We arrived in Venice a couple of days early to enjoy the sights before our cruise. We stayed at a Hilton Garden Inn in Mestre. The hotel turned out to be just what we needed as it was reasonably priced and there was a bus stop right outside. The bus basically goes directly to the main station (pla. roma) in Venice where you are able to take the public water bus anywhere you want to go. We bought a 2 day pass for 20 euros each that covered our trips to and from the hotel and all through the canals. The hotel is fairly new and the staff friendly and helpful.

The embarkation process went very well. I think we were on the ship 45 minutes after leaving the hotel.

The fist day is a stop in Dubrovnik. This was a tender port and we were dropped off in the historic part of the city. We did not do a tour but followed Rick Steves' advice and headed straight for the wall. I can't imagine needing a tour from the cruise line. Dubrovnik is a beautiful city and touring it from the wall gave you great views from many angles. There are a lot of steps on the wall and a bad hip made it somewhat challenging but I managed. Read more