My first cruise is a big one, looking for tips

This isn't technically my first cruise; I was on a 4 day Caribbean cruise but that was 10+ years ago and I had nothing to do with the planning of the trip. i just showed up.

My wife and I are planning on doing a 12 day Mediterranean cruise on NCL next year. It leaves from Barcelona and heads to Venice. We're planning on staying in Barcelona the night before the cruise and in Venice for a night after. I will be primarily responsible for planning this trip. It's a combination of my wife's 40th birthday and our 5th anniversary, so I want to make it special. I'm hoping to do excursions in just about every port city, and there's about 10 of them.

I really don't even know what questions I should be asking so any general tips or advice or pitfalls to watch out for would be greatly appreciated. Like I said, I'm not familiar with the whole cruise community so explain like I'm five and don't assume I know anything.

Thanks.

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

A little about excursions...

The ones that the ship sells are usually good but more often than not you will have a bus load of people. You will pay more than doing it yourself but, like on your last cruise, all you have to do is show up. If your group is late getting back to the ship, it will wait.

Booking your own independent of the cruise line is almost always cheaper. Many will let you customize your itinerary. There are many good tour operators and most let you pay the day of the tour (that way if a port has to be cancelled, you won't lose any money). TripAdvisor and the ports of call forum ( http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=5 ) are good places to find reliable operators.

If you wish to set up independent tours with others, your roll call is the place to do it. I took part in six excursions set up on the roll call on my last cruise and they were all excellent.

Happy planning!

First up I suggest getting involved in the thread for your particular cruise

Research the ports and ask lots if pointed questions on them in your thread

Check all your visa requirements etc

Enjoy the cruise

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My personal view is to only do the ship's excursions if you can't manage on your own.

You pretty much need to know where you will berth in each port in order to know whether you can walk off the ship or whether you need to use organised transport. I am assuming the you are on the Epic, which is a monster ship - it doesn't always get convenient berths.

The other thing you need to know is how many hours you will be in port and, specifically, the number of hours where you are free to come and go. Some of the larger vessels have just a few hours in port, so that would limit what you can do on your own. If you are in a tender port, it is likely that the excursion people will get priority debarkation.

Our last two cruises have been 6 ports in 7 days, and we have try to mix up shore time between walking around cities and chilling out on the beach. A cruise can be exhausting if you try to do it all.

As for the two places you have mentioned, you can easily DIY Barcelona. You can buy a bus/metro pass and see whatever you want, or you can use the Hoho bus. Venice is extremely crowded. The tours involve groups of 30 or so customers following around someone carrying a little flag. There are scores of these tours going on at any one time. I would rather stick needles in my eyes that go on any of these.

The main thing for Venice is to decide how you are going to get from the cruise terminal to the city. You can pay for ship's transport and get a really good commentary, or get a public water bus.

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

The posts above will get you started researching the ports. Another good resource is Rick Steves' book Med Cruise Ports. It is a great guide if you want to do ports on your own.

You can also join the Roll Call for your cruise. There you will meet others sailing with you. There may be people planning private tours who have room for you.

Be sure to get Rick Steves' Mediterranean Cruise Ports. He tells you all about the ports, what is available to do in your port, and how much you can do in the time you have. Also visit his website. He has audio tours you can download free to your ipod/mp3 player, plus basic maps to go with them. He has some great ones for Venice, Rome, Pompeii, Florence... If possible, go into Barcelona two days early, as you will be too jetlagged to get in much touring on your arrival day. And stay over two days in Venice. You just can't see it in a day. EM

Here is a review for you to check out.http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2075726

Also, as others stated, you will find more information on the Norwegian board as well as on the roll call for your cruise and the Europe board.

Have fun!

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

I always suggest to first time cruisers that they book the ship's excursions. That way you know that you will not be left behind when you do excursions on your own.

Your wife's 40th birthday and your 5th anniversary -- I would book one of the specialty restaurants to celebrate the occasions.

You can get some idea from Toms Port Guides

I agree somewhat with KK.

For a new cruiser and (presumably) someone who has not traveled much in Europe, I would suggest you select from ship's excursions rather than book all on your own.

For ports where the ship docks close to downtown or sights you wish to view, you might consider going on your own but in Europe most docks are a distance from city centers.

IF you are late returning to the ship on a ship's sponsored tour, the ship waits for you (most of the time) but if you are on your own, the ship leaves and you have to make your own way to rejoin it.

For very port intensive itineraries, you may wish to do some balancing in your excursion planning. If you mostly have a port a day, doing full day tours everyday can be exhausting as well as too much to enjoy day after day, for some of us. Certainly you want to see and do as much as possible on your celebration cruise but remember to pace yourselves.

Have fun planning and come back with any questions. :)

The others have given you excellent advice. My only addition would be to tell you that if you can afford, then for such a special celebration, fly into Barcelona three days before so you have time to really enjoy the city.

Wander down Las Ramblas, have a drink or snack at one of the many sidewalk tables and people watch.

Take a round trip on a Hop-on-hop-off bus, enjoying the sights and decide what to see on its next circuits.

Spend some time at still being finished La Sagrada Familia cathedral, learning about its history and studying each facade.

View some of Gaudi's other architectures, both in town and at Parc Guell.

Enjoy the view from the top of Montjuic.

Barcelona is an awesome city. I hope you can take some time to enjoy it.

I'm glad you are spending a night in Venice. Spend two if you can afford it. But if not at least take a vaporetto on the Grand Canal to see the views. And spend some time in St Mark's Square.

You are going to have a wonderful time on your cruise too.

Congratulations on your anniversary, and happy birthday!

You may want to book a Romance Package from NCL to make your cruise extra special. Check their website, or contact your TA.

Enjoy your cruise!