Category: Cruises

Dear Dave: Thank you very much for everything that you did to make sure that we had a great cruise. Much thanks for the dinner at Sabatinis and for the bottle of wine, we greatly enjoyed it, thank you very much again. Our cruise was great, we had very good weather and all the shore excursions were on target and very enjoyable. In Oslo it was just the two of us with a car and guide, In St. Petersburg our minibus had 25 persons and it work great and like clockwork.In all the other cities there were only 4of us for each shore excursion so it went wonderful and got a chance to see everything we wanted plus take pictures any time we wanted. The only glitch was in Helsinki because the guide had a sign that said “Shore excursion” instead of Eurway Tour wich is what our voucher said, so it took us about 25 minutes to connect. That was the only glitch in the entire cruise and it was easily solved after a few challenging minutes. As soon as I put the pictures in the computer I will be sending you some, but I want you to know that all the buses that Princess used in every port were top of the line including St. Petersburg.Our company DenRuss tours had very modern equipment also and it was the preference of hundreds of passengers that didn’t take the tours with Princess.
All in all it was a great experience, also the hotel in Copenhagen was very nice and it saved us a lot of money because besides breakfast they also had a light dinner menu included. Denmark and the rest of all these Baltic countries are extremely expensive for us with US Dollars. I was really horrified with the prices of food and drinks.
Once again thak you very much Carlos and Regina

Dear Dave,

I’ve decided to stay in the Milan hotel while my husband goes to work today. (I went into the city center yesterday.) We head back tomorrow, and I thought this would be a good time to write up some feedback for you so you have more information to advise future travelers.

Buying the train tickets in Milan wasn’t a problem, but it helped that I had been there before. Other people may not want to bother with that. On two out of
the three trips we took, every seat was taken, so it definitely pays to book ahead of time.

First, the city tour in Florence was nice. It was good to hear the commentary, see the statue of David, and also get away from just the inner city where we had been walking to see a view from the nearby hills. The hotel there, Hotel Pitti Palace al Ponte Vecchio was really nice, only about 10 steps away from thePonte Vecchio. The rooms were nice, the view from the breakfast terrace was great, and it was the only place where unlimited internet access was included in the price of the room. The other places we had to pay by the minute. Internet access was particularly expensive on the cruise ship, but I guess one would expect that.

We also liked the first hotel in Venice, Casa Verrado. The vaparetto #1 was crowded and made many stops, but it got us where we needed to go. The hotel was a little hard to find (as many things are in Venice), and the room was a little small but nice. Also, it was very close to St. Mark’s Square as you know.  The guy at the desk gave us a really good tip about getting to the site of the cruise ships from the hotel. At the San Marco vaparetto stop, there is another line called Alilaguna that sails directly from there to where the cruise ships are for 6.50 Euros. You can also take it as you return from the cruise ship site to the San Marco stop. We enjoyed Venice a lot. It’s so much fun just to walk around.

The Royal Caribbean cruise was great. You definitely got us a good stateroom with a nice, large window. The room was bigger than I expected. The food was excellent. It would have been interesting to compare it with one of the Italian cruise lines. When we were looking online, we read some comments about the Costa one which said that the food wasn’t that great, that there was more smoking than they wanted and that the entertainment was really geared toward Italian speakers (as one would expect). Of course, it might not have been that much of a problem.  We certainly might try an international cruise line some day.

One specific question I had asked you was about how you get back to the ship when it is docked, specifically in Athens. What I can tell you is that in all the ports except Athens, either the boat was so close, you could walk back or there was a shuttle pick up, which was free if you had gone on one of their shore excursions or available for a small fee, e.g. 5 euros, if you had not. In Athens, the shore excursion bus would bring you back, or if you wanted to stay and shop, you were expected to get a taxi back, as you had said, I believe. We decided to go on back to the ship on the excursion bus, but I believe the taxi was only about 10 – 15 euros.

Speaking of excursions, I really didn’t see how one would take an excursion other than the ones offered by the ship. You suggested others, but I didn’t see how you would find a different one when you got off the boat.  The ones from the ship seemed very well organized, though the Athens one was so crowded that they had a little trouble. Your group was organized while you were on the ship, and then you were led directly to your bus.

We loved Split. After a walking tour through Diocletian’s palace, which basically is a small town in the middle of the city, we took a walk up to a place with a beautiful view. It was recommended in a little tourist flyer that we happened to see. We were a little disappointed in Corfu, though perhaps we could have taken a better excursion, I don’t know. We also loved seeing the Acropolis and Parthenon in Athens.

I think our favorite place was Mykonos. Our excursion was to the island of Delos, which has the ruins of an ancient Greek city along with some temples, and also areas that were developed during early Roman times. It was a beautiful 20-miute ferry ride from Mykonos and the sea breeze and white sailboats on the

turquoise water was really breathtaking. Mykonos itself was also gorgeous. We ate a seafood lunch in the “Little Venice” part of Mykonos under the shade overlooking the water and saw a huge pelican wandering around. They are taller and whiter than the ones we have in Texas. I later picked up a little knick-knack of a pelican as a memento. 

In Katakolon, we took the excursion to the site of the ancient Olympic games. I guess you can figure out that we’re most interested in historic sites.  I enjoyed hearing about it and seeing the structures and the field of competition, but I was disappointed that we didn’t have more time on our own in the museum. I think we saw the most important parts, but it would have been nice to have more time there. The Olympic site and museum were about a 30 – 45 minute ride from the ship, so I don’t know if it would have been possible just to do the trip there on your own, just reading the information plaques or not. I must admit, I enjoyed the shopping as well.

Back in Venice, the Hotel Bonvecchiati was in a really nice location and was nice from the outside, but the room/bathroom was a little disappointing. It was OK though. We really loved shopping in Venice. That Murano glass is really something.

This is probably more information than you are interested in, but hopefully you can help some future travelers with it. Thanks for your help with our vacation.

Joyce

Visit the MSC Orchestra via our pictures.  This ship was in NYC overnight in early May.  This ship has so much gorgeous marble…true understated elegance.  Did you know –  kids always sail free aboard MSC (in the same stateroom with two adults).

We had a wonderful week about the Millenium.  The service was the best we’ve ever experienced, but the ship itself was in need of repair.  Dinner at the Olympic Restaurant was unbelievably spectacular, and the style of service was unparalleled.  The spa grill was fantastic, too, for tasty light meals.

Pre-Inaugural November 27-29, 2009

It was so exciting to receive an invitation to a pre-inaugural two-day trip aboard the all-new-game-changing Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas! After our on time flight, we proceeded to baggage claim to locate the Royal Caribbean representatives for our transfer to ship. We were loaded on a bus after a very short wait and transferred to the brand new terminal 18 at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale (purpose built for Oasis and Allure.) We really did get from curb to gangway in 15 minutes as advertised and everyone is the terminal was very pleasant. While Oasis is making port calls, card scanning/security will ALWAYS occur shore-side prior to re-boarding to enhance the boarding process. (A great idea for a ship than holds so many people and another industry first.) After boarding on the Royal Promenade level on deck 5 (the Royal Promenade on Oasis is much larger than the Royal Promenade first introduced on Voyager class), we easily found our cabin, D2-11702, Superior Ocean View w/Large Balcony starboard aft. Our cabin had a very nice sized balcony and plenty of storage space inside. The standard cabin stall shower had plenty of pressure and was more spacious than it appeared from the outside. It also featured a footrest to make the leg shaving process easier. Interestingly enough, the vanity/basin was extremely low.

After getting our gear settled in our cabin, we headed off to explore the Oasis of the Seas and find some lunch. We stopped in the Solarium to take it all in. Seems Royal Caribbean has taken some cues from sister brand Celebrity’s AquaSpa area with the whirlpools, healthy café, etc. The Oasis includes a greatly expanded Solarium Bistro (translation healthy buffet by day and healthier alternative restaurant by night). In addition, there are cozy beach loungers and even a soothing stream. Visit the Solarium for a great retreat from some of the other hustle and bustle filled neighborhoods. In addition, do not miss the Solarium’s fresh water pool and two cantilevered whirlpools carried over from the Freedom class; also visit the Solarium bar for a beverage. We had a wonderful lunch from the large selection in the Bistro. (The Solarium Bistro offers more choices than the Celebrity, Millennium class, AquaSpa Café, no disrespect to Celebrity’s wonderful onboard experience). It was challenging to remember this was the “healthier buffet” since there were so many appetizing selections.

Next stop, we visited the new loft suite section on decks 17/18 with their own private area. This concept appears to be borrowed from NCL’s Courtyard area. The two level Crown Loft Suite was truly one of a kind. Is the Loft Suite area better than NCL’s Courtyard area? Answer: It is different. Next, we visited Central Park, a place like no other at sea. You can walk through this floating park on deck 8, over the roof of the Royal Promenade, and stop for a drink, coffee, or even pick up lunch from the Park Café to enjoy under a tree. Royal’s lineup of alternative Restaurants including the new 150 Central Park is located in Central Park. Finally, you can also visit the all-new Vintages wine bar. Take your time to explore one neighborhood at a time and perhaps plan a meal there as well.

Note: the mandatory safety drill on the Oasis is also an industry first. You will not have to don lifejackets in your stateroom and walk to your muster station with the straps dragging on the stairs. Lifejackets are located near the lifeboats close by your assigned muster station. Additionally, a Royal Caribbean employee assures your attendance at this important safety event by scanning your room key card. (You will see more and more functions are loaded onto your card…ala a Disney type experience.)

The next neighborhood is the Boardwalk. This seaside inspired family entertainment area, is located aft on deck 6. Here is where the cruise industry’s first floating carousel at sea is located complete with hand carved wooden animals. Keep in mind Royal has dispersed these three dining/shopping neighborhoods very well with the Royal Promenade midship on deck 5, Central Park, midship on deck 8, and the Boardwalk, once again, aft on deck 6. Bear in mind all of these neighborhoods lie along the route to the Opal Theatre forward and the Opus Dining Room aft. The boardwalk includes Johnny Rockets, and the new Seafood Shack along with other “high glycemic” outlets. The stern end of this area features one of my personal favorites, the all-new AquaTheater. The AquaTheater features Oasis of Dreams, Royal Caribbean’s “Cirque O” inspired synchronized swimming/diving extravaganza with dives as high as 72 feet.

Been to your basic dining rooms and main show theatres? Look at the Opal and Opus, the Opus dining room is three decks high al a Voyager/Freedom Class but without the giant center opening. Further, each tier is also built out on concentric circles from the center. Therefore, even with such a large space, on each of three decks, you cannot view many tables at one time, which provides an almost intimate feel to such a gargantuan space. The Opal theatre is also three decks high and contains the latest in AV technology. The first night, we saw an unannounced Abba tribute show in the Opal Theatre. While not a huge Abba fan, the show was great and the theater was very comfortable. (Remember, Royal’s objective is to have many dining and entertainment venues to keep passengers dispersed as they can’t have the entire ship going from one dining room to one show lounge across two seatings, AND Royal Caribbean delivers.). Oasis is also introducing another first, on-line pre-booking for shows, alternative dining, and activities. Royal is well ware of the number of passengers trying to get to the shows and activities like the zip line, rock wall and not to mention the variety of alternative dining venues. Therefore, for cruisers who like to pre-plan all of the details, you can do it now for the Oasis. I did it for my own shows; just present your room card key for scanning at the door. Are you interested in prebooking your own activities and dining? Why not ask your travel planner to take care of the details for you?

The Oasis has not forgotten about the little ones. Happy kids equal a happy vacation for the parents! Royal Caribbean once again changes the game with their Youth Zone neighborhood entered via Kids Avenue on deck 14. This amazing facility has the largest daycare at sea, Royal Babies & Royal Tots, large enough to rival a top shelf land based day care facility. In addition to the obligatory teen dance club and hangout area, the Oasis has the Adventure Ocean Theatre for shows put on by kids for kids! This amazing area is broken up into different rooms by age group. This is the largest youth complex I have ever toured on a ship!

After another wonderful dining experience in the Opus dining Room, we went to see Hairspray. This was the best show I have seen at Sea, better than a lot of shows on land. The quality of the acting and singing was great along with the pit band that would occasionally rise from beneath the stage and even glide to the back while on the stage. The sets were just magnificent and the production values were amazing. Hairspray is a must see show. Shortly after this show, we were off to the Oasis of Dreams at the AquaTheater. While Royal was still working out last minute technical glitches, the show went on in a “rehearsal” format. I truly enjoyed hearing the commentary and stories about what went into this incredible production. Oasis of Dreams is also a must see on the Oasis of the Seas.

Sunday, 29 November, disembarkation day – we left our stateroom for one final breakfast in the Windjammer. This buffet is not like other Windjammers, the décor is more like that of a premium cruise line and the food stations have a great flow. We went down to the Royal Promenade just before 9am, but were quickly herded into the Opus ding room and told to sit. Why? The second gangway was not operational and caused a delay getting off the ship. I hope Royal has this and a couple of other very small details worked out in their otherwise magnificent offering. After disembarking, we were quickly directed to our FLL airport bound coach and bid adieu to the Oasis of the Seas. Well, this colossus of a ship did not want us to forget her just yet! The ship was still clearly visible from our Continental gate inside the airport. The verdict is in. This is an incredible ship with more to offer than I can describe. However, this ship is the destination as there are only a handful of Caribbean ports that can accept this vessel. Therefore, the Oasis of the Seas is great for first time cruisers, multi-generational family trips, and past cruisers who have totally done the Caribbean and are looking for a new experience. Want to know more about the Oasis of the Seas? Please contact Dave Rosenthal, Master Cruise Counselor at dave@daydreamex.com or 732.5306682