Feedback from our cruise on AOS end of Aug/Sept

[swcruise]

Hi

 

I through I would feedback on our cruise on AOS which commenced on the 27th August from Malaga. We had a fabulous time .

 

The ship was very full with about 3,600 on board. The majority were Spanish approx 3K I reckon. There were very few Americans on board, some English/Irish and mixture of other countries. We went to the WJ on the 1st day for lunch and got a seat, it was extremely busy and hectic there. From then on we used the dining room for breakfast/lunch and dinner. When we left the WJ the 1st day, they were doing crowd control and there was a queue outside that moved as people left. We were in the WJ at about 2pm, but if you are getting there at 3, you may have to wait. There is also food in the Promenade cafe on the 1st day.

 

As has been noted the Spanish are a noisy bunch and you would notice it when they arrived for 2nd seating, the decibels would rise... I guess it is their joie de vivre (don’t know what this is in Spanish) and passion. We like to cruise with mixed nationalities and didn’t experience any of the problems others have reported. There were a lot of kids onboard and they all seemed well under control, you may hear the odd one running down the corridor, but kids will be kids.... We are not pool people, I imagine that scene may have been hectic, it certainly looked crowded.

 

The ship itself is well maintained and very clean. The Royal Promenade and Centrum do look a bit dated and could do with a sprucing up. The staff was excellent, nothing was too much and they seemed a very happy crew, imo they stood out as the best crew we have experienced so far.

 

The food in the MDR hasn’t changed much; we stuck mostly with chicken and lamb and were overall pleased. The chocolate fondant dessert was to die for; the seafood brochette should have been left in the sea... We use MTD and are happy with this as it gives us the flexibility to dine when we wish. The breakfasts were good and on the last day they had a chocolate breakfast as well, a strange concept... We decided to partake and shared a waffle with chocolate sauce and bananas and caramel, don’t normally start the day with sweet things but it was yummy. The lunches in the MDR on the 2 sea days were enjoyable, there was a different menu each time, and in my opinion the lunches were better than dinner. There was also a buffet lunch there on the day the ship was in Corsica. One point to note on Corsica, our documents said that we would be there from 7am to 4pm, but it was changed to 8am to 4pm, no bigge but if you have independent excursions you may want to factor this in.

 

We went to two shows; there wasn’t time for any more. The Motown tribute act were brilliant, would recommend if they are performing on your cruise. The Ice show was excellent, it was on Monday afternoon and think it was the evening entertainment on the Rome evening. They also ran it again on the last sea day.

 

As they add VAT to this cruise the Spa was running promotions on some days where the VAT was paid. We went for this and it was an enjoyable experience, note they would not let us use our Platinum 15% off coupons in combination with this offer. The shops were rather disappointing, there wasn’t much to take our fancy; again they were advertising that there was no VAT and for the smokers amongst you were running a promotion of two cartons for 75 dollars. I did think that smoking was allowed in more areas on this ship than any I cruised before.

 

 

We played the Bingo, for the 1st time they had machines that had 30 chances a game for 45 dollars. They play 4 games which went rather quickly, we almost won, close but no cigar... They did not play the jackpot game where the money can roll over and be a nice pot at the end of the cruise for the lucky winner. They also ran a game for an upgrade to an OS suite for the cruise.

 

They still have the art auctions on board and Art Simply are now running this, I took a wander through, there was very few there and it was a reserve auction. I left, not sure it even took place as there were no reserves being placed.

 

As we are platinum, we were invited to an event on the 1st morning in Valencia at 11am at the Peek a Boo deck to watch sail into port. There were nibbles, champagne, orange juice and some music. It was a small but enjoyable affair with about 16-20 people there.

 

There was also a welcome back party on the Friday at 5.30 pm in the Viking lounge, it was the smallest that I have experienced so far with about 40 present. I think that most on the cruise were 1st timers.It did seem a rather odd time and a little early to be donned up in our finery. This was the 2nd formal night, and a lot of people didn’t seem to make a great effort. The 1st formal night was day 2, the 1st sea day.

 

We did all the ports DIY.

 

Valencia: We got a taxi to the town and got on a HOHO bus from the main square. They seemed to run every 15 mins or so, there are two lines and we used the blue line which took in the city centre, the port, beech and the aquarium and science museum. It gave a good overview of the city, but hard to get a vibe as it is mostly closed on a Sunday. We also chilled in the square by the main cathedral.

 

Roma: We were amongst the 1st off the ship shortly after 7 and got a bus out off the port. From there we walked briskly and purchased tickets and were on the 7.33 am train – just made it by seconds... We got off at St Peter’s station at 8.30am; it was great we were ahead of all the crowds. There was no queue into the Vatican and from there we ambled to Piazza Navona, Trevi and the Spanish steps and had a leisurely lunch in Via dell Carozze. We got the 14.45 train from Termini and were back on board just before 5.

 

 

Florence/Lucca

We decided last minute to re-visit Florence and we used the ship transfer to the train station. It connects with the 9.12 train to Florence and picks up again at the station at 5pm (not sure what would happen if you train was late back though...). I did think that the price was a little high at 18 dollars per person return, but there seemed to be mixed feedback as to whether the taxi drivers would be willing to take such a fare, or whether they would be looking for an all day gig. We were sitting on the train when the crew opened the floor doors in our carriage, Hueston we have a problem... The train was cancelled and we were advised to get the 9.30 to Pisa and connect from there. Looking at the timetable this would have gotten us in an hour later than planned so we decided instead to go to Lucca.

 

I managed to swap the return tickets in Lucca and remembered to validate them.... There was a 9.50 going to Lucca which was delayed so we got the 10.20 and arrived in Lucca before 11. We had a very pleasant time there. On our return we rushed for a train and missed it by a minute (it must have been the only one all day to run on time.....) In the rush ,I forgot to validate and the ticket inspector presented me with a one pager in 5 languages outlining a 40 Euro fine, as you can imagine my jaw dropped...He settled on a 5 Euro fine which was much easier to take.... Note to all remember to validate your tickets at the yellow machine

 

 

Ajaccio/Corsica

 

This was a very scenic port to arrive into; the weather was very hot as it had been all week. At the port they have attendants that provide you with a map of the town. There is an option of a sightseeing bus or a touristic train. We opted for the bus, it was 10 Euros per person and the driver highlighted all the Napoleon monuments and points of interest. It also included the Isles de Sanguires and that provided a very nice costal ride.

 

 

Disembarking

 

We had the option of a continental breakfast in a reserved area of the dining room as we were platinum, but we decided we would go for something more substantial to set us up for the day. We went back to the WJ and had breckie there. I did notice that Portofino’s and part of the dining room seemed to be reserved all week at breakfast for suite guest and diamond/diamond plus. We were show a departure time of 7, but the staff advised that we could leave up to 9am. We got off at 8ish and for the 1st time ever I saw passengers reclaiming confiscated irons. There was a line of taxis to greet the ship and we were at our hotel within 10 mins..

 

 

We stayed in Malaga both outward and on our return. We really liked the Hotel Molina Lario; it is very centrally located just by the cathedral. On our return we stayed in the Silken Puerta Malaga. It was close to the train and bus stations and we were doing excursions to Mijas and Nerja using public transport so it suited our needs. The hotel staff again was great and were able to give us rooms when we turned up at 8.30, the main lobby area is ok as well, but would prefer the rooms at the Molina Lario. Also there weren’t any eating places nearby with the exception of the train station.

Overeall, we had a great holiday, our pre-planning paid off and the advice from the CC board certainly helped us. Only 50 weeks and counting to the next one

 

If you have any additional questions, would be happy to answer them..

[kimmy_bos]

Superb review thank you so much.

 

My husband and I are joining this cruise next Sunday at Valencia and are very excited....

 

Fab information about Corsica being a scenic port to dock at

 

Thanks

[swcruise]

You are very welcome. ..This day next week you will be onboard, enjoy... On our cruise only about 600 got on in Valencia, so hopefully check in will be smooth for you.

 

A couple of extra things on Corsica, there is a market in the town that is open till 1pm. It is a food market for cheese and charcuterie, I love that kind of thing and enjoyed browsing, but couldn't buy anything as it would have stunk to high heaven by the time we got home... Fig jam is a local delicacy, wish I had picked up some of that when I was there...

 

There are a lot of open air cafes by the port, main square and shopping streets which are nice to linger in and watch the world go by.

 

You will have a port day in Malaga so here are some tips in case you haven't decided waht to do. We did the HOHO bus there and spent time by the Cathedral and main shopping street. On our return from the cruise, we took a bus to Nerja on the Saturday, there is a stop just by the port. The bus will take 1 or 1.5 hours each way depending on time of day. We spent a leisurely couple of hours there wandering the town and admiring the views from the Balcon de Europe, we also went to the beach for a while.

 

It is also possble to do Mijas DIY, we got the train to Fungerilio approx 45 mins and then a bus up to the hillside village. It went every 1/2 hr and took approx a 1/2 hr to get to the village. It was very pretty with geat views of the sea.

 

Have a great holiday...

[kimmy_bos]

ooh fab additional info

 

Thanks so muh again

 

x

[scoobie]

Can you tell me what shops are right at the port please?

[Puffinater]

Good review. Thanks for taking the time to post it.

[swcruise]

Can you tell me what shops are right at the port please?

 

 

There was a Duty Free selling perfumes, wine, spirits and ciggies. As the ship wasn't leaving the EU, no alcohol or ciggies were being sold. There are a few more shops selling wine, small food items and souvenirs.