Venice River Cruises

The Venice cruise was a wonderful few days and I would certainly recommend it.

Some highlights:

1.The excursions which were very good value. I particularly liked Burano - a very pretty little island. The morning in Chioggia was very enjoyable. The market was great fun and the Church of St Dominic had some lovely pictures including a Tintoretto. The visit to Padua was made special by our English speaking guide who was very informative, never boring and had a wonderful sense of humour! She showed us round St Anthonys Basilica, a fascinating and beautiful church, and pointed out the famous Cafe Pedrucci whose speciality is a creamy mint coffee - highly recommended! (Tip - its cheaper if you drink it standing at the bar!)

2.Exploring Venice. Lovely little shops -especially for leather, Murano glass, and paper. Beautiful everywhere you look especially the glimpses down the little canals- we even saw a bride and groom going to church in a gondola! The Rialto area was very crowded but we found a lovely quiet campo where we sat in the sun for lunch and a much -needed rest before going to the Accademia. (Tip- if over 65 take your passport and get in free.) Although we saw some lovely pictures I was a bit disappointed in this gallery as a lot of the rooms were closed and there were no explanations and the attendants were very unhelpful. Our spirits were unexpectedly restored in the nearby Guggenheim Collection which has some amazing modern sculptures set in a beautiful garden and a very good collection of pictures. A quiet green haven and a good cafe - not to be missed!

3.The meals on board were superb and they were very generous with the free wine! In fact every one took wonderful care of us and made sure we understood all the arrangements which were often explained to us at our table in English by our English-speaking stewardess. The cabins were very comfortable and I had a beautiful view of the lagoon and Venice. We were very conveniently situated with just a short walk along the quay to St Marks square.

As you can see from the pics you even organised the weather for us! Many thanks to everyone at Blue Water Holidays for an excellent holiday.

Thank you, Blue Water, you arranged everything very well from start to finish. Venice was magical.

We stayed on the Michelangelo in Venice from 5th to 9th March and had a wonderful experience. The staff and crew were efficient, courteous and friendly. The cabins were roomy and kept spotlessly clean. After the embarkation at the St. Basilio Quay the ship was moored for the rest of the trip just a 15 minute walk along the lovely quayside from Giardini to St. Marks Square. This central location was vital for me as I use a wheeled walking aid and my husband was able to carry it over the bridges where necessary and we could then use the vaporetti to tour the Grand Canal. The food was of outstanding quality served by professional, friendly staff. Each meal was superb and inventive and the vegetarian dishes served to my daughter were imaginative and of equal standard to the non vegetarian - often vegetarians are fobbed off with omelettes! We were even lucky enough to have dry, sunny weather (if a bit chilly!). The lounge, deck and dining room were beautiful and the lounge had a selection of board games for those needing a rest from the touring and eating!

As a disabled traveller using a wheeled walking aid (and having a fit husband) I found Venice an excellent location but I would think for a wheelchair user the stepped bridges, with very few of them having an electric lift and none ever seeming to be in use, would be rather challenging.

EXCELLENT!