The first time my eldest sister told me to cruise, I didn't know what to expect. I thought it would be boring , I was hesitant to take the unfamiliar way of travel, I was afraid I wouldn't enjoy , there will be thousands of people in the big ship, one day at a place is not enough time to explore the places that we stop in?
But of course when she said she would pay for me, hell yes. :)
constantly amazed how huge the cruise is , and how much people it can fit .
Taken at Corfu ( a lesser known greek island)
Now then I have came back from the first time cruising , I have to admit cruising is a great way to travel. It has an effortless way to travel from places to places, at the end of the day knowing that you have comfortable bed and everything is ready , especially if you are traveling with kids and elderly parents. May be that's why people say the phrase " Once a cruiser always a cruiser".
Ports of calls of our cruise
Day 1 - Athens (Greece)
Day 2 - Santorini ( Greece)
Day 3 - Sailing
Day 4- Kotor (Montenegro ) Originally to dock at Kusadasi ( Turkey), but changed due to political unrest around that time
Day 5 - Corfu (Greece) Originally to dock at Malta but changed due to traffic on curise port
Day 6- Portoferrio (Italy ) Originally to dock at Naples , but changed due to traffic on cruise port
Day 7- Rome
I was actually upset with the new port of calls from the cruise as I was so looking forward to visiting Malta and Naples.But now I can say without this cruise, I won't even discover new places like kotor, corfu or portoferrio.
What are included in the cruise ?
As a first time cruiser, I had no idea what was or wasn’t included in the package price. The all-inclusive base price means that what you pay for your cruise includes:
Accommodation
Clean white towels and room whenever we came back to our room , we were very spoiled by the service from the cruise
Our interior room was small but have decent space for the two of us to store our stuffs and cozy .
All food, all the time (restaurants, buffet areas, pool area, in-room continental breakfast, where you have to fill in the card the night before and put it outside of your door)
Low quality photo of me in the buffet area at Formal night
All the restaurants again have great service with different menus everyday, but we mostly eat at buffets as we prefer to have more choices that can choose from.
Entertainment shows ( they have an apps that you can use on board to check for daily activities )
There are varieties of entertainment that you can choose from
Live shows/dances/singing competition from the passengers
Different live brands
My beloved sister
Access to fitness facilities ( including swimming pools, tennis court, basketball court)
Movies under the stars
Unlimited sun tanning time
Additional costs for the cruise*
- shore excursions
- Special coffee
- Bottle water
- Alcohol Drinks
- Spa services
- On-board shopping
- Internet Access (very pricey )
Overall
I loved my first cruise so much as it gave the ease and comfort of travelling part way around the world without the hassles of visas, airport security, unpacking and repacking. Cruising took the hassle out of travel entirely. For those who would like a taste of different countries and cities, cruising is the way to go. But of course it is just that – an introduction to new places. But you can always come back to explore more to the cities you have enjoyed. Aside from what my initial thought of too crowded with too much people, I was surprised lots of places , hidden areas that you will be alone for most of the time.
On a side note : although I love way too much on hassling of traveling, taking public bus , running for trains and endless things, I know not everyone is keen on those and no doubt cruise is a way to travel as it can be more economical if you really think about it.
My favourites places that I visited were Santorini and Kotor .
I mean who wouldn't mind waking up to this kind of view every morning.
Photo from Kotor ( montenegro)
I would like to give a shoutout to all the crews and staffs that work in Royal Princess. I have never been treated this nice and being spoiled, every one were so incredibly nice .
Before I was writing this post, I was thinking to take another cruise on western Mediterranean ( preferably france, spain and portugal ), if anyone been to one, let me know in the comment of you think about cruising or your recommendation.
Thank you for reading..Hope you enjoy it , remember to up-vote if you like it , resteem and leave a comment of what you think.
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