Liberty of the Seas - Mediterranean Sailings

[Gordo]

Hello fellow cruisers. The boards have been rather quiet this summer for Liberty of the Seas sailings of the Mediterranean. We are cruising next month and looking for some advice.

 

For those who have previously toured the Mediterranean, whether on Liberty or another ship, we are curious to know:

 

If you could do it all again:

 

1. What were your must-do experiences?

2. What would you take a pass on, if you knew then what you know now?

 

We are sailing from Barcelona and our ports of call are:

 

Toulon

Villefranche

Livorno

Civitavecchia

Naples

 

Thanks for your input.

[peteukmcr]

Hello fellow cruisers. The boards have been rather quiet this summer for Liberty of the Seas sailings of the Mediterranean. We are cruising next month and looking for some advice.

 

For those who have previously toured the Mediterranean, whether on Liberty or another ship, we are curious to know:

 

If you could do it all again:

 

1. What were your must-do experiences?

2. What would you take a pass on, if you knew then what you know now?

 

We are sailing from Barcelona and our ports of call are:

 

Toulon

Villefranche

Livorno

Civitavecchia

Naples

 

Thanks for your input.

OK, so from our sailings on Liberty in the Med. These are my thoughts.

 

Toulon, you will dock in La Seyne Sur Mer, across the bay from Toulon. Long expensive shuttle for nothing to Toulon JMHO.

 

Villefranche - great little town, tender to port, walk to the train station and visit Monaco/Monte Carlo.

 

Livorno - major port, take a tour to Pisa and Florence, so great.

 

Civitavecchia - you have to use it as a trip to Rome. The port is accessible and if you do some research you can easily get to the train station and make your own way into Rome.

 

Naples, never done as a port stop on a cruise, but have used as a base for Sorrento, Capri and Pompeii. Again all worth seeing.

[sleeky]

Naples - Herculaneum was fantastic, even better than Pompeii IMHO. (use the ships tour for safety, Naples can be a little scary)

 

Toulon - The shuttle is not the only way to get to the town, there is a water bus for a few euros. We were there on a market day and it was quite a pleasant stop.

 

Livorno - we caught a bus to the train station, then a train to Pisa where we climbed the leaning tower (can be booked online in advance).

 

Villefrance - walk to the train station and then a train to Monte Carlo to wander around and soak up the atmosphere or visit the Palace

[mskaufman]

Hello fellow cruisers. The boards have been rather quiet this summer for Liberty of the Seas sailings of the Mediterranean. We are cruising next month and looking for some advice.

 

For those who have previously toured the Mediterranean, whether on Liberty or another ship, we are curious to know:

 

If you could do it all again:

 

1. What were your must-do experiences?

2. What would you take a pass on, if you knew then what you know now?

 

We are sailing from Barcelona and our ports of call are:

 

Toulon

Villefranche

Livorno

Civitavecchia

Naples

 

Thanks for your input.

 

We went on this cruise last month. Without knowing you it is hard to say what is a "must do". However, we were very happy with our choice at each port.

 

Toulon - Went to Aix for the morning.

 

Villefrance - Explored Villefranche in the morning and went back to the ship for lunch. After lunch went on the ship tour to Old Nice and Eze. Was relatively inexpensive and by taking the ship's tour we did not have to woory about the bus schedule to Eze and catching the bus back.

 

Livorno - Went to Florence

 

Cit - Went to Rome. We had been there before and concentrated on our favorite places (Trevi, Pantheon and the Vatican)

 

Naples - Took the tour where you go to Salerno and get on a boat and ride up the Amalfi coast to Amalfi. In the afternoon we went to Pompeii. This combination was awesome.

 

You can check out my pictures at:

 

http://markandkareneurope2012.shutterfly.com/

[Gordo]

Thanks all for sharing your experiences.

 

mskaufman, what a great website. We really enjoyed the pics, thanks for posting the link.

 

Please keep the suggestions coming.

[wantocruisemore]

You really need to check out the Port of Call section for the countries you will be visiting. The Italy section expecially gives so much good advice.

 

If you are interested in making the most of your day with a private driver/guide in Rome and Florence, I can highly recommend ROME IN LIMO. Just check out the huge thread with all the satisfied customers.

 

If DIY is more your thing, there are some great itinerary examples to follow.

[Gordo]

Thanks for the suggestion but we were hoping to get more than just port suggestions (for example, take a pass on xxx show, or best bar service was provided at xxx, or go to deck xxx for a fabulous view at sail away).

[RichnTina]

Can anyone tell me which nights are the formal nights for these sailings?

[Ashland]

Can anyone tell me which nights are the formal nights for these sailings?

We did the western med on Liberty 7 nights out of Barcelona and our formal nights were 2 (Toulon) & 6 (Naples)...Enjoy :)

[ollienbertsmum]

You really need to check out the Port of Call section for the countries you will be visiting. The Italy section expecially gives so much good advice.

 

If you are interested in making the most of your day with a private driver/guide in Rome and Florence, I can highly recommend ROME IN LIMO. Just check out the huge thread with all the satisfied customers.

 

If DIY is more your thing, there are some great itinerary examples to follow.

 

This info is good - although in Livorno this year on an Adventure sailing there were just 2 of us so we took the Florence on your own ship tour which cut out the time spent getting to and from Florence and thought it was money well spent. Florence is just an open air museum, it is so compact you can just wander about going "wow" and stop for pizza/pasta/chianti/gelato and have a good time.

 

If you want to go up the tower of Pisa you must book ahead on line - I think the same applies to the museums in Florence, we just went in churches, there are so many!!

 

I think if I were choosing a port to do a private excursion if you have never visited Rome and think it might be your only visit - then do this in Rome. I would also say Toulon. The public transport links did not seem easy to manage (when compared to going to Monte Carlo or Nice from Villefranche for example). We had a nice tour to Aix en Provence which I enjoyed, but I didn't see as much of Provence as I know that i would have done in a private limo tour.

 

Diy from Naples is really easy.

 

Attractive Ports?? Only Barcelona, Villefranche and Naples count, there is no difference in sailing in and out so as you arrive in the dark make sure your sailaways are from good viewing points - choose your own, there are lots. You are sailing along the south coast of France but if i recall it is mostly in the dark which is a pity

 

As to the ship - We went to all the shows and would not have skipped any. Everyone has their own favourite bars.

 

I hope that you have time to enjoy Barcelona - it is easy to get around on the metro but keep your hands on your bags at all times. There is no need to be worried, just keep it zipped up and close to you. We did casa battlo and loved it but we were there just as it opened (we were squeezing it in the day we boarded) as we left an hour later there was a long queue and the place was more crowded. We have also visited sagrada familia, the magic fountains and las ramblas. A visit to Montserrat is a great way to escape the heat. We did this on our first cruise using the ship tour but I do believe that it is easy to do it diy.

 

I loved my cruise on the Liberty - I hope that you do too

[RichnTina]

We did the western med on Liberty 7 nights out of Barcelona and our formal nights were 2 (Toulon) & 6 (Naples)...Enjoy :)

Thank you so much :)

[Gordo]

This info is good - although in Livorno this year on an Adventure sailing there were just 2 of us so we took the Florence on your own ship tour which cut out the time spent getting to and from Florence and thought it was money well spent. Florence is just an open air museum, it is so compact you can just wander about going "wow" and stop for pizza/pasta/chianti/gelato and have a good time.

 

If you want to go up the tower of Pisa you must book ahead on line - I think the same applies to the museums in Florence, we just went in churches, there are so many!!

 

I think if I were choosing a port to do a private excursion if you have never visited Rome and think it might be your only visit - then do this in Rome. I would also say Toulon. The public transport links did not seem easy to manage (when compared to going to Monte Carlo or Nice from Villefranche for example). We had a nice tour to Aix en Provence which I enjoyed, but I didn't see as much of Provence as I know that i would have done in a private limo tour.

 

Diy from Naples is really easy.

 

Attractive Ports?? Only Barcelona, Villefranche and Naples count, there is no difference in sailing in and out so as you arrive in the dark make sure your sailaways are from good viewing points - choose your own, there are lots. You are sailing along the south coast of France but if i recall it is mostly in the dark which is a pity

 

As to the ship - We went to all the shows and would not have skipped any. Everyone has their own favourite bars.

 

I hope that you have time to enjoy Barcelona - it is easy to get around on the metro but keep your hands on your bags at all times. There is no need to be worried, just keep it zipped up and close to you. We did casa battlo and loved it but we were there just as it opened (we were squeezing it in the day we boarded) as we left an hour later there was a long queue and the place was more crowded. We have also visited sagrada familia, the magic fountains and las ramblas. A visit to Montserrat is a great way to escape the heat. We did this on our first cruise using the ship tour but I do believe that it is easy to do it diy.

 

I loved my cruise on the Liberty - I hope that you do too

 

Thanks for sharing. There are definitely a lot of options. We are so excited and hope we love it too.

[Gordo]

We are a week out from our sailing and so very excited. We thought we would bump this up in case anyone else with information they can share with us. Thanks.

[mskaufman]

We were on LOS last month. Here are some pictures to whet your appetite.

 

http://markandkareneurope2012.shutterfly.com/

[cruisetrail]

We have been on 5-day Med. cruise on the Liberty of the Seas this season.

 

Spent one day in Barcelona preparing for the cruise.

Of course, we had a look at the LOS from Montjuic.

 

Another point of interest was Nice where we had a nice tour.

 

We don't travel for ports, so we enjoyed the rest of the cruise on board the ship.

 

The Liberty of the Seas is a very well designed ship.

It's not luxurious by any means, but designed as a true criuse ship that is the most important to us.

 

We thoughly enjoyed wrap-around promenade deck, beautiful and quiet front observation area, balconies without life boats in the view, panoramas from the stern, vast fitness center.

 

Their main show "Saturday Night Fever" musical was well presented, so was an ice show.

 

Dining is the weakest part of RCI cruises.

However, we were pleasantly surprised with the food on the Liberty.

This is the first time we could eat something on "The Royal Promenade".

Dining experience overall: 4- out of 5 (except a few embarrassing details).

 

"The Royal Promenade" is busy and noisy in evening. So come to take a tour there in the morning, when it's quiet.

 

We had a pleasant cruise overall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Gordo]

Great photos, and what a way to get us even more excited about our trip (I didn't know that was possible. :D)

 

Thank you both for sharing your pictures and information.

[purescottish]

When in Naples we got the "ferry" over to Capri which is absolutely stunning

book it just to the left of where you get off at the information desk, cost us 65 Euros one way for 3 of us, beautiful place to wander around... when you are ready to come back get your ticket at the "ferry counter" just to the left of the harbour (each crossing takes about 1 hour) so make sure you leave enough time to get back

 

enjoy

wendy

x

[purescottish]

DOH !!

forgot to add........ I have just scanned in the explorations booklet from July for our return next year, I can email it to you if you wish

 

wendy

x

[bgranquist]

Thank you for starting this thread a while back... it was nice to see some of the pictures and hear some of the experiences from people that have sailed Liberty, specifically Europe.

 

My wife and I are planning on sailing this itinerary May 2013.

 

Ultimately I was looking to expand on this topic a bit.... any updates or other experiences out there?

[Riggy84]

Apologies in advance for all the questions, but:

Does anyone know the earliest and latest times to embark and disembark from both Barcelona and Toulon? Also, what time does the ship leave both ports?

Just deciding where to embark from. Does anyone have any pros or cons for either port?

Also has anyone travelled from London to Toulon by train?

 

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions so far, i will take these on board when we get booked!

 

Sarah

[mskaufman]

Check if there is any price difference depending on embarkation. I had a friend who wanted to travel with us but was unable to get the same price out of Toulon that we got out of Barcelona.

[Riggy84]

From what i've seen so far, Toulon is cheaper and if i get the train from London, it seems cheaper than if i fly to Barcelona and get a cab to the port.

It's still early days yet, we are a while off booking, just wanna get clued up on what my options are!

[Deebs2]

We are booked on the 7/14 sailing. We have our air to Barcelona booked, but I'm having second thoughts about the cruise. Seeing the pictures helped, but I'm just wondering if its too much travel time to Florence, Rome etc. I've been there already, so I'm second guessing if its worth it. Traveling with a 9 and 11 year old. Wondering if we should just explore Spain.