Mediterranean Cruise in July

[Nikki906]

We are booked on the Dream this July to sail around Italy. We are a family of 6 my daughters will be 18,18,14,14. Any tips for this trip?
Favorite excursions? tips on getting from airport to hotel? Also how far is the port from the airport trying to book a flight home.

Thank You in Advance
Nicole

 

[Bad Pink Tink 2.0]

We are booked on the Dream this July to sail around Italy. We are a family of 6 my daughters will be 18,18,14,14. Any tips for this trip?
Favorite excursions? tips on getting from airport to hotel? Also how far is the port from the airport trying to book a flight home.

Thank You in Advance
Nicole

Where are you embarking and debarking?
What are your ports?

It will be hot and very crowded. You will be walking a lot in the sun on uneven footpaths and places will not have air conditioning.

 

[Nikki906]

oh yes sorry haha It leaves and returns from Barcelona. We stop in Rome, Naples, Florence, and Cagliari

 

[PsylockeSmythe]

As stated, expect it to be hot and humid. I would suggest good walking shoes due to the uneven walking surfaces. My wife wore sandals when we went to Portofino and ended up twisting her ankle while walking.

We did 10-days in the Med on the Magic back in July of 2018. We really enjoyed the cruise and the stops. Expect the days to be long. As for excursions, we decided to only do two full day excursions (Florence and Sorrento) and did 1/2-day excursions for the rest of the stops. This way we had a chance to recover.

We stayed at the Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona and took a taxi from the airport to the hotel. We then used Disney Transportation from the Hotel to the cruise terminal and from the cruise terminal back to the airport.

Psy

 

[Bad Pink Tink 2.0]

oh yes sorry haha It leaves and returns from Barcelona. We stop in Rome, Naples, Florence, and Cagliari

I have a non Disney Mediterranean Cruise booked for March 2026, also from Barcelona.

I am doing pre and post cruise sightseeing Barcelona and have booked a hotel near Basílica de la Sagrada Família.

I will be using the Metro to get from the airport to my hotel and for sightseeing in Barcelona. To get to the ship from my hotel I will take The metro to Las Ramblas and then get the Blue Cruise Bus from The World Trade Centre to the ship.

I do all ports DIY and I am in the middle of planning my Barcelona days.

You are going to one of the same ports that my cruise will go to Civitavecchia, which is the port for Rome. I am not going to Rome on that day, I plan to stay on the ship most of the day and just spend a couple of hours in the afternoon walking around Civitavecchia. Rome is about 2 hours travel from the ship, so its a very long day. I previously did a land trip to Rome so I have been to The Vatican and other places.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

We were in eastern med in July 2023 during the heatwave, 7-day cruise though not with DCL. Every port day was 105+. Greece (which is where we had multiple stops and ended the cruise) was even hotter. Acropolis was 115-117 that week. For us that wasn't a huge burden but it does slow you down and for us it presented a problem in Athens when sites would close for the bulk of the day due to the heat. However, many of the tour guides were clearly uncomfortable. Drink plenty of water too. The cruise line we go with provides water for you and just had a table of water bottles as you got off the ship for the excursions but I know DCL is different (I think you have to buy the bottled water package?). Anyways yes plan for dehydration concerns.

We just did a western med march/april 2025 much better weather although sometimes it was warmer than was anticipated, monte carlo (where we ended) felt warmer than it should so I was hot in my long-sleeve athletic top.

We're headed to Switzerland in July 2026. I didn't want to go during then but that's how it worked with airfare. It won't be nearly as hot as the Med though.

Personally the crowds in July 2023 weren't terrible but we were in Venice, Croatia, Montenegro and Greece so less popular in terms of crowds. March/April 2025 crowds were obviously lower as it's the off season/very beginning of the season.

Back to your cruise: One of my main recommendations is honestly get a sun hat. I don't care if you think you'll look dumb in it like my husband doesn't really like to wear it but just get it and wear it. It helped me a lot in terms of having a slight cooling effect and some protection from the sun

This was us at an ancient greek academy on that July 2023 cruise for example. I have two of them. The one pictured has a slot in the back for you to put your hair through if you wear a ponytail...or if you don't (like I didn't) it still works. The other is a tan one that is very similar in style but doesn't have the slot in the back for your hair.


Obviously bring sunscreen and bring it with you while you're out on excursions to reapply.

 

[MyKindOfDisney]

We did this cruise last May, it was fantastic. Definitely plan to spend a few days in Barcelona, we loved the city. We stayed at Hotel Nouvel recommended by Rick Steves and it was a great location and hotel.

For the cruise, we DIYed our own excursions at each port stop. It took some planning, but worked well and saved a lot of money. If you have questions, let me know. Have a great time!

 

[asgur5]

Hate barcelona. Love rome and florence. But they are not near the ports. Long drives to get there. Very short time to see two of the most magical cities on the planet. I would change cruise and book one out of rome. Naples is at the port but are you keen to see naples or pompei and amalfi. Amalfi long drive. Pompei closer but still 30 min drive.

 

[imbelle]

We were in eastern med in July 2023 during the heatwave, 7-day cruise though not with DCL. Every port day was 105+. Greece (which is where we had multiple stops and ended the cruise) was even hotter. Acropolis was 115-117 that week. For us that wasn't a huge burden but it does slow you down and for us it presented a problem in Athens when sites would close for the bulk of the day due to the heat. However, many of the tour guides were clearly uncomfortable. Drink plenty of water too. The cruise line we go with provides water for you and just had a table of water bottles as you got off the ship for the excursions but I know DCL is different (I think you have to buy the bottled water package?). Anyways yes plan for dehydration concerns.

We just did a western med march/april 2025 much better weather although sometimes it was warmer than was anticipated, monte carlo (where we ended) felt warmer than it should so I was hot in my long-sleeve athletic top.

We're headed to Switzerland in July 2026. I didn't want to go during then but that's how it worked with airfare. It won't be nearly as hot as the Med though.

Personally the crowds in July 2023 weren't terrible but we were in Venice, Croatia, Montenegro and Greece so less popular in terms of crowds. March/April 2025 crowds were obviously lower as it's the off season/very beginning of the season.

Back to your cruise: One of my main recommendations is honestly get a sun hat. I don't care if you think you'll look dumb in it like my husband doesn't really like to wear it but just get it and wear it. It helped me a lot in terms of having a slight cooling effect and some protection from the sun

This was us at an ancient greek academy on that July 2023 cruise for example. I have two of them. The one pictured has a slot in the back for you to put your hair through if you wear a ponytail...or if you don't (like I didn't) it still works. The other is a tan one that is very similar in style but doesn't have the slot in the back for your hair.
View attachment 1024718

Obviously bring sunscreen and bring it with you while you're out on excursions to reapply.

I would add that a UV umbrella is a lifesaver for walking around ruins in the blazing sun.

 

[MyKindOfDisney]

Hate barcelona. Love rome and florence. But they are not near the ports. Long drives to get there. Very short time to see two of the most magical cities on the planet. I would change cruise and book one out of rome. Naples is at the port but are you keen to see naples or pompei and amalfi. Amalfi long drive. Pompei closer but still 30 min drive.

That’s interesting! Rome IS a magical city, but I felt like it was too overwhelming for a one day cruise stop. We definitely enjoyed Florence more, and had the best pizza of our life near the port in Naples.

 

[Kevin4321]

We have three teenagers and arranged for private tours in Rome and Florence to maximize our time in those wonderful cities. The guides were amazing and each day was an incredible experience. We booked via Viator which was about half the cost of DCL private tours, but still expensive. Worth it for us because our kids behave better / complain less around the guides, we got to customize the experience, and don't enjoy being part of larger groups. In both cases we were back on board the ship several hours before disembarkation. Tour companies know this is the biggest fear and do everything possible to minimize the risk of being left behind. We extended a few days in Barcelona to explore (it is an awesome city) and stayed at the hotel Gaudi in two rooms because it had larger rooms at a reasonable price. We took Ubers to the airport. It was less than 30 minutes away and like getting an Uber in the US.

 

[pjacobi]

We were in eastern med in July 2023 during the heatwave, 7-day cruise though not with DCL. Every port day was 105+. Greece (which is where we had multiple stops and ended the cruise) was even hotter. Acropolis was 115-117 that week. For us that wasn't a huge burden but it does slow you down and for us it presented a problem in Athens when sites would close for the bulk of the day due to the heat.

Almost every travel book will warn you about the summer heat in Greece. Why were you surprised?


-Paul

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Almost every travel book will warn you about the summer heat in Greece. Why were you surprised?


-Paul

We weren't surprised in the least and I don't believe ANY of my comment said as such (in fact I said it wasn't a huge burden to us). Was this a trolling post or something?

The heat was the Cerberus heatwave which was considered different to those in that area though not withstanding heatwaves are much more common soooo less different nowadays. Funny story while we were at that Greek site in the picture most of the (small because it was a small ship) tour were Americans. The tour guide sweating uncomfortably found solace under a tree to give this run down of the area. After a bit a person asked if we could walk around. The tour guide seemed very surprised at that and said if you want to of course but he would stick around under the shade of the tree for anyone who wanted to. Meanwhile the majority of us, again being Americans, happily went walking. Trust me when I say the heat wasn't a problem to us, we're used to the heat and humidity in the Midwest for summers. But to the people in Greece they were not as used to it. 105-110 degrees with humidity is normal summer to me *shrug*

The point of my comment there was because the majority of the archeological sites closed from about 11am-5pm in Athens due to the heat (people were passing out on the Acropolis for example), I forget what island it was but one of the sites we were at the top of it was closed for the majority of the day due to the heat. You needed to pivot there if you wanted to see stuff. For the OP asking about going in July to the Med it was made as some advice in suggestion for touring in the area (mostly the sun hats).

Again I have to ask are you trolling or just pot stirring here?

ETA: That heatwave had record and near record in other areas of the hottest temps ever recorded in Europe. Rome one of the ports for the OP (at least at that time) reached their record high. For the OP if I were traveling to the Med again in July I would plan for heatwaves and keep that in mind for what to pack and for excursions which may need to be adjusted. I know one of ours the walking portion was swapped from the afternoon to the morning and was more of a rushed...not because of us tourists but because of the tour guide who was finding shade where ever they could. It's not just the tourists who get impacted but the guides too and the operating hours of things.

 

[asgur5]

That’s interesting! Rome IS a magical city, but I felt like it was too overwhelming for a one day cruise stop. We definitely enjoyed Florence more, and had the best pizza of our life near the port in Naples.

Florence is more manageable with its size on a single day. Rome there is too much to do before you even account for the long drive.