Went for a nice walk around the old town, visited the big church and the little one with the big chandelier. Its easy to walk from the port but we didn't find anything particularly interesting. 


Bari

We turned right coming out of the port and walked along the street next to the sea. There were lots of cafes and a few banks where we changed some money. If you go to the bank you have to take a number to get in line. It took about 45 minutes to walk to the clock tower. Its much smaller than I expected and almost missed it on the left hand side. You have to go over the footbridge to get to it. Just behind the clock tower is a small Mosque. An old man opened the door and invited the tourists in so we saw inside. It was pretty with a porcelain chandelier. A short walk from there took us to the bazaar with lots of vendors. Many people prefer to take a tour to Ephesus from here but we enjoyed walking the town. There are horse and carriage rides available right outside the port if you don't feel like walking. 


Izmir

This was our favorite. The tram stop, Findikli, is about a couple hundred yards to the right as you come out of the port. Ride the tram to Sultanahmet square. Tokens are required and are purchased near the ticket turnstile. Only Turkish lira can be used. I didn't notice any exchanges around so if you stop somewhere else in Turkey first exchange a little money. In Istanbul all the exchanges we saw took no commission and gave us a better rate than the bank in Ismir. Our ship did not have any Turkish currency. The tram was easy to use, 1 token of 2 jetons (about 1 Euro)took us to the Museum and bazaar area. Trams were very full but still the best way to get around. One of our new friends was charged 20 Euros for a taxi from the bazaar. This port had no shops in the vicinity other than convenience stores so be sure to buy what you need before returning to the ship. We found ourselves with left 25 lira and nothing to buy with them. The blue mosque was very nice and the Topkapi Palace excellent, worth its 20 Euro entry fee. One of the museum rooms has religious artifacts, some known to be authentic and others thought to be so. The Hagia Sophia was also very nice. The grand bazaar was interesting with its many shops. Lots of vendors sell the same type of things so find one who you can bargain with but be prepared to walk away if you don't get your price, you will get it from someone else. They had no problem taking Euros in the bazaar. There are lots of cafes for lunch and everybody wants your business, prices are similar. We stopped at one and enjoyed Lamb kebabs. The check came to more than we expected but I think they add a service charge. There are some lovely looking pastry shops but were too full to try them. 


Istanbul

Not a favorite stop. Again, if you want to walk the walls or buy anything Croatian money is required. There are exchanges inside the old town but we didn't bother. It was a very hot day and the top of the walls looked exposed to the sun so we didn't try walking them. The old town had cafes and ice cream shops as well as shopping but we weren't very impressed with anything. To the right of the port exit is a short walk to the small beach. We didn't go down to it but it was pretty busy. 


Dubrovnik

Began and ended our cruise in Venice. Stayed overnight on the mainland at Hilton Garden Inn. We took the people mover from the port to Piazzale Roma for 1 Euro each and then took the ACTV bus to the hotel. A 10 minute ride for 1Euro 30 cents each. The buses have a luggage rack so no problem there. We bought our tickets from the ticket office but our cruise guide told us we could also purchase them from the news agents. Bus tickets back to Piazzale Roma were purchased from the hotel reception. We walked to San Marco square via the Rialto bridge, about a 50 minute walk for us. There are street signs telling where to go. Sometimes the signs would disappear but eventually they show up again and you find your way. San Marco was very crowded but we were able to get inside. We had pizza at an outdoor cafe and the bill was more than it should be due to the cover charge of 6 Euros per person. For desert we stopped for gelato, a must do in Venice, excellent. Returning back the street signs seemed a little less frequent and sometimes we followed the signs for the railway station since they seemed to go the same way as Piazzale Roma except at the end where it was easier to guess where to go. There are a multitude of shops selling Venetian carnival masks and murano glass jewellery. Prices vary from very reasonable to very expensive so gifts are easy to find. 


Venice

cabin was a good size with outside window. We never heard neighbors above or on the side of us. Hallway was pretty quiet too.
Muster station was on deck 4 so 2 flights of stairs to climb for lifeboat drill.
Plenty of closet space and 3 drawers. Drawers & closet handles were small loops not real knobs and were difficult to grasp.
Bathroom was average size for cruise ship and had plenty of shelves for toiletries.  Bar soap and all in one shower gel/shampoo dispenser were provided.
Hairdryer provided inside top drawer. 
Bottled water was available for purchase.
Flat panel TV, only 2 channels in English 
Rooms were fully serviced twice a day. Cabin steward was very nice and did a great job. Cabin was very clean, bed comfortable, 1 bed pillow & 1 decorative pillow each. Good A.C.

Changing money on board incurs a 5 Euro transaction fee every time you change some but they also tell you to use the exchange in port or the ATM for better rates(hence the good part)

Goodies to purchase at Chocolate Bar .GOOD:

Food-The ship was almost full, just short of 3500 people and the food was good.

Costa Favolosa Review

Nice ship

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