Summary:
Have just returned from a very enjoyable holiday on Mariner of the Seas. We flew to Rome from Manchester and boarded the ship at Civitavecchia. The transfers to the ship from the airport were very good. We queued quite a while at the port check in and boarded about 1.00pm. The flights were early from Manchester. Our cabin was available straight away which was good however my luggage did not arrive until after the evening dinner. We were able to change our table arrangements from a 12 to a 6 near a window which we were pleased about. We sailed on Independence last year and there are one or two differences. The ship is very slightly smaller but it was easier to find a place to sit as there are considerably less passengers on board. There are no UK 3 pin sockets in the cabin, just one 2 pin European and two 2 pin US type sockets. Also in the inside cabins there are no kettles provided. The hairdryer did not have a nozzle, just the round end. We enjoyed our excursions to Nazereth and Galilee from Haifa, Jerusalem from Ashdod, The Acropolis from Piraeus and Ephesus from Kusadasi. We booked the ships tours and felt they were very good. The staff on the ship were very helpful, especially our stateroom attendant. The food on the ship was good although the steaks were sometimes tough and had to be returned. We were on the 6.30 dining and our table seemed to be the last to be served, we often waited up to an hour for our main course. The entertainment was mixed, some was very good. We enjoyed the Ice Show very much. Coming home the experience at Rome airport once we had been dropped off, was a lot of queueing and a rush to the gate which was quite stressful. Overall we really enjoyed the holiday, saw some wonderful places, liked the ship very much and look forward to our next cruise.