In June 2012 (daughter graduation), we are taking a 7-Nite Western Mediterranean Cruise out of Barcelona, Spain. This will be our first time in Europe. The party will consist of 4 people (my daughter, myself, & my parents). We live in Alabama (USA).
Before the cruise, we wanted to visit London & Paris for 6-7 days. Obviously flying will take up most of Day 1 on our journey. Days 2 & 3 will be spent in London, and Days 4 & 5 will be spent in Paris. Day 6 will be Paris & getting to Barcelona to get on the ship on Day 7 (6am). After reading several posts, I am thoroughly confused. Any information on the following questions would be most appreciative:
OPTION #1 = USA~>London~>Paris~>Barcelona (Cruise)~>USA
OPTION #2 = USA~>Paris~>London~>Barcelona (Cruise)~>USA

1) Would it be better (least flying/least expensive) to fly out of USA into Paris or London?
2) If flying into London, would it be better to take the "Eurostar" train or fly to Paris?
3) What's the best way to get to Barcelona from Paris or London?

Thanks for any info
Sandy

Western Europe has an excellent train system. You could definitely fly to London, take the Eurostar to Paris, and then take another train to Barcelona, though that might be a long journey, perhaps all day.

I am fairly sure easyJet - a budget carrier something like Southwest in the US - has direct flights from London to Barcelona. Go to their website and check. In that case, it might make the most sense for you to fly to Paris, take the Eurostar to London, then fly via easyJet on to Barcelona.

You could also fly from Paris to London - but if it were me, I'd definitely take the Eurostar. I don't mind flying, but I hate hassling with airports and love trains, and the Eurostar is a pleasant ride from city center to (nearly) city center.

I would fly to London take the Eurostar to Paris and then fly to Barcelona. It's a long train ride from Paris to Barcelona.

Only you can determine if it's less expensive to fly to Paris or London as only you know were you're flying from and what dates you're traveling. You'll have to do this planning on one of the airline web sites. Prices vary considerably between destinations and date of travel.

I would try to give more time to both London and Paris. If your schedule/budget does not permit this then stay in one of these cities. By the time you get there, unpack, acclimate yourselves and adjust to the time different, you've used up a lot of time and seen very little.

Your best flight deals from the US will likely be into London...try British Air from JFK...good deals...Eurostar is a nice and good way to get from London to Paris...However,when I was there 2 years ago...flights were so cheap, I ended up flying from UK to Paris...this sounds like a great trip...Do you already have accommodations for London and Paris...
my son and I did 15 days in Europe after his high school graduation...we didn't take a cruise, but we did travel to London, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Paris, Rome, Florence and Pisa...it was fabulous...we arranged all of our plans ourselves...what fun!

Where does your cruise end? You may want to fly to Barcelona and do your cruise and then see London and Paris. That way you aren't going to be stressed about getting to Barcelona on time for the cruise.

Barcelona to Paris is a 12hr+ train ride. Take the train Paris-London (either way), and fly either Paris or London to Barcelona. I don't think it really makes any difference if you go to London or Paris first.

By next year BA and Iberaia merger will be complete, so you may be able to do all your flights on one airline co. US-London, Paris-Barcelona, Barcelona-US. Sometimes that will result in the best fares, sometimes not.

I see on iberia.com website 7 flights daily London-BCN (operated by BA), and 8 from Paris to BCN (operated by Vueling), so there are plenty of flight options.

I don't think you have time for two cities and a long train ride to Barcelona. When you depart the US for Europe (day 1), you don't arrive until day 2 (it's an overnight flight). With the time difference, you will be really tired on day 2 and not feel like doing much.

Day 1 - Depart US
Day 2 - Arrive London
Day 3 - Tour London
Day 4 - Tour London
Day 5 - Eurostar to Paris (this will take longer than you think - checking out of hotel, getting to train station, 3 hour train ride, getting to Paris hotel.
Day 6 - Train to Barcelona ( you didn't leave any time to tour Paris).

As you can see, this doesn't really work and you should drop one. I suggest dropping London (the airport taxes are usually highest). Even if you used Easy Jet to Barcelona, you would still be using a lot of time in transport.

Fly to Paris, visit Paris three days, train or fly to Barcelona and visit Barcelona, cruise, fly home from Barcelona to Alabama.

I agree w/ bratsandbeer. I'd fly to Barcelona a day or 2 before the cruise. Then after the cruise head to Paris/London. You could be very jetlagged your first day or two, so your time in London would basically just be recovery time.

Also - any possibility you could add a couple of days? 2 days isn't much for either London or Paris.

Hi SC,

It is nice that you have 4 days to visit London <b>OR</b> Paris.
(I strongly urge you not to do both.)

Assuming that your cruise is RT Barcelona, I suggest flying into Barcelona and out of London. You can check flights from B to L at www.whichbudget.com

In future, you might want to take a cruise from Barcelona to Rome or Venice and head to Paris from there.

Enjoy your visit.

why so much? Your going on vacation to relax and enjoy yourselfs. I suggest that you visit either London or Paris, not both, then maybe spend a couple days in Barcelona before the boat ride.

I agree. You'll be totally worn out by the time you get to Barcelona and frustrated that you barely had time to see anything in either Paris or London. Pick on and do it at least a little bit of justice.

I strongly suggest you get to Barcelona at least the day before the ship departs. If there is some sort of problem (strike, weather, accident etc) and you miss the departure its up to you to catch up - arrangements you will have to male on the spot and costs.

It's better to do the additional time after the cruise, when you're not so rushed. So fly into Barcelona and then back fromLondon or Paris - whichever you choose (you really don;t have time for both). Also, where does your cruise end - is it just a round trip from Barcelona? If so, I would find a cheap flight from Barcelona to either L or P - since the train ride is VERY long.

Isn't there an overnight (sleeping compartments) train Paris=>Barcelona?

I agree with the majority here, either visit London OR Paris. Then fly to Barcelona a couple days prior to your cruise (it's never a good idea to wait until the last day, as "stuff happens" and you could miss the boat!)

>><i>"stuff happens" and you could miss the boat!</i><<

That's why I think its better to do Barcelona/the cruise at the front end of the trip. Get to Barcelona - do the cruise -- THEN go wherever else you want to visit.

London or Paris -- OR -- London & Paris if you can add days days to the trip.

strikes, security alerts, weather, s^*t happens. You don't want to be in London or Paris when they are boarding your ship in Barcelona.

Another vote for getting to cruise departure city at LEAST one day early and ONE city on way in, the other after the cruise, or if restrained by time, just ONE city.

Yes travelnut, I just checked voyages-sncf.com for june 2010, and yes there is a night train, leaving from Paris Austerlitz at 8.34PM and arriving next morning at 8.24AM.
I would suggest to experience it. Well, the fares might not be as good as flying but that would be something different. but some people might not be able to sleep, so discuss it with your parents.
There are 2 berths and 4 berths cabins.
Fares (for june 17th) for 4 people in a t4 cabin are from 284€ (prems, not refundable, not exchangeable), to 555€, refundable minus 10%.

There is a Barcelona-Paris night train as well, leaving 9.05PM arriving 9.01AM, in case schambless3 decides to take the suggestion to start with Barcelona and the cruise, which I would recommand as well.

janisj~ Sure I also think it's a fine idea to do the cruise first. I thought from the wording of the OP that perhaps their dates were set and couldn't be changed. What vacation days they have, date of cruise, etc.

suze: "<i> I thought from the wording of the OP that perhaps their dates were set and couldn't be changed. What vacation days they have, date of cruise, etc.</i>"

Maybe so. But their trip isn't for two years. They haven't booked their flights, and, how many folks really know how much vacation time they'll have 25 months out. My guess is they picked a cruise and are just starting to think about add-on's/possibilities.

Even if flights are linked to a cruise -- is it even possible to book flights two years in advance?? So much can change between now and then -- including dates of the cruise. It has happened . . .

*Wow!!! Thank you so much for all of the replies! Yall are so lovely! Lots of info to digest. I would like to clarify a few things.

*First: This is all going to be booked thru a travel agent (a friend of mine). She is a LITTLE more knowledgable about this than I am (she has never been to Europe); but I am real meticulous when it comes to detail. I'd rather do all of the planning/work (with yall's help), then let her book it.

*Second: This vacation will take place in June 2012, so NOTHING is ready for booking as yet. Right now, I am just trying to get a semi-firm itinerary & the pricing that will go with it. The time has been extended from 13 days to 16 days. I just couldn't fit in everything in such little time. The itinerary is below.

*Third: The cruise is round trip from Barcelona (Spain). The flights are NOT booked with the cruise. Everything that we are doing is seperate except for the excursions on the ship (they will be included in the cruise).

*Fourth: Vacation time. I promised my daughter (when she was very young) that this would be her graduation present. I have plenty of vacation time...so that's not really the issue. We will just miss home after 2 weeks of being away.

*I see that alot of yall think it's better to go on the cruise first, then the other excursions. My thoughts were this...Since we were flying from across the world, I knew we would have some acclimation time. The flight is overnite, so hopefully we can sleep through most of the acclimation. The cruise is going to 6 places in 7 days, starting with the first day. We would not have any time to really adjust before heading to the various ports. I figured if we went to London, Paris, & Barcelona first, we could enjoy Europe at our own pace including some tours. Afterwards, we would get on the cruise and enjoy the 6 ports. The last day on the ship is cruising, and that was very appealling to me; because we will have the long flight home the next day.

*I do not have a clue about the "overnite train ride". I tried to go on the sncf website, but it wasn't in English. Is the train ride smooth? (meaning can we actually sleep) I thought the train would be better rather than flying because of luggage issues. There are 3 women...we will most certainly have lots of luggage.

*Any information about lodging (hotels)would be greatly appreciated. We would like nice (not extravagant) hotels if possible. The closest to the tourist sites would be great. My travel agent (friend) told me to plan on $300 per nite. Does that sound right?

*Again...thank you so much for any input. I am learning so much, and I am truly praying this will be the vacation of a lifetime. Here's the rough itinerary...please give me your opinions...thanks again:
(Day 1) Flying from Mobile(Alabama) to London(UK)
(Day 2) Arrive in London (noon) with 1/2 day to acclimate or venture out.
(Day 3) Full day in London (possible tours)
(Day 4) 1/2 day in London then take Eurostar (2.5hrs) to Paris. Arrive in Paris with 1/2 day to explore.
(Days 5-6-7) Full days in Paris (some tours/some free time)
(Day 7) Take "over-night" train from Paris to Barcelona (hopefully sleep the whole time).
(Day 8) Arrive in Barcelona with full day to visit.
(Days 9-15) CRUISE
(Days 16) Long journey home from Barcelona.

THANK YOU ALL!!!! Sorry this post is so long. My mind is just jibberish right now.