Mediterranean cruise

Old Nov 18th, 2014, 11:35 AM
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Mediterranean cruise

A bit complicated but here are my questions:
Starting point is Amsterdam but would like to take a cruise for a max. 7 days with family of 4. Timing would be late March so wondering if there may be deals to be had at that time / cruise line suggestions, what port/s to consider and best way to get to port and back to Amsterdam for flight home (unless I can change departure location) and lastly, does a cruise make any sense at all at that time of year. We have taken 1 cruise out of Miami but not at all familiar with Europe.

Thank you for your help!
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Old Nov 18th, 2014, 05:49 PM
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I would not encourage a cruise in March even if one was available. Why Amsterdam? It is not a big ocean cruise port. The weather could be very marginal. Have you tried Cruise Critic? Need more information before a response can be made.
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Old Nov 18th, 2014, 05:51 PM
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PS - Just realized you tagged this as a Mediterranean cruise. You need to check a map. Amsterdam is no where near the Mediterranean. None of this is making any sense.
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Old Nov 18th, 2014, 08:51 PM
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What is your family looking for? What are your interests? What do you like to do?

Weather can be pretty iffy in the North, so I personally would not do a cruise then in Northern Europe. One of the worst snow storms I ever encountered was in April going from The Netherlands down to Germany.

Check temperatures of ports you are considering.

One reason for a cruise is to go to places that have great archeological and historic signts or landscapes that are easy to visit briefly on a cruise. Examples are Ephesus, Dubrovnik, Athens, Greek islands, etc. if just seeing things is the main interest with no outdoor activities, then I might consider a cruise if it took me where I wanted to go and I would wear warm clothing, not expecting to be outdoors enjoying the pools, etc.

The second reason for a cruise is to enjoy beautiful weather and beautiful places on water and with water activities. Examples are Caribbean for beaches, diving, snorkling, swimming, etc. and visiting places where it is nice to be outside walking. I would certainly not do that in March in most places in Europe.
I would do it someplace warm.

Another is simply an all inclusive relaxing vacation on water that lets you see a few places briefly. If you don't mind being inside, or the ship has an enclosure for the pool, then you could do March, but if you want to fully enjoy the outdoor areas of the ship, No to a cruise in Europe in March.

So, the real question is what are your hopes and expectations for this cruise? With answers to that, you will get better advice.
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Old Nov 20th, 2014, 11:36 AM
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I found one river cruise departing Amsterdam in March.

Most (but not all) cruise lines start up Med cruise season in April. You could try Southampton, Rome or Barcelona as departure points.
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Old Nov 20th, 2014, 12:59 PM
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Look at vacationstogo to see what cruises are available in March. Rather than do the 90 day sticker, use the form to plug in your dates and area.
Just a quick look shows mostly Costa and MS (Italian lines) doing 7 day itineraries that include Barcelona, Marseille, Genoa, Palermo, Naples, Rome, etc. that general area. Longer cruises get South of Spain, Morocco and some islands off Portugal.
There are also longer more lux cruises.

How old are the kids? I doubt a river cruise would be to their liking, but to some, it might.

Many of the ships do the Caribbean, Mexico, Hawaii, and wait to head to the Med until April. You can see why, weather. Wise.
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Old Dec 1st, 2014, 07:05 AM
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Thank you all for your input and so sorry for this late reply. I have been out of town. The reason for Amsterdam is that my daughter has a field hockey tournament there and we were planning to follow it with some kind of family holiday. My girls are 14 & 17. As much as I loved Turkey and Greece, I was thinking Spain & Morocco as a closer warmer option. Not sure how long it would take to get there by train. Curious what the cruise was out of Amsterdam in March. Also if cruises don't make sense would love any other options/ideas. Overall the hope for a family trip is to see some sights for 1 week last few days of March / early April.
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Old Dec 1st, 2014, 10:51 AM
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Have you been to the Netherlands before? If not, I would stay there, tour the Keukenhof, visit some great museums, then drop down to Belgium and visit Ghent, Antwerp and Bruges.

If that is not of interest, fly from Amsterdam to Spain or Morocco.

Have you been to Spain? If not, a week in and around Seville would be lovely. Seville, Cordoba and Granada would fill the week. You could use trains and busses or rent a car and visits smaller towns.

You could also fly into Madrid for three days and take the fast train to Barcelona for four days. Lots to see in both places, especially if you do a day trip to Toledo from Madrid.

One other option would be a week in Sicily, though that is not much time there. You would have to choose just one area to see, but it is beautiful with great places to see and wonderful food.

I have not been to Morocco, but think it would also be a good choice.

I would not do a river cruise with the kids and would not do a med cruise in March.
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Old Dec 3rd, 2014, 05:41 PM
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Thank you so much for the advice. I think I will pick from the options you have kindly supplied and forget about the cruise idea.
Thanks to all for the great comments!
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