Mediterranean recommendations

I have only been on a couple of cruises. Celebrity being my favorite to date. My daughter & I are looking for a Meditteranean cruise (not longer then 8 days) that hits some great ports daily. We would prefer no days at sea.

Any recommendations would be great. I don't even know where to begin.

Thanks for your help!

exray2020, welcome to Cruise Critic.

I just want to check with you to be sure that you are looking at a luxury cruise line for your itinerary as opposed to other cruise lines categories such as Celebrity.

Did you mean Luxury?

Also, if you did, knowing the age of your daughter would be helpful as some lines are better for children than others depending on their age in the luxury cruise line category.

Keith

Regent has 7 night cruises that include airfare and most excursions (as well as tipping, drinks, etc.) The Med. is really hot in the middle of summer. We did the Istanbul to Monte Carlo itinerary at the beginning of Oct. 2 years ago -- it stopped at some beautiful Greek islands (Mykonos, Santorini, etc.) as well as a stop in Kusadusi, Turkey. The weather was warm but not sweltering. One of the best cruises we have taken. Very port intensive!

As Keith said it would be helpful if you could be a bit more specific as to your desires and needs from a cruise line.

I am taking a 26,28, 55, and 60 year old to the mediteranian on 2011.only want to be gone 7- days,nights. Have looked at regent, seabourne, azamara, windstar and sea dream. Any thoughts? Is October a good time to go?

I am taking a 26,28, 55, and 60 year old to the mediteranian on 2011.only want to be gone 7- days,nights. Have looked at regent, seabourne, azamara, windstar and sea dream. Any thoughts? Is October a good time to go?

In my opinion, October is the only month to go! During the summer, many ports in the Western Med. are intolerably hot. October has almost perfect weather. In terms of the cruise lines you have looked at, you may want to do a bit more research.

Regent, Seabourn and Sea Dream are all-inclusive luxury cruise lines while Azamara and Windstar are not (still good. . . just not luxury all-inclusive).

Sea Dream could be wonderful -- especially for the younger members of your family. However, the ships are very small, no balconies and tiny bathrooms.

You may want to look at Silversea. . . . also luxury, all-inclusive -- just a bit more formal than the rest. Their ships range from around 300 - 540 passengers. Most itineraries include airfare.

Seabourn ships are all over the place in terms of size. They have three small ships (209 passengers) and two ships that carry 450 passengers. IMO, the smaller (older) ships may be a bit boring for the younger crowd. Some itineraries include airfare.

Regent ships hold 490 and 700. They are ultra all-inclusive. In addition to airfare, they include one night pre-cruise at your embarkation port. They also include most excursions and have an Elegant Casual dress code.

Regent has no smoking in their suites or balconies while Seabourn and Silversea permit smoking in suites. Seabourn also permits smoking on balconies. Silversea is in the midst of prohibiting smoking on balconies.

I suggest you discuss whether you think a a luxury or premium cruise line would be best for your family. Also, whether a larger (700) or smaller (209) passenger capacity (or somewhere in between) works best.

I am taking a 26,28, 55, and 60 year old to the mediteranian on 2011.only want to be gone 7- days,nights. Have looked at regent, seabourne, azamara, windstar and sea dream. Any thoughts? Is October a good time to go?

October is a great time to go as is April.

The weather will be much nicer with cooler temperatures versus the high temperature and all of the humidity of the summer months. On top of this you will find many parts far less crowded than in the summer months.

My recommendation is to start your search by looking at many of the lines you have mentioned plus any others that you discover by looking at their itineraries to see which ones look the best to you. Think throgh the ports of embarkation and disembarkation for ease of getting to and from your home city by airplane. I would also recommend arriving a few days in advance so that you do not take a chance missing the ship should your flights be cancelled or delayed and also to get over the jet lag. When you take a seven day cruise getting over the jet lag is even more important because you'd hate to be dealing with jet lag for the first couple of days of the cruise. So, think about the port where each line embarks as you consider the itineraries to be sure it is one that you would like to spend a few days at.

I would start with the itineraries. See what interests you. Then look at the pricing to see if it is in the ball park of the amount you want to spend. Then look at the actual cruise ship and cruise line to see if this interests you as well.

To learn about the cruise line, look at their respective web sites and brochures. While they are sales and marketing focused you can learn quite a bit about them by reading the information. Study the deck plans as well.

Keep in mind that a Mediterranean cruise whether it is 7, 11, 12 or more days is usually very port intensive where you will spend more time in port and less on the ship than you normally do in some other areas of the world.

Also, I would pick up a copy of the Complete Guide to Cruising and Cruise Ships which is updated and published each year by Bertlitz and written by Douglas Ward and provides a nice two to three page summary on each cruise ship. You can find this book in major bookstores or order it from Amazon.Com

Then as you narrow all of thie down, come back with specific questions.

Again, if this was me I would start with the itineraries.

Keith