See Rome before or after cruise?

[momoftwinteens]

I am looking at a 10 day Eastern Med cruise that begins and ends in Rome. In between, it goes to Greece and Egypt. I am trying to decide whether to site-see in Rome before the cruise or after and would appreciate any advice and/or opinions.

[CruiserBruce]

Or do both.

Otherwise, it really doesn't matter. I suppose doing it before would lend to the excitement, overall. Logistically, it doesn't matter. But if your spent a couple of days there before your cruise, it would you get over the jet lag, so you don't start your cruise jetlagged.

[CapeCodCruiser]

If you arrive in Rome early you will have time to tour and get over your jet lag by the time you get on your ship. By the end of your cruise you are likely to be pretty tired as Med cruises are pretty intensive. Rome is a fantastic city - enjoy it either way!

[Keith1010]

I definitely have an opinion on this.

See Rome before the cruise. Why?

You really want to fly in ahead of time and not on the day of embarkation because a delayed or cancelled flight could cause you to miss the ship. On top of this you want to get over the jet lag and be well rested,

I would arrive to Rome three or four days before the cruise.

Then on the day you disembark you can fly home but do not book a flight before noon.

Keith

[Hlitner]

We agree with Keith. There are a few good reasons to fly-in a few days early and some of the do not apply to after the cruise. Coming in early takes away any of the stress or dealing with delayed or cancelled flights. It also means that even if your luggage gets misdirected it will have some time to catch-up with you before the cruise. And finally, coming in early allows you some time to recover from jet lag on your own schedule as compared to trying to deal with jetlag on a cruise ship.

Hank

[sail7seas]

Originally Posted by Keith1010

I definitely have an opinion on this.

See Rome before the cruise. Why?

You really want to fly in ahead of time and not on the day of embarkation because a delayed or cancelled flight could cause you to miss the ship. On top of this you want to get over the jet lag and be well rested,

I would arrive to Rome three or four days before the cruise.

Then on the day you disembark you can fly home but do not book a flight before noon.

Keith

I agree with Keith.

There is so much to see and do in Rome you can't see it all in a month but three or four days pre-crise gives you a chance to get an overview of the highlights. Plan your days carefully to be able to squeeze in as much as possible.

We always spend time pre-cruise in our embarkation city and love those visits before we board the ship.

If you can stay for a day or two after your cruise also,,,,, all the better.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We always fly to the embarkation ports 2 or 3 days before the cruise.

And when we used to fly overseas -- we would over 4 or 5 days early to rest after those long flights. After we start to adjust to the new times -- we then tour those cities.

[kazu]

Originally Posted by Hlitner

We agree with Keith. There are a few good reasons to fly-in a few days early and some of the do not apply to after the cruise. Coming in early takes away any of the stress or dealing with delayed or cancelled flights. It also means that even if your luggage gets misdirected it will have some time to catch-up with you before the cruise. And finally, coming in early allows you some time to recover from jet lag on your own schedule as compared to trying to deal with jetlag on a cruise ship.

Hank

ditto

[we're sailing away....]

4 days before is great way of doing it ..

[chipmaster]

I'm a fan of a little before and a little after.

Flying and time change can effect everyone differently, you'll want a couple days before you get on the ship, or the first few days on the ship can be get up late and go to bet late.. In Rome you'll be motivated to get up and walk around and see things.

Than likely after tiring few days get on the ship for a day of R&R before some more port intensive sightseeing.

Finish with two days in Rome.. that would be my dream plan

[t_car]

We are doing a med cruise this september. Staying in Rome for 5 days before the cruise, for all the same reasons already stated.
One important piece of advice: buy your tickets on line for all the attractions you want to visit. Eg. Colosseum, the Vatican. It will save you hours of waiting in line to get tickets. Also plan ahead for city tours, or ones to Tuscany or the Amalfi coast.

[sail7seas]

Originally Posted by t_car

We are doing a med cruise this september. Staying in Rome for 5 days before the cruise, for all the same reasons already stated.
One important piece of advice: buy your tickets on line for all the attractions you want to visit. Eg. Colosseum, the Vatican. It will save you hours of waiting in line to get tickets. Also plan ahead for city tours, or ones to Tuscany or the Amalfi coast.

Very good advise. Those lines waiting at various attractions can be monstrously long. It eats up so much time you could be viewing/seeing/enjoying instead of standing in line,,,,,,, particularly in hot sun.

[sparky-elpaso]

I tend to go with the before and after. Gives you time to get over jet lag before and do some sightseeing and if you spend a couple of days after you don't have to worry about coordinating flight times with the arrival of the ship.

[t_car]

In the end, it all depends on your schedule. With us, our daughter starts back at school 2 days after cruise is done, so best to tour Rome before.
To best tour Rome, try and plan as much of it as you can, watch your budget, if you have one, it can get very pricey. Choosing the right hotel can be a challenge, there are over 1,700 of them in Rome.
Good luck, have fun planning and enjoy your cruise and of course, Rome

[barante]

See Rome.

[euro cruiser]

Originally Posted by t_car

To best tour Rome, try and plan as much of it as you can, watch your budget, if you have one, it can get very pricey.

Planning is always a good idea, and hotels in the historical center can be expensive, but you can find good deals. For the extremely budget conscious there are always convents (which are a lot more like hotels than you might think).

One thing that I love about Rome is how inexpensive it is to sightsee there; the Vatican museums and the Colosseum/Forum have entry fees, but most other venues are free. Gobs of the world's greatest art and architecture can be accessed by simply walking into about a dozen churches. The Trevi fountain, Piazza Navona, and Campo dei' Fiori are all free of charge.

It's always a bit of a shock to the system to go from Rome to Florence, where several of the key churches have entry fees (Santa Croce, San Lorenzeo, Santa Maria Novella, Santa Maria del Carmine).

[lamchops]

I have done both on our cruises but mainly stayed after because of the ports.

My preference is to arrive early because of what has already been stated but also from a relaxation point of view. We always rush around from morning till night "seeing the sights" and need a vacation from the vacation when we get home.

I prefer to do the "running around" before the cruise and chill during the cruise before going back home to work.

[EGG]

I vote for a little before and a little after. Here is why. Your flight will probably arrive early in the morning and you will be exhausted. Check into hotel (have them hold bags if necessary) and visit at least one big site. Then a very early dinner and early to bed early. A good nights sleep and the big breakfast provided by the hotel and you should be over jetlag. Then you have the entire next day to sight see. On the day of embarkation get up early morning, save something thet will take about 3 hours and then head down to the port. You've just gotten 3 days of touring for 2 nights of hotel.

After the cruise drop off luggage at the hotel and spend the rest of the day touring. Next day if you can get a late afternoon filght out you can have another half day to tour. Again 2 days touring for 1 night hotel and you can get to the airport exactly when you want to so that you do not have to sit and wait hours for your flight. This worked particularly well for us when our choice for a non-stop was either too early for the day of embarkation or a 4:00 p.m. flight which would have left us sitting in the airport all day.

Another bonus is that you can choose hotels in different parts of the city. Just choose hotels with a good reputation where you will be comfortable if you have to leave your luggage with the bellman.

Here is another thing to look at. Sometimes the odd hour out flight (early morning or late) is less expensive because of the number of people from the cruise wanting to book the noon flight to the U.S.