Overall, the Islands of Italy cruise on the Wind Surf can count as a true travel experience highlight. The ship, the itinerary, the food and most of all, the service are excellent. Reminder, the WindStar experience is not for those who need climbing walls, ice rinks, big shows and large casinos, although there is nothing wrong with those large cruise ships.

With that in mind, I will try to provide an overall picture of our truly excellent cruise on the Wind Surf in October, 2012 to the Italian (and one French) islands.

Pre-cruise: WindStar Cruises offers pre-cruise hotels and in some cities they are excellent choices. In Rome, we thought it was overpriced and booked our own hotel. With WindStar, however, they meet you at the airport and transfer you back and forth from the ship. Even with the additional costs of transfers added, we found a less inexpensive approach by going to a travel agent and showing her what they offered and she was able to beat the price. One advantage of the WindStar pre-cruise package is that they take very good care of you and you have to do no follow up like re-confirming or guessing what time you will leave the ship. It may well be worth the difference in plain comfort and security. Also, check out the final excursion which may take you to Rome so you can avoid that transfer. Read more