Grimaldi Lines?

DW and I are on the Magic in October and are spending a week in Rome before and were thinking of taking Grimaldi Lines ferry from Rome to Barcelona.

Has anyone done this?

Thoughts?

If we book an outside cabin do we get it to ourselves even though it's capacity is 4?

Sorry , have not crossed on the ferry.

I would take a plane if I were doing the trip.

There are several airlines that go from Rome to Barcelona and it is not a long flight so you'd have more time in one of my favorite cities!!

You might use:

http://www.whichbudget.com to see airlines

With all the flying we will already be doing we just thought we would try something different. The night train is to expensive, this seems like fun and at about 175 € for both of us, it's about the same as flying.

Ferry rides of this length are not fun, IME, and for me it would be wasting a lot of time. You will be stuck on the ferry for 21 hours. I did find a little information on TA for you:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowTopic-g187791-i22-k2833776-Grimaldi_Ferry_from_Rome_to_Barcelona-Rome_Lazio.html

While not the same routing as you are looking for, some good information about this ferry line:

http://britishexpat.com/expatforum/malta/viewtopic.php?t=9432

I saw the trip advisor post , was hoping someone has something more recent. The 20 hours doesn't bother us as it leaves at night so you still get a half day in Rome arrives at 6 the next day. If you take an early flight you have to leave Rome 3 or so hours earlier to get to FCO then you get to BCN around noon fight. By the time you get to the dock area hotel it's around 1 or 2 so to me that's really only losing 4 to 5 hours. Getting up early to go to an unfamiliar international airport for 4 to 5 hours, I don't know the ferry doesn't sound that bad.

Has anyone actually done the ferry?

It sounds like you really want to do the ferry.

Just FYI- for an internal European flight from FCO to BCN

you would need to be at the airport maybe an hour or 1 1/2 hrs before the flight . It only takes about 30min. to get to the airport and then barely 30min. from BCN to a hotel in the city.

Nowhere close to equalling a 20hr. boat ride!!

Just seeing if anyone has done the ferry, as we have done the plane thing. I was hoping to find someone that has done it recently.

The ferry is from 10PM to 6 PM taking a morning flight means getting up early to get to a Barcelona hotel around 1PM or so, is not being rushed worth 5 hours I don't know that's what I am interested in hearing about. DW is not really a morning person.

Just seeing if anyone has done the ferry, as we have done the plane thing. I was hoping to find someone that has done it recently.

The ferry is from 10PM to 6 PM taking a morning flight means getting up early to get to a Barcelona hotel around 1PM or so, is not being rushed worth 5 hours I don't know that's what I am interested in hearing about. DW is not really a morning person.

I've done long-ish ferry trips in the Med. Not Grimaldi, not that route but they are pretty much all the same I think. In '06 we went from Venice to Patras, about 36 hours, and also a longer trip twice that length from south from Pireaus.

Since their prime aim is transportation rather than entertainment facilities onboard were minimal. Cabins were perfectly adequate, food mediocre but available.

You normally have to be at the port some time before departure, and it often takes a long time to load all the trucks and containers onboard, so I don't know how much time you'd really save. But if that isn't the issue then it'd give you an entirely different perspective to flying.

Loading the ferry in Venice.

Sleeping on deck between Italy and Greece.

And I am pretty sure that if the cabins are for four people you would need to pay for four to have it to yourselves.

We are going to fly into Venice for a few days before our cruise departs from BCN--this sounded like an interesting alternative to getting there, but I have found flites from Venice for as little as $74/pp, so we will probably go that route. But a good thought. Agree that it would be nice to hear from someone who has actually done it!

Thanks Mands&Ian,

Time to me isn't really a big deal (knock wood). I think trying something different might be interesting. We have been lucky enough to fly to lots of great places and now are just looking for something different. Thanks for your input and photos.

And I am pretty sure that if the cabins are for four people you would need to pay for four to have it to yourselves.

The thing about that is when you select the cabin and the select 4 people the cost doesn't differ from 2 people. They just list an Italian phone number so I am just hoping to get as much info and questions answered before calling.

Sorry to reply this way but I am still at work replying with my iPhone. The cost of flights from FCO to BCN aren't that much only about $125pp plus any bag fees (we will have 2 checked). But flying also ads one more hotel night somewhere for us.

I would never recommend taking this ferry EVER. This company takes no consideration for the safety of those on board. My fiancee and I decided to take this ferry from Livorno to Barcelona. They were no security checks on any person or car that entered this boat. Hundreds of people taking homes on floors, chairs, stairwells, and fire exits. The sanitary conditions of this boat were unreal. I am disgusted on how they run their services and please avoid the stress we endured on this experience and choose a flight or other means of transportation. We disembarked this boat before it left the port and they refuse my refund and instead insult me by offering a 20% discount on my next destination. I have never experienced in my life what I did on that boat that day! And I'm going to make sure everyone knows about their operations. Your safety, health, and security will compromised if you choose Grimaldi Lines!

We have done a few European ferries (have done Grimaldi...but not on this route) and enjoyed the experience. Folks need to realize they are ferries, not cruise ships! That being said, Grimaldi usually has a swimming pool, restaurant, cafeteria, etc. We like the overnight options and will always take a cabin for ourselves (don't care if its inside since its nighttime). So here is the advantage. When you fly you need to get to and from the airports which involve extra money. Since the ferry subs for a hotel night, it saves you the cost of a hotel room (which often pays for the ferry ride). While there might be some wild parties on deck (especially with students in the summer) things are usually quiet in the cabin areas. So we get on a ferry, have a nice nights sleep, and wake up at our destination. I believe Grimaldi has a great safety record and we found it interesting their ships were built by Fincantieri which also builds many cruise ships.

Hank

Why would there be security checks when the ferry was staying in the EU? This is not considered international travel.

And yes I noticed this thread is three years old.

This same rant has been posted on other travel web sites, it's someone with a bone to pick.

Since we got into the ferry topic, perhaps it deserves even more attention? DW reminded me of one overnight ferry we took from Brindisi to Corfu in July of some year (too far back to remember). The ferry was packed with young adults (many using their Eurorail Passes) who did camp-out on deck and party, party, party. DW and I had booked a cabin so we really were not impacted by all the ondeck "fun." But while strolling around the deck (before we retired to our cabin for the night) we met a group of 20 somethings from the USA who were recent college grads and doing the "Grand European Tour" before starting their jobs. At the time DW and I were in our early 50s so were their parents age. But we found these "kids" so engaging we ended up buying them all a few rounds of beer and listening to their life stories. The entertainment factor was even better then a typical show on a cruise ship.

As to the person with the "rant" we will discount some of what they say since they obviously do not even know the difference between a "boat" and a "ship." :)

Hank

Just a note that the RENFE trenhotel night train from Milan to Barcelona has been discontinued. It's actually very hard to get a through train from Italy to France without changing let alone all the way to Spain.

We took the Fantastic from Genoa to Barcelona. And back again, as in 2005 there was a fishermen's strike that closed all ports in Spain.:eek:

It was fine. Not deluxe, but our cabin was decent with a large enough bed (we booked the second-from-the-top accomodation; can't recall what they called it). There was a buffet and a sit-down restaurant. We opted for the latter, and found ourselves alone except for one other family. The headwaiter used to work for Princess cruises in Santa Monica, CA, and was happy to reminisce about his years in the US, since he didn't have any passengers to tend to. The food was quite good.

We were the only Americans onboard, and I thought it was cool. I speak Ital/ish, so was able to communicate with some of the crew, who helped me with my awful Italian grammar.:)

We weren't able to board until shortly before sailing, maybe 30 minutes prior. Our passports were taken as we boarded and returned to us that evening.

I wouldn't say that the Fantastic lived up to her name, but we enjoyed the trip more than we would have liked a 24 hour overnight train ride and it was a fine adventure for us.

After we returned to Genoa, we called the local Amex office and they booked us a flight from MXP to BCN so we could get to our cruise.