Europe - Eastern Mediterranean Cruise Reviews

Good ports, ship, amenities.

Entertainment fair.

Got a great upgrade (Category F to A - verandah)

Shore excursions variable (some good, some not. some guides had poor English skills)

Someone told me - that because I had been to Italy - to expect to be underwhelmed by Greece.  I have to say - sadly - they were correct.  Greece is most certainly beautiful but I will not return.  Italy on the other hand ... I will continue to go and never get tired of it. Santorini and Mykonos were definitely the highlights of our trip.  Olympia was a tad boring and Corfu we never saw as there was a horrible storm.  

As far as NCL - it was our first time using them (have been on 4 previous cruises with other lines) and it will be our last.  Not impressed at all.  NCL is a cruise line for the 60+ crowd.  Boring food.  Boring entertainment.  Boring shops. Bugs in our stateroom. We suspect they were bed bugs.  Complained several times and to NCL'S defense they did what they had to do (remove bedding and thoroughly inspect the room).  

Onboard activities - well this ship is certainly not meant for anyone who doesn't go to bed at 9pm.  I remember walking around the ship and it being absolutely deserted at 10pm at night.  Most nights, we were the only people in the "DJ" room.  If you're looking to meet people, unwind by dancing and having a few drinks - this is not the cruise line for you.  We were utterly BORED the entire cruise upon return from our excursions.  No entertainment/music on at sea days and the asian band they had were absolutely HORRIFIC.  Every time they played they literally cleared out the room. 

Food - not up to par.  After the 2nd night we stopped dining in the main dining area's and stuck to the buffet area's.  The food was bland, undercooked or overcooked.  Menu's were not very descriptive of what you were getting.  The 2 nights we did eat in the main dining area our waiter was a bit of a douche. Couldn't/wouldn't go into more detail about our food and didn't really have much information on drinks either.  

Staff - our cabin attendant was superb.  Aside from him - we were underimpressed with other staff.  From the main dining hall to bartenders, NCL staff leave little to be desired.  I actually witnessed a bartender pick his nose as he was pouring someone a drink.  Disgusting. 

Room service breakfast was great.  Arrived on time and hot.  I think they were the only meals we really enjoyed. 

Excursions - we enjoyed thoroughly EXCEPT for the Corfu but that was because of the weather.  I can't believe NCL allowed passengers to go into the tender boats in a storm.  People almost fell overboard and the last tender to arrive back at the ship was stuck as it was too rocky to get people out of it.  Unreal! The Olympia excursion was pretty boring.  

A seven night cruise cruise spoilt by noisy plumbing at all times of the day. 

The room, well both rooms suffered from the sound of water sloshing about in tanks/pipes and the sound pipes banging. Staff were aware but were reluctant acknowledge my complaints. 

NCL staff solution was to hand me 2 sets of foam ear plugs one evening when I was complaining. 

Otherwise the ship itself was clean and tidy. Food was good, although the buffet area serving breakfast and launch was busy. 

Shows on board were superb. 

At the price point we paid it was worth it. 

Big, clean, smooth, fun!

Overall, the cruise ship is very nice. Plenty of maps around to get you where you need to be. Plenty of areas to walk outside, lots of chairs and tables near the pool and friendly crew.

Worst Royal Caribbean ship as for food and entreatments

Overall, I would not recommend this cruise to people who are well travelled or have high standards of quality experiences as you will likely be disappointed with current services. If you are a infrequent traveller, you may very well enjoy the excursion experience of being pampered away from home with new ports each day.

Great overall impression

The ship and staff were excellent. They made the trip that much more enjoyable. Sitting outside on the balcony reading and having coffee in the morning was great. Very relaxing. The piano bar in the evening was a great way to end the day.

I want to go again

Great ship with a crew that put the passenger first and did it with a smile

What an amazing trip! The ship was ok, we did have a bit of trouble with our servers for dinner pretty much every night. Most people were done and gone by the time we received our meals. Most of our table mates stopped showing up for dinner and booked the specialty restaurants instead. By the end of the cruise, we were the only ones left at our table. We did go the steak house, which was really good. I would definitely book that one again.  I don't really remember the entertainment being very good. My husband is big on the  shows and I think even he stopped going after the first few nights.  Don't get me wrong, I like Royal Caribbean and we are booked on 2 more cruises for 2016. I think it's about expectations. We also cruise on Disney and comparing the two, RCCL is going to fall short. I try to adjust my expectations.  The ports were awesome though.  It was round trip from Venice and then we went to  Croatia, Turkey and Greece. Dubrovnik was gorgeous! We spent the day at the beach, but I think next time we would like to spend a lot more time in Old Town. We only had about 30 minutes to shop before returning to the ship. The prices were good and the area was beautiful. Dubrovnik is a must stop for us now. Turkey was amazing too. We spent the day touring the ancient ruins and visiting the House of the Virgin Mary. I still get chills thinking about it. Walking into the house, I felt something that I can't really describe. I guess I would have to say hope and peace. Then we were off to Greece which I have to say is the most beautiful place I have ever been. Santorini was stunning! And, Olympia was a lot of fun. My husband and kids had a race in the very spot where the first Olympics took place.  The were a few bumps, but overall it was amazing and I would definitely do it again. It was a great cruise.  JM

Our first trip with Silversea. We were treated royally by all the staff. The food and accommodations were exceptional. Would definitely cruise again with this line.  The suite had more than enough room; I especially loved the walk-in closet and ample storage space. The shore excursions were all very educational  with professional and knowledgeable guides.  Criticisms: shore excursions very pricey and wifi access was poor and costly.

Have sailed on NCL before and have been very happy with all their ships

The ship was spotless and sparkling!

ship was lovely, the crew was outstanding.. and the shopping was fABULOUS

The ship is fantastic! An improvement over its previous sister ships. Love the top deck outdoor grilling restaurant.

Our stateroom was perfectly located. We especially liked our room steward, Emmanuel. Selection of things to do was adequate, pool area very nice. Really enjoyed piano bar and several of the small trios. Nightly entertainment was somewhat repetitive and very little diversity. Food was good. Daily announcements of date,day, time, and weather forecast would help us plan for our shore excursions, etc.

The ship was extremely large however we never felt like we had any problems with congestion with crowds. We never had any wait for dinners and the food was delicious and very nicely presented.

The ship is in excellent shape and extremely well maintained. Our stateroom was large by cruise standards, so we never felt jammed or cramped. The ship is large enough to have a variety of spaces and diversions. For example the pool and deck areas are spacious with more than ample chairs and seatings. The restaurants are roomy and very comfortable. The library and bar areas are comfortable. Above all, the staff is attentive without ever being intrusive.