Ravenna

[afdds]

Can anyone tell me before I book a Venice  cruise if RC offers a Pre cruise hotel package in Venice not Ravenna.  I would like to do a Pre cruise hotel stay  in Venice.  But then how do we get to ship in Ravenna?   Any help would be greatly appreciated.  Will probably do our own air so I’m assuming no transfers for us.

[Biker19]

13 minutes ago, afdds said:

 But then how do we get to ship in Ravenna?

RCI offers transfers the day of - you c an also look into trains. 

[elaine5]

Rci offered a bus from Venice to Ravenna this summer for $59 each way. 2.5 hours with bathroom stop midway. Bathroom at bus loading area also. Both need 1 euro, bring change. 
We flew into VCE and then went to Florence afterwards (Rci shuttle to Ravenna train station and then independent train tickets). Shuttle is on 1st stop of people mover near Santa Lucia train station. There are detailed posts about how to find the shuttle spot. 

Edited January 31 by elaine5

[Mick B]

Hi,

Did this port last year.

My best advice is to fly into Venice and spend at least 2 full days there to enjoy everything the city has to offer.

You can stay in an expensive hotel on the island or find a much cheaper hotel on the mainland in Mestre which is about 6 miles away and is served by both trains and local buses/trams.

 

I would then suggest taking the train from Venice/Mestre to Bologna (which is just over an hour) where you could either spend another night in a hotel to enjoy that wonderful city or change trains at Bologna and take a local train to Ravenna and spend a pre-night stay there instead.

The port is some 10 miles from Ravenna and taxis are available but can be hard to find on boarding days. However for a couple of euros we took the bus from outside Ravenna train station to the port town which took about 30 minutes. Timetables are on the internet.

 

The thing to remember is if you are travelling a long way for a shortish cruise then you can extend your holiday with plenty hotel stays either end and northern Italy is absolutely stunning, so if you have the time and the money, then you could take a nice steady trip from city to city across Italy heading towards the ship. Remember there can be strikes on the railways so making sure you are in reach of the port is paramount. BTW Taxis from Bologna are around 130 Euros just in case there is a local train strike and RCI sometimes put on shuttle buses from Bologna train station to the ship on boarding day too, so may be worth checking with them what transport they offer too.

 

Lastly, it is a real shame we can no longer sail out of the port of Venice. I have been fortunate many times to have sailed out of it and it really was a wonderful experience. I have also been fortunate (living in the UK) to have been able to stay in Venice many many times, and I can tell you that you do need at least 2 full days there to enjoy everything the city has to offer. It can get very busy and also can be flooded at times and has many bridges with steps so you do not want to be rushing around or carry cases with you.

 

Hope this helps.

Mick.

 

[Tin can]

We stayed in Venice two nights and got the train from Venice to Ravenna changing at Bologna as the post above and spent a night in Ravenna which was great.

 

The train was so easy and we booked Tranitala 'Executive' to Bologna (google it 🙂) which is like first class on a plane and we had lunch and drinks served at our seat for I think about 55 Euros each. 

 

The following morning in Ravenna Royal laid on coaches to the port and we just gave our name and it was charged to our room, I recall this being about $10.

 

 On our cruise FB group there was a lot of panicking about a Venice pre cruise stay and then how to get to the port. We were a bit worried but we booked a hotel opposite the train station on the Grand Canal in Venice which was an easy walk from the bus dropping you off from the airport and then after our stay in Venice it was easy to get the train.

 

Overall the train was so easy and I think better than a 3 hour RCI bus transfer from Venice.

 

The cruise was great as well 😀

Edited January 31 by Tin can

[Cooper30]

I’m at work now and my break is almost over, but somewhere in the past month I posted how my wife and I went from Venice to Ravenna last October. 
 

I'm not sure if it’s on this board or the Italy one. 
 

when I get home from work and can get on my desktop (rather than phone), I’ll look for it and post a link if you can’t find it. 

[bz]

consider spending some time in Ravenna, known for its mosaics.  Good shopping, good food, interesting city center.  We hired a guide to explain the mosaics and the history of the town.  Well worth it. 

[Cooper30]

On 1/31/2024 at 8:05 AM, Cooper30 said:

I’m at work now and my break is almost over, but somewhere in the past month I posted how my wife and I went from Venice to Ravenna last October. 
 

I'm not sure if it’s on this board or the Italy one. 
 

when I get home from work and can get on my desktop (rather than phone), I’ll look for it and post a link if you can’t find it. 

sorry for the delay.  I got busy and forgot. 
 

here’s the post I made 

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2985244-can-anyone-help-with-advice-for-travelling-venice-to-ravenna-via-train/?do=findComment&comment=66759026

[afdds]

Thank you everyone for all the information.  I'm so disappointed that the cruise ships can no longer dock in Venice.  I've been looking at several different cruises trying to decide.  LOL plenty of time, booking for 2025.  The RC cruise is so much cheaper than the other lines, I'm guessing because of the proximity to the port.  I will make sure and book 2 nights in Venice with another night in Ravenna before the cruise.  Has anyone looked into the possibility of renting a car one way or maybe Viator tours for private car.  I'm guessing the last one is just too far a trip. Thank you once again as I continue my research.

 

 

[afdds]

5 minutes ago, Cooper30 said:

sorry for the delay.  I got busy and forgot. 
 

here’s the post I made 

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2985244-can-anyone-help-with-advice-for-travelling-venice-to-ravenna-via-train/?do=findComment&comment=66759026

Perfect thank you so much!  I really appreciate the help.

 

[DandDM]

Fantastic info. Great work, citizens of this board!  

[akb5k]

Super easy to take the train from Venice to Ravenna. I think we spent about $15 (last summer). We stayed overnight in Ravenna and took the city tourism agency's shuttle to the ship- they picked us up at the hotel and drove us straight to the port.