Suggestions from anyone who has sailed Med. from Rome

[chef_christoph]

I'm looking at a Mediterranean cruise sailing from Rome.

 

I've never been on Mariner or to the Med. and I'm looking at either an interior or Balcony cabin. Is the balcony worth the extra $$ on this itinerary?

 

What about flight times and transportation to the port, would you fly in on a red-eye from North America or is spending the extra day before the cruise suggested? I know there can be problems with flying in same-day but my schedule is really tight and i'm not sure if I can take the extra day.

 

Is a taxi a reasonable mode of transportation from the airport to the cruise terminal?

 

Any help and suggestions are welcomed.

[pcur]

I'm looking at a Mediterranean cruise sailing from Rome.

 

I've never been on Mariner or to the Med. and I'm looking at either an interior or Balcony cabin. Is the balcony worth the extra $$ on this itinerary?

 

What about flight times and transportation to the port, would you fly in on a red-eye from North America or is spending the extra day before the cruise suggested? I know there can be problems with flying in same-day but my schedule is really tight and i'm not sure if I can take the extra day.

 

Is a taxi a reasonable mode of transportation from the airport to the cruise terminal?

 

Any help and suggestions are welcomed.

 

OK, we just got back on 5/22 from a b2b2b, the last leg was an Eastern Med out of Civitavecchia. I'll give you my opinion on your questions:

 

We had a balcony and it was definitely worth it. There were lots of great views, and we spent quite a bit of time out there, especially around sunset. You get better views up on deck, but it's nice to go out when the weather is good, or if the view is spectacular!

 

Forget the red-eye from North America if you are thinking of arriving the same day as the cruise. Too much, and too risky. We flew home from Rome last Sunday on British Airways, connecting through Heathrow of course, and both flights were delayed at take-off.

 

You will only have that pre or post-cruise time for Rome, and many people stay over a night or three before or after. We are booked on the Mariner coming west on her Transatlantic this October, and I have booked the Hotel Traiano in Civitavecchia for our one night pre-cruise. If you choose to stay there, book through their web site using PayPal, as they give a discount. Our room in October is $121.

 

But, that's because we don't want to go to Rome again, having just been there. Check out the Europe/Italy/Rome boards here on CC for lots and lots of recommendations on hotels.

 

The FCO airport is about a 45 - 60 minute drive to the port. Transfers (in USD) are around $75 per person. We had our transfer to the airport last Sunday also booked with the Traiano hotel, but I think the driver went to the other RCCL ship in port, so we grabbed a transfer at the dock with RCCL for 50Euros. About the same price, depending on the exchange rate. Don't take a taxi; book a private transfer, as they are cheaper. Again, you will get lots of recommedations on the Rome CC board.

 

So, in summary, I'd recommend going in the night before, and stay either in Civitavecchia at a hotel with a transfer to the pier, or stay in Rome. Your transfer to the pier from a Civit hotel would be around 15Euros in my opinion.

[Traveling Library]

Take the balcony. This is a really nice cruise and it is lovely to sit on your balcony and enjoy. I hear you about the time. Last year we booked 2 days in Rome post and pre cruise. Glad we did since we almost got caught by the volcano.

This year heading to Southampton and have to do the arrive-same-day.

Our rule: In winter we always build in a pre-cruise day. Iin summer if we can't build in an extra day, as long as the flight is non-stop and is not the last flight of the day we take it.

[pcur]

Take the balcony. This is a really nice cruise and it is lovely to sit on your balcony and enjoy. I hear you about the time. Last year we booked 2 days in Rome post and pre cruise. Glad we did since we almost got caught by the volcano.

This year heading to Southampton and have to do the arrive-same-day.

Our rule: In winter we always build in a pre-cruise day. Iin summer if we can't build in an extra day, as long as the flight is non-stop and is not the last flight of the day we take it.

 

Going into FCO: I agree that if the flight is a red-eye AND a non-stop, then you are probably OK taking it arriving the same day the cruise leaves. But, if all you can find or afford has a stop, then I would arrive the day before. It might be a wash: the cost of the hotel versus the extra cost for a non-stop.

[Janice M]

We went to Rome a day ahead on the red eye. We have always had inside rooms because that allows us to cruise more. There are so many places on the ships to sit and enjoy the view. We have not been on the Mariner, but the Navigator which is the same last Oct. It was great.

We took a taxi from the airport to the hotel. If you like an exciting cab ride its a good way to get to the hotel. Our driver was way over the speed limit. It is a good idea to leave for Rome ahead of time because you never know if your flight will be delayed. All in all the cruise was great. Enjoy

 

Jan

[Happy ks]

We could spend a month in Rome and still not see all of it, so my vote would be to not arrive a day early, but several days. Try your best to have at least one extra day if at all possible.

 

We had the advantage of being in a group and took a city tour of Rome before heading to the ship, well worth it and only a few more euros than simply a ride to port.

 

The balcony was definitely worth the extra expense. I know some people don't think so, we use ours all the time. We have coffee in the morning, a glass of wine in the evening, read out there in the afternoon, sailing into Venice early morning was awesome to see from our balcony.

 

We waited an extra year to save enough for our Med cruise, to do it justice, and we're all so glad we did. It's such a long way to go and such a wonderful trip to have to cut corners.

[chef_christoph]

Thanks everyone! I'm torn now because the price has gone up on the stateroom category I was interested in and the cost of flights are crazy expensive right now...I may wait to do it next year instead...gives me more time to save and plan for a few extra days...hmmmm...what to do...what to do...

[SAS21]

I recently returned from a holy land cruise on the Mariner. I would suggest a balcony cabin also, I had an inside cabin for the first time, I was traveling with my father and stepmother, they has a JS. Everytime I went to their cabin they had such awesome views. The islands of Greece were always in view as we left port. The last sea day the views were awesome. There are so many small islands in that area there is always a gorgeous view. I usually have a balcony cabin when I cruise with my DH, I really missed the views. We stayed in Rome for 4 nights prior to the cruise. Rome was spectacular, we did not see everything in 3 days that there was to see. There is definetly a lot to see. We had no flight delays on the flight over, our return trip we were no so lucky and spent a night in Philadelphia due to a missed connection.

[wantocruisemore]

Thanks everyone! I'm torn now because the price has gone up on the stateroom category I was interested in and the cost of flights are crazy expensive right now...I may wait to do it next year instead...gives me more time to save and plan for a few extra days...hmmmm...what to do...what to do...

 

 

I would still go ahead and book. Likely the prices went up because of the holiday weekend. We booked directly with RCCL, I checked the prices a couple of times a day and it paid off. For our 4 rooms we ended up saving a total of $2.870.00 off the original booking price. You can get price drops up until the due date for final payment.

 

On the last drop I really lucked out. I had not seen a balcony price that low for a Med cruise in mid-summer either before or after the drop. The week we're having to go is an absolute peak week. It only stayed that price about 24 hours before jumping back up.

 

So go ahead and book, pick our the room and location you want, make a note of category and price and bookmark the page that has the prices for your sailing. Then be vigilent about checking.

 

As for airfare, they're usually a little less to book mid week. We lost out on the cheapest because some in my party were dragging their feet about whether to come back right after cruise or spend more time in Italy. We already have our pre-cruise in Italy set. Because of them being indecisive for a few months, fares cost us about $400 pp more than if I could have made the reservation when I got my cruise reservation.