Weather in November

[3girls]

We are considering a Mediterranean cruise in November. When I checked the weather for monthly averages it seems to be a very wet time of year. Can anyone give me first hand information regarding the weather? We would be cruising from Barcelona...Pisa...Santorin....to name a few ports. Our last Mediterranean cruise was in July and the weather was of course beautiful. Wondering if we should reconsider going in September. Thanks!

[Keith1010]

Just like anywhere in the world weather will vary from day to day and year over year but clearly this time of year you will have more chance for rain.

 

We had a nice experience with a sailing in late September into early October. Overall weather was very nice without the humidiity of the summer months and it was far less crowded than the busy summer.

 

Keith

[bellagirl]

Hi-we just returned from our Med. cruise from Nov.24-Dec.8 and we hit perfect weather,esp. in Barcelona,Greece,Egypt and Rome. The only rain was in Istanbul,but it only lasted a day. Crowds were no problem and we even got a few deals on leather goods,etc. because it was the end of the year. I wouldn't hesitate to go again at this time. Hope this helps! Shelly

[cruisemom42]

We sailed in mid- to late November in 2006 and had much the same experience as BellaGirl -- almost perfect weather and few crowds. Of course, weather is unpredictable, so if you find the thought of a few rainy or cloudy/cool days offputting, you might consider Sept. or Oct. instead.

[terumim]

we had the same weather so to speak.. it was kinda chilly on a few days like in florence it was chilly and rained.. but who cares you in italy... greece was wonderful sunny and clear... we went in oct to nov 2006... i would pack scarf gloves and somewhat warm all weather coat...( i forced myself to buy a leather coat in florence due to the weather ) lol lol

 

i will be back in europe this next year ta from barcelona to miam i with a pre cruise week in Paris.. so will have to plan with cold chilly warm and warmer LOL

 

Tonia

[texancruzer]

We just sailed Brilliance of the Seas 9 nights from Rome ending in Barcelona Nov 23rd to Dec. 2nd. Our ports were Naples, Dubrovnik, Corfu, Livorno(Pisa/Florence), Villefranche(Nice), Toulon(Provence).

 

We had an overcast day in Dubrovnik..... but no rain at all. Took disposable rain ponchos and travel umbrellas but did not use them once.

 

This was the very last Med cruise before Brilliance did her transatlantic back to Miami for the winter Caribbean season.

 

I would travel this time of year again in a heartbeat. Here's why -

 

1. It was cool during the day.....chilly at night. I would rather put on a sweater or jacket than sweat bullets doing all the walking we did :o Actually Pompeii was really warm but not unbearable.

2. NO CROWDS - anywhere. Can't imagine some of these places we visited with people jammed in them which they have during the high season.

3. Shopping was great. Most places knew this was their last call for sales....... most places had "end of season" prices and would come down alot further if you asked.

4. Ports - alot of them we were the only ship in port. Just really nice not to have to deal with throngs of other tourists.

5. Almost all the ports had Christmas decor up and holiday markets.....very festive and fun.

6. The price of the cruise ----- OMG it was cheap :D

 

The only down side was some things were already closed for the season. But we did not have any problems finding plenty of places to shop or eat.

So in my opinion the pluses heavily outweighed the minuses.

[Bill S]

Just as with stocks, past performance is no guarantee of future performance, weather operates on the same basis some times.

Having opened with that caveat, we did an E. Med Cruise this past Nov 4-18 which included Barcelona, Villefranche, Livorno, Civitavecchia, Naples, Athens, Istanbul, Mykonos, Santorini and Venice. We had NO rain! The weather was generally mild and sunny, ranging from the low 70s to the 40s (in Venice).

I wholeheartedly agree with the reasons texancruzer gave for cruising in November in the E. Med. We had cruised the W. Med a year ago October and we duplicated a few ports on the E. Med cruise. The difference was very noticeable, especially with respect to the reduced number of tourists in most places.

[Morgans]

Just be aware that it can be rainy/stormy in November/December. Sun is definitely not guaranteed.

[ChelseaBrian]

Hi girls!

I was on VOS 11/8-11/17 and I was disapointed. The weather was decent, I think it rained once but it was cold! We are from PA and use to the cold but never did the cold weather makes it "not feel like a vacation". It was in the 50's the entire time but we were bundled up and it just wasn't a relaxing or as pleasant and I would want a vacation to be. Not to mention the seas were horrific.

[MercedMike]

We just returned from the Med in November. Weather was -- well -- variable!! We had nice warm sunny days in Athens, Santorini and Patmos, cold in Split, and really cold with a bit of drizzle in Venice. Be prepared.;)

 

Check out our review and pics at http://www.elite.net/~thehalls/holyland.html

and you can see how we dressed on different days!

 

OTOH in September, you have a chance of miserable heat in many places. Friends were in Athens in Sept and reported they almost roasted climbing the Acropolis.

 

Have a GREAT cruise!

[nelsonrdso]

Our favourite Months in the Med are September and October,not too hot and with just a minimal chance of bad weather

[texancruzer]

Hi girls!

I was on VOS 11/8-11/17 and I was disapointed. The weather was decent, I think it rained once but it was cold! We are from PA and use to the cold but never did the cold weather makes it "not feel like a vacation". It was in the 50's the entire time but we were bundled up and it just wasn't a relaxing or as pleasant and I would want a vacation to be. Not to mention the seas were horrific.

 

See.... this just goes to show how each person has their own ideas and preferences of what a vacation should be.....

 

We are from So. Texas and hot almost all year. So the "cool" weather we experienced along with the Christmas decor and markets made this trip feel very "vacation-y"

 

Don't get me wrong....we usually cruise or travel to the Caribbean or warmer climates but usually every other year take a "vacation" to the colder climes. DH and DS love to ski and I like to play in the snow for a few days too.

 

PS: Bundled up in the 50's ????? From PA ????? That is summer time weather there :D Just joking.

 

Also we had perfect seas ! The Gulf of Mexico in November can be horrendous though ;)

[otogocruisin]

We cruised the Med this past November. We had one day that it rained on and off but we did not let that stop us. We prefer cold to hot. We wore jackets most days.

The only thing that did bother us was that many restaurants and stores close at the end of October on the Greek Islands. There was a lot to do so we did not let it affect our plans too much. We had a great time and it certainly was great to travel without the crowds.

[Kindlychap]

Not to mention the seas were horrific.

 

Too calm?

 

Matthew

[ChelseaBrian]

I wish they were calm. The seas were the worst we have ever experienced. We came through when the Cyclone hit some of the Middle Eastern countries and I don't know if that had any effect on our seas, but wow they were bad.

To make a long story short, 1st night the seas were so bad I thought our room was going to cave it. After laying in bed trying to sleep until after 4am I called the front desk and asked for a new room because of the noise (the safe was actually jarring intensely). She said it was the "whole ship". I thought she was nuts. Our fellow travelers on deck 10 said the waves were splashing up to their balcony.

Then, everynight kid you not, we were bed ridden. The waves were 4-5 meters high and they just threw us around horribly.

Finally, the lady next to us said she had been on 25 cruises and never been sick. Needless to say she was sicker than a dog. They had barf bags everyone on the ship. It was quite an experience. However, our cabin was not located in the best spot either.

[3girls]

Thanks for the replys. I understand what ChelseaBrian mean by wanting nice weather while on vacation. I don't mind the cold so much...(from New England) It is the heavy rains/raw weather that bothers me. I love the heat and wouldn't mind the very hot temps however we are traveling with another couple who do not want to deal with any hot weather. I'd love to find a nice cruise towards the end of September. (we're working around a family wedding mid October) Must be something out there...;)