Irresistible Mediterranean: Tips, Highlights, and Lessons Learned
Once upon a time, I believed cruising wasn’t for me, judging it based on just one experience. I didn't have a bad experience; I just didn't see the point of cruising. I remember thinking, "Why cruise when my favorite days are off the ship?" After over a decade, I tried cruising again with a couple of different cruise lines. My new outlook is that cruising is one of the most affordable ways to travel to multiple locations. It’s a great way to explore where you might want to visit in the future. You only need to find the cruise line and experience that fits your personality. I’ll share my thoughts on the pros and cons of cruising in a future blog post.
My sister and I chose a Mediterranean cruise for our big trip this year. We were excited to have new experiences together and chose an adults-only cruise through Virgin Voyages. Sit back and enjoy as I highlight my favorite moments and share some tips that may help you in your future cruising.
Cruise Ports
We embarked on this week-long cruise in Barcelona and visited the following ports:
Toulon, France
Marina di Carrara, Italy
Civitavecchia, Italy
Ibiza, Spain
Pro Tip: If you’re new to cruising, do some high-level research on each cruise port before you go. Determine what excursions you might want to try. Unless you’re a geography expert, you may not realize how close you are to some popular spots. For example, we were able to visit both Florence and Pisa from our port in Marina di Carrara.
Pre-Cruise
Because we flew from the U.S. to Barcelona, we decided to extend our vacation with two days before the cruise to enjoy Barcelona. I have been to Barcelona two times before this trip and was excited to share the city with my sister. Be ready to walk a lot because there is so much to see. One of my favorite experiences in Barcelona is a Gaudi and Sagrada Familia Tour. Gaudi is a popular architect and the mastermind behind the Sagrada Familia, which has been under construction for over 100 years. Barcelona is proud of Gaudi’s artistry and architecture. I’m impressed because I’ve not seen any others bring the elements into buildings the way he has.
And of course, we enjoyed a food tour. We were tight on time, so we didn’t lay out at the beach but did sit and breathe it in for a little while.
I Love It When We’re Cruisin’ Together
The best thing about cruising is that you can enjoy time both on and off the ship. This Mediterranean Cruise kept us busy with port stops on four different days. The stop in Ibiza was an overnight stay. I had so much fun the entire cruise but will pick one favorite activity off the ship and one on the ship:
Favorite Activity Off the Ship When we stopped in Toulon, France, we visited a vineyard and enjoyed a wine tasting. The weather was beautiful. I have never walked through a vineyard, so I got geeky about that.
Favorite Activity On the Ship As much as I love spending time in my hammock on the balcony, I decided not to let that be my answer. My favorite experience on the ship was a special speakeasy event where we got to go to a secret area on the ship and try drinks curated by a chef from Barcelona. It was so secret, they locked our phones so the only memory of this is in our heads.
What I Didn’t Think About Beforehand
Our cruise was a lot of fun, and each port had interesting aspects. However, I failed to consider that July is part of the busy travel season. Some ports felt very crowded, making it hard to fully enjoy the experience without feeling a little rushed. This was most noticeable on the day I spent in Florence, Italy. The crowds were a lot! Due to the crowds in Florence, we decided not to go into Rome when the cruise ship stopped in Civitavecchia. That worked in our favor because the food tour there ended with an amazing surprise experience, and we felt so special!
Connect with me on my website or social media to let me know about your favorite cruise experience. Thinking about booking your next cruise? Check out my upcoming posts where I’ll share more tips, tricks, and lessons learned to help you make the most of your journey. Don't forget to subscribe to my email list where I'll share more tips, tricks, and travel experiences to help you make the most of your journey.
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