Change to July 17 Cruise from Barcelona to Southampton

[Duane]

Just received an email from the Cruise Line informing us of a change to our upcoming July cruise. The 1st port of call, Cartagena, Spain has been removed from the itinerary due to a recommendation from the International Maritime Organization. They have recommended that the ship reduce speedsthrough the NW Mediterranean Sea due to increased whale and other cetaceans (their word) in the area.

For the trouble, Disney will provide a $250 stateroom credit that can only be used during this sailing...

 

[auntlynne]

Don’t know if you think it’s a thumbs up or down. But it’s happening. Maybe knowing in advance softens the blow.

Here’s hoping you get the opportunity for some free (compensated) whale sightings.

Bon Voyage!

 

[Duane]

For me, it doesn't matter... I am in the camp that if the Captain decided to do donuts out in the middle of the ocean, it would be fine with me... My wife is the one who likes to visit ports, me, I can take it or leave it.

 

[Girl of the South]

And if you look at Google maps you’ll see that sometimes they DO do donuts!

 

[mcd2745]

Our itinerary changed as well. We are on the May 25 from Barcelona. They removed Villefranche/Nice as the last port and and instead will visit Palermo as the first port and the other Italian ports are all moved back a day. I'm happy for the change - no desire to go to Villefranche/Nice anyway. Sicily interests me much more. Although...unlike the OP, it seems DCL isn't giving anyone on our sailing a credit.

 

[brentm77]

Our itinerary changed as well. We are on the May 25 from Barcelona. They removed Villefranche/Nice and instead will visit Palermo. I'm happy for the change - no desire to go to Villefranche/Nice anyway. Sicily interests me much more.

Sicily was one of our favorite port stops ever. We absolutely loved it and are trying to plan a cruise that stops there again in the near future.

 

[Gracies Moms]

Our July 12 itinerary out of Barcelona also changed . We now have a sea day instead of our stop in France. Super bummed as France was our reason for booking this trip. $250 onboard credit but that’s not France.

 

[slg]

We lost Naples on our June 24 cruise. The sole reason I booked this cruise. We haven’t been offered any credit.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Our itinerary changed as well. We are on the May 25 from Barcelona. They removed Villefranche/Nice as the last port and and instead will visit Palermo as the first port and the other Italian ports are all moved back a day. I'm happy for the change - no desire to go to Villefranche/Nice anyway. Sicily interests me much more. Although...unlike the OP, it seems DCL isn't giving anyone on our sailing a credit.

Probably because the OP posted that they dropped one of their ports and they dropped one and added one on your cruise.

 

[BruinEd03]

Sicily was one of our favorite port stops ever. We absolutely loved it and are trying to plan a cruise that stops there again in the near future.

What makes Sicily your favorite port stop? Any excursions you would recommend? I'm rather disappointed by the port change. Was excited to see Nice and be within a Stone's throw to Monaco and all the rich yachts parked there.

 

[brentm77]

What makes Sicily your favorite port stop? Any excursions you would recommend? I'm rather disappointed by the port change. Was excited to see Nice and be within a Stone's throw to Monaco and all the rich yachts parked there.

Edit: As pointed out below, Taormina won't be a good option from Palermo, so disregard my response. But I will leave it up for anyone visiting from the Messina port in the future.

We did the tour to Taormina and the Greek Theater. The tour guide wasn't great. If I did it again, I might just arrange for transportation and tour on my own. We ended up ditching the tour guide by the time we got to the theater, which is at the top of the town and exploring on our own anyway.

Taormina was one of the coolest towns I have been to. It sits at the top of cliffs that offer breathtaking views in many locations from the town. The town's main street is medieval style, narrow, pedestrian only, and lined with fun shops and great food, where I had the best cannoli I have ever had. The town itself has a roman, Greek, and Muslim history, making for a very interesting mix. Large flowering trees grow all over town. There are narrow allies lined with flowers, inviting you to explore. Balconies line the tops of the main street. It's extremely picturesque, like walking into something created by Disney because it seems so perfect, but it's the real deal. There is a very cool garden near by too, which isn't on the tour. It's free to enter and walk about - it was created by a woman long ago for the animals that she loved, with lots of interesting buildings and plants. The Greek theater is cool too and sits atop more cliffs with great views of the sea. In the distances, there are mountains that tower even higher, adding to the ambiance. You can also see Mount Etna in the distance and many points in the town, often spewing smoke. The place is just surreal and beautiful, and easy to explore on your own. The drive there is beautiful too, even though it is 45 minutes. Winding up the cliffs to it, in a giant bus, is an adventure in itself.

If you watch White Lotus, Season 2, you will see a lot of the town and even the theater.

It just made for the perfect day. Sicily it like a different country than Italy in many ways. One day we plan to go and stay an entire week there, since each region with Sicily varies greatly too.

I also went in, almost randomly picking the tour, with no expectations, so that may have added to the experience. But my wife and I talk about how much we loved it often.

 

[ljhayes]

We did the tour to Taormina and the Greek Theater. The tour guide wasn't great. If I did it again, I might just arrange for transportation and tour on my own. We ended up ditching the tour guide by the time we got to the theater, which is at the top of the town and exploring on our own anyway.

Taormina was one of the coolest towns I have been to. It sits at the top of cliffs that offer breathtaking views in many locations from the town. The town's main street is medieval style, narrow, pedestrian only, and lined with fun shops and great food, where you I had the best cannoli I have ever had. The town itself has a roman, Greek, and Islamic history, making for a very interesting mix. Large flowering trees grow all over town. There are narrow allies lined with flowers, inviting you to explore. Balconies line the tops of the main street. It's extremely picturesque, like walking into something created by Disney because it seems so perfect, but it's the real deal. There is a very cool garden near by too, which isn't on the tour. It's free to enter and walk about - it was created by a woman long ago for the animals that she loved, with lots of interesting buildings and plants. The Greek theater is cool too and sits atop more cliffs with great views of the sea. In the distances, there are mountains that tower even higher, adding to the ambiance. You can also see Mount Etna in the distance and many points in the town, often spewing smoke. The place is just surreal and beautiful, and easy to explore on your own. The drive there is beautiful too, even though it is 45 minutes. Winding up the cliffs to it, in a giant bus, is an adventure in itself.

If you watch White Lotus, Season 2, you will see a lot of the town and even the theater.

It just make for the perfect day. Sicily it like a different country than Italy in many ways. One day we plan to go and stay an entire week there, since each region with Sicily varies greatly too.

I also went in, almost randomly picking the tour, with no expectations, so that may have added to the experience. But my wife and I talk about how much we loved it often.

Were you in port in Messina or Palermo? Taormina is quite a hike from Palermo.

 

[brentm77]

Were you in port in Messina or Palermo? Taormina is quite a hike from Palermo.

Messina - I didn't realize Disney used different ports, since even the Celebrity cruise we had booked out of Barcelona this summer (canceled) was using Messina too. You are right, Taormina wouldn't be a good option, with a three hour drive, and Disney's tendency to schedule usually short port days. I apologize for giving information that may not be helpful for this particular cruise, however, Sicily has so many cool towns, I would be thrilled to be stopping there, regardless of the port. Palermo in itself looks pretty cool.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Just received an email from the Cruise Line informing us of a change to our upcoming July cruise. The 1st port of call, Cartagena, Spain has been removed from the itinerary due to a recommendation from the International Maritime Organization. They have recommended that the ship reduce speedsthrough the NW Mediterranean Sea due to increased whale and other cetaceans (their word) in the area.

For the trouble, Disney will provide a $250 stateroom credit that can only be used during this sailing...

For me, it doesn't matter... I am in the camp that if the Captain decided to do donuts out in the middle of the ocean, it would be fine with me... My wife is the one who likes to visit ports, me, I can take it or leave it.

Well, if its any consolation, if they had to take one port away, you won't be missing much by missing Cartagena. It was my least favorite port in that area.

 

[ladyofthetramp]

Edit: As pointed out below, Taormina won't be a good option from Palermo, so disregard my response. But I will leave it up for anyone visiting from the Messina port in the future.

We did the tour to Taormina and the Greek Theater. The tour guide wasn't great. If I did it again, I might just arrange for transportation and tour on my own. We ended up ditching the tour guide by the time we got to the theater, which is at the top of the town and exploring on our own anyway.

Taormina was one of the coolest towns I have been to. It sits at the top of cliffs that offer breathtaking views in many locations from the town. The town's main street is medieval style, narrow, pedestrian only, and lined with fun shops and great food, where you I had the best cannoli I have ever had. The town itself has a roman, Greek, and Islamic history, making for a very interesting mix. Large flowering trees grow all over town. There are narrow allies lined with flowers, inviting you to explore. Balconies line the tops of the main street. It's extremely picturesque, like walking into something created by Disney because it seems so perfect, but it's the real deal. There is a very cool garden near by too, which isn't on the tour. It's free to enter and walk about - it was created by a woman long ago for the animals that she loved, with lots of interesting buildings and plants. The Greek theater is cool too and sits atop more cliffs with great views of the sea. In the distances, there are mountains that tower even higher, adding to the ambiance. You can also see Mount Etna in the distance and many points in the town, often spewing smoke. The place is just surreal and beautiful, and easy to explore on your own. The drive there is beautiful too, even though it is 45 minutes. Winding up the cliffs to it, in a giant bus, is an adventure in itself.

If you watch White Lotus, Season 2, you will see a lot of the town and even the theater.

It just make for the perfect day. Sicily it like a different country than Italy in many ways. One day we plan to go and stay an entire week there, since each region with Sicily varies greatly too.

I also went in, almost randomly picking the tour, with no expectations, so that may have added to the experience. But my wife and I talk about how much we loved it often.

So far, my cruise, June 1st, hasn't received word of any changes to ports. Hope it stays the way. We have this tour booked with DCL- Taormina and the Greek Theater.- our only DCL tour on this cruise. Makes me think I will ditch it so I can explore with my camera, in my own time. I think there is one dcl tour that is Taorima on your own. It is just the two of us, so all my other privates have busted my budget-lol. I just may change it so we can do our own thing.

 

[o&smom]

Edit: As pointed out below, Taormina won't be a good option from Palermo, so disregard my response. But I will leave it up for anyone visiting from the Messina port in the future.

We did the tour to Taormina and the Greek Theater. The tour guide wasn't great. If I did it again, I might just arrange for transportation and tour on my own. We ended up ditching the tour guide by the time we got to the theater, which is at the top of the town and exploring on our own anyway.

Taormina was one of the coolest towns I have been to. It sits at the top of cliffs that offer breathtaking views in many locations from the town. The town's main street is medieval style, narrow, pedestrian only, and lined with fun shops and great food, where you I had the best cannoli I have ever had. The town itself has a roman, Greek, and Islamic history, making for a very interesting mix. Large flowering trees grow all over town. There are narrow allies lined with flowers, inviting you to explore. Balconies line the tops of the main street. It's extremely picturesque, like walking into something created by Disney because it seems so perfect, but it's the real deal. There is a very cool garden near by too, which isn't on the tour. It's free to enter and walk about - it was created by a woman long ago for the animals that she loved, with lots of interesting buildings and plants. The Greek theater is cool too and sits atop more cliffs with great views of the sea. In the distances, there are mountains that tower even higher, adding to the ambiance. You can also see Mount Etna in the distance and many points in the town, often spewing smoke. The place is just surreal and beautiful, and easy to explore on your own. The drive there is beautiful too, even though it is 45 minutes. Winding up the cliffs to it, in a giant bus, is an adventure in itself.

If you watch White Lotus, Season 2, you will see a lot of the town and even the theater.

It just make for the perfect day. Sicily it like a different country than Italy in many ways. One day we plan to go and stay an entire week there, since each region with Sicily varies greatly too.

I also went in, almost randomly picking the tour, with no expectations, so that may have added to the experience. But my wife and I talk about how much we loved it often.

Last summer we did the Taormina on Your Own excursion with Disney. We also want to return someday for a longer visit.

 

[brentm77]

So far, my cruise, June 1st, hasn't received word of any changes to ports. Hope it stays the way. We have this tour booked with DCL- Taormina and the Greek Theater.- our only DCL tour on this cruise. Makes me think I will ditch it so I can explore with my camera, in my own time. I think there is one dcl tour that is Taorima on your own. It is just the two of us, so all my other privates have busted my budget-lol. I just may change it so we can do our own thing.

That would be how I would do it, if I was going again and know what I know now. I am sure there are much better tour guides, but none were great from DCL in the med. The information provided was very bland and not very informative. Things like, "we are now walking into the Muslim area of the town," which was obvious already.

It's such an easy place to explore on your own. You take a small elevator up from the parking area and are at the base of the town, which basically has one main street that leads all the way up to the Greek theater at the end, with lots of little allies off the main street. You would need to buy tickets to go into the theater itself, which is worth it in my opinion. But the theater only takes 30 minutes to fully see. If you hike to the top of the seating area, there is a great view looking the opposite way, back towards the port you came from. In town, there are great little places to eat, including fun snacks and the like. I would also walk over to the Public Gardens of Taormina if you have time. They are right off the main street, and really cool, with more great views.

Here are a few photos (a better photographer will be in heaven there):

 

[o&smom]

So far, my cruise, June 1st, hasn't received word of any changes to ports. Hope it stays the way. We have this tour booked with DCL- Taormina and the Greek Theater.- our only DCL tour on this cruise. Makes me think I will ditch it so I can explore with my camera, in my own time. I think there is one dcl tour that is Taorima on your own. It is just the two of us, so all my other privates have busted my budget-lol. I just may change it so we can do our own thing.

See 2 above response.

 

[o&smom]

That would be how I would do it, if I was going again and know what I know now. I am sure there are much better tour guides, but none were great from DCL in the med. The information provided was very bland and not very informative. Things like, "we are now walking into the Muslim area of the town," which was obvious already.

It's such an easy place to explore on your own. You take a small elevator up from the parking area and are at the base of the town, which basically has one main street that leads all the way up to the Greek theater at the end, with lots of little allies off the main street. You would need to buy tickets to go into the theater itself, which is worth it in my opinion. But the theater only takes 30 minutes to fully see. If you hike to the top of the seating area, there is a great view looking the opposite way, back towards the port you came from. In town, there are great little places to eat, including fun snacks and the like. I would also walk over to the Public Gardens of Taormina if you have time. They are right off the main street, and really cool, with more great views.

Our guide in Taormina was the worst we have ever had! Luckily, we were on our own once we got to Taormina. She barely spoke English and was constantly using Google translate. Felt sorry for her. The other buses had great guides, and got lots of good info on how to spend their time. The rest of our cruise, we had amazing guides...ones we would want to hire for private tours in the future.

 

[brentm77]

Last summer we did the Taormina on Your Own excursion with Disney. We also want to return someday for a longer visit.

It's funny, because I put so much time into planning Rome, Athens, the Amalfi coast, Mykonos, and Santorini, that I never took the time to really research Sicily and viewed it as a sort of "well, this tour looks fine, but I don't really expect much," sort of stop, but it turned out to be on my favorites.