We just returned from the 10 night June 29th Med cruise and had an amazing time! Great weather, amazing ports and had almost as much fun as last years 10 night Med cruise (though that one was hard to top as we stayed on for the 7 nt repo!). I wanted to offer up a few tips and precautions for those still yet to leave.
10. Bring sunscreen, sunglasses and drink lots of water. The sun was a lot stronger than when we went in May last year.
9. Either wear clothing that covers your shoulders and knees or bring a wrap if you plan to go into churches in the Med, not just the Vatican. At every port, we visited amazing churches, even just a quick visit at some. Many of the churches had someone at the front door monitoring if you were properly covered.
8. At most ports, it was easy to arrange a taxi to tour. Malta had several companies offering set tours, or you could create your own. Pricing was reasonable. 66 euro for a 3 hour tour in Malta.. Taxis hold 4 and many are BMWs. In Naples, you can negotitate a price depending where you are going and for how long. Taxis in Villafrenche were expensive. DH paid 40 euro to go from Villafrenche to Eze. The train was easy and ran frequently in the am and later afternoon. It took 7 min from Villafrenche to Nice by train, plus a 10 min walk to the train station from the port.
7. If you are planning to go to Cinque Terre by train, you may want to get a tender ticket before they call for open tendering at 9am. We were on the first open tender which waited to fill, and just made the 10:01am train to Monterroso. There is another one at 10:07am that stops in all the towns on the way. Suprisingly, there was no line in the Cinque Terre ticket office but if you are just taking the train and not hiking trails, buy your tickets in the automated machines. You will need smaller bills or coins. One way was 2.4 euro to Monterroso. We ferried all the way back to La Spezia with a change of ferries in Portoverne for 12 euro one way. The ferry trip and the stop in Portoverne was spectacular!
6. Be extra careful of your belongings esp in Barcelona. We witnessed a backpack theft in progress. We saw two boys running with a backpack, then a moment later, a family running around the corner very upset trying to find them.
5. Always make sure you are getting back correct change for your purchases. And ask for the price before you buy if its not well marked. Just speaking from experience here.
4. The free port bus in Civitavecchia did not start until 8am. We got off the ship at 7:40 am before they even announced the all ashore. The Navigator says approx 7:45am for all ashore. We were one of the first ones on the bus. As soon as we got off at the entrance of the port, there was an information kiosk that sold BIRG tickets (for the train back and forth and all metros and buses in Rome for 9 euro pp). There was a sign that mentioned Vatican tickets but I did not inquire pricing. We caught the 8:40am train that put us into the Termini station (the last stop) at 9:50 am. You can also buy the BIRG ticket at the train station or at Tobbachi booths on the 10 min walk to the train station.
3. If you are trying to decide between visiting the massive ruins the size of a city in Pompeii or the smaller ruins in Heruclaneum, I would highly recommend Herculaneum, esp if you are touring with older adults or young children. We hired a private guide right at the entrance after you pay to get in at Herculaneum for 55 euro for just the 4 of us. Its the same price if you have a larger group. There were lots of places to find shade in Herculaneum and much more to see mosaic tiles on floors, frescos on walls, statues and marble tables still there.
2. If you are still looking for a hotel in Barcelona, I highly recommend the Fira Palace hotel. The rooms were huge! We booked from Hotels.com and were able to sleep 4 to a room. The hotel website will only let you book 3 to a room. The Magic Fountains were a 5 min walk, and the Palace, now the National Museum of Catalunya is right there too. It was less than a 10 min walk to Placa Espana where you catch the train to Montserrat. Poble Espanol was also nearby as was the cable to go to the Castle at the top of Montjuic. Lots of restaurants and convienece stores in the area too. The room had 2 double beds pushed together plus a love seat that opened into a twin bed. The bathroom was huge with a separate shower and a tub.
1. And the most important tip: Mickey bars made by Nestle were still available! You can order them from room service (they are not listed on the menu) or in the dining rooms. Have a great cruise!
10. Bring sunscreen, sunglasses and drink lots of water. The sun was a lot stronger than when we went in May last year.
9. Either wear clothing that covers your shoulders and knees or bring a wrap if you plan to go into churches in the Med, not just the Vatican. At every port, we visited amazing churches, even just a quick visit at some. Many of the churches had someone at the front door monitoring if you were properly covered.
8. At most ports, it was easy to arrange a taxi to tour. Malta had several companies offering set tours, or you could create your own. Pricing was reasonable. 66 euro for a 3 hour tour in Malta.. Taxis hold 4 and many are BMWs. In Naples, you can negotitate a price depending where you are going and for how long. Taxis in Villafrenche were expensive. DH paid 40 euro to go from Villafrenche to Eze. The train was easy and ran frequently in the am and later afternoon. It took 7 min from Villafrenche to Nice by train, plus a 10 min walk to the train station from the port.
7. If you are planning to go to Cinque Terre by train, you may want to get a tender ticket before they call for open tendering at 9am. We were on the first open tender which waited to fill, and just made the 10:01am train to Monterroso. There is another one at 10:07am that stops in all the towns on the way. Suprisingly, there was no line in the Cinque Terre ticket office but if you are just taking the train and not hiking trails, buy your tickets in the automated machines. You will need smaller bills or coins. One way was 2.4 euro to Monterroso. We ferried all the way back to La Spezia with a change of ferries in Portoverne for 12 euro one way. The ferry trip and the stop in Portoverne was spectacular!
6. Be extra careful of your belongings esp in Barcelona. We witnessed a backpack theft in progress. We saw two boys running with a backpack, then a moment later, a family running around the corner very upset trying to find them.
5. Always make sure you are getting back correct change for your purchases. And ask for the price before you buy if its not well marked. Just speaking from experience here.
4. The free port bus in Civitavecchia did not start until 8am. We got off the ship at 7:40 am before they even announced the all ashore. The Navigator says approx 7:45am for all ashore. We were one of the first ones on the bus. As soon as we got off at the entrance of the port, there was an information kiosk that sold BIRG tickets (for the train back and forth and all metros and buses in Rome for 9 euro pp). There was a sign that mentioned Vatican tickets but I did not inquire pricing. We caught the 8:40am train that put us into the Termini station (the last stop) at 9:50 am. You can also buy the BIRG ticket at the train station or at Tobbachi booths on the 10 min walk to the train station.
3. If you are trying to decide between visiting the massive ruins the size of a city in Pompeii or the smaller ruins in Heruclaneum, I would highly recommend Herculaneum, esp if you are touring with older adults or young children. We hired a private guide right at the entrance after you pay to get in at Herculaneum for 55 euro for just the 4 of us. Its the same price if you have a larger group. There were lots of places to find shade in Herculaneum and much more to see mosaic tiles on floors, frescos on walls, statues and marble tables still there.
2. If you are still looking for a hotel in Barcelona, I highly recommend the Fira Palace hotel. The rooms were huge! We booked from Hotels.com and were able to sleep 4 to a room. The hotel website will only let you book 3 to a room. The Magic Fountains were a 5 min walk, and the Palace, now the National Museum of Catalunya is right there too. It was less than a 10 min walk to Placa Espana where you catch the train to Montserrat. Poble Espanol was also nearby as was the cable to go to the Castle at the top of Montjuic. Lots of restaurants and convienece stores in the area too. The room had 2 double beds pushed together plus a love seat that opened into a twin bed. The bathroom was huge with a separate shower and a tub.
1. And the most important tip: Mickey bars made by Nestle were still available! You can order them from room service (they are not listed on the menu) or in the dining rooms. Have a great cruise!
Annie, if you guys want a nice beach day, I recommend going straight to Monterroso before the crowds. DS 14 rented a 2 person kayak with another friend, and they also swam. Water was cold but swimmable.
). DD and I walked to the end of the new town and had 2 foccaccias for 5.44 euro total. She had a cheese and basil, I had the pesto. Both were amazing! 
We were back in La Spezia around 6pm and very close to where we catch the tender for the ship!You can buy a ticket from the Cinque Terre office that includes the trains, trails and ferries, but I don't know if it includes that ferry from Portoverne to La Spezia or just the ferries between the 5 Cinque Terre towns. It was alot cheaper for us not to buy the Cinque Terre card as we were not hiking any of the trails or taking other trains other than the one to Monterroso for 2.4 euro pp. HTH! 
We leave in 3 1/2 weeks for Paris & I'm starting to panic as I'm quite busy right now & don't have time to finish up my planning!! 
I am much to anal retentive to not be 100% DONE planning by this point! Heck! It's time to PACK!
