When is the best time to buy European Cruise? When is the best time to go on EC?

[dameofspace]

We have never cruised Europe and have been planning for too long to have a European vacation that will include cruise and city sightseeing before and after the cruise. I need your advice. What cruise line is your favorite and why to cruise Europe? What ports and why? What time of year? When should I start looking to get the best deal?

 

I was thinking of going next year between April and October (lol) and I am not very interested in River Cruises or Northern Europe, such as Northern Capitals and Scandinavia. Other then that – I’d love to see the world.

 

Looking forward to your thoughts.

 

PS Some background - we are 38/46, have been on 17 cruises, but not in Europe. And our favorite cruise line is Celebrity.

[paul929207]

We have been on 5 European cruises with Princess and 1 with NCL. We love Princess. I would say my favorite ports are Rome, Venice and Athens. In the Med, the weather is better in April & May and September and October. It can be very hot during the summer. We were there last November and it was getting cool.

[Grannycb]

You might enjoy an itinerary with Venice, Rome, Florence and Naples. Athens, Kusadasi and Rhodes are also very interesting. As for time, wild flowers were blooming all over in April. May had good weather but can be on the warm end of comfortable. Remember, you will need long pants and sleeves to go into cathedrals. We've only been on Princess in Europe so can't compare different lines. Princess did a terrific job.

[packed&ready!]

We are sailing on the Ruby Pricess next May 4, 2009. We were in the Med last November and it was cold in Italy and a lot of things close for the season. It is also the rainy season in that area but we were lucky and had good weather. I don't want to pack so much warmer clothes and we decided to try May, average temps in the Med were 60-70 for May. I like that. I did have the Celebrity cruise booked but I cancelled. Celebrity is my favorite line also. I wanted to see Istanbul so we booked the Ruby. Besides it will be nice to on a new ship. The last one I was on was the Zuiderdam.

 

Book a cruise to Europe as early as you can. The prices are better.

 

Bon Voyage

[Andee]

Our favorite cruise line by far is Oceania, for the small ships, great staff, excellent food, and open seating dining.

 

We've only taken two Med cruises, but selected ones that didn't include Rome and Florence as port stops because those cities are actually quite a ways inland, and we didn't want to spend so much time getting to the places we wanted to see.

 

We especially loved Dubrovnik, Venice, Barcelona, Lisbon, Malta, and the Greek islands.

[Dinkey]

May early June and October and November but watch out for the weather in the later dates. You can get some really cheap repositioning cruises either departing from the USA, UK or vice-versa taking in Italy, France, Spain, North Africa, Portugal etc. Another good thing is most sightseeing is easy to plan on your own without expencive excursions.:)

 

With RCCL you can get really cheap deals by booking in advance, but with other cruise lines discounts usually come around six weeks prior the cruise departure date, this is after they have taken in the balances of the pre-bookings and know how many cabins they have left. At the moment a repositioning 11day cruise with Princess is under £500 including flights from the UK.

 

There are too many large ships in the Med at the moment and they can not filll all the cabins so watch out for some great cruise only offers, of course if flying from the USA you will have to consider that flight prices are cheaper to book well in advance.

 

The Med is a great place to cruise so much history and culture, I have travelled all over the world and am still exploring Europe, which happens to be on my doorstep. I am sure you will have a wonderful time whenever you decide to go.:rolleyes:

 

I have just booked a great deal on Fred Olsen next week, smaller and more English than our normal cruises on RCCL and Cunard but nice and friendly, a 11day Greece, Malta, Turkey for under £500 a bargain!:D

[dameofspace]

Thank you for the information. I don't even know what Fred Olsen is, I'll have to research it. So what is your favorite city in Europe?

 

D

[dameofspace]

I will research Princess more since I got so many good comments about Princess. I have been on a cruise to South America on Princess and few times in the Caribbean, and never liked Princess much. I hope they are doing something differently for Europe since so many people like them. However, I also noticed that with Princess you either love them or hate them, there is no middle ground. I hope you will post a detailed review after your cruise in May.

Thank you,

D

[dameofspace]

I have been to Italy many times and probably will not include it into this trip, but I am very interested in Greece, Turkey, and Croatia. On the other hand I would also like to see Spain, Monte Carlo and Marseille. What do you think? And I am thinking April/May rather then Sep/Oct.

Thank you,

D

[kbemje]

We had a group of 52 Cruise Critic members who had a spectacular Emerald Princess Cruise that started 9/14 which started in Venice, then went to Athens, Ephesus (amazing), Mykonos, Naples (Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast), Rome, Florence, Marseille, and Barcelona.

 

The weather was PERFECT every day and none of the summer crowds with very little children on board.

 

There is no doubt that when we go back to Southern Europe again, it will be in September.

 

Bonnie in Atlanta

next trip: Southern Africa on a Safari 7/7/08:p

[AF-1]

Here is my personal opinion. My wife and I went to Europe last May. our itinerary was, Venice, Croatia, Turkery, Greece.. The weather was perfect, in the mid to high 70's, and the waters on the Adriatic Sea were calm almost like a smooth lake. Hope this helps.

 

Cheers

[mjwcruising]

Celebrity's new Solstice will be in the Med. next year. They have a cruisetours that spend 2 nights in Venice, 1 night in Florence, and 2 nights in Rome. The cruises include ports in Italy, Greece and Turkey. After researching on Cruise Critic we chose a cruise tour for 2009 that starts May 20th and ends June 5th.

We have always cruised Celebrity and are looking forward to the new Solstice.

For Celebrity it is wise to sign up when the rates first come out. (For 2009 that would be now, they have been out for about 2 months). If the prices go down and you notify them you usually get the cheaper rate.

[Dinkey]

Thank you for the information. I don't even know what Fred Olsen is, I'll have to research it. So what is your favorite city in Europe?

 

D

 

My favourite Cities are Rome and Barcelona but I am in love with Turkey so much History and the scenery is awsome! We are hoping to re-locate to a place jut outside Marmaris in the near future, hence why we chose this cruise as we will be able to spend time with our friends for the day.

 

Other crusie lines in the Med with good deals are Celebrity, P&O, Cunard (you can often get good deals on QM2 as she is so large they can't fill her) also the Italian lines MSC and Costa are not too bad. It is preference really, we don't mind Fred Olsen if we get a good deal and the itinery is right, but they can't compete with the larger companies.

 

I would advise you look at Celebrity or RCCL as there prices are quite good.

[Morgsmom]

We booked 330 days out for our much anticipated Med cruise... becuase I was combining it with frequent flyer air and those seats open up exactly 330 days out... We are going in late November (Thanksgiving week) which might be dicey for weather since we are Florida gals, but there is no school and it was the cheapest sailing I could find (and it has gone up about $150pp since I booked.)

 

As another poster said there were some unbelievable deals available in May/June posted last week but with airfare to BCN at over $1500 per person it mitigated any of the savings from the cheap cruise fare.

 

You can ALWAYS cancel & rebook or get a price adjustment if the fare goes down. There are, indeed, a lot of large ships in the Med and the airfare is causing many Americans to not be able to sail so there should be some excellent cruise only bargains.

[vivian02]

Everyone seems to have their share of information so let me give you mine. Some of the nicest weather I have seen in Europe is in May. Cruising May is a good month since schools are usually still in session. For a first time cruiser to Europe I would pick Barcelona for your port of departure. Barcelona has reasonably priced hotels, taxis, and resturants. Getting to the port from the Airport or Hotel is really easy and the taxi drivers can be trusted. I would choose a 12 day cruise over a 7 day. Why spend all that money on airfare only for a seven day cruise. The Meditterean can be very port intensive and taking that 12 day cruise gives you at least two sea days and time to rest up. The best time to book a cruise probably depends on when you can get good airfare. I usually start looking in mid to late September for airfare and once I spot that bargin deal I start checking which cruiseline has the best deal. Keep an eye out once you have booked that special cruise for price drops. This year I though I had hit a rock bottom price for a cruise out of Rome in August and I noticed a pretty good price drop....since I booked directly with the cruiseline I called and sure enough I qualified the the price drop and got an additional on board credit. Sure makes booking those excursion so much easier. I hope this information is the helps. Rule of thumb...never book a cruise to Europe when the airfare cost more than the price of the cruise. Tim

[dameofspace]

Tim, thank you, great information. And I agree with everything you said regarding prices, 12 days vs 7 and where to start. Please share more of your ideas and experiences with me. What were your favorite ports? What cruise lines? Do you look for itinerary, price or cruise line when you book your cruise? Thank you.

[dameofspace]

Again, thank you so much, I did not even know that Cunard is a choice for Europe. I thought it was too big to fit into most European ports. Do you think it is betetr to start and end in teh same port or different. I saw cruises from Barcelona to Istambul vs Barcelona to Barcelona. Thank you.

[dameofspace]

I agree about the Celebrity and I am also looking forward to their Solstice. We booked Caribbean in December on Solstice since it is the ship that I want to experience not ports as much (we've been at every Caribbean port many times). I think that since I am on the budget I will concentrate more on itinerary and bargain price on cruise in order to be able to spend more on tours and excursions. Also Italy is not on my radar this time - I have lived in Italy for 8 month as exchange student and there are very few places I have not seen there. Thank you very much for your opinion.

[dameofspace]

What cruise line? Did you like the ship or the ports or both? Thank you .

[dameofspace]

Thank you for your note. I was looking at this itinerary and this is on my top 10 list. How did you like the ship? Any tips for this cruise? Thank you

[tomko2]

We really enjoyed our 12 night cruise on the Legend of the Seas last August from Rome. We spent 6 nights in Rome as well --- love Rome! We picked that cruise because it went to Egypt not because of the ship. Our review and photos are in the links below.

Next year (Aug. 2009) we are doing 12 night from Barcelona on the Brilliance of the Seas (one of our favourite ships); this time it is Venice we most want to see. We booked the day the itineraries opened (March 18th/08) so we could get the cabin we wanted. If the price goes down; we will call up and ask for the difference. Booking early gives us lots of time to read up on the various ports, decide on what we want to do and make arrangements.

We like late August early Sept -- weather is usually sunny and hot and the crowds are starting to dwindle because it is back to school time.

Kathy:)

[vivian02]

Let me see if I can get alittle more in depth. First find an itinerary you like. Remember if you don't return to the same port as you departed you will have to investigate an "Open Jaw Flight". Sometimes these can be more expensive. Ports.....I like to spend at least two day precruise in Barcelona because there is so much to see in that City and Barcelona does have some nice beaches. Most first time cruisers stay in Las Ramblas but I prefer staying over in the area of Lower Diagonal where there is a huge shopping center and you feel safe and secure. No only that the beach is about five blocks away. You can always use the Hop on and Hop off Bus which stops infront of Hotel Princess. Marsallie...I prefer going on the tour into Providence, best choice is "Les Beaux" (Very Quaint). Lovorno...Florence for the day, make it a half day trip and go to the Leaning Tour. There is a beautiful area northwest of here called Cique Terre which I plan on doing this August. Rome...is wonderful. You can see everything in one day but you can see alot. This place will blow you away. (Love the Pantheon). Napes...Pompii, the Almafi coast, Sorrento, Carpi....lots of choices here. From here its your choice...the Greek Islands, Athens, Turkey, is some cases Cairo. Do remember if you do choose to go to Alexanderia its a two and a half hour drive down to the Pyramids. The merchans at the Grand Pyramids are very agressive. Remember there is no such than as a free camel ride. It will cost you to get down from the camel.

If you should want to sail out of Rome remember this...Its 18 miles from the Rome AirPort to the center of Rome. The cruise terminal it is located about 60 miles north of Rome at Civitavecchia. This can get very complicated and expensive but it can be done. Now you know why I recommend sailing out of Barcelona for a first time cruiser to the Meditterean. If you should choose a sailing out of Civitavecchia you will need to do alot of homework.

Tim

 

May 2004 Meditterean RCI Splendor of the Seas 7 day cruise.

May 2005 Land Tour out of Munich Germany 10 Days

May 2006 Meditterean Jewel of the Seas NCL 7 day cruise.

May 2007 Meditterean RCI Ledgend of the Seas 12 day cruise

August 2008 Meditterean Carnival Freedom of the Seas....can't wait.

[momofmeg]

I agree about the Celebrity and I am also looking forward to their Solstice. We booked Caribbean in December on Solstice since it is the ship that I want to experience not ports as much (we've been at every Caribbean port many times). I think that since I am on the budget I will concentrate more on itinerary and bargain price on cruise in order to be able to spend more on tours and excursions. Also Italy is not on my radar this time - I have lived in Italy for 8 month as exchange student and there are very few places I have not seen there. Thank you very much for your opinion.

 

If you are not afraid to try a transatlantic, the Soltice has a great price when she repositions next year. There are several stops in Italy, France and Spain before she crosses the Atlantic (one stop in Fungal) and docks in Ft. Lauderdale.

 

We did a northen transtlantic last year on the Connie and loved it and we hope to do one again but this time from the med. Unfortunatley, we may have to wait a couple more years before doing this. I WISH we could do this in 09!

 

I want to fly into Paris, spend at least 3 days there, and then either by train or a short plane ride travel to Italy to spend a couple of days before boarding the cruiseship. The cruise departs from Rome.

 

That would be what I would want to do if we could book this Soltice TA for next year. (November 09)