How about exploring the Italian and French Rivieras, along with the island of Corsica, on an Emerald Cruises luxury yacht? It’s a fantastic way to see the world.
By George Coyle
A tour aboard one of Emerald Cruises’ award-winning, luxury yachts is an experience you don’t want to miss. Especially when it involves visiting the Italian and French Rivieras, along with the island of Corsica. If you travel, put this on your Bucket List.
On an eight-day cruise from Civitavecchia, Italy, to Nice in the south of France, my wife Chelsea and I were on the brand new Emerald SAKARA. Having been on one of Emerald’s river cruises in Europe before, we knew to expect first-class amenities and service. What I didn’t anticipate, though, is just how appealing it is to cruise on a sleek, modern yacht with only 50 staterooms, 100 guests and over 70 crew members.
When it comes to cruising, size matters—a lot. Small-ship cruising with Emerald means you get to see and explore ports that are inaccessible to larger cruise ships. Since there are fewer passengers and more staff members, you also get amazing service and personal space.
It feels like the trip is for you.
Although ours was a sold-out cruise, we never had the sense there were 98 other guests around. Thanks to the size of the multi-level yacht and its many amenity spaces, most of the time we felt as though we had it all to ourselves. Attentive, individual service added to our ease.
We had the CAT A Balcony suite and what pleased us most was having our own balcony, with a table and chairs, to enjoy the stunning scenery when sailing away or arriving at ports. The suite itself was attractive, well designed and functional with a good-sized bathroom. It was clean, modern and very impressive.
The food was great, too, and one thing I really enjoyed was having the flexibility to dine as we wished, seated where we wished. It never felt rushed. It was also customized to what we wanted for the day.
La Cucina Dining and Terrace, the main dining spot, is stylish and spacious. For breakfast, we chose the gourmet buffet, but you can also order off the menu for a more elaborate meal. It’s beautiful to sit outside when at a port to enjoy a sunny breakfast and a cappuccino.
While lunch is offered daily, we typically explored the ports and stayed out for most of the day. But if you want to return for lunch or afternoon snacks, another option is to grab a casual bite at the Aqua Pool Café, where the selection includes flatbreads, burgers, sandwiches and gelato. This was a hit for us.
The dinner menu changes each day, with multiple choices for starters, mains and desserts. If you want something different or special, all you have to do is ask. What’s really exceptional, though, is that fresh local ingredients are sourced by the chefs as you sail, so you get to savour authentic cuisine from the region.
Another thing you’ll notice about an Emerald yacht cruise is the quality of the service. In all departments, crew members were very attentive, knew our names and always had a smile. From the terrific bartenders who mixed up great cocktails and knew our orders to the wait staff at every meal and the morning cappuccinos that would be ready just for us, along with our yogurt, it was a perfect combination of personal attention and discretion.
On board, your well-being is top priority, so you can take advantage of the wellness centre, well-equipped gym and spa. There is also a unique sauna with six infrared chairs available at any time. We used the facilities almost daily.
There are lots of other activities and attractions on the Emerald SAKARA, including pre and post dinner music, entertainment and games. The top deck includes a hot tub and bar, an observation lounge, a main lounge, a back patio and my favorite spot: the pool deck. This area includes a large pool, big loungers and chairs to enjoy the sunshine and the stunning views.
On the days we anchored, a marina platform was uncovered along with an array of water toys, including Seabobs, kayaks, paddleboards and floating mats. This was the best. It was absolutely amazing to jump off the back of the yacht into the salty Mediterranean Sea, surrounded by with the most stunning views. It was the highlight, for me, of the whole cruise and we were fortunate enough to do it on three days.
You’ll also be happy with what you can see and do at ports. While we took the French & Italian Rivieras with Corsica trip, the beauty of the Emerald yacht experience is there’s flexibility to make the most of it. For instance, on our first day, the captain altered the original itinerary in response to the weather. Since storms were in the forecast, he customized the route to offer safe and smooth travels and also provide us with better weather when we docked at the ports. It worked; we had perfect weather at almost all the places we visited: Porto Ercole, Porto Stefano and Porto Venere along Italy’s coast, Bonifacio and Calvi on the island of Corsica, Portoferraio on the island of Elba in Tuscany and beautiful Menton on the French Riviera.
All of these destinations are striking and Emerald’s variety of well-organized shore excursions allow you to maximize your time in each location, doing what you enjoy most. E-bikes are provided for your use on shore and whether you want to secure a private car or make a reservation at a winery restaurant, staff members are always ready to help.
Trust me, you can get used to this. And you’ll want to explore more of the world from aboard an Emerald yacht. emeraldcruises.ca
The trip started in Civitavecchia, outside Rome, and ended in Nice, with stops in Porto Ercole on the coast of Tuscany, Bonifacio on the island of Corsica,
