Mediterranean or English Isles, Scotland, Ireland cruise

[drumming cruisers]

Mediterranean or English Isle, Scotland, Ireland Cruise?

 

I like cold weather, DH likes warmer weather.

 

We both like outside excursions, history and museums.

DH doesn't like to fly much, doesn't bother me.

 

If you have been on both cruises, which did you like better, and why?

[gkr283]

You'll get a lot of history in both places. The British Isles (Not English isle [emoji6]) would normally be much cooler.

 

Personally for history and museums I'd choose the UK and if you've never been I'd definitely recommend spending time in London either before or after a cruise. You'll need time just to scratch the surface of all that magnificent city offers.

 

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[Hampton99]

Both are completely different. And both are worth doing. I agree more history in the British isles. In the Mediterranean there are lots of churches and in Britain there are more castles! The Mediterranean will be very hot in the summer and Britain could be anything even in the summer. When we went it was in the 60's and overcast, which is typical. But this summer has been warmer and sunnier. You will be able to do more outside activities such as hiking in Britain. There is a reason they take a siesta in the afternoons in Spain, the heat of the day makes working outside difficult. We have done land tours in Britain and I didn't think I would enjoy a cruise there because everything is so accessible by car, but not having to pack and move every few days was great. The food and wine in the Mediterranean can't be beat, as well as some of the scenery depending on the stops. In the end two very different cruises but you won't regret either one.

[soccermommy]

We've done both cruises, the Mediterranean on the Spirit in 2016, and the British Isles cruise in 2017 on the Jade. We want in late May- early June both times.

I would say the time of year you go will make a difference. The Mediterranean was hot already in May, and ports were crowded. In the British Isles, weather was all over the place, cool but not cold in the Orkneys but almost hot at Edinburgh. I thought ports were a bit less crowded.

Since both cruises were very port intensive, the ship size and amenities weren't much of an issue for us, we love both ships. Since we are from Boston, getting to London was easy. We spent 3 days in London then took the train down to Southhamton. Super easy as our hotel was near Waterloo Station.

The Med cruise started in Venice, so we flew to Rome and then to Venice. We spent 3 days in Venice. Since a Med cruise can start in one city and end in another, that could make a difference for your travel. We finished in Barcelona, stayed 2 extra days and left from Barcelona, through Rome back to Boston. Getting a nonstop to Boston is almost impossible from Barcelona. It might not be a problem for other cities. I just mention all this because travel arrangements can be a bit of a headache, depending on the cruise.

I'd say, pick the cruise that has the places you really want to visit the most. Try to go early or late season, you'll have fewer crowds. Then pick the ship with a price and amenities that makes sense. We generally cruise the smaller ships because the itineraries seem to be more interesting. But you can't go wrong with either choice. Good luck, and enjoy yourself!

[JellyBean07]

I have also been thinking of both of these cruises and have found this thread very helpful.

[lamchops]

I have done 5 European cruises with a U.K. scheduled next week. Due to work I usually cruise in September/October or February/March. I have focused mainly in the Mediterranean because of the iconic sites.

 

Eastern Mediterranean for:

Venice canals

Dubrovnik walls

Olympia games site

Athens Parthenon and acropolis

 

Western Mediterranean for:

Rome’s too many to list

Pisa’s leaning tower

Naples Pompeii

French Riviera

 

Northern Europe for:

London’s too many to list

Amsterdam’s canals

Normandy’s D-day beaches

 

Exreme Weather temperature doesn’t affect our enjoyment of these sites at the time of year that we visit but we hope for no rain. By choosing an itinerary based on these icon sites, we have discovered many places that we wouldn’t of considered going to.

 

Valletta, Malta is one of my favorite ports of call

Barcelona, Spain is one of my favorite embarkation ports

Naplio, Greece is my favorite seaside town

Nice is one of my favorite cities in France

Lisbon’s egg tarts are better than the Asian tarts

 

Regardless of weather, choose based on the itinerary that has sites that you want to see. I’m looking forward to my UK trip/cruise next week but I wouldn’t list many of my planned sites a higher priority than the ones I have listed for the Mediterranean.

[cruisequeen4ever]

Both are in my top cruises list! Based on all you said, I’d go British Isles because your hubby could get lucky with warmer weather like we experienced there this summer, but you will surely get some cooler weather, too. The Med is just plain hot if you’re going in the summer. The Med is my overall favorite, but the British Isles have incredible castles and sites to see.

 

 

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[kirsty_r]

The british isles is definitely less crowded than the med... beware the UK weather can be quite unpredictable... med is more consistent. There is lots to see in both places... have you thought about UK plus northern Europe rather than just british isles?