Europe Cruise Questions

[JPKCMO]

Hello All,
I have been on multiple cruises and know that some cruise experiences a balcony room is alomost neccessary (Alaska). I have also been on cruises in the carribean where it is really not needed at all. (I don't find staring at the ocean neccessary) That said, I am looking into a 12 day out of Barcelona and need to know if the ships stays close enough to land similiar to an Alaskan cruise to where I would need a balcony to truely experince the trip? Thanks for any insight. Also any tips or hints on the Europe cruises would be great.

[Dave]

Welcome to CruiseReviews!

I wouldn't consider a balcony as a must-have for that itinerary. You often won't be close enough to shore to see anything. It's all about the port stops and the ship is mostly your moving hotel.

[f-mattox]

A balcony is nice when going in or out of some ports--Venice and Istanbul come to mind--but as Dave says, it is not a must; you're never close enough to shore to see anything except on approach and departure. Save the money for shore excursions.

[Jim C.]

I agree also. The Med cruises are much like the Caribbean ones. You only have things to look at when you are in port. An ocean view cabin is more than enough. When you are in port you are most likely going to be off the ship anyway.

[CamperMom]

We just returned from a European 12-day cruise and while we had a balcony cabin, it wasn't necessary to enjoy the "Mediterranean Experience." We did enjoy the coastline view while cruising into Marseilles in the early morning and the cruise into Venice via the Lagoon was fabulous but you can enjoy those from a deck chair as well (I highly recommend this for Venice!)

Besides, many of the big ships dock in "industrial-type" ports where your view - for instance, in Barcelona - is the stack of shipping containers waiting to be loaded onto container ships.

Set the alarm clock and grab an early morning deck chair for Venice. Otherwise, just bring your camera on your shore excursions.

CamperMom