Med. Cruise

[Bcshur]

Need help! My husband and I want to do a Med. cruise this summer and found an 11 day one that is only a little more than a 7 night Royal Caribbean one. The travel agent told us that she prefers Celebrity to Royal Caribbean, what is everyones thought? Really the 7 night RC one is the one we want because it's exactly where we want to go. The 11 night Celebrity one is just a bonus. Any input would be great!

[Twickenham]

What are the ports for each? Really, cruising the Med is mainly about the ports, so you want to make sure you have the itinerary you want.

[daisy-mae]

You might also want to consider the embarkation/debarkation ports. Does each cruise return to the same port, or to a different one? Some ports may have easier access than others, or easier airline connections from your city.

[cynbar]

The two lines have a different vibe, some of it depends on which you'd feel more comfortable on. Celebrity is more elegant and dignified, friendly but quieter. Most of the Celebrity ships in the Med are S class, they are modern and lovely with several specialty restaurants to choose from. Royal is livelier, with more entertainment and more activities. Personally, we prefer Celebrity and the 11 day trip would give you more time in Europe. But if you really prefer the itinerary of the Royal cruise, you may want to go for that. I agree with the above poster , in Europe the main thing is the ports.

[dodger1964]

We book based on ports. Only problem with a 7 day med cruise (if there are 5or 6 ports) is that you really do need a vacation after you get back. Long days and a lot of walking!!

 

Post itineraries so we can give better advice.

[Lastdance]

Celebrity's 11 night cruise is my choice! 7 days is way too short for Europe. When on a cruise and having fun, the time really goes by fast...too fast in my opinion. I have cruised Europe for the past several years, but you should go with your gut feeling on this one!:cool:

[gdpups]

My favorite cruise line is Celebrity, but last summer we did a Baltic cruise on the Vision of the Seas, which is an older Royal Caribbean ship. I picked the cruise because it had the best itinerary with 3 days in St. Petersburg, which was the highlight.

 

The cruise was all about the ports, we were off the ship every day in port and after an early dinner and maybe a little time in the casino we were in our cabin getting ready for the next day's excursion. On that cruise we would not have had sufficient time to really enjoy the ship.

 

Just got off the Silhouette in January and on that cruise it was "all about the ship". We stopped at 4 Caribbean ports, but I only left the ship at one of them. Didn't hurt that I was with 3 girlfriends and had both the ultimate dining pkg and the premium drink pkg!

[lovemylab]

If you like the ports of the 7 day cruise better, I'd book that one and then spend some time before or after the cruise to do a land trip.

[CruisingGatorGirl]

Need help! My husband and I want to do a Med. cruise this summer and found an 11 day one that is only a little more than a 7 night Royal Caribbean one. The travel agent told us that she prefers Celebrity to Royal Caribbean, what is everyones thought? Really the 7 night RC one is the one we want because it's exactly where we want to go. The 11 night Celebrity one is just a bonus. Any input would be great!

 

 

Book it! Our first cruise was a Celebrity Med. Cruise and it was amazing! I have been on RC and Carnival previously, I am now hooked on Celebrity. I wrote a detailed and picture heavy review of our med. trip if you are interested:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1700095

 

Do you have any specific questions?

[OhioDogLover]

I agree with those who say that 11 days is better than 7 days, but in Europe, it is all about the ports. I'd pick by ports and if you have time, spend it on land before or after the cruise.

 

Ohiodoglover

[CathyCruises]

We've done multiple Med cruises and spent collective months on land vacations in Italy, France, etc. The problem with those who say, oh, just add some extra land days, is that Europe is VERY expensive, and the cost of adding 4 land days, for instance, would be WAY more than doing the 11 day cruise. WAY more. In the major cities, hotel rooms start at 150 euros per night, and you'd have to allow a minimum of 100 euros a day for meals, so right there you'd have ~ $325/day plus sightseeing, museum entry fees, etc.

 

If you are going all the way over there, may as well maximize your $ value and do the 11 day cruise! For me it would be a no brainer. All the ports have something great to offer, go and enjoy!

[TLCOhio]

We've done multiple Med cruises and spent collective months on land vacations in Italy, France, etc. The problem with those who say, oh, just add some extra land days, is that Europe is VERY expensive, and the cost of adding 4 land days, for instance, would be WAY more than doing the 11 day cruise. WAY more. In the major cities, hotel rooms start at 150 euros per night, and you'd have to allow a minimum of 100 euros a day for meals, so right there you'd have ~ $325/day plus sightseeing, museum entry fees, etc. If you are going all the way over there, may as well maximize your $ value and do the 11 day cruise! For me it would be a no brainer. All the ports have something great to offer, go and enjoy!

 

OhioDogLover: I agree with those who say that 11 days is better than 7 days' date=' but in Europe, [b']it is all about the ports[/b]. I'd pick by ports and if you have time, spend it on land before or after the cruise. Ohiodoglover

 

Excellent above points, plus many other key considerations in the other, earlier posts. We really need to hear more details/needs/interests from the original poster. Tell us added info on budget, ages, personal and travel interests, past Europe travel experiences (if any), etc. How much are you interested in history? Countrysides vs. cities? Museums, food, wine, art, music, shopping, architecture, culture, etc.? How much of it in a leisurely style versus fast-paced? Then, with more detailed and specific information from you, we can make better, more specific suggestions on what best fits your needs and interests.

 

As detailed below in my live/blog with lots of pictures, we loved in June 2011 Barcelona as a port from which to start and.or finish your "adventure". Have also done many land and other cruise options in Italy, Greece, etc. So many great options in the Med.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of nice visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 162,427 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474