MSC Seaview leaving from Marseille in a few days - your suggestions?

[belugos]

Hey everyone. SOOOOOOOOOOOO glad to be back on the scene, after these last 2y grueling years... anyways, we (4 friends) finally booked a 7 night cruise out of Marseille leaving next week, on the 11th, and have NO idea what to do and see. We are fairly (I prefer to believe) young, in ours early 40's to late 40's, and prefer not to book the cruise line excursions.

Any suggestions of MUST SEE places and tips how to better schedule them? We dont mind taking shuttles, mini busses, public transportation, etc

 

June 11th - Marseille - nothing to do this day as we will have already spent a day or two there.

June 12th - Genoa

June 13th - Naples

June 14th - Messina

June 15th - Valleta 

June 16th - at sea

June 17th - Barcelona

 

Any suggestions are MUCH appreciated!

[Hlitner]

Think of Marseille as a "gateway" port to Provence.  There are many wonderful places to go and see within a daytrip range.  You can use buses, trains, rental car.  Probably the easiest daytrip would be to go up to Aix en Provence, which is a city with much to offer (just Google the place for lots of ideas).  Another longer daytrip that can be done on trains or with a rental car is to visit the walled city of Avignon.  If you prefer to get away from the larger cities there is Les Baux.  And we have not even talked about Arles.   Another option that some folks enjoy is to simply use a rental car to drive up to the Luberon area (popularized by Peter Mayle in his best seller, "A Year in Provence."  

 

Genoa -  You can explore the town on your own and there is a decent Aquarium within easy walking distance of the port with some decent cafes/restaurants along the way.  

 

Naples -  Too many options to list here whether on a tour or on your own.  For starters think about Pompeii, Capri, Herculanium, the Amalfi Coast, etc.

 

Messina - For a first visit we suggest going to Taormina whether on an excursion or on your own.

 

Valleta - We really enjoy Malta.  There is much to see in the city but a visit to Mdna is a must.

 

Barcelona -  Just protect your wallet/purse as not only is this a fabulous tourist city but is also home to too many professional pick pockets.   First time visitors (and repeat visitors) often head over to Sagrada Familia.  In Barcelona we like just about anything having to do with Gaudi.

 

Hank

P.S,  It is fun to again post stuff related to ports rather than always discussing COVID related issues.

[mackfam]

We just did this cruise in May only we left from Barcelona.

 

Marseilles- not sure how much time before you embark but we took a boat tour from the old port to the Calanques. It was very picturesque but I was feeling queasy by the end of it so beware if you get seasick!

 

Genoa- we caught the train to Santa Margherita de Ligure and then we had planned on hiking to Portofino (about 5km). Unfortunately the train we were on broke down so we were late getting to Santa Margherita so we took the bus to Portofino instead and then bus and train back to Genoa.

 

Naples- we had done the Amalfi coast and Pompeii before (would highly recommend ) so this time we did the Hop on Hop off bus then went to the National Archeological Museum where they have many artifacts from Pompeii and Herculaneum. Grabbed some authentic Naples pizza for lunch. Checked out the art in the Toledo subway station.

 

Messina- we actually did one of the ship’s excursions which was a city tour of Messina and then went to Taormina ( we didn’t get enough time to explore on our own so I would not recommend).  I would either just get a transfer to Taormina or alternatively, the last time we were in Messina, we did a taxi tour which took us to The Godfather villages,  Castelmola and then to Taormina which was great. If there are four of you, a private taxi tour will be quite reasonably priced.

 

Malta- we did a 4 hour taxi tour of the island for 100€ with time to explore each place. We went to Marsalokk, the Blue Grotto, Mdina, the glass factory, and saw a lot of the countryside. At the end he dropped us back in Valletta and we wandered around the town before walking back to the port. Our driver was friendly but young and didn’t have a lot to say about the history of the island. I’m sure an older driver would have been more informative but we still really enjoyed this day.

Barcelona- so many choices. The Sagrada Familia is amazing ( buy tickets online ahead of time to avoid the lines). We also did a walking tour of the gothic quarter. 
 

Whatever you choose I’m sure you’ll have a great time!

 

[mnpurple]

We also just did this itinerary a week ago, leaving from Naples.  It was really incredible! I like finding the best foods in different areas, so sorry if my focus is on that. I recommend if you take any cabs, have exact change if possible. We had a few that didn't want to give change. It wasn't a huge amount, but enough.

 

Marseilles - have no advice. We were tired and tried to go to a restaurant-oops, it was closed and we went back to the ship.

Genoa-Four in our group (of 6) got the hop on/hop off bus tickets. Not sure I'd recommend this. It was busy getting on and had to wait for a second bus. Our daughters went with us to a first stop at Piazza de Ferrari and we walked around from there and ran into my son and friend who didn't take the bus. We had lunch and the four of them walked back to the ship, which is pretty easy if you are able. My husband and I decided to hop back on the bus and take the loop back to the ship just to see more and not completely waste our money.  Get the Focaccia!!! So delicious!

Naples-We left from this port. You can easily get from the port into the town if you want to explore there.  Don't miss out on having some pizza here!  We had incredible pastries and cappucino from Gran Caffe Gambrinus. I think Naples would be lovely to explore, but we didn't have a lot of time.

Messina - short walk to the train station if you want to venture on your own. It was easy to get tickets to Taoromina and you can get an express that is around 30 mins, or the other is just under an hour. Once at the train station, we had a cab bring us to Bam Bar ($20), which had incredible granita. Get it with cream and brioche.  There are cute shops and an ancient theater as well as a public garden. They have a cable car for $4 that will bring you down to the water front. We had a cab take us back to the train station after the water front, or you can go back up to Taoromina, but I think cab prices are about the same.

Malta-We did the same as @mackfam and hired two cabs ($100/ea).  We were slow getting off the ship, so the larger cab options were gone. If you want to get one, I suggest being in the first to get off ship.  You can tell them where you want to go. We also went to Marsalokk, the Blue Grotto (a very interesting experience) and Mdina.  It was very relaxing to have someone in charge of getting you around and pretty easy travel. Our driver was pretty good at telling us about things, but I also initiated some of it. 3 of our kids in the other cab said their driver didn't say much.  In Marsalokk, try a pastizi, only .50 and yummy!!

Barcelona-Here we hired Barcelona Day tours. I think it was a little pricey ($100/pp), but that also included entrance to Park Guell. We were picked up in a very nice van at the port and driven all over. Our guide was very well informed (maybe too much!). She also helped us find a restaurant and made reservations and even brought us inside and set us up. They will drop you back at the port if that is what you'd like. It is easy to get cabs and not too expensive.

 

Have a great trip!

 

[belugos]

Amazing tips, everyone!

[Nunagoras]

On 6/6/2022 at 7:35 PM, belugos said:

Hey everyone. SOOOOOOOOOOOO glad to be back on the scene, after these last 2y grueling years... anyways, we (4 friends) finally booked a 7 night cruise out of Marseille leaving next week, on the 11th, and have NO idea what to do and see. We are fairly (I prefer to believe) young, in ours early 40's to late 40's, and prefer not to book the cruise line excursions.

Any suggestions of MUST SEE places and tips how to better schedule them? We dont mind taking shuttles, mini busses, public transportation, etc

 

June 11th - Marseille - nothing to do this day as we will have already spent a day or two there.

June 12th - Genoa - Doable on your own either way walking or by using the HOHO.

June 13th - Naples - If historical places is something you want to do, Pompeii is not to be missed. Several vendors selling private excursions to there. It can be done easily on a full morning.

June 14th - Messina

June 15th - Valleta 

June 16th - at sea

June 17th - Barcelona - I lived there for quite a while! They have a quite inexpensive port shuttle bus from ship to Christopher Columbus square where you can catch the public buses. There is also an "official" HOHO bus that used to have a stop on the port. Plenty of taxis as well. If you want to visit Sagrada Família Church, please purchase the tickets online in advance. As someone has said, beware the pickpockets, especially on Las Ramblas area. I wouldn't say Barcelona as being more dangerous than any other city in the world. Actually my own Lisbon feels for me as not being as safe as Barcelona. But sadly; it seems that the criminals do have such some sort of "agreement" with the Barcelona Police that basically gives Las Ramblas to themselves... So; feel advised...

 

Any suggestions are MUCH appreciated!

See the answers in blue and have a nice day!...