Med Isles on Island Escape May 2009

[dorsetlad]

Hi everybody. Just joined this forum, as we are booked on the Med Islands cruise on the Island Escape on May 26th. I have read so many horror stories about this "ex ferry", that I am becoming a little concerned. My wife & I are cruise virgins, so do not want to be put off cruising if we have one bad experience. I'd be grateful for feedback on this ship from anyone who has sailed on her, and also any experiences on this particular cruise. Also be interested to hear from anyone who will be on board with us.

 

Brian

[Cymro1953]

Hi Brian,

My wife and I were on her last April for her 50th birthday. I

Like you we were cruise virgins having been camping and caravanning for years.

While the ship is old and been converted, we didn't even know that it was a ferry till the captain told us.

We had a great time on her. The cabin was clean and comfortable if not large like the big cruise ships. There was plenty of room for what we needed and for the ammount of time we spent in it.

All the staff were friendly and helpful from the cabin stewardess to the waiters and waitresses.

The food was good with plenty of choicein both dining rooms and they had special nights like Italian, Chinese and Indian in the Beachcomber buffet.

The choice of drinks on the all inclusive was good.

I think you would notice if you came down from a bigger ship on a bigger cruise line.

We enjoyed it so much we've booked again for December on her.

We can get a balcony cabin on her for half the price that we've paid for an outside cabin on the RCI cruise we've booked in the summer.

 

If you need any more info and pics you can contact me berwynthomas@aol.com

I did try to post on here but the picture filesizes are too big

 

 

Berwyn

[Cymro1953]

PS I forgot, the best thing is you won't need to pack a suit, tuxedo or tie on this one leaving loads of room for proper holiday clothes

[UK.Girl]

just to let you know when we were on the Island Star we met loads of people who had been on the Escape and LOVED it !

[dorsetlad]

Thanks for the replies. Anybody else?:)

[Pundit]

I am hoping to go on Island Escape a couple of months after you. Will you please post some comments on your return. Thanks

[dorsetlad]

We did the Med Isles as stated in my earlier post, and you were all right, we thoroughly enjoyed it. The cabins were tired, but this is an old ship, so only to be expected. The food, entertainment and overall ambiance of the ship was very good. My only complaint is the lack of a quiet area, such as a library on the ship. I suffer from a hearing problem and wear 2 hearing aids. I can stand noise such as the theatre, as it is all one noise, if you see what I mean. But I cannot sit in a noisy bar or such places, as the general hubub eventually becomes unbearable. So we generally try to find the quieter places, where we can relax. This is nothing against the ship,just my particular needs. We have just booked up with Ocean Village to do the Eastern Med next year, and have booked a balcony cabin to overcome this. At least we will be able to relax out there in peace & quiet, as long as they're not having a disco on the balcony next door:rolleyes:. I must say that the shore excursions were very good, if a bit expensive.

[Flopsy]

Hi Dorsetlad

 

Are you suffering from post cruise blues now? Well at least you have your next one to look forward to.

 

I was interested to read your post as I have booked to go on this ship next year May 6-13 on the Mediterranean Discovery itinerary- Palma,Villefranche, Florence, Rome, Corsica, Mahon, then back to Palma.

 

Did you do any of these? I wonder if you would be kind enough to write about the trips you went on and what you liked about the destinations?

 

Flopsy

[dorsetlad]

Hi Flopsy. We were very impressed with the destinations on the cruise, as they were all so different from each other. I think that's the attraction of cruising, a different destination each day. We didn't go to all the ones on your list, but most are the same, so here goes.

 

Palma. Didn't see much of Palma, as we only travelled from the airport to the ship, and on our last day, we had a fairly early flight, so there was no time to go ashore.

 

Civitavecchia, for Rome. We decided before we went that we wouldn't do Rome. Rome deserves more than a few hours visit, so will probably do a long weekend one day. We opted for a trip to Bracciano castle instead, and thoroughly enjoyed. It was a real fairytale style castle, with an extremely interesting guided tour. We had a short stop in the town of Bracciano, which looked very interesting. The day ended with a vist to a resort by the side of a man made lake. Sorry, can't remember the name of it.

 

Corsica - Ajaccio. Very pretty port. We did the mini train & mountain trip. The guide was excellent as we made our way into the mountains, giving us loads of info about Corsica and the flora & fauna. Once in the mountain we hopped off the coach and onto a land train and went further up the mountain, where ordinary vehicles could'nt get. The views up there were truly fantastic. We wended our way back to the port by descending from the mountain via the Prunelli Gorge. The road was exremely narrow, with sheer drops on one side. At times,the front of the coach was literall hanging over the gorge, and whenever we met any oncoming traffic, they had no choice but to back up to the nearest passing point. Very dramatic.

 

Mahon. Probably the prettiest port on the cruise, as the approach is along what can only be described as a 4km long estuary with stunning scenery all the way. We had booked to go horse riding, but were so impressed with the outlook when we docked, that we changed our minds and decided to do our own thing. We started off climbing what seemed like hundreds of steps up to the town, and explored the town centre. Very pretty with narrow winding streets. We found a vantage point where we could look down on the Island Escape moored up below. I now have this picture as my desktop wallpaper on my laptop. We also did a 1 hour trip round the harbour on a catamaran. There was a commentary, giving lots of the history of the island. We had a change from the ship's culinary delights, and decided to dine "al fresco" at a harbourside restaurant. An excellent touch.

 

One destination, not on your itinerary, but on ours, was Naples. We caught a hydrofoil from the port of Naples to the Island of Capri. Absolutely beautiful, I cannot really find the words to describe it, We had a truly wonderful day.

 

As you can see, we thoroughly enjoyed our excursions, although, in future, we may decide to do our own thing more often, as the excursions are quite expensive. Even so, they are extremely good value for money.

 

Hope that gives you some idea of the things you can look forward to.

 

Brian

[Flopsy]

Hi Dorsetlad

 

Gosh thankyou for that thorough summary.It was fascinating to read about the places.

 

Only 47 weeks to wait until I can go and explore ashore myself tee hee.

 

Flopsy