Europe - Western Mediterranean Cruise Reviews

The cruise started off with some negatives as they changed the start date from Sunday to Monday and took off Malaga as a stop - they did offer to compensate financially, but the change not appreciated and we missed out on Malaga. The ship itself was very nice and clean with great activity options including water slides and a climbing wall. However, there were limited activities like dance classes or gym classes that we usually do on cruises. the person running a napkin folding workshop knew one fold, and that was it. He could not even follow the directions fro the other ones - although the line dancing was fun with a very enthusiastic teacher. Much of the bar staff was rude, although that's where the mixed bag comes in. We had some wonderful waiters and some rude ones, a wonderful bartender and rude waiters, and all of the room attendants were extremely friendly and did a wonderful job - always greeting us by name or a cute nickname and left fun towels creations on our bed each evening. Disembarkation and re-embarkation were quite smooth. So, a fun experience, but a mixed bag as far as quality of cruises.

Best cruise ever. . Lots of places to see and do. The ports that we toured were amazing. Excursion tours in every port with a variety of minimum city tours to full day tours. Never been in the Western Mediterranean. Food were amazing. Historical areas are still in tact from centuries past. the Ship provided your hotel and majority of the your dining. Ship does not feel like we were in the water. Incredible themes in almost every floor. A Central Park and a Boardwalk was extra to most regular ship. Dreamworks characters was great for the ship. None stop activities if you can last.  Can't wait for the next cruise in the Eastern Mediterranean. 

This was by far the worst cruise we had ever experienced!!! Not only was the service very poor and unfriendly, the food was very bad and not to mention the people on the cruise had no manners and were very miserable people. The ports were also too short of times and they tried to make extra money out of you at most for shuttles. Unlike other ships you have to pay for room service breakfast. We got on the boat each day just before the 30min before take off and each time were told to be on earlier next time which we have never heard before. Overall, just an awful experience.

The ship was amazing.  However, a group called Omni Life took over many areas of the ship.  I have been on at least a dozen cruises over the years.  I have never experienced anything like this before on a cruise.  The large Omni Life group negatively affected the experience.  One example is the Windjammer Cafe.  They took over that area for all meals throughout the day.

service on the ship is inconsistent.  We would receive different answers to the same question from the shipboard staff.  The staff didn't appear to be well informed about policy or activities on the ship.  Denied service from staff several times  because it was too close to their station closing time (20 minutes is too close) Specialty steakhouse is sub par.  Stay away from any beef selection on the ship, the cuts of beef are not what the menu indicates and you won't get served the cook of beef desired.  Other than these issues, everything else is just OK.

A stunning ship! We had a very pleasant and enjoyable cruise on the Celebrity Equinox. The choice of ports was good. Food in the Silhouette Dining Room was good. Very good central atrium space with glass lifts and exposed library, card room and other relaxation rooms. Overall the interior decor and artwork is very good when compared to most other cruise lines.The staff was very friendly and helpful, particularly those in Guest Relations and the Jewellery and Fragrance store assistants. On-board dancers and bands were very good.

Everything was perfect except the 1 excursion booked through Cruises Only. And we could not use the $70 free excursion because the times available would have caused us to miss dinner.

Corazon was our room valet, and she was wonderful; excellent job. Dudley was our asst. waiter, and we loved him; beautiful smile, and so nice; did a great job...deserves to be a full waiter. Cyrel was our waiter and did a good job. Food was unbelievable...always good, and such a variety. Ship clean & sanitized. Room nice size and comfortable. /we joined our balcony with 2 other couples and enjoyed hanging out on it. We thought the evening shows were marginal. Two magicians, and they did 2 of the same tricks. We looked forward to a staff variety show, but there was none. Compared to other ships, the evening entertainment was definitely lacking. Woman singers were good.  We loved the covered drink package, that was included, as was the tip package and $300 on board credit. Celebrity was extremely efficient in organizing passengers, esp getting on and off ship. Could not hear announcements in our room..had to go out in the hall. Liked the way the safety drill was handled.  Al in all, a super trip.

We thoroughly enjoyed our recent cruise out of Barcelona . Aside from a delay on day 1 due to gastro intestinal issues during the previous cruise, everything went very well. The ports of call were great, my husband and I had gone to Mallorca for our honeymoon in 1977so it was very nice to return there. Barcelona itself was great, a repeat visit will be necessary as there is so much to see. Our ship was beautiful, and most of the time it was hard to believe that there were close to 3000 passengers on board. Service was impeccable particularly in the dining rooms and ocean view cafe. We had select dining, so different waiters pretty much every time. They were all excellent.  We are not huge fans of shows but there were two excellent female singers and the regular cast of singer/ dancers were very good. Magician not so good, funny but the tricks were lame. The hot glass show was top notch and we went to it several times, it was always different. We took a couple of excursions which were very educational, the guides were so knowledgable. Some regret at not taking more excursions but since some were listed as strenuous we decided against them due to physical issues. We had a concierge cabin, not sure if it is worth the extra charges but perhaps we didn't take advantage of the services. This may be due to lack of information which was missing in the first few days. Afternoon canapés were a miss, we figured out we could get our own little plate of goodies at the ocean view cafe around 4.30 pm. Classic beverage package was more than adequate, we had some very good wines and the speciality coffees were the best.  All crew and personnel were very friendly. All expectations were met and in many cases exceeded.

We were pleasantly surprised to find how wonderful the Spain & Portugal sailing was.  Friendly local people, good weather, beautiful scenery, great ship with friendly crews..., we enjoyed very much.

con: food was not so great   Lack variety, at times salty. At dinner you were charged for water and where not offered tea or coffee with dessert.

Pros: great nighttime entertainment.   We enjoyed having a stop at different port almost daily.  Cabin size and cleanness was great.  Staff just ok not overly friendly. It was great meeting so many people from different places that spoke different languages making this a unique experience.

It was a very good and fun trip over all and I would recommend this trip to anyone.

However, there are so many hidden costs that surprise us at the end of our trip.

These costs should have been told to us before we boarded the ship.The shore excursions were fairly good except the  tour leaders who walk so fast and our free time was so limited.

Delta SkyMiles Cruises, and Amani Richardson who books cruises for that company, helped us select a week-long cruise from Barcelona through the Western Mediterranean aboard RC's Allure of the Seas.  It was great from the moment of arrival.  RC checks baggage prior to boarding and the luggage magically appeared on our floor within hours, while we boarded and explored the ship.  The trip was great and included Mallorca (where we took a guided bike ride tour enjoying history, and the city), Marseille/Cassis, France, where we took a guided bus tour, and enjoyed the history and the countryside; Cinque Terre in the Liguria Region of Italy, in which we also enjoyed a fantastic bus and walking tour lined up by RC, enjoying three of the CT towns on the the countryside, as it were (vineyards on the hills), the vibe of each of three of the towns, and ferry rides between them; Roma, Italy, which we explored on our own (having been there before) after a train ride into the city (which I would recommend doing only if you have already spent time in Rome); and finally we stopped in Naples, where we caught a fast ferry ride to the Isle of Capri, which once again we explored on our own, the atmosphere of the towns, the flavors and the countryside (I would recommend to anyone in shape. walking down the steps and ramps from the middle level of the Island, rather than taking the funicular ride or cab both ways - you will see another side of the island and beautiful gardens and homes built on the hills right up close).  Of course, aboard the ship, we had great meals each evening with serves and staff who enjoyed their jobs and making their customers happy.  We saw great shows, that included a Queen impersonator rock band, an ice show, the musical, Mamma Mia, and a beautiful song, dance and acrobatics show, called Blue Planet.  We missed the diving show.  Each of the performances were great.  On either side of the cruise we spent a full day in Barcelona, Spain.  We can recommend the Cotton House, a great newer hotel located at Gran Via de Corts, Catalenes, 670.  It is affiliated with Marriot.  We went to Guell Park created by the artis Gaudi, (a Must-see for anyone interested in contemporary art), a couple museums, including one in the Montjuic area, a low mountain or high hill location from which there are also great views of the port and part of the city.  The first night we had in Barcelona, we enjoyed a drink and dinner at the Miramar Hotel in Montjuic, a great place for both and for wonderful views.  Upon our return after the cruise, we found our way back to Montjuic, and walked around a bit, took in the national museum of Cataluna, some Spanish guitar music outside the museum, the views, and a walk by the 1992 Olympic Village, before we took a skyride (Teleferica) down from Montjuic near the Miramar Hotel to the area near an expansive beach called Barceloneta, where we walked on a boardwalk and enjoyed a nice inexpensive lunch with wine, some more walking and then returned to the hotel to rest, freshen up for dinner and the Flamenco show we went to that night at Tablao di Carmen, a fantastic show about a 15 minute cab ride away from our hotel.

The room did not have a porthole which I thought it did from the info I was given when I booked it.

Have to remember not to stay up in front..Very rolling in the wind

Smoking permitted too close to entrance way onto deck.Children playing nearby with smokers in the passageway..Smokers were everywhere on the open decks

Serial cruisers often discuss the ship as being the destination and that is definitely the case with The Allure.  It is an incredible ship with EVERYTHING you could ever dream of wanting or needing.  We did not find the crowds a problem as others have spoken of (other than the rude people that believe it makes sense to get on an elevator/lift before those wanting to exit have already done so).  There were a couple times where the cafeteria lines grew but they were predictable and easily averted.  Food was great (especially the specialty restaurants), entertainment was spectacular (Mama Mia is a must see), and the overall condition of the ship was perfect.  We felt the itinerary was a bit weak with stops such as Mallorca and Marseilles over rated.  One of the shore excursions  we took was to Cinque Terre.....expensive for the day and probably not worth it.  It is a beautiful place but we only stopped at one of the villages.  All in all?  A great ship but not the best itinerary-  

I would suggest the a suite if affordable, and they are larger and you access to the restaurant for suite members where the food is good and the service not as hectic as the main dining room.

Some of the on-shore excursions were good and others average--we enjoyed Mt Vesuvius, but there was a lot of bus travel on some of the excursions and not enough time to see the actual site. Pisa was a good example of a lack of time, but the guide was very good. I would like a cruise with two days in some of the ports. The ship was clean and the cabin staff and waiters were excellent. The shows, while not all great, were quite good.

We were very pleased with our cruise. The service wad amazing. Carlos, our cabin attendant, was the best. He was helpful, efficient, and always had a smile ready. We give him 5 stars. Also our waiter, Joseph, receives the same rating. We will choose Royal Caribbean again.

I enjoyed this cruise to the fullest.  The staff is absolutely amazing and the activities were plentiful.  The shows were entertaining and there was a lot to do for both kids and adults.  Thanks Royal Carribean

The ship was beautiful and clean.  My recommendation is to have a designated location for all night dancing/bar and an LGBT night located in a location that easy for people to chat and meet.  It was located in a location that was mixed with everyone and harder to figure out who to connect with.  Also, there were some stops that could have been skipped for overnight stays in places like Florence.  

Everything was great.  Loved our room 13032, spacious,  the balcony was much larger than expected.  We ate mostly at buffet because the food was spectacular. ..so why change.  Your staff at the wave bar was fantastic.  Wish I remembered the name of the gentleman from Grenada.  You need to clone him....each day he was cheerful, friendly,  A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO HIM.....HE WAS WONDERFUL.  This cruise was on my bucket list..........no complaints.........all was perfect