EU Mediterranean

The Mediterranean is so enthralling, so absolutely seductive that, like the mythical siren's song, its spell is impossible to break. It is both a haven for nature's glory and a veritable treasure trove of history. Once you experience it, once you behold all its treasures, you will never be the same. See it once and the memories forever embrace your soul. See it a thousand times and you still yearn for more.

Our Mediterranean is that beguiling. Each destination is a journey in and of itself.

A number of cruise lines offer a variety of cruises. Select from the Greek Islands, Ancient Turkey, the Holy Lands or cruise the Western section and include Spain, France and Italy.

An extended Mediterranean cruise is simply a cruise vacation that combines ports from both the Western Mediterranean and the Eastern Mediterranean, typically beginning in Barcelona and ending in Greece or Turkey or of course in reverse.

Cruise types

The Mediterranean has cruises from every major cruise line and quite a few of the specialty operators too.
While there are many cruise types and cruise lengths to choose from the major distinction is whether a cruise is an Eastern or Western Mediterranean cruise or an extended cruise

The Eastern Mediterranean is the area that covers Italy, Greece, Turkey and the Adriatic Enjoy the culture and history of Italy, especially Venice which is simply stunning and completely unique.See the whitewashed splendor of the Greek Isles and discover the antiquity of Classical Greece. Wonder at the sheer beauty of the Dalmatian coast and be amazed by Istanbul who's history dates from Byzantium to Constantinople to its place at the head of the Ottoman Empire.
There is just so much to see and do and such a range of cruise offerings that it pays to do the research before choosing a cruise.

The Western Mediterranean is the area from the west coast of Italy and covers France, Spain and North Africa including the Atlantic coast of Morocco and the Canary Islands. Enjoy the history and culture of Florence, the excitement of Monte Carlo, the architecture of Barcelona and the Arabic heritage of Morocco.

Extended Mediterranean cruises are more than just a combination of east or western Mediterranean cruises. The size of the Med and the range of major ports allows cruise lines to offer a huge range of 10 to 14 day (and longer) itineraries. Again research into what is available is vital for people looking for longer cruises here.

Many cruise lines position ships here for the northern summer so Mediterranean cruises combined with an Atlantic crossing are popular in Spring and Autumn. Additionally cruise lines also move ships up to the Baltic in mid summer so there are a range of repositioning cruises to and from Scandinavia to consider as well.

Cruise seasons

While cruises are available year round the main season is from March to October to take advantage of the longer days and warmer weather.

Main Ports

Cruises depart from most of the major ports but they key embark ports include Barcelona, Monte Carlo, Rome (Civitavecchia), Venice, Athens and Istanbul. Many cruises also start and finish in the UK with Southampton being the major port.

Weather

Weather during the cruise season is warm to hot and the days are long and generally sunny. Most rain in the region falls in the winter months.

Ports of Interest

Alexandria, Egypt	Alicante, Spain
Amman, Jordan	Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Ancona, Italy	Aqaba, Jordan
Athens (Piraeus) Greece	Barcelona, Spain
Bari, Italy	Bonifacio, Corsica. FR
Bordeaux, France	Bremerhaven, Germany
Brindisi, Italy	Cadiz, Spain
Cagliari, Sardinia. IT	Calais, France
Calvi, Corsica	Cannes, France
Casablanca, Morocco	Catania, Sicily. IT
Constanta, Romania	Copenhagen, Denmark
Corfu, Greece	Corinth, Greece
Dover England	Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Dublin, Ireland	Dubrovnik, Croatia
Falmouth, England	Ft Lauderdale (Pt Everglades), USA
Funchal, Madeira	Genoa, Italy
Gran Canaria (Las Palmas), Canary Islands	Greenock-Glasgow, Scotland
Greenwich, England	Hamburg, Germany
Harwich, England	Heraklion, Greece
Honfleur, France	Iraklion, Crete, Gr
Istanbul, Turkey	Izmir, Turkey
Kalamata, Greece	Kiel, Germany
Koper , Slovenia	Kotor, Yugoslavia
Kusadasi, Turkey	Lavrion, Greece
Limassol, Cyprus	Lisbon, Portugal
Liverpool, England	Livorno, (Florence, Pisa) Italy
London, England	Malaga, Spain
Mallorca, Spain	Malta
Marmaris, Turkey	Marseilles, France
Mersin, Turkey	Miami
Molfetta, Italy	Mombasa, Kenya
Monte Carlo, Monaco	Mumbai (Bombay), India
Naples, Italy	Navplion, Greece
New York, New York	Nice, France
Not Available	Odessa, Ukraine
Oporto, Portugal	Oslo, Norway
Palermo, Sicily. IT	Palma, Majorca. SP
Paris, France	Port Said, Egypt
Porto Vecchio, Corsica. FR	Portsmouth, England
Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica	Puerto Limon, Costa Rica
Pula, Croatia	Ravenna, Italy
Rhodes, Greece	Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy
Rotterdam, Holland	Rouen, France
Rouen, France	Safaga (Luxor)
Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Canary Islands	Savona, Italy
Seville, Spain	Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt
Singapore, Singapore	Sogndal, Norway
Sokhna, Egypt	SOLD OUT
Southampton, England	Split, Croatia
Stockholm Sweden	Tenerife, Canary Islands
Thessaloniki, Greece	Toulon, France
Trieste, Italy	Valencia, Spain
Valletta, Malta	Varna, Bulgaria
Venice, Italy	Villefranche, France
Volos, Greece