Cruise Review – Voyager of the Seas – July 23, 2011 – Adriatic Sea Cruise w/pics

[Jules12Wed]

Is it just me but the last post that shows up on my computer is

19 August at 8.21.

 

When I look at the main menu I can see an updated post but when I go into the thread there are only 3 pages with the last post being as above.

 

Is this just me - although if you post your reply here I won't be able to see it!!!

[SAS21]

THinking of a cruise out of Venice. Do you have to tke a water taxi everywhere? specifically to & from the ship? or was this just the choice you made? When you came from your hotel was this the only option to get to the ship?

[daliflor]

Has anybody got any pics of a promenade cabin, especially the window, as we have been given one on deck 8

 

Thank you :)

 

As requested: Voyager of the Seas» PR stateroom # 8579 images @

 

http://www.cruise-addicts.com/photogallery/v/Voyager+OTS/D2-8579+from+door+2.jpg.html

 

 

 

 

 

The Promenade view from this stateroom:

 

 

 

 

Finally, Cruise Compass for this Voyager of the Seas' itinerary @

 

http://www.*****.com/cruise-compasses/voyager-seas/2011-06-04t040000

 

 

BTW: Great review, OP! Thanks for sharing your experience with us!

[SunintheFun]

I did this cruise as a graduation present to my DD, we loved it, we had JS in the middle hump, great cabin, thought the crew was great. We did Bled lake, just go doit, it was beautiful, we booked though bled taxis dot com, just google it. I would love to do a land tour there!

[BettyPC]

Great review - I can't wait to read the rest of it. Thanks for sharing it with us!

[Macker91]

You will have a great time on your cruise. We had originally booked a JS and had the chance to check one out while we were going down the hall. Our room steward showed it to us, it was a nice room and had the upgraded flat screen tv.

 

You have to have a Gold Sea Pass card in order to use Portofino and Suite seats inthe theatre. It is my understanding that the JS gets a silver sea pass which means you will not be able to use these areas. Watch for price drops, you may be able to upgrade if you watch carefully. We ended up doing a very cheap upgrade from JS to Grand Suite a week or so before the cruise sailed. Good luck and I hope you have a great cruise.

 

 

Thanks bb for your response - am so excited about it - Another question I have picked early sitting in MDR for a table of 4 - is it possible to specifically request a window table as we will be in the dining room for some of the sail aways and would love to be sitting at a window to see this if at all possible ?

[BecciBoo]

Yes, it is. We do it nearly every cruise and have never been disappointed. Just email RCLdining@rccl.com and request one.

Great review, miss the ole gal here in Texas.

[wales4ever]

Thank you daliflor we have the cabin next door :)

 

Though unfortunately the bottom 2 pictures did not come out.

 

Thank you anyway - Peter

[bbbearden]

Did you happen to notice if they had any tours going to Lake Bled?

Thanks,

 

 

Did not notice if they did, I will try to check our cruise info when I get home and let you know.

[bbbearden]

THinking of a cruise out of Venice. Do you have to tke a water taxi everywhere? specifically to & from the ship? or was this just the choice you made? When you came from your hotel was this the only option to get to the ship?

 

We loved Venice. You do not have to take a water taxi everywhere. There is public transportation in the form of water busses. The are Vapratto and Alliliguana (sp?) that go just about everywhere. These are much cheaper than the water taxi's. Venice is also a city where walking is on the the best ways to get around. For long distance or when carrying luggage the water taxis are nice, but the water buses will get you there just fine.

[bbbearden]

Thanks bb for your response - am so excited about it - Another question I have picked early sitting in MDR for a table of 4 - is it possible to specifically request a window table as we will be in the dining room for some of the sail aways and would love to be sitting at a window to see this if at all possible ?

 

 

It is possible to ask, but not sure how they handle those requests. We were in MTD and requested a window a few times and always got it. However, not sure how that will work with the fixed dining time. I would call RCCL now and make the request instead of waiting to board the ship. The tables are likely already assigned by then. We also enjoyed being near the open area so that we could see and hear the piano player and other muscians. They were excellent.

[LBumb]

awesome review

[daliflor]

Thank you daliflor we have the cabin next door :)

 

Though unfortunately the bottom 2 pictures did not come out.

 

Thank you anyway - Peter

 

I regret the inconvenience, Peter. The site where they are posted originally seems bit moody and ocassionally may not fully display the images...

 

FYI - Can view them my clicking "Properties" on each image and then copying the entire URL listed to a new Browser.

 

However, I hope it's ok to repost them on this thread (not to upset the owner):

 

As requested: Voyager of the Seas» PR stateroom # 8579 images:

 

 

 

 

 

The Promenade view from this stateroom (note that I was told that the cabin is not noisy at all despite being above the Pub):

 

 

 

 

BTW: Great review, OP! Thanks for sharing your experience with us!

[bbbearden]

I regret the inconvenience, Peter. The site where they are posted originally seems bit moody and ocassionally may not fully display the images...

 

FYI - Can view them my clicking "Properties" on each image and then copying the entire URL listed to a new Browser.

 

However, I hope it's ok to repost them on this thread (not to upset the owner):

 

 

Thanks for the pics, the owner is not upset! :)

[bbbearden]

Bari, Italy: Bari was a great port. As we arrived in the morning we enjoyed viewing the very picturesque harbor and the lighthouse from our Balcony as we entered port. We also enjoyed watching the Costa Fortuna arrive in port after us. It is always interesting to watch large ships sailing and arriving in port.

 

Blue waters in front of the Bari Light House

 

 

 

 

Bari Harbor near old town

 

 

 

Costa Fortuna sailing into Bari harbor

 

 

 

 

Voyager docked in Bari

[bbbearden]

We skipped using the shuttle in Bari. We could see the old town from the ship and it turned out to be about a 10 minute walk into the old town from the port. It was a brisk walk, but was not bad. There was also a free shuttle running into town but we did not use it. Unless you have trouble walking, I would not waste money on the shuttles in this port.

As we walked out of the port area there was a large area to the left where a group of vendors was selling shore excursions. We noticed some rickshaws and decided that would be a fun easy way to see the city and learn our way around. We did a one hour rickshaw tour for 45 Euros. They were asking 50 but my wife got them down to 45.

Our driver was a nice young man who was in Bari studying music. He told us he was from Persia. Last time I looked on my globe that place was called Iran. When I asked him, he admitted he was from Tehran but hated the government and what it was doing to the people. He said he did not feel free to play his music and express himself there and so he planned to stay in Italy.

He gave us a great one hour tour of the old town. We went to the Saint Nicolai (sp?) Cathedral where St. Nicholas is buried. It was a wonderful church and really neat to see. Luckily my daughter did not seem to connect Saint Nicolai to Santa Claus……….We did a brief tour there and moved on to a couple of other churches, the town square, an area where ladies were making fresh pasta, a gelato shop, and the Swabian Castle. Our tour ended near the Castle. This brief tour helped us to learn the layout of the town and enabled us to know some history as well as knowing where we wanted to spend more time.

After the rickshaw tour, we paid a small admission and toured the Swabian Castle. It was interesting, but basically a large empty castle. It was worth it due to the small fee, otherwise I would skip it. The old town was wonderful. We had lunch at one of the many sidewalk cafes and had a great experience. It seemed like each one we went by had a better looking display then the last.

We toured several churches, and spent lots of time just wandering around the old town which is still a largely residential area. We did venture into part of the new town and went in a few of the shops which were nice, but due to the dollar to euro conversion, were expensive. We bought a few small things but did not spend a lot. There were many really neat places we just wandered into including the old opera house. All in Bari was a really neat town. Again, we found no need for an excursion at this port. Everything we really wanted to see was within walking distance.

Bari really gives a good feeling of Italy. The people were great, the town was spotless, and it was a great experience. We really enjoyed Bari.

Wall around old town in Bari

The sea shore near old town Bari

Saint Nicolai Cathedral

[bbbearden]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ladies making fresh pasta

 

[bbbearden]

 

 

 

 

 

Pizza in Italy, who can beat it

 

 

 

 

 

[Costafox]

Wonderful review with fantastic photos! Voyager was our first ship so is special to us and the ports you are visiting are beautiful.

 

Thanks for sharing your experiences with us

 

Best Wishes

Gill

[bbbearden]

The Ice Show on Wednesday evening was great. I called the concierge and he had tickets delivered to our suite. Nothing like great service! We had dinner early this evening in the main dining room and then spent some time exploring the promenade shops and other parts of the ship. We also had found that we enjoyed going outside on the exterior promenade and just watching the water go by. It was such a different perspective than our balcony up on deck 10.

The crowd to get into the ice show was HUGE. Every seat in the house was taken and people were sitting on the steps. I was so glad they had the reserved seating for suite guests. I would have probably had to sit on the steps if not for those reserved seats.

The ice show was really great. The skaters did a good job and impressed the crowd. The lighting, music, and stage sets were really well done. Some of the scenes were really impressive. I would highly recommend anyone on this ship seeing the ice show.

 

[bbbearden]

Wednesday night towel animal with a couple my daughters stuffed animals

 

 

[PCWalton1]

The review is great and very informative. When you got back on board at Bari did you meet anyone that went to see the trulli houses in Alberobello or the Castellana Cave? We are hoping to see them when we cruise to Bari in May.

thanks

Bill

[bbbearden]

The review is great and very informative. When you got back on board at Bari did you meet anyone that went to see the trulli houses in Alberobello or the Castellana Cave? We are hoping to see them when we cruise to Bari in May.

thanks

Bill

 

There were some people that I met that went to Alberobello, but did not talk to anyone that went to the cave. The people that went to Alberobello seemed to have enjoyed the trip but I do not have details.

[dln929]

Thank you so much for this wonderful review! My husband and I are sailing in October and it's the first cruise for both of us. We are so excited about it. Did you attend the Captain's Reception?

[bbbearden]

Thank you so much for this wonderful review! My husband and I are sailing in October and it's the first cruise for both of us. We are so excited about it. Did you attend the Captain's Reception?

 

I know you will enjoy your cruise, this is a great ship and a great itinerary.

 

We did not attend the Captain's Reception that was held on the Royal Promenade. We had scheduled ourselves for dinner during that time. The captain was very visible and greeting passengers and having his picture taken. We did run into the captain several time (Captain Martinson) and he was always polite and friendly and spoke. It was made clear to us (by ships staff) that he did not want to shake hands mainly due to health and sanitation concerns. Not sure I agreed with that, but did not hold that against him. Overall he seemed like a nice person.

 

We did attend the reception for suite guests with all the ships officers. That was alot of fun and we enjoyed talking with them. Believe it or not we ended up talking with the purchasing manager for along time and enjoyed that conversation. Learning about the logistics of keeping the ship supplied was very interesting..