IL fait beau. Même pas de mistral. Une navette est proposee. Mais nous n’avons pas du tout envie de refaire l’expérience de la veille. Nous trainons sur le bateau. Piscine. Restaurant . Jacuzzi Gouter.. 4 D. rangement de valise.. Bref … repos..
Débarquement. Genes
Le débarquement s’est bien passé. Nous devions quitter les cabines à 7 heures. Euh nous nous sommes oubliés.. et nous sommes levés vers – 6 h 50.. On a vite plié et on est allé dejeuner au self.. la , c’était vraiment tres hard pour ce dernier petit déjeuner.. VU l heure tardive impossible de trouver une place. Nous avons déjeuner dehors avec nos manteaux.. bref. C’était notre faute. Nous
Nous sommes ensuite allés au rv dans le théâtre. Nous avions l’étiquette Bleue ciel et nous avons été appelé en 4 eme position. Nous avons été très vite au pied du bateau..
Et là, un peu dur de trouver nos valises.. mais c était bien organisé.
Nous sortons de la salle de débarquement et la … une table avec toutes les clés de voiture.. nous les récupérons… et nous trouvons notre voiture à 50 m de la, en 2 minutes.. on s’installe… on range les valises… et nous voici repartis pour notre Ardèche natale . Nous sommes le 24 Décembre Nous sommes partis vers 10 herues et arrivés à 17H. le débarquement a quand même eté tre s rapide vu le nombre de passagers à descendre.
… Nous avons pris des tickets pour la navette msc.. au pied du bateau.. Hors de prix…
Bref, quand nous arrivons au pied du bateau, il y a un monde pas possible qui attend aussi les navettes.
Nous paniquons un peu et finalement nous sautons dans le bus orange qui se trouve juste à coté.
Ce bus nous mène à la sortie du terminale.. le terminal est vraiment loin..
Ensuite nous marchons et nous prenons le bus numéro 4… Bref, je n’avais pas très bien préparé l’escale de valence. Tanpis..
Coucou Friquette
Effectivement, la navette MSC revient assez chère et pas forcément utile. Pour Valence, en tout cas, c'est vraiment pas utile.
La véritable "arnaque" si je puis dire.
Je n'ai pas encore fait mon compte-rendu sur Valence mais beaucoup de MSCiens se sont fait avoir sur ce coup là.
Il n'est plus possible de sortir du port à pied, il y a obligation de prendre un bus.
Beaucoup qui ont tenté de sortir à pieds se sont vu renvoyer vers les bus sans plus d'explication car le garde ne parlait que l'espagnol.
Un grand nombre de personne est donc remonté sur le bateau acheter un billet pour la navette MSC.
La liberté de circulation étant entravée sur un domaine pulic, nous avons voulu comprendre.
En discutant avec le garde quelques minutes (mélange d'italo-spanish et de langage en version Charlie Chaplin), nous avons compris que la ville de Valence ne souhaitait plus avoir de piétons dans la zone portuaire car il y a eu beaucoup d'accidents sur la grande ligne droite menant jusqu'au quai du bateau. Et il nous a dit qu'il fallait prendre le bus mis à disposition par la ville GRATUITEMENT.
Il y avait donc 2 types de bus à Valence à la sortie du bateau :
- les bus oranges de la société Metrobus qui gère les lignes de bus au sein de la ville de Valence (bus gratuit - en photo ci-après - avec feuille A4 indiquant que le bus était à destination des croisiéristes du Splendida jusqu'au port avec la mention FREE mais pas très visible vu la cohue)
- les autocars de MSC qui étaient plus loin à la sortie du navire.
Résultat : comme les bus oranges étaient placés devant les bus MSC, beaucoup de personnes ayant payés la navette MSC, ont en fait,
pris la navette gratuite ce qui sembre être ton cas Friquette d'après ce que tu dis.
La navette gratuite déposait également à la sortie du terminale comme la navette MSC.
Et les gens s'étant trompés au départ, on fait le retour au bateau dans le même bus orange sans se rendre compte de la chose.
Et bien sur, tout billet de navette MSC acheté est non remboursable.
oui en effet, nous avons pris le bus orange mais à l'aller seulement.
et nous l'avons pris volontairement.
Pour le retour nous sommes revenus avec la navette msc. c'est pour cela que nous étions un peu inquiet et avons cherché le départ des navettes msc puisque nous
n'étions pas arrivés avec..
Nous sommes arrivés à Gibraltar tot le matin. Nous sommes sortis vers 9 h 30 afin de ne pas trop se précipiter.
Nous avons marché quelques minutes, pris un taxi pour pas grand chose puis nous sommes tout de suite rentrés sur Main Street. Nous avions décidé de « tracer » direct sur main street pour aller voir les singes et de faire les boutiques au retour.
Au bout d’un quart de Main Street nous avons été accosté par un monsieur très courtois, qui nous a proposé de faire une ballade pour 25 euros par adulte. Nous étions 4 adultes et 3 enfants. Nous lui avons précisé que nous voulions aussi faire les boutiques en rentrant. Il nous a dit ok..
Nous sommes donc parti dans un van blanc ou était déjà installé un couple. D’anglophone apparemment. La visite était super sympa. Nous avons fait les caves de st Michel, Pillards of Hercules, les Tunnel… et puis nous avons vu les singes.
A chaque fois, la file de vans s’arrête, nous dépose 20 minutes, on prend des photos on visite et on remonte. Dans le van le guide nous donne les explications en anglais.. Denis et moi traduisons au reste de la petite famille … Les enfants et nous même ont été ravis de cette balade..
Un temps magnifique également à souligner..
Nous avons aussi noté, que les excursions msc… bus bien plus gros , étaient garés plus bas que nous… je n’ai pas eu de commentaires sur les excursions msc…
A la fin de la superbe ballade nous avons pu faire main street tranquille et acheter les fameuses boules à neige tant prisées par ma margaux… Bref, je n’avais rien de spécial à acheter, ni cigarettes ni parfums… j’ai un peu foirée et aurait du acheter une icewatch pour ma fille.. mais bon tans pis…
Nous avons ensuite pris un taxi van à l’entrée de la ville pour quelques euros… et retour au bateau enchantés . je vous propose la visite en image… je pense que c’est plus parlant et reste dispo pour vos questions.
J’ai adoré cette croisière. Cette surprise pour mon mari m’a épuisé.. je suis quand meme arrivée en croisière super fatiguée et stressée. Au final tout s’est bien déroulé… et il a été super content… Quand repart on ??
LE BATEAU
Le Spendida est SPLENDIDE
Nous nous sommes finalement bien repéré même si j’appréhendais un peu cette taille gigantesque.
J’ai bien aimé les tons du bateau, les tons de marrons, de mordorés etc…
Ce que j’ai adoré c’est toutes ces vitres partout ou l’on voit ou surplombe toujours la mer..
Les repas
Nous avons testé uniquement 2 Types de petits déjeuners, à savoir, au restaurant (les deux), au buffet.
Le restaurant c’est sympa… le grande classe.
Le buffet, : je rappelle qu’il faut aller au fond du bateau.. Sinon vers le centre, c’est à dire au plus près du stand principal (steak à midi) c’est IN…… (je ne trouve pas le terme).
Au restaurant, nous avons apprécié chaque repas (matin, midi et soir) . Tout était parfait.. nos serveurs étaient adorables avec notre puce… Toujours sourire..
Les plats : je n’ai jamais été décue de ce que j’ai choisi… je me suis régalée..
Les cabines et Le service
Parfait. Propre, nickel…
Bon c’était pas tres pratique pour notre cabinier car notre ado avait tendance à trainer au lit le matin, donc forcément il ne pouvait pas faire la chambre.
J’ai quand meme pété les plombs un jour, car la cabine n’était pas faite. J’ai du appeler 2 fois la réception… Notre cabinier du matin n’était plus la l’am.. Bref la cabine a été faite vers 18 heures.. mais c’était quand meme la faute de notre ju qui s’était levé à plus de 13 heures…
Les forfaits Boissons
Je tiens à préciser que j’avais 3 types de forfaits boissons
Ceux réservés directement à l’agence.. je n’ai pas eu de frais de services
Celui réservé sur my MSc sur Internet * je n’ai pas eu les frais de services
Celui acheté au pied du bateau dans la salle d’embarquement - j’ai eu les 15 % de services.
Pour l’eau, café et thé, c’est ouvert 24/24. C’est très agréable. Les forfaits restent quand meme tres abordables.. il ne faut pas oublier que l’on n’est pas obligé de boire lorsque l’on n a pas soif. !!
Je noterais que j’ai préféré de loin, cette non « agressivité » quand à l’achat de services ou de boissons. En effet, les serveurs sont là, mais ne m’ont jamais poussé à la conso..
J ai apprécié.
Pour conclure…
et bien si vous attendez à ce que je vous dise quelle sera ma prochaine compagnie de croisière et bien je ne sais pas.. franchement j’ai adoré le splendida.. j’ai adoré les repas… et au vu des circuits et surtout des promos ca sera peut etre msc…
Bref… nous avons bien aimé msc…
ET MAINTENANT JE VOUS PREPARE TOUTES LES PHOTOS DU BUFFET DE MINUIT SUR LE SPLENDIDA.....
Un grand merci Friquette pour ton CR ainsi que tes magnifiques photos qui nous replongent dans l'univers MSC que nous apprécions et aimons, en attendant le plaisir de pouvoir repartir.
Très bonne journée -
bonne journée à toi aussi marie claire.
je vais maintenant m'activer à trier bien correctement mes photos pour faire site web et albums..
c'est plus dur..et plus long..
Merci Friquette pour le compte rendu, du positif et ca c'est super des photos magnifiques et un buffet de minuit à vous couper le souffle, il faudra être raisonnable le soir afin d'y gouter lol. J'ai pu changer de service en envoyant un mail à msc nous passons au 2 eme.
J'ai une question vous parliez des fontaines eau café thé c'est à disposition matin midi et soir ? à la cafétéria, et au restaurant?
Les distributeurs se situent à la cafétéria, il n'y en a pas dans les restaurants, où il faut acheter les boissons soit en resérvant les packs avant le départ sur le site MSC (ce qui évite de payer 15% pour le service en plus) soit en arrivant sur le bateau (+ 15%) soit au coup par coup au resto avec les 15% appliqués.
Merci desbell pour l'info en ce qui concerne la réservation des forfaits boissons c'est fait par le site msc France j'ai déjà réglé, une fois sur le bateau on verra un petit cocktail de temps en temps et une glace !!!
bonjour lizarvril
nous avions une cabine balcon..
en fait au départ, nous avions une interieure pour 3... avec uniquemnet ma jeune puce..
puis il y a eu la promo, la moitié pour ma moitié... et j'ai reboukee, en rajoutant mon fils et nous avons pris une cabine balcon
pour moins de 150 euros de plus..
A quatre, pour dormir ca va... on ne reste pas ds la cabine..
Bonjour
Je voudrais des tuyaux pour les visites : Barcelone , la Valette, Messine, Rome
Avez-vous entendu parler du cafouillage qui existe à Nice pour prendre le bus qui nous emmène vers Gènes ?
Merci encore de votre aide
Hi there,
I’m looking into a Mediterranean cruise on the Splendida in YC.
I’d love to know if it’s a ship with a lot of triple and quadruple cabins in the Yacht Club.
The thing is, I’m planning to depart from Malta, and either the cruise ends during the French school holidays in October with a departure from Marseille—which means there’s a risk of lots of kids on board—or the other option is a departure on October 30th, which might also have some French kids during the first part of the cruise.
I read that some ships in the Fantasia class have more triple or quadruple cabins than others, but I’m not sure if the Splendida is one of them.
If anyone has that info…
PS: This isn’t about starting a debate on traveling with or without kids… I’d just like a quiet week, and that’s not always easy in a small space with lots of children around.
Just back from our first cruise on the Renaissance, and I’d like to share a few thoughts about life on board. Our feelings are mixed—we wanted a change after several MSC cruises, but the value for money on this repositioning cruise left us torn.
After taking advantage of successive promotions, we finally secured a well-located balcony cabin for 2600 € (almost 50% off the brochure rate). Given the amenities and the ship’s age, this now feels like the absolute maximum we’d pay for that period.
Overall, we were happy with our vacation on board, but a few details—when added up—left us with a somewhat mixed impression.
The pros:
- Ship size
- Reasonable noise levels, except in the restaurants (aside from the covered pool area)
- Spacious balcony cabin (20 + 5 m²) with plenty of storage and a bathtub with jets
- Understated, tasteful decor
- French language spoken on board
- Friendly staff for the most part
- 100% French-speaking clientele
- Decent food with French dishes (even with an Indian chef)
- Tables for two available (though the ship was full, so no changes possible)
- Some high-quality shows, thanks to an excellent English-speaking troupe
- Interesting lectures (especially on history and cetaceans)
The cons:
- Unreliable air conditioning in common areas (you’d go from a freezing lounge to a hot one, as if the system only worked in certain spaces at certain times)
- Aging ship with a few glitches (noises, AC, toilet flushes, lights) reported at reception (luckily, our only issue was the bathroom door not closing...)
- Industrial, thawed-out bread and pastries (a letdown for a ship with a French image)
- Limited fruit selection (often just apples and watermelon/melon) and not much variety in vegetables
- Worn, sometimes stained restaurant towels
We’re not ruling out another cruise on the Renaissance—their itineraries are unique—but only at a very competitive price.
Hi, I’m about to go on a cruise on the Costa Smeralda but I’ve never been on a cruise before. Could anyone share the à-la-carte drink menu? I’d like to know if the prices are excessive, since the MyDrinks drink packages, for example, cost 266 € per adult.
Have a great day! 😉
Hi everyone,
I’m going on a Mediterranean cruise in November and I’m looking for some "tips" to visit the cities of Naples, Messina, and Valletta in Malta without booking the ship’s excursions, which are really expensive.
Thanks so much for your advice and suggestions. We’re a group of 6 people.
Looking forward to hearing from you...
Best,
M
PS: We’re also stopping in Genoa and Barcelona—even though we know these two cities, we’d still love any tips for visiting them!
Thanks
Hello everyone,
We’re a senior couple signed up for a 13-day cruise in Japan on the Princess Sapphire, departing from Yokohama on April 8, 2027.
Are there any other French speakers on this forum who’ll be on this trip?
Hoping for a reply...
Hi,
The MSC Magnifica has been refurbished and a Yacht Club class has been added. Could anyone share their impressions of cabin 14001, as the view is slightly obstructed? Is it really a "disadvantage" in terms of brightness? Thanks in advance
Hi, we're heading to Venice soon. We have a hotel in Mestre and we'd like to know which bus can take us from the Mestre hotel to Marghera Port. Thanks.
Hi everyone ...
We’re planning to do the 83-day Cunard cruise ...
departing from Southampton on January 10, 2027 aboard the Queen Anne ...
has anyone done it ... or have any info ... or tips ...
for example ... deck and cabin choices ... drink packages ... excursions ... etc.
... anything good to know about this ship???
Thanks everyone ...
Hi there,
Here’s the 2027 cruise schedule.
It’s a great way to get ideas and maybe even meet up with other members!
2 essential rules:
1) Never "quote" the schedule when replying—this avoids any confusion.
2) Follow this format:
DD/MM - username / SHIP IN CAPS / number of days / cruise title / departure port
DON’T FORGET THE SPACES between the / /
REMINDER Despite my requests, few people follow the requested format. Cruises that stray too far from it won’t be listed anymore—sorry about that. IMPORTANT Please respect the templates!
PLEASE COPY AND PASTE THE FORMAT BELOW AND REPLACE WITH YOUR DETAILS IF YOU’RE HAVING TROUBLE
DD/MM - username / SHIP IN CAPS / number of days / cruise title / departure port
DON’T FORGET THE SPACES between the / /
It takes time to fix mistakes, so THANKS TO EVERYONE for your help!
YOUR TURN 😉
NUMBER OF 2027 CRUISES: 1
JANUARY
14/01 - poupou10 / AZAMARA JOURNEY / 74 days / South America Tour / Miami
FEBRUARY
MARCH
APRIL
MAY
JUNE
JULY
AUGUST
SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
Hi there,
I’m looking for an all-inclusive Nile cruise on a comfortable boat with as few passengers as possible.
Which tour operator can you recommend?
Thanks in advance.
I’m about to book the panoramic suite, and I’m not sure whether I should go for the one at the front of the ship or the one at the back. I’d really appreciate any feedback—anyone who’s already booked this kind of suite and can share the pros and cons?
Hi,
We’ll be visiting Barcelona for the first time on our upcoming cruise.
I was wondering if it’s better to book a taxi in advance to get from the train station to the cruise terminal, since there’ll be four of us. Are there enough taxis around that we won’t have to wait too long?
For the return trip, same question—are there enough taxis, since we have a flight to catch? Though I doubt we’ll know in advance which terminal we’ll dock at.
I came across this site below—has anyone heard of it?
https://taxibarcelona.taxi/fr/
hi there
Here’s the cruise schedule for 2026.
It’s a great way to get ideas and maybe even meet up with other members.
2 essential rules:
1) never "quote" the calendar when replying—this’ll avoid any confusion
2) follow the format below
DD/MM - username / SHIP IN CAPS / number of days / cruise title / departure port
DON’T FORGET THE SPACES between the / /
REMINDER Despite my requests, few people follow the requested format. Cruises that stray too far from it won’t be listed anymore—sorry!PLEASE respect the templates!
COPY AND PASTE THE FORMAT BELOW AND REPLACE WITH YOUR DETAILS IF YOU’RE STRUGGLING
DD/MM - username / SHIP IN CAPS / number of days / cruise title / departure port
DON’T FORGET THE SPACES between the / /
It takes time to fix mistakes, so THANKS TO EVERYONE for your help!
YOUR TURN 😉
NUMBER OF CRUISES 2026:
JANUARY
FEBRUARY
MARCH
APRIL
MAY
JUNE
JULY
AUGUST
SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
Hi everyone, we're going on a week-long cruise and I have a question: can we travel by train and on a cruise with small refrigerated injectable syringes?
Do we need to complete any formalities?
And how should we store them?
Thanks in advance for your feedback.
I'm considering a cruise on the Hurtigruten Coastal Express from Bergen to Kirkenes and back to Bergen over 11 days in mid-March 2027.
Has anyone already done this trip?
I think it’s a great way to discover the Norwegian coast with the chance to see magnificent northern lights, but isn’t the trip a bit *too* long?
There are about thirty stops, but most last only a few minutes, with just one daily stop of over 2 hours, which gives a quick glimpse of a few towns but doesn’t allow for a full excursion.
Is the supplement for an outside cabin with a porthole (800 € for 2!) really worth it?
It’s more pleasant than an inside cabin, but do you spend enough time in your cabin to make the most of it?
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this journey.
Best regards.
Hi everyone! I’m used to sailing on a sailboat with two or three people—it’s amazing. But I’d love to try the experience of a cruise. Just to clarify, I’ll be going alone. My first question: are there other solo travelers on these cruises, or is it mostly couples and families?
For a first cruise, I’d prefer a short one (maximum 8 days). Do those exist? And on the smallest boat possible. I live in Marseille, so a departure from Marseille would work, but I’m open to other ports too. If you have a cruise line to recommend and a destination you’ve enjoyed, or if you’ve had a great experience on a more intimate-sized ship, I’d love to hear about it!
We just returned from a cruise from 08/13/26 to 08/20/26 on the MSC ORCHESTRA with stops in Tarragona, Valencia, Livorno, Civitavecchia, Genoa, and back to Marseille.
The ship was fully booked. Deck chairs were already occupied by beach towels early in the morning, and there were only 1 or 2 people in the pools... However, on the day the Italians disembarked, there were very few towels on the deck chairs.
We found the Italians less talkative.
We had a balcony cabin on deck 9, starboard side. The cabin was spacious, but the sofa was facing the desk, making it a pain to watch TV (neck strain guaranteed). So, we changed the sofa’s orientation to face the TV (we put it back in place on disembarkation day).
There were 325 French speakers on board, and a lot of staff from Mauritius, which made communication easier.
No annoying announcements about bingo, etc.—a nice change from COSTA.
For dinner, we were at the first sitting at 7:45 PM, at a table for 6. On the first night, we were two "gray-haired" couples at the table. The second night, two young women joined us but asked to change tables after seeing us...
The show for our dinner time was at 10:15 PM and ended around 11:00 PM. We found that a bit late for us. The shows were varied and of good quality.
The restaurant menus offered plenty of choices, but at the buffet at lunchtime, there were a lot of dishes with quite a few carbs. Afternoon tea from 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM included some great pastries, among other things.
We had an issue with the air conditioning and bad odors in the cabin one afternoon. I reported the problem to the reception, and staff along with our cabin steward came to check the cabin. The issue was resolved that same afternoon.
Two days later, we were surprised to find a bag with items inside: 2 MSC mugs and 2 MSC thermos flasks that keep drinks hot or cold for 10 hours. It was a gift from customer service following the bad odors in our cabin. We weren’t expecting this at all and thanked MSC’s customer service.
For excursions, MSC always offers port-to-city-center transfers for 14 € per adult in Valencia and Tarragona, and 12 € per child. In Livorno, it was 10 € per adult and 7 € per child.
In Civitavecchia, there was a shuttle to the train station for 6 €.
On the MSC for Me app, there were "promotions" on certain excursions.
We really enjoyed this cruise, but we couldn’t revisit some stops (Tarragona and Valencia) on our own because it was too hot.
Great evening: Mum49
We're leaving on August 25th for a Danube cruise from Vienna to Bucharest. The travel agency refuses to postpone this cruise despite navigation changes due to the exceptional drought, which include bus transfers that don’t interest us.
Have you had any experiences with this that you’d like to share?
Hi there!
I’m going on a cruise with MSC on the World Europa this coming October.
Stops: Genoa, Naples, Messina, Malta.
Has anyone visited Mount Etna and Pompeii?
Could you share some tips for each of these stops?
I’d like to explore on my own without booking the ship’s excursions.
Thanks for your advice!
Hello!
After a lot of hesitation between different cruise lines (Explora, Oceania, YC, HAL, NCL) and several destinations like Norway, Ireland, and Iceland,
I finally chose NCL’s Star for Iceland.
I had already looked at this itinerary when I went to Scotland in April with CFC, but it was really expensive.
You should know that CFC often offers last-minute deals 45 days before departure (the point when you can no longer cancel or modify).
So, I got a great opportunity and grabbed it.
Departure is on August 23rd.
Hi everyone,
I’m staying in a suite on the Pacifica in October and I can’t find any details about the suite benefits beyond the elite restaurant, the butler, and the espresso machine.
What about breakfast and meals served free in the cabin, and the spa?
Costa’s been cutting back on perks for Gold members, and it seems like suites are next.
Thanks for your replies!
Hello,
We’re back from this cruise.
Boarding in Dunkirk: The doors opened around 12 PM. Since we were a bit early, I asked if my husband, who uses a walker, could wait inside instead of outside. I left him with the two suitcases and our two backpacks in the small hall while I parked the car in the reserved CFC parking lot for 10 € per day.
The shuttle that was supposed to take people from the parking lot to the model pavilion was supposed to arrive in 5 minutes, but after 15 minutes, nothing. After waiting 15 minutes, I saw a man walking and asked if I could follow him. In 15 minutes, we arrived, and still no sign of the shuttle—it must have passed us. Arrived at the model pavilion.
My husband had already checked in the suitcases with the help of a CFC staff member. The remaining formalities were completed quickly. We were on board by 12:15 PM. Headed to the buffet on deck 11 and waited in a lounge to access our cabin.
At 2 PM, we discovered our balcony cabin on deck 9 at the rear: spacious with a large balcony compared to MSC/COSTA.
Since we were at the rear, cabin 9202, there was always an issue with elevator number 4: "priority."
Elevator number 2 stops at deck 10... and elevator number 3 was often out of order, leaving only number 1 for those with mobility issues to reach the buffet, especially for people who struggle with stairs. Note: only one child on board and lots of "gray hair."
DAY 2: At sea. Lots of activities offered.
Day 3: GOTHENBURG (Sweden). Sunny, 19°C at 11 AM.
Excursion booked with CFC: Gothenburg and Haga for all.
Interesting visit with a great guide. The HAGA district, in our opinion, is full of cobblestones and nothing special, not suitable for people using a cane or wheelchair. Elevator number 3 was out of order again.
Day 4: Copenhagen. 15°C in the morning, showers in the afternoon.
We didn’t book an excursion since we’d already stopped here with CFC in 2025, and based on advice from this forum, we took the hop-on/hop-off bus right in front of the ship. I still went to see the Little Mermaid again.
No TV, but the elevator was fixed.
DAY 5: At sea. Still no TV.
DAY 6: GDANSK (Poland). 15°C, rain all day.
There’s a shuttle to get to the city center.
We took the excursion: Panorama of Gdansk.
The guide left us at the entrance of the city center for 45 minutes, telling us what to visit. Meet-up for the rest of the tour at 3 PM. The bus left at 3:15 PM to cover 10 km to see St. Mary’s Cathedral. We arrived at 4:16 PM... The guide said there are often traffic jams in that direction. We had 10 minutes on site before heading to see the lighthouse and the Westerplatte monument, where we also had 10 minutes.
Many of us wondered why we didn’t do the tour in the opposite direction since they knew there would be traffic...
I went to reception to complain about the organization. The staff member read me the program: we were supposed to start with the lighthouse, then go to the cathedral and stay for 30 minutes before heading to the center of Gdansk for a short guided walk with some free time to buy souvenirs, etc.
The guide did the complete opposite of what was planned and didn’t even give us a guided tour—just dropped us off in the city...
DAY 7: Bornholm Island (Denmark). 14°C, a few sunny spells.
We saw in the excursions that there was a walking tour of RØNNE. So, like many others, we explored on our own. There was a small orchestra welcoming us at the port and two people with city maps. We took the shuttle to leave the port—it ran every 15 minutes. The tourist office was next to the "shuttle bus." A pleasant visit at our own pace.
DAY 8: KIEL (Germany). 18–23°C, nice weather.
We took the "Kiel for all" excursion. Great guide and interesting visits.
The port is in the city, and in 10 minutes, we were in the city center by following a blue line on the ground from the port. Elevator 3 was stuck again... and the TV was back.
DAY 9: At sea. Elevator 3 works.
DAY 10: At sea. Elevator 3 is out of order again...
DAY 11: Disembarkation in Dunkirk.
Cabins had to be vacated by 7:30 AM. Buffet open until 9 AM.
Elevator number 1 was "reserved," leaving only number 2, which doesn’t go up to deck 11... a problem for people with mobility issues who had to cross the entire deck 11 and try to use one of the four working elevators at the front, which were crowded.
My opinion: Interesting stops.
The onboard staff were always welcoming, smiling, and mostly French-speaking.
Evening shows were better than in March/April 2025—better singers, dancers, and presenters, and the costumes were improved.
I liked the "magician" shows less.
There were three onboard lectures by a very cultured person, but they went off-topic and were too historical for my taste. I didn’t attend the other two; my husband went to the second but not the third.
For this cruise, there was a bridge theme, but we’re not players or interested.
We didn’t take a drink package on board—water, coffee, tea, and herbal teas were available.
We had a water leak in our cabin the night before disembarkation. We reported it, and after the technical staff came (with a translator who didn’t speak English), we were asked to leave the cabin for a while for repairs. We went to a lounge, and after 1.5 hours, I checked in at reception. The repair took longer than expected... we had to change cabins... not ideal the night before disembarkation. No balcony cabins were available, so we got an ocean-view cabin, 6075, with a bathtub (impossible for both of us to use). We packed our suitcases, took a shower in our cabin, and moved to the new one. Noise from chairs until 12:30 AM because the cabin was under a lounge, and constant ventilation noise in the hallway... sleep was hard to come by.
Disembarkation: Well organized. We were helped with transporting the two suitcases and bags to the waiting room while I took the shuttle to get the car.
Guylène
