je vais partir pour la croisière odyssée du 5 juillet et voudrais préparer mes excursions. d'une part en faire par moi même et sans doute 2 ou 3 avec les propositions du bateau.( nous sommes 2 adultes et 2 ados)
Pour cela, quelqu'un aurait il la brochure du bateau avec les tarifs à me communiquer en MP ? Egalement si vous avez utilisé les prestations de katakolon -express dites moi si les commentaires et informations sont diffusés en Français .
merci pour votre aide.😏
Je ne sais pas quelles sont les escales que tu veux faire avec Katakolon Express.
A Athènes, il y avait dans le car un accompagnateur totalement bilingue. A Katakolon, pendant le trajet celui qui faisait les commentaires semblait (malgré son âge) novice. C'était bien le cas car suite au changement d'horaire du bateau annoncé la veille, l'accompagnateur habituel n’avait pas pu être là et ils ont demandé en dépannage à quelqu’un d'autre de venir.
J'avais demandé pour les deux excursions la version avec guide sur le site. A Olympie, nous ne l'avons pas eu car il faut au moins 10 personnes.
bonjour.
Nous aussi partons le 5 Juillet et avons un ado de 16 ans, quels âges on les vôtres ils vont surement se croiser au Djeun's club !
vous trouvez la brochure des excursions sur le site Croisière de France (en haut à droite dans avant le départ puis allez dans excursions) les tarifs ne sont pas précisé (entre 35 et 40 euros pour la demie journée et entre 80 et 120 pour la journée).
je ne sais pas trop quelles excursions je ferais avec le bateau ;tout dépendras des tarifs ; mais je réfléchi pour Olympie , Athènes et Naples pour aller à Pompéi . je ne voudrais pas gâcher ces excursions par manque de compréhension linguistique ; et d'autre part le coté financier n'est pas à négliger non plus. Je sais qu'on ne peux pas toujours tout avoir, mais ça mérite réflexion
Pour les autres je pense pouvoir se débrouiller par nous même .Messine je connais et Ajaccio egalement
je suis à l'écoute de toutes informations pouvant m'aider à réussir cette croisière surtout pour mes petits enfants qui attendent ce départ avec impatience
bonjour
c'est sympa d'emmener ses petits enfants en croisière, j'en ferais autant lorsque ma petite fille sera grande (elle doit naitre en Aout 😉) en attendant les si les vôtres vont au djeun's club ils rencontreront mon fils Lorenzo de 16 ans, pour notre dernière croisière ils si est bien amusé et surtout fait des copains. Il n'est resté avec nous que pour les visites à terre et les repas !!
Je vous ai répondu sur les excursions sur la page de "Taurel" et vous pouvez aller voir aussi sur la page de calimero0007 il y a aussi quelques renseignements qui peuvent vous intéresser.
Peut être à bientôt.
bonsoir
je pars également le 05/07 pour la croisiere odyssee sur le zenith, j'ai mon agence qui
m'a fait passé les excursions a faire avec les tarifs, si ca vs interesse je peux vous le faire transferer par mail. je suis également intéressée de prendre katakolon express pour quelques excursions car c'est quand meme un peu mois cher que celles prises sur le bateau.
je pensais les prendre pour l'acropole et peut etre olympie, je pense prendre Taormina par le bateau car l'escale est courte, faire Santorin par moi meme car je trouve que par le bateau c'est assez cher, surtout que l'escale dure la journée, pour le reste a voir je suis en train de regarder les forums pour avoir des idées ms quand on ne connait pas c'est pas évident.
katakolon express ont une bonne réputation mais parait-il il faut qu'ils aient du monde pour assurer les excursions, de toute manière j'ai lu qu'on ne regler qu'une fois ds le bus donc ca n'engage a rien de reserver.
Bonjour,
Je serai également de la partie pour cette croisière. J'en suis à ma 2e avec CDF et j'ai hâte. Cette fois-ci mon homme et moi emmenons nos 2 enfants (15 et 9 ans) ainsi que mes parents. Nous planifions de faire toutes les escales par nous même car cela peut vite faire grimper la note.
Pour Olympie j'ai déjà contacter Katakolon Express pour réserver mais le Hic est que le bus part à 11h30 et revient à 15h30. Sachant que le bateau accostera à 11h et que le débarquement se fera en chaloupe il y a peu de chance d'attraper ce bus. Stephen de Katakolon Express m'a indiquer que le bus pourra attendre 15 mn de plus mais c'est encore juste. Le prochain bus est beaucoup trop tard et ne reviendra pas à temps pour le bateau. Sinon je regarde pour un taxi sur le site olympiataxi qui nous accompagnerait aller-retour pour Olympie. Les tarifs semblent corrects (110€ pour un mini van jusqu'à 9 personnes - moins cher que le bus si on est 9). J'attends leur réponse.
Pour Athènes je regarde pour des Cars Sightseeingt à 22€/adulte et 9€/enfant moins cher que les excursions et on peut s'arrêter quand et où l'on veut (départ près du port).
Pour Naples fais attention aux horaires car le bateau ne s'y arrête pas longtemps. Nous avons déjà été à Pompéi et pour moi la visite se fera au pas de course car le site est grand. Nous voulions aller à Capri mais vu le peu de temps on a laissé tombé.
On ne pourra pas tout voir et c'est tant mieux car ça nous obligera à revenir!!!
Bon courage dans tes recherches
bonjour
moi aussi je pars pour la croisiere odyssee, hier j'ai envoyé un mail a katakolon express pour l'excursion d'athenes mais je n'ai toujours pas de réponse.Au bout de combien de temps vs ont ils contacté quand vs avez reservé avec eux?
pour naples l'escale est de 9h a 15h, je pense prendre l'excursion du bateau pour Taormine, et marmaris ensuite on essaiera ns aussi de se debrouiller par nous meme
je pars avec mon mari et ma fille de 10 ans.
merci.
Bonjour,
J'ai envoyé un message dimanche dernier sur le site de Katakolon express et j'ai reçu une réponse le jour même. Réessayez.
Lors de notre dernière croisière, nous n'avions pas pris d'excursion par le bateau (Tutti Frutti juin 2012). Nous avons fait toutes les escales par nous même. C'est sûr il faut s'organiser et s'informer avant de partir mais cela en vaut la peine. Nous discutions avec d'autres passagers au retour de nos escales et ils n'avaient pas vu pas la moitié des choses que nous avions vu et fait. Et je trouve que lorsqu'on est en petit groupe (famille, amis) on est davantage abordé par les locaux. Je me souviens d'une mamie dans le train pour Rome qui adorait la langue française et qui nous a donné des conseils très judicieux sur notre visite. Je garde des souvenirs, des images et des rencontres que je n'aurais certainement pas eu avec les excursions organisées.
Nous nous verrons peut-être sur le bateau et je serais heureuse de partager mes trouvailles.
merci de m avoir répondu aussi vite, je vais réessayer de leur envoyé un autre mail
oui pourquoi ne pas se rencontrer sur le bateau , ns sommes au pont 6 .
a bientôt.
bonjour
je reviens vers vous juste pour vous demander si lors de votre réservation avec katakolon express, vs avez recu de suite un message disant qu'ils avaient bien recu votre demande et qu'ils vous recontacteront.
je viens de reessayer d'envoyer un mail et la réponse est qu'ils ont bien recu ma demande . mais ce qui m'etonne c'est que le nom qui figure ds l'expediteur ds le mail est le mien comme le destinataire (ce qui est normal)depuis plus rien.
par contre je leur ai ecrit en Français est ce un probleme?
merci car ca fait 2 mail que j'envoie par leur site et tjrs pas de réponse
Toujours rien reçu?? C'est surprenant car moi j'ai reçu une réponse le jour même et en français! Mais comme je l'ai mentionné un peu plus tôt il vous sera peut-être difficile de prendre le bus car les horaires sont trop juste, sauf si le bateau arrive plus tôt.
bonjour
non toujours rien, l escale au piree est de 10h a 19h quand meme.
j'ai réussi a avoir leur adresse mail je pense que je vais directement leur envoyé un message plutôt que de remplir leur questionnaire sur leur site, on verra bien.comme je vs disais lorsque j'ai recu leur mail disant qu'ils avaient bien recu ma demande et qu'ils me répondraient c'était mon adresse mail qui figurait ds l'expediteur du message.
sinon tant pis je me débrouillerait autrement, merci.
bonjour
ca y est ils m'ont répondu, je leur ai envoyé directement un mail et ils m'ont
repondu de suite, le car viendra ns prendre a 11h j'espère qu'on aura le temps de sortir du bateau car il accoste a 10h et c'est d'abord a ceux qui ont prit l'excursion du bateau a sortir en 1er.
merci.
J'ai également tenté de contacter katakolon express pour l'excursion vers Olympie mais pas de réponse. si j'ai bien compris vous seriez 6 personnes. Si vous cherchez des personnes pour un van de 9 personnes nous nous joindrions volontiers à votre petit groupe.(2 personnes). Nous serons au pont 6. Si cette proposition vous agrée, vous pouvez m'envoyer un message privé ou je vous transmettrai mes coordonnées. Bonne soirée
Nous serons aussi à bord, avec nos deux ados de 15 et 17 ans.
3ème croisière avec cdf pour nous, les enfant adorent!!
Niveau excursion, ça se précise pour nous
On va faire l'Etna et Rhodes avec le bateau
Katakolon on a réservé un taxi pour 4 h : 110 €
Athènes on va faire seul : bus et "walking tour" avec Paul
Mykonos et Santorin seuls aussi
Naples on a déjà fait Pompéi en 2010, on avait pris avec cdf pour le timing et on avait apprécié la visite du site avec un guide super. Il me reste cette escale à regarder, surement bus touristique.
La première fois on avait pris toutes les excursions avec le bateau, maintenant on prépare avant, niveau budget c'est mieux :)
Bonsoir Sandrine
J'ai mon fils de 16 ans qui voyage avec nous, vos ados sont des garçons ?
s'ils vont au djeuns club ils vont surement se rencontrer !!!
Oui, deux garçons et ils ne passeront pas beaucoup de temps avec nous hormis pendant les excursions et les repas de soir ! On sait que la journée en mer on ne les voit pas beaucoup d'ailleurs !!
Les jeunes se retrouvent entre eux au djeun's club pour commencer puis après en fonction de leurs affinités
Ils s'y retrouveront donc surement
un garçon de 16 ans et une fille de 12 ans .je ne sais pas s'ils voudront aller au d'jeun club, c'est une question que nous n'avons pas abordé , mais je les encouragerais a aller voir comment ça se passe et entre jeunes du même âge , ils font vite connaissance; ils ont hâte de partir; et moi aussi !!!!!!
bon et bien c'est déjà bien de savoir qu'ils sont plusieurs du même âges, après s'ils s'entendront c'est autre chose 😉, il est vrai que pour notre dernière croisière nous n'avons pas beaucoup vu notre fils mais c'est mieux ainsi, il c'est bien amusé de son coté j'espère qu'il en sera de même cette fois si.
on y est presque, plus que quelques jours à attendre !!!
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
