Rome or Venice?

[Matysgirl]

I'm not new to cruising (been on 14) but never done Europe. I have a free cruise from casinos at sea, anywhere but Hawaii. So once in a lifetime trip to Europe I decided. Me, hubby and my 13 year old son. Looking at this July. I have to book it by 2/19. Right now, the epic out of Rome has no inside cabins (inside is free, will upgrade to balcony) so I would have to pay $2800 by 2/19. The star out of Venice has an inside at a cost of $1336 (will upgrade to balcony when I have the $). I don't use credit cards so I would have to have the money by the time I book. Is the epic itinerary worth the scramble to get the money by 2/19?

[FranknBeans]

I'm not new to cruising (been on 14) but never done Europe. I have a free cruise from casinos at sea, anywhere but Hawaii. So once in a lifetime trip to Europe I decided. Me, hubby and my 13 year old son. Looking at this July. I have to book it by 2/19. Right now, the epic out of Rome has no inside cabins (inside is free, will upgrade to balcony) so I would have to pay $2800 by 2/19. The star out of Venice has an inside at a cost of $1336 (will upgrade to balcony when I have the $). I don't use credit cards so I would have to have the money by the time I book. Is the epic itinerary worth the scramble to get the money by 2/19?

 

 

The sail away down the Venice canal is nothing like you've seen before. Looking down on St Mark's Square and seeing the Doge Palace is just epic.

We did this cruise on the Jade which is similar to the Star in size.

 

Can't comment on Rome as we haven't been.

 

Dubrovnik and Split Croatia are amazing ports as well.

Would do this cruise again in a heart beat.

 

And the Star happens to be our favorite ship. We don't like the bigger ships.

Edited February 1, 2017 by FranknBeans

[Matysgirl]

The sail away down the Venice canal is nothing like you've seen before. Looking down on St Mark's Square and seeing the Doge Palace is just epic.

We did this cruise on the Jade which is similar to the Star in size.

 

Can't comment on Rome as we haven't been.

 

Dubrovnik and Split Croatia are amazing ports as well.

Would do this cruise again in a heart beat.

 

And the Star happens to be our favorite ship. We don't like the bigger ships.

 

 

Would it help that my favorite ship is the Oasis??

[LadyStone50]

We have cruised all over the world and I agree with the previous post. Sailing out of (and into) Venice is absolutely breathtaking.

 

That being said, its a bittersweet thing, because apparently the cavitation from the ships is hurting the buildings and foundations along the Grand Canal. Restrictions on the gigantic ships has already happened and there is talk of closing the canal to all cruise ships.

[Clay Clayton]

Will you be able to do any time on land before the trip? If so then you could do both. The fast train between the two is comfortable as well as fast seems like under four hours so if this really a once in a lifetime trip, then you should see both and Florence too!

[NCruiser2012]

I have done both ports and cruised on both ships. Rome is far from Civitavecchia, just so you know. Venice is very beautiful and can easily be done by yourself. Can you leave from Barcelona? Maybe there are inside cabins on this route. Both ships are great as are the itineraries.

 

It depends on what you want. If you want the classic Mediterranean, try to get on the Epic. The Epic may be a little more friendly for your son.

 

If it is once in a lifetime, I would choose the Mediterranean.

[zqvol]

I would sail from Venice, because I like those ports a lot more than the ones on the Rome cruise.

[BirdTravels]

I'm not new to cruising (been on 14) but never done Europe. I have a free cruise from casinos at sea, anywhere but Hawaii. So once in a lifetime trip to Europe I decided. Me, hubby and my 13 year old son. Looking at this July. I have to book it by 2/19. Right now, the epic out of Rome has no inside cabins (inside is free, will upgrade to balcony) so I would have to pay $2800 by 2/19. The star out of Venice has an inside at a cost of $1336 (will upgrade to balcony when I have the $). I don't use credit cards so I would have to have the money by the time I book. Is the epic itinerary worth the scramble to get the money by 2/19?

 

Cruising out of Venice is nice. However it's harder to get airline tickets into Venice then it is to other cities.

 

The epic primarily does a round-trip out of Barcelona Spain. There are only a few rooms reserved for boarding in Rome which is not the main embarkAction port. The star is a small ship. The epic is a megaship. If you like bigger ships, then go on the epic out of Barcelona.we like the ports of call on the epic more than the star.

[easyboy]

I have been to both Rome and Venice. There are a lot of sites in Rome and the Vatican to see, while there are many places in Venice to enjoy. The port in Civitavicchea is about an hour away from the Vatican. Matter of your preference.

[KeithJenner]

Don't get too hung up on the embarkation ports. As has been said, you could do both anyway if you have a few days pre or post cruise.

 

More important are the ports of call.

 

The Epic itinerary has more of the "must see" ports, and I always think it's probably better for a first visit to Europe, especially if it may be your only one. Florence, Rome, Naples and Barcelona are all very popular.

 

However, they are not the easiest ports to do. Florence and Rome are a long way from the port, and if you do excursions then expect to pay well for them. Doing it yourself involves using the trains etc. It is an extremely busy cruise.

 

I've lost track of where the Star is now visiting, but the Eastern Med ports are easier to visit. Athens involves, trains, taxis or excursions, but many of the others are just a case of walking off the ship.

 

What is more important to you? Personally, I love places like the Croatian ports. They may not be places that you have always been told you must visit, but I think they lend themselves to a cruise visit better than places like Rome, Naples and Florence, where you just don't have time to even scratch the surface.

 

But that's easy for me to say, as I can get to Rome easily whenever I want. If you will only have limited opportunities then would you regret not ticking off those places?

[ozscotart]

Barcelona is a great port for large ships, we sailed out of Barcelona on the Epic a few years ago and the embarkation etc was very easy. Personally I don't like the Epic, preferring the smaller ships, but if you like the big ships then perhaps you should book this. We had the inside cabin and didn't like it, smaller than some ferries, and also we didn't like the bathroom arrangements. But if you've never been to the Med, nearly all ports will be good. The Epic will tend to dock out of town due to size, Barcelona being one of the exceptions.

 

 

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[buddy1755]

we sailed the Spirit in 2015, out of Venice, even tho we left Venice at around midnight, it was a marvel to see......we spent 3 days in Venice before the cruise and it is an amazing city, i am not sure if the Spirit still does a variance of this cruise, as we went to Turkey, but we also went to Rome.

[old nutter]

Keith is spot on about ignoring the embarkation ports in your decision making. Civitavecchia is not anywhere near Rome - it is around an hour away and is a bit complicated for first-time European visitors. Venice has that fantastic sailaway but the airport is a complete mess - badly organised and way overloaded. Barcelona is probably the best one to use.

 

If you want to use either Civitavecchia or Venice, be prepared to extend at both ends. The best advice is to decide whether you want to do the Eastern loop or the Western one.

 

The Adriatic is best for fabulous scenery. The Greek islands are beautiful and Greece has a lot of early civilisation to see. The Western loop is much more about Renaisance history.

[BostonGal35]

Venice is hands down my favorite European City (Copenhagen is second).

 

The canals are amazing, live music in the squares each night, gondolas, teh food, Rialto Bridge... oh, id sail from there.

[Mac4YYZ]

A sail away down the canal in Venice is a bucket list experience and while they have delayed the banning of cruise ships on the grand canal I would expect it to happen sometime soon. But beware the problems right now with the Star. The ship is experiencing repeated Azipod failures and may have to be taken out of service. Read some of the other posts about the Star right now in Asia. Yikes. Demonstrations by angry passengers in the atrium and more. Ports are much closer in the Med but that ship is having some serious problems.

[Sissaaaaaa]

We are currently planning our trip, but leaning towards sailing on the Epic so we can spend time in Italy before hopping on the cruise in Rome.

Edited February 1, 2017 by Sissaaaaaa

[Crazy planning mom]

We did the Epic out of Rome (Civi). My son was 13 at the time. It was a good age to take him to Europe. He was old enough to appreciate it but he wasnt yet totally repulsed by his parents. He enjoyed the sports court, waterslides and bowling alley on the Epic. He enjoyed the excursions, too.

He loved Capri (Naples) and Cannes. Definitely arrive a few days early to spend sometime exploring Italy. We did and dont regret it. We got to see lots and were adjusted to the time difference.

[rusky123]

I just love Venice, it is a wonderful exciting city. One of my 2 most breath-taking exciting cruise moments was sailing into Venice on a misty morning years and years ago, Oh it just took my breath away and the experience has stayed with me. The 2nd most exciting cruise moment was sailing into Alexandria the morning after ramadam, wonderful. I also love Rome, its a beautiful city full of life and history but very hot and tiring. The Epic is a nice ship, lots to do, I have never sailed on the Star, but have sailed on the Jewel and Jade which I believe are similar sized ships. Venice is a magical experience, Rome is another wonderful city. Try and do both if you can xx:)