West mediterran in December

[WLC061975]

I like to plan an European Cruise in December. I am looking at Norwegian Epic 10 days West Mediterranean 12-9 to 12 19. Board ship from Spain and travel various ports in Italy. This itinerary has 4 sea days. From what i learn , European cruise is port intensive, so i think a few sea days is not a bad idea. I am looking at book a studio cabin. I live in Florida so i am planning to arrive at Spain a day earlier and leave one day after cruise. Here is my question is December a good time travel to West Mediterranean? What is advantage and disadvantages travel to Europe at this time? Thanks for the feedback

[softail]

I like to plan an European Cruise in December. I am looking at Norwegian Epic 10 days West Mediterranean 12-9 to 12 19. Board ship from Spain and travel various ports in Italy. This itinerary has 4 sea days. From what i learn , European cruise is port intensive, so i think a few sea days is not a bad idea. I am looking at book a studio cabin. I live in Florida so i am planning to arrive at Spain a day earlier and leave one day after cruise. Here is my question is December a good time travel to West Mediterranean? What is advantage and disadvantages travel to Europe at this time? Thanks for the feedback

 

I have never traveled that late in the Med but I myself would never cruise the Med that late in the year. We have cruised mid March /mid May to early June /and mid Oct to early Nov. The coolest was the March cruise but overall not to bad and it was in and out of Barcelona to E Med. I think the best time over all is either May to early June or Sept to early Nov. Nice weather and not as crowded as the summer season. I don't see any advantage to cruise in December but to me the potential for bad cool weather is a disadvantage. This year we are cruising from early Sept to mid Sept so I expect it to be quite warm and nice overall.

Edited April 6, 2015 by softail

[CathyCruises]

I am shocked that NCL even offers a cruise then. I spent a January in Italy and February in France and froze the entire time. No way would I go on a cruise that late in the season.

[Albert Bell]

We were on the NCL Jade late last November and the weather was perfect.

[WLC061975]

Thanks everyone for the feedbacks. I am not worry about cold. I kinder like colder weather. I just dont like to deal with crows. I also worry about attractions close. But i will stick with ship excursions and indoor museums possibly

[Hlitner]

The only advantage would be fewer tourists. The down sides are many including possibly awful weather (which can even include snow on rare occasions) and many closures of popular tourist places. As an example, the island of Capri would find many shops closed for the season. Tourist oriented towns like Eze Village pretty much close-up during the winter months. Your idea of going to museums is fine, although you need to compare the itinerary with the open/close days of your selected musuems. And by the way, if you are going to simply go to a museum it is a lot less costly to just do it on your own rather than pay the inflated excursion prices.

 

Hank

[cruisemom42]

I am fond of Europe off-season, but even I would hesitate on a December cruise, especially in the Western Med where the weather at that time is apt to be worse than in the Eastern Med.

 

Yes, you'll have fewer tourists, although as you get toward Christmas the number of tourists in the major cities tends to pick up a lot. So if you are thinking of staying a few days post-cruise somewhere, your hotel may be charging high-season rates.

 

The drawbacks other than lousy weather (that could even cause cancellation of ports, particularly if they are tendered ports) would be closure or shortened hours at some sites, and also fewer hours of daylight. It can be quite dark by the end of the day at that time of year.

[CathyCruises]

We have done Med cruises into mid-November and had great weather too, I wouldn't hesitate to do that again. But December? Nope. We live in a "Mediterranean climate" and the difference here between November and December is remarkable.

[dsrdsrdsr]

Hours of daylight aren't a big issue, because in (say) Barcelona, sunset on the shortest day is less than half an hour later than sunset at the end of October. For a Floridian, though, it could be cool - low to mid sixties, perhaps.