A few days in Paris certainly started this trip off the right way, staying at the beautiful Scribe hotel in the Opera area. Even though it was quite cool, we used the open-top bus & lots of walking to cover all our favourite areas.
The fast train to Monte Carlo took only a few hours & then we were ensconsed in the wonderful luxury of the Hermitage Hotel. Dragged ourselves away to visit the picturesque old town & of course the famous casino.
Our beautiful ship Regent 'Voyager' was moored right in the spectacular harbour & once we saw it we really couldn't wait to embark. We had 10 nts on board this all-suite all-balcony ship & the cruise had an 'Antiques Boatshow' theme - the panellists from the TV show 'Antiques Roadshow' were on board to give lectures & advice to all the guests.
First port of call was Civitavecchia - most guests visited Rome but we chose to travel north to the ancient town of Tarquinia & visit the amazing Etruscan tombs there. Next stop was Sorrento - visited more ancient ruins at Pompeii then spent a wonderful afternoon in Positano.
Our visit to Sicily began at the port of Messina, with the highlight being our visit to the lovely town of Taormina. A tour through the villa used in the making of the Godfather movies was also interesting.
A day at sea was most welcome as a chance to relax & take advantage of the wonderful facilities on board 'Voyager', but it was worth getting up early the next day to witness the magnificent views as we sailed into Venice. Two full days to explore this amazing city, then an equally scenic sail away from the city as the sun set.
The weather was not kind to us in Dubrovnik - wind & rain meant we had to moor in port a short drive away from the city instead of tendering ashore near the old part of the city, however as we had visited here previously in sunny weather we didn't let it worry us.
The weather had improved by the time we docked in Heraklion, Crete, so we enjoyed another dose of ancient ruins, this time the Temple Of Knossos.
On to Kusadasi where we reluctantly disembarked - the ship was sailing on to Athens but we chose to spend extra time in Turkey - first visiting the magnificent ancient site of Ephesus, then flying to Istanbul where our stay at the Four Seasons Hotel Sultanahmet was a fitting finale.
We visited the Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sofia, the Blue Mosque & the Grand Bazaar, as well as enjoying a ferry trip along the Bosphorus. The end of Ramadan coincided with our last night in the city, so it was a great opportunity to join in the celebrations.
Regent 'Voyager' Mediterranean trip notes
Thursday, October 28, 2004
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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2025-02-12