Opinions on NCL Western Med

[Cruisin250]

We're considering a NCL European cruise this summer. We were looking at the 7day Western Med leaving out of Barcelona. We have never been to Europe so don't really if these are good port stops.

Any opinions from those who have taken this itinerary???

[ktpc2005]

We took a 7 day Med Sea cruise on the Gem last month and I really enjoyed the ports that we stopped in. The only thing I wish is that we had more time in ports like Rome and Florence. I really would have liked to go to Venice, but that gives us a reason to go back. You can see a review of the ports that I went to here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=653811

[Cruisin250]

Thanks for the link! Great review.

[ktpc2005]

One thing I forgot to say is that future 7 day cruises will not be making port in Messina, but will be stopping on their first port day after the sea day across the Med Sea in Valletta, the capital city of Malta. Also watch out for that day at sea because ours was a rough one with a North wind of 30-40 knots and 15-20 ft seas.

[Schmuppie's Mom]

I was on the same voyage as kptc2005, and we really enjoyed it. I definitely concur with him, however. It is extremely port intensive and you don't really get to enjoy and savor Rome & Florence. In fact, my DH and I would like to go back and do a land tour, spending a few nights in those two cities as well as Venice.

 

You also don't really get to enjoy or savor the ship, although I do believe that a "freestyle" type of cruising (on NCL or some other variation on another cruiseline) is ideal for this itinerary... you don't have to rush back to the ship from the ports to meet your dinner seating.

 

That said, this gave us a taste of many wonderful European cities and we have no regrets. The ports are all breathtaking in their own way. I even enjoyed Messina/Taormina, which (pre-cruise) I had considered to be a "filler" day. I would definitely recommend this trip, and be sure to add on 2 nights in Barcelona first, since that is an absolutely fantastic city as well.

[snorklinbarb]

For those of us going on the Gem soon, we can't wait to read more. S. Mom, will you be posting a review?

 

KPTC, greatly enjoyed your excellent review!:)

[want2cruiseagain]

This is an excursion intensive cruise. We didn't get that much time on the ship because of the excursions we took. Most were all day, but we did enjoy seeing the Cinque Terre and going to Sorrento. We only had one day at sea, the day after leaving BCN.

 

Summertime - lots of families. There were over 800 of them on our cruise. Not all Americans, English, German, French, Spanish. Very eclectic.

 

Hubby wants to do a longer cruise with more time on ship. The one we are thinking about seems to fit the bill, but haven't decided for sure.

 

 

Oh, be careful at the airport in BCN. I saw a man's briefcase being snatched. We also heard about luggage being stolen while people were checking into the hotel. It's a great city - just be on guard at all times.