Rome July 2009

ROME:
Hotel Maryelen 7/09
Located 3 blocks from the train station-this is about its only good point if you are training it from the apo..
I was given this recommendation by C. Abernathy from StarCite as a clean and cheap hotel near Termini. That it all correct, but it is not quiet and the rooms are way too small (I expect small in Europe but this was almost a doll house room). The bathroom was a joke (I am 5ft 9) and I could not sit on the toilet straight as my knees hit the wall and I could not go into the bath without shutting the door. Suffice-it to say, do not use this hotel even if your clients want something cheap.

Celebrity Solstice 7/09
This 10-day cruise Rome roundtrip was wonderful. The ship is lovely, the staff is super friendly and helpful and the food was good. 3 complaints but they are nominal (1- there is really only 1 pool as the other one is indoors with a permanent roof. 2- the “International Cheese” selection each day could have been purchased at Cub-not very special, interesting or international. 3- the cabins could have used a few more drawers as there was plenty of closet space but not enough drawer space.

Having said this, the trip was WONDERFUL. The itinerary was great (we saw 3 of the 7 ancient wonders of the world in 10 days), 4 other ports that were lovely and 2 days in Istanbul was not enough. My group used private guides instead of the shore excursions provided by Celebrity. This turned out to be a key as to why we all loved the trip. We had 14 pax and 1 guide and a private coach. Going to Pompeii and Ephesus would have been a nightmare in those crowds. We paid less than what the ship charged and got so much more out of the tours.