BlueCattleDog

I didn't have anyone come by and take my drink order, but could have been my location. You can see in this photo how close the snack shack is to the beds. The snack shack is on the right and the beds on the left.

OK! I made a couple template sheets in Google Slides you can save and create your own itinerary from: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1nzREXbDpCK7ePgEZEHf197UCIOErdA0KIOO9ZJ2xGJ4/edit?usp=sharing You can't find this template on Google because I made it from a blank sheet. You can look back at my original post in this thread for examples of what you can put on each page. For Driver in Rome, the website is https://www.driverinrome.com/ We did a pre-cruse tour of the Vatican with transport to the cruise port: https://www.driverinrome.com/tours/pre-or-post-cruise-tour-vatican-museum-st-peter-s-basilica

Hi! Let me see what I can do to share a blank version you can use, may take me a little bit after work. Would 100% recommend Rome cabs for transfers in Rome, they were great. Id also recommend doing the golf cart tour with My Best Tour, was an awesome way to see a lot in Rome. Was such a great start to the trip. Driver in Rome was OK. Id do it again because it was a super convenient option to have a pickup with all our luggage and still be able to tour before we went to the ship (and not worry about luggage after hotel checkout or a separate transfer to the ship). The driver wasn't the nicest, but wasn't a big deal. We had a separate tour guide for the Vatican. Italy Tours was good for Pompeii and the Amalfi coast. I was worried about how long and far sone of these were, but they were super knowledgeable and planned things to esnure we had no issues being back on time. I see theres a typo - we used Barcelona Day Tours in Barcelona. They were good, the only issue I had was that I didnt realize we weren't going inside Sagarada Familia. I would have skipped other stuff on the tour to do that. Montserrat was an absolute highlight of the trip for me, so I was glad we did it. So if I were to do this again I'd make sure it was included We did a lot of the longer scheduled tours early in the trip and towards the end did more on our own, like the train in Palma and the ferry in Cinque Terre. This was a great strategy, as the cruise went on we started to get pretty tired. This gave us a lot of flexibility. Doing both those on our own was easy and fun. We ended up taking the ferry out and train back in Cinque Terre because the train was faster. I'd recommend that.

We did use several different companies for tours and in some cases were doing it DIY (for example Cinque Terre, we just walked to the feery terminal and bought tickets) I did a lot of research online, read reviews on Cruise Critic and other places, and used many of the resources that mapleleaves suggested. You're welcome to email me michelle.x.drake@gmail.com if you have specific questions and I can try to help!

Hotel Damaso was great! Great location, easy to walk to several sights. We especially loved going to Piazza Navona in the evenings for drinks or dinner. Hotel staff was very friendly and helpful. They also have a breakfast included, simple.but was convenient not having to figure out breakfast plans every day.

Right? I specifically looked for one that night because I knew we weren't going to make it late after that flight and the time change.

Google Sheets. I created the layout and made these.

Hi All, I am an experienced cruiser, but until now my cruises were all Caribbean, Mexico and Panama Canal itineraries. This year I decided to try a Mediterranean cruise for the first time. I have done a lot cruise planning, but this trip was really a challenge to plan! I (43F) took my Mother-in-law (76F) and her two friends (74F & 75F) and so spent a lot of time trying to plan a trip that wouldn't be too much for them to handle physically. We spent two nights in Rome first and then boarded Symphony of the Seas in Civitavecchia for a seven day western Mediterranean cruise. We just got off the ship 9/28, and everything went great! Maybe someone will find this helpful, so I've attached my detailed itinerary (I deleted a few details such as confirmation numbers). Happy to answer any questions you may have. Hope this helps you in your planning!

I came here to ask this exact question. Was wondering if we just Uber to Aix-en-Provance, would we be missing some "experience" aspect not taking the train?

Yes there are several bars, including the floating bar! In the picture looking to the left from the South Beach day beds you can actually see the floating bar if you zoom in. This isnt my video, but gives a good walk through of just South Beach specifically

Glad it was helpful to you! I personally wouldn't book Breezy Bay because it felt like it was in the middle of all the activity to me. My preference would be quieter, less busy areas. (I actually took a nap in my beach bed lol) If you WANT to be close to things, with a snack shack right behind you, some people might like this location like the commenter above.

Glad its helpful to you! I was so frustrated trying to find this info before I left, I made sure to go look at all the beach beds while I was there so I could report back haha

They include two loungers, umbrella, two floating mats, and a cooler with waters.

I brought towels off the ship, but I do recall you could change them for fresh towels at the check in kiosk if needed.

Thanks for sharing your perspective! I tried to be careful to say my selections were based on my personal preferences. And I would certainly rather be farther away from things to be in a quieter area. I'm certain their are some who would prefer Breezy Bay for exactly the reasons you have said. There is food at South Beach, but it's certainly farther away from other things and activities.

Hi all! I visited CocoCay for the first time this year. I knew I wanted to rent a day bed, but had a really hard time finding the detailed information I was looking for to help me select which location to choose (Chill Island, Breezy Bay, or South Beach). I ended up choosing the Chill Island location, but wanted to share what I learned so hopefully that will help someone else. I saw this map online while I was researching, but the key colors were so similar I thought it was hard to read. I’ve marked the three day bed locations below. That South Beach area is a little off in this map, but it’s roughly there at the end of that beach. Also note, there is a check-in stand for each day bed area right next to the beds. Don’t walk around like I did trying to find some central check-in building. Chill Island These day beds are the closest to the ship, if that’s important to you. Chill Island day beds are set up in three rows. (The other two areas are set up in two rows.) I ended up with a bed in the back row, which I thought I would hate, but it was actually the quietest row being in the back, which I liked. I couldn’t really see the water very well in front of me, but I had a cool view of the water and ships behind me which you can see in these pictures. You don’t get to pick your bed location, and I thought the least desirable ones for this location were the beds in the middle row. Chill Island: View behind my back row day bed Chill Island: View looking forward from my back row day bed Chill Island: Three rows of beds Chill Island: View of the free chair rows starting next to the day beds Chill Island: Looking back at the Chill Island day beds, you can see them in front of the ship here. Breezy Bay These beds are set up in two rows. Over water cabanas are out in the water in front but off the the right a little bit. Free chairs are set up behind this grouping of beds as well as a snack shack. The two rows of day beds are offset, so each bed should have a view of the water. Of the three day bed locations, these are the second farthest from the ship. Breezy Bay: Photo from behind of two rows of beds Beezy Bay: View of staggered beds, so each will have a water view. Overwater cabanas in the distance. Breezy Bay: View of overwater cabanas off to the right of the beach bed area Breezy Bay: View of free chairs behind the beach bed area Breezy Bay: View of snack shack behind the day bed area. South Beach These beds are the farthest from the ship. They are set up in two rows. The two rows of day beds are offset, so each bed should have a view of the water. There are bushes/trees behind the back row of beds. There isn’t much past these beds on the beach. There is a little nature trail through the trees that takes you to the beach beyond them, but not much else. South Beach: Two rows of beds. You can see the bushes/trees behind. South beach: View down the beach to the right South Beach: View to the left from the beach beds. You can see the south beach cabanas on the beach and the Coco Beach club overwater cabanas in the distance. South Beach: View looking forward from the back row South Beach: View of the free chairs to the left of the beach bed area My Final Thoughts I was a solo traveler on this trip and don’t usually travel with kids, so your needs and priorities may be different, but if I go to CocoCay again and want to rent a day bed I would choose in this order, depending on availability: 1) South Beach - this area felt the quietest, and with only two rows every bed has a good view of the water. 2) Chill Island - close to the ship, and you have a 66.67% chance of getting the front or back row. Neat photos of the ship from the back row 3) Breezy Bay - If this was the only option, I wouldn’t book one. There just seemed like a lot going on in this area (two ships were in port that day and we were the second to arrive). Hope this is helpful to someone.

Hi All, Will be on a cruise out or Rome (Civitavecchia) in September and have all my plans mostly figured out, except Marseille. I don't know what it is, but the ship tours seem very bland and I just can't figure out what's the best option for our first time here. I (43F) am taking my mother-in-law and her two friends (all in their mid-70s). This is our first trip to Europe, first Med cruise, and first time in France. They are all mobile, but I would like to limit too many stairs etc. too much walking, etc. to ensure they don't get too tired. What do you recommend for someone's first trip to Marseille? Open to just about anything and would love your ideas if you were making a recommendation to a friend on what they should do on their first visit to France and Marseille. Thank you!!!

Thanks all! Your input has been very helpful. I've booked Hotel Damaso, and happy to have one thing decided!

Thanks all for the questions. Important criteria for us is probably walkable to restaurants, interesting location, cleanliness and quality of the hotel. We're planning to take a couple tours with transportation so doesn't need to be walkable to the main sites (Colosseum, Vatican, etc.) but would be nice to be walkable to something, especially for low key activities on the day we arrive. We are a group of 4 total, including me. Only one of the four has been to Rome and on a Med cruise before.

Hi All, I am suffering terribly from analysis paralysis. I keep reading more and more reviews, rankings, cruise critic posts, guide books, and on and on. I'm sorry, please don't kill me for one more "wHaT hOTel in RoME?!" post. I've narrowed it down to two hotels, please help me pick. This is our first Med cruise, and first trip to Europe for most of us. We've done a ton of cruises in the Caribbean, Mexico, Panama Canal. I (42F) am taking my mother-in-law and her two friends (all in their early to mid 70s). We will be staying 2 nights, pre cruise in Sept 2023, booking 2 rooms. For our dates, I've noted total cost per person below. Hotel Artemide (~455pp total for 2 nights) Hotel Demaso (~378pp total for 2 nights) Which would you choose, and why? Thanks so much! I'm just getting started researching and its overwhelming.