The Grand Tour; Italy and Greece on the Royal Princess

[Rosethorn40]

Oh my goodness! Your timing is perfect! I just booked the 14n Western Med on the Royal at the end of May. So excited to hear all about it & see the pics! We haven't been on the Royal/Regal, looking forward to reading about your experience! Thanks for taking the time! :D You made my day!:D:D

 

Is this your first time to the Med? It was ours, and while I was pretty sure we would like it, I was surprised by just how much I loved it. I felt at a real disadvantage because I didn't have as much time as I would have liked to research and plan.

 

The Royal is beautiful, and overall I liked it very much. The biggest issue for me was getting around. Not enough elevators for the number of passengers, and when you did get on one it would be crowded and stop at every.single.floor! However, that was just a tiny irritant. Five years from now I won't remember the elevators, just the wonderful time we had (Took over 800 photos, and not one was of a crowded elevator ;))

[bcnvcanada]

Love the pictures and the asides what I know now. Thanks for the

advise.

[Rosethorn40]

Yay! Thank you for the review! I love the Sanctuary on the Royal class ships. Looking forward to hearing more!

 

I love the Sanctuary as well, and the one on the Royal is extra beautiful. I don't think it was ever full during our cruise. We only had the one sea day (Which I believe was close to or fully booked) , and it was raining, overcast, and windy for most of the day, so most stayed away. Finally about 3pm the sun came out and the rest of the day was quite pleasant. We used it every afternoon, with the exception of the last day (Elba) and then we used it all morning.

 

Here are a few photos to bring back memories

 

[Rosethorn40]

Our final day of the cruise brought us to our final stop, and our final replacement port, Elba. I only knew of Elba as the first of two islands Napoleon was exiled to (Elba was pre-Waterloo, St. Helena was after Waterloo). We were scheduled to reach the Island around noon, so we spent the morning, which was just gorgeous weather wise, in the Sanctuary.

 

We were the first Princess ship ever to come to Elba, which may have accounted for the shorex offered by the ship to be a little below par. We signed up for one that promised a scenic tour of the island, with little walking. With all the walking we had done up to this point, and two days in Rome coming up, I thought this might be the best option for DH who had been game, but was looking a bit tired.

 

We had met at the meeting point for our excursion at the appointed time. As this was a tender port, there were long lines of people waiting to get off the ship. I had always thought one of the advantages of a ship sponsored shorex was you were given priority for a tender. This was not the case here. Yes, they lined us up, and took us down the stairs to the entry point for the tenders, and there was a line of independent travelers waiting for the next tender. We were held back, while the other line was allowed to board the tender. The member of the shorex staff that had escorted us down did nothing to ensure we got on a tender, in fact he walked away. Finally, the people at the head of the line started merging into the other line and we just made it. The last two people of our group just managed to squeeze on the tender. If our group had been any larger, we would have left people behind, which would have caused our tour to leave late, which would have given us less time to see the sights. It just wasn't handled well at all.

 

However, it all worked out, we made it to shore and after wandering around (There was no one to point us in the right direction) we found our bus and guide. We loaded up quickly and off we went. The first stop was to a vantage point to take in the view, which was lovey. Then it was off to a small village where we had a comfort stop, free wine tasting, and free time to look around the town, and its "beach." Our guide was a young woman, and she was not a very good guide. She spent most of the time on her cell phone on personal calls, and told us almost nothing about Elba. She did tell us that most of the island is a national park, there are strict building restrictions, and it's considered part of Tuscany. Oh yes, it's the third largest island in Italy. Sicily & Sardinia are larger. However, nothing about its history.

 

One thing she did tell us about was the perfume making industry on the island. The perfume is called "Acqua dell' Elba" (My spelling is correct-I am looking at the label even as I write this) and every town has at least one shop selling it. While in the first village we visited I found the shop and popped in. Turns out there are three different fragrances; Classic (Think Gardenia's & roses-very romantic), Arcipelago (citrus and spicy), and a third that I didn't care for. I tried the Classic on one wrist, and the Arcipelago on the other, and asked my husband which did he prefer. I was hoping for Classic, so naturally he picked Arcipelago-sigh! Actually its very nice, and I've worn it every day since our return.

 

We then went to a second village that I am not sure why. No interesting architecture, no interesting shops. There was an attractive beach, but no time to enjoy it.

 

Back in Portoferraio we left our "guide" and driver and walked around the town, and enjoyed some really good gelato before catching the tender back to the ship to finish packing, spending time in the Enclave one last time, and catching dinner.

 

What I would have done differently (Know that I know)

 

Elba is very attractive, but there is very little to do outside of going to a beach (The water is very clean & clear), or maybe taken a tour to Napoleon's summer residence. If I had felt very adventurous I would have rented a car and driven around. We did speak to a young couple that did that, and I think they got more out of the island then we did.

 

Elba is lovely, and there are pretty views wherever one looks

[Rosethorn40]

Beach at the first village we went to. How do people lay on rocks???

 

 

 

I loved the rows of changing cabanas

 

The second village we visited had a nicer, i.e. sandy, beach, but was also more crowded

 

[Rosethorn40]

 

 

Views of Portoferriao

 

 

 

[Got2Cruise]

Thank you for posting your blog and pictures. Loved reading along and now I have this cruise on my radar. Can you tell me a little more about the Sanctuary on the ship? Can all pax use it or only certain cabin classes?

[Rosethorn40]

Thank you for posting your blog and pictures. Loved reading along and now I have this cruise on my radar. Can you tell me a little more about the Sanctuary on the ship? Can all pax use it or only certain cabin classes?

 

One thing I love about the Sanctuary is that anyone who wishes to purchase a pass may, regardless of their cabin category. Three of the first four times we used it we were in interior cabins.

 

The price depends on several factors; cruise duration or a daily half day or full day option. We took it for the cruise duration, which for a 7-day cruise was $30 pp per day, or $210 ea. for the cruise duration (You pay the full day price on embarking day even though you will only be able to use it the afternoon, and that will be shortened by the muster drill. If you only want a reserved lounger for some of the time, say a sea day or a short port day the cost is $20 for a half day or $40 for a full day.

 

Some of the loungers are in shade, others may be in full sun depending on the time of day and the ship's position. On the Royal/Regal there are 70 loungers available as well as four (4) private cabanas that have a couch and a TV, as well as two loungers reserved for that cabana's use. I can't remember the price, but I want to say $110 for the day.

 

Depending on the itinerary, the Sanctuary can sell out fast. Its best if you make the Sanctuary your first stop once you board the ship. There will be an attendant on duty, and they will show you what loungers are available.

 

Hope this helps.

[DrivesLikeMario]

Really enjoyed your review! Can you tell me if the TVs in The Sanctuary area are bothersome to the others in the regular loungers in that area? :confused: We've had week-long passes before, but on other ships that didn't have the cabanas right next to them.

Edited October 2, 2016 by DrivesLikeMario

[Rosethorn40]

Really enjoyed your review! Can you tell me if the TVs in The Sanctuary area are bothersome to the others in the regular loungers in that area? :confused: We've had week-long passes before, but on other ships that didn't have the cabanas right next to them.

 

Thanks for reading!

 

Never heard any TV's or music from the cabanas. I think they have headphones inside the cabanas for not only music, but the TV as well. We were on the side that two of the cabanas were taken nearly every day, and most of the time I had no clue anyone was in them. The only issue we had was with two ladies that had booked the Sanctuary for the week and they talked non-stop. The first day for at least 3-hours it was non-stop conversation. I was able to tune them out, but others were not and there was a lot of complaints about them. To make it worse, they had Enclave passes as well. I would see them walk into the Enclave in the evenings and my heart would sink. The one woman (Of course the really loud one), she just wouldn't.shut.up! I finally said something to one of the spa ladies, and they came in and said something to her. Didn't do much good, so the next evening I complained about her to the spa personnel again. They came in, said something to her, and after that she was fairly quiet. True, she glared at me the rest of the week, but I finally had peace and quiet. :rolleyes:

[jimbri]

Beautiful photos!

[Rosethorn40]

We thought the Royal was beautiful, and would gladly sail on her again. Here are some of my thoughts on the different areas of the ship.

 

Cabin-Besides what I had already mentioned, I found our bed to be more comfortable then what we have normally endured on a Princess ship. I loved the fact that our bed seemed to be a true king, and not two twins pushed together. I did not feel a crack where two twins would have joined.

 

Dining-We ate all breakfasts and most lunches as well as 4 dinners in the Horizon Court. Lots of choices, most of the food I enjoyed, and good service. One thing I noticed was when we started cruising back in 2003, the buffet at night would be a ghost town. No longer, it seems to be a popular option for those that choose not to go to the dinning room. I thought the service was the best I've ever seen in the buffet. No long wait for drinks, table promptly cleared.

 

We ate at Alfredo's two nights, and I am about to commit an act of heresy and say I wasn't a fan. It was okay, but I have had much better Italian food. We went twice because we wanted to give it another chance. The service was excellent the first time we went, and just average the second time.

 

We did eat at the Crab Shack one night (It was offered twice), and while I liked how they separated the area with the use of fish nets, and the service was good, I felt the food not quite as good the other two times we ate at a Crab Shack (Both times in 2014; the Emerald & the Caribbean).

 

The International Café was wonderful as always. The lines at the coffee bar were too long in the mornings. No coffee is that good.

 

We did not eat in the dining rooms, mainly because we had a lack of appropriate clothing for my husband. I had allowed him to pack his own clothes and he brought shorts & swimsuits. No long pants.

 

Sanctuary & Enclave-The hours of the Sanctuary were 8:30-6:00, the Enclave was opened until 11pm, except the last night when it closed at 10pm

 

The lack of a center staircase is an issue, no, people are not being over dramatic when they complain about it. The Royal is currently in a dry-dock that is suppose to open the center stairs currently for crew use only to all, but I don't know if that is going to alleviate the difficulty of going from floor to floor. There are a lot of decks, and many just can't walk up stairs from deck 5 to 16. You expect elevators to be full during high traffic times, but the elevators were always busy and full, and they stop at every floor.

 

Purser Desk was good (Granted I only went once) but the Shore Excursion Desk was not well run. We had an issue with our tour in Santorini (Long story short-our guide ditched us in Thira without giving us directions to the cable car, which is not easily seen until you are almost upon it, and we wandered, lost, hot, sweaty and tired before we found it). We lodged a complaint on Sunday afternoon, and didn't get a response back until very early Saturday morning, just before we disembarked that basically said so sad too bad. It took a week to say that? Also the issues in Elba, which we did not complain about, just noticed.

 

We didn't go to any shows, but caught a few acts in the Atrium which we enjoyed.

 

Fellow Passengers were almost all adult. Very few children, probably because school was in session almost everywhere. Most of the passengers seemed to be from English speaking countries; USA, Canada, Great Britain, Australia & New Zealand. There were a sizable number from other European countries and Asia.

 

If anyone has questions I will try to answer.

 

The final bit will be about our two days in Rome, on our own-kind of.

[Mom33]

Wonderful review and pictures. Thank you! :)

[tright]

Thank you for taking the time to post. Your pictures are beautiful. We will be on our first Princess cruise in just a few days and it will be on the Royal. The information you gave is greatly appreciated!

[Rosethorn40]

This is going to sound funny, but this was our fifth time to Europe, but the first time I had arranged pre/post cruise hotels on my own. Most of the time we have flown in the same day as our ship/boat set sail, and we had never stayed beyond a cruise before. And ALWAYS we had relied on the cruise line to get us from the airport and back for our flight home. This time I took care of it, with I might add, success (We got to where we were going, so I consider that success).

 

Our ship docked in Civitavecchia very early on Saturday. We were up before dawn as we had decided to use a Princess transfer to Rome that included a tour of the Colosseum and St. Peters Basilica. After our tour we could choose to be dropped off at a train station in Rome or the airport. Disembarking was a breeze, we walked off, located our luggage in minutes, and were on the bus in no time. The drive into Rome is well over an hour long, even on a Saturday, that early in the morning, with almost no traffic. About mid-way we did have a comfort stop, but I cautioned DH about getting anything to drink as I was worried about the opportunity for a restroom break when our tour started.

 

When we got into Rome we went first to the Train Station to pick up our local guide. We hit the jackpot, as we got one of the best guides ever! Very informative, in tuned with the needs of the group, and great at keeping us together, even in crowded spots like the Colosseum and St. Peters.

 

Our first stop was the Colosseum. Security was very tight; no bottled water, no sunscreen, no liquids of any kind. Huge lines, but our terrific guide had a "back-door" of sorts that allowed us to bypass much of the lines. He knew so much about the history, not just from Roman times, but more modern history as well. I asked about the Cats of the Colosseum as I had only seen one, and found they had been removed for their own safety. I just read that cats are protected in Rome, and its a criminal act to hurt or kill a cat! Way to go Rome.

 

Anyway the Colosseum is impressive!

 

 

We were there fairly early, before the great crowds had arrived.

 

 

 

 

 

I was impressed, especially after I learned that only about 30% of the original structure remains. We also learned that there were gates for the common folk to enter, and they were numbered (the gates) just like our stadiums today. The Colosseum could hold over 50,000 people, and Christians were NOT fed to the lions there

[Rosethorn40]

Thank you for taking the time to post. Your pictures are beautiful. We will be on our first Princess cruise in just a few days and it will be on the Royal. The information you gave is greatly appreciated!

 

Enjoy! She is really a beautiful ship. Some long time Princess cruisers were unhappy when she first launched because of her size and number of passengers. Except for a few times when there was congestion (half port days and everyone trying to do the same thing at once) I think they did a good job of spreading everyone around.

[Rosethorn40]

Driving from the Colosseum to St. Peter's Basilica we drove past Castelo San Angelo. This was of particular interest to me, as the opera Tosca is my very favorite. For those not familiar, at the end of the Opera our heroine, in true operatic fashion, leaps to her death from the top of the building.

 

[DrivesLikeMario]

Thanks for reading!

 

Never heard any TV's or music from the cabanas. I think they have headphones inside the cabanas for not only music, but the TV as well. We were on the side that two of the cabanas were taken nearly every day, and most of the time I had no clue anyone was in them. The only issue we had was with two ladies that had booked the Sanctuary for the week and they talked non-stop. The first day for at least 3-hours it was non-stop conversation. I was able to tune them out, but others were not and there was a lot of complaints about them. To make it worse, they had Enclave passes as well. I would see them walk into the Enclave in the evenings and my heart would sink. The one woman (Of course the really loud one), she just wouldn't.shut.up! I finally said something to one of the spa ladies, and they came in and said something to her. Didn't do much good, so the next evening I complained about her to the spa personnel again. They came in, said something to her, and after that she was fairly quiet. True, she glared at me the rest of the week, but I finally had peace and quiet. :rolleyes:

 

OMG, some people have no idea how obnoxious they are to others. How frustrating for you! :mad:

 

Good to know about the headphones. I know they used to have them for the iPods but it's so good to know they have them for the TVs too. Would hate to have to listen to someone's show that isn't my cup of tea. Thanks for the info and thanks for the great job on the review! ;)

[Rosethorn40]

We finally made it to St. Peter’s, and once again our excellent and resourceful guide found a way for us to bypass many of the lines. Here too security is tight, with K-9 dogs, x-ray screeners and metal detectors. Inside the Basilica our guide pointed out many of the splendors. This tour did not include the Sistine Chapel. To see that you have to buy a ticket to the Vatican Museum.

 

My words and photos cannot even begin to do justice to how glorious St. Peter’s is.

 

 

 

 

 

Our excellent guide telling us about a magnificent bronze door, leading into the basilica

 

 

[Rosethorn40]

 

 

 

[Rosethorn40]

 

 

 

 

My camera is old, and I can't take the best indoor photos with it, especially if a flash is prohibited, as it is in many places.

[homeinboca]

Great review, great photos, thanks for sharing, it brought back many wonderful memories.

[Rosethorn40]

After St. Peter's our final Princess excursion was over. A few of us were dropped off at the train station, but many were going on to the airport. After our drop off we were officially on our own. There were plenty of cabs available and one pulled up, loaded our bags, and after I showed him the address of our hotel-off we went.

 

I really want to describe our experience in finding a hotel for our stay. I had used Hotels.com for our Athens hotel stay, and turned to them for our 2-nights in Rome. I was looking for something affordable, preferably not an impersonal chain, and I wanted something rated 5 stars (I don't want much, do I?). After spending close to 2 hours looking at all the options I selected Relais Donna Lucrezia. I had seen the word "Relais" in a number of listings and didn't know what it meant. While I'm still not 100% sure, I think it refers to an individually owned (i.e. Not a chain), small, boutique hotel.

 

It took our cab driver a little while to find the place, but as we pulled up I could tell the street was quiet (A rarity in bust Rome). Cab driver drove off, and we were standing outside a locked iron gate. Looking around I found a buzzer which I pressed. I heard a voice say "2nd floor" and we were buzzed in. I was so confused, not really sure where to go. After reaching the lobby we found a small, old elevator, that took awhile to figure out (Talk about your innocent's abroad), but we soon reached the 2nd floor. We found the door with the name Relais Donna Lucrezia on a brass plate, and went in. Later I met the owner and I finally understood the unfamiliar set up. The building had once been the city home of her grandparents (Its like a small palace). On their deaths they left each of their children a floor to make into apartments. Our hostess was given her fathers floor to make into a hotel, and a marvelous job she has done. Only opened since July, the 8 guest rooms are a mixture of old world charm (high ceilings, crown moldings, traditional light fixtures, and some furnishings) and modern sensibility (clean lines, white paint, modern bathrooms). Our stay included a full breakfast, full of fresh from the farm ingredients (The family owns a 200 hectares farm just outside Rome).

 

The location was great. Easy walking distance to both the Spanish Steps & Trevi Fountain, and very close to the beginning stop of most of the HOHO buses. There are also plenty of restaurants nearby.

 

The outside of the Relais-the hotel was only on one floor

 

 

The gate that took me too long to figure out :rolleyes:

 

The lobby of the building

 

The quaint, tiny elevator that is probably from the 1920's

 

Our very comfortable bed

[Rosethorn40]

After checking into the hotel were the desk clerk gave us a map of the city with the major attractions highlighted we set off. First stop was the café across the street for a light meal, and then we started walking towards the Spanish Steps. We probably took the long way, but we finally found ourselves at the top of the steps. It was mobbed. Then we started walking towards the Trevi Fountain. Talk about mobbed! People were 15/20 deep all around. It took awhile to get a good vantage point to take some photos. There was an entrepreneur taking instant photos of people tossing a coin in the fountain (5 euro). I bit, and ended up with two. Grabbed husband and got two more. Twenty euro never disappeared so fast.

 

Saw this statue on our way to the Spanish Steps

 

 

[Rosethorn40]

By late afternoon we were weary. We have been up since 5am, and had walked a great distance (For us), so after the Trevi Fountain we made our way back to our hotel. I then realized that we probably needed to drink the bottle of wine we had bought in Elba, and I realized I would be able to take in on the plane via our carryon, and I wasn't confident that it would survive in our checked luggage. I went to the lounge area of our hotel and discovered the owner. I asked for and received two wine glasses, and I asked if it was alright if we drank our wine in the lounge (It was) so I invited her and her fiancé to join us. For 90 enjoyable minutes we chatted and drank wine, and she told us about the history of the building we were in, and how the hotel came about. This was one of those unplanned events when one travels that makes for serendipity.

 

We then walked to a nearby sidewalk café where we both enjoyed risotto with gorgonzola. After dinner it was early to bed so we would be ready for a full day of sightseeing the next.