Port Report-Legend of the Seas (Oct. 11)

[teacherman]

We were on RCCL Legend of the Seas (Oct 11-23). This ship is redeploying to the Far East for the next 3 years, so I will not do a ship review, but just some port info. This was our second time on this ship, as we did the Eastern Med and Egypt last fall. We had so much fun that we returned for this cruise.

 

Rome-we stayed 2 night pre-cruise at B&B Giovy. This was our second time staying there and I highly recommend it as a great place to experience Rome. You can find it listed on TripAdvisor.

 

Civitavecchia-8 of us who met on these Boards did an all day tour/transfer from Rome to the Port with RomeCabs. It was GREAT, including a visit to the Etruscan tombs and museum in Tarquinia, with a stop for wine tasting and lunch at a beautiful wine/olive vineyard about 20 minutes from the port. Great way to start the cruise.

 

Portofino-This is the smallest harbor I have ever been tendered to (except maybe Grand Cayman). We rode the public bus to St Margurite Ligure (15 minutes) and spent the day walking around and having lunch. A very strong wind came in and the ship left for Genoa, as it was too windy to use the tenders. All passengers ashore (1500) were eventually taken on large ferries to St Margurite (so we were there again) and then by busses to Genoa to join the ship. Fun day, as we saw parts of Italy we did not expect to see, and leaving Genoa after dark was very pretty.

 

Livorno-This was an overnight stop, so we took the train to Florence and stayed overnight at Hotel Perseo (highly recommend). It was nice to do this and enjoy Florence for most of 2 days and also the evening. Hint-just walk off the ship and say "Does anyone want to share a taxi to the train station?" It took us about 3 minutes to put 3 couples together. Much better than taking a ship transfer and also a public bus to the station.

 

Messina-8 of us shared a tour with SicilyLife (The Godfather Tour). Great fun, even though it rained much of the day. Keep those umbrellas handy.

 

Venice-This also was an overnight stop. We walked from ship to Piazzele Roma (20 minutes) and bought 24 hour passes for the vaporettos (Big Mistake, as a 12 hour pass would have been sufficient). We spent the day and evening just getting "lost" in Venice and riding many vaporettos through the various neighborhoods. Back on the ship by about 10 in the evening. It seemed that most people stayed on the ship the second day, unless they had a tour already planned and paid for. Arrival and departure from Venice is very beautiful, on par with the Stockholm archipelago.

 

Dubrovnik-Rain again for part of the day, but we walked the city walls and had a nice lunch at Moby Dick Restaurant. Highly recommend.

 

Naples-Torrential rains during some of the day, but 8 of us shared an all day tour of the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii with DriveAmalfi. Highly recommend and ask for Adrian to be your driver. Even though it rained, he made it a great, fun day.

 

Civitavecchia-6 of us shared a RomeCabs transfer to the airport.

 

Thanks to all of you who provide hints and recommendations as this was one of the BEST cruises we have ever taken. Except for the rainy days and the little "glitch" in Portofino, it was a perfect cruise. Our tablemates were great and dinners became filled with stories and laughter every night.

Also, all of the connections we made through these Boards helped us to connect with all of the people with whom we shared these many tours and transfers. Our Meet and Mingle had about 50 people. Take care and happy cruising to each of you.