Just returned from Splendour of the Seas

[max&toni]

Greetings,

We just returned from RCL's Splendour of the Seas with stops in Dubrovnik, Kusadasi (Ephesus), Santorini and Corfu. Our cruise dates were June 23 through June 30. Overall, it was a great trip and below are my comments and thoughts on the trip.

 

Regarding the ship, the common areas have been very well maintained and are actually quite pretty. It's an older ship, and really in need of refurbishing....especially in the cabins. We booked a junior suite, and you noticed how old the ship is in the bathroom. The sink and bathtub were obviously worn. Our friends who were in the cabin next to us had a few plumbing issues, and there was a noticeable odor on our deck (8) that our cabin steward told us was due to a "leak". There are no additional ammenities for booking a junior suite, but you'll definitely enjoy the additional space in the cabin and the larger balcony.

 

There is a pool that's reserved for adults only. It had a retractable glass roof that wasn't functioning properly (it wouldn't open) so the pool area was hardly used by guests (it was like a sauna and uncomfortable).

 

The service on the ship was good for the most part. We loved our cabin steward. He was absolutely fantastic; very attentive and responsive. The staff in the dining room was terrific although the kitchen was slow. I have to say that we were a bit disappointed in the food. This was our first time sailing RCL. We've sailed on Carnival and Norwegian, and we've always heard that RCL had better food. I wasn't impressed with the presentation or quality. It wasn't horrible by any means; it just wasn't better, which was what I expected.

 

Now the entertainment was much better than I have experienced on Carnival and Norwegian. If you like ballroom dancing, you will truly enjoy the RCL dancers. They were terrific.

 

The ports were great. They were just beautiful. We only used a tour in Ephesus since the other ports were fairly easy to get around on our own. We used Levent Solmaz. He was fantastic, and I definitely recommend him. His website is www.leventsolmaz.com. He is very knowledgeable about Turkey, and spent a lot of time describing the history of Ephesus. His tour was truly the highlight of our cruise.

 

Dubrovnik and Santorini are also wonderful ports to visit. The sights are breathtaking. Definitely, walk the walls in Dubrovnik early in the day as it gets very hot. It's also worth your time to sit in an outdoor cafe and taste the local food and beer. The people are very friendly.

 

Santorini is also beautiful. I highly recommend an outdoor cafe here too. We did find that transportation once you get off the ship was confusing. You have a choice of riding the cable car to Fira, riding a donkey to Fira or walking up several hundred feet of steps. The cable car is worth the one hour wait. Once you get to Fira, that's where it can get confusing as to where to go next. A shop owner pointed us to the taxi stand, which is close to the public bus stop. We opted for the bus since the taxis were a little slow. Public transportation is cheap and rather easy once you find the stop.

 

Corfu is not that impressive. There isn't a lot to do, but if you want to sit in an outdoor cafe, you will enjoy yourself.

 

We stayed in Venice a couple of nights after the cruise. We stayed a very nice 3-star hotel - Ca' d'Oro. The hotel is about a twenty minute walk from Piazzale Roma. It's about 2 minutes from the Ca' d'Oro vaporetti stop. We took a water taxi from Piazzale Roma, which was 50 euros for four people. The water taxi dropped us off right at the hotel...very convenient. We found the hotel staff to be very friendly and charming. We booked double rooms, which were small, but very clean. The air conditioning worked great. The breakfast was good, and the terrace on the top floor was absolutely charming.

 

It was just a wonderful trip, and I would go back to Italy again in a heartbeat.

 

Cheers!