Navigator of the Seas Review
Good holiday but need to try something else for next year
Rating by category
Additional details
Chose the itinerary and school holidays unavoidable so got what we expected. Ship slightly old fashioned but no where near as run down as some previous reviews I had read suggested. Staff have been cut back compared to our previous experiences but are all very friendly and working hard to ensure everyone looked after. Only ate in Windjammer as our own choice. Food ok, sometimes not hot enough but a reasonable choice and specials changed nightly. Could get busy at peak times but always able to find a table. Joined in with the daily activities but no other activities appealed. Very family orientated (as expected) and the families we met all had a great time. Did all the ports of call on our own very easily thanks to all the advice from cruise critic reviews before we left. Rome, Florence, Nice and Lisbon all outstanding. Gibraltar was a disappointment as didn't manage to get a minibus to visit the Apes so ended up staying in town which was a bit grotty. Genoa was interesting, we ended up straying into an unsavoury part of town by accident, very near to the port and no warnings picked up in my previous research of from the ship info. Luckily we escaped unscathed. Overall an enjoyable holiday which was pretty much as I expected given the company, school holidays and the family friendly itinerary. Felt rushed in some places, will go back next year and spend a few days enjoying the ambiance and sampling local delicacies.
Cabin Review
Interior Stateroom with Virtual Balcony
Very happy with cabin. Attendant was great, cabin kept clean discretely. Quiet with the virtual screen as a little bonus allowing us to check the weather before venturing out.
Port Reviews
Rome (Civitavecchia)
Saved a fortune by doing Rome on our own. Walked from port bus to train station in 15mins easily. 11euro each for return train ticket. Kept it simple in Rome, didn't want a stressful exhausting day, followed Rick Steves walking tour (free app definitely worth getting) saw the Colusseum, Spanish steps, Trevi fountain etc. Didn't bother with the Vatican on this visit, will come back again and do properly. Loved Rome, great cafes, back streets are interesting and gelato outstanding.
Villefranche
Took train to Nice by ourselves. Very easy, trains are air conditioned and comfortable. Nice is a great place to wander around just soaking up the atmosphere, looking in the shops and sitting in a cafe bar watching the world go by.
Gibraltar
You need to be off the ship promptly to get one of the minibus / taxi tours from the port, we left 30mins after docking and all gone. Stuck in town which wasn't very appealing.
Florence (Livorno)
Again we saved a fortune doing this port on our own. Took port shuttle then town bus to train station very easy to do. Florence is breathtaking. Visited the Uffitzi gallery as better half studied the paintings as college so fantastic to see in real life. Queue for Dumuo was ridiculous especially in the heat, we didn't bother but plenty of others were.
Genoa
Not much to see. Port area has been recently revamped but abit obvious for my tastes. A word of warning, we wandered into a quite unsavoury area just behind the port area where ladies were working at lunchtime, we felt a little unsafe and felt a bit trapped in the maze of streets, we got out unscathed however, just take care where you roam.
Malaga
Surprisingly attractive and enjoyable port.
Lisbon
Very much enjoyed our visit to Lisbon. Beautiful and fascinating city, again followed a Rick Steves (free app) walking tour which we enjoyed.