Review of our first cruise - Mediterranean cruise aboard the Epic

Day 3: Naples

First port day!! I was so excited for this day because we had a really great excursion lined up.

The ship had docked on time and we ordered free continental breakfast to our room to enjoy on the balcony. We did this type of breakfast 3 times during the week and every time it was on time. We indulged in coffee, several pastries, freshly cut fruit bowls, cereal, and yogurt. I was good and full and ready for a day on shore.

As I'm sure many NCL guests have noticed, excursions with the cruise line are STUPID expensive. I took one look at them and was like.. HA! NOPE! It was super easy to find alternative tours online anyway. We booked an Amalfi coast + Pompeii tour on Viator.ca. Viator is essentially a "middle man" for consumers; you book with them and they book local companies that actually take you on the tour. Anyways, the local company used was WorldTours and they were great! They were at the port waiting for us to get off the ship dressed in "worldtours" gear and holding signs. Each guide had a list of passengers they were waiting for so all we had to do was show them our voucher and then they told us which guide we were assigned to. We had a smallish group of 15 people and everyone was early so we got to get in the minibus and were on our way 15min early.

The weather was beautiful! A slightly hazy but warm, sunny day without a cloud in the sky. Even from the port, Mt Vesuvius was visible and we past right by it as we drove toward the coast. We stopped at a limoncello factory in Sorrento. Great view! We drove along stopping in Positano and Furore. In Furore, we had lunch (yes lunch was included) at a lovely little restaurant on the coast with an AMAZING view of the sea. Lunch was Mediterranean salad followed by hand made Italian pasta with Naples tomatoes and mozzarella. SO YUMMY! They also gave us bread with lemon olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping. After lunch, we continued along the coast to Amalfi. My goodness what a sight! We toured the famous cathedral in the town square (I'd recommend, it's cheap too) and then browsed the shops before returning to the bus. We said goodbye to the beautiful coast and drove over the mountains back toward Naples. We stopped in Pompeii and had an hour and a half walking tour with a local guide who showed us through the ruins. Honestly, the ruins were more intact than I was expecting; even some original decorative detail was still very visible (so intricate and beautiful).

It was a very scenic and enjoyable tour. Our guide Rossella was very fun and knowledgeable throughout the entire trip. Our driver Marino was very talented driving through all the narrow winding roads of the coast. I will say that driving in a bus on those roads can jostle you around quite a bit, so if you get car sick easily this could be a problem. We had to stop the bus once because someone was sick. I even felt a little off at certain points but not bad. If I were to do the Amalfi coast again, I would consider doing a boat tour for a different perspective.

We were back to the ship an hour prior to the "all aboard" time so we were never worried about missing the boat. We were pretty hungry so we went directly to the noodle bar for dinner. I love how there are hand sanitizing machines outside every restaurant and elevator. There is really no excuse not to have disinfected hands. Anyways, we had pork pot stickers and spring rolls for appetizers, and a fried rice and noodle bowl as the entrée. All of it was delicious! If there wasn't so much other food to try on the ship I would have loved to return for seconds. We were surprisingly exhausted considering we spent most of the day sitting in a bus but I was in desperate need for a rest. We went up to the room for a nap and didn't end up getting up until 9pm. We still made an effort to go downstairs and catch a little bit of Howl at the Moon.

Howl at the Moon was quite enjoyable and the performers were very talented pianists and quite good at singing too. I think I was still too tired to really get into it but if I was slightly more awake and had a couple drinks it would've been a lot of fun! I'm sorry to say we didn't do much else that evening but I promise we weren't as boring for the rest of the evenings on the ship :p

Day 4: Rome

As pretty much everyone will tell you, you can't do Rome in a day.. and they're absolutely right. But you can get a taste for the eternal city in a day. We started our morning by grabbing the express breakfast at O'Sheehans (scrambled eggs, potatoes, bacon, and toast). We got off the ship and had no wait catching the complementary shuttle from the port to the bus stop in Civitavecchia. After getting off the bus we immediately found the people working for CivitaTours, with whom we had booked a roundtrip transfer to go to Rome for the day. This was a relatively inexpensive transfer (only 19 euro per person), however, it wasn't without its problems. We felt the company was more interested in trying to fill the bus than leaving on time.. we left only 20min late but it's already a 1.5h drive to Rome. We had bought the bus transfer but no guided tour. We felt it was unnecessary and we could do our own research and see what we wanted at our own (brisk) pace. On our way, additionally, we had to stop to pick up a tour guide since a bunch of people were staying on the bus for a full day tour. We were dropped off near the colosseum at noon, which is on the opposite end of the city that the website said we would be dropped off at. This actually worked out well for us but for others on the bus, being dropped off far from where expected really messed with their day plans.

Our plan for the day was to do a bit of a highlights tour of Rome. We had never been to Rome before and are not likely to be able to return any time soon so we wanted to see are the major highlights. We walked around the colosseum before heading up the road past the Roman forum to the Altare della Patria. We continued walking to the Pantheon, which is highly underrated in my opinion.. a beautiful building both inside and out! My sister-in-law recommended a restaurant in that square and it did not disappoint! Ristorante-Caffè da Claudia is a small Italian restaurant directly across the square with a fantastic view of the Pantheon; this might have been my favourite part of the day. We enjoyed pizza and hand-made ravioli along with a bottle of wine. The staff there was very friendly and enjoyed chatting with the customers but also knew when to leave you alone to enjoy your meal together. On a hot day full of brisk walking to try and see everything, this was a welcome and relaxing break.

After lunch we walked to the Trevi Fountain, which is highly overrated in my opinion. It was beautiful for sure but so crowded it was impossible to get close for a decent picture or to really enjoy it. The crowd looked like a pick-pocketer's paradise and even with our precautions, it still didn't feel safe. We bought a money belt for this trip and only put the essentials in there (cash, ID, ship cards, etc.) We borrowed a security backpack from by brother, which was a backpack that had locks for the zippers. We kept our camera and lenses in that. We didn't have anything else with us, not even my purse.

Our last stop before heading to meet the bus was St. Peter's Square. We walked along the river and saw the Castel Sant'Angelo on the way. I wish we would have been able to go inside St. Peter's Basilica, but the line was very long and we simple had no time. We settled with just enjoying the square and leisurely walking back to meet the bus. The bus pick up point was about a 10min walk from the square and we arrived 10min early as did most of the other people who did Rome on their own. The bus however was a full half hour late! It was supposed to pick us up at 4pm but didn't show up until 4:30pm. This was very nerve racking for a bunch of people with a boat to catch. The all-aboard time was 6:30pm and we showed up to catch the shuttle back to the ship at 6pm. We were on board by 6:15pm.. cutting it too close in my opinion.

Since hindsight is always 20/20, I think if I were to do Rome again I would definitely still do it on my own; however, I would elect to get off the ship early and try to catch an early train to Rome instead of using a bus. I think that way I would have a little more time in Rome and trains are generally on a tighter schedule (and therefore more reliable) than buses.

The rest of the evening began with dinner in the MDR we thoroughly enjoyed the asparagus and artichoke risotto and peking duck appetizers. I had the roasted Cornish hen and my bf had the chicken parm for the entrée; both were decent. We saw the Epic Beatles performance in the Epic theatre that night. I enjoy the Beatles music but I wouldn't call myself a big fan, I also didn't grow up in their era. I very much enjoyed the performance but I didn't go crazy for it like some other people in the audience did. We spent the rest of the evening enjoying our balcony and moonlight on the sea as we sailed along.

Anyways that's all for Rome day! Rome in a day is definitely impossible but we saw the snap shots we had wanted to see and enjoyed a perfect lunch in a perfect atmosphere, I loved every minute!

I was on the fence about Civiatours because of its pricing. After reading your review, I think I should either hire taxi for a day or look into private roundtrip transfer since there are kids in my group.

Enjoy your review. Please keep it coming.

Be forewarned...the trains are also not totally reliable time wise:-)

Following. Interested in the Mediterranean and trying to research our next vacation. Thanks.

Be forewarned...the trains are also not totally reliable time wise:-)

Good to know!

I was on the fence about Civiatours because of its pricing. After reading your review, I think I should either hire taxi for a day or look into private roundtrip transfer since there are kids in my group.

 

Enjoy your review. Please keep it coming.

I didn't do much research into private tours since I saw they are outrageously expensive for just two people. However, if you have a big enough party or can share the tour with a few other couples then I wouldn't be surprised if a private mini-van type tour could be the best bang for your buck. Thanks for reading!

I love the Pantheon and Piazza della Minerva, too!

I didn't do much research into private tours since I saw they are outrageously expensive for just two people. However, if you have a big enough party or can share the tour with a few other couples then I wouldn't be surprised if a private mini-van type tour could be the best bang for your buck. Thanks for reading!

for your next cruise check out the roll call for your sailing

one of the primary reasons is that it allows people to get together to share private tours and bring the costs down

we have met some good friends this way

Day 5: Florence

Today was our third and final day of heavy sightseeing; sadly, it was also our last day in Italy. I thoroughly enjoyed this country! We started our morning with the express breakfast (I forget if we were in Taste or O'Sheehans.. same breakfast anyways) and then made our way off the ship in the port city of Livorno. FYI: it costs 5 euros per person for round trip shuttle from the port to the town centre. They do NOT allow you to walk off the port; it would be a long walk anyways. I can definitely see why they wouldn't want civilians wandering around since there were plenty of people working as fisherman or busy loading and moving around cargo; the last thing they need is a cruise ship full of tourist wandering through their worksite. It's annoying and unsafe for the tourists. We knew this ahead of time and were prepared with the cash.

We arrived in the town square early so once we had found our pick up point for the bus to Florence, we decided to wander around. We got cappuccinos and found some wifi in a cafe nearby so we caught up on the news from back home (and reassured our mothers that we were still alive :p). The bus to Florence was run by Tuscany Bus, which offered tours of Livorno, Pisa, and Florence and nearly any combination of those three. We had booked our round-trip bus transfer through Viator.ca, which used a local tour operator called My Tour, who booked our tickets on the Tuscany Bus (a bit convoluted I know). This bus operator compared to CivitaTours was WAY better! We actually left on time for a change and were dropped where we were supposed to be dropped off (near Santa Maria Novella Train Station). This was again one of those tours where nothing but the return bus transfer was included; this was "Florence on your own".

We walked from the train station to the Santa Maria Novella church nearby. The church's face (much like other areas in this beautiful city) was completely made of marble.. absolutely gorgeous! We wandered a short ways to see the great Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral (The Florence Cathedral). Wow this is one famous site that really lives up to the hype, it is GORGEOUS! We had purchased tickets to see the site before leaving for our trip. It costs 15 euros per person and includes access to the Cathedral, the crypt, the Museo dell'Opera, the top of the Duomo, the Baptistry, and Giotto's Bell Tower. We went through the Baptistry, which was simply breathtaking! I marvelled at the decor; they just don't make them like that anymore. We had reserved the 12:30pm time slot to climb the great duomo so we headed there next. It was a long 463 steps through narrow twisting crawl space to the top of the cupola, but my what a view.. SO worth it. You could see all of Florence with a 360˚ view, I was in awe! I HIGHLY recommend doing this climb if you're able (it's worth the 15 euro alone in my opinion). I wanted to climb Giotto's bell tower too but after this climb I didn't have it in me to do another (plus the line looked long). With not a lot of time and still lots of city to see we skipped the rest of the stuff included in the ticket and continued on. We walked to the Palazzo Vecchio and saw the replica of the statue of David in the place where the real one stood once upon a time. We found lunch in this tiny little restaurant that served freshly sliced meats and cheeses. We had a mixed platter of various meats and cheeses along with some bread slices drizzled with olive oil, and a cup of olives. This platter along with 2 cups of wine fed us both very well and eating in the tiny store front added the perfect ambiance to a delicious meal. We then continued to the Ponte Vecchio and saw all the jewelry and watch shops (SHINY THINGS!) The last place we went before heading back to the bus was the fontana porcellino. It's a cool looking statue of a boar where tradition is to drop a coin from the statue's mouth into the grate below.

Overall, I think Florence is my new favourite city. It's absolutely beautiful at every turn and the atmosphere was very much to my liking. It was far more laid back compared to Rome and there were fewer people trying to aggressively sell you stuff on the street. I bought a leather handbag from a local shop and it might be my favourite purchase from the trip too (not that I bought much in general). We got back to the bus early so we stopped for a glass of wine at a nearby restaurant and then met up with our bus. Everyone (including the bus) was there on time and we left around 4pm. We were back at the ship with plenty of time to spare.

That night we saw Priscilla Queen of the Desert, which was quite entertaining. After reading reviews about it with lots of people loving it and others not so much, I had expectations that the show would be well done in terms of costumes and production value, have fairly crude humour, and push a political message. I was right in that the sets, costumes and stage work was very well done; the entire cast was very talented and put on a good show. I felt the show had its funny moments but there could have been more. The subject matter and humour is definitely not suitable for children, which they make very clear through several announcements leading up to the show; but I think it would be fine for teenagers (at the parents discretion of course). I was pleasantly surprised that the political side of the show was pushed as hard as I thought it was going to be, which I liked because I don't need politics in my vacation. I would recommend this show as it's part of the complementary entertainment, but I probably wouldn't pay extra to see it.

We then went to have dinner at the Manhattan Room. FYI: peak times for the MDR seem to be between 8-9pm, but even through we were there during peak dinner times, we never had to wait longer than maybe 15min for a table and service was never overly slow. They keeps those places running like a well oiled machine, it's actually quite interesting to just sit back and watch. It the MDR is full and you want to wait for a table, they give you a buzzer that has decent range for the open areas near the restaurants allowing you to grab a drink while you wait at a nearby bar or check out what's happening in the atrium. Dinner was delicious as always! I had the fried mozzarella (fantastic! Fried cheese is maybe one of my favourite things) and the grilled salmon (one of the best entrees I've had on board) while the bf had the tomato salad (again yum) and the sirloin steak Diane (perfectly cooked and very tender). We also split the smoked salmon tartare appetizer and it was ok but the texture of smoked salmon just isn't my cup of tea. I'm still glad I tried it! We also decided to get a bottle of wine to split. As far as I know, bottled wine is NOT included in the UBP and costs extra. We didn't have the UBP so it made no difference to us. They're cheapest bottle was a Chardonnay costing $32 for a standard 750 mL bottle (plus 18% gratuity of course). I'm no wine connoisseur but it was pretty tasty! They also allow you to take the bottle out of the restaurant if you want or they will save it for you to have at another meal. We just drank the whole thing... :p

With that bottle of wine giving us a decent buzz, we finished the evening by observing the Salsa dance lesson in Bliss, which was led by the Burn the Floor cast. There was one elderly lady on the floor who could really move! I enjoyed watching her, she was so into it! I tried to convince my bf to go do it but he doesn't know how to Salsa and we didn't get there right at the start so he missed the important basic step. I guess I'll have to teach him at some point. Anyways, we had a really fun evening after a long but amazing day touring Florence!

for your next cruise check out the roll call for your sailing

 

one of the primary reasons is that it allows people to get together to share private tours and bring the costs down

we have met some good friends this way

Thanks! I did check out the roll call and was aware of people organizing excursions together, but since this was our first cruise, I didn't feel comfortable trying to organize such things with strangers. It might be something I'd consider in the future though. Additionally, budget was important to us and these excursions even with people were more expensive than just transfers.

Thanks! I did check out the roll call and was aware of people organizing excursions together, but since this was our first cruise, I didn't feel comfortable trying to organize such things with strangers. It might be something I'd consider in the future though. Additionally, budget was important to us and these excursions even with people were more expensive than just transfers.

we leave on Sunday for Med cruise on the Epic and private tours filled up ages ago

However there are several late bookers and one is planning Lucca and Pisa with Tuscany bus so interesting to hear your thoughts on the company

I presume you have now caught the cruise bug!

we did our first cruise in 2008 and now take one at least once a year

even revisiting same ports there's always something new to try

However there are several late bookers and one is planning Lucca and Pisa with Tuscany bus so interesting to hear your thoughts on the company

Lucca may be lesser known but it is well worth a visit. It has some of the best preserved city walls.

Thanks for this great review! My husband and I are 26, so it's nice to have a review from someone our age. We had the exact same situation where we bid to upgrade from inside to balcony, and I can already tell I'm going to be a balcony snob from here on out! We're setting sail in January - can't wait!