Don't know where to start on booking cruise

[mrobinson]

Thinking of doing a Sept 2012 Med. cruise. Will be first time in Europe- have cruise Caribbean multiple times and want to do something different. But am overwhelmed on what cruise/cities to even consider. Looking for a 7 day with some pre-cruise days - thinking that maybe a Barcelona cruise might be a good one to start with.

 

We usually book Princess but open to other lines.

 

Any recommendations for a good "starter" europe cruise? Is it better to do a cruise where starting/ending port is the same - will that save a lot on airfare?

 

Any suggestions would be appreciated. We are couple in late 50's and usually are comfortable doing our own planning for Caribbean cruises but Europe is overwhelming me

[cruisemom42]

There is usually not much difference in airfare between a round trip and an open-jaw trip (2 different cities). It's nice to start and end in two different cities and spend a few days in each one before and after the cruise.

 

Princess has (in my opinion) some of the best itineraries in the Mediterranean of the mass-market lines. Since you already are familiar with Princess, I suggest you look at them first. However, I don't think they do many 7-day cruises. Most are longer (10 or 12 days).

 

One itinerary I really like and have recommended many times for a first Med cruise is the one Princess calls "The Grand Mediterranean". It's 12 days but visits so many of the best-known ports in the Med; it provides a great introduction. It departs in Barcelona and ends in Rome (or vice versa) and visits lots of great ports in between.

[CathyCruises]

Also, Celebrity has several of its new S class ships in the Med which are just lovely. The pricing this year has been phenomenal--one could get a guaranteed balcony on a 12 day cruise for $949/pp. So check for Solstice, Silhouette, Eclipse or Equinox (or the not yet sailing Reflection) and see if any of those itineraries or prices are of interest to you.

 

Cruising is a great way to get the flavor of Europe and prep yourselves for a longer land tour in your favorite spots. Many of the ports are easy to do on your own and there is a TON of info available here.

 

After multiple Med cruises I did a Caribbean cruise this winter and it was frankly disappointing and unexciting--but much more restful!

[texancruzer]

Wow, there are so many factors to consider.

 

While we enjoy the ship experience we really cruise for the ports. If you arent totally set on a certain cruise line or ship, look around at the various ports there are and decide which ones interest you the most. There is a great info area at the top of this page called "Ports" Click on it and then Mediterranean (there is Eastern and Western) and it will give you a bit of info on each port. We did Western our first and Eastern our second. We are going again in November and doing Eastern again as it was so good the first time and many more things to see in the same ports we were in before. We normally don't like to repeat ports but again...... so much to see ......

 

Then go to each cruiseline website and put in Mediterranean and 7 days and see what pops up.

 

This will give you a great start as it narrows it down a bit.

 

PS: We love to begin (and sometimes end) in Rome. It has so much to offer that it really does require more than a one day port stop. We always fly in a day or two early and see as much as we can.

[eh2zed]

IMO 7 days is too short for a Med cruise given cost of airfare and so many interesting and different ports. Not many do 7 days anyway. RCCL out of Venice does however. Definitely do a pre and/or post cruise stay. Personally for a first Med I would be tempted to do a Rome return or Rome/Athens at least 10 day. Lots of choices and pick primarily by itinerary. Ship is important but secondary in the Med particularly.

[torybruno]

We just completed our first Med cruise this summer.

 

We only had a two week window to travel, so a lot of our choice was already narrowed down for us. We booked about 60 days out, so we got a real deal too!

 

If funds allow, consider a 10-12 night cruise. And make sure to have a few sea days in there to relax!

 

I never researched so much like I did for any other cruise for the Med. The Library and cruise critic were my best friends!

[wantocruisemore]

We also completed our first Med cruise early this month. We chose a 7 day because we had maximum 2 weeks we could be off at a time and wanted to spend some time pre-cruise in Rome.

 

Barcelona would be a good place to start and spend some time there either before or after. If you are interested in ancient or especially religious places, then look for something out of Rome. A cruise stop in Rome is just way too short.

 

We liked Royal Caribbean because we had a wide range of ages (14-78) and it gave something for everyone. If you like Princess you may also look at Celebrity. I think they have a couple of cruises that are 7 or 8 nights.

 

Think to yourself if there was one place in Europe to go, where would it be. Then work your cruise around that location. If it is not a port, try for a port not far away. Then think of where else you might like to visit. Since Med cruises are so port intensive, concentrate your search on the ports rather than the line.

 

Have fun planning. A Med cruise is a great way to get a little taste of each country.

[caripoo]

Many factors you first need to decide..... What part of the Med do you want to start..There are almost 3 different areas to consider.. East mix of Italy, Greece and Turkey ..... West More Spain, Portugal, France and some Italy Almost central Med more France alot of italy and some Greece...Then there is the Baltic....All are FABULOUS

 

Consider the time you want to go...AVOID the summer if you can, many of the areas will be VERY hot....The cruises, crowds, and airfare will be less in the late spring and early fall....

 

We spend time in Italy every year...it is obviously our favorite so if you want to do a short cruise...there will not be as many of them.. most are 10-14 nites. spend post and pre cruise visiting the areas you leave and start from...

 

Cruises that start and end in different cities are great...Some ports are far from the major cities Florence and Rome are a few each about a 90 min ride HAPPY PLANNING!!!

[maryann ns]

For our first cruise we picked the Eastern Mediterranean because there were wonderful ports and ones which would be harder to get to on our own.

 

Western Europe is easy to visit as a land trip.

 

I agree with having different starting and ending ports. We spent three nights in Rome before our cruise and four in Greece (Athens and Naphlion) after. Other great starting or ending ports are Venice and Istanbul.

 

It all depends on the time available and your interests.

 

Narrow your choices down (by itinerary) and then look at: how much time you are in each port, are you there during a holiday or when sites are closed, how many other ships are in port, etc.

[Cruzer Two]

Before you can even start to look at itineraries you will need to decide how much are you are willing to spend and how long are you willing to be gone. Since you have never been to Europe, a repositioning cruise that starts in London or Copenhagen and ends in Rome would give you the chance to see parts of the United Kingdom or Denmark and then make port calls in France, Portugal, Gibraltar, Spain, and Italy. This will give you a little taste of many different European countries. There cruises usually last for 14 – 21 days and the price varies greatly depending on the cruise line.

 

If you desire a shorter cruise then you will have to decide on a specific region of Europe. Baltic Sea cruises usually begin and end in London or Copenhagen and give you the opportunity to visit many Northern European capitals and usually include two days in St. Petersburg, Russia plus some of the old Russian Federation states such as Estonia. All of the port calls are marvelous.

 

British Isle cruises begin and end in London and make port calls in the Scotland, Ireland and sometimes Iceland. You can also do a repositioning cruise that includes these countries and then makes a North Atlantic crossing to New York with stops in Iceland, Greenland, and Canada. If you intimidated by foreign languages a cruise of the British Isles would be a good place to start. A pre-cruise stay in London would be a great introduction to Europe.

 

Mediterranean cruises offer too many itineraries to adequately cover in this message, but many of the cruises start and end in Rome, Italy or Barcelona, Spain. A pre-cruise visit to either of these cities would be enjoyable, but since you’ve never been to Europe I would recommend a cruise departing from Rome. The variation of port calls are just too numerous to mention.

 

Whichever area you choose to cruise, the best time of year, considering the weather and crowds, would be in April, May, September, and October.

 

Click on the link at the bottom of my message to see information on viewing some of my Youtube shore excursion videos from all of the regions mentioned above. As they say, “A picture is worth a thousand words”

 

Good luck with your decision.

 

Ron

[Softball20]

As has already been mentioned, Caribbean cruising is much different than Med cruising. We had done multiple cruises and land trips to the Caribbean, and while I LOVE it, it's a truly different experience. Cruising in the Med is much busier as it is port intensive and you are likely to have long port days. I love this as well, but it's a different vacation. Honestly, as much as I love the Caribbean, I think I like cruising in the Med better.

 

We did one starting in Barcelona a couple years ago and it was fabulous. It was a 12 night cruise, so we got to taste Spain, Italy and Greece -- all amazing. We've never done anything that goes from London or north, so I can't comment, but with Italy and Greece (Spain, too) you can't go wrong! For us, while the itinerary is very important, the cruise line is also a factor. If you like Princess, then you might want to start with their itineraries and go from there.

[ollienbertsmum]

Before you can even start to look at itineraries you will need to decide how much are you are willing to spend and how long are you willing to be gone. British Isle cruises begin and end in London and make port calls in the Scotland, Ireland and sometimes Iceland. You can also do a repositioning cruise that includes these countries and then makes a North Atlantic crossing to New York with stops in Iceland, Greenland, and Canada. If you intimidated by foreign languages a cruise of the British Isles would be a good place to start. A pre-cruise stay in London would be a great introduction to Europe.

 

Mediterranean cruises offer too many itineraries to adequately cover in this message, but many of the cruises start and end in Rome, Italy or Barcelona, Spain. A pre-cruise visit to either of these cities would be enjoyable, but since you’ve never been to Europe I would recommend a cruise departing from Rome. The variation of port calls are just too numerous to mention.

 

Whichever area you choose to cruise, the best time of year, considering the weather and crowds, would be in April, May, September, and October.

 

Ron

 

Lots of really good advice here.

I agree that the concept of starting and ending in different ports is great, but it always seems to me that the cruises that do that are more expensive. Maybe I have not done enough homework.

 

Another suggestion is that if you are thinking of starting or ending in London, you can easily use the Eurostar train to get to Paris and that can even stretch to visiting the Normandy beaches (something on my 'to do' list).

 

Also nobody has mentioned starting in Venice - this is another place on my list, I believe that cruising in and out of Venice is magical. However Rome and Barcelona are great places to start from. Rome would be my first choice.

 

 

To the Original Poster, you really have to decide for yourself what you mean by 'Europe'! if I told my daughter that we were going to the US for a cruise and I booked out of Boston, I know that she would not be very happy, to her that is not the 'quintessential' US cruise. Same thing must go for you and Europe. When you think of Europe, what comes to mind? Go there and enjoy!!