Rotterdam Mediterranean Cruise Review

[njhh]

Rotterdam Mediterranean Cruise Review

October 14 – 24th 2005

 

PART ONE: Background, Pre-cruise, and Ship Experience

 

Background

 

This was our second cruise with HAL and we have also cruised with Celebrity numerous times. We chose this particular cruise because of the ship and itinerary which allowed us to see Venice, Messina (Sicily) Rome, Florence, Monaco, Corsica, Sardinia, and Dubrovnik. We are aged 35 – 45 and prefer independent tours, and vacationed with parents who are less inclined toward long periods of walking, so we our choices for tours sought to accommodate both.

 

Overall, this review gives high marks to HAL in every area, with a few exceptions which are noted. Since much of cruising comes down to preferences, my critical comments are limited to those that I think are most likely to impact your cruise experience.

 

Pre-Cruise

 

We flew out of Philadelphia a day early to spend a little time in Venice and give ourselves some time for unexpected delays. We have since decided that from now on, our European cruises will include more pre-cruise days as it is essential to rest up for the cruise and take advantage of the port of departure. In this case, Venice was in many respects the highlight of our vacation.

 

We arrived in Venice and were prepared to catch the vaporetti (public water taxi) to our hotel off the Grand Canal, but we just missed one, and private water taxi’s were right there, so we bit the bullet and hopped onboard. We all agreed this was absolutely the best way to enter Venice as we were able to move about freely to snap pictures and express our awe of the jaw-dropping beauty of the city. Although we thought we were prepared, this love at first sight swept us off our feet!

 

We were delivered to the doorstep of the Pensione Accademia in the Dosoduro section (http://www.pensioneaccademia.it) We were greeted waterside by hotel staff and assisted with our luggage. Although we arrived early, we were able to check into one room and leave luggage until the second room was ready. A few impressions of this pensione: quiet surroundings just a few steps away from many sights, inviting art work adorning the walls and comfortable furniture, reflective of old Venice; room keys of heavy brass hang by your door - when you lift them off your hook, your room lights go out, and when you leave the hotel they are placed in your room box behind the front desk; coffee is served in the morning and a wonderful breakfast buffet sends you on your way.

 

We toured Venice on our own – St Marks Square, Rialto Bridge area, Accademia Gallery, Saint Rocco (Titian works) and exploration of back streets. A little more time would of allowed us to tour Murano, Doge’s Palace and attend a concert, but alas, we wanted to savor the little time we had.

 

Book Recommendation: While in Venice, I read a recently published book, “A Venetian Affair” by Andrea di Robilant, which offers an intriguing and true account of a forbidden love affair in mid 1700’s Venice. You will gain a great feel for the culture and insight into the history.

 

When it was time to leave, we water taxied to the ship and our luggage was taken the moment we stepped off the taxi boat. We experienced smooth embarkation procedures and were able to get into our rooms soon after we boarded in early afternoon.

 

Ship Experience

 

We were exceptionally pleased with our rooms, the food and service on this ship. We had a verandah room and since the weather was glorious we had plenty of opportunity to enjoy the sea breeze from our balcony. The rooms feel spacious, the furniture is made for comfort and plenty of storage is offered. Our dining experience was consistently excellent every night and the variety of food offered on the Lido deck was delightful each day.

 

Overall, I find the HAL atmosphere pleasantly low key. The staff are friendly and competent but are not intrusive. The tone is set by the cruise director, Bruce, who was visible and vocal only at the most appropriate times. He was a class act and showed great talent when he filled in for the pianist and orchestra director at evening shows. He also directs the music program onboard this ship which I would describe as sophisticated. We missed most shows due to the overwhelming need to sleep on this port intensive cruise, but we heard nothing but high praise for all the shows.

 

Preferences aside, here are some criticisms we voiced on our survey that I think are pertinent to selection of a cruise:

 

1) Money Exchange; we are use to a bank and ATM machine on Celebrity ships that offer convenience and a small service fee. We were unhappy to find no ATM machine on this ship. In addition, the hours for the money exchange are limited to 6 to 9 p.m. (also early morning hours, but who wants to stand in line when tours are starting?) This greatly interfered with our dining and after dinner plans. Then, as we learned the hard way, after standing in line, one cannot bank at the money exchange desk – that is, one cannot draw from the room account or any other card, one must stand in ANOTHER line at the front desk for this, then return to the money exchange line. Finally, HAL does not charge a service fee for this service, but in fact charges a percentage rate for the exchange AND for the banking. For this type of cruise where money exchange is an ongoing issue, this experience will bear great weight in determination of our selection in the future. When I happened upon my father at the money exchange desk the first time, in a hurry to get to the show, and frustrated beyond words, and I glimpsed the blank stare on the face of the desk person, who was standing two steps away from the place where he was suppose to stand in another line to do banking (after standing in this line for fifteen mintues) I realized that this is not a good situation and HAL is taking advantage of their customer. Furthermore, we are small business people and know for a fact that credit card companies do not permit businesses to assess a fee (in HAL’s case a percentage rate) for transactions. Not only does HAL charge you to get your money, they do not itemize (show separately) their commission on the receipt.

2) Charge for Shuttle Service; We learned in Dubrovnik, at the last minute, that we would be charged $5 per person each way, for a two mile shuttle to and from town.

3) Transfer from ship to airport; we paid $45 per person for a transfer to the airport. We were told taxis were not available. We learned taxis are not available because essentially the ships monopolize this service. We had an 11:00 a.m. flight and were not off the ship until 9:00 a.m., so for $180 for the four of us, we had a nerve wracking experience with busloads of people going to the same place. In the future, and here is a recommendation, we will go the extra steps to arrange for a taxi pick up, and we will get off the ship first thing in the morning. People think you are not allowed off the ship, but this is not true. You are perfectly free to walk off the ship the moment it reaches port. This was an expensive lesson, but we learned it well.

[njhh]

PART TWO – Tours and Port experiences

 

Messina, Italy

 

We arranged a ship excursion to see Taormina and were not disappointed. We had a beautiful day but needed to be back onboard by 2:30, so we opted for the half day tour. We walked through the crowded town as a group and were allowed approx. 45 min on our own. I might recommend that once you get to Taormina and learn where the group is going to meet at the end, go your own way for the morning and explore. The tour offers nothing you cannot learn on your own and the experience is primarily a visual extravaganza of breathtaking beauty.

 

Upon return to the ship we walked around Messina for an hour. Although it was Sunday and many shops were closed, the activity around the Cathedrals and squares was quite interesting. I fell in love with the rhythmic melodic manner of speech and the relaxed atmosphere of this place. We learned about a controversial issue in this region, and that is the single suspension bridge from the mainland to the island of Sicily that is to be a technological feat of world class proportion. The people of Sicily do not want this bridge and feel the money should go to infrastructure improvements before allowing many more millions to access their land. If you want to observe the passion of the Sicilian, engage them on this important topic.

 

Rome, Italy

 

We were thrilled with our decision to hire a private tour through Romecabs for this spectacular city. Cruise Critic helped us to find Stephano Costantini @ http://www.romecabs.com. Words do not do justice to our surprise and awe of what Stefano was able to accomplish with us in one day. He offers an unusual combination of assertive high energy and warm patience. The cost for 4 of us was well below the cost of the ship excursion and comparison of experiences with our tablemates who took the ship excursion revealed the true rewards. Stephano maneuvered through traffic like a pro, created parking spaces where there were seemingly none, knew everyone, escorted us to and fro important points, provided us with every bit of pertinent information, then allowed us to wander on our own with clear instructions of where and when we would meet. We never waited in a line, or walked unnecessarily to gain entrance. He created an itinerary for the day that included all the important sites inside the old city and set us up for a tour at the Vatican with another extremely competent guide (Domizia Catina; dcatini@alice.it) We came back from our day with Stephano on a wave of adrenaline from amazement at what we experienced. His enthusiasm is infectious and his heart is Roman through and through, so you are offered a true glimpse of this culture.

 

Florence, Italy

 

We again relied on the expertise of cruise critics to find Paola Migliorini (http://www.florencetour.com) because we had a particular interest in the art of Florence and Paola has a background in art history. She was extremely knowledgeable and capable in maneuvering through the city. (She had an electronic pass that allowed her to drive on streets with limited access.) We once again were thrilled to experience a day of touring without lines or confusions. She provided us with an exceptional tour in that we visited some out of the way workshops for eye-popping mosaics (I Mosaici Di Lastrucci, Via dei Macci, 9) and leather. This was a nice respite from the crowded galleries and Piazzas and offered the best quality shopping of the day. As it turned out, the best art experience was not in the Uffizi or Accademia– it was just too crowded, but in the Cathedrals and various other sights around the city. We recommend Paola for a full day experience of Florence, and I valued her commentary, but I also regret not having a day just to wander the city and bask in the sun along the Arno with some wine and cheese.

 

Monte Carlo, Monaco

 

I have not mentioned weather, which up to this point had been warm and mostly clear with only a few sprinkles of rain. However, our luck ran out at this port, and we were drenched head to foot within 30 seconds of leaving the ship, and this did not let up for most of the day. We persevered because the air was mild and we found that the rain deterred many, so we counted this as a plus and enjoyed the relative quiet. Perhaps because of the rain, we were disoriented and wandered in an uphill direction until we found the palace. We shopped for souvenirs and toured the museum and palace with few others around and enjoyed our time immensely. We found Prince Rainer’s car collection (we were alone here!) and then enjoyed a nice French café for lunch. We wandered over to the casinos, paid $10 each for entrance, lost 40 Euros at the slot machines (very quickly) then won it back with 10 to spare at the blackjack table. We took lots of pictures of this beautiful place and hope to return for a longer visit next time.

 

Ajaccio, Corsica, France

 

The locals pronounce this AH -JAH- SEE- OH. The good weather returned to us with an absolutely gorgeous day. Ajaccio was preparing for the weekend festivities surrounding the Rallye De France, Tour De Corse. Car sponsors had booths set up everywhere and drivers were taking practice runs on the rally course around town. We set out for a day of walking while my parents took the local sight seeing train which offered many of the same sights. We talked to others who agreed with us that the local market and shops offered good selection and price here. This is a beautiful port and has much more to offer in the way of history and sights than we took in, but we enjoyed a quiet day of touring on our own.

 

Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy

 

When the locals pronounce this town, it sounds to me like our way of saying “Calgary” but that is probably not exactly right. We heard great reviews on ship excursions for this port, but we again decided to see on our own. We made the mistake of starting off without a map (we missed the tourist office) and ended up getting directions several times from gracious locals. When we finally looked at a map, we realized how ridiculous we were to ask directions as the complex weave of streets are practically impossible to guide someone without local knowledge. We worked our way to the highest parts of the city, and ventured to a couple shops we wanted to see (including a Harley Davidson shop.) Upon return, we discovered a huge gathering of protesters near the port with signs that varied but many that said, “No Parka”. They stopped traffic in all directions and this created a major scene of pandemonium, but the loud chanting did not feel dangerous. Evidently, in short, they were protesting the creation of a national park, but we were told the struggle had a long history. We surmised the issue had to do with eminent domain, and perhaps taxes, but no one seemed to be able to explain this to our satisfaction. This port was more expensive and required more time to see. Also, for some reason the ship personnel could not explain (I think it had to do with local authority), we were required to give our passports up for the day.

 

Dubrovnik, Croatia

 

We were disappointed to encounter another drenching rain when we left the ship, so although we had planned to walk into town we decided to change gears and take the first taxi. Lucky us, we encountered Eduardo, who offered a private tour for slightly less than the ship tours of Dubrovnik. Tourism is on the upswing in this area and there were no less than seven ships in port – too many for the historic old town. Therefore, we were happy to go with Eduardo to smaller outlying villages along the coast, see great beauty but also remnants of war torn areas, hear about the difficulties in recovering from the civil war of the 1990’s, take in the breathtaking views from a high point (where we also saw the site where a plane carrying Ron Brown, Secretary of Commerce for Clinton, went down in a tragic accident.) The word for “thank you” here, sounds like “WAH LA” but that may not be exactly right. We learned there is a great discrepancy in prices between the old town and the local prices in the surrounding villages. We were able to purchase wine and coffee at great prices. We also learned that you can vacation at an affordable price in this area by renting apartments (which you can see advertised everywhere in the coastal areas) instead of hotel rooms. One day is not enough to see this area and if you have an interest in the history, it requires some advance reading as it is quite complex. Dubrovnik lost around 80,000 to the recent Bosnian conflict, and the destruction was extensive, but UNESCO and other countries provided the money to repair most of the old town while the outlying areas are still recovering. The tourists are concentrated in the old town and indeed, it is fantastic, but it is only one small area of Dubrovnik and there is much more to see, as Eduardo helped us to better understand (Eduardo’s contact information is available if you would like, but does not include email.)

 

General observations.

 

One observation basically everywhere we went: American music, primarily rock, is played everywhere in the shops and restaurants. Although we were welcomed everywhere we went, the language barrier was at times a challenge. We tried to converse as best we could and resolved to do better the next time we travel as interaction with the people is a big part of the experience for us. In this part of the world, the contact with mostly small independent businesses makes the whole experience more personal, so when one enters a business, a greeting and small exchange is always appropriate. In my opinion, although small business is still the backbone of America, one realizes after a trip to Europe, that from their perspective we appear to be synonymous with big corporate business, and all the impersonal aspects that go with it. In Europe, the smallest exchange of language, even in a greeting, establishes a connection that tells others where we are from, and our etiquette. Americans, again in my opinion, are normally polite, but in their reluctance to interact, often because of the language barrier, they come across as stand offish. Better to just plow through and mess up, the worst thing that happens is the other person smiles – they always make the effort for us, so let them see us struggle a little!

[Betsy's Mom]

Post this on the review board,please! This is one of the best I have read and want to be able to find it again!:)

B.

[TedC]

Thanks for the intelligent and interesting review. I'm glad you posted it here because I probably wouldn't have seen it otherwise.

 

When we travel we always use land-based ATMs and avoid using ship-based exchanges, which almost always offer a less favorable rate.

[jimmy2x]

:) Great review!! Very well thought out, well written and informative - am book-marking it for the European cruise that we will take with HAL one day.

[cruzbums]

Thank you for the great review.