Special Cruise-Western Med

[Parrot Mom]

Trying to plan for a special cruise for our 50th anniverary.. Would love to do a cruise that includes Seville, Bilboa, Barcenlona and some days at sea...and to really make it special after that the ship would go trans-atlantic back to the states...in late summer or early fall. My "ideal" special cruise (2005) would be at in the vicinity of two weeks or more. Suggestions outside of RCI for ships or other itineraries.. I don't want to do the Greek Islands....I want mainly Spain and Portugal. My husband says I'm the Navigator and he's the Purser...lol... so I would lke to do enough research with people who have been there and done that...

 

[Petert]

Hi Parrot Mom,

I have been on several Westbound trans-Atlantic cruises out of Barcelona, and in most cases we just stopped in Gibralter before beginning the ocean voyage. Most of these cruises will be 12 to 14 days in length with 5 or 6sea days in a row before reaching the Caribbean isles. We sailed this route on Celebrity's Millennium last fall and enjoyed a really fantastic cruise. I gather that you want to see Spain, but you will probably not find a cruise that meets your desires. I would suggest you consider flying into Madrid (via Continental for instance) and spending some precruise time in Madrid and maybe a couple days in Barcelona. This way you would get a taste of Spain and a very memorable trans-Atlantic experience. If I can answer any questions I would happy to help.

Peter

 

[tiadeerin]

In 2000 I took an11night Western Mediterrenean cruise on Mediterrenean Shipping Cruise Lines MS Monterey out of Genoa. It is a Swiss owned company. We visited Barcelona, Almeria (excursions to Granada), Malaga, & Cadiz (with excursions to Seville), Casablanca, Tenieref Canary Islands (Spanish) & Funchal Maderia (Portugese). In my opinion, the itinerary couldn't have been better. The Canary Islands & the island of Maderia are the best kept vacation secrets in America.

Now some words of caution. MSC is certainly not as upscale as Celebrity, but the service is very good. The room steward was by far the best I've ever had on my 7 cruises & dining room staff were also very good. This line caters to Europeans & announcements are made in many different languages. I have read on some posts that this bothers some people. On my cruise there were only 2 other Americans on board. You will be constantly surrounded by people of different cultures, with different ways of doing things, but I personally enjoy mixing with the "natives". The Monterey is an older ship & certainly nothing special. I understand that Mediterrenean Shipping now has a new ship, MSC Lirica, just christened last year. The Lirica does sail out of Florida at some times of the year, so there must be a transatlantic cruise a couple of times a year.

Whatever you decide to do, I highly recommend a trip to Seville(my favorite Spanish city). The boulevards are lined with orange trees. Can you imagine how heavenly that would smell when they're blooming?

 

[thomaseu]

>>Whatever you decide to do, I highly recommend a trip to Seville(my favorite Spanish city). The boulevards are lined with orange trees. Can you imagine how heavenly that would smell when they're blooming?<<

We were in Sevilla when the orange trees were in bloom and what a spectacle that was [at least for us]. Every time you turned a corner there were more orange trees. I have pix of tress in bloom and some full of oranges. Thanks for the memory!

 

[Joaquim]

If you decide to come to Lisbon (Portugal) I have good private shore excursions to recommend.

 

[jamcat]

I am interested in private tours in Lisbon and plan to go in Aug. Please send me info about Lisbon..

Thanks ,
jamcat

 

[Lady Jag]

Thomas, thanks for that warning. If I ever make it to Sevilla, I will take plenty of Benadryl before hand!! :lol I'm very, very allergic to orange trees! =eek