Black Sea experiences and ships?

[melmike]

During my on-line travels, I'm coming across the Black Sea as an interesting cruise option. Which luxury ships go there please? Best time of year? (We are thinking Sept) I'd love to hear experiences and options - I haven't come across this while searching for a cruise at that time of year.
Thanks

[alexandra cruiser]

all have the options I like,,some from Istanbul around Black Sea,,and others from Athens.
Range from 8 days to 10 it seems,,some in Spring,,others Fall.
Have read good reports on Regent one so far,,but still searching.Not till 2013 for us.Let us know what you come up with.So MANY details to consider.Each cruiser seems to like THEIR particular line,,but I m open.Love them ALL,,,just different.

[melmike]

It's SO hard to decide! We have done one Regent cruise on Voyager and loved it. Cabin size seems to be more generous than others ( we had a Penthouse B and it was great)... We like space! ( fyi - have read in many forums that RSS Navigator is not up to par of other 2 ships.) I'm getting the impression Crystal may be a bit formal for us. I'm thinking of trying Silverseas next.

[alexandra cruiser]

appeal as much...2 FORMAl,,not optional ,,nites on the 10 days I was looking at..asked about just a sport jacket for my DH on their board.Was,sort of.told to eat in room or wear RIGHT clothes...even on SB..he wore sport jacket on OPTIONAL formal nite in main dining room.Most WERE in suits,,a few tux s...it s real sticking point for HIM...
I like the Regent Mariner the best,,less vibration issues than Voyager..like the new SB ships too..Crystal ships seem TOO BIG..over 1000 passengers,,a drawback for us...got to be JUST RIGHT>>haha..good luck and let us know..

[harrodsfan]

We did the Black Sea on Oceania last late August, early September. Really great cruise. Some roughish seas which resulted in missing Mikanos. Temp a bit warm at times..highlights, Ephesus, Sinop, Yalta, Sebastipol, Odessa, Nessabar and of course Istanbul. Trabazon, Sochi, Constanza not my favorite ports. Do read up on the Crimean war and Yalta Conference before you go.
This is a must itinerary at some point. We just came back from a Voyager cruise. Wished we had done the Black Sea on RSS Cruise lines. Oceania was good, but RSS is the best.

[gnld]

We were looking at a Black Sea cruise on Oceania for 2013, but found an Azamara itinerary we liked better and booked that one: 8/18/13 r/t Istanbul with 10 ports as it circumnavigates the Black Sea. All the luxury lines do the Black Sea, some with more port calls than others. Have to consider which cruise lines you like better, how many port calls you want to cover, and cabin/price.

[alexandra cruiser]

Originally Posted by gnld

We were looking at a Black Sea cruise on Oceania for 2013, but found an Azamara itinerary we liked better and booked that one: 8/18/13 r/t Istanbul with 10 ports as it circumnavigates the Black Sea. All the luxury lines do the Black Sea, some with more port calls than others. Have to consider which cruise lines you like better, how many port calls you want to cover, and cabin/price.

and checked out website,,,and ordered a brochure.

Looked for reviews of Black Sea on the Journey here on CC,,but could find NONE,,maybe new destination??Did you find any?? Will have to check specifics to find out all the details,,like WHAT is included..exact cabin description(pics didnt show up on website??) .
Also,,is this considered "luxury" line or just "upscale",,not sure?? Like the small ship size..let us know what YOU found out.Thanks...

[Travelcat2]

Of the five "luxury" cruise lines, Silversea, Regent, Seabourn, Crystal and Sea Dream, the only one that is not formal and sails in September is Sea Dream. At least, that is what I could find doing a brief Google search. Silversea does have September Black Sea sailings but are the most formal of the luxury lines. Regent seems to only sail the Black Sea in July. We have yet to sail the Black Sea because we do not want to go during the summer when everyone is on vacation.

Premium cruise lines Oceania and Azamara do offer them and are not formal. I know that Oceania does one in July but do not know Azamara's schedule.

[gnld]

Originally Posted by alexandra cruiser

and checked out website,,,and ordered a brochure.

Looked for reviews of Black Sea on the Journey here on CC,,but could find NONE,,maybe new destination??Did you find any?? Will have to check specifics to find out all the details,,like WHAT is included..exact cabin description(pics didnt show up on website??) .
Also,,is this considered "luxury" line or just "upscale",,not sure?? Like the small ship size..let us know what YOU found out.Thanks...

Black Sea cruises are relatively rare - the small-ship luxury & premium cruise lines usually only do 1 or 2 a year. Check their websites for specific dates and itineraries. Standard cabins (suites) on the luxury ships are larger than standard cabins on Oceania and Azamara ex-Renaissance ships (O's new Marina and Riviera have large cabins than their fleetmates). Oceania is not all-inclusive; Azamara is semi-all-inclusive. All luxury lines are now all-inclusive. We've sailed on all these lines; the only bad experience we had was on the Silver Spirit, but it was brand-new then and I'm sure they've long since solved the "birthing problems".
Check them all out: dates, prices, cabins, itineraries. We picked the Black Sea since it offers totally different ports than Med cruises, tho some do include a few Greece/Turkey/Adriatic ports. We've cruised a lot in the Med and are looking for something new. The Black Sea fits this criterion.

[alexandra cruiser]

to get the room I like will have to upgrade to suite,,,but much less than other cruiselines.Of course,,have to consider WHATS inc..
But do like the May,9 nite cruise on Azamara,,,for price and itinerary .Prefer spring sailing.
Did end up booking Oceania for next Sept.on Canada/New England cruise,,,due to more ports I wanted to see.Did get TA to inc.gratuities..but do have to pay for drinks or excursion pkgs...so with upgrade to suite,,,around SAME price as luxury lines(esp Regent).Always a tradeoff.

[MylesBetter]

Variety Voyager owned by Variety Cruises is cruising the black sea in 2013. The intinaries are 2 weeks in length.