What are the most beautiful/ scenic ports viewing from the ship?

[TravMagic1]

We are looking to book a Med cruise in 2025.

My question is kind of odd…..which itinerary has the most beautiful scenery before even leaving the ship?

I am not really concerned about the actual ports themselves, just what towns are the most beautiful that we can see from the ship?

See, strange question…..

Trying to decide between the Eastern and Western Med.

[mskaufman]

You might think about a river cruise.  Danube or Rhine.

[MeHeartCruising]

A few thoughts…

 

Valletta, Malta

Kotor, Montenegro

Santorini, Greece

Istanbul, Turkey

Venice, Italy (but you can only do that on small ships now)

 

 

 

[PurpleTraveller]

It would be very dependent on the ports on an itinerary. For instance ships anchor in Kotor, Montenegro and the view is lovely because you can see the bay plus you get a beautiful sail in and sail out of the Bay of Kotor.

 

 

When you dock at Katakolon, Greece you have a view of the very cute town.

 

 

Messina, Sicily has a nice view over the city and you can watch the ferries coming and going from the port.

 

 

Naples, Italy has a nice view of the city and across to Mt Vesuvius. 

 

 

In Corfu you have a view across to the city and forts.

 

 

Valletta, Malta has a beautiful view of the harbour and city, Rhodes, Greece has a view over the old city and Kusadasi, Turkey has a view of the city and Pigeon Island. You can get a good view of Santorini and also Mykonos in Greece.

 

I could go on and on as I have been to many of the ports in the Mediterranean but I won't bore you. As a very general rule the larger ports such as Barcelona, Civitavecchia (for Rome), and Livorno (for Florence) are not particularly scenic but the smaller ports often have a lovely view but is not always the case.

 

There is beautiful scenery from the ship in both east and west Mediterranean ports but in my opinion the east probably just beats the west. I daresay others would think the opposite. 😊

 

Edited January 16 by PurpleTraveller

[edinburgher]

 

On 1/15/2024 at 11:42 PM, TravMagic1 said:

what towns are the most beautiful that we can see from the ship?

I

See, strange question…..

Trying to decide between the Eastern and Western Med.

 

It  is indeed a bit of a "strange" question if you plan on leaving the ship to explore,  maybe not so strange if you plan on staying onboard instead.

 

Generally speaking the bigger the city the more "commercial" a port is. And some have a lovely sail in/out as already mentioned above. And many many others are much more attractive once you arrive in the centre of town. 

 

Smaller islands can be nice when viewed from a ship.

 

It would be helpful if you posted the names of your ports otherwise there are simply way too many to try to describe.

[TravMagic1]

I guess I should have asked which itinerary has the most beautiful coastline. 

I'm sure we will get off the ship but that is really not the priority. 

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, TravMagic1 said:

I guess I should have asked which itinerary has the most beautiful coastline. 

I'm sure we will get off the ship but that is really not the priority. 

 

Much of the time when the ship is underway you will only see the ocean around you. (You probably realize this but it's unclear from your post.)

 

I'd say you've gotten good feedback. To the list provided by @MeHeartCruising  I would add Naples and Split. And Haifa, though ships probably won't be calling there in the immediate future....

 

Smaller ships often dock in less industrial port areas, as well as visiting some more unusual (and scenic ports). For example, docking in front of Dubrovnik and tendering into the city is much nicer than docking in the cruise port there. 

 

Smaller, less common ports that are pretty include Amalfi, Sorrento, Positano, Cagliari (Sardinia), and some of the less-visited Greek isles. I haven't cruised the Western Med as much so I'm not sure about some of the smaller French or Spanish ports.

[travmagic]

On 1/15/2024 at 9:12 PM, PurpleTraveller said:

It would be very dependent on the ports on an itinerary. For instance ships anchor in Kotor, Montenegro and the view is lovely because you can see the bay plus you get a beautiful sail in and sail out of the Bay of Kotor.

 

 

When you dock at Katakolon, Greece you have a view of the very cute town.

 

 

Messina, Sicily has a nice view over the city and you can watch the ferries coming and going from the port.

 

 

Naples, Italy has a nice view of the city and across to Mt Vesuvius. 

 

 

In Corfu you have a view across to the city and forts.

 

 

Valletta, Malta has a beautiful view of the harbour and city, Rhodes, Greece has a view over the old city and Kusadasi, Turkey has a view of the city and Pigeon Island. You can get a good view of Santorini and also Mykonos in Greece.

 

I could go on and on as I have been to many of the ports in the Mediterranean but I won't bore you. As a very general rule the larger ports such as Barcelona, Civitavecchia (for Rome), and Livorno (for Florence) are not particularly scenic but the smaller ports often have a lovely view but is not always the case.

 

There is beautiful scenery from the ship in both east and west Mediterranean ports but in my opinion the east probably just beats the west. I daresay others would think the opposite. 😊

 

That is exactly what I am looking for! Thank you!

[Over from NZ]

On 1/18/2024 at 6:49 AM, TravMagic1 said:

I guess I should have asked which itinerary has the most beautiful coastline. 

I'm sure we will get off the ship but that is really not the priority. 

Really?? Gets stranger and stranger lol. 

[TravMagic1]

2 hours ago, Over from NZ said:

Really?? Gets stranger and stranger lol. 

We all love cruising for different reasons!😊

[edinburgher]

On 1/15/2024 at 11:42 PM, TravMagic1 said:

I am not really concerned about the actual ports themselves, just what towns are the most beautiful that we can see from the ship?

Your signature indicates the US, and given the travel time, jet lag and cost, it hardly seems worth the effort to book an ocean cruise if you are only going to stay onboard.

 

It has already been suggested, but I too suggest you consider river cruising in Europe as you will get lots of close cruising which often means you get good views of the towns and countryside  without having to leave the river boat although should you want to, river boats usually(but not everywhere) dock close to or in  the centres of towns.  River cruising is a totally different experience from ocean cruising and I think would match your expectations regarding scenery and staying onboard.

[Hlitner]

Interesting thread.  DW and I have been on many cruises (long and short) all over the world.  While we do stay on the ship in some ports, that is primarily something we do in the Caribbean.  The idea of spending the money and time to fly to Europe just to sit on a cruise ship does seem like a strange way to spend big bucks.  As others have said, cruise ships do not provide much of a scenic venture if one wants to see coast lines.  We agree that some places (especially Kotor, Valletta, and some of the Norwegian Fjords) do offer some picturesque moments.  As others have mentioned, cruise ships do not routinely cruise within site of land.  I will admit to loving the view of the open sea, and we especially enjoy crossings of any Ocean/Sea when we have days of nothing but the sea and sky.

 

I somewhat disagree about European river cruises.  Yes, you do get a constant view of the riverbanks, can watch cars zipping by on the autobahns, etc.  But there is certainly a limit to what can be seen from the deck of a boat.  

 

If mobility is an issue, there are ways to enhance one's cruise experience without having to do a lot of walking.  One can book book taxis, take excursions/tours that are primarily scenic, or there are the usual Hop On Hop Off buses (in many cities) where folks can ride around and s  

[TravMagic1]

I guess I worded this post poorly.

We definitely plan on getting of the boat. 

I guess I was more thinking of coming in and out of port. I do realize that we will not always be cruising with land in site. 

Just the times when land is in site.....which itinerary offers the best views.

I was already thinking it would be the Eastern Med that fit my preferences. 

I do appreciate all the feedback, it has been very helpful.

I did take ownership, from the beginning,  it was an unusual question and my actual reasoning was unclear. Wasn't sure exactly how to ask the question!

You have all been very kind with your responses when I'm sure some wanted to call me a ........(you fill in the blank)! 😘

[marazul]

@TravMagic1

I get your answer and your preference for docking in scenic ports as an added attraction for the cruise.

Just a word about docking and European river cruises.  You will get great scenery while cruising, however, docking is another matter.  Quite often the ships will "stack" at the dock.  That means that the ships are adjacent to each other and the passengers walk through the other ships to reach the dock.  Your view is likely to be a cabin in the next ship which is practically within arm's reach of yours.  This is specially true of Viking river cruises that operates several ships on the same itineraries at the exact same time.  (The reason is that Viking operates some ships for English speaking passengers, others for German, etc, etc.  They run identical itineraries and they stack at the dock.  Other companies may have to stack according to dock availability.)

Edited January 19 by marazul

[travmagic]

5 hours ago, marazul said:

@TravMagic1

I get your answer and your preference for docking in scenic ports as an added attraction for the cruise.

Just a word about docking and European river cruises.  You will get great scenery while cruising, however, docking is another matter.  Quite often the ships will "stack" at the dock.  That means that the ships are adjacent to each other and the passengers walk through the other ships to reach the dock.  Your view is likely to be a cabin in the next ship which is practically within arm's reach of yours.  This is specially true of Viking river cruises that operates several ships on the same itineraries at the exact same time.  (The reason is that Viking operates some ships for English speaking passengers, others for German, etc, etc.  They run identical itineraries and they stack at the dock.  Other companies may have to stack according to dock availability.)

Wow! That I did not know!

[erby2283]

Kotor, Montengro became my most favorite port to sail into! It is so beautiful. Amazing views for a good couple hours. Pictures don’t do it justice.