My wife and I are going on the Rotterdam cruise from Venice to Barcelona this October, and we are not sure how to do anything. Should we expect rain in Venice and Naples? Should we sign up for the packaged excursions? Should we try to go exploring on our own? Neither one of us has ever been to Europe, and we need some travel tips from experienced cruisers.

Dave-you don't say when in October you are cruising---It could be beautiful weather the first week of October in both Venice and Naples--We were there the middle two weeks of Sept.years ago and the weather was gorgeous-80's during the day and 70's at nite- <BR>What is your time frame in Naples..our ship stayed there overnite,so we rented a car and drove down the Amalfi coast-We pre-booked with Hertz and picked up the car at the Naples train station. It is absolutely breathtaking scenery driving down the Amalfi coast and stopping in SOrrento and Positano--highly reccommend that-forget Pompeii-just a lot of grey ashy mountains with souvenier shop. IF your ship is only there for the day,you may want to take the excursion to Capri. <BR> <BR>As far as Venice-Most ships overnite in Venice--you do not need any excuursions in Vencice-it's a terrific walking city -make sure you go to St.Marks sq,have an expresso and listen to the orchestras at nite-very romantic-- <BR>Everyone says the gondoliers are a rip-off,but if you go with another couple that you may meet on the ship,carry on your own bottle of wine and have a party..it's perfectly allowable. In Vencie,also make sure you go to the Rialto Bridge area for some fun shopping, and please go to Peggy Guggenheims HOme on the Grand Canal which is now a museum filled with contemporary art that she lived around-the Doges Palace is a great tour-just buy your tickets at the front....In Barcelona there is a lot of pickpockets around now-all sorts of travel advisories for Spain,so I would do the ships excursion there-I remember one that did the museums in the area...the Gaudi museum (the famous Spanish Architect) was once his home and you can wander thu there...If you are hitting Monte Carlo and staying overnite,again rent a car and drive up to St.Paul de Vence (a medieval walled town above Nice)- and also stop at Eze-another walled city overlooking the Med above Nice) and at nite make sure you go into the casino in Monte Carlo-ie the Grand Casino-coat and ties are required there and there is an admission charge but it is worth it. <BR> <BR>Med cruises tend to be more dressy than the Caribbean cruises-you will see more tuxedos on formal nites,but if you don't have one or don't want to wear one, a dark suit will be fine. <BR> <BR>A med cruise is fabulous for whetting your appetite for future European travel, and gives you a little taste of each country--just enough so you'll know which ones you want to go back to later on and the ideal way to travel without having to pack and unpack each nite- HAve a fabulous time--it is very romantic!

Thanks for the advice. As for the schedule, I think we are in Venice on the 11th or 12th, and then spend one day in Ephesus, Athens, Malta, Naples, Rome, and Monaco, and then drop off in Barcelona. I think the whole trip is only ten days. Like you say, it isn't enough time to really explore any of the cities, but it is enough time to enjoy sightseeing. <BR> <BR>This is a lot of money for us, but once we are there, I would rather spend a few extra bucks than miss my only opportunity to see the places I have always read about.

<BR>Hi Dave, <BR> <BR>Andy wrote a great report. One exception ... I have gambled in Monaco twice and never wore a tie and sportcoat. Possibly because it was the afternoon?? <BR> <BR>For a fabulous tour in Kusadasi I have an associate Sezgin Demirci of Sardunya Travel that will take you wherever you like at a price that is less than the cruise line. He has air conditioned new Mercedes vans. You will not have to wait in line for buses and when you get hot and tired exploring the ruins you can leave. He will also take you to an outside Turkish family restaurant for lunch which is for many the highlight of the trip. <BR> <BR>You can reach him at: [email protected] <BR>and tell him I sent you. <BR> <BR>Have a great time on your cruise. <BR> <BR>Paul

Dave, on our first cruise to Europe we took several shore excursions because of the ease and not having to worry about missing the boat. They also didn't seem to be that expensive but that was on Orient Lines. The last cruise we took we didn't take any of the shore excursions as we had fully researched each port before we left home and were comfortable traveling on our own. <BR> <BR>Of the ports listed the easiest to get around in are Malta and Barcelona. The ship should dock within walking distance of Valletta in Malta. Inside the city gates is a tourism office, they would be able to tell you how to get around Malta and what there is to see. The buses are very cheap and Malta is rather small. If you want to research a bit in advance try www.visitmalta.com. The main areas of Barcelona are within a short cab ride from the pier. Barcelona is a great wandering city, especially the Las Ramblas area. <BR> <BR>I would recommend a guide for Ephesus, whether it be the ship excursion or a private guide as Paul has suggested. <BR> <BR>Rome is doable independently but since its your first visit to Rome (and to Europe) you might do a tour. Rome isn't terribly difficult to get around but since you will likely only be there for a day, figure out what kind of day you want and there should be excursions that run from a bus ride to and from the port to an all day "pack it all" in tour. If you have a larger group of people you might also look into hiring a guide if you have specific places you want to see. <BR> <BR>There's another good website for cruises, www.cruisecritic.com. There are boards for Europe and also for specific lines. You might post there and get some feedback about the tours offered.