I wanted to sample a "cruise" in Italy and make my trip efficient by traveling from Naples to Catania at night while I sleep. Located at the front of the ship, the superior cabin was great, bigger than expected with a small fridge (complimentary bottle of water), desk, sufficient lighting and a (dirty) window. The ensuite bathroom features a sink, shower and efficient toilet.
At Naples, Alibus stops right in front of the TTT Lines ferry terminal, which is a little waiting room with convenient, automated luggage lockers (3 euros), English speaking ticketing staff and free wifi, which in itself is an awesome amenity in downtown Naples. Note the weird opening times (closed from 13:00 to 16:30 among others) because you won't have access to your luggage at those times. I got there shortly after noon, picked up my printed tickets, left my luggage and explored the surrounding area (there is a LOT to see in the neighborhood of the ferry terminal).
From the terminal, it's quite difficult to get to the boat: you have to haul your luggage through uneven roads, pass through a gate that is also used by trucks to drive onto the ship and disregard misleading signs (CATANIA arrows in 2 different directions on my way to the boat). Once you get by the boat, you have to haul your luggage by yourself on the same platform as the trucks and then take the escalators to the 2nd floor and check-in. You will be asked to leave your photo ID in exchange for the key. The boarding and check-in process could have been easier and more convenient but I understand that this line mostly caters to truckers and drivers so it wasn't designed for walk-on passengers.
There was plenty of room on the ship as there were only 6-7 people in the cabins and about a dozen truck drivers. There are sitting rooms, a bar and a restaurant that had a simple, Italian-only menu with no options for vegetarians or pescetarians.
Air conditioning and air circulation is pretty loud in the cabin but I found sleeping on board most comfortable. However, the staff will wake you up and make you leave your cabin a FULL HOUR before arrival in Catania (at some point, they were so rushed that I though they would make us jump into the water while the ship was still sailing) so they can clean the ship. Nevermind that you will miss sleep and have to stand for an hour waiting for the ship to dock, as long as they have the time to clean the cabins, that's all it matters. They want you out and they want you out fast...
In that sense, service is TERRIBLE and offers very, very poor value for money. For 150USD per night, not being able to enjoy the sleep and have to stand for an hour before docking is unacceptable. As is often the case in Italy, customers exist to serve employees and not employees to serve customers. On arrival in Catania, a shuttle bus will transport you and your luggage to the entrance of the port where you can walk to the train station (8 minutes) or downtown (6 minutes).
Due to the terrible service, I don't know if I would use this ferry again. The product was 7/10, the value for money was 7/10 but the customer service/staff was 1/10.
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