Round-trip Barcelona Cruise

[SomeWoman]

We are looking for a good cruise on which to marry in October 2008. This will be our second cruise. We had a great time on NCL the first time and I don't see a need to mess with a good thing. :)

 

At first I was looking at Hawaiian cruises, but then I noticed that there is a 7-night Spain/France/Italy cruise for $500 less (comparing balcony cabins for both) than the cruises out of Honolulu! That's more than the difference in airfare would cost! Is this typical? Will the HI cruises significantly drop in price after they've been posted for longer?

 

Has anybody ever been on a Mediterranean cruise through NCL? This would be on the Gem in 2008. I can't imagine it being bad, but I would love to hear any thoughts from people who have experienced this ship, itinerary, or (and this is a long shot) marrying in Italy. Thanks!

[jammierebel]

i doubt you'll find anyone whos been on the ship. the sailing i presume you are referring to on the 21/10 is noly the second official sailing the gems making.

[ktpc2005]

I can tell you about 2008 after I take that cruise on 10/21/07 :D :D

[JennCandi]

We did this cruise last year on the NCL Jewel and it was fabulous. That was the first season for the jewel and the ship was beautiful. My husband and I really enjoyed all the ports and did most of the excursion on our own by train. Any specific questions about ports, I'll be happy to answer for you.

[SomeWoman]

We did this cruise last year on the NCL Jewel and it was fabulous. That was the first season for the jewel and the ship was beautiful. My husband and I really enjoyed all the ports and did most of the excursion on our own by train. Any specific questions about ports, I'll be happy to answer for you.

 

Do all of the ports have train stations within walking distance? That would be great to be able to do everything on our own!

[SomeWoman]

i doubt you'll find anyone whos been on the ship. the sailing i presume you are referring to on the 21/10 is noly the second official sailing the gems making.

 

I didn't realize that ship was that new. I must be thinking of the Jewel. In that case, I'm glad there will be a year for people to test it out for me first. :D

[SomeWoman]

I can tell you about 2008 after I take that cruise on 10/21/07 :D :D

 

I look forward to the review! :)

[missty]

LOL. And I can tell you after I take this cruise on 7/6/08 Can't wait!

 

 

Missty

[rundogrun]

This might be one of those times where you should consider other cruiselines as well. 7 days doesn't give you a whole lot of time in the Med, especially if it's roundtrip Barcelona. I'm not knocking NCL...but I think most experienced European cruisers (and most cruises) would suggest shooting for 10 or more days. It's a long way to go for a cruise...make the most of it while you're there.

 

We sailed Celebrity there last year from Barcelona to Venice. It was amazing.

 

We're sailing the NCL Jewel to the Baltics next summer. At least here, they have things right, allowing plenty of days to see everything.

 

If you must have Freestyle, then by all means do the 7 day. I'm sure it will be great. But you'll miss out on some key ports. If you're open to traditional cruising, then you really should consider a longer cruise and other cruiselines.

[SomeWoman]

This might be one of those times where you should consider other cruiselines as well. 7 days doesn't give you a whole lot of time in the Med, especially if it's roundtrip Barcelona. I'm not knocking NCL...but I think most experienced European cruisers (and most cruises) would suggest shooting for 10 or more days. It's a long way to go for a cruise...make the most of it while you're there.

 

If you must have Freestyle, then by all means do the 7 day. I'm sure it will be great. But you'll miss out on some key ports. If you're open to traditional cruising, then you really should consider a longer cruise and other cruiselines.

 

I don't think we'll be able to afford to take a longer cruise at this point in time. $1100 for a balcony cabin on the 7-day NCL cruise seems really reasonable. We may take an extra couple of days in Barcelona, though.

[Mstaczek97]

We were on the Jewel last August and LOVED IT! I would really recommend it! Yes....it is a BUSY vacation but what better way to get a taste of Spain, Italy and France. As a result of that cruise we will be going back to Italy. Now we know.... what we eant to see more of! I will be going on Pride of America in August so I will be better able to compare two cruises....

 

Good Luck on what ever you choose!!

 

Michele

[missty]

wow, you got a great price quote. I booked, but maybe need to look around more.

[SomeWoman]

wow, you got a great price quote. I booked, but maybe need to look around more.

 

That's current price quoted on [Online Travel Agent] for the 10/26/2008 sailing out of Barcelona on the Norwegian Gem. The date we'll most likely be going with is $100 more, but that's still not bad at all.

[missty]

I just checked out the prices. October is much cheaper than our July date we want to go. So how is the weather in October? Temps? And it would be less crowded. Hmm, I need to talk to my sister/bro inlaws who are going with us. Might be worth the change.

THanks!

[SomeWoman]

I just checked out the prices. October is much cheaper than our July date we want to go. So how is the weather in October? Temps? And it would be less crowded. Hmm, I need to talk to my sister/bro inlaws who are going with us. Might be worth the change.

THanks!

 

The temps that I found for October in Barcelona were 56 [average low] to 70 [average high]. I imagine the rest of the ports would be similar. I live in MN, so that's prime swimming weather for me. ;)

[rundogrun]

That's great that you can add some extra time in Barcelona. We flew in a couple of days early which gave us time to see the city as well as adjust for the time difference.

 

Be sure to check out the ports of call section to get tips on making the most of your time in port, especially when it comes to making reservations for museums that you want to see.

[calmac]

The Norwegian Gem is due to be launched in October 2007 so it would only be 1 year old by the time you were due to sail whereas the ships in Hawaii would be a few years older (Pride of America - 2005, Pride of Aloha - built 1997, refurbished 2004). The Pride of Hawaii will be renamed the Norwegian Jade next spring and will no longer be in Hawaii. The Gem is also the largest of the 3 ships.

 

If you are looking for information on the Ports of Call try here - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=234 - this is a very active board and, although, I haven't seen any, there may be information on being married in Italy!

 

Enjoy your cruise, and your wedding, wherever you end up.

[jammierebel]

woops i didnt see the 2008 bit. it sbeing laucnhed in october this year. sorry

[JennCandi]

The train station was right by the pier for a trip to Rome on your own. I got a lot of information from these boards last year, including which train tickets you need. Do a search on the destination board, as I can't find the info right now. Rome was very easy and we got to see everything we wanted for much less than the cruise excursions.

 

In Livorno, we took the ship shuttle to downtown and then the bus to the train station. This was a little trickier, but not too bad. We got to go to Florence and Pisa while none of the boat excursions did both.

 

Here's the link to the Florence Pisa Train Info:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=360703