Bucket list Italy cruise

[Boatingmom]

Help please...I would like to finally plan my bucket list cruise to Italy. With so many options I don't know where to start. I want to do around 10 or 11 days. What cruise line and ship have you done for Italy and what were the pros and cons? If you could change one thing about your cruise, what would it be??

 

I want to get it right because after this it will be off to Norway and the fjords😬

TIA

[CruiserBruce]

A little reading around the board would find its about port intensity (lots of full days touring in ports), not so much cruise line. You probably want what is commonly called an "Eastern Med" cruise. Lots of cruise lines, including ones you may have cruised on, and thus have familiarity with, run 10 day routes in Italy and Greece. If you like those cruise products, I would start with them.

[cruisemom42]

If you are primarily interested in Italy, have you considered a land trip rather than a cruise?  I know it's heresy on these boards, but a) there are very few cruise lines that focus just on Italian ports (and they tend to be the more premium lines), and b) some of the main ports you want to see are NOT very accessible via cruise ship, for example:

 

-- Rome is about an hour and change from the port of Civitavecchia (and cannot be seen in a day).

-- Florence is 90 minutes from the port of Livorno (and farther still from La Spezia

-- Venice no longer welcomes cruise ships to dock in the city, so you will be at best 30-40 minutes away in an industrial port or at worst several hours away in either Trieste (to the east) or Ravenna (to the west).

 

Naples is the easiest of the "major" Italian cities to see by cruise, with too many options to do in a day (Pompeii, Capri, Amalfi Coast, Naples itself, etc.)

 

If you do decide to book a cruise, Azamara does offer Italy Intensive itineraries, for example, here:

 

https://www.azamara.com/int/voyage/on12m616/12-night-italy-intensive-voyage

 

It's a 12-day cruise that starts in "Venice" and ends in Rome -- you should plan at least 2 full days pre-cruise in Venice and three post-cruise to see Rome. The also have an overnight in Livorno, making Florence easier.

 

 

[John Bull]

A number of cruise lines, including Celebrity, RCI and Azamara offer one-way cruises of about 10 days, Rome to Venice or vice-versa.

This goes a little way towards the advantages of Cruisemom's very worthwhile suggestion of a land trip - you can tack on days at both ends.

Yes, they usually include a convenient port or two in Greece or the Greek Isles, or Croatia or Montenegro - but that gives you that bit of variety.

 

One-way flights home to Rome and Venice to home are ridiculously expensive, but you can book "multi-city" (aka "open-jaw") return tickets which cost the mid-price of return tickets to each city.  If you've not done this before, use a booking website like  https://www.skyscanner.com/ and choose the multi-city option. It automatically sorts the same airline or airline alliance for both ways 

 

Check the hours in port - the Italian lines especially include a number of pretty useless half-days.

 

JB 🙂

[Boatingmom]

Thanks for all the input. I'm  glad I asked. If I'm doing this only once I want to get it right.👍🏻

[cruisemom42]

Of course, keep in mind that sometimes people say it's a one-time trip, and then they fall in love with Italy (or other places) and end up coming back again (and again!).  

 

😉

 

At any rate, feel free to ask questions here are you are considering itineraries or options. We're a friendly bunch and love to talk about Italy.... 🤣

[luv2travel90266]

Try https://matrix.itasoftware.com/search for finding the best suggestions for flights. This is my first choice when researching international flights. 

[nini]

On 12/20/2022 at 10:06 AM, cruisemom42 said:

Of course, keep in mind that sometimes people say it's a one-time trip, and then they fall in love with Italy (or other places) and end up coming back again (and again!).  

 

😉

 

At any rate, feel free to ask questions here are you are considering itineraries or options. We're a friendly bunch and love to talk about Italy.... 🤣

 

Absolutely!!! @cruisemom42 is correct in people saying that this is a one time trip. Because we cruised an Italy and Greece itinerary in October 2018 and we fell in love with Italy; we are planning a return trip that will begin as a land tour first and a Trans Atlantic home to the states (the cruise begins in Rome/ Civitavecchia).

[luv2travel90266]

Next year’s trip will be 3rd time in Venice 2nd time in Rome. If you are comfortable driving in Europe we wandered all through Tuscany diverting from our itinerary when we saw another beautiful hill top city that looked interesting. Italy is one of my favorite vacations. 

[Hlitner]

I will agree with Cruisemom.  As an avid cruiser and independent land traveler, when somebody tells me they want to see Italy my immediate reaction is that they should fly to Italy!  While cruises around Italy are fine, they are a lousy way to see/experience the country.  Consider that on some port days you will spend hours just driving back and forth between ports and your destination.  On land you would have a lot more time in Italy and many more options.  

 

As to visiting Italy on land you have a few good options.  You can do your homework and simply DIY using the trains and/or rental cars.  Another option is to book a trip with a decent tour company that will handle everything including hotels, many meals, transportation, etc.  A third option is to use a combination of DIY and local tour companies.  In all those cases you will see and experience a lot more of Italy than you see on a cruise ship with short "snap shot" visits to a few places.

 

Hank

[ollienbertsmum]

Another vote for a land tour if you want to visit a country.  For us, a cruise is one sort of holiday and visiting a country is another which is done by train.

 

A cruise is total relaxation, no need to make decisions about food and entertainment.  Same bed every night. On the trip  there are some nice days out
 

When visiting, I am the family driver and i am notkeen on doing more than four hours at a time, so trains work better.  Imagine the pleasure walking around places like Florence, Rome or Venice after supper and after the crowds have gone.  You don’t risk missed ports (happened to us in Naples once).  You see so much more over a few days.