Just back from med cruise May 24-June 3

[pattyl]

I cannot gush enough about this ship and our trip!! This was a dream in the making ever since I saw it advertised 18 months ago. I went with my adult son to celebrate his completion of his master's degree. I had booked an inside room but with some luck did get an upgrade to an inside Havana room which was lovely and larger than most inside rooms. We were so busy that we only took advantage of the exclusive access to the pool area on our sea day and enforcement of early access is spotty but it was not a problem. We were in room 7448 and it was very quiet.

The ship is amazing and we never felt crowded. I do think the sky ride however could have longer hours as we were often off the ship for a very long time on tours and when we returned the ride was already closed so we only could use it once. We did go to the IMAX to see "The Jungle Book"(awesome) and also enjoyed the thrill theater. The dining room food was excellent and each day there were special dishes from the countries we had just visited. We had my time dining and never waited more than 5" for a table.

We enjoyed the entertainment as well as the comedians. My son was very lucky in the casino but I am not a gambler so cannot comment on this aspect of cruise. The staff was very nice and accommodating. We were very happy with the ship but I wish there had been one more sea day as with the tours in most ports we were exhausted.

Prior to trip we stayed 3 days in Athens at the lovely Plaka hotel which is fantastic and very centrally located to all the sites and the Plaka. We also stayed 3 days in Barcelona and this is a city well worth visiting and seemed to be the least expensive city for us(after Kusadasi).

The ship was worth every penny I paid and I would go another cruise in a heartbeat. The photographers on this cruise were not aggressive which was a nice change. Few people seem to use this service anymore and the photos are very expensive. The shops onboard were just average and this is the only somewhat negative statement. We had a great time and I am happy to answer any additional questions.

[aquarianne11]

Thanks so much for the review. Can't wait for our Vista cruise in July.

[portico]

Enjoyed your review of the Vista and your comments on the pre-cruise stay in Athens and post-cruise stay in Barcelona. We will be flying into Athens in October with an immediate flight to Santorini for a two-night stay. It has been 40 years since I spent a day on that beautiful island while on a Greek Island tour and am eager to spend more time there. Then, we fly back to Athens for a tour of the city and a three-day classical tour before boarding the Vista for a 10-day Med. cruise and the 13-day Trans-Atlantic cruise. In which hotel did you stay while in Athens? And, Barcelona is one of our favorite cities also. So walkable and love Gaudi's Sagrada Familia. Hope you were able to tour it. We spent three days in Barcelona before boarding Carnival's Magic several years ago. Concerning the IMAX theater, do we have to book a seat for a definite time or do we just show up at a scheduled showing?

[sb4ever]

We go in July and cannot wait! Did you have a good any time dining service team or did you switch it up every night? I have found it helpful to get recommendations prior to cruising :)

[happy cruiser1234]

Thank you so much for the review. We also have cabin 7448 booked for our two teenage daughters and I was quite concerned about the noise. Glad to hear that the room is very quiet.

 

Deck plans show this room to be a connecting room, did you hear any noise from your adjoining neighbour? Also just wondering if there are stairs right outside your cabin which lead to the Havana area on Deck 5?

 

Glad you had a fantastic trip! :)

[pupsmama]

I'm interested in which tours you took and how you liked them. How did you get into Rome?

[Halftocruz]

Thank you so much for the review. We also have cabin 7448 booked for our two teenage daughters and I was quite concerned about the noise. Glad to hear that the room is very quiet.

 

Deck plans show this room to be a connecting room, did you hear any noise from your adjoining neighbour? Also just wondering if there are stairs right outside your cabin which lead to the Havana area on Deck 5?

 

Glad you had a fantastic trip! :)

 

Glad you asked this question. I am also in 7448 and can't wait to hear what she has to say about it. I'm on the August 6th cruise.

 

I also saw stairs outside our cabin and wondered where they go! I'm so relieved to hear it is quiet :) :):)

[mrsfuzzmo]

Glad you asked this question. I am also in 7448 and can't wait to hear what she has to say about it. I'm on the August 6th cruise.

 

I also saw stairs outside our cabin and wondered where they go! I'm so relieved to hear it is quiet :) :):)

 

I don't know for sure, as I have not yet been on the ship, but looking at the deck plans makes me believe these are staff/emergency stairwells. I've stayed in many aft cabins and there are always stairwells in the aft, but they are not for public use. I would imagine you will need to go to the aft elevator/stairwell area to use the stairs.

 

I may be wrong, but that's been my experience.