Istanbul

by **mtek** on Sat Jul 14, 2007 6:19 pm

Hi

Can anyone who has been on the Crimean Discovery cruise tell me what time of the day or night the ship sails through Istanbul on her way into the Black Sea. On a previous Emerald cruise it was at 9am and everyone - including officers, staff etc - turned out on deck as it was a marvellous sight and really got us in the mood for exploring the city on the way back.

Many thanks
Marie

by **jennimag** on Tue Jul 24, 2007 4:51 pm

Hi Marie,

The ship sails under the Bosphorus bridge around 11:00PM and it is all lit up - looks wonderful. You can see all the sights around like th Blue Mosque etc. On the return (if it's the Calypso), it is early in the morning - around 5:30 I think. I did intend to get up to see it but didn't quite make it!

We took a taxi to the Blue Mosque and Topkapi etc. Think it was around $10. Hope you have a great cruise

by **mtek** on Tue Jul 24, 2007 10:11 pm

Thanks for that Jennimag - looking forward to it already
Regards
Marie

by **kate52** on Tue Jul 24, 2007 11:08 pm

When are you going Marie? We are off next Monday- doing 2 weeks back to back- looks like we will need plenty of sunscreen for Thessaloniki! Still trying to decide what clothes to take!
Kate

by **fern** on Wed Jul 25, 2007 4:09 pm

Hi,
We are doing 2 weeks(back to Back) in October.

We have been to Istanbul several times before and it is super.

Will be very inerested to see what you think of the cruise and hope you write a review.

One question for you as, like us, you are doing 2 weeks please see if there is a laundry "bag" service on board. as if there is it will be very useful!!!

Enjoy your cruise.
Fern

PS If you get the opportunity to see the " Black Sea fleet" perform at the theatre go----we went a couple of years back and it was fantastic

by **jennimag** on Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:24 pm

Yes, there is a laundry service on board and seems quite reasonab;y priced.

by **mtek** on Wed Jul 25, 2007 6:59 pm

Hi Kate 52. Im not going until 24th September. Doing the two weeks back to back. I'm also travelling alone which I'm used to so in terms of getting out and about I'll probably do the tours in a lot of places. Did a similar itnerary on the Thomson Emerald a couple of years ago. The attraction of this cruise is the smaller ship which should lead to a greater mixing of guests and getting to see Gallipoli - there was no tour there the last time I was in Canakkale.

One of the highlights was arriving in Istanbul - a city I have visited a number of times but always intimidates me. On the Emerald it was at 9am on the way into the Black Sea but the idea of sailing up the Bosphorus at night really appeals.

I read on a recent review on this site that the late sitting for dinner is 9pm. Is this the case? The brochure says 8.30 or is it in the dining room for 8.30 and the first food arrives at 9.00?

Really looking forward to it. The first reviews were not very positive but the more recent ones have made up for that.

Enjoy the cruise and please post a review when you get back.

Regards
Marie

by **jennimag** on Thu Jul 26, 2007 2:20 pm

Having cruised twice before with Royal Caribbean was a bit apprehensive avout Thomsons. Our cabin appeared to me to be a bit small, but other than that, every aspect of the cruise was excellent.

The late sitting is 9:00pm but unlike RCI, you get in promptly and service is excellent! Food very good indeed. Only downside, as others have said is Romania (Constanta), the port is horrible so go on a tour that day if you can!

The other alternative is a coach to the beach which is �5:00. It is a nice beach but with a little too much in the way of amusements and bars to make it really lovely.

Just returned from week's cruise on 16th July, and would dfinitely go on this ship again as it is immaculate and doesn't look as small as I thought it would.

Have a great time!

by **kate52** on Wed Aug 15, 2007 9:48 pm

Hi- just back from an excellent 2 weeks on the Calypso. I have posted a review, but it's not there yet- not sure if it didn't go through or if there is always a delay?
2nd sitting IS a bit late, and at times it was nearly 11 pm when we got out! However, it still suited us better than 1st sitting. The food varied from sublime to not quite good enough, but was mostly on the very good side. There are gaps when no food is served during the day, so if you are unlucky enough to miss lunch AND afternoon tea you could be rather hungry by 9!!
The highlight was the superb scenery, even on sea days, particularly Istanbul by night, Corinth canal, and sailaway from Kotor, which was substituted for Albania.
We had planned to do our own thing in Sevastopol, as we really only wanted to see the Panorama museum (amazing place!) and look around town. However, being delayed by bad weather made the time schedule rather tight- the museum is a 15 min taxi ride away, so we jumped on a trip at the last minute, and were very pleased we did. It was a very good tour, and the Ukraine is not really geared up for independent travellers yet.
We went on the wine tasting tour in Constanta- that was ok.
Istanbul we did on our own- no problems getting a taxi when we wanted one, and easy to do.
Cannakale is a bus ride away, so you need transfer tickets (�5) for that.
Nessebar is delightful- loads to see and buy! A woman came onboard to change currency, but I am sure you could do it in town.
The 2 weeks were like 2 different holidays as the places and passengers were so different from one week to the next!

by **fern** on Thu Aug 16, 2007 8:49 am

Hi Kate,
Just read your comments and like you 2 nd sittting seems a bit late but better than rushing for 1st sitting.
Question for you: Why was Kotor substituted for Albania?.
Is this a permanent change or just for some operational reason on that particular cruise?
Lookinfg forward to reading your review whn it finally appears.

Thanks,
Fern