I just returned from 3 days in Rome prior to a 10 day Mediterranean cruise with Celebrity. we were very happy with our experience. stayed at Hotel Centro in Rome which is a modest hotel but very clean, staff helpful, centrally located and a full breakfast included. They also arranged for veyr reasonable transfers for us in air conditioned Mercedes vehicles both from the airport and to the port. 180E total for the 3 of us.
We had not intended on using the ships excursions bec of cost but once there realized it was a bit risky to try and get around on your own and be sure to get back to the ship on time. We were very happy with our excursions and felt we wasted less time getting to our destinations as well. We were very happy with Celebrity in every way and the food was excellent. The stateroom was a good size for the 3 of us. Write with any questions- this was our first cruise so know we had lots of questions. will be glad to help if I can. Kim

Welcome back! Glad to hear you liked your first cruise, and I was especially interested in your comments about your pre-cruise stay in Rome. Sounds like it worked out very well.

Which ship were you on?

Sandy

Hi Sandy- I was on the Celebrity Galaxy. Kim

Kim

Can you give me a bit more of a low down on the Galaxy. We are taking the 11 day cruise from Rome in Late September and keep seeing conflicting reports of the ship's condition- food, service etc. You may PM me if you wish.

Hi- I, too, had read conflicting reports about the Galaxy with references to it being in poor shape etc. but we had no complaints whatsoever. Since this was my first cruise we had nothing to compare to but I only met one person who was dissatisfied. She had cruised with Princess and felt the Galaxy didnt' compare. Everyone else was very happy. I suppose there are some areas that could use up-dating but it was all well maintained in my opinion. The food was excellent esp. in the Orion dining room. On only one occasion there was someone at my table not happy with her dish and it was replaced immediately with another choice. The food was a highlight for most of us.
I found the cruise to be extremely well organized with no waits for anything. Room service was always delivered on time or early. The shore excursions were very good and we ended up doing them for most ports because of the logistics of trying to do them yourself is not easy. This was not our original plan but we are happy with how it worked out and felt we got good value for our money really. One thing I had not anticipated was that not many places on shore accepted credit cards which I had expected to use so plan to take lots of Euros or use the bank machine. My bank charged a $3 service charge for withdrawals so plan to take out larger amounts at a time to avoid unnecessary charges. The dress code is quite flexible and I had stressed out unnecessarily about having enough dressy clothes. There was quite a variety, even on formal nights. Another pleasant suprise was how friendly everyone on board was- staff and fellow cruisers alike. Feel free to ask any more specific questions and have a wonderful time. I have to say I enjoyed absolutely every aspect except maybee the 40C temps which hopefully you wont' have to endure. take care Kim

hi kim j, we did the 12 day mediterreanean aboard galaxy last June and it was also our first. I can't tell you how enjoyable it was. Did you enjoy the shows, Ryan and Roxy's shopping guide seminars, the alaskan parade on the last formal night at the Orion, also the grand buffet. I enjoyed every bit of it and i agree that although it needs refurbishing, after all she's ten years old, public areas were kept clean, our cabin was always spick and span, thanks to our cabin attendants, and the food, i've must have gained 5-10 pounds just by eating constantly. And the itineraries were awesome. Isn't Greece magical, Mykonos, Rhodes especially Santorini. I had a blast. I kept telling my great cruising experience to my friends who hasn't done it or chose not to go w us, and how much they're missing. In fact i've already booked my Baltic cruise aboard Century for summer of 2007 w a few of our close friends. I also did a member review for Galaxy on cruise critics under angelcruiser, check it out. I'm glad you had a great time. Take care. Angel

it's great you are so enthusiastic about your cruise experience and yes I did enjoy everything as much as you did. Lucky you, planning on cruising again. It would be really fun with a group of friends. take care Kim

hi kim j, its just that i wasn't expecting the kind of service and amenities offered by a cruise as oppose to lets say backpacking which i did three years ago in Italy. It was fun but obviously more exhausting. The cruise offered something that i didn't experience compared w my previous travels, its relaxation w style. I'm sure you had the same experience and can relate to me quite well. Hope to see you in one of our future cruises. Take care... Angel

My husband and I will be going on the Oct 6 cruise to the Mediterranean and are wondering which shore excursions were worth doing. We were thinking about the Godfather excursion in Sicily, as well as the excursions in Santorini and Mykonos. Any tidbits of info on any of the excursions would be most helpful. Thanks!!!

Hi there- hope you have a wonderful time on your trip. I had actually not planned on doing many booked excursions but once I got on the cruise I realized they were the most practical way of getting around,that we would see more that way and not have the worry of getting back to the ship. I didn't end up feeling they were too expensive either. If you don't book excursions you might spend alot of time making your own arrangements. However, Santorini and Mykonos are two places you really can do on your own. They are both small and we walked and rode the local buses for the wee journeys we needed to take. I would do it the same way again. It was no problem in those two places. Write again if you have any more questions. It does help to talk to others who have been there. I had a friend who had worked for a cruise line and she gave me lots of good tips before I left. bon Voyage. Kim