People Still Fall For These 5 Mediterranean Cruise Traps!

You hit a home run on this one Gary. By including the story of Winnie,Your personalized your post making everyone feel like you were talking about them. See why you’re number one in the Cruise vlog category. Kudos

I grew up in Lebanon and trust me, NO ONE, unless they absolutely don't have a choice, wants to be on the water in July/August. It's hot, humid, crawling with tourists and generally very unpleasant. September/October are fantastic times and in some ports, the fall colors are amazing. What did Winnie wind up doing? We're all now emotionally vested in this...

I just got off the Celebrity Edge 2 weeks ago..Embarked in Civitavecchia Italy with a pre night stay in Rome...cruised to Santorini, Rhodes, Mykonos, Athens and Naples. Hardly any crowds, Temp in the 70's with no rain. The ship holds 3,000 but there were only 1,300 on board. The food, Entertainment and service was remarkable. We had a standard Veranda and loved it. at night we left the veranda door open and all you heard was the ocean, so relaxing. I have been on 24 cruises, This was possibly the best cruise I was ever on. Celebrity did a GREAT JOB.

Over the years I’ve done five Med cruises. They have different beginning and ending ports and loads of different ports for excursions. I’ve done extended stays at Rome, Barcelona, Nice, Athens and Istanbul. It’s very important to pay attention to what you want to see. And realize that you can’t see it all in one cruise. Additionally, it’s incredibly hot in July and August. Walking excursions will exhaust you unless you are fit and in good shape simply due to the heat. I took a hike up a dormant volcano, near Santorini as I remember, and our guide passed out from the heat. I wouldn’t recommend the Med in July or August unless you are acclimated to high temperatures as well as being very fit. I rarely see this issue addressed but it’s an important consideration for us senior travelers.

Inside cabins for us, 99% of the time, we are hardly ever in the room, only to sleep and shower, when we have leisure time we go to like the serenity deck and have a 180 degrees field of views, and I can move around to the left or right side, something you can't do in your balcony, most ports are not attractive and beautiful and you travel at night when it is so dark.

What a great friend you were! You covered the little subtleties that few people think of. I couldn't agree more with your advice, after my years and years of cruising the Mediterranean. I wish. I actually only went once, Barcelona to Civitavecchia, and in my first inside stateroom after always balconies. Would spring for at least an oceanview; I did not like needing to get dressed just to see where the heck we were. The unrelenting succession of port days was indeed quite tiring, no matter how much I enjoyed the cities. I was not thrilled with the thought of a 3 hour drive both ways to see a tourist spot for an hour, so I spent the days in the "gateway" cities. I loved the little walk+boat tour in Livorno, a city that the cruise line categorizes as not worth visiting.

I've never objected to the bus trip from ports into the cities as it gives you a great perspective about rural/semi-rural housing. Most cruise ships ensure there's a guide on each bus, so you also get great info about the next stop as we rarely, if ever go on organised excursions preferring to explore cities on our own. And finally, a balcony is a must - we love our sundowner(s) seated on the balcony watching the ocean glide by. I appreciate you can do the same from the bar and deck topside, but truly it's special when you and your partner watch the sun disappear over the evening horizon sipping your favourite drink in your own outdoor space!!

I went to the Western Mediterranean cruise and stayed before and 5 days after. Took a few tours and got to see all of Rome! Great info for those that do their due diligence!

Great advice. We took a week-long island hopping cruise in Greece/Turkey. We had a wonderful time, but you’re so right about some of the challenges. We hit 2 ports on some days, so being physically ready for such busy itinerary is important. Also, our port in Crete was across the island from any real sight-seeing. Because we were either sleeping or off ship most of our cruise, taking a cheaper cruise line with an inside cabin (for daytime sleep between ports) worked for us.

I always feel "cruise smart" after watching your content. Funny thing is, I've still not been on a cruise. But I can guarantee this your videos are definitely on my syllabus! I will watch until and even after I actually book a cruise! Thank you for always sharing the knowledge.

Excellent points Gary, all things that can take people years to learn. I am sure many of your readers will be helped immensely by the finer points you touch on. Thanks for your dedication to helping people learn all about Cruising.

I got very lucky. This is my first time in Europe. I just got back from my 2 Europe cruises. The weather was perfect and no more than 2 ships in a port. I made 2 mistakes. First I should have walk everyday before my trip. You will walk alot. Second I should have left 2 or 3 days earlier. Coming from California it was a very long flight and jet lag. I got home safe. I had a great time. Lots of pictures and memory. My friends I met on the ship is amazing.

Brilliant, timely, and such helpful advice! You’re a treasure, Gary.

My first cruise was a Med cruise, from Marseilles on a loop, touching Tunisia, Malta and a number of stops in Italy with MSC. It was AMAZING! The first day was a sea day which was perfect for exploring the ship before calling into a new port every day. Thanks to your advice, Gary, I booked my first SOLO cruise in a studio cabin with Norwegian and will do 10 days around the Greek Isles! Thank you for the advice and inspiration!

This was a great video, Gary. The breakdown of ship and ports is very useful.

Gary, without a doubt, your channel is one of the top channels out there for cruising. Fantastic content, as always. Lots of great information. Thanks for your time, effort, and attention to detail in putting this video together.

I totally agree with pre and post stays. With length of our flights when going to Europe we like to stay as long as we can, so a 7 day cruise is usually 12-13 days for us.

Terrific tips Gary-especially about not necessarily needing a balcony on the western Mediterranean cruises! Thank You! 💙

If you haven't cruised before , this is incredible advice . 100 % on point

Thank you!! We have been looking at Mediterranean cruises and have flexibility in time. Considering western with extended time in Barcelona and Rome. Appreciate knowing you get no time in Rome if just a stop. We are 70 and have never been to Europe so want to have time to explore more. May piggyback an eastern after we spend time on land exploring Italy inland.