Western Mediterranean Cruise Port Information

[lisherm]

I am cruising this summer and looking for some details for the following ports: Genoa, Nice, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca and Sardinia. I have cruised before and found that exploring on your own is usually the best option however, some excursions will save you the hassle, time and money in the long run. The trips from Royal Carribean do not seem that interesting.

 

Here is what i would like to know:

 

Genoa - I am meeting a friend in Portofino, what is the best way for me to get there.

 

Nice - I would really like to see Eze and Monte Carlo and spend a little time in Nice at the Promenade and Beach. There is a trip that does all 3, maybe this is best to get it all in? Or is it do-able on your own to see all 3 in one day maybe by taxi, train, bus, tour guide?

 

Barcelona - on my own, exploring and probably doing the double decker bus. Any must sights?

 

Palma - what do you do there that is a must?

 

Sardinia - What do you there as well?

 

:rolleyes::rolleyes:

[6rugrats]

You may want to start by getting a guide book and doing some reading. Or, using google, or going to tripadvisor also will pull up lots of information.

 

Asking about must see sites is really an easy one to answer using the above resources.

 

Good luck!

[pete_coach]

Go right to the Cruise Critic Port section.

http://www.cruisecritic.com/ports/area.cfm?area=42

 

Or, better yet, go to http://www.tripadvisor.com and in the search box, type in the name of the port or city and up will come everything from 10 best of everything to a forum for folks to ask questions. I use this all the time and get lots of great info and input.

[katz]

We did Barcelona on our own a few years ago. It is a short taxi ride to the center of the city, where you can get on the HOHO bus. It goes to all the popular

sites. I would suggest visiting La Rambla for shopping and getting a feel for this city and Sagrada Familia, which considered

the greatest work of Gaudi. I can't remember all the stops on the bus, but I think the earlier you get on the bus the better. It did get very crowded and hot as the day went on.

We enjoyed Barcelona, however it was the only city on our Med cruise were we experienced pickpocketing activity.

So, I would advise you to take the normal precautions and be aware of your surroundings. Be sure to stop in one of the many tapas restaurants for a nice lunch.

[AmoMondo]

Barcelona - on my own, exploring and probably doing the double decker bus. Any must sights?

 

Sagrada familia, Parc Guell, Las Ramblas and if you have time Casa Mila. there are some really nice restaurants in the old port too. We were there on 1st may (not our first visit) and used the HoHo bus. Unfortunately as the city was mobbed as it was a public holiday with loads of internal tourists as well as international ones and cruise passengers - we only had time to do the red route. We spent more time waiting in qs to get back on a bus than we did anything else. Also the qs at sagrada & casa Mila were huge - definitely more than an hour wait. I'd suggest checking out how quickly the qs are moving for your preferred HoHo bus before spending the money on a ticket. In our case we'd have been better bopping around on foot and with the easy to use metro and perhaps a taxi to Parc guell

Palma - what do you do there that is a must?

The Cathedral is gorgeous and a stroll along the esplanade (in front of the cathedral) and main square behind it are rather nice. You can take a horse and carriage ride. there is also a HoHo bus which has a limited basic commentary and stops at about 5.30pm. so not great if you are there in the afternoon as we were. On the plus, it is only 13 euros and goes up to the castle which has amazing views accross the bay and city from up there. It is also quite interesting inside and they have made great efforts to make as much of it accessable to the less able bodies as is possible in an ancient building. There is also Pueblo espanol ( think they have one in barcelona too) Not to my taste as this is a manufactured toursit attraction that is meant to be traditional Spanish life

 

Can't answer all of your questions but I've answered the ones that I can above. Hope this helps

[HeinBloed]

For Barcelona have a look here:

 

http://heinbloed-cruiseguides.blogspot.com/2009/05/barcelona-spain-airport-transfer-hoho.html

 

http://heinbloed-cruiseguides.blogspot.com/2009/02/barcelona-spain-getting-from-mol.html

 

That's what we did last week.

 

Regards,

HeinBloed

[Host Sharon]

In Palma the medieval Arab Baths are fascinating and close to the Cathedral.

[lisherm]

Thank you, this helped and we will be following your recommendations.

[lisherm]

Thank you for the information, this will help with these 2 ports.