see here, the beaches are lava rock:

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After our brief pit stop, we went on to Taormina.

[BaseballMomof4]

Taormina is a gorgeous mountainside town. Tons of shopping and restaurants. Luca left us there to have lunch and to wander the town. He recommended a restaurant and I wish I could remember the name because, while the other more obvious ones were crammed, we were able to get a table for 8 at this one with a wonderful view. It is not obvious from the street, just a sign and you go down some stairs to get to it. I will see if someone in our group remembers the name.

 

We had a wonderful lunch there - I had the Spaghetti alla Norma, which was superb! After lunch we pretty much just wandered around taking photos and enjoying the shops.

 

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Edited June 14, 2016 by BaseballMomof4

[LaCal]

Thanks for your review and photos ..Looking forward to more

[BaseballMomof4]

Our next port of call was Naples. We went to Pompeii, Positano and Sorrento with Rome in Limo in 2013, so this time we opted to go to Capri.

 

Since I am somewhat OCD when it comes to planning, I booked my ferry tickets online to ensure I got the times I wanted. Be aware that if you do this you still have to go to the "internet" line to exchange your printout for actual tickets; however, there was only 1 woman ahead of me so no wait.

 

It could not be easier to get from the ship to the ferry in Naples but do yourself a favor if sitting outside - sit up front. You won't see as much but when the spray starts, you will be glad!!

 

The ferry trip went exactly as was stated, about 45 minutes. When we arrived on Capri our main interest was seeing the Blue Grotto, so we opted for the boat tour around the island that takes you to the white, green, coral and blue grottoes. We were not disappointed, gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous.

 

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[BaseballMomof4]

I was wondering how on earth they were going to get this boat full of people into smaller boats to go into the blue grotto but never did find out since they closed it due to choppy waters. This seems to be a theme for us when we go to Europe :rolleyes: So we simply complete the circuit of the island and went back to Marina Grande.

 

Once back, we went up to Capri Town on the funicular (a short wait, maybe 10 minutes). The line for this when we first got to Capri was insane, but it had gone down to maybe half by this time.

 

Once in Capri Town we, of course, took in the spectacular views and then found a place to eat lunch. The views from the restaurant were so incredible it almost looks as if we are posing in front of a fake backdrop!

 

Be advised though, you are paying for that view. Lunch was incredibly expensive. Something I have not mentioned, these places literally charge a cover fee per person and also charge you for water. The same thing happened in Messina.

[BaseballMomof4]

After lunch we decided against going up to Anacapri as our time was running short and we had our return ferry trip to catch.

 

While disappointed to not get there, it gives me a reason to go back ;)

 

So back down to Marina Grande we went and sat at a little cafe across the street from the ferry dock (with free wifi) until our ferry came. We did take turns going around shopping for a bit as well and if you go down to the corner (to the left facing the funicular) there is a great store with beautiful hand made Christmas ornaments.

 

Once back in Naples you really MUST check out the shops in the cruise terminal. Don't just stop at the ones in the front, keep going. There is a FABULOUS shoe store in the back!!!

[BaseballMomof4]

Our next stop was Rome. I had planned a ride to and from Rome with Rome in Limo and had pre-purchased tickets to the Vatican Museums online. Our ride was to pick us up at 8 and our Vatican tickets were for 9:30. Sounds reasonable, right? Yeah, well, not so much. There was a strike in Rome that day so traffic was horrible because everyone was driving. While our driver picked us up as scheduled, we did not get into Rome until after 10.

 

Since I had spent quite a bit on the tickets, I was not going to be swayed from seeing those museums so in we went. I assumed they would give us some sort of issue but had planned to try to change them for a later time. Fortunately no one said a word, they let us enter without question. Before you take that as open season - others with more specific tickets were turned away that day, so apparently we just got lucky.

 

I could post hundreds of photos from the Vatican but just know it is breathtaking.

 

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[BaseballMomof4]

Also know that it is horribly crowded. But worth it.

 

We had toured the Colosseum in 2013 along with the Trevi so this trip we wanted to see the Vatican.

 

We easily spent a couple of hours in there and, when through, we set out toward the Piazza Navona. Maybe it was the crowds, maybe it was heightened expectations, maybe it was just being tired but somehow Piazza Navona, while pretty, was not quite what I expected it to be.

 

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