Ocean Cruise suggestions for Italy and France

The website cruisecritic.com is the best place for answers to your question. There are also descriptions of every cruise line, and reviews of each. I like Holland America myself but only when the price and itinerary are right.

If you have kids, I highly recommend Disney Cruise lines. I took a cruise on that line with my wife, kids, and parents in 2014 that visited Spain, France and Italy. This was my first cruise and I thought this method of travel did a good job of providing "Europe light". You'll get some exposure and experiences, but in a more controlled environment. I intentionally selected this approach to lure my mom on the trip. She is a less adventurous traveler and had never been to Europe before. The draw of a nice cruise boat and grandkids made it irresistible.

I agree with the previous post that the Rick Steves page is probably not the best spot to ask for recommendations on cruise lines. You'll probably have better luck once you have an itinerary and everyone can help you with ideas for things to see and do in your ports of call.

Have fun!

Might need to define a smaller ship? Smaller ships tend to be more expensive since there are fewer people to share the cost. We have done seven European cruises most when we had our two sons with us. We find that cruises are a very economical way to see a lot of Europe conveniently. There are a lot of advantages. The majority of our cruises have been with Holland America. We thinks HA provides a good balance between price and service especially if you take advantage of their sales. One way to hold down on cruises expenses is to plan your own excursions when in port. Cruises ship excursions tend to be a lot of hurry up and wait and expensive. Second, select a room towards the bottom of the ship. It is the most stable area and you get the same food in the dinning room. We find that we spend very little time in the room so, for us, the room is not very important or critical. Others would not consider cruising without a balcony.

Our normal pattern is to fly into the departure port city three or four days early and hang around for a few days after the cruise. We prefer the cruises that start in one location and ends in another. But have done a couple of cruises that were round trips out of Rome. Just a matter of personal preference.

You will find a number of myths about cruising that are perpetuated by people who have never been on cruises.

Have done many cruises including ones in Europe and have always been very pleased with Celebrity Cruise Lines. Suggest you check out their offerings on their site and see what you think of the itineraries. Although you can do it all yourself, a good travel agent is worth his / her weight in gold. You might want to talk to several and find one with whom you are comfortable. Then leave a lot of the detail stuff to the agent. It doesn't cost anymore to use an agent for the cruise (perhaps a fee for airline tickets) and they deal with these things everyday and know all the ins and outs of the many details.

We did a cruise on Star Clippers which is a sailing cruise and really enjoyed it. We were on their largest boat, the Royal Clipper, which has a max of 227 passengers, so definitely a smaller ship. Not sure if it would fit your budget but they do European cruises during the summer months and transfer to the Carribean during the winter months. This cruise line does not have all the entertainment options that a typical cruise might have due to its size and only one dining area. It is more fitting for older teens or adults although they do not have any restrictions on age that I am aware of. It also has lots of stairs and no elevators so if you have mobility issues it may be challenging to get around. Our cruise was along the Dalmation Coast and we loved it because we went to smaller ports and had more time at them compared to a typical cruise line. My husband loved the sailing aspect and we will certainly cruise with them again.

There are a bunch of European cruises, and there are some great bargain trips on the market. We constantly watch VacationsToGo.com for really good cruises at great prices. They list virtually every cruise in the world as they're the giant of the cruise industry.
I would suggest you sign into their website and the click on the Cruise Regions. Click on Mediterranean and enter the month range you want to go. You may need to specify a cruise line as there so many cruises that it overloads their website.
Since we're American, we're looking at cruise lines like Carnival, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian. If I was going to look for more luxury, I'd be looking at Azamara or Oceana cruise lines. The sky's the limit on a cruise as the really small ships can get ultra expensive.
We're going on a 4/27/2016, 12 day Celebrity cruise from Rome to Malta and thru the Greek Islands to Turkey. Our trip ends in Venice and it's running about $1200 each--with a bunch of freebie incentives thrown in. Our ship is filling up fast and the prices for a inside cabin is now $1,299. That would be considered a bargain. We'll be going into Rome 3 days early.
We just got off a cruise last month to Scandinavia and St. Petersburg, Russia on NCL, and cruising that region is the best way to go. Food and general travel in Scandanavia is deathly expensive. and the cruise saved us a substantial sum of money.
My wife's heading to Mexico and Belize on a cruise the end of next week, and we're hopeful the hurricane will not affect the Yucatan too much.
Good luck to you on your shopping for a cruise.

I think this is an excellent idea and we've done a transatlantic both ways (spring and fall) in order to enjoy Europe. I think I would NOT want a smaller ship because it is going across the ocean! We have had a balcony and found that we used it very little and have had an ocean view, an obstructed view and next time will have an inside. We've gone on NCL and RCL and the inside cost us UNDER $500 for 14 nights. RCL also has reasonable airfares to go in the other direction- $428 from Warsaw to the midwest. The airfares are very reasonable inside Europe.

So, my recommendation is: go inexpensive. These aren't prison ships and no one cares where your cabin is. Some people say "I would get claustrophic" and my reply is that I don't sleep with my eyes open. I use my limited travel funds to explore Europe suing lots of Rick Steves' ideas. Pick out the cruise you want and wait for the sweet spot to purchase. You can look on a site called cruisefish.net to track the history of a specific cruise.

We like NCL and RCL but would be happy to try either Celebrity or Princess. We have tried HAL and thought they were about the same as other mainstream cruise lines although they have VERY dedicated supporters who would argue otherwise.

If you have the time, taking a cruise is like having three very different vacations: many sea days in a row (relaxing), visiting interesting ports that we may never have chosen if it wasn't for a TA and then the best part: exploring different regions in Europe.

The sea cruises spend most of their time at sea and you'll have less time for land visits, often with long (or longish) travel time from the cruise port to sights. Smaller cruise ships are the most expensive (lower passenger to overhead ratio). Have you considered a river boat cruise? You will see land from the boat as you sail by and you'll have a lot more time on land, with fewer hours between stops and docks in or near town centers. These boats are much smaller than the 1000-3000 passenger ocean liners.

It might be helpful to know your husband's objections. They can range from "they don't speak English there" to "I hate changing hotels." Another question is how price sensitive he (and you) are. You did say cruise, but since it's your first trip to Europe, would you consider a one or two or three city land trip? You could save a lot of money, and see more of the place from (say ... ) a train.

One of our first trips to Europe was a week in London followed by a week in Paris. It's easier than ever to get from London to Paris, and there are plenty of discount flights at both ends. Without the English Channel involved, you could do Amsterdam (very first-timer friendly), Brussels, and Cologne or Hamburg. Of course there are other combinations.

We've been on small-ship (Windstar) ocean cruises, and two Viking River Cruises. We did have some minor negative feelings about the regimentation, early departures every morning, and unimaginative (not "bad") food. But on our China river cruise, the majority of guests clearly did NOT want to eat Chinese every night! While you can use the internet to get last-minute bargains, I find cruises to be much more expensive than independent land travel. And I think you see more, independently. But if your husband wants to have everything planned and done for the two of you (a perfectly legitimate buying preference ... ), only a cruise or a bus tour will do that.

I should mention that there might be a few tour providers that make independent arrangements for travel agents. For example, when we went to Portugal, we used a now-gone company that only did Portugal, which booked (before the internet) hotels in five cities for us, rented a car, and it turned out, met us at the Lisbon airport all five times we were there, including the one time we were just changing planes! (Flight to Madeira involved.) Our local travel agent gave us the Abreu Travel brochure, which had a two page spread on Independent Travel.

As well as your budget and preferred ship size, you should also consider your age group, desired style/experience and ship's itinerary. Celebrity is a good mid range all rounder - they market themselves for a slightly more sophisticated, middle aged crowd. Check out this typical Mediterranean cruise.
http://www.celebritycruises.com/cruises/cruise-package-EQ13M053?packageid=EQ13M053&dest=EUROP&shipCode=EQ&shipName=Celebrity-Equinox&applyCriteria=false&sailDate=1160907&cabincls=BALCONY

Thank you to everyone who replied! I appreciate it very much. I've booked a 9 night Italy & France Celebrity cruise. We leave from Rome. How many days should I allot on the front end of the cruise in Rome to leisurely site see and enjoy the food, wine and culture of the city. I also want to do a day trip to Pompeii.

For the experienced cruisers, how far in advance should I book shore excursions? The trip is 11 months away. Is now to early? I plan on booking tours independent of the cruise line.

I am so excited about this trip and have enjoyed listening to Steve's podcasts about the places in Italy and France on our itinerary. Thank you again for the thoughtful advice and expertise. It has given me the confidence to plan this awesome trip!!!

Since it's Rome, I'd do five nights. There is more than that to see and do but it will be a good visit and allow you to adjust to the time before the cruise starts.

I'm guessing you end in Barcelona. I'd plan three or four nights there. It's another great city with plenty to see and do.

You should start planning what you would like to see in each port. Remember you only have about eight hours. You can probably see one sight and eat a meal, or two sights that aren't far apart and grab a quick bite at a roadside vendor or fast food place. Use guide books and trip adviser to figure out your options.

The nice thing about a cruise is it's like a hotel that brings the sights to you. I personally prefer itineraries that include smaller cities where eight hours is enough to see the sights I want to visit.

Five nights in Rome as a minimum. That really only gives you four full days unless you arrived early in the a.m. -- and there will still be some lost time that day getting to the hotel and settling in. Pompeii can be done as a day trip from Rome, but it will be a long day. If the ship docks in Naples it will be a much shorter day. With regard to the ship excursions, yes they are more expensive. But, if they are late getting back to the ship the ship will wait. Not so with private tours. Have been on a number of excursions that were late (always in Naples) a the ship always waited. Have also seen people left running on the dock as the ship pulled out. Just food for thought.

As noted, Pompeii is a long day trip from Rome. Since this is your first visit to Europe, it might be a poor use of time. There is more than can be seen in Rome in a week - so Pompeii is often part of a later trip to Southern Italy. You could spend over a half-day just reading up on "Day Trip Rome Pompeii" here and on TripAdvisor. Alternatively, our first trip to Italy was Rome/Bologna/Florence/Venice. You could some of those with Naples on another trip. You might want to do some route searches on Google Maps, just to get an idea of how big Europe is, and how long it takes by various means of transportation - Google Maps is very good at estimating/approximating that stuff.

You have much more research to do; You should think about how (very) far the cruise port is from downtown Rome, and how you want to make that transfer. Often, 2 paid cruise company transfers, with a dreary wait to fill the bus, are close to the cost of a private transfer. We got a "free" limo ride by staying over three nights in a smaller Rome hotel. I don't mean to sound negative, I just think that your husband doesn't want any 'surprises"! Have you budgeted for the Shore Excursions?

http://www.celebritycruises.com/cruises/cruise-package-SI09M039?packageid=SI09M039&dest=EUROP&shipCode=SI&shipName=Celebrity%20Silhouette&sailDate=1160915&cabincls=OUTSIDE&promoType=80

Your cruise includes Naples, which is a better starting point for a visit to Pompeii.
However, the Bay of Naples area has many sights of interest - Pompeii, Herculaneum, Capri, Amalfi/Positano.
I would suggest four days here (based in Sorrento) before the cruise, and then a similar time in Rome after the cruise (or vice versa).

How exciting! I think you'll love the cruise. If you don't already have it, I'd suggest getting a copy of Rick Steves' Mediterranean Cruise Ports guidebook. He has great ideas of how to travel independently while in port. You can buy it from Amazon for about $20 or just grab it from your library.

Congrats! Looks like you're on the round-trip cruise from Rome, no Spain. Go to cruisecritic.com, register and find your sailing under the Roll Call section. You'll find other cruisers, most of them experienced, who are putting together their own shore excursions and looking for others to join them. They will be smaller than the ones sold by Celebrity, usually cheaper, and more streamlined (more sightseeing, less shopping). You'll also get lots of information and ideas about what to do in each port.

How much time in Rome before the cruise depends on how much time and money you have . . . and how much your husband gets excited about the trip. There's lots to see in Rome and a few day trips. You could go to Florence or Orvieto for a couple nights by train. Pompeii is a long day trip from Rome. If your cruise docks in Naples, you could see Pompeii then. If you can, spend 1-2 hours in the Naples Archaeology Museum as well.

Chani gave you some great advice. I would combine the Rick Steves' info with info from the cruise critic website. Don't forget to go to the port message boards: Europe and then Italy. Also, read some reviews about the ports and the ship, but eliminate the "the food was inedible" comments from the super negative folks. You will have an amazing time.
A few things: we took a countryside tour in Rome to see the catacombs, the aqueducts, and the Appian Way. I have to say that was my favorite day! Also, get tickets for your day at the Vatican ahead of time. The one underground tour sells out way ahead of time and I think you need to send a letter of request to be considered. We were amazed at how we just whizzed through the "prepurchased ticket line" past the majority who didn't buy online.
We downloaded Rick's self guided tours for St. Peter's and the Sistine Chapel on our Kindles and enjoyed a calm experience at our own pace (for free, I might add). We purchased a book at the Vatican Museum bookstore. A guide might give you some extra insight, but we read a lot before we go on these trips so we rarely go on these guided tours. I find that being short has been a huge disadvantage when part of a tour group...