SPLENDOUR OF THE SEAS - “SHIP OF LIGHT” ROYAL CARIBBEAN

I flew with Ryanair from Shannon on Friday morning. I spent the day in Venice which is ideal really for people to spend the night there and the ship sails at 5pm the following day so plenty of time to see this amazing city. It is also great for people to spend a long weekend there as they fly every Friday morning and late flight Monday so you have four full days in this beautiful city. The transfer was 6 euro one way or 10 euro return which is valid for 1 week. It stops at the train station and the bus station, which is the one you need to get off on. From the bus station I got a water bus across to on of the railway stations and was only a few minutes walk from my hotel. Very easy to do and locate. I was on my own and found it very easy to make my way around with the water buses/taxis. They cost 14 euro for 12 hours and you can buy an open hop on hop off ticket for the amount of time you are spending in the city. It stops at all the major attractions, St Marks square, Rialto Bridge etc.

I stayed at the 4* Amadeus Hotel which is very near the port. It was clean, Old Italian style and I would have no problem recommending it. I was situated at the back and heard nothing, but there were a few staying there and found it noisy at the front. So I would request a room at the back of the building. So to get to the port you go across to the bus station, walk or warterbus and a taxi (car!) to the port which should cost approx 10-12 euro. On the way back they charged 20! He was a hackney, not a taxi. There was a courtesy bus but we couldn’t find it. On the way back, there was a stop for the bus, which is supposed to arrive every 15 mins, we were there around half an hour and no sign.

The ship itself is beautiful and has 11 decks It is smaller than most of the fleet, not have some of the features which may appeal to families such as the H2O zone water park, the ice rink, flow rider large 42^nd street where they have street carnivals etc like freedom class ships. I stayed in large inside state room on deck 6 which was perfect. I didn’t feel claustrophobic, the stateroom attendant was fantastic. Every time you leave, she would tidy your room, fantastic service. You also receive a daily planer on your pillow every night to let you know what’s going on for the next day.

Food wise there was the Windjammer café which is the buffet style restaurant which we ate our breakfast and lunch in. Food was fantastic. So much variety and the choices are different every day. We ate our dinner in the King and I main dining room every evening on the 8.30 sitting. We had a head waiter, waiter and assistant waiter, the same every evening. They only have two tables to look after so service was impeccable. The food was amazing, and again a different menu every night. Also, there is 24 hour room service which is free! On other classes/ships you would have speciality dining options for a little extra cost such as Chops Grill, Italian food at the Portofino, Johnny Rockets and Jade for Asian style cuisine.

On board you have great entertainment and a few bars to choose from. You have The Viking Lounge which was the nightclub that has 360 degree panoramic views, Schooner bar which hosted quiz nights and felt like an English style pub. Opposite the reception you had the Champagne bar which was very popular. We had two formal nights and everyone had complimentary champagne. The Casino Royale was very big and popular in the evenings. The kids are always entertained with the kiddies club Adventure Ocean with different age groups. There is an option for them to be there until 1am! Also babysitting is available for $8 an hour.

The Spa, Ship Shape, did some great deals while the ship was docked, often getting two for one offers or discounted services. The Theatre had something on every night, such as songs from all the old movies, all cabaret style. There was a magician one night! They are constantly activities going on during the day and night for everyone. You have the rock climbing wall and mini golf outside where the outdoor pool and indoor pool (Solarium) were located also. The Solarium has a retractable roof but was closed the whole time we were there. It is nice and cool in there, they also have food such as pizza, burgers, sandwiches etc on offer when the Windjammer is closed. They also have ice sculpture demonstrations by the pool bar and dancing under the stars one of the evenings with a BBQ style buffet and canopies. Canopies are handed out during shows in the theatre also. So food 24 hour a day!

I only did one excursion into Athens for $56 which to be honest, could have done it for a lot less. We got the bus from the ship to the Olympic Stadium, the Acropolis, and then onto Palak, the main shopping district of Athens for an hour and a half. From the port there are taxis which will bring you to Athens for approx 10-12 Euro, best to get dropped at the Palak area where there is a tourist train/tram, similar to those you see in a zoo! It only costs 6 euro per person and brings you to all the main sights. So if there were 4 of you, you could do it for less than a tenner! There was no need to do an excursion in Mykonos, we did get the transfer for $8 into the town which is very handy. It was beautiful with little cobbled streets and little restaurants dotted everywhere. Quite expensive though. A lot of galleries and boutiques. Glancing at the menus, they were expensive also. Split is a lovely too, old buildings and great shopping, market place and little boutiques everywhere. Some shops take Euro and you get your change in Euro also, some will accept but only give Koruna in change. So really, out of this Itinerary you really don’t need to do any excursions. The ship is docked for the day so you can go back on deck to the pool if you have all your sight seeing done. You also go through Venice on the ship which was fantastic. I loved this itinerary for that reason, so it is very relaxing and a great way to see the world.

Everything is in dollars so at the moment is fantastic value. There is an ATM on board but is supposed to be very expensive to use. I converted Dollars in Venice to put on my sea pass card, which is what you use throughout the cruiser. Even if you go over what you originally put in, you can pay the balance at the end. You had to leave your bag out the night before, the latest midnight and your tag is colour coded and called over the intercom in the morning. Very efficient.

This cruise and ship has something for everyone. The age group on board was very mixed, from groups of friends in their 20’s, families, singles, and couples of all ages. A great mix. I did hear from one of the staff that they couldn’t believe how young the age group was, and that normally on the Splendour is older. So hopefully everyone will enjoy their experience no matter what age you are. I think this ship being smaller it is more intimate. It was fully booked so we couldn’t see any cabins, so there were approximately 1,900 on board. So you see the same faces every day, as opposed to one of the bigger vessels. One thing was the pool was very small, so kids were constantly jumping in and running around the pool, so the H2O Zone would be fantastic for kids. All in all I couldn’t really fault the Royal Caribbean, fantastic service and staff, great itinerary and excellent food.

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