Signature ExperiencED in Roma

[TylerRose]

We're just back from our 10-DAY MEDITERRANEAN MOSAIC Cruise 4/11-4/21. As suite residents, we were fortunate to participate in their new 2018 Signature Experience. I wanted to share our experience for those interested:

 

Our ship sailed an hour outside of ROME and they put us up for 2 nights at the HOTEL MEDITERRANEO VIA CAVOUR in ROMA. (We added on an additional nights stay at our expense- disqualifying us from airport pickup- so I cannot comment on how that service might have gone. Also, on the recommendation of another CC member, we paid the difference and upgraded to a suite in the hotel. I want to reassure those who have asked- this hotel does include full breakfast buffet. Though not in the center of it all, this hotel is within walking distance of most and transportation is readily available as needed.

 

We ate dinner one night at thier rooftop restaurant (breakfast served in same place) and it was fantastic.

 

Now, about "The Experience"

Here is a C&P from HALs description on line:

A Night out in Ancient Rome

Begin a magical evening in the Casa dei Cavalieri di Rodi (House of the Knights of Rhodes) on a terrace overlooking the Roman Forum. Dine on hearty appetizers as you drink in the spectacular view—and your choice of Prosecco, white or red wine—before departing for an exclusive, after-hours tour of the Coliseum given by one its most elite guides.

Our Signature Experience Evening:

Bus drove us from the hotel to the Coliseum first for a late afternoon tour.

It is a long walk on uneven terrain between bus drop and entry. It was very warm that day & crowded. The tour itself was good... especially if you had never been there before. However, I would have skipped this part (since I had visited previously during daylight hours) if I was offered the option. It was truly the opportunity to experience the after-hours tour of the Coliseum that had appealed to me.

We then walked 15-20 minutes over further uneven terrain until we reached the Casa dei Cavalieri di Rodi. Once you climbed its many steps, it did indeed offer a rooftop terrace overlook with a spectacular view. They passed around drinks and appetizers as we mingled. There were very few chairs, and frankly- I was waiting for the ride back to the hotel.

Then to the surprise of all- they announced "dinner is served" and summoned us all in & down more flights of stairs.

Dinner?

Yes- HAL surprised us all with a full course 🍷🍴 dinner!

By evenings end- we had all shared enough food and wine that the exhaustion from the earlier schlepp & disappointment seemed irrelevant. It was really a very pleasant and unique evening. NO- it wasn't what they "advertised"... but they made it special & memorable!

The next day we did not meet until 11:30 for the bus- disappointing many hoping to arrive at the ship early. A few folks did opt to pay a cab and head to the ship on their own.

The rest of us were all aboard the Ms Koningsdam by 1:30 and went straight to cabin without any boarding delay.

 

We shared a magical anniversary cruise... enhanced by the Signature Experience!

[AncientWanderer]

Thank you for your post, Tyler Rose. It's so nice to hear a favorable review of your Signature Experience. The Signature Experiences are such an intriguing unknown quantity -- we're all curious, no doubt!

We are set for one in Hong Kong next year. I'll be watching as other reviews start trickling in to CC. Exciting!

[freestyling]

Thanks for your thoughts on the Signature Experience. We will be in Rome for the October one. The hotel has changed to the Beverley Hills. We are looking forward to seeing what its all about.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Glad your Signature Experience turned out better than you thought it was going to be when your first started out on the adventure.

[aliaschief]

TylerRose thank you for sharing your Roma experience.

 

We are looking forward to doing that in October.

[niceguyneastbay]

Thanks for the feedback.

[Kinkajou]

Also doing this in October, so very interested in reading about the experience.

[DWAliaschief]

Hi - would you be able to elaborate about the apps and dinner? When did you find out which hotel you were staying at?

Thanks for the info

[kazu]

what an informative and helpful post.

 

thank you for taking the time to share.

[TylerRose]

Hi - would you be able to elaborate about the apps and dinner? When did you find out which hotel you were staying at?

Thanks for the info

 

HAL never posted our hotels name and address on our visible on line itinerary at any time. I was very concerned by this. When I contacted my PCC- she reassured me of our reservation- but that they could not add on the extra night. So I took a deep leap and did it myself and hoped nothing would get lost in translation.

When printing out our HAL documents- information not visible on screen prints-

all the hotel- tour- & cocktail party event time & date were already there.

Wish I had thought to do so sooner, could have spared myself a lot of planning worry.

 

On the morning of "Day 1" of the "2 Nights Included"- HAL set up a table off to the side in the lobby for ships services.

They checked guests in & helped with all supportive needs. I heard they also helped some arrange Vatican tours & other things...

 

On the terrace evening, the appetizers were plentiful, but included a shrimp option. I am highly allergic to shellfish and avoided it all, so I am unsure exactly what else was passed about... but there were meats and cheeses & wine.

There were very few chairs & we ended up sitting on the Terrace walls. I wish I had dressed less cocktail and more sharply tourist.

We were not told about dinner and it was a real treat!

We were a good sized group and filled several tables of 8. A 4 course dinner was served at table side.

We were with HAL from 4PM-10PM that evening- before embarkation.

I hope this info helps with your planning- keeping in mind... this was just our experience-

[dcl1710]

Thanks for the heads up about the terrain! Will not wear heels that evening. It sounds like a nice start to a vacation.

[madera1]

Sounds like it was a nice benefit with this addition.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Turtles06]

OP: thanks for posting this information, and glad you had a good time.

 

Here's some info on our Signature Experience offer. We're sailing on the Zuiderdam's Viking Passage this summer, and were offered at no additional charge (and accepted) a "Signature Experience" in Copenhagen -- 2 nights in a hotel, an event at "Hamlet's castle" (Kronborg), and airport/hotel and hotel/ship transfers. However, once we started planning the whole trip and decided we wanted to spend 3 or 4 nights in Copenhagen, our HAL PCC told us that the group rate they had for the Signature Experience pkg would not allow us (at our own expense) to add additional nights at the hotel (nor did they yet know which hotel, so we were unable to book it independently).

 

Around about that time, there was a flash sale for our cabin -- about $1000 off in total for the two of us, without the Signature Experience. So we opted for that. The savings allowed us to book three nights in HAL's (non-Signature Experience) hotel in Copenhagen (including both sets of transfers, and breakfast), with some money left over to pay for a day trip we'll be taking out of the city not only to Kronborg but to several other castles as well.

 

Ironically, when we were first offered the Signature Experience, we were told there were limited spots and it would fill up quickly. That was many, many months ago. I am still getting emails offering it to us.

 

Obviously, different things will work for different folks, depending on travel plans, cities, etc.

 

Enjoy!!

[roberts2005]

Any more reviews from people who have finished their Signature Experience