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Voyager - Venice to Rome, 10/17-24/12


forgap

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We have finally returned from Europe - dodged Frankenstorm by two days – and are slowly creeping into a regular sleep cycle (although I’d like to stay awake past 8:30pm!) We cruised on Voyager, October 17 – 24 - Venice to Rome. We had a flawless trip – a few wrinkles here and there, but really remarkably trouble free.

 

We had an Air France flight out of Atlanta to Venice, connecting in Rome. I crowed over the fact that we were in an exit row…plenty of leg room, until I realized that the 777 we were flying has a weird configuration so that my window seat curved inward in a decidedly claustrophobic way. I had to get into a kind of troll-like position to fit. Plenty of leg room, though! The other downside of having about 6 feet of space in front of us was that it became the “town square” for much of the flight. The couple doing yoga was a bit much.

 

Our connection in Paris required a change of terminal. You really have to high tail it through immigration and speed across the airport. Luckily the flight to Venice was delayed so we really had plenty of time. Our original connection scheduled by Regent Air allowed only a 50-minute window. They insisted it was an allowable connection time, but, since we had done this same connection last year, I knew we’d never make it. Make sure you have at least 90 minutes to do this.

 

We arrived in Venice on the 11th and spent 5 days in Tuscany, returning to Venice on the 16th. We made our own hotel arrangements, staying at the Ca’ Dogaressa in Cannaregio. This is a lovely hotel in a fairly non-touristy part of Venice. It is 150 meters from the Alliaguna stop from the airport and only two stops from Piazzale Romana and the People Mover to the cruise port. This was very easy to do on our own. I don’t think you really need Regent’s help in Venice to get to the ship unless you have some mobility problems. It is a bit of a schlep from the People Mover to the ship but I was excited and motivated so I hardly noticed the walk.

 

Once at the terminal, the embarkation was easy, except that you have to go through security to make sure you aren’t carrying weapons or explosives on board. I apologize for anyone reading this who was behind us, as we had a 2-inch Swiss army knife in our suitcase that held up the nice flow of things. The problem was finding it in our overstuffed suitcase while it was on the security conveyor belt. I finally found it in a shoe and it was confiscated until the last day of our voyage when it appeared on our bed. Really, though, if I wanted to do some serious damage, I could have swiped a steak knife from Prime 7! I was surprised to see it on the last day, as, in my way of thinking, this was when passengers are most at risk to do something really crazy to stay on board!

 

We boarded at about 12:30 and went straight to La Veranda for lunch. Venice had been cloudy and a bit chilly but as we sat down in the deck area, the clouds parted, the sun warmed our skin, the champagne warmed our souls, and life was good! Our suite was ready by 2:30, luggage in place. The suites are really wonderful – spacious, muted colors, nice amenities. We were in Penthouse C so we had the beautiful large deck that we used to the max.

 

OK…now to the much talked about vibration issue….yes, there is vibration. It bothered my husband (a light sleeper) -it didn’t bother me. It waxed and waned depending on how fast we were going or whether we were speeding up or slowing down. Fortunately, we were on a leisurely itinerary.

 

We had a butler, Ahmet, who was really attentive and solicitous to our every need. That being said, we come from a long line of peasant stock, so we are a bit uncomfortable with this level of service. He did arrange an Indian feast for us in our suite one night that was over the top delicious. It could have fed 10 people. He assured me it wouldn’t go to waste – see my proletariat roots bubbling up again.

 

This is getting a bit long. I will post a formal review, but all of you were so helpful as we were anticipating this trip, I wanted to personally thank you and share my impressions for anyone who is in an equal state of anticipation.

 

Guests: Our fellow cruisers were varied in age and nationality. I had fun making up stories about the more colorful characters. Everyone was friendly. I didn’t observe any arrogance or bad behavior.

 

Crew: Friendly and hard working.

 

Spa/Exercise: The gym was usually pretty crowded. We used our on-board credit to get an exercise prescription from Alan, the fitness director. He is personable, professional, and competent. His analysis of our exercise and stretching needs was very comprehensive and he was like a cross between a trainer and a physical therapist. If you have an opportunity to work with him, do so. He really is the best.

 

Food: I loved the food. We went to Signatures, Prime 7, La Veranda, and Compass Rose. We didn’t go to Sette Mari as I loved the menu in Compass Rose. As an example, one night I had sea bass wrapped in a banana leaf with a miso sauce. Perfectly cooked (i.e., moist, flakey). The fish we ordered consistently came out exactly as we ordered in, including medium rare salmon. I’m not sure how they do it, but my hat’s off to the kitchen.

 

Cocktails, wine, champagne: Loved the wine choices and really loved the champagne. I can’t say I was a big fan of the cocktails. In Atlanta we have become very spoiled with the artisanal cocktail culture – mixologists now – NOT bartenders. I tried several cocktails – all of which tasted like a packaged sour mix. My suggestion is to stick to the traditional cocktails with pure booze and pure mixers.

 

I think I’m way over my word limit at this point. We had a wonderful time – so much so that we took advantage of the on-board booking discount and signed on for Bangkok to Dubai, 2014! If you have any specific questions, I’d be happy to try to answer them.

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Forgap - Thanks a lot for taking the time to write about your trip. We'll be taking Voyager from Rome to Venice (opposite direction) in 2013. Which ports, in particular, did you like the most and which excursions did you go on? Regards.

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Sounds like you had a fantastic trip! You mentioned vibration noise in your cabin. Where exactly where was your Penthouse C? We will be on the Voyager in January and our cabin is 661 (aft ). Thanks!

 

I was in 660 recently - no vibration. :)

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Thank you for all of your kind responses. I'll try to answer some of the specific questions.

(NOTE: I've tried to upload photos from photobucket but I think I may not know what I'm doing....they didn't show on preview, so I'm not sure what will show up when I post!)

Geegeecruiser: We were in Cabin 881, back of the ship, almost center. I think that we must have been almost directly over the engine, thus the vibration. I would put up with the vibration any day for the large deck and the phenominal views while in port and on departure. You really would have to pay through the nose for some of the vistas we had! This is our view of the Venice Lagoon on sailaway:

P1040634.jpg.html

 

Josephone: Our butler was wonderful. He arranged the Indian dinner, he delivered canapes to our cabin each day, he orchestrated a lovely anniversary suprise - decorations in the cabin, truffles and port. All in all though, I prefer privacy. My husband felt intruded upon almost immediately but he's French (and you know how the French are! :p)

Our 35th Anniversary:

image-2.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0

 

The Indian dinner:

image-1.jpg.html?sort=3&o=1

 

orpingtonT and Pingpong1:

Overall, we enjoyed all of our excursions with some reservations. On the first day it was somewhat chaotic, with a substantial check in line in the theater. This was mainly because we didn't know the routine. From then on, check in was very easy. Our tours never had more than 25 people to the bus which made it more enjoyable and less claustrophobic. Most ports had shuttle busses so you could manage your own schedule. In retrospect, we should have done this more. However, we had some “must see” sites that required going on a tour. That being said, here is the breakdown:

 

Dubrovnik: We went on the Historic Dubrovnik tour. Our guide was great with a very dry wit, knowledgible about history, and had first hand experience with the war. She kept alluding to current politics and then did not elaborate. All and all I would have rather heard more about the war and the current state of the economy and political life. We ditched the tour at the end and took the shuttle back to the ship. This is not a reflection of the tour, just that we were still in the honeymoon phase of ship life.

 

Corfu: We had a Virtuoso tour that included lunch at a restaurant in the countryside. The tour took us to some great vistas and a monastery on top of a cliff. The lunch was lovely under a grove of trees – traditional Greek food, music and dancing. The best part was having a chance to talk with fellow passengers.

 

Taormina: We took the Mt. Etna tour. It was a long drive and our guide kept up a running patter about the flora, fauna, geology, and economics of the area. Mt. Etna is not to be missed. However, once there, there is not much to do. We had two stops within 30 minutes of each other at a café/gift shop. Seemed like subterfuge to get us to buy something but there wasn’t much to buy except a 2-euro snicker bar. The tour could have been cut by an hour and we would have been equally pleased.

 

Mt. Etna at sunset - view from the ship:

P1040825.jpg.html?sort=3&o=3

Sorrento/Capri: We went to Pompeii and were fortunate to have an “old school” guide, Mario. This was the most interesting of all the tours. Mario was extremely knowledgible about the history of the site and the archeological dig. He would position us in the ruins then show us an artist’s drawing of what it was like before the eruption. You came away with a real feel for the innovations that existed in Pompeii and a reverence for the loss of life. As an aside, it really bothered me to see a family (not on our tour!) posing their daughter for a “horror shot” next to the remains of a person who perished in the eruption. Most of you know, that bodies were preserved in ash. The archeologists used a technique using plaster to preserve the effigies. Many of the bodies are now showing skeletal remains. It just seemed wrong not to honor the life lost.

 

Amalfi/Positano: We went on a boat tour along the Amalfi coast that was really beautiful. Positano is shopping heaven with a steep climb up the hill dotted with restaurants and high/low end shops. On return, we could take the tender back to the ship or tour Amalfi. We opted to go back and have a leisurely lunch on the deck of La Veranda with a picture postcard view of Amalfi, drinking a glass of Sancerre.

 

By the way, we had perfect weather for this cruise. Not a drop of rain and high temps in the upper 70’s, low temps in the low 60’s/upper 50’s. Calm seas.

 

Florence/Pisa: We did the “Florence on your own” tour as we had been several times and I had lived in Florence for six months when I was in college. It is about an hour and a half drive. Our guide, Tiziano, kept up interesting commentary concerning the towns we passed. He had a great demeanor – funny and intelligent – and he didn’t blast over the bus speaker system. NOTE: if you are sensitive to sound, bring earplugs! The best part of the tour was our return. The crew was awaiting our return with cold towels, water, juice, and champagne. The band was playing a great welcome home tune. We stumbled off the bus, danced up the gangplank, went to our room and uncorked our last bottle of Champagne!

 

Keep the questions coming! I appreciate how helpful this forum was to me!

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Orpington, you can see the pictures? I am just getting an icon of a question mark.....I emailed Wes for some instructions on what I'm doing wrong.

 

I couldn't access the pictures from this board, but could click on the link which was included in the email notification I got that a reply had been posted.

 

Wes is an expert on posting pictures, but the following are the instructions I saved on how to do it, if they are of any help.

 

HOW TO POST A PHOTO IN THE FORUM.

1. Choose a photo hosting site (I use photobucket.com or picassa, et. al.)

2. Once you have downloaded the photos to the album on the host site, the host

site will give you an IMG code under each downloaded picture that looks like below (except instead of parens, there will be brackets

at beginning and end.

 

(IMG) http://i1197.photobucket.comcolonelw...3-1276.jpg(IMG)

 

3. Copy this IMG code by left clicking on the IMG code, then right clicking to copy the IMG code

4. Click on the globe icon above the quick reply on your CC post and a separate block/tab will appear that says pls enter your URL..copy the IMG code here and hit OK (make sure the cursor on your post is where u want it. For example, you may want to write a caption describing the pix then copy the URL below it. Viola your pix should appear if I did not leave out a step.

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OK I'm going to try this again using opingtonT's instructions

 

 

 

Thank you for all of your kind responses. I'll try to answer some of the specific questions.

(NOTE: I've tried to upload photos from photobucket but I think I may not know what I'm doing....they didn't show on preview, so I'm not sure what will show up when I post!)

Geegeecruiser: We were in Cabin 881, back of the ship, almost center. I think that we must have been almost directly over the engine, thus the vibration. I would put up with the vibration any day for the large deck and the phenominal views while in port and on departure. You really would have to pay through the nose for some of the vistas we had! This is our view of the Venice Lagoon on sailaway:

 

Josephone: Our butler was wonderful. He arranged the Indian dinner, he delivered canapes to our cabin each day, he orchestrated a lovely anniversary suprise - decorations in the cabin, truffles and port. All in all though, I prefer privacy. My husband felt intruded upon almost immediately but he's French (and you know how the French are! )

Our 35th Anniversary:

http://s1357.beta.photobucket.com/user/forgap/media/image-2.jpg.html

 

The Indian dinner:

 

http://s1357.beta.photobucket.com/user/forgap/media/image-1.jpg.html

 

orpingtonT and Pingpong1:

Overall, we enjoyed all of our excursions with some reservations. On the first day it was somewhat chaotic, with a substantial check in line in the theater. This was mainly because we didn't know the routine. From then on, check in was very easy. Our tours never had more than 25 people to the bus which made it more enjoyable and less claustrophobic. Most ports had shuttle busses so you could manage your own schedule. In retrospect, we should have done this more. However, we had some “must see” sites that required going on a tour. That being said, here is the breakdown:

 

Dubrovnik: We went on the Historic Dubrovnik tour. Our guide was great with a very dry wit, knowledgible about history, and had first hand experience with the war. She kept alluding to current politics and then did not elaborate. All and all I would have rather heard more about the war and the current state of the economy and political life. We ditched the tour at the end and took the shuttle back to the ship. This is not a reflection of the tour, just that we were still in the honeymoon phase of ship life.

 

Corfu: We had a Virtuoso tour that included lunch at a restaurant in the countryside. The tour took us to some great vistas and a monastery on top of a cliff. The lunch was lovely under a grove of trees – traditional Greek food, music and dancing. The best part was having a chance to talk with fellow passengers.

 

Taormina: We took the Mt. Etna tour. It was a long drive and our guide kept up a running patter about the flora, fauna, geology, and economics of the area. Mt. Etna is not to be missed. However, once there, there is not much to do. We had two stops within 30 minutes of each other at a café/gift shop. Seemed like subterfuge to get us to buy something but there wasn’t much to buy except a 2-euro snicker bar. The tour could have been cut by an hour and we would have been equally pleased.

 

Mt. Etna at sunset - view from the ship:

 

http://s1357.beta.photobucket.com/user/forgap/media/P1040825.jpg.html

 

Sorrento/Capri: We went to Pompeii and were fortunate to have an “old school” guide, Mario. This was the most interesting of all the tours. Mario was extremely knowledgible about the history of the site and the archeological dig. He would position us in the ruins then show us an artist’s drawing of what it was like before the eruption. You came away with a real feel for the innovations that existed in Pompeii and a reverence for the loss of life. As an aside, it really bothered me to see a family (not on our tour!) posing their daughter for a “horror shot” next to the remains of a person who perished in the eruption. Most of you know, that bodies were preserved in ash. The archeologists used a technique using plaster to preserve the effigies. Many of the bodies are now showing skeletal remains. It just seemed wrong not to honor the life lost.

 

Amalfi/Positano: We went on a boat tour along the Amalfi coast that was really beautiful. Positano is shopping heaven with a steep climb up the hill dotted with restaurants and high/low end shops. On return, we could take the tender back to the ship or tour Amalfi. We opted to go back and have a leisurely lunch on the deck of La Veranda with a picture postcard view of Amalfi, drinking a glass of Sancerre.

 

By the way, we had perfect weather for this cruise. Not a drop of rain and high temps in the upper 70’s, low temps in the low 60’s/upper 50’s. Calm seas.

 

Florence/Pisa: We did the “Florence on your own” tour as we had been several times and I had lived in Florence for six months when I was in college. It is about an hour and a half drive. Our guide, Tiziano, kept up interesting commentary concerning the towns we passed. He had a great demeanor – funny and intelligent – and he didn’t blast over the bus speaker system. NOTE: if you are sensitive to sound, bring earplugs! The best part of the tour was our return. The crew was awaiting our return with cold towels, water, juice, and champagne. The band was playing a great welcome home tune. We stumbled off the bus, danced up the gangplank, went to our room and uncorked our last bottle of Champagne!

 

Keep the questions coming! I appreciate how helpful this forum was to me!

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Hi forgap/Jennifer, (was out doing Honey do's for Ida) just sent you Terry Breen's (best pix poster on the Lux boards, we've read) instructions per email.

 

Orpingtont/Tom's guidance is spot on--also try these

 

1. copy IMG code from Photobucket.

2. click on quick reply button (last icon to right at bottom of previous post)

3. Click on globe (world) icon in the eight icons top row that show in quick reply template

4. paste the IMG code in body of CC post,

5. make some comments about your wonderful pix

6. click on post quick reply

 

Also, Jennifer, CC has a Picture posting Test thread that is helpful to try first to hone your pix posting skills, pls see

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1098834&page=8

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One last try, thanks to OpingtonT and Col Wes!

 

 

Thank you for all of your kind responses. I'll try to answer some of the specific questions.

 

Geegeecruiser: We were in Cabin 881, back of the ship, almost center. I think that we must have been almost directly over the engine, thus the vibration. I would put up with the vibration any day for the large deck and the phenominal views while in port and on departure. You really would have to pay through the nose for some of the vistas we had! This is our view of the Venice Lagoon on sailaway:

P1040634.jpg[/img]

 

Josephone: Our butler was wonderful. He arranged the Indian dinner, he delivered canapes to our cabin each day, he orchestrated a lovely anniversary suprise - decorations in the cabin, truffles and port. All in all though, I prefer privacy. My husband felt intruded upon almost immediately but he's French (and you know how the French are! :p)

Our 35th Anniversary:

image-2.jpg[/img]

The Indian dinner that was served on our veranda:

 

image-1.jpg[/img]

 

orpingtonT and Pingpong1:

Overall, we enjoyed all of our excursions with some reservations. On the first day it was somewhat chaotic, with a substantial check in line in the theater. This was mainly because we didn't know the routine. From then on, check in was very easy. Our tours never had more than 25 people to the bus which made it more enjoyable and less claustrophobic. Most ports had shuttle busses so you could manage your own schedule. In retrospect, we should have done this more. However, we had some “must see” sites that required going on a tour. That being said, here is the breakdown:

 

Dubrovnik: We went on the Historic Dubrovnik tour. Our guide was great with a very dry wit, knowledgible about history, and had first hand experience with the war. She kept alluding to current politics and then did not elaborate. All and all I would have rather heard more about the war and the current state of the economy and political life. We ditched the tour at the end and took the shuttle back to the ship. This is not a reflection of the tour, just that we were still in the honeymoon phase of ship life.

 

Corfu: We had a Virtuoso tour that included lunch at a restaurant in the countryside. The tour took us to some great vistas and a monastery on top of a cliff. The lunch was lovely under a grove of trees – traditional Greek food, music and dancing. The best part was having a chance to talk with fellow passengers.

 

Leaving Corfu as seen from our veranda:

image-3.jpg[/img]

 

Taormina: We took the Mt. Etna tour. It was a long drive and our guide kept up a running patter about the flora, fauna, geology, and economics of the area. Mt. Etna is not to be missed. However, once there, there is not much to do. We had two stops within 30 minutes of each other at a café/gift shop. Seemed like subterfuge to get us to buy something but there wasn’t much to buy except a 2-euro snicker bar. The tour could have been cut by an hour and we would have been equally pleased.

 

Mt. Etna at sunset - view from the ship:

 

P1040825.jpg[/img]

 

Sorrento/Capri: We went to Pompeii and were fortunate to have an “old school” guide, Mario. This was the most interesting of all the tours. Mario was extremely knowledgible about the history of the site and the archeological dig. He would position us in the ruins then show us an artist’s drawing of what it was like before the eruption. You came away with a real feel for the innovations that existed in Pompeii and a reverence for the loss of life. As an aside, it really bothered me to see a family (not on our tour!) posing their daughter for a “horror shot” next to the remains of a person who perished in the eruption. Most of you know, that bodies were preserved in ash. The archeologists used a technique using plaster to preserve the effigies. Many of the bodies are now showing skeletal remains. It just seemed wrong not to honor the life lost.

 

Amalfi/Positano: We went on a boat tour along the Amalfi coast that was really beautiful. Positano is shopping heaven with a steep climb up the hill dotted with restaurants and high/low end shops. On return, we could take the tender back to the ship or tour Amalfi. We opted to go back and have a leisurely lunch on the deck of La Veranda with a picture postcard view of Amalfi, drinking a glass of Sancerre.

 

 

By the way, we had perfect weather for this cruise. Not a drop of rain and high temps in the upper 70’s, low temps in the low 60’s/upper 50’s. Calm seas.

 

Florence/Pisa: We did the “Florence on your own” tour as we had been several times and I had lived in Florence for six months when I was in college. It is about an hour and a half drive. Our guide, Tiziano, kept up interesting commentary concerning the towns we passed. He had a great demeanor – funny and intelligent – and he didn’t blast over the bus speaker system. NOTE: if you are sensitive to sound, bring earplugs! The best part of the tour was our return. The crew was awaiting our return with cold towels, water, juice, and champagne. The band was playing a great welcome home tune. We stumbled off the bus, danced up the gangplank, went to our room and uncorked our last bottle of Champagne!

 

Keep the questions coming! I appreciate how helpful this forum was to me!

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Hi forgap/Jennifer & Georges, y'alls stunning pix were worth the wait..absolutely gorgeous. Thanks for your patience and persistence--we're all visually rewarded :) not only with your outstanding pictures but also with your words of infectious enthusiasm--for y'alls cruise. Again, a belated Happy 35th Anniversary!

 

 

Thank you.

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Thanks for your positive review. Perhaps there is not much wrong with cruising with Regent after some of the recent comments on this board.

 

Were your impressions of the service for port excursions also positive?

 

Yes Tom, there isn't much wrong once you get on board. It's the dealings with the home office along with the never ending brochures and e-mails, destinations and the ever increasing costs coupled with the decreases in benefits that are the disturbing issues.

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