Ports of call on Century Med Cruise

[Gypsea]

Barcelona is a fabulous city and I highly suggest trying to get in at least one day here before boarding if possible. There are many street vendors and preformers to see in addition to the sites, cathedrals and museums. It is a welcoming city that I felt comfortable in but you do have to watch your purse/wallet as others have warned. Creative pickpockets abound. Even so, I never felt threatened or concerned for my safety but we weren't out very late. Walking to El Rival district did find us in a sketchy area for a minute but once there we were fine. I don't usually feel at home in such a big, bustling place but somehow Barcelona was one of my favorites on this trip

 

Marseille, Cassis

 

First stop on the cruise was Marseille and the shuttle bus brought us pretty close to a fish market though I am not sure it is THE fish market that you may have read about. It did not seem especially large but it was fun to see the locals at work here. We took a bus to the Notre-Dame de la Garde Cathedral set high on a hill where the views of the city are amazing.

From there we made our way to Cassis, we hired a taxi for 30 euros to take us. This fishing port is a beautiful resort area which draws toursits, artists and area residents as well. It was one of my favorite places. It is situated at the foot of Europe's highest cliff, Cap Canaille. It is absolutely lovely and there are some great shops, outdoor cafes and a harbor tour which is popular. Try to spend part of your day here if you can. Hiring a taxi to take us back was a bit more expensive. We paid 40 euros for the three of us.

 

More later..next stop, Villefranche, Monaco, Eze and Nice.

[hcat]

whihc date were you on board. we were on Century 9/21 & really enjoyed ourselves at every port..except Gibraltar (too crowded) We stayed two days pre-cruise in Barcelona & one day post cruise & took a trip to montserrat-- Barcelona is a great city ..

[Gypsea]

Hcat:

 

We were on the very next sailing, October 1. The itinerary was a bit different being one night longer, if I remember. We had a stop in Tangiers that was not quite my thing. You are so lucky to spend a few days in Barcelona. I liked Spain in general but Malaga and Valencia were a bit anti-climactic after the French porst, Florence and Rome I have to say. Oh well, I am not complaining it was a great vacation and I am thrilled I was able to go.

[gary]

Great report so far. We are doing the 11 day next October and I am happy to see some reports coming on line now. I would love to hear more. Others have expressed dissatisfaction with Tangiers and Morocco. What was your experience. Was Morocco even included?

[judie43]

Hi Gysea...I am enjoying reading your impressions of Marseille....I hope you continue to review the other ports because I think it will be some really good info for future Med cruisers. I wish I had paid more attention to other reviews before we left for ours.

[Gypsea]

You may find Tangiers nice but I was not a fan. Right outside the ship you will find a dozen vendors hawking their wares. This is exactly the same stuff you will find in practically every other shop in the town when you get there. We hired a guide and it does make you feel a bit safer but keep in mind that these guys are getting commission from all the places they bring you and the hard sell is on. The whole thing turned me off in a big way. Their pricing starts so high it is ridiculous and they then end up chasing you down the street. If not they say "Go away".

 

Our guide did take us to the Kasbah area first and this was the highlight of the trip. We hired a guide we met right near the ship so we avoided the shuttle charge at least ($6 pp or thereabouts). He walked us to a taxi that dropped us off at the Kasbah. When we were done touring this area we walked to the shopping district after which he walked us down a hill and we were close to the ship, not needing any return shuttle or taxi. Hmm, strange, I thought.

 

This was my least favorite day I am sorry to report. Everything about it gave me a bad feeling. I did not buy anything other than the guide which we paid 25 euro for. My friend gave him a massive tip at the end and he was as ungrateful as can be. She was mad but felt compelled to tip feeling badly that she hadn't spent enough to please him. Ay yay yay. I did not feel bad at all just disappointed.

 

If you are all thinking I am just an odd duck (you may be right) but all the folks I talked to about Tangiers agreed that it was awful and they may take it off the itinerary by next year. NO flaming please just MHO!!

 

TIP All the leather stuff smells bad to me. I guess I'm just not in harmony with nature or something.

 

I have amazing pics of everywhere when I can figure out how to link them for you. My new Canon Powershot was incredible, my first digital so bear with me.

[hcat]

Hmm--that port sounded like it would be very exotic! Sorry you did not like it. The vendor problem was awful in Pisa--every other port we had, there was nice shopping along the way but in Pisa you had to walk a long gauntlet of aggressive vendors selling garbage --not anything from Italy but fake pocket books & watches, scarves., beaded necklaces..It was really a terrible & detracted from the magnificence of the historic buildings themselves..One guy actually touched me,,,I did not so much mind the big flea market along the Field of Miracles--you could avoid those stands but the gauntlet as you come in & leave the area should really be cleaned up by local authorities.

We did not have Malaga as a port but adored Valencia--both the old city & esp. the City of arts & Sciences--would go back there in a minute--what a vibrant lively place...Our experience in Marseille was also different as we did not tour that city but spent the day in Aix en provence which was wonderful!

Can't wait to hear more abt your trip so we can compare notes.

[Gypsea]

Yes, it was very exotic since it was foreign and strange, two definitions of the word. No argument there. I am happy to have had the experience but it is not one I would need to repeat unlike most every other port of call on this sailing.

 

I understand the locals in Tangiers wanting to make the most of the opportunity to sell their goods to us but the attitude of many shopkeepers was rude. I have sympathy toward those less fortunate than myself and I may have made a few purchases if they were not so forceful. I guess that is what bothered me most and it steered me away from the shopping altogether. The guide just kept dragging it on and on instead of taking us back to the ship, also unappreciated.

[Gypsea]

This is the only tender port for the 11 night Med sailing of Century. Once on land our threesome shopped and made a stop at a cafe before heading to the train station where we boarded the train to Monaco. The Grand Casino does not open until 2pm so we did not stay long enough to pay for a peek. It is a beautiful building but we had so many things we wanted to see and do. We also decided against taking the time to travel to the palace. From here we were able to catch a bus that brought us to the medevil village of Eze. This was probably the highlight of the cruise for me. When asked what was the most fabulous sight for me it was undoubtably Eze.

It is one of the most picturesque villages on the French Riviera. Situated on top of a huge rock, the summit is 1,410 feet above sea level. Almost all streets consist of stairways keeping the village free of cars, bicycles, or any type of vehicle. The very top of the hill features the ruins of a 14th century castle destroyed in 1706. The view at the top is well worth the climb. If you can take the time I highly suggest a visit. The bus will take you back to Nice from the center of the village.

[sam1948]

I was on Millennium Med. cruise Sept. 07, my sisters and I booked a Nice land tour from Med. tour. The driver Antony picked us up from the port, he was excellent and I highly recommand them, we went to Nice, Eze, Monaco, visiting Palace, casino, shopping area in Nice. This is the one that we did not have to fight for the trains, buses and watched the time to go back to the cruise. We had 8 so only 65 Euro person, very reasonable.

[clivep]

He walked us to a taxi that dropped us off at the Kasbah. When we were done touring this area we walked to the shopping district after which he walked us down a hill and we were close to the ship, not needing any return shuttle or taxi. Hmm, strange, I thought.

 

When we went to Tangiers a few years ago we took a taxi to the center of town and walked back. This is OK as it is a very steep climb up from the port but makes it easy to walk back. The cruise line for that cruise did not provide shuttles, if it did I would only bother using them one way. I also find a good tip if getting your own taxi from port is to go near the end of the queuing taxis where you can haggle for a better fare.

 

My wife and I love the Arabic ports but find we have to change our behaviour somewhat. This is what we have found:

 

Istanbul - in the grand bazaar they are quite pushy but if you ignore them and walk away they don't bother you anymore.

 

Tunisia - they are rather more enthusiastic - if you touch anything they won't leave you alone, my wife was even grabbed by the hand outside one store and pulled inside. When you've had enough walk away without further conversation and you're OK.

 

Tangier and Casablanca, Morocco - non stop hassle. If they do not have what you are looking for they will insist on selling you something else even if you hate it. Impossible to just browse. When you leave the shop someone will attach themselves to you, without asking, and try to show you other stores to shop (where he'll earn some commission). After following you for a while he'll then ask to a tip for being your guide. This happened to us in Casablanca where we did not get any foreign currency or have any change in Dollars or Euros. When he demanded money we showed him that my pockets and my wifes purse were empty. He then swore at my wife and spat at her. The tip here is to make no eye contact and to totally ignore them when spoken to. If a 'guide' attaches himself to you, as they also tried in Tangiers, ignore them or tell them to go away. It they persist then double back on yourself a couple of times and then they may take the hint.

 

Marrakech and Agadir, Morocco - unexpectedly friendly, similar to the Istanbul experience.

 

We find it very difficult to be this rude to people and realise that they have a very poor standard of living and are just trying to get by. When they are not trying to sell you anything you will find them most friendly and likeable.

[Gypsea]

Clive: This is all great information to pass along to us and I enjoyed reading it. Your Casablanca experience makes me glad I didn't get there after all. I do sympathize with those less fortunate but I did not appreciate people invading my space when I did not show interest. I think the tip about not touching anything is a good one. I realize this was in another place but it is an important bit of knowledge. As Americans we often think turning something over will reveal the price which then shows our interest (or curiosity). After that we are marked for sure.

 

When I arrived in Tangiers I had just been massaged for an hour and a half on the ship so I was feeling pretty relaxed and not in the shopping mood anyway. Unfortunately for the natives I was not concerned about their reaction to my disinterest and my budget did not allow for frivolous purchases nor did my small suitcase.

[hcat]

If I ever went to those ports I would wan to see the sights not shop for things I have no interest in...will avoid these types of ports. On the other hand I wish we had much more time to shop in Florence--what great things they have!

[Gypsea]

I did not see much of Livorno because our interest was in discovering as much of Florence as was possible in one day. We were amazed at the vast number of tourists everywhere due to the docked ships or just the perfect time to travel here. It was unforturnate we were not in tune to the time needed to travel into the city which really eats into the day. We arrrived in Florence at 11am and spent most of our time simply walking the streets and enjoying the ambience.

 

We should have taken the time to enter the Duomo but the lines were so long and our time so short we opted out. The Academia Gallery was closed on our port day so this was not an option either. We did not waste our time trying to buy leather goods but feasted at a wine store/cafe located across from the Pitti Palace instead. We enjoyed our cafe meals in each port very much and ended up making a good choice. After being told that Il Latino was more of a tourist spot (I had read about here) a stationery shop owner mentioned La Casalinga . A very inexpensive cafe that the locals frequent but the line was way too long. It's been discovered and I was sorry we could not eat there (if you'd like to try it is located near the Pitti Palace also)but our own choice was excellent, PITTIGOLA FIRENZE served us a wonderful meal. With two glasses of wine the bill was $50 US.

It probably doesn't sound like we had a worthwhile day here but we walked for MILES and did manage to see the major sites from the outside at least. Our next visit will be better planned with an earlier start to allow entrance to the Duomo and the Academia at the very least.

One day here is just not enough but since the city is an hour and a half from the port by train it would be a foolish place for ships to overnight. Be prepared to start your day early here.

[clivep]

Apologies for hijacking your thread with my last post. I just thought it was sad that on our visit to Agadir the majority of the Americans stayed on board if they were not on an organized excursion.

 

Thanks for all your info on the ports of call. We are going on the Century on much the same itinary this Friday (2nd November) so it is greatly appreciated.

 

One day here is just not enough but since the city is an hour and a half from the port by train it would be a foolish place for ships to overnight. Be prepared to start your day early here.

 

We are also going on the Legend of the Seas on 18th November and this does overnight in Livorno.

 

If you want to go to an art gallery in Florence it is a good idea to book your tickets online in advance particularly for the Ufizzi where the queues can be very long. You can book through an agent and pay over double the admission price or book direct for a small (3 Euro) booking fee by phoning the gallery ... see http://www.uffizi.com/online-ticket-booking-uffizi-gallery.asp

(and have a laugh at their English translation).

[hcat]

Sorry the Florence day did not work out that well from time perspective.. For Florence & Rome we think the tours were a good idea. We took the ships excursions in each port. Had great guides in both cities.

 

Our Florence Day was wonderful...a long ride with heavy trafic but we saw all the major sites from the outside (many closed on our port day) got great photos & did get into the Duomo.. there was a line & our guide should have taken us there first) but we made it in with our group. Also had a nice lunch in a local restaurant with the group. Got a nice handbag but otherwise not enough time to shop!

if I returned, I'd do the Florence on your own through the cruise line & go to the Pitti Palace & the musuems that were closed & will definitely note your lunch cafe suggestions...!