We’re back from two weeks on the Diamond, Venice to Monte Carlo. The itinerary was marvelous…a photo op around every corner. Highlights for us were the night gondola ride in Venice, twisting through the narrow canals, listening to people singing and partying at sidewalk cafes along the way. This was a cruise excursion and the gondola ride was a long one -- a great way to start our trip. We ended on a beautiful note too, cruising into Monte Carlo at 6 pm and later seeing all the lights on the palace and on shore. The view from the ship was magical and taking the shuttle to the casino gave us a taste of Monte Carlo at night. Riding the chairlift above Anacapri was really special and the view spectacular, as were the Amalfi Drive and Positano. Dubrovnik, Portofino and Taormina kept me busy taking “alley” shots around every corner! We want to go back to Barcelona and spend a week. A day there was just an appetizer.

The itinerary was well paced with the first week being a bit more relaxed. We took only the ship’s tours and they were all excellent with small groups and great guides.

We really enjoyed the size of the ship and that was a big factor in our choice of cruises. Both weeks were full, the second had 347 passengers, but we noticed no problems with service. The mornings we ordered room service breakfasts they always arrived on the dot.

Both weeks had many large groups traveling together. This week they have a group of 90 booked which I wouldn’t have cared for! There were several children the first week but all were well behaved and kept busy by the two women running the children’s program. The second week there were only two little girls who also were enjoying the trip.

We found the dining room staff to be exceptional. Miki and Sandro were most efficient and so pleasant as they greeted us daily. We had many breakfasts there and since not many did, we got to know the waiters that served us everyday, Arnold and Romolo – two terrific guys. We found the staff and officers to be much friendlier than any other ship we’ve sailed including the PG. We had two fun dinners with Sam Perry the cruise director and also became good friends with Laureen, one of the singer/dancers. Their shows were excellent as were Sam’s “Sinatra and the Rat Pack” nights. The classical guitarist was there for only the two weeks we were and we felt most fortunate in our timing. He was so talented and we thoroughly enjoyed his shows.

It was a lovely two weeks of pampering and it is tough getting back to my normal routine!

Sounds like you had a great time, Maggie! :) Thanks for posting that!

Masaki

Thanks so much for your review. We leave tomorrow for our pre-cruise in Rome and have 2 weeks on board the Diamond. Was beginning to think we were the only ones cruising the med this year. I'm so glad you had a wonderful time and we are so excited to leave and experience what you did!

Glad you enjoyed your cruise!

Claudia

wonderful review! Thanks for sharing with us! Let's see..I have HOW many more months until I board in January?????? (The answer: too many!)

Maggie, Welcome home! I am so glad you had a good time on the Diamond. Your Venice ride sounds magical!

What a great trip and ship - glad you had a wonderful time - Joanna

Thanks for the great review, Maggie.

We have only about 4 weeks to go before we're boarding the Diamond. (Can't wait!!!)

We're ending in Venice and I'm planning an evening gondola ride, just as you described.

Did you have time for anything else in Venice? Anything you recommend?

Thanks again for taking the time,

Kathy

Welcome back Maggie! I have been thinking about you and looking forward to hearing about your trip. I am so glad that you had such a wonderful time. We also enjoyed Barcelona and would like to spend more time there. You really make me want to visit Venice.

Sue

Welcome home, Maggie. Sounds like your trip was everything you hoped it would be and more.

Venice is such a magical and beautiful city. To experience it is something you never forget.

Kathy,

We had a lovely dinner in Da Raffael restaurant, which I would recommend. Also, a lovely lunch at Trattoria Andrea, in the Cannaregio (near Jewish Ghetto) area.

If interested in walking tours, check out Walks Inside Venice

www.walksinsidevenice

If you plan on possibly using them, please ask for Roberta to conduct your tours. She was excellent (Right Andi?).

Kathleen-
We arrived in Venice in the afternoon and took the gondola ride that evening. In the morning, we went on a canal boat ride which took us through the main areas, some off the beaten tracks in the non-tourist areas of the city. The ship sailed in the afternoon and we had no more time. However, the cruise out of Venice is something special too.
I envy you, I'd love to revisit every port again. It is a fantastic itinerary.
Maggie

Maggie,
You brought back memories of my VOF cruise...I also have a lot of "alley shots"...it seemed that each one was more beautiful than the last...I kept wondering if the Italians were thinking, "stupid American...taking pictures of alleys!" :D
Glad you had such a wonderful time!
Sheri

Maggie, glad you had a great time on the Diamond. I was thinking about you. I know you are missing the med. I can visualize you pulling into Monte Carlo and then the lights coming on. We left Monte Carlo and the lights were just coming on and it was just beautiful. Welcome home!
Jan

What a wonderful trip Maggie! It sure brings back great memories of your itinerary (similar to VOF)and also the Diamond (DDD)!

Maggie, sounds like a wonderful trip. Monte Carlo by night must be beautiful. We'll be there next year on the Diamond so I was happy to read your description. I also was happy to see a mention of Miki, who was the maitre'd when we were on the Navigator to Bermuda last year. We thought he was exceptional, very warm and friendly and fabulous with names by the second day. He always was a welcoming face around the ship and of course at the Compass Rose, so he was one of the crew who really stood out to us. It's a looooong way off, but now that I know Miki is on the Diamond I'll be hoping he's onboard when we take our Med cruise next year.

Priscilla-
Yes, Miki was really special and we always looked forward to seeing his friendly smile. I would imagine he is very popular with the crew. I'm glad you are a fan too!