Mediteranean cruise 2014

[mackay12]

Hi anyone,

Please help me to make decision to book a mediteranean cruise this summer 2014. Which month will be not hot or not to cold, May or June? I am looking to depart from Venice and end up Barcelona. anyone has been on this trip please give me some tips, thank you

Vera

[Mississippian]

Hi anyone,

Please help me to make decision to book a mediteranean cruise this summer 2014. Which month will be not hot or not to cold, May or June? I am looking to depart from Venice and end up Barcelona. anyone has been on this trip please give me some tips, thank you

Vera

Both months are likely to be just fine. I would say late May would be the most comfortable, especially in Turkey and southern Italy. Late June can start to get pretty hot throughout, but the real heat generally doesn't start until July.

 

You might actually need a sweater some mornings and evenings in May, but far better to be a little chilly for an hour or to than to swelter in the heat on this port-intensive tour. Also, the Royal Princess is reported not to be well air-conditioned; presumably the Regal will be the same. Nothing more miserable than a hot cabin.

[chrysalis]

It is very easy to find average monthly temperature for various ports on the internet. Even Princess provides port weather history on their website.

 

The biggest differences will be between early May and late June sailings....but no one can predict what the actually weather conditions might be.

[sunsetbeachgal]

We did this wonderful voyage in reverse last year...loved the ports! We did it in July as we were traveling with a family with school age kids...it was very hot. I would suggest May or September or October. These cruises attract a lot of families and extended families during the summer months.

 

Be sure to plan a couple of days or more pre and post cruise. Both Venice and barcelona are equally great!

[mackay12]

Thank you everyone.

Any idea about the port and excursion on any port of calls, should I buy from the ship or explore the shore myself

Thanks

Vera

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I would pick May because in June there will be more kids and the airline tickets tend to be higher in June. There will be larger crowds everywhere in June. May would be the best month IMO.

[caber]

pick May. We have been in June the last 2 years and it was very hot and humid.

[mskaufman]

Thank you everyone.

Any idea about the port and excursion on any port of calls, should I buy from the ship or explore the shore myself

Thanks

Vera

 

A combination of all. There are some ports you can do yourself and some for which you might decide an excursion is a better idea. If you decide on an excursion there are those who will tell you never to use the ship's excursions and those who will tell you that the ship's excursions worked out great. I do it on a case by case basis. Sometimes there are folks on your roll call who will put something together that is a smaller group and will save you money. Other times, the ship's tours are well worth it. I do use the list of ship's tours as a tool to figure out what I want to do in a port.

 

Good luck

[Mississippian]

Thank you everyone.

Any idea about the port and excursion on any port of calls, should I buy from the ship or explore the shore myself

Thanks

Vera

I am one of those who will tell you to never use the ship's excursions. They are priced about double or triple what it costs to do it on your own in a smaller vehicle. I have no desire to be herded around with 40 other people.

 

There are tour companies that you can book in advance that will arrange a tour for four to 14. It is probably a good idea to book something for Ephasus in advance. You should make absolutely sure that you have an agreement in writing that under no circumstances are you to stop at any rug or leather shop or any other shop in Ephasus, as they will subject you to high-pressure sales. I was told by our guide that the stop was obligatory because it subsidized the cost of the trip.

 

For Athens, you can just hop in a cab and if they guy speaks English just ask him to take you to the places you want to go. We had a cab give us a several-hours' tour

 

For Istanbul Princess will give you a ride to the old city. You do not need to pay for any other tour.

 

For Naples, you can take a cab to the train station and take the commuter train to Pompeii if that suits you. After Pompeii you can go on to Sorrento before returning to Naples. Or you can just take a cab to Pompeii; they are not unreasonable in comparison to the ship's tours. My wife and I took a Trenitalia train from Naples to Salerno, then the ferry from Salerno to Amalfi; hopped off for an hour, then ferried to Positano. Had a wonderful lunch at Hotel San Pietro, had them call me a car to take us to Sorrento (50 Euros in 2004), then took the hydrofoil back to Naples (we should have taken the commuter train). A wonderful day!

 

Here's a view from the Hotel San Pietro, by the way: https://plus.google.com/photos/117591332320805618478/albums/5514817399186842769/5514835634864778322?banner=pwa&authkey=CMzCgeyk6PLSEQ&pid=5514835634864778322&oid=117591332320805618478

 

Rome: I would do this on my own, but on our last trip we used Rome in Limo since my father was in a wheelchair. I highly recommend them. If you use this company, follow their advice and pay extra to get a guide for the Vatican. Insist on getting Francesca as your Vatican guide.

 

Livorno: Very easy to see Pisa and Lucca on your own by train. Also easy to see Florence on your own.

Edited January 13, 2014 by Mississippian

[Essiesmom]

There are very good guidebooks out there...Rick Steves' Mediterranean Cruise Ports comes to mind. He tells you what you can do in the time allowed, and how to do it DIY. He also has free audio tours for some areas (Venice, Rome, florence, Pompeii...) that you can download from his website to your ipod/mp3. And maps to print out to go along. Should be available from amazon if not in shops in OZ. EM

[Dididi]

Vera, in addition to the Rick Steves' Mediterranean Cruise Ports book (which we used last summer and it's excellent), I recommend that you check out Tom's Port Guides at:

http://www.tomsportguides.com/

 

Because Mr. Sheridan, the port guides' author, usually travels on Princess, he gives information on port shuttle buses (and cost), where available. He includes overhead maps of port areas, making it easier to find local transportation or sights than by merely following written instructions (i.e., turn left at the first intersection).

 

A couple of months ago, our Mom chose the Florence On Your Own excursion from Livorno (a 2-hour tour and 4-hours of free time). Not cheap, but getting from the pier in Livorno to Galleria Uffizi in Florence takes several steps that can be time-consuming. On the way back to Livorno, the guide took them through a residential neighborhood where many of the modern masters of commerce (the Medicis of today) live. Beautiful houses/mansions. Thus, while you can fairly easily do Rome and Istanbul on your own, there might be places where a ship excursion might be more convenient.

 

Another place to obtain information on ports is your itinerary's roll call -- once you decide which cruise to take. There are also port-specific boards on Cruise Critic offering a lot (perhaps too much) advice.

 

Rick Steves' books are fantastic, except for the hotel recommendations, in my opinion (i.e., I would not like to drag luggage up three flights of stairs in Venice after a very long flight). In Venice, my family has stayed several times at the BW Bisanzio near St. Mark's Square. Great location, very good service, fairly reasonable price (for Venice). I would recommend that you go a couple of days prior to the cruise, see the sights, and take the vaporetto to Murano and Burano.

 

In Barcelona, if you have time, take the tour of Camp Nou (the Barca football/soccer stadium). Not a place that was high on my list, but it turned out to be a phenomenal experience. A daytrip to Monserrat (Rick Steves explains how) is definitely worth it.

 

Enjoy your trip!

[TM]

Vera, also try your roll call there may be several of you who wish to see a port and you can booked independently. We did the Eastern Med last fall on Celebrity and all of our excursions were either booked through our roll call, our we did DIY. Check out your roll call, you should find tons of information there. Have a great cruise.

[pseudoware]

Some helpful resources:

 

http://traveltips.usatoday.com/prepare-mediterranean-cruise-11138.html

 

http://voices.yahoo.com/10-mediterranean-cruise-tips-11536120.html

 

As mentioned, the earlier you travel, the greater your chances of avoiding the heat. No guarantees, though.

 

And please factor personal safety & security into your planning.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[Steviewonder1]

This is one place that it may be better to stay on the ship than tender to. Our overall opinion was this should have been a Sea Day! You have to walk .5 mile to the busses around the port. When done you have the same .5 mile walk back. We did three stops. First stop at the beach was a Potty stop and get more coffee. The second was a monistary, the third was drive by the Expensive houses and then back to town. It was also raining that day.

[mskaufman]

However, we did Mykonos on our own (not a rainy day) and had an awesome time. Took tons of pictures - every one a keeper.

 

https://markandkareneurope2013.shutterfly.com/pictures/8

[mackay12]

Thank you everyone for your advice. I will make decision very soon.

Vera

[Adventures ahead]

On our first trip, we thought June was hot. That was nothing compared to August, twice!!

 

I agree you don't need a tour in Mykonos! Your ship will have arranged a shuttle you can take for a few dollars to get into town - save your energy and time. The main event is Mykonos Town, so you need to be happy walkers on cobble-stoned streets. Soak up the atmosphere, take pictures of the windmills, stop for a Greek pastry (Does that a go with the local cold beer? Who cares!), walk along the water's edge on the 'boardwalk' in 'Little Venice'. Difficult to beat and easy on the budget! The breezes blew and we were in Greece, so we hardly noticed the heat there.

 

Regarding ship's tours, 'never' is a long time. We 'almost always' do our own thing or join a tour on our roll call (small group, leave earlier, see more, save money, eat a local place without many tourists) but, when the transportation is tricky: shuttle bus to ferry to bus to chair lift to bus to ferry to shuttle bus, as it was when we went to Capri from Naples, we did the ship's tour because we would have had to watch the clock all day and return early. With the ship's tour, we extended our time (a trade-off but we didn't need to return on the second-last ferry to be 'safe') and it was worry free. Same sort of multiple connections for Cinque Terre from Livorno on buses, trains and ferries - because of the connections we'll take a ship's tour there.

 

The first time in most places, a tour to the must-see/do places seems in order (for us and until we were familiar). On subsequent visits (we thought we'd 'never' ;)be able to go again), we took trains from the ship to Athens, Florence and Rome and even took trains, with luggage, from the Rome airport to Civitavecchia and Piraeus to Athens. It was easy and saved a bundle over taxis or worse yet, ship's transfers (sorry, Princess:D).

 

On an Athens stop, we walked to the train station, pre-arranged online to meet a guy at a metro stop who did 'free' walking tours for tips, could have then climbed the Acropolis on our own (had done that before, had lunch instead), ending with a short shopping visit in the Plaka before taking the (second-last) train back. It's a compact area, again, if you're good walkers (we're in our 60s).

 

Istanbul is easy on your own. We were on board overnight so had lots of time for the main attractions. On a one-day stop, you'd need to choose carefully what to do and what to skip. We borrowed a few Turkish lira from a friend at home (to save time) to take the tram (local currency only) into the old city - or take a taxi, get some lira at an ATM, and take the tram back to the ship.

 

In Venice, with the exception of 'touring' certain buildings by buying entrance tickets, you don't need a tour there either. Just research online, make a plan (and a plan B) and (ad)venture out!

 

These are my opinions only and "I approve this message" LOL!:)

[suewheldon]

For Venice just get a ticket on the vaporetto and go north on the canal to the bus station and walk back through the streets to St Marks. Also take the vaporetto over the lagoon to the beach. We stayed 2 nights pre cruise in Venice and loved it.

 

From Naples we took the ship excursion to Capri and it was worth every penny. Well organized and no stress and worry getting back to the ship.

[mackay12]

Hi everyone,

Thank you so much for all a wonderful advice from the experience cruisers.

What I should do in Dubrovnik! Croatia

Toulon, France

thanks

Vera

[Host Jazzbeau]

Check out Rick Steves Mediterranean Cruise for Dubrovnik. You can easily DIY:

• walk the Town Wall

• take the cable car to Mount Srd

• lunch at Restaurant Panorama on top of Mount Srd

• walking tour of Old Town

[BRANDEE]

Thank you everyone for your advice. I will make decision very soon.

Vera

We took the 12 day grand Med this July 5th. We would have preferred late May or early June, but we wanted to sail on the new Royal. This was her second cruise and it started in Venice, ending in Barcelona. The itinerary was absolutely great but some days quite hot.

We took the Princess excursion in Istanbul (one day stop) that included Sophia, Tokapi, Blue Mosque and a Bosphorus Strait Cruise. And yes, it ended in a carpet weaving place!! We were in Istanbul during the protests, so going on a ships excursion did feel safer. The captain issued a letter the night before to stay away from gathering crowds.

If you can stretch your vacation a few extra days, two days in Venice is very nice. Get a vaparetto pass and sail up and down the Grand Canal and walk through streets and visit the island of Murano.

We stayed in Barcelona for a few days after the cruise. We were really surprised how much we loved it there. We took the Barcelona Turistic Hop on Hop Off Bus for two days. North one day, then south. Fantastic..must see La Sagrada Familia, Tibidado Mountain and Parc Guell. Great food, unbelievable architecture, nice beach and lovely people.

It looks like the Regal is the only Princess ship doing this itinerary. Is it available for May or June?

[mskaufman]

Hi everyone,

Thank you so much for all a wonderful advice from the experience cruisers.

What I should do in Dubrovnik! Croatia

Toulon, France

thanks

Vera

 

Dubrovnik, another good DIY place. Walk the walls, maybe take the cable car for a city overlook, wander the old city.

 

https://markandkareneurope2013.shutterfly.com/pictures/317

[Adventures ahead]

Hi everyone,

Thank you so much for all a wonderful advice from the experience cruisers.

What I should do in Dubrovnik! Croatia

Toulon, France

thanks

Vera

 

In Dubrovnik, we got off the ship asap and took a taxi to the gate to walk the wall. We shared a ride with another couple who already had local currency, then paid them back. We had almost finished the wall, in the cooler morning, by the time the tours arrived. Then we took a ferry to a neighbouring town (about 40 minutes one way) and had lunch, took the ferry back and shopped a bit. I could have skipped the ferry ride and lunch and poked around the town some more. However, it was a bank holiday and most of the shops were closed, so the boat ride and lunch filled the time nicely. Great day and budget friendly.

[Dididi]

In Dubrovnik, do the wall walk and explore the old town's nooks and crannies. You can find beautiful and inexpensive silver filigree jewelry made by artisans from Kosovo and Albania in stores off the main lanes.

 

Also, if you are a Game of Thrones fan, you'll be thrilled to see a number of King's Landing's sights since a lot of scenes have been filmed in Dubrovnik.

 

Regarding Toulon, Rick Steves offers a number of options from that port.

[mackay12]

Thank you Brandee

This year regal princess will do grand Mediteranean on 19/6/14 , I love their itinerary.

I will take your advice to see Venice and Barcelona 2 days in advance and after cruise.

thanks

Vera