Arrival Where do you stay after a cruise? Our cruise around the Western Mediterranean ended in Palma so it was natural for us to stay overnight and have a look around before moving on to our next adventure, but we wanted somewhere cultured and sophisticated. Enter the Art Hotel Palma. We[…]
Our last day was a 3pm docking in Palma. We’d had spectacular weather the whole cruise and on the way up to breakfast on the last day we expected to open the door to the aft steps to be greeted by blue skies as usual. The grey clouds and rain[…]
We’d checked online and the port where the Armonia would dock in Marseille was truly out in the wilderness. They offered a shuttle bus to and from the city centre for €16, so after weighing up the options we opted for that. We could have gotten a taxi, but that[…]
We’d decided to try at least one MSC organised excursion – they all looked overpriced but unless we went on one, how would we know for sure? The day trip to the Old Town of Genoa was €50 each, and I was very interested in whether that worked out to[…]
Ange asked me if I had felt the ship shudder as it had docked at the port in Naples. I professed ignorance but apparently the sideways motion had woken her at 6am. We were up reasonably early, wanting to be away quickly as we were doing our own excursion to[…]
Our four night cruise on the MSC Armonia actually started the night before as Messina, our departure port, is not served very well by an international airport. Instead we return to Catania (where we have been previously) and stay at a delightful Bed&Breakfast. In the morning we head to the[…]
Ah, Roma! The Eternal City. Twinned with Paris because “Only Paris is worthy of Rome; only Rome is worthy of Paris”. Ange and I have been there four times each and so I’m interested in which attractions we end up seeing – we each make a list and see where[…]
We’re staying at the Piccolo Borgo for four nights while we’re in Rome – mainly because I’m flying into and out of Rome’s second airport (Ciampino) for the first time. We decided that the distance from the centre of Rome will be offset by the provision of a free hotel[…]
When is a hotel not a hotel? When it’s a self contained studio apartment fitted out with the best furnishings and a bed which deserves its own national holiday. We spent two nights in the Studio Ritz on our trip to Rovinj and are very glad we did so. Picking[…]
It’s raining when we arrive at La Puntulina – the grey skies relentlessly sending heavy drops of rain onto the cobbled streets of the medieval town. A smattering of people are still out and about – negotiating umbrellas in the narrow spaces between buildings, presumably also seeking lunch. We’d arranged[…]