Glad to hear your news Whitecliff, you have made a better decision and will very much enjoy the Island Star. We sailed on her last October, and enjoyed the experience, and itinery. If interested you can read my review under the "cruise reviews" heading.

Regarding Thomson, we sailed on the Spirit, which is comparable to the Star, a couple of years ago and enjoyed it too. As Keelaleva correctly states the age of the Emerald is the problem, a very old ship.

Once you have completed this cruise you will be better able to select your next one and be much clearer as to what you are looking for. Hope you both have the holiday of your life.

Happy, happy cruising.

I agree with keela1eva2 and at the end of the day, as long as you are aware of all the ups and downs, it is onyl you who can make a decison.

At the end of the day, you are paying the money and you are paying for the experience you want, which may or may not be the same as others.

Good luck on your cruise, and be prepared to now never want to go on another form of holiday again.

Also, don't forget to do a review of your own and maybe some pics.

Andy

Hi,

I am a little disturbed to have read recently (not necessarily on this site) some extremely bad reviews on this cruise ship. We are booked for 2 weeks in May and I am now worried about it as we will have an elderly relative with us. We are on the all inclusive package and in cabin 476. Can anyone reassure me please?

Many thanks

Hi Odyssey- it's difficult to reassure you as I am not sure what your concerns are. I was on the Emerald in 2005, and had a great time- loved the ambience of the ship, though it had some aspects that were not great- the layout of the buffet and deck areas. A friend at work went on the Destiny the same year and was very impressed. Last year we "swapped", and were both slightly disappointed. Each thought the first ship was better! For us it is all about the ports of call, and the ship takes second place- just a floating hotel. A lot depends on what you are comparing it to- for me that is only Destiny and Island Escape, but I certainly could not fault the service on the Emerald in any way at all, and regard it as my favourite of those ships and cruises (so far!!) Go with an open mind- you will be well looked after.
Kate

Hi,

I was just disturbed by the number of bad reviews that the ship had, particularly about cleanliness, the tummy bug and the food, all of which are of paramount importance on a cruise. Normally I would go with an open mind and I have been on the Spirit and the Celebration both of which I thought were good value for money, with excellent entertainment. I didn't realise that Thomson didn't own the Emerald. If any one is doing the Greek Islands at the beginning of May (I think the first one is 4th) perhaps they would put a review on the site.

Many thanks

hi there Odyssey

To give you some reassurance, look up stomach complaints and cruises on google and you will find most cruise ships are hit with these, especially the rhinoviros (sorry for spelling).

Even the huge ships under Cunard and the likes suffer abd some are even held in port under quanrantine.

Take a look at some of the other reports. But honestly, these problems are not just on this ship. Indeed hotels also suffer.

At the end of the day, you could get problems staying in a posh english country hotel or on the QM2.

Andy

Hi I'm new to the board and to cruising.

We are booked on the Emerald Adriatic Explorer departing on Friday - I've read the reviews and they seem fairly mixed. Anyone been on The Emerald this year and can offer any tips? The trips look fairly expensive and not that exciting! Anybody know if its easy to get to Venice and Dubrovnik without being on a trip - going with a couple who are not very agile so would appreciate any advice!

Thanks

Andy

Hi Andy and welcome to HT!

While you are waiting for replies, you may find some information on Venice and Dubrovnik which are mentioned in the DIY Excursions topic at the top of the forum or by clicking HERE

luci

Your best bet is to attend the shore talks for the ports you want to do independently. They are usually held on the afternoon before the stop. We found them quite good (2 years ago) and were able to follow the directions to the bus stop for Dubrovnik easily. (Tickets from a little kiosk across the road from bus stop.) In Venice it is about half a mile to walk to the main vaporetto stops in piazza roma. There was a closer vaporetto in the dock area, but we didn't use it. Have a good trip, kate

Mistermay.

We docked at both ports a couple of years ago. VENICE,we found it was an easy 25 min walk into St Marks Square from the ships berth and as St Marks was well sign posted, there are many shops and cafes/bars along the way and it is very flat. However give your self more time to get back as the ships berth IS NOT SIGNPOSTED. we had to buy a map to get our bearings having got missdirected several times.
Dubrovnik,
When we docked at Dubrovnick, we were about a fifteen minute bus ride to the town , on this occasion the ship provided shuttle busses back and forth but i dont think every operator does that. On a previous visit we were told by one of the girls on reception that some of the taxi drivers offered a set price for a 30min tour around the immediate areawhere he would stop at vantage points for photos, then he would drop you off at the entrance to the walled city and then pick you back up after about 60 mins
and return you to the ship when you would then pay him. We found that the driver we got was a wealth of interesting information spoke good English and was well worth the 30Euros (£20) he charged (for 4 of us) This was 4 years ago so the price may have gone up but it may still appeal to you.
Dubrovnik is a lovelly walled city but it is not a place to stroll around for hours in my oppinion,thats why the taxi suited us.

hello all you people out there..
just to chuck my tuppence worth in,i used to read up on all the reports on here before i went away to where ever we booked...
firstly opinions vary and i found that some bad reports were often over exhagirated by some people...
we are due to go on the emerald at the end of june around the greek islands,and although we have heard bad reports we always keep an open mind.
we definetly whould not let a report on a web site change our holiday plans as everyone expects different things out of a hotel/ship....
we have done the old topaz which had awfull reviews but we loved every minute and the crew were all fantastic..
we also been on island escape + sundream...
any one else going on june 29th look out for me , i will have my holiday truths cruise t-shirt on ha ha

or am i going to have to eat+drink everything on my own !!!!!!!

not long now getting excited

Well we did it and had a wonderful time! Only thing that I could fault was some of the towns visted - Koper, Zadar and Brindisi were nice enough but it only took an hour to see it all. Venice and Dubrovnik were amazing so they made up for it. We took the 'Venice on your own' trip wich meant a waterbus picked you up right by the ship and dropped you off near the Bridge of Sighs. At Dubrovnik there is a taxi rank right by where the boat berths and they charge 10 euros for the 10 minute ride into the old city. The taxis pick up right outside to take you back as well. When we had seen enough we went backto the ship and took advantage of it being quiet - to do some sunbathing, using the gym even treated myself to a massage!

As for the ship - we had never cruised before so could not compare it against anythng else. Suffice to say we are looking forward to the next cruise! The food, entertainment, waiters were all top class and nothing was ever too much trouble. We were on the all inclusive and went through every coktail - tip if you are on AI order glasses of wine in the restaurant - you get charged for bottles! The wine waiters get used to you and just keep them coming!!

In the restaurant we shared a table with a couple of experienced cruisers - they only comment they had was that they though it was overcrowded - you had to be smart on your feet to get into the show after dinner! Some of the quizzes and TV show copies were a bit laboured.

If you want duty free - its cheaper on the ship than at the airport - £7.95 for litre of vodka!! If you are going on the Emerald enjoy it - you won't be dissapointed!!

Hi mistermay

Glad you enjoyed your cruise!

If you haven't done so already, would you mind posting a review HERE You can copy and paste your review above and perhaps add a few words on the ship.

Thanks

luci

cant wait getting realy excited now,got my holiday truths cruise t-shirt waitng and in 23 hours off in the big blue sky...

Have a good one madas(c)harley! Remember to write your review when you get back.

luci

I am jealous, enjoy yourself. I now only have 3 months and counting.

thats sad, and I know it

whilst i am thinking about it.......

Hands up anyone booked for the Black sea.

28th September

Any repeaters? Anyone i know

Blot? Are you still reading these? Be good to meet up again.

Andy

Hi Andy
Booked and Hooked, see you on the 28th sept
Blot