Eastern Med in Aug????

[laxxcoach]

My wife and I are thinking about taking an Eastern Med cruise on the Centruy in Aug. My question is that I know that it can be very warm then. Also I was stationed in Sicily (though 25 years ago) and remember that Aug is also the time when most Europeans take there vacations. We were told not to take a vacation in Aug. because of lots of tourists and a number of places will be closed because people are on vacation. Just wanted to get some other peoples thoughts. Thanks in advance.

[chive]

My wife and I are thinking about taking an Eastern Med cruise on the Centruy in Aug. My question is that I know that it can be very warm then. Also I was stationed in Sicily (though 25 years ago) and remember that Aug is also the time when most Europeans take there vacations. We were told not to take a vacation in Aug. because of lots of tourists and a number of places will be closed because people are on vacation. Just wanted to get some other peoples thoughts. Thanks in advance.

 

 

It will be very hot.

[Ine]

It will be very hot and humid indeed and airconditioning isnot availbale that much.

It is NOT true that places will be closed, certainly not in the touristic places. Maybe in less populair towns. Remember it is highseason and many european tourists will be visiting also.

[Denny01]

Yes, high chance of it being hot And you won't be alone!

 

Denny

[caripoo]

HOT, HOT, and even humid.:rolleyes::rolleyes: And many more families traveling if that matters. Don't know if you can go anytime, but Sept is lovely and usually less $$$ than the summer.

[chipmaster]

As others said it is hot, can be humid, as to is it impossibly uncomfortable only you can decide.

 

We did this time two years ago and found it to be our most memorable vacation at the time :D Nothing was closed, not too crowded, but there were crowds; YMMV.

 

My wife and I are thinking about taking an Eastern Med cruise on the Centruy in Aug. My question is that I know that it can be very warm then. Also I was stationed in Sicily (though 25 years ago) and remember that Aug is also the time when most Europeans take there vacations. We were told not to take a vacation in Aug. because of lots of tourists and a number of places will be closed because people are on vacation. Just wanted to get some other peoples thoughts. Thanks in advance.

[Loracpin2]

If possible, I recommend taking this itinerary in late September or early October. The weather is perfect and summer vacationers have gone back to work and school.

[lobster129]

Not sure which Century itinerary you are considering...but the hottest ports are usually Athens Greece and the ports in Turkey. The Greek Isles are warm but lovely breezes. It will be warmer when you are more inland for Florence and Rome. If means that you must go in August or not at all...then do it. If

f you thave the option for cooler times and less crruows

[GeorgiaPeach51]

I would agree...if you can go in September or on the other end, in May, you might have a better time, if temps and crowds are concerns for you. We did the E. Med. in mid-May and it was just starting to get warmer...and we could feel the temperature difference from our pre-cruise days in Rome in mid-May and the post-cruise days in Rome in late May.

 

A lot of the places you will probably see are zero shade, lots of hot buildings radiating heat (Pompeii, Athens), no shade (Ephesus, Pompeii)...we commented several times that we could not imagine doing the tours in the heat of summer. I would think it would help if you tend to be outside a lot and are a bit more "acclimatized", kind of like a runner who has to train for a mid-summer race. There is plenty of climbing and it was pretty packed in many sites (Vatican, Pompeii, Ephesus), so I can well imagine how much more crowded it would be in August. But, I surely wouldn't cancel the trip if it is the only time you can go! It was the trip of a lifetime for us.

[tom_uk]

As others have said, it will be hot and busy.

 

As regards temperatures/humidity, for what it's worth I have found (on three visits now) that the Greek islands/Turkey seems to be less humid than Italy. I remember having a really uncomfortable afternoon at Taormina on a Galaxy cruise three years ago when it was both very hot and very humid. Later in the cruise, at Corinth, Mykonos, and Ephesus it was if anything even hotter but much less humid, and was therefore easier to take.

[CruisingChick]

My question is that I know that it can be very warm then. Also I was stationed in Sicily (though 25 years ago) and remember that Aug is also the time when most Europeans take there vacations. We were told not to take a vacation in Aug. because of lots of tourists and a number of places will be closed because people are on vacation.

 

EXACTLY! We cruised the Mediteranean on Millennium in August 2003 and I would choose not to go back again in August. Very warm is an UNDERSTATEMENT. It was so hot it wasn't funny. Also, there were so many French and Spanish passengers on the ship because they are all taking their vacation at that time that the English speaking passegners were actually in the minority.

 

If you can cruise at any other time of the year I would skip August.

[Onessa]

We generally travel the Med in Early May or Oct-Nov. Temps have always been moderate but not too chilly and crowds VERY small. I've been in Rome and Nice in August on business, most disagreeable (weather not quite as bad as Washington DC at that time of year, but close!)

 

I have uncropped pictures from Delios, Santorini, and the Parthonon from our trip last November that I showed my husband and asked "what's wrong with this picture?" -- and the correct answer was there is not a person in the frame. That was our third late November cruise in the Med in a row -- lovely weather: overnight lows in the 50's highs in the 70s, clear skys, little or no precip - one post-cruise stay in Venice we had one day of mild flooding in St. Mark's square.

 

July and/or August nearly anywhere in the northern hemisphere can be ugly :)