snowwmax Posted August 17, 2009 #1 Share Posted August 17, 2009 Hi All, My Fiance and I are wanting to take a 7 night cruise to the Greek isles. The 2 cruises that we came across are: RCI's - Splendour of the Seas -- departing June 26th, 2010 NCL's - Gem -- departing July 3rd, 2010 Our most recent cruise was an 11 night to Alaska aboard the Celebrity Infinity and we really liked it. We are trying to determine which one to go with: RCI - 4 Ports but longer times @ Port Dubrovnik(Croatia) -8 Ephesus(Turkey) - 10 Santorini (Greece) -10 Corfu(Greece) - 7.5 NCL - 5 Ports slightly short times @ Port Split(Croatia)-8 Corfu (Greece)- 8 Santorini (Greece)-7 Mykonos (Greece) - 8 Crete (Heraklion)(Greece)- 5 One of my main concerns is quality of Food on the Ship and the Freestlying deal. I thought the food on the Celebrity Infinity was 8 outta 10 and I have never done "Freestyling" Cruising (NCL). Though as it stands, I am learning towards the Norwegian Gem because of more ports. Any thoughts / comments / suggestions are welcomed!! Also this will be our Honeymoon :D Regards, -Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted August 17, 2009 #2 Share Posted August 17, 2009 Of those two, RCI's itinerary is much better. Dubrovnik, Ephesus and Santorini all are wonderful stops. (Have not traveled on either of those two cruiselines, so cannot provide any insight about them.) Congratulations and enjoy your honeymoon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GSPLover Posted August 17, 2009 #3 Share Posted August 17, 2009 Hi All, My Fiance and I are wanting to take a 7 night cruise to the Greek isles. The 2 cruises that we came across are: RCI's - Splendour of the Seas -- departing June 26th, 2010 NCL's - Gem -- departing July 3rd, 2010 Our most recent cruise was an 11 night to Alaska aboard the Celebrity Infinity and we really liked it. We are trying to determine which one to go with: RCI - 4 Ports but longer times @ Port Dubrovnik(Croatia) -8 Ephesus(Turkey) - 10 Santorini (Greece) -10 Corfu(Greece) - 7.5 NCL - 5 Ports slightly short times @ Port Split(Croatia)-8 Corfu (Greece)- 8 Santorini (Greece)-7 Mykonos (Greece) - 8 Crete (Heraklion)(Greece)- 5 One of my main concerns is quality of Food on the Ship and the Freestlying deal. I thought the food on the Celebrity Infinity was 8 outta 10 and I have never done "Freestyling" Cruising (NCL). Though as it stands, I am learning towards the Norwegian Gem because of more ports. Any thoughts / comments / suggestions are welcomed!! Also this will be our Honeymoon :D Regards, -Steve Of the two, I would suggest RCI. Smaller ship (fewer people); better food. I think that the port choices are better. We haved sailed both cruise lines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stubbornoldowl Posted August 17, 2009 #4 Share Posted August 17, 2009 I haven't sailed RCI yet (scheduled this October) - however I have done a couple NCL cruises, including the Gem. We select NCL for their price and itinerary but not for the food unless you are prepared to pay for the restaurants with an extra charge. Most of those restaurants are good but the freestyle on NCL (unless you are OK with the buffet) in my experience is a giant frustration - always waiting in line or with a pager to get a seat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare cruisemom42 Posted August 17, 2009 #5 Share Posted August 17, 2009 Based on the itineraries, I'd vote for RCL -- although there are fewer ports, they are better choices. And, since it's your honeymoon, you may enjoy a few days of downtime too.;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cecethekittencat Posted August 18, 2009 #6 Share Posted August 18, 2009 Take note on the "Freestyle" cruising that the up-charge for dinner is quite a bit per person ... so is it really freestyle when every dinner costs $40-60 per night? IMHO makes the cruise prices not comparable ... I'd much rather spend that $$ in ports having some really interesting experiences ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinelyRetired Posted August 18, 2009 #7 Share Posted August 18, 2009 I did the RCI itinerary this past May. Perfect mix of good Ports/sea days. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. It's an older, smaller ship, but well cared for, good crew and it was pretty lively at the pool as the entertainer/combo was just terrific. If you're lucky, you might get a Cirque de Soleil performer either 1st or last night. I had a duo act on the Brilliance in Jan. and a solo former Cirque performer on Splendour. Welcome addition to the normal 1st night fare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marc1956 Posted September 16, 2009 #8 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Our family did the Splendour earlier this summer and really enjoyed it. If the NCL would do that itinerary it would be perfect! While we like freestyling better and the Splendour is a smaller (less entertainment options), I wouldn't want to miss Ephesus. It is truly amazing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunshine nana Posted September 16, 2009 #9 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Did you look at NCL Gem May 1st? It goes to Athens as well as Dubrovnik and Ephesus. Does not go to Santorini though. NCL food is ok, not as good as Princess, but NCL is less expensive.Never been on RCL.The weather would be much cooler in May than July. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowwmax Posted September 16, 2009 Author #10 Share Posted September 16, 2009 I decided against both of these cruises... Partly because getting airfare to Venice on Frequent Flier miles was a pain... and we didn't feel like dishing out $2500 for a pair or Coach tickets! Also you all confirmed what I thought to be true about NCL - food ok / somewhat of a headache to eat.. We decided up a 10 Night Greek Isle Cruise on the Celebrity Equinox Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy Sicily (Messina), Italy At Sea Athens (Piraeus), Greece Ephesus (Kusadasi), Turkey Mykonos, Greece Rhodes, Greece Santorini, Greece At Sea Naples/Capri, Italy Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy Thanks for the replies! -Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted September 16, 2009 #11 Share Posted September 16, 2009 I decided against both of these cruises... Partly because getting airfare to Venice on Frequent Flier miles was a pain... and we didn't feel like dishing out $2500 for a pair or Coach tickets! Also you all confirmed what I thought to be true about NCL - food ok / somewhat of a headache to eat.. We decided up a 10 Night Greek Isle Cruise on the Celebrity Equinox Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy Sicily (Messina), Italy At Sea Athens (Piraeus), Greece Ephesus (Kusadasi), Turkey Mykonos, Greece Rhodes, Greece Santorini, Greece At Sea Naples/Capri, Italy Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy Thanks for the replies! -Steve A nice itinerary on a well-regarded cruise line. One thought: if you have the time, it always is fun to book a cruise starting in one Med port and ending in another, giving you plenty of time to explore two great places rather than one. We have had no trouble using our FF miles to fly "open jaws" and do not feel that we have paid more when using cash for airline tickets either. For example, we cruised Istanbul to Athens last September, Athens to Rome in June, and have booked Venice to Barcelona for next May. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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