Reporting from: 11-Night Best of the Med

[jayne hoffman]

We took the Azamara transfer from Venice to Chioggia.  We were there at 11:35,  and stood in the sun waiting with our luggage in hand until 1 p.m..  Two buses were filled ahead of us, and a third finally rolled in.  A fourth was needed, and I am not sure how long that wait was.

 

We arrived at Chioggia after a 45-minute bus trip through farmland and small towns.  Upon arrival, they took care of our luggage from there.  Check in was quick and efficient - probably five minutes total. Our room was available, and we went to lunch.  The cafe is noticeably smaller than the larger ships we’ve been on in the past. Buffet food was good, but not amazing.  It was a joy not to sign receipts for a coke!

 

After muster,  (15 minutes and we were sitting the whole time.) We went to The Living Room on Deck 10 for sail away and discovered that our premium drink package wasn’t showing on our account.  This was resolved (and we weren’t the only ones with this problem) fairly quickly, and we had our premium martini shortly thereafter.  There are tapas at this bar, but they were either flavorless, stale or overcooked.  We’ll try it again to see if it improves.  The expansive forward view is very impressive and this lounge is lovely.

 

Dinner was fabulous.  We had a large international table of folks that was lively and talkative.  Servers kept everyone’s wine glasses full, food was flavorful, and the service was great.

 

Today is Zadar, Croatia, and we just plan to wander the city.  White night is tomorrow in Kotor, Montenegro where we are berthed until 10 p.m..
 

Getting onto the ship internet has been troublesome.  It keeps asking if we want to buy a package and has only alloed us to use the QR code issued for our package once.   We shall try to work this out today with guest services. In the meantime, our T-Mobile account (our plan includes international) is providing us service while we are berthed in Zadar. 

Off to explore Zadar…..

 

 

[laurieb]

Guest relations can help you access your internet package.  

I hope you enjoy your cruise!  

[Travelswithmycamera]

May I ask where in Venice you were picked up?  We are doing a similar cruise next year and overnight in Chioggia.  My options are flying in the morning of our embarkation or flying in the day prior and do a hotel stay  either in Venice or Chioggia.    We would then arrange Azamara transfer to ship if we fly in a day early.   I am not  keen on arriving from an overnight flight only to have to wait a number of hours to get onboard.  Thank you for your information.  

[QueenP]

Thank you for sharing your adventures, I will be following along with interest!

[jayne hoffman]

19 hours ago, Travelswithmycamera said:

May I ask where in Venice you were picked up?  We are doing a similar cruise next year and overnight in Chioggia.  My options are flying in the morning of our embarkation or flying in the day prior and do a hotel stay  either in Venice or Chioggia.    We would then arrange Azamara transfer to ship if we fly in a day early.   I am not  keen on arriving from an overnight flight only to have to wait a number of hours to get onboard.  Thank you for your information.  

We had a transfer from the city to Chioggia.  The pick up spot is about 10-15 minutes walk from the St. Lucia train station.  It is not a level walk - there are bridges to navigate.  We understand now, that you can take public transit there, but we don’t know those details,  Best to ask at your hotel.  
 

I’ve learned the hard way - I will never fly in the day of embarkation. Stay somewhere the night before in case there is a snafu with your flights.  You’ll appreciate a night’s rest, but you also will have less stress. 

[Travelswithmycamera]

Thank you so much for your travel tip- I don’t want to learn anything the hard way.  We will fly in the day before & enjoy a night in Chioggia- I have a nice sounding hotel recommendation.