Hours of Daylight on Fall Mediterranean Cruises

[CarnivalCruiser32]

How many hours of daylight do you get when in the Mediterranean during the Fall? We're thinking about cruising in Mid-Late October and we know it gets chillier (and rainier) the closer you get to November but what about the amount of daylight? We have never gone a cruise and come back to the ship after dark on a Port Day so we're a little concerned it will get dark early like it does in the US and we'll be nervous about traveling (sometimes an hour+ ) in the dark (and cold) back to the ship. My mom has taken a European cruise recently and highly recommends it, but she went during the peak tourist season and was warned about pick pockets. Is beating the summer crowds worth the worry about being mugged in the dark?

 

Thanks!

[marazul]

Here is a sunrise and sunset calculator. You can figure it out.

https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/

 

You live in NY and you are worried about muggings? Same precautions as at home.

[CarnivalCruiser32]

.

 

edit: Sorry - still figuring out how to use this site oops

[CarnivalCruiser32]

Here is a sunrise and sunset calculator. You can figure it out.

https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/

 

You live in NY and you are worried about muggings? Same precautions as at home.

 

hahaha yeah we are. When my mom took an excursion to Pisa in May she saw someone in the tour group walking ahead of hers get their backpack ripped from their back in broad daylight and her tour guide said it happens all the time there, so we're definitely concerned about what could happen in the dark when something like that happened in broad daylight with loads of folks around! We've never ever had an experience like that in New York lol. I mean there are some sketchy people in Times Square for sure but in all our lives we've never seen anything like what she saw in Pisa. Maybe we're just lucky haha

 

Just hoping to hear other people's experiences and use that as a gauge but thanks for the link I will definitely check it out!!

[Twickenham]

We went on a Med cruise with Celebrity at the end of October a few years ago. I remember most port days that we left port as the sun was setting - a truly beautiful sight.

[CruiserBruce]

A quick Google search will find many sites with exact sunrise/sunset times for virtually any major location, like a city.

 

Search is your friend.

[cruisemom42]

...and let me just add, as a veteran of no less than 7 Med cruises undertaken in October and November (as a solo woman, no less), muggings are VERY uncommon. Stealthy pickpockets, yes. Forceful muggings, no.

 

Take precautions with where you keep valuables and put this worry low on your list.

[LondonTowner]

Well, if somebody in a tour group is ambling along with a bag on their back in an unmistakably tourist area that is just asking for trouble. A thief magnet. Reflects what I am always saying, be alert and aware of your surroundings as you would in any large city or crowded place.

 

I think it very highly unlikely that anybody is likely to get mugged going back to a cruise ship late afternoon or early evening. This is Europe you are wanting to visit, not South America.

 

At that time of year it will get dark around 18.00.

 

 

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[marazul]

I think a good way of looking at this, especially from people who live in large tourist destination cities is this. How do you identify tourists (potential victims) in your town? Are they walking around with backpacks or fanny packs? Do they have cameras and maps in their hands? Are they wearing shorts or "explorer" pants? Are they carrying a Rick Steves book in their hands?

Then, do not dress and act like them when you visit their cities.

[CruiserBruce]

It is one thing to look like a target, and another to dress like a tourist.

 

It is not wise to put all the things you don't want stolen, out there for viewing and possible "borrowing". Yes, we should all more careful about this.

 

Tourists dress comfortable for the country they are from. I can recognize tourists from many Europen countries, without hearing them speak. Germans and further east tourists dress recognizably. Americans dress pretty predictably.

 

I think it is a little silly to dress dramatically different when you travel. Yes, I tone down the "New York" type shirts, but guess what...Europeans wear those style shirts, and shirts with US sports teams on them!

 

As we travel regularly in Europe, you would be surprised how many times we have been asked if we are Australian (by Brits or Canadians) or British (by Aussies)! Probably less than 20% of the time do we get correctly identified as Americans.

[LondonTowner]

CruiserBruce

 

I agree that it is very easy to distinguish the nationality of somebody how they look and dress. However, it's not the style of dress that is the problem. It is the fact that many people just don't seem to take sensible precautions.

 

Living in central London I see lots of tourists who are just not paying attention to what they are doing or where they are.

 

I also think from reading these forums and Tripadvisor that there is a North American obsession with pickpockets.

 

 

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[marazul]

 

I think it is a little silly to dress dramatically different when you travel. Yes, I tone down the "New York" type shirts, but guess what...Europeans wear those style shirts, and shirts with US sports teams on them!

 

As we travel regularly in Europe, you would be surprised how many times we have been asked if we are Australian (by Brits or Canadians) or British (by Aussies)! Probably less than 20% of the time do we get correctly identified as Americans.

 

Yes, but most people would not dress at home, even casually, in the outfits they wear when they travel. And I also mean the many bags, packs, etc they may carry.

And awareness is the key, especially if your outfit and manner makes it easier to spot you.

[cruisemom42]

 

I also think from reading these forums and Tripadvisor that there is a North American obsession with pickpockets.

 

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I am of two minds about that. I can't speak to TripAdvisor, but a lot of the posters here on CC are facing their first-ever trip to Europe, and many of them live in small towns or communities where they don't have to take precautions against theft.

 

Also, I do think pickpocketing IS pretty common. I am in Europe 3-4 times a year, and I also come from a traveling family, all of us are pretty savvy. Just from our own experiences:

 

-- I was pickpocketed in Barcelona and twice have thwarted pickpocketers in Rome

-- My sister and BIL warded off attempts to pickpocket them on the Naples Circumvesuviana and on the Athens metro

-- My ex-DH was victim of attempted pickpocketing on the Spanish Steps in Rome (they surrounded him and had pulled up his shirt and halfway cut through his money belt -- very aggressive lot of gypsy children...)

-- My ex-FIL was pickpocketed on the Paris metro

 

Now granted, we do travel fairly often, but what are the odds? I think the pickpocketers are a pretty active (but mostly nonviolent) threat. However, if this isn't hammered into the consciousness of US travelers, they tend to minimize the risk and either 1) take risks with where they stash valuables or 2) let their guard down too easily vis-a-vis the various scams used -- such as the ring scam, the bird poop scam, etc.

[LondonTowner]

cruisemom42

 

Well, we live in central London and travel all over mainland Europe very frequently, including major cities. I can tell you the times I have been robbed: in the carnival of Viareggio about 40 years ago, in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria somebody broke into my car. Another car break in about 20 years ago inVigo, Spain and in a London bar about 15 years ago. We did come across the 'signing petition' trick in Berlin about two years ago and of course, the gypsies with their flowers in Spain.

 

BTW, I have added to 'my favourites' , I think it was three, hotels that you recommended in Rome near the Pantheon. My dear friend I used to stay with in Rome, unfortunately, died.

 

I had also been recommended the Marcella Royal, Hotel White and Hotel Aristotle. Do you have any experience of those?

 

 

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[CruiserBruce]

CruiserBruce

 

I agree that it is very easy to distinguish the nationality of somebody how they look and dress. However, it's not the style of dress that is the problem. It is the fact that many people just don't seem to take sensible precautions.

 

Living in central London I see lots of tourists who are just not paying attention to what they are doing or where they are.

 

I also think from reading these forums and Tripadvisor that there is a North American obsession with pickpockets.

 

 

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That is my point. It isn't really about attire (although some really do like to scream about their nationality). It is taking commonsense security precautions....things you probably could or should do in any number of large US cities.

[kawagama]

Wow, this question ended up being hijacked into a discussion about muggings pretty quickly! As to your question about daylight hours--we were in the Eastern Mediterranean last October (mid month) The weather was warm and sunny all week (not cold at all), and sunset was around 6-7 PM, so we sailed out of ports during sunset on most days, as a previous poster indicated. If you are worried about being caught in the dark, just go back to the ship a little early. If you are on a ship organized excursion, the bus will bring you right to the docks, so again, you don't need to worry.

[cruisemom42]

cruisemom42

 

I had also been recommended the Marcella Royal, Hotel White and Hotel Aristotle. Do you have any experience of those?

 

 

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I have not stayed at any of the three but have heard good things about Hotel White (and it is nicely located). I looked at the locations of the other two and would not choose them. I assume the last one is Hotel Aristotele -- not a great location near Termini station. The other is in a bit better setting but still too far away from the sites, IMO.

[LondonTowner]

cruisemom

 

Thanks for that. There are some very cheap flights from London to Rome at the moment, but I think we will go later in the year.

 

 

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[CanuckonaBoat]

just wanted to say thanks for posting the question about the daylights hours- made me stop and think how that might impact my trip.

 

we're traveling mid june when the days will be longer, so sun might be setting just after main seating - and perhaps we can watch it from a deck. I can also try to time my Palo dinner to watch sunset from there. And since it sets later - the fireworks will also be definitely after dinner. (there was some talk about it happening in between dinners). PLUS i get to enjoy views of the sea until later a night.

 

We were in Alaska for our 1st Disney cruise - and we could watch the scenery so late into the night! I loved it.

 

Best of luck with your trip and stay safe!