Rhapsody cruise?

[cruiselovin'girl]

Anyone been on the Rhapsody recently for the Italy/Greek Island cruise? Going in a few weeks and I would love to hear your thoughts about the ship and the ports....

Thanks in advance,

Pam

[Clarea]

Rhapsody related threads:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?type=forums_topic&search_and_or=or&search_in=titles&nodes=51&q=rhapsody

[RCCL Fan]

We're booked on her next year, please come back and let us know what you thought

[BillieJ]

On 9/5/2019 at 11:44 PM, RCCL Fan said:

We're booked on her next year, please come back and let us know what you thought

There's a group of us going next October.  When are you going?

Edited September 20, 2019 by BillieJ
Old post

[RCCL Fan]

8 hours ago, BillieJ said:

There's a group of us going next October.  When are you going?

 

July

 

hate that the countdown clocks are gone!

[Elaine Glenn]

Hi Everyone,

We will be leaving in two weeks on Rhapsody any tips?

[Clarea]

15 minutes ago, Elaine Glenn said:

Hi Everyone,

We will be leaving in two weeks on Rhapsody any tips?

 

Rhapsody into here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?type=forums_topic&search_and_or=or&search_in=titles&nodes=51&q=rhapsody

[Dave_Blue]

Hi, we got back from this trip a couple of weeks ago.

We have cruised with Marella several times so wanted to see what Royal Caribbean was like.

The ship is tired but then it is one of the oldest ships RCI have, the prior cruise we had been on was on the Marella Discover which used to be the Splendor of the Seas and was also a vision class ship and even though the Discovery had been refurbished the layout was almost identical, so we had a good idea where everything would be.

We had an inside cabin on deck 4 which was basic but also very handy when you wanted to just drop back to your room for anything as it’s also the deck where the centrum bar and entertainment are held.

Entertainment in the evening mainly revolves around the Centrum and the Broadway theater. There are events in the shall we dance lounge, these were things like a 30 min quiz or Karaoke. Whilst we were onboard as soon as the event finished the venue emptied. The Schooner bar was a nice place to sit and relax with a drink and a chat however if the Pianist or Violinist or both turned up then the volume would be up loud, such that it was difficult to continue your conversation.

We ate breakfast and lunch in the Windjammer, which always had lots to choose from. It was difficult to find a table at times but arriving earlier or later than the rush and it was fine.

We were on anytime dining, food in the MD was of a good standard, waiters were a little slow in spotting you were out of wine, but I could be a quick drinker 🙂

We also went to Giovani’s Table which was excellent.

For the ports we did our own thing for most, as we have been to several the destinations before.

Dubrovnik is a fantastic place to visit and walk around. If you are feeling energetic, walk around the city walls 15 Euro per person I think buts well worth it. We went on a boat trip from the harbor but due to the tide and size of the waves the boat was unable to go to the other side of the city, only out towards the island, but it does give you a completely new perspective on the city from the water.

The city itself is a maze of narrow alleyways with bars, restaurants, gift shops and ice cream shops. They are in a grid so its easy to navigate, I would say it takes around 5 to 10 mins to walk from wall to wall inside the city. We caught the Ship transfer to the city which was quick and efficient.

Kotor was next, we chose to go on the Hop on Hop off buss, which included a pass for a mosaic museum, in one of the towns you visit and a walking tour of Kotor. I’ve been to Kotor twice before and had always gone on organized trips away from these, so that you get the chance to look down the mountain into the bay and see the ship. This time we went into Kotor, which is also a walled City. Unlike Dubrovnik this one is not in a grid style but bends and winds about. Having said that, it is small so you will not get lost. We found a fantastic restaurant that was doing fresh mussels out of the bay with a large beer for 10 Euro per person. The sail in and out of Kotor is stunning, it’s like the Fjords of Norway.

Next was Santorini, this was one of the ports that had decided which cruise to pick. I have to say I was somewhat disappointed. The good things are the views at the top of the cable car are stunning. The que to get back down on the cable car was 1 ½ hours followed by 1-hour queuing to get on the tender back to the boat. This was exasperated by there being 6 ships in the bay, and it was not clear who’s ship you were waiting for. The tender port is no way equipped to handle the volumes going through. Those that walked up complained that the Donkeys just pushed you out of the way as they went by.

There is a famous picture that you always see of Santorini, with 3 blue domes. This is in another town called OIA not the one the regular tender drops you at Thira. You also must queue for 30 mins down an alley to get that picture, it is worth it though and I now have it.

 Katakolon, never been here and we decided to just look around the town. Its small but is probably the best place for gifts on all the ports of call.

Having wandered around for a couple of hours and taken a horse and buggy ride we decided to get some lunch.

We picked one of the restaurants right near to where the ship was docked with a view out to sea. We both had a Greek style sandwich and shared bottle of wine which came to a total of 12 Euros. The bottle of wine was only 4 Euros so we though it would be rude not to have another bottle and enjoy the sun and view. We also found a small Jewelers owned by 2 cousins, both of whom had held the Olympic torch (We were skeptical of this claim, but they showed us pictures)

We arrived back in Venice at 6:30am, surprised to find that everyone had to be off the ship by 9:30, We never experienced that before. However, we were able to store our cases in the terminal and catch the people mover into Venice. Our coach pickup was not until 13:30 so we had a few hours to stroll around that amazing city.

[cruiselovin'girl]

On 9/5/2019 at 11:44 PM, RCCL Fan said:

We're booked on her next year, please come back and let us know what you thought

Returned home on Sunday but have been too exhausted to get online! The cruise was wonderful. The Rhapsody is an older ship and showing some wear and rust but the crew was so great, we didn't mind! Great food and service in the MDR. I avoid the Windjammer except on embarkation day because I don't enjoy buffets. The food was okay there, I just prefer to be waited on. 🙂 Prior to the cruise, we purchased the 3 night dining package so we could try each restaurant. They were all delicious but our favorite was Chops, followed by Izumi, then Giovanni's. The shows were good: besides the normal singers and dancers, there was a great soul singer and a ventriloquist /comedian. Our ports were Kotor, Athens (Piraeus), Corfu, Argostoli and Mykonos. Our favorite was Mykonos. I'd be happy to answer any questions if I can!
Pam

[cruza]

Current 10/12/19 sailing: the departure from Venice was delayed by Port master from 5 pm till 10 pm. Muster had held @ 4:30 pm, and nobody allowed to leave the ship for Venice walk after the muster drill...

As a result, Kotor port stop (cruisers were looking forward to Kotor) was really short and there were no any tours/excursions possible except 1.5 hour walking tour , the ship arrival changed from 12 pm till 5 pm (real arrival @ 5:45 pm).

[cocker spaniel]

11 hours ago, cruza said:

Current 10/12/19 sailing: the departure from Venice was delayed by Port master from 5 pm till 10 pm. Muster had held @ 4:30 pm, and nobody allowed to leave the ship for Venice walk after the muster drill...

As a result, Kotor port stop (cruisers were looking forward to Kotor) was really short and there were no any tours/excursions possible except 1.5 hour walking tour , the ship arrival changed from 12 pm till 5 pm (real arrival @ 5:45 pm).

Same thing happened to us in June this year missed the kotor stop 

[cocker spaniel]

Same this happened to us in June this year missed kotor stop lots of people were less than happy we had been before but were still disappointed as kotor is a hi light of this cruise. Wonder if this is going to be habitual