Mediterranean Cruise

Vision of the Seas Cruise Review to Europe - Mediterranean

Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 52

Overall rating:

4 out of 5
Verified Review
Vision of the Seas

12 Night Mediterranean & Greek Isles (Barcelona Roundtrip)

Sail date: June 09, 2015

Ship: Vision of the Seas

Cabin number: 4542

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 9 years ago

Review summary

There were eight of us traveling together on this cruise.  We arrived in Barcelona two days before the cruise and enjoyed the city very much.  When we arrived at the port via taxi, Royal Caribbean employees quickly took our luggage and we checked in within 20 minutes.  For the first two stops, Cannes and La Spezia, we explored on our own.  We wanted to catch a train to Nice for the day from Cannes, but by the time we got to the train station it would have been impossible to get to Nice and back in the allotted time.  Instead, we explored Cannes on foot which wasn't a problem.  From LaSpezia, we took the train to Cinque Terre.  We were misdirected and wasted an hour trying to find the right place to purchase our day passes.  For the rest of the cruise, we purchased excursions through Rome Connection, Royal Caribbean, and the link off of .  All of the side excursions were extremely enjoyable.  Everything was well organized and our guides were all informative.  I can't say anything bad about the excursions.  As for the ship and cruising portion, overall it was a great experience.  We enjoyed the trivia, bingo, entertainment, casino, fitness center and Zumba classes.  On ship, the eight of us did some activities individually and some together.  There was something for everyone.  We met up in the dining room for late dining.  I am gluten free, and I was able to order my meals the day before each dinner.  Overall, the food was average.  The gluten-free bread was horrible, but the gluten-free rolls in the cafe were good.  The gluten-free desserts in the dining room were horrible, and did not match their description.  Most were gelatinous molds that had little flavor.  Stick to the ice cream if you are gluten free, or go to the Windjammer buffet where they had gluten-free cookies.   They didn't have all of the wines that were listed on the menu, even only a few days into the cruise.  The accommodations were adequate.  We don't spend a lot of time in our room, so rooms aren't a big deal to us.  All of the staff members were friendly, professional, and courteous.  The gentleman running the Windjammer Cafe, and Elvis the Zumba instructor were exceptional.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5
Food was average. Casino bartenders made great martinis.

Onboard Activities

5 out of 5
Had fun playing bingo, trivia, and relaxing at the pool. It was nice to have an adult pool.

Entertainment

5 out of 5
Entertainment was great. We particularly enjoyed the comedy show. A couple of us also participated in a flash mob dance which was a lot of fun.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
The manager of the Windjammer Cafe (don't recall his name) was great. He greeted everyone at their table and asked if we needed anything. Elvis, the Zumba instructor and lead for other activities has a lot energy and is very personable and a lot of fun.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

Ports of call

Barcelona, Spain

5 out of 5

Cannes, France

5 out of 5
If you're traveling on your own and want to take a train from Cannes, recommend that you take a taxi to the train station. Also met up with a couple that rented mopeds to get around so that might be an option for some people.

La Spezia, Italy

3 out of 5
Train is a nightmare with people pushing and crowding to get on. Recommend doing Cinque Terre when you can take some time to go through all five villages. We only made it to two.

Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy

5 out of 5
Lines are long in Rome. We booked a private tour which wasn't any more expensive than the cruise line. There were eight of us, so the cost was split eight ways. We were able to bypass the long lines at the Vatican, and we fit in the Spanish steps, and Coliseum in the same day.

Piraeus (Athens), Greece

5 out of 5
Although our guide for Athens was outstanding, your don't really need a guided tour. You can take a taxi to the Acropolis and the main shopping area/restaurants are within walking distance.

Kusadasi (Ephesus), Turkey

3 out of 5
We enjoyed Ephesus immensely. The only draw back to the tour was the rug making demonstration and pressure from sales people.

Santorini, Greece

5 out of 5

Salerno (Amalfi Coast), Italy

5 out of 5
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1 Comment

beitollahi    9 years ago

I want to book this cruise for next month, I have some questions: 1-is there wifi in cruise? It was free? 2- how many of restaurants and coffee shops was free?

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