I would like to get advice, suggestions, and/or general comments from people who<BR>have taken European cruises. I am thinking of taking one with an itenerary including Italy andGreece. Are the ports close to the major attractions? What time of year is best? Is it always neccesary to purchase an excursion to get to the attractions? Anything will help.

Is there no one out there that has ever cruised Europe? I never seem to get any posts when I submit a question. I first submited my cruise question on the Europe board and someone recommended that I post in the cruise section because I would get lots of hits. Well, zero so far !!

Hello,<BR><BR>I've taken a European cruise and I had a wonderful time. It is a great way to see lots of different places in a short amount of time with a shore excursion or on your own. Then, you know which places you enjoyed the most and can plan a future trip to spend more time exploring.<BR><BR>Europe cruises generally depart in the summer months, from May to September. The ports are as close as possible to the major sights in the area, and the shore excursions will vary from a brief tour (anywhere from about 1-3 hours) of the highlights of the area to an extensive daylong trip to a specific attraction. Prices will vary from reasonable to expensive and there is usually an offering for everyone - from calm to the most extreme adventure and everything in between. If there is any question of security, you can be confident that the major cruise lines are going to have contracts with reputable, insured shore excursion providers. <BR><BR>You do not have to take a shore excursion - many people do their own research and attend the port lectures and set off from the ship on their own. You can get a taxi, walk into town and browse shops, do the attractions on your own. You do need to be certain about the latest time to return to your ship. You will find many people who do either shore excursions or visit independently, or a combination of both concepts.<BR><BR>Have a great trip! Good luck with your plans!

We did a Costa cruise out of Savona, Italy end of May and it was fairly easy to get around on your own if you do your homework. Check the train schedules and try to get back a few hours before ship sails, we almost missed the ship near Rome due to a late train.

Take a look at the Europe board or the cruise reviews at cruisecritic.com. They are much more detailed than Fodors.<BR><BR>We have taken the Princess Grand Med cruise twice - sometimes you can step off the ship into a city, but usually there is a bus ride involved. We do a combination of tours and going on our own,and have found the excursions often are worth it as they maximize your limited time. Depends on what you want to see in a day, but there is LOTS of advice and lots of choices out there!<BR><BR>Being teachers we have to travel in July and August. Good planning helps to avoid hassles with crowds at that time.<BR><BR>

Thanks for all the advice !!!

Fines-<BR><BR>We have done the Med 2 times--<BR>Both time in SEPTEMBER , as the weather is ideal and the kids are back in school...The other good time to go is the first 2 weeks of JUNE....May can be a little rainy or cooler...<BR><BR>Avoid the area in JULY and AUG as it is hot at hades!! Plus all the Europeans are on holiday in AUG , so the ports will be crowded to the brim....<BR><BR>We did Rome to Nice-- which was fabulous!! (This was our last cruise)--on the WINDSURF....<BR><BR>Years ago we did a 14 day cruise on PRINCESS- and it,too, was fabulous--as we had a great table and met tons of people our age ( we were 40 at the time) ---Plus the ports were TERRIFIC.<BR><BR>I LOVE cruising thru Europe as it is a good overview to see neat ports.And then you can decide where you want to go back to at a later date for a land vacation....<BR><BR>We particularly like the Windsurf, as it was upscale casual--and the ship was smaller ( 330 pass) and it went into much smaller and unusual ports- which was GREAT!!! We loved it...<BR><BR>You do need to do your homework on the ports-- we only did one excursion on EACH of the above cruises==and that was to get us into FLORENCE to go shopping...<BR>The rest of the time we either rented a car, a van, or walked to where we wanted to see stuff....<BR><BR>Ports are normally within walking distance of attractions-but again, it depends on the port and that is the reason for doing your homework ahead of time..<BR><BR>GO!! and have a FABULOUS TIME!!<BR><BR>

Princess is extremely experienced in Europe. Expensive but worth every penny. Keep in mind that you should choose either the Western Med. OR the Greek Islands. Do not try to sample both. Costa and Royal Olympia are terrific for the Greek Islands.<BR><BR>Paul

Never heard of Royal Olympia, but be very selective with the ships in the Royal Olympic fleet. Some are rust buckets IMHO.<BR> But those Greek Isles even up into Turkey are fantastic!!

Have done several european cruises -- once you do them, forget the caribbean cruises forever!!! The Baltic cruises are only in the summer and are wonderful with lots of sightseeing and except for St. Petersburg totally on your own. The Med cruises are easy too, with lots to see on your own. Italy is fun, except for Civitavecchia (it takes too long to get to Rome, although on the last cruise we didn't go to Rome. Greece is OK, not my favorite destination. Anyone with specific questions can email me.

Royal Olympic had to change their name to Royal Olympia. They were forced due to the Olympic Committee complaints.<BR><BR>True that their older ships leave much to be desired in creature comforts. Sail the new Voyager or Explorer. Fantastic!<BR><BR>Paul

Get real, Paul!!

I'm real, pinch me.

We took a Crystal cruise to the Med a couple years ago. It started in Rome and ended in Athens. The Rome port was not really close to the city - so there was a trip there - but we went to Rome early, spent a few days there - then went to the ship. Athens was real close. In most of the ports we stopped in (Sicily, Venice, Bari, Kusadasi, Santorini, Mykonos) we took ship tours. We loved them. I know alot of people tour by themselves, which is great - but we didn't want any pressure and we wanted to be sure we didn't miss anything.....