paylady

Thanks for the advice.

We booked our first cruise directly with O. As I think about booking 2016, I'm wondering if it would be advantageous to book with a travel agent.

My question: The cruise I'm interested in offers O Life benefits. What perks should I expect from a travel agent?

I can comment on Dubrovnik, which is easily done on your own. If i remember correctly, I think we took a bus from the ship to the old city. we bought the bus ticket from the Excursions Desk on the ship.

You pay to walk the ramparts of the the old city. It is quite beautiful.

The bus drops you off across the street from here.

You walk up the ramparts here

Views from the top

We're delighted to learn that Mario will be back on Serenade when we sail in October. He is one of the best.

I couldn't agree more!

We leave Serenade the day he returns. Rats!!

Enjoying your review, thanks for sharing and keep it coming! :)

Another vote for Joyce Prince. We used her twice and were very pleased.

To the OP, thanks for an upbeat but balanced review. I enjoyed reading it and am glad you had a great time.

Not the OP, but I can answer this for you. Since each concierge is different, be sure to ask the concierge what their process is for disembarking. They'll be busy the first day, but catch them Day 2 or 3 and ask that they assist with your disembarkation which they can do once US Customs releases the ship. I assume you are in a full suite. Enjoy.

Thanks to all - still not sure what to do with responses all over the place - but I appreciate the input!

As you can see, only you can make the decision that's best for you. I would definitely suggest the Northbound or Southbound route. Seward is a superb destination. The Kenai Fjords excursion is not to be missed and the Sea Life Center is also very nice.

The first time we booked Alaska I had a feeling we would want to return since we are lovers of scenery and wildlife so it didn't bother me to miss Glacier Bay since I figured we would be back. If you think you will return to Alaska, then your choice may be easier.

We loved our tour with Misty Bay. If you are uncertain about two whale watching tours, there is much to do in Juneau as others have mentioned.

I thought I would offer my opinions.

I remember the days when whale watching out of Juneau wasn't so overcrowded with tons of tour operators so I'm recommending you stick with Misty Bay Lodge. We thoroughly enjoyed our outing with them. We've done whale watching out of Juneau many times and used another tour operator out of ISP and misty bay is our favorite.

As mentioned, a helicopter landing and walkabout on a glacier (Juenau) is an amazing experience. You really get to experience the vastness of Alaska walking on a glacier.

Depending on your options in Seward, if they offer an optional tour on Resurrection Bay, grab it. It's a great experience. If there isn't enough time for the boat tour, they will probably offer the Sea Life Center which is a very fine operation, IMO, but isn't the same as experiencing sea life in its natural habitat.

With the RCL tour, you will be offered the Tundra Wilderness Tour. Upgrade to that option as its superior to the Natural History Tour. If you have time, you could also opt to tour independently, but you may not feel comfortable with that option.

Enjoy your trip!

I love the chocolate covered pomegranate seeds from Trader Joes. I think it's best if I bring my own snacks because the vendors might not have some of my favorites.

 

Thanks everyone

This is a good plan especially with Aventure Bound. There won't be enough time to find food in port before boarding their boat. It was just last year and I can't remember if we got sandwiches from them or brought packaged foods from home. All I remember were the whales, four bear sightings and ice flows. Oh, and the very looonnng day! It was worth it though. :)

Great review Marla....loved the pics of our merry band of cruisers in Schooners!!

We really did have a fabulous cruise and made some great friends...thanks for bring back so many fond memories!!

 

Peggy and Ernie

Peggy --- Bless you for sticking with me the entire review! We'll see you and Ernie in sunny Florida after we move.

Hi Paylady....Early Saturday morning, with my mug of java in hand, I had set out to research private tour companies for our Russian/Baltic cruise for July 2015. I also wanted to check out the condition of the Serenade and your review jumped out at me! Although, we have cruised through the E and W MED on different lines a few times, I was captivated by your wonderful pictures and pictorial that brought me back to some wonderful memories! We are also reserved in a GS in July and are just turning DIamond on this cruise. I will definitely be on the out look to see if the UPGRADE FAIRY who resides in Oregon decides to phone me. :) I loved your detailed review and look forward to hearing your thoughts regarding your time on OCeania. Thank you for taking the time to share your voyage. Happy and Safe Travels.

 

Pam

Pam:

I'm glad you found this review. In our case, it seems the chance of an upgrade from a GS to an OS went by C&A status. Since the Pinnacle members with a GS had to cancel, we must have been next with our D+. There was another couple on our thread who also had a GS and were either Diamond or D+ and I'm sure they would have snapped up the upgrade just as we did. I remember talking with them about it in the lounge.

Good luck, I hope the upgrade fairy finds you and have a marvelous time on your Baltic cruise.

Our next Mediterranean Cruise

Our next Med cruise is planned for this year, around the same time as our 2013 cruise. I booked us on Oceania. This will be a major departure for us to cruise on a different line. The cruise will be on Riviera leaving Barcelona and ending in Civitavecchia. It is quite port intensive with no sea days. :eek: The ship ports in Marseilles, Monte Carlo, Palma de Mallorca, Portofino, La Spezia and Livorno. This itinerary provides the opportunity to visit both the Cinque Terre (La Spezia) and Florence (Livorno) plus we'll spend three nights post-cruise in Rome. We also get two new ports to visit which is an added bonus. With an itinerary such as this, we will have to pace ourselves to be sure, otherwise we'll burn out but the time we reach Rome. Palma and Portofino will probably be low key days for us with Marseilles more than likely being a wine tour day. That should keep us from self-destructing, I hope.

Here's what got me thinking of Oceania. We were at lunch in the DR one day on another cruise. I always like to ask folks about their cruising experiences and like to learn about other cruise lines. I remember asking one British couple about their favorite and they said Oceania. Now that we are closer to our early retirement (this year :D) I wanted to branch out. Maybe I will write a review on that cruise and land vacation too, you never know.

Summary

This was one of those very special cruises that ranks up there with our first cruise experience on the Sovereign of the Seas in 1989. This was our first time in the Mediterranean and we met some really wonderful people. There isn't anything I would do different than what I already mentioned. This was just one of those almost perfect vacations. It's going to be tough to beat.

Thanks for all of you who followed along. I hope you enjoyed the review.

I don't remember how it happened, but we all ended up in the Schooner Bar the last night and got some group photos.

Boys will be boys

Another group shot

To end our cruise, we spent two glorious days at sea. We filled our days relaxing and chatting with all the wonderful folks we met onboard.

As Halloween approached, the crew really got into decorating.

While I'm posting photos, here's another interior photo.

Next up:

Halloween decorations, a few more ship photos and some group photos of our fellow cruisers.

We kept walking along until we arrived around our starting point. I was trying to remember if we could just walk to town from the port or if we took a shuttle bus. In any case, we ended up back at the pier.

We returned to the ship for a bite to eat outside in the back of the Windjammer and took more photos. The outdoor dining is one very nice feature of the Radiance class. I always miss it on other RCL ships. We stayed outside for sail away from port since this was our last.

During sail away. The Aida ship left first. Those lips are too cute! :p

Sunset at the end of a fabulous day

We went in search of the synagogue which was down one of the many small streets along the way. We didn't have time for the Jewish part of Rome this trip and since I had never seen a European synagogue I was interested in a short visit.

Photos weren't allowed inside. You see how well I followed the rules. Here's a photo of the ark. If you look real closely, you'll see a no camera sign on the left side of the photo.

More photos of our walk It seems I lied. There were more cats. See the little guy behind bars in the window?

After we finished walking the ramparts we came down to Earth and strolled around.

After strolling around just a bit, I came across a Michal Negrin shop. I was glad to spend my money on some costume jewelry. I usually go for her smaller pieces and found a couple of pairs of earrings.

One of the many small streets along our walk in the walled city

One last cat photo. This one was interested in Brian's camera.

Here are more photos of our walk along the wall.

Same but a little closer

More pretty palm trees

Another of Brian's furry friends during our walk on the wall. This one appears to be a cousin of Socks.

Our plan was to walk the ramparts of the walled city and we did just that. I warn you, the stairs leading up to the ramparts are steep and don't have any landings to rest as you walk up.

Here is a partial photo of the stairs leading to the top. I'm ashamed to tell you that I was huffing and puffing my way up.

If I'm not mistaken, the stairs at the far end of the walled city may be a bit easier to climb. We came down those stairs at the end of our walk. The walled city and its surroundings are quite scenic. Folks live in homes all around and within the walled city.

Eureka! I made it!

I'm back to continue my review after a nine day hiatus. Brian and I are building a house in Florida and flew down to see the progress. Between our long weekend there and work, I knew I wouldn't be able to continue until now.

Dubrovnik

The pleasant surprise of our trip. First the scenery was lovely coming into port and the walled city was beautiful. We had a nice sunny day too!

We had a nice breakfast on our balcony as we cruised into Dubrovnik that morning.

View from our balcony.

We arrive! It's odd, but I never thought of Croatia as having palm trees.

Nice trip report!

I can sympathize with your boarding experience on Adventure.

I don't know what it is about the Sunday staff for check in, but I consistently experience better service when boarding the Jewel. I have never had a great check in experience with Adventure. I used to think it was US Customs. Maybe it's the RCL staff. :(