Mediterranean Odyssey

[Celiac Cruiser]

Is it better to start in Venice or Barcelona?

Thanks for any other words of wisdom about this itinerary.

Thanks. 😊

[LondonTowner]

What do you mean? Surely it depends on the itinerary and what you want to see and your interests.

[Peregrina651]

What do you mean? Surely it depends on the itinerary and what you want to see and your interests.

 

Here are a few things I would consider when choosing.

 

I would look at flights in and out of both cities to see if there is any advantage/disadvantage to flying into or out of either one of the cities.

 

Then I would look at the itinerary and see where you will be on each day of the week. If something is on your must-see list, then at least be sure it will be open on the day you are there; some major attractions still close one or two days a week--like museums in Rome and Florence or Ostia, Rome ruins of the ancient seaport city, near Civitavecchia.

 

I would also look at how long you are in port in each city. Arrival day may give you half a day of touring on your own but you will have to be out of your cabin by 8am and off the ship before 10am on departure day. Depending on your flight home, you may or may not get in an additional half day of touring.

[Celiac Cruiser]

Thanks Peregrina. I had not thought about attractions being closed but that makes sense. Now to figure what are my "must sees" and what days they are closed. Time for research.

 

LondonTowner, I have chosen the "Mediterranean Odyssey" cruise based on it's ports of call. That cruise starts/ends in Venice/ Barcelona and I was just wondering if a certain direction is preferable.

 

Thanks all!

[Peregrina651]

Thanks Peregrina. I had not thought about attractions being closed but that makes sense. Now to figure what are my "must sees" and what days they are closed. Time for research.

 

LondonTowner, I have chosen the "Mediterranean Odyssey" cruise based on it's ports of call. That cruise starts/ends in Venice/ Barcelona and I was just wondering if a certain direction is preferable.

 

Thanks all!

 

We'll be in Civitavecchia/Rome on a Monday. I originally thought that it would be a change of pace to see Ostia rather than the long bus ride into Rome but the historic site is closed on Mondays (so no Roman ruins this trip). We won't be able to see the mangificent Bernini statues in the Borghese Gallery, either but I did find two smaller museums, both within walking distance of where the bus will drop us off at the Vatican and that are open on Mondays -- the Spada and the Corsini. The Corsini is across the street from the Villa Farnesina, which is famous for its frescoes, and also open on Mondays. Since we will be on foot and moving at a leisurely pace, it will take us all day to see three small museums. Let's hope for dry skies.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Do you plan to spend extra time at either port? Your cruise has an overnight at both ends, which might allow you to see the major sites in Barcelona without any extra time -- Venice IMHO has so many things to see that you will definitely need more than just the ship's overnight.

 

The next question is whether you prefer to add time before or after [if you can't do both]? It's always wise to fly in at least 1 day early, to make sure you don't miss the ship [or even the first day that you have paid for], and you may be itchy to get home at the end [or not -- this is where YMMV].

 

So, I can only tell you how I could work this out. I would fly in several days early to Venice, stay at a hotel convenient for sightseeing [e.g. near the train station or near one of the vaporetto stops along the Grand Canal], then transfer to the ship and use the "overnight" days for extended sightseeing trips [e.g. an all-day vaporetto trip to the lagoon islands]. I would cruise from Venice to Barcelona, and probably figure the overnight stay would be enough there.

 

One thing that will affect how much you can do on the "overnight" days is which docking location you will have in Venice and Barcelona -- but unfortunately you probably won't know the docking location until you actually get there, as it is decided by the port authorities and can change at the last minute. In Venice, the Marittima cruise terminal is not very convenient for sightseeing, but San Basilio is great. In Barcelona there is one close-in berth at the foot of Las Ramblas which would be very convenient; the large ships are all further out (but Viking might run shuttle buses for you).

 

But this is such a great itinerary that you will enjoy it no matter which direction you choose!

[Celiac Cruiser]

Thanks Host Jazzbeau. More good food for thought.

I like the idea of starting in Venice and going in a couple of days early.

 

Cheers!

[LondonTowner]

Both Venice and Barcelona have loads to see, so by doing some research on both cities you will be able to decide which interests you the most.

[Dauntless]

More food for thought. For Viking Homelands you get a little more time in port if you go Stockholm to Bergen as opposed to Bergen to Stockholm. Also, aside from the duration in port, the actual time you are are there varies. S 2 B Gdansk is very early on Sunday, leaving around 1:00. The other way you are there in the afternoon and I think Aalborg is the same situation but a different day. Of course there, you are right there. From our cabin you could see right down the main part of the touring area. Just one more thing to consider.

[rjscott]

Is it better to start in Venice or Barcelona?

Thanks for any other words of wisdom about this itinerary.

Thanks. 😊

 

We did this itinerary this past Oct. We got into Venice just after 11am and took Viking's transfers to the ship. Although we had purchased our own air, they offered the transfers to all. Although our cabin was not yet available, there was a holding area for our carry-ons and we were directed to the World Cafe for lunch.

 

We had been to Venice before, on the maiden voyage of the Viking Star, so we did not book any excursions here, but we did take advantage of Viking's free shuttle over to Venice to do some exploring of areas we hadn't seen the last time. We caught the shuttle back in time for dinner. The next morning we shuttled over again and back. The last shuttle was at 1 pm as the ship was departing Venice at 2:30. Again, there were excursions available to book to make the most of your day there if you wished to do so.

 

In Barcelona, we overnighted there, so we had a full day and night to explore the city with disembarkation the next day. My husband and I chose to spend two extra nights here as we had never been before and there was no lack of things to see. On our day in port with Viking, we chose to book the 'Gaudi Architectural Tour' and we were very glad we did. Yes, we could have seen the sites on our own, but we had a marvelous guide who really gave us an in-depth tour of each site that I don't believe we'd have gotten on our own.

 

The Viking postcruise extension was sold out and we found a great hotel on our own. Very well-located, great service and great food.

 

Becki

[Celiac Cruiser]

Thanks Dauntless. I am on the Homelands cruise this coming May. We lucked into the S to B direction. I had not even considered the difference in direction until I did some research AFTER booking the cruise. This time I want to research before I book.

Cheers!

[Celiac Cruiser]

Thanks Becki. I haven't been to either Venice or Barcelona before so maybe I should plan on a pre and a post cruise. Decisions-Decisions!

 

Cheers!

[Peregrina651]

Thanks Becki. I haven't been to either Venice or Barcelona before so maybe I should plan on a pre and a post cruise. Decisions-Decisions!

 

Cheers!

 

Since you have never been to either and have already paid to get there, then why not do both cities? And IMHO, don't skimp on the nights in each city, give yourself at least three full days in each city so that you can visit each city at a leisurely pace.

Edited December 7, 2016 by Peregrina651

[rjscott]

Thanks Becki. I haven't been to either Venice or Barcelona before so maybe I should plan on a pre and a post cruise. Decisions-Decisions!

 

Cheers!

 

If you have the time ( and the money :D ) , and haven't been to Venice, do both. We had not been to Venice when we were there on the Star. Our friends wanted to spend 3 nights postcruise, so we did. We had a great hotel, the Hotel Columbina, which had its own jetty for water taxis, and was just a few minutes walk from St Mark's Square. We took a trip to Murano, had a gondola ride and walked just everywhere.

 

Becki