Which Cruise Line for Mediterranean 2021?

[Amy S.]

Hi.  We're in our 60's and have cruised a number of times on Princess, Celebrity, and RCCL but all to the Caribbean and all a while back.  We like the big ships with lots to do on sea days.  I just booked our bucket list cruise to Italy, Greece, and Croatia for September 2021 on the Norwegian Getaway.  (Balcony Deck 9)   Now I'm having second thoughts on going with Norwegian and wondering if there's one cruise line you would recommend for this itinerary over another?   I love the cruise ports we have but am worried about the ship not living up to the other lines we've sailed.  Thanks so much!

[puppycanducruise]

First off, I've never sailed with NCL.

But as to sailing in the Med, I suggest you check out the times in port.  To us, in the Med, the ship doesn't matter as much as the itinerary.  Our last Med cruise on HAL, we had 2 sea days on a 12 day cruise.  We were up early and off the ship for the day.  I think we only had one tender port, we even docked in Kotor.  We didn't care about shows etc at night.  After dinner, we'd have a drink, listen to live music then go to bed.  Long days of sightseeing meant we didn't care too much about shipboard activities.

If the cruise has an itinerary you want, go for it.

[CruiserBruce]

Times in port are very important. The product you get on the other cruise lines will be essentially the same in the Med, so you know what you are getting.

 

There is no one cruise line that is the "best" for everyone, or everything. Perhaps some reading of reviews of NCL will tell you if NCL provides what you want in a cruise line.

[cruisemom42]

Itinerary is the most important consideration for me, but that said I do take things like the size of the ship into consideration. (I like smaller ones -- they can go to more interesting ports.)

 

If you are unsure about NCL, there are a number of ships that have itineraries covering Italy, Greece and Croatia. Check other itineraries and compare. Ultimately only you can decide what matters most. Just keep in mind that on most Med cruises the majority of your days are OFF the ship, not ON it.

 

[Lois R]

I agree with the other replies.........The Med is more about the places (well, in my opinion).  And I would also say most

of the major lines do different itineraries but most all go to the Med.  So, if you are concerned, I would say go look

at other lines/ships/itineraries and make a comparison.  You mentioned you have previously sailed with Celebrity,

Royal and Princess.......so you know they all have big ships.  Why not compare their offerings to the NCL you have

booked and see the differences............

 

Have fun deciding what to do😃

[LHT28]

As others have  stated go for the itinerary  & how long you are in port

longer the better 

Usually  people come back eat & relax  so they can get up early the next day & start again

so the ship activities are not as important

Smaller  ships also can get into some ports that larger ships cannot

 Check the ports & what there is to do ..if only going to hit the beaches   then yes make sure the ship suits your needs

JMO

[Essiesmom]

I do not sail NCL.  However, I have visited those ports on other ships/lines, and would not sail a ship that large on an itinerary with the possibility of three tender ports.  Santorini is always a tender port.  Kotor will be also, with such a large ship.  Mykonos too, depending on who else is in port that day.  Just my experience.  EM

[Amy S.]

Thanks so much for all the responses!  I just double checked and we're at least 10 hours in each port.  Our only tender is Santorini.   I feel a bit better realizing most days there won't be much on board time.  (Though we do have 2 days at sea beginning and end of trip.)   So far this is the best itinerary for us than other lines are offering unless we add more than 11 days.

[George C]

I really dislike ncl , however on a Europe cruise itinerary is the main thing, and since you normally spend long hours on tour you spend less hours on ship. We loved our rccl cruise a few years ago with 5 stops in Italy, also Croatia and Kotor, this was a round trip from Barcelona. 

[navybankerteacher]

Other posters have made good comments - the only thing I would add is to urge you to schedule a few days in Rome pre or post cruise;  it always strikes me as a terrible waste to just focus on the cruise and ignore the chance to really experience a place.

[Amy S.]

We are planning to fly into Rome a few days early.  Also our nephew and family live in Naples so plan to spend a few extra days on the return end a well seeing Cinque Terre and more of the Amalfi Coast.  😄

 

[George C]

17 minutes ago, Amy S. said:

We are planning to fly into Rome a few days early.  Also our nephew and family live in Naples so plan to spend a few extra days on the return end a well seeing Cinque Terre and more of the Amalfi Coast.  😄

 

Sounds like a great plan , Naples has the best pizza and just a short drive from Pompeii 

[Maite88]

We are booked to go Italy, The Adriatic and Greece April 2021 with Viking.  We are on our early 60’s and love Viking because is an adult only Cruise.  We book cruises based on the itinerary and Viking have a few of them with either one or no sea days.

[George C]

2 hours ago, Maite88 said:

We are booked to go Italy, The Adriatic and Greece April 2021 with Viking.  We are on our early 60’s and love Viking because is an adult only Cruise.  We book cruises based on the itinerary and Viking have a few of them with either one or no sea days.

Love doing adults only we do music charters on celebrity that are adults only.

[chipmaster]

17 hours ago, Amy S. said:

Hi.  We're in our 60's and have cruised a number of times on Princess, Celebrity, and RCCL but all to the Caribbean and all a while back.  We like the big ships with lots to do on sea days.  I just booked our bucket list cruise to Italy, Greece, and Croatia for September 2021 on the Norwegian Getaway.  (Balcony Deck 9)   Now I'm having second thoughts on going with Norwegian and wondering if there's one cruise line you would recommend for this itinerary over another?   I love the cruise ports we have but am worried about the ship not living up to the other lines we've sailed.  Thanks so much!

 

I did NCL Venice round trip thru greek islands, and a few years before that Grand Med Venice-Barcelona with Princess.

 

IMHO the port line up is far more important than the cruise line, but given a choice I'd pick Princess over NCL, probably all things equal would give RCCL a go to, but it is ports ports ports and I found that selected the line versus me select the line.

 

Hope those lines still exisit in 2021 for that cruise of a lifetime

[pris993]

We have done a dozen or more Mediterranean cruises since l989.  We have cruised on Princess, Celebrity, Holland America, Cunard, Royal (no longer in business) and NCL in the Mediterranean.  

 

NCL was the least expensive by comparison to others.  At the time we went on NCL, about 5 years ago, we knew the level of service was not the same as the other lines, but the price was a very good, so we decided to give it a try.  We felt we got a good value for the price.  Cabin was same, it was the food in the MDR and Buffet that were less than par.   We tried the MDR for lunch and dinner on the first day, skipped it the rest of the cruise.  We don't cruise for food any way, so stuck with buffet and made ourselves a good salad and sandwich from the salad bar late afternoon each day.  This was more than adequate for us.  

 

One other issue with NCL, ship has a lot of for fee dining areas on board, consequently it is the only line that tries to bar passengers from bring any food items from ports back to the ship.   Since we have traveled a lot in the Mediterranean, one of the things we like to do is shop and in open air markets for local items we can enjoy on our balcony.   Recognizing NCL will take visible food items away from returning passengers, I took plastic bags, so that I could use if we bought something in port and not have the  item taken away from us.  That worked.  We did buy nuts, coffee cake and some street foods we enjoy.   We have always bought items in port on other lines, no problem at all.

 

Lastly, NCL is a more casual line, no formal nights like other lines.  We always dress up in the evening, we still did on NCL.  It is a free for all, dress as you like up or down, does not matter at all.   Most lines have become more relaxed and NCL started this trend. 

 

Given your personal plans in Italy before and after the cruise, which sound wonderful, you may find cruising on NCL saves you some money that you can use for other activities.  

 

Beside the difference between NCL and the other lines, I would say that Mediterranean cruises are so port intensive it does not matter what ship you go on.  You will most likely spend more time in port than on the ship.  

 

Given all I have said, would I book NCL again in the Mediterranean?  Yes, for the right price.  Hope these comments help you decide for yourself.  

 

Besides NCL, Cunard is the most formal of the lines ref dress and formal nights.  Other lines are all about the same.  Some say Celebrity has better food.  We are elite on Celebrity and Princess... don't really see much difference.  

 

 

[Amy S.]

Thank you so much for all the great info and tips!   You’ve really helped reassure me.  😀

[taglovestocruise]

2 hours ago, Amy S. said:

Thank you so much for all the great info and tips!   You’ve really helped reassure me.  😀

Royal Caribbeans new ship Odyssey of the Seas has 7 and 9 night Greek sailings next summer, several are advertised as late or overnight stays.  We are also lovers of the big ships and have a med b2b on Harmony booked next year.Happy cruising

[Aquahound]

On 7/1/2020 at 3:23 AM, Amy S. said:

Hi.  We're in our 60's and have cruised a number of times on Princess, Celebrity, and RCCL but all to the Caribbean and all a while back.  We like the big ships with lots to do on sea days.  I just booked our bucket list cruise to Italy, Greece, and Croatia for September 2021 on the Norwegian Getaway.  (Balcony Deck 9)   Now I'm having second thoughts on going with Norwegian and wondering if there's one cruise line you would recommend for this itinerary over another?   I love the cruise ports we have but am worried about the ship not living up to the other lines we've sailed.  Thanks so much!

 

I've cruised all those lines as well and like you, I also love all there is to offer on the big ships.  I'm not a fan of NCL's older ships.  However, I cruised Escape, which is similar to Getaway, and I loved it.  

 

I'll depart a little from the others.  While I agree itinerary is most important in Europe, I think cruise line and ship choice is still a VERY important factor.  You're still on the ship every night and on sea days, dining, taking in shows, etc.  The wrong line and ship is a good way to ruin your vacation.  

 

 A major plus to that class of ships is that the entertainment, in my opinion, is second only to RCI.  On the other hand, that class of ships is very crowded feeling.  The pools and deck space near the pools is pathetic.  

[Ashland]

We've pretty much stuck with RCI or Celebrity...Tend to like the familiarity of those lines and knowing what to expect.

We recently did a 12 nighter on Vision Med/Greece a great itinerary especially that it included Malta.

Enjoy whatever ends up working best for you personally.

[MBP&O2/O]

Some time ago we did a cruise on a 3000+ pax ship and it took up to 30 to 45 mins to disembark with a view to accessing the ‘official’ bus for an excursion.
The last two we did took less than 5 mins !
300 pax as opposed to 3000 pax.
Unfortunately, at one port, there were two ‘mega cruisers’ as well and they disgorged several thousand passengers to the point where the town in question struggled to cope.
As an aside it wouldn’t surprise me if many of the smaller Italian and Adriatic ports start to ban the larger ships, going down the same route as Venice.

[Hlitner]

Just a friendly not of caution to fellow cruisers.  COVID-19 may well be here to stay for many years.  We do not know if there will soon be a safe/effective vaccine and there is no reason to believe that the virus will simply disappear.  So cruises in 2021 are still at great risk as to whether they even happen.  There is also some risk that Norwegian Holdings (they own NCL) will go bankrupt sometime in 2021 unless the cruise industry can become operational.  So, with all that in mind certainly book your cruise, make sure any deposit is on a major credit card (which gives you charge back rights if you live in the USA), and do not purchase non-refundable airline tickets.   Regarding the air situation, most cruise lines offer their own air options (we are not familiar with NCL's policies).  Lines like HAL and Princess offer "Flexair" options which allow cruisers to book air which is fully refundable until about 45 days prior to a cruise.  Right now we think this is the way to go for most cruisers.  Perhaps this is all best expressed by saying:  Plan for the best but prepare for the worst.

 

Hank

[cruisemom42]

6 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

So, with all that in mind certainly book your cruise, make sure any deposit is on a major credit card (which gives you charge back rights if you live in the USA), and do not purchase non-refundable airline tickets.   Regarding the air situation, most cruise lines offer their own air options (we are not familiar with NCL's policies).  Lines like HAL and Princess offer "Flexair" options which allow cruisers to book air which is fully refundable until about 45 days prior to a cruise.  Right now we think this is the way to go for most cruisers.  Perhaps this is all best expressed by saying:  Plan for the best but prepare for the worst.

 

Hank

 

After a few months of thought and dithering, this is more or less the approach I've taken. I continue booking things (not before mid-2021) with refundable deposits and air, and then figure I will just keep punting them forward as needed. 

 

After two cancellations earlier this year, I've moved two trips forward by a year each -- Antarctica from January 2021 to January 2022 and Celebrity BTB Med cruises from October 2020 to October 2021. 

 

I spent a long time trying to figure out what to do about the Iceland/Greenland cruise. I finally caved when I got a killer deal on Hurtigruten's Fram (400 passengers but they plan to have fewer) next May and put down a (nonrefundable) deposit. They will, however, be happy to reapply that deposit to a later cruise if needed...

 

 

[Amy S.]

I'm def aware things may be different in the future - but I really believe that cruising will slowly resume and feel pretty confident over a year from now most major lines will be sailing.  I did put my deposit on a VISA and got cruise insurance.  I won't be getting air til we're under a year from our trip and will absolutely make sure it's refundable.