Cruise - Italy - Too hectic? - Pros/Cons?

[suntan]

We went to Med cruise in September. Before the cruise we decided which ports are for leisure and which are for sighseeing (hey, it's still vacation!!!):).

We'd had great beach days in Santorini, Mykonos and Crete and great sightseeing in Athens, Napoli and Venice. Since we were in Kusadasi before we took an easy tour to Sirince village for half day with great lunch and vine tasting...

Highly recommend Med cruising, we agree with everybody it's so different expereince vs Caribbean cruise.

 

BTW - see you next week on Equinox, we are soooo ready!!!.

 

Hi Mike and Tanya. Enjoy your cruise you lucky devils!:D

[Sloop-JohnB]

Hi TBMRT,

 

I hear your concerns... And they echo the ones that Mr Sloop & I have about travelling to Europe... So much to see, too little time

 

We are yet to go to Europe... High on the list after Retirement

 

We are thinking of combining a Cruise with a land trip

 

Fly to Venice, do an Adriatic Cruise (Venice to Rome) spending just short days in some of these legendary coastal cities / regions (Slovenia - Croatia - Montenegro - Malta - Sicily / Southern Italy)

 

Then a few days in Rome, before renting a car outside the city and self driving Central & Northern Italy for a week. Returning to Venice, and flying home. Total vacation = 24 Days

 

A nice circle route that enables us to check Italy off the Bucket Lst, as well as some of the old Eastern European Nations (in all honesty the Coastal Cities gives us the highlights we are looking for)

 

Hope this helps,

 

Cheers!

Edited December 1, 2014 by Sloop-JohnB

[We're The Groupnors]

My most memorable moment from any cruise is sailing down the Amalfi Coast just before sunset with a cocktail in my hand, and my husband beside me. I would do a Med cruise again in a heartbeat just to recreate that moment, but even without the beautiful vista (and great company) I wouldn't hesitate. Seeing Italy, the Greek Isles and Turkey by cruise ship is in my top three trips ever, even if it was a little busy at times.

[gsb]

Would suggest you put St. Petersburg, Tallinn and Bruges on your bucket list also.

[jayoldschool]

Another nice thing about a Med cruise is that you can do the ports/attractions on a very limited budget. Yes, you can spend 150pp to get on a bus with a guide, and lunch included, but you can also research the trains and get where you want very inexpensively.

[diesel1973]

Have done 5 Med. and 1 Adriatic and loved every minute. We are doing

Scan. and Russia cruise next year. We usually stay 2-3 days before or aft depending on cities. As far as TA's we don't care to look at water for 6-7 days straight.If I wanted to do that I could just jump in my shower!!!LOL:D:D:D

[cruise kitty]

Considering Italy for next year's cruise. However, friends told me that there is too much rushing around at ports with little sightseeing time available.

 

Would appreciate your input, good and bad for such cruises. We'd be flying over from the US.

 

Thanks.

 

Hectic, hmm, not the word I'd use :) Awesome & fantastic, yes :)

 

Oh, & yes, I'm up at 5:00 most every day of the cruise, if your idea of a good time is a sleep in followed by a day at the pool, it's probably not for you. :) We just cancelled our TA for another Med cruise... DH realized those 7 sea days could be spent in Rome again...

 

For me, the worst part is the long flight from the W. Coast, but you won't have that to contend with.

 

I've done both land, & cruise based Europe trips, & there's a trade off for both, on the cruise portion, you unpack once, & on the land portion, you're getting off & on trains, buses, wit your backpack, unless you decide to rent a car.

 

My best tip is : don't try & see everything the first time, & try to DIY as much as possible, don't do the ship excursions, & save private excursions for things that are difficult to do on your own, say Tuscany for a day, or Esphesus.

 

Try & get a cruise that starts & ends in a city that needs more time such as Rome, Istanbul, Venice, etc., & stay pre & post cruise...

 

We love our Europe cruises, if you click on my link, there's a link to my last review.

 

Also check out the Europe ports board, you will get plenty of tips & itineraries there.

[Host Jazzbeau]

There are only two ports on the typical Med itineraries that necessarily involve a long bus ride on both ends and have so much to do that you will be both exhausted (by what you saw) and frustrated (because of all you missed): Florence and Rome. But you can avoid part of this problem by choosing a cruise that starts or ends in Rome, and spending some time there on your own. With Florence, either take an introductory tour that covers some of the highlights or take the "on your own" bus transfer and use a guide (or a guidebook: we did great following Rick Steves). Then decide which city to end in: Barcelona and Venice each have lots to offer [note that Venice will limit you to a M-class ship, which is probably not a bad thing in the Med anyway]. Other than those ports, almost everything else will be smaller-scale and less exhausting. But you will value the few sea days! And you will treasure the memories the rest of your life!

[royalcruz]

My favorite cruise so far was out of Rome and I have another one booked. We book an excursion in each port so that everything is planned. If you haven't been to Rome, several days in the city before or after the cruise is a must. If you haven't been to Italy, you will see much more by a bus trip, but it's exhausting.

[floralscent]

Hectic, no...busy with lots of adventure, history and beautiful breath-taking scenery, yes. We have sailed 8 times to the Caribbean and never thought we'd want to go anywhere else. Until, we went on an anniversary trip to Italy/Croatia a year ago on the Silhouette and oh my...I now have no desire to travel the Caribbean ever again. Great culture, history and such a great experience in Italy. Is a must do in my book if you can. We sailed in May and the weather was perfect.

 

It is a port intensive cruise sure, but with of lots preparation and energy the trip can turn into a trip of a lifetime and an expensive habit. :)

[Caribbean Chris]

Med cruises have been classic travel experiences long before any of us here were born and are perennially popular.

 

One reason is that it is actually more energy and time-effective to see many of the towns and islands by ship than by putting together flight/land arrangements to reach them. Instead, you sleep while the ship handles that time-consuming chore.

 

Yes, it will be busy, but - think about it - if you fly to Europe and tour on your own, are you going to relax in your (incredibly-expensive) hotel room all day? Of course not, you'll be just as busy or more so. And some places like Florence are just about always crowded, congested, and exhausting no matter how or when you go.

 

You can return to favorites later for longer stays. We've loved our Med cruises. Most recently, we drove through Tuscany, took a train to Rome for a few days, and then cruised home on a TA, which to me is an ideal combo of busy and relaxing.