crazyb1

Thinking about booking a mediterranean cruise for my birthday. Now I've cruised many times in the carribean...I think I want to do Greece (wouldn't get off the ship in France)..any advice as to which ports are the best choices?? I will be 50..but still love to party and am fairly active. Thanks

jmvp

first do your ports of call on this cruise and then we can help ,once we know where you will be stopping.

List some of the ports your will be stopping at.

Thanks
jmvp

kfusto

Greek island cruises are pretty standard in their offerings: Mykonos, Santorini, Rhodes, etc. A few offer Corfu and Crete.

My personal Med favorite itinerary is Italy and I agree about France; after a half dozen trips there by land and sea, I could care less.

For a party atmosphere, a Med cruise is not the best bet. I look for smaller ships who offer overnights or late departures and maximize my time in port.

Curt

Why wouldn't you get off the cruise in France? Are you the kind that eats "freedom fries"?

crazyb1

No, I've had to work with some French and I know they are notoriously rude to Americans....why would I subject myself to that...so I guess I'm the kind of American tired of putting up with crap...especially on my vacation...if the country sucks I don't have to spend money there...I'd say the same thing about Jamaica...pretty place...but the people are too aggressive....I love Costa Rica...Cozumel..and many other places...just not France...why in the heck do you care??

Underhill

Perhaps because many of us have found the French to be polite, helpful, and generally nice. We've certainly never had anything remotely like "crap," but perhaps you just met the wrong people. Or perhaps you just expect too much?

diann

I have friends who are in there mid 60's Extremely polite people and nice folks. They went to Europe for 2 weeks. Spent several days in France, but most of there time was spent in England. At any rate they did state they would never return to France. They were not treated nicely and the French were extremely rude to them. Trust me they are nice people! I believe they were in Paris. They said "never again."

mjz

Perhaps choose a cruise that does not stop in France. We're doing a Windstar next Spring that leaves out of Athens and concludes in Turkey. Visits three ports in Greece and two in Turkey.

LoveCalabria

Some of the best Greek cruises are through www.oti.travel . They have excellent Greek packages. I highly recommend you check them out.

Curt

Yes and I know someone that was told that a friend of theirs knew someone that was told by a neighbor that had a cousin whose sister had a friend that traveled to Greece and they said the Greeks were rather odd - so I would never go where there are odd people would you?

Actually in all of our travels to France we have never met a rude or mean person. The only person that was even remotely cool was a shop keeper and he was not even French but of another nationality.

The rudest people we have ever met are the ones right here in the good old US of A ... nuf said.

fmpden

Amen !!! Curt. I glad crazbl stayed on board. Just one less ugly American story to circulate among the French. We have been all over France and the only rude person we encountered was a passport checker who matched the US folks for rudness. Of course, I have found it be be extremely useful, helpful, important to be respect and courtesy at the beginning of the conversation and it is always returned. If you want to be treated like a jerk, be jerk. The Greeks will not like any better.

jacketwatch

Well you just never know. We heard how impolite the Martinique natives are but found no such thing when we disembarked there. In fact all those we met were very nice. You just can't paint everyone with one stroke from the same brush. JM2C. Larry

BuddyD

Sure, the Martinique natives are fine, but the French tourists in Martinique are something else! My only encounter with a real Frenchman was in Martinique. We came upon him in the middle of the road flagging down our car. He flagged us down to ask us what time it was. Of course, we didn't understand what he was saying since we don't speak French. So, he just grabbed my husband's arm and twisted it so he could read his watch, then walked off. Real friendly!

crazyb1

HA HA....checked back on this ....interesting conversation....BuddyD...I've been to Martinique...and I agree with you...but good grief would hate to offend anyone by saying what we think in a forum...

mikemo

The 3 May Celebrity Millennium Med. cruise from Barcelona was outstanding.
M

xpi6tiva

I did the Celebrity Millie from Barcelona in 2005. One of the best trips my husband and I have ever taken. Villefranche (south of France) was one of favortite ports. I started each conversation with Bonjour, and ended with Merci.

I would redo this exact trip in a heartbeat!!!

bondie

i had a fantastic time on a med cruise out of barcelona. I was plesantly surprized by the city. I had read all kinds of negitive posts lately. I didnt bother w/it on the way out, but did spend a nite b/4 i headed home. so glad I did! I absolutely agree w/u about spending $$ in places that don't appreciate u.s. citizens. I didnt consider bcn because the govt. hasnt recognised the effects on tourism, that their lack of interest in curbing the street crime has had. but my short stop in bcn proved to be better than previous visits. there seemed to be more police on las rambles, making 4 a pleasant visit. the way and where we spend our $$ can effect change!

aocain

I'm going on a cruise that goes to Athens and Katakolon( olympia) Greece it also goes to Rome and Istanbul and several other places its a 12 day cruise. Its with Carnival. Its just what I wanted a mixture of the 3 countries. hope this helps.

allison

adman1937

My wife and I have been to France twice, albeit most recently in 1989. We have travelled the entire country and never had one unpleasant incident. My wife speaks high school French which seemed to go over well with the natives. Sometimes the ugly American creates the problem.

Debi

We did a Med cruise that started in Rome, and stopped in Sicily, Venice, Bari, Turkey, a couple Greek Islands and Athens - it was Crystal, and it was fabulous. As for France, I've been there a bunch of times - the first time in 1969 - and Americans were VERY unpopular that time time. Over the last 5 years, I have found the French to be very nice to Americans - especially if you try to speak the language (actually, I've found that true in all countries - except Germany, never understood that....and not that Germans were mean, they just didn't seem to have patience with the trying to speak German thing...). I don't know what stops your potential cruise has in France, but I certainly wouldn't discount seeing some gorgeous locations because there might be a few rude people there. Heck, hang out in the Miami airport if you really want to be abused....