Holiday Pics from our Dream Cruise May 2013

Here are the holiday snaps from the cruise. Just look in the sub albums on the left under Western Med Cruise 2013

http://s727.photobucket.com/user/Cymro1953/library/Western%20Med%20Cruise%20On%20Dream%20May%202013?sort=3&page=1

Berwyn

Great pictures Berwyn :) Looks like the weather was a bit mixed:rolleyes:

Can I ask if they put everybody on separate tables in the dining room instead of letting you share a big table like they usually do? I ask because, that happened every night we were on and I think that is when I guessed there was a problem.

I see the violinist was still on there. We thought he was brilliant :)

Great to see the Crown Princess in Ajacio :)

Fabulous Berwyn! Some great pics. It looks like you did the half day trip to Erice - we thought it a charming place and it looks as though we might even have had a drink in the same cafe as you!

Pity it wasn't a bit warmer for you but it looks from your pics as though you made the most of it and have some wonderful memories to look back on. Thanks again, I've enjoyed looking through your pictures. :)

P.S. Hope Delyth is feeling better today.

Thank you both.

Linda yes they do still have shared tables but we stayed with the same waiters for the whole fortnight. And after the 1st few days with Delyth's chest being bad they kept us a table for 2 so we minimised the chances of her infecting anyone else.

Berwyn

Nice photo's I did look out for you on your second week but never came across you

Your pictures look great - they have wetted my travel bug.....:rolleyes: we are off on the Dream 29th June.....for 2 weeks. Any suggestions helpful advice? we are thinking of doing Rome on your Own - which is the ships tour but sort ourselves out? Suggestions would be welcome.

Med medley

Palma, Villefranche, Livorno, Rapallo, Toulon, Barcelona, Palma

Treasures of Med

Palma, Trapani, Sorrento, Rome, Calvi, Palamos, Palma

hi

We did Rome on your own.

Coach drops you off at the Vatican and you are then free to do whatever you like. Bus service is excellent in Rome. Maps a plenty.

We bussed to many of the sights including the Colliseum and Trevi Fountain.

It was very hot when we went and that was in October so don't forget your hat!!

Hope this helps

Enjoy your holiday.

We are off on the Celebration in 10 weeks

Your pictures look great - they have wetted my travel bug.....:rolleyes: we are off on the Dream 29th June.....for 2 weeks. Any suggestions helpful advice? we are thinking of doing Rome on your Own - which is the ships tour but sort ourselves out? Suggestions would be welcome.

 

Med medley

Palma, Villefranche, Livorno, Rapallo, Toulon, Barcelona, Palma

Treasures of Med

Palma, Trapani, Sorrento, Rome, Calvi, Palamos, Palma

Here is a thread from a review I posted some time ago but has some of details of how to get to the Port de soller from Palma. It makes a great day out for the middle day.

http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com...port+de+soller

It also includes what we did in Trapani whihc we really enjoyed.

We did the Rome on your Own trip - gives you plenty of time to do your own thing and no hassle about leaving early and worry about the train journey back. Ignore my cafe recommendation at P.Navona though in the above thread - last time we went it had gone! And the trip up to P.Popolo certianly isn't worth it unless you've been to Rome a few times and done all the 'must sees'. I'd recommend you research and plan what you most want to do then using a map plot the most efficient route. You can see a great deal in one day in Rome - great city.

Although it's quite easy to go by train independently we really prefer the Thomson transfer - you get longer in Rome and don't have to bother about train times and getting back in time. We were lucky to get on one last time we tried - we were packed like sardines!

Barcelona: is easy no need for a trip here unless you want a guided tour. There are HoHo buses which are a great way of seeing a lot and getting around the city. Again I would decide what you most want to see before you go and plan your schedule - it's a big city (easy transport though including the Metro) so to make the most of your time it's best to have a rout planned.

Extracts from some other reviews:-

Calvi; Is absolutely gorgeous – perhaps my favourite port of the whole trip! It’s a tender port but we got off quite early and climbed up to the citadel to have a look around before it got busy and hot. Then we wandered around the little shops and although geared to tourists it felt a fairly unspoilt town. There are lots of waterfront cafes and you can walk along a proper path (although a bit dusty) beyond the harbour to a lovely beach. We went back on the tender, had some lunch then went back in the afternoon to have a swim. I’ve never seen such crystal clear water. This place is a gem!

Toulon: Having been to Toulon before we decided to go on an excursion. Toulon has a pleasant waterfront and some decent shopping but I think going on at least a half-day trip here is worth considering. Previously we did the half-day Cassis trip which we thought was really good – it’s a pretty fishing village – very touristy/café culture but much more interesting and attractive than Toulon imo.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Cassis+pictures&qpvt=Cassis+pictures&FORM=IGRE

So, this time we did the St Tropez and Port Grimaud whole day trip. St Tropez was not at all what I expected – interesting but having been once, I’m satisfied to have seen it and wouldn’t go back. We had a short walking tour before being given free time. Port Grimaud is an artificially constructed village build around canals with colourful houses bordering the waterways. It’s really very picturesque and most people expressed the view that they liked it better then St. Tropez. We had a 20 minute boat trip around the canals and plenty of free time to have a look round. It was a good trip and satisfied my curiosity about St. T and I liked Port Grimaud but on balance if I was advising someone who hadn’t done either excursion before I’d say that I prefer the Cassis option. (And it’s cheaper since it’s only a half day trip!)

Livorno: If you want to do Florence I'd recommend you do a Thomson trip - you can get by train but it's not that straight forward and involves changes. We did the Florence on your Own one and thought it very good.

Another time we went to Pisa from Livorno on the train - quite convenient. Catch the No.1 bus from the square in the centre of Livorno (P.Grande) to the station. Look up the train schedules from the Trenitalia site before you go. We thought Pisa lovely - much more to it and much nicer than we had imagined. It's only about 20 minutes on the train. Take a Pisa map with you though - you'll only get Livorno port maps on the ship.

Rappallo: We did the Thomson trip to Portofino which was great - but it was a changed port of call for us so I hadn't researched the area before we went. Rappallo looked nice but we didn't have time to look around and Portofino is close by - it may be possible to carch a local ferry service to Portofino more cheaply. Perhaps someone else may have info on that. But it's a good port of call.

Villefranche: Lovely little place - beach, waterfront cafes, little alleys and worth spending a bit of time there.

It's also easy to get to Monte Carlo from there. The train station is only a 10 minute walk from the tender point and they run fairly frequently.

Here is a link to a thread about getting to the Villa Ephrussi which is lovely if that interests you. We spent the morning there (walked there and back) and the afternoon in Villefranche on one visit. Great day!

http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1128918&highlight=villefranche

http://www.microsofttranslator.com/bv.aspx?ref=SERP&br=ro&mkt=en-GB&dl=en&lp=FR_EN&a=http%3a%2f%2fwww.villa-ephrussi.com%2fen%2fhome

I haven't called at Sorrento on a cruise but I guess you are tendered in - if you haven't been before it's lovley and no need really to go anywhere else although getting a boat across to Capri is possible I believe but we've never done that.

Sounds a varied and fab trip. Enjoy! :)

Thank you for sharing the photos.

Keith

Here is a thread from a review I posted some time ago but has some of details of how to get to the Port de soller from Palma. It makes a great day out for the middle day.

 

http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com...port+de+soller

 

It also includes what we did in Trapani whihc we really enjoyed.

 

We did the Rome on your Own trip - gives you plenty of time to do your own thing and no hassle about leaving early and worry about the train journey back. Ignore my cafe recommendation at P.Navona though in the above thread - last time we went it had gone! And the trip up to P.Popolo certianly isn't worth it unless you've been to Rome a few times and done all the 'must sees'. I'd recommend you research and plan what you most want to do then using a map plot the most efficient route. You can see a great deal in one day in Rome - great city.

Although it's quite easy to go by train independently we really prefer the Thomson transfer - you get longer in Rome and don't have to bother about train times and getting back in time. We were lucky to get on one last time we tried - we were packed like sardines!

 

Barcelona: is easy no need for a trip here unless you want a guided tour. There are HoHo buses which are a great way of seeing a lot and getting around the city. Again I would decide what you most want to see before you go and plan your schedule - it's a big city (easy transport though including the Metro) so to make the most of your time it's best to have a rout planned.

 

Extracts from some other reviews:-

 

Calvi; Is absolutely gorgeous – perhaps my favourite port of the whole trip! It’s a tender port but we got off quite early and climbed up to the citadel to have a look around before it got busy and hot. Then we wandered around the little shops and although geared to tourists it felt a fairly unspoilt town. There are lots of waterfront cafes and you can walk along a proper path (although a bit dusty) beyond the harbour to a lovely beach. We went back on the tender, had some lunch then went back in the afternoon to have a swim. I’ve never seen such crystal clear water. This place is a gem!

 

Toulon: Having been to Toulon before we decided to go on an excursion. Toulon has a pleasant waterfront and some decent shopping but I think going on at least a half-day trip here is worth considering. Previously we did the half-day Cassis trip which we thought was really good – it’s a pretty fishing village – very touristy/café culture but much more interesting and attractive than Toulon imo.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Cassis+pictures&qpvt=Cassis+pictures&FORM=IGRE

So, this time we did the St Tropez and Port Grimaud whole day trip. St Tropez was not at all what I expected – interesting but having been once, I’m satisfied to have seen it and wouldn’t go back. We had a short walking tour before being given free time. Port Grimaud is an artificially constructed village build around canals with colourful houses bordering the waterways. It’s really very picturesque and most people expressed the view that they liked it better then St. Tropez. We had a 20 minute boat trip around the canals and plenty of free time to have a look round. It was a good trip and satisfied my curiosity about St. T and I liked Port Grimaud but on balance if I was advising someone who hadn’t done either excursion before I’d say that I prefer the Cassis option. (And it’s cheaper since it’s only a half day trip!)

 

Livorno: If you want to do Florence I'd recommend you do a Thomson trip - you can get by train but it's not that straight forward and involves changes. We did the Florence on your Own one and thought it very good.

 

Another time we went to Pisa from Livorno on the train - quite convenient. Catch the No.1 bus from the square in the centre of Livorno (P.Grande) to the station. Look up the train schedules from the Trenitalia site before you go. We thought Pisa lovely - much more to it and much nicer than we had imagined. It's only about 20 minutes on the train. Take a Pisa map with you though - you'll only get Livorno port maps on the ship.

 

Rappallo: We did the Thomson trip to Portofino which was great - but it was a changed port of call for us so I hadn't researched the area before we went. Rappallo looked nice but we didn't have time to look around and Portofino is close by - it may be possible to carch a local ferry service to Portofino more cheaply. Perhaps someone else may have info on that. But it's a good port of call.

 

Villefranche: Lovely little place - beach, waterfront cafes, little alleys and worth spending a bit of time there.

It's also easy to get to Monte Carlo from there. The train station is only a 10 minute walk from the tender point and they run fairly frequently.

Here is a link to a thread about getting to the Villa Ephrussi which is lovely if that interests you. We spent the morning there (walked there and back) and the afternoon in Villefranche on one visit. Great day!

http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1128918&highlight=villefranche

 

http://www.microsofttranslator.com/bv.aspx?ref=SERP&br=ro&mkt=en-GB&dl=en&lp=FR_EN&a=http%3a%2f%2fwww.villa-ephrussi.com%2fen%2fhome

 

I haven't called at Sorrento on a cruise but I guess you are tendered in - if you haven't been before it's lovley and no need really to go anywhere else although getting a boat across to Capri is possible I believe but we've never done that.

 

Sounds a varied and fab trip. Enjoy! :)

Thank you very very much

Hi

Just back from our cruise and stay and checking things out whilst writing my review.

Realised that we met on board! Sat with you and your wife in Medussa for a short while following your trip, by yourself, to Rome.

Thanks to you both for contributing to our lovely holiday along with many other interesting and fun passengers!

:)

Thank you all for the lovely comments. And to Kruzseeka for all the port tips for.

She will be on the high seas as I type this, hope she's having a great time.

That was a weird day Anni, it's been over 30 years since I've done an excursion on my own, we always go together.

Hope your chest is OK after sitting with my wife.

Berwyn

And to Kruzseeka for all the port tips for.

She will be on the high seas as I type this, hope she's having a great time.

Berwyn

Here's the webcam for the Aurora :)

http://www.pocruises.com/cruise-ships/aurora/ship-webcams/

Well it looks quite nice weather in Stavanger :)