Hi! I posted this message on the cruise board as well, but I thought I'd ask here too! My husband and I will be doing a Mediterranean cruise this summer that includes stops in Corfu, Greece and Dubrovnik, Croatia. We're trying to figure out if we need to book a shore excursion through the cruise line. Does anyone know how far the sights/restaurants/shopping areas are from the ports in these cities? Any suggestions on places not to miss? Thanks!

Where you cruise ship berths will depend on how big it is, etc.
"Corfu" is Kerkira in Greek; it is the name of the main town on the island as well as the name of the island. The town is not too large but has a castle and other old buildings; there are several holiday resorts on the island, but I don't think they have anything of interest. If the cruise ship lands you in the town, you won't need to go on an organised tour.
In Dubrovnik, some ships berth in the modern port which is a pleasant area less than two miles from the old town, while others, I think, anchor off the old town. There are local buses from the port to the old town ("stari grad" in Croatian), but a taxi wouldn't cost much - they'll drop you at Pile gate (vehicles cannot go any further and the old town claims to be the largest pedestrian area in Europe). You could easily spend a whole day exploring the old town with its wall, museums, etc. There are plenty of cafés in the old town. It's packed with tourists in the daytime, but is still a magically beautiful place.

Would you mind telling us more about the cruise and laying out the schedule?
I've thought about doing something similiar, but was afraid you would not have enough time in each port to really explore things. Still, I have an open mind about such an option.

Thanks for the quick reply GeoffHamer... Good info!
Degas- We will be sailing with Royal Caribbean on the Brilliance of the Seas, departing Barcelona (12 nights). We are arriving a day early in Barcelona, as the ship leaves and returns there, but there is no organized stay. Then, in order:
Villefranche, France (10am arrival, 11pm departure)
Livorno, Italy (7am-6pm)
Naples, Italy (8am-9pm)
AT SEA
Venice, Italy (1pm-5pm next day)
Dubrovnik, Croatia (9am-6pm)
Corfu, Greece (7am-7pm)
AT SEA
Civitavecchia, Italy (7am-7pm)
AT SEA
Return to Barcelona
There are certain cities we are already planning on doing a cruise excursion for (ie Rome, since it is a ways from the port in Civitavecchia), we were just unsure of Corfu and Dubrovnik. I would rather go ahead and pay a little extra for the cruise excursion, just for the peace of mind about getting back to the ship on time! After all, vacations are supposed to be somewhat relaxing, right? And with all the walking we'll be doing, I don't want to worry about transportation!

LeighB, thanks for the info. Looks to be a fair amount of time in each location. Maybe approach it as an overview and go back later if a place really grabs you. Not getting back to the ship on time is always a worry in the back of my mind.

EXACTLY what I was thinking, Degas!

We did a cruise in Oct that included both these ports. You don't really need an excursion for either. Holland America had bus shuttles to each for passengers not doing excursions. No problem getting back to ship on time if you pay attention to schedules. Corfu town was lovely on a Sunday with all the locals out at the restaurants on the square. Don't know how the temperatures will be in the summer. If it's hot and you are beach types you might want to consider a beach excursion.