MED Euro Cruise options and questions

[cruisemom42]

15 hours ago, fountain44 said:

more interested in what stops are just mehh and which ones you have to do considering its a 7 day cruise on a larger big box brand ship.  For example we can leave from rome or is it better to leave from venice and see rome.  Things like that.

 

So on a seven-day cruise on a big ship you're likely to get either "Eastern" or "Western" Mediterranean. (A bit like the Caribbean.)  Neither choice is a loser, but it does somewhat come down to what YOU like and want to see. Western itineraries usually cover some ports in Spain, France and Italy. Eastern itineraries may also include Italy but also Greece, Croatia, occasionally Turkey. 

 

As mentioned, there are some that call themselves "Greek isles" -- they usually begin or end in Athens and on a week cruise probably go to 3-4 islands -- Mykonos, Santorini and Corfu are very frequently included. 

 

Ships tend to embark/disembark passengers in major ports where there is a large airport nearby, good infrastructure, etc.  So:  Rome, Athens, Barcelona, occasionally Istanbul.  Venice is no longer allowing cruise ships to dock in the city proper, so beware of any ship that lists Venice as a start/end.  Most ships are now docking instead either in Ravenna or Trieste, both are QUITE a distance away.

 

Rome needs more time than you will have on a daytrip. It is probably the Med city with the biggest percentage of must-sees, from the Colosseum and Forum to the Vatican and Sistine chapel.  Spend at least an extra day pre- or post-cruise there. 

 

Barcelona is probably the easiest of the major hubs to embark/disembark and usually has good flight connections though the airport can be a PITA.  (Not as bad as Venice, however.)

 

At a guess, a lot of the Western one-week itineraries are going to be Barcelona to Rome or vice-versa, and a lot of the Eastern/Greek Isles will be either Athens-Athens (Greek isles) or Athens to *Venice* with some Adriatic ports (e.g., Dubrovnik, Kotor) and fewer Greek Isles.

 

I think the next step is for you to look at some itineraries and come back with questions. The individual country ports of call boards here on CC are a great source of specific information.

[iancal]

We travel to the Med area either in the spring or the fall.   Never in the summer.  Too hot, too many tourists.   

 

Just returned from Portugal.  Spent our last two weeks in the Algarve.  Beaches were not crowded but the water was cold.  Last time in Sicily we were on the beach and swimming in late October.   Water was much warmer.  Temps in the 26-28 range.  But it is weather, it changes and it can go either way.

 

Topless beaches...hardly a big deal.  Most in the Algarve were topless. Does not mean that every female is topless...the opposite is true.  Never designated as such because it is not viewed as anything out of the ordinary.  Not certain why some make such a big issue out of a topless beach.

 

Only saw one sign on a beach in Tavira pointing to a clothing optional beach, ie nudist beach.

 

Pay particular attention to how far each port or tender is from the sites that you wish to visit.  Also pay attention to time in port.  Arriving at 10 and sailing at 3 is not so great if it is a port stop that interests you.

Edited June 25, 2022 by iancal

[fountain44]

13 hours ago, wowzz said:

Whilst you are seasoned cruisers, you have never been to Europe,  and therefore have never experienced proper jet lag  !

So, the first two days of your vacation will be a blur. By day three you will be just about be in the right time zone. And, just as you are adjusted, you will fly back to the US. 

So, if you  cannot take at least fourteen days holiday, go when it is cheapest,  when it is less busy,  and when the weather is comfortable.  So, April !

You have never mentioned your budget.  You should perhaps look at premium lines, such as  Viking, which may go to smaller ports.

Yeah wife hasnt experienced it but I have with the military with an 8 hour time change,  really never recover from it in a week, but usually a day or so makes a big difference.  Think we plan on arriving two days early to combat that. 

 

[fountain44]

Ok folks getting good info once again.  Now from what I am hearing is maybe July is better,  due to weather.    If we do go in April it might not be over easter, but might be close or the week following 

 

But in order to get specific advice below is the potential ports of embarkations and the stops.  What it might come down to is flights in terms of times and cost as well.

 

Eastern trip in July, and really July looks to have more eastern then Western stuff and a lot of MSC branded trips

 

Embarkation ports- Rome, Venice, Siracusa, Bari, Triste, Athens.

 

Ports of Call no order just looking for any thumbs up or down keep in mind first trip to these- Split, Korfu, Masina, Rome, Venice, Mykonos, Satorini, athens, ancona, dubronvik,, Siracusa

 

Western Trip-

 

Embarkation ports- Barcelona, Genoa, Palermo, Athens, Marseille,

 

Ports of call- some of the above plus naples, genoa, Marseille, Palermo, La Goulette, Cannes, Taranto

 

Lots of MSC cruises seem to be the best deal.  Not going to get into groupings just wondering what places might be a complete waste of time and which ones are good.  Some trips seems to have like all stops in italy or all in croatia, think we are going to lean towards the ones that stop in multiple places

Edited June 25, 2022 by fountain44

[lisiamc]

In your shoes, I would much rather go on a Mediterranean cruise in April than July. There will a tonne of tourists everywhere, with lots of children, It will almost certainly be HOT in July. Over 100° is not unusual. And humid. The heat and humidity can sap your sightseeing energy to a surprising degree. It may also get very hot and sticky where you live, but you may not normally walk for miles outdoors in those conditions. And thunderstorms or even hailstorms are not that uncommon either. 

[iancal]

Are you planning any pre or post travel?

 

If so that may impact you embarkation or your disembarkation port.

 

Airfare can vary greatly depending on what European city you select as a gateway.  Lots of low cost flight options once you are in Europe.

 

What ports we might view as less attractive than others is very subjective.  You should do some research and decide which ports best meet your interests.

 

Like others have said, we would never select the summer months..mid June to Sept. for travel to Europe.  Too hot, too crowded, prices at their peak.   It is either mid April to mid June for us or Sept/October.  Late October can a bit tricky for Med cruises.  Never quite know what the weather will be.

 

Edited June 25, 2022 by iancal

[fountain44]

1 minute ago, iancal said:

Are you planning any pre or post travel?

 

If so that may impact you embarkation or your disembarkation port.

 

Airfare can vary greatly depending on what European city you select as a gateway.  Lots of low cost flight options once you are in Europe.

 

What ports we might view as less attractive than others is very subjective.  You should do some research and decide which ports best meet your interests.

 

We plan on two days before.  Thinking Rome or athens will probably provide the best deals.  I know ports are subjective.  Just wondering if there is any that are a waste.  Much like the carribbean, first trip and a cruise hard to complain,  but for me I would still steer people away from bahamas, san juan, and a few others

[wowzz]

Can I suggest that if you have not cruised with MSC before, you check out various reviews. They are very much a love it or hate it cruise line. Very Italian in character, announcements in seven languages, and very glitzy. Plus, depending on the actual ship, very large which means that disembarkation and embarkation can be a lengthy process.

Additionally,  some of their port stoos can be of short duration. 

[iancal]

19 minutes ago, fountain44 said:

We plan on two days before.  Thinking Rome or athens will probably provide the best deals.  I know ports are subjective.  Just wondering if there is any that are a waste.  Much like the carribbean, first trip and a cruise hard to complain,  but for me I would still steer people away from bahamas, san juan, and a few others

Our experience over years of independent travel and cruising is that a little effort in upfront planning and research can greatly enhance your experience as well as reduce the cost of your trip.

 

As per your example, we like San Juan but dislike St. Thomas but would would not recommend that others do nor do not visit either.

 

Two days pre Rome is hardly enough if you want to see the city. 

 

It may take you a day simply to recover from your airline trip. 

 

Lots of airline delays at the moment.   We came home for Portugal two days ago.  Seven hour flight delay on our first flight, two hours  on our second flight.  We spoke to people who flights were cancelled and they waited a day or two days to get on the next flight.

Edited June 25, 2022 by iancal

[wowzz]

30 minutes ago, fountain44 said:

Thinking Rome or athens will probably provide the best deals.

Don't forget that both these cities are some way away ( in the case of Rome quite a way!) from the port.

So, if you are giving yourself two days in Rome, you actually just have the one day, when you will have full on jet lag. The second day you will be travelling to the ship. 

[fountain44]

26 minutes ago, iancal said:

Our experience over years of independent travel and cruising is that a little effort in upfront planning and research can greatly enhance your experience as well as reduce the cost of your trip.

 

As per your example, we like San Juan but dislike St. Thomas but would would not recommend that others do nor do not visit either.

 

Two days pre Rome is hardly enough if you want to see the city. 

 

It may take you a day simply to recover from your airline trip. 

 

Lots of airline delays at the moment.   We came home for Portugal two days ago.  Seven hour flight delay on our first flight, two hours  on our second flight.  We spoke to people who flights were cancelled and they waited a day or two days to get on the next flight.

 

I agree that why we are a year out and asking now.  It's all about matching flights to ports, or what you want to do given budget and timeframe.  When we travel somewhere new I like to figure out some of the ins and outs.

 

But with said every trip has a budget and a timeline, you can keep adding days or dollars  you do 10 days you should have done 12 or spent 5k you should have spent 7k to do this, kind of can keep going forever with that mentality.  

 

With the construct of a day cruise and days prior and maybe a day after we have about a 10 day window and  getting some great info here to maximize our experience.  

 

FYI on St thomas,  we did a trip there this winter and stayed for a week,  we were nervous because we had stopped there 2-3 times on cruises and after the first time it was kind of mehh.  But staying there was a totally different experience, one of our best trips ever and highly recommend it.  

Edited June 25, 2022 by fountain44

[fountain44]

23 minutes ago, iancal said:

Our experience over years of independent travel and cruising is that a little effort in upfront planning and research can greatly enhance your experience as well as reduce the cost of your trip.

 

As per your example, we like San Juan but dislike St. Thomas but would would not recommend that others do nor do not visit either.

 

Two days pre Rome is hardly enough if you want to see the city. 

 

It may take you a day simply to recover from your airline trip. 

 

Lots of airline delays at the moment.   We came home for Portugal two days ago.  Seven hour flight delay on our first flight, two hours  on our second flight.  We spoke to people who flights were cancelled and they waited a day or two days to get on the next flight.

 

Good points.  We are 9-12 months so hard to guess the flight situation right now but we are planning for it.  Good news on a lot of the ships they dont leave till late afternoon unlike the stuff in the states, so that builds in time.  

 

Looking at Rome and Athens flight scenarios (which open to others just havent really looked yet) We would most likely get in the morning two days prior so thats day one,  the next day nothing, then the cruise.  We are younger and a day should get us back on our feet.  

 

Like I said before its a 7 day cruise with 2-3 days on top of that so 10 days total is what on the doable list.  So trying to make the most of it. 

[Markanddonna]

We've been on both the MSC Grandiosa and the MSC Seaside. They are huge, megaships and like many megaships, the number of cabins are doubled, but the public areas (lounges, buffet, pool areas) are just slightly increased. Not bad in good weather, but you are like sardines at times when bad weather forces you indoors. I'd say most megaships are like that.

 

In the Med, our ship had different language announcements: Italian, Spanish, German, English and Chinese. 1/3 of the passengers (Nov 2019) were mainland Chinese which made an interesting dynamic. Just realize you are the minority on MSC ships in the Med. Not bad if you generally stay within your own travel group.

 

I would consider MSC again (we are Diamond, so get perks) in the Med, but would prefer RCL, NCL, Celebrity,  etc. 

[fountain44]

Looking at few cruises now and these are some that we like.  Lots of different combos basically the same thing but these are kind of the general jist

 

JULY 23

 

MSC-Rome/Civitavecchia, Siracusa, Taranto, Thira/Santorini, Mykonos, Rome/Civitavecchia

MSC-Siracusa, Taranto, Thira/Santorini, Mykonos, Rome/Civitavecchia, Siracusa

MSC-Brindisi, Mykonos, Athens/Piraeus, Split, Venice/Italy, Brindisi

RC-Venice (Ravenna), Koper, Messina, Rome/Civitavecchia, Livorno, Cannes, Barcelona

RC-Venice (Ravenna), Koper, Messina, Rome/Civitavecchia, Livorno, Cannes, Barcelona

 

 

April 23

 

MSC-Venice/Italy, Argostolion, Thira/Santorini, Heraklion, Bari, Venice/Italy

MSC-Athens/Piraeus, Zadar, Venice/Italy, Brindisi, Mykonos, Athens/Piraeus

MSC-Ancona, Dubrovnik, Bari, Corfu, Kotor, Trieste, Ancon

MSC- Valencia, Marseille, Genoa, Rome/Civitavecchia, Palermo, Ibiza, Valencia

RC-Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Marseille, La Spezia, Rome/Civitavecchia, Naples, Barcelona

 

[Markanddonna]

I glanced at a few of your selections. I guess you need to decide if the ship is primarily a very nice way to get to some great ports or if you really want a great ship experience. Some of the MSC ships are rated lower than some of the bigger ones we have been on. I've never sailed on a smaller, older, MSC ship. We are more of "the port is more important" sorts.

We love history and culture so you may not be as thrilled as we are to see Rome, Athens, Kusadasi (Ephesus),  or Naples (Pompeii and Herculaneum.)  Maybe you want a mixture of ancient sites and beaches or lovely places like Santorini.

 

Consider the wisdom of flying in and out of more of a major city airport in Europe. Your fares will be lower and more flights will be available. Certainly you can take a train or other ways but that adds time and money.

 

 

[fountain44]

6 minutes ago, Markanddonna said:

I glanced at a few of your selections. I guess you need to decide if the ship is primarily a very nice way to get to some great ports or if you really want a great ship experience. Some of the MSC ships are rated lower than some of the bigger ones we have been on. I've never sailed on a smaller, older, MSC ship. We are more of "the port is more important" sorts.

We love history and culture so you may not be as thrilled as we are to see Rome, Athens, Kusadasi (Ephesus),  or Naples (Pompeii and Herculaneum.)  Maybe you want a mixture of ancient sites and beaches or lovely places like Santorini.

 

Consider the wisdom of flying in and out of more of a major city airport in Europe. Your fares will be lower and more flights will be available. Certainly you can take a train or other ways but that adds time and money.

 

 

 

Ship is not entirely important.  Some of those ships are new that were listed.  I have been on cruises going back to late 90s early 2000s and those ships I never had a problem with and was on one Princess super ship 6-7 years ago.   We have never searched for a cruise by ship,  were more interested in the stops and dont hang out on the ship unless its a day at sea

 

I think we want a mix of greece, italy, maybe croatia.  really want to avoid all stops being in italy or one country,

 

Your last paragraph,  are you talking flying to london for example then flying to the port city?

Edited June 25, 2022 by fountain44

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, fountain44 said:

Looking at few cruises now and these are some that we like.  Lots of different combos basically the same thing but these are kind of the general jist

 

JULY 23

 

MSC-Rome/Civitavecchia, Siracusa, Taranto, Thira/Santorini, Mykonos, Rome/Civitavecchia

MSC-Siracusa, Taranto, Thira/Santorini, Mykonos, Rome/Civitavecchia, Siracusa

MSC-Brindisi, Mykonos, Athens/Piraeus, Split, Venice/Italy, Brindisi

RC-Venice (Ravenna), Koper, Messina, Rome/Civitavecchia, Livorno, Cannes, Barcelona

RC-Venice (Ravenna), Koper, Messina, Rome/Civitavecchia, Livorno, Cannes, Barcelona

 

 

April 23

 

MSC-Venice/Italy, Argostolion, Thira/Santorini, Heraklion, Bari, Venice/Italy

MSC-Athens/Piraeus, Zadar, Venice/Italy, Brindisi, Mykonos, Athens/Piraeus

MSC-Ancona, Dubrovnik, Bari, Corfu, Kotor, Trieste, Ancon

MSC- Valencia, Marseille, Genoa, Rome/Civitavecchia, Palermo, Ibiza, Valencia

RC-Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Marseille, La Spezia, Rome/Civitavecchia, Naples, Barcelona

 

 

As I posted earlier, check the port hours on the MSC cruise, they often give short hours in port. For example it is not uncommon for ships to give you 12 to 14 hour days in ports such as Livorno, Rome, etc.  MSC sometimes does two ports in one day!

 

I've been on 10 Med cruises and haven't really had a stop I didn't enjoy.  I stress again that you need to do your own research rather than just relying on recommendations from others. Some love Santorini (it's very scenic) and others hate it (it's very crowded and has some pain points regarding getting around the island).  Some love Kusadasi (a stop in Turkey that is gateway to some wonderful ancient ruins) while others hate it (aggressive vendors) or feel nervous visiting Turkey.  And so on...

 

Some ports are destinations in themselves (Dubrovnik, Palermo, Barcelona), others require you to get somewhere else to sightsee (Civitavecchia, Livorno) and others offer a lot of different options -- such as Naples which is a jumping off point for Amalfi Coast tours, Pompeii, Capri, etc. Or Marseilles, with several good daytrip options.

 

I would say some of the more 'secondary' ports (e.g., in importance and number of things to see/do) might be Ancona, Zadar, Brindisi, Bari....

[fountain44]

36 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

As I posted earlier, check the port hours on the MSC cruise, they often give short hours in port. For example it is not uncommon for ships to give you 12 to 14 hour days in ports such as Livorno, Rome, etc.  MSC sometimes does two ports in one day!

 

I've been on 10 Med cruises and haven't really had a stop I didn't enjoy.  I stress again that you need to do your own research rather than just relying on recommendations from others. Some love Santorini (it's very scenic) and others hate it (it's very crowded and has some pain points regarding getting around the island).  Some love Kusadasi (a stop in Turkey that is gateway to some wonderful ancient ruins) while others hate it (aggressive vendors) or feel nervous visiting Turkey.  And so on...

 

Some ports are destinations in themselves (Dubrovnik, Palermo, Barcelona), others require you to get somewhere else to sightsee (Civitavecchia, Livorno) and others offer a lot of different options -- such as Naples which is a jumping off point for Amalfi Coast tours, Pompeii, Capri, etc. Or Marseilles, with several good daytrip options.

 

I would say some of the more 'secondary' ports (e.g., in importance and number of things to see/do) might be Ancona, Zadar, Brindisi, Bari....

 

Thank you.  I think due to the limited nature of time on cruises we probably dont want something that means a long jaunt(more than 45mins to an hour) to get somewhere from the port that wastes time.  We also tend to not just get off the ship and stay right there, and also prefer or own adventures vs paid trips.  

 

Some of the eastern stuff includes Israel which looks great but tbh been in the middle with the military and with periodic unrest just an area of the world that doesnt interest me.  

 

If we had to pick ports based off initial research, we like mykonos, santarini, split, dubrovnik,  we like the idea of rome but if its no near the port that might cancel that .

 

MSC actually had really good times from what we have seen most were close to 12 hours, one had an over night stay in mykonos which we have never had an overnight stay, might be cool for night life.

[Markanddonna]

1 hour ago, fountain44 said:

Your last paragraph,  are you talking flying to london for example then flying to the port city?

I was thinking that flights to  places like Rome, Barcelona, and Athens would be better ports for embarkation and debarkation. They would like be cheaper flights and you would have more to do at these ports. The other cities, would likely be a bit more complicated with more connections.

 

Keep in mind that MSC cruises sometimes are more like ferry stops which is something the other cruise lines usually don't do. It really doesn't affect your experience, especially since you are not looking to meet other passengers. It just seems that each port produces a new batch of clueless rookies onboard.:-)

 

By the way, we love Kusadasi. I was worried about my safety, but compared to our previous stop in Athens, I felt very safe. It was very clean and modern. The vendors are no more aggressive than in the Caribbean.

 

Overall, I say you have a number of great options. This being your first time in on a European cruise, which city is most desirable for a little more time?  I might go with that. If it was my first time, Rome would stand out but Barcelona is so very easy and more affordable.

[Markanddonna]

6 minutes ago, fountain44 said:

Some of the eastern stuff includes Israel which looks great but tbh been in the middle with the military and with periodic unrest just an area of the world that doesnt interest me.  

I also was concerned about Israel but it is a fabulous destination. Actually, I felt much safer there than in my hometown. If you can go to Haifa on a cruise, I would so recommend it. You don't have to do the usually Jerusalem/ Galilee experience. We absolutely love Akko, the Ba'hai Gardens, and Caesarea Maritima which are all in or near Haifa. We are returning to Israel for a week in November and have no worries. Hey, I've been in several European capitals on May 1 when the protests got out of control, so I am used to some tension. You will feel very safe in Haifa.

[fountain44]

11 minutes ago, Markanddonna said:

I was thinking that flights to  places like Rome, Barcelona, and Athens would be better ports for embarkation and debarkation. They would like be cheaper flights and you would have more to do at these ports. The other cities, would likely be a bit more complicated with more connections.

 

Keep in mind that MSC cruises sometimes are more like ferry stops which is something the other cruise lines usually don't do. It really doesn't affect your experience, especially since you are not looking to meet other passengers. It just seems that each port produces a new batch of clueless rookies onboard.:-)

 

By the way, we love Kusadasi. I was worried about my safety, but compared to our previous stop in Athens, I felt very safe. It was very clean and modern. The vendors are no more aggressive than in the Caribbean.

 

Overall, I say you have a number of great options. This being your first time in on a European cruise, which city is most desirable for a little more time?  I might go with that. If it was my first time, Rome would stand out but Barcelona is so very easy and more affordable.

 

Yeah ok I was thinking the same thing then with Rome or Athens in terms of (de)embarkation.  Next April I can get to Rome for 550 bucks from NYC which is a 4 hour drive for us or our local airport is like 800.  Either way not bad Id pay 400 just getting to florida.  

[cruisemom42]

2 hours ago, fountain44 said:

 

Yeah ok I was thinking the same thing then with Rome or Athens in terms of (de)embarkation.  Next April I can get to Rome for 550 bucks from NYC which is a 4 hour drive for us or our local airport is like 800.  Either way not bad Id pay 400 just getting to florida.  

 

Wow, those are good airfares. Right now it's costing me (well, my company) more than $600 to fly to Minneapolis in August, lol.  I wouldn't snooze on taking advantage of those fares. Most flights to Europe right now are over $1000 for economy out of my home airport.

[wowzz]

7 hours ago, fountain44 said:

Looking at few cruises now and these are some that we like.  Lots of different combos basically the same thing but these are kind of the general jist

 

JULY 23

 

MSC-Rome/Civitavecchia, Siracusa, Taranto, Thira/Santorini, Mykonos, Rome/Civitavecchia

MSC-Siracusa, Taranto, Thira/Santorini, Mykonos, Rome/Civitavecchia, Siracusa

MSC-Brindisi, Mykonos, Athens/Piraeus, Split, Venice/Italy, Brindisi

RC-Venice (Ravenna), Koper, Messina, Rome/Civitavecchia, Livorno, Cannes, Barcelona

RC-Venice (Ravenna), Koper, Messina, Rome/Civitavecchia, Livorno, Cannes, Barcelona

 

 

April 23

 

MSC-Venice/Italy, Argostolion, Thira/Santorini, Heraklion, Bari, Venice/Italy

MSC-Athens/Piraeus, Zadar, Venice/Italy, Brindisi, Mykonos, Athens/Piraeus

MSC-Ancona, Dubrovnik, Bari, Corfu, Kotor, Trieste, Ancon

MSC- Valencia, Marseille, Genoa, Rome/Civitavecchia, Palermo, Ibiza, Valencia

RC-Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Marseille, La Spezia, Rome/Civitavecchia, Naples, Barcelona

 

You seem to be fixated with MSC. 

Why have you discounted Princess, Celebrity,  Oceania, Viking, Regent,  Seaborne etc ? 

[fountain44]

44 minutes ago, wowzz said:

You seem to be fixated with MSC. 

Why have you discounted Princess, Celebrity,  Oceania, Viking, Regent,  Seaborne etc ? 

Frankly they have the most options and the cost is good.  Viking and small boats dont interest me even if cost wasnt an issue.  Look not paying 2-4k per person. 

 

I have not discounted RC as there are some listed there and there is one princess out there.  

 

Edited June 25, 2022 by fountain44

[wowzz]

27 minutes ago, fountain44 said:

Frankly they have the most options and the cost is good. 

Cheap does not mean good value !

Just do more research into MSC before making a decision, but the Yacht Club is meant to be fantastic.