Mediterranean cruise

My two week Mediterranean cruise on board the Sea Princess departed from Southampton on a warm sunny Saturday afternoon. I arrived at the dock at 11:45am and was checked in and on the ship within 15 minutes. I had booked a balcony cabin as I wanted to enjoy the experience of arriving and departing from the 8 different ports I would be visiting.. Cadiz, Barcelona, Monte Carlo, Florence, Rome, Alghero, Palma and Gibraltar. After a brief walk around I decided to have some lunch in the Horizon Buffet. There was a large selection of salads and hot meals and of course desserts, all very tasty. Every evening the daily news sheet would be delivered to my cabin detailing everything you could possibly need to know for the next 24 hours. Including weather forecast, port details and map, entertainment throughout the day, show and film schedules etc. The cabin itself was compact but had plenty of storage space, small TV, fridge, small bathroom with a great shower. The balcony was small with 2 chairs and a small table. The ship I sailed upon was medium sized and one of the reasons I chose her was that Princess Cruises operate an alternative dining system called ‘Anytime’ dining. This enables passengers to decide when they want to dine and who with, instead of the set dining time with the same group of people. I prefer to arrange my own excursions when in port as I tend to find it cheaper than an organised ship tours. Train timetables are easy to source on the internet and we used these for trips to Florence and Rome and the ticket prices were much cheaper than an organised tour, plus the trains are quicker. Another thing to bear in mind is that once you pre-book an excursion you will not get a refund if you cancel. My only excursion was in Alghero which was a 4 hours boat trip around the bay. Unfortunately, it rained all day and I spent $69 getting cold and wet! My most memorable ports were Monte Carlo and Rome. Monte Carlo because the Grand Prix was being staged the following week and I could walk the entire circuit and Rome for the history and amazing buildings. I will definitely go back there soon for a long weekend! Overall, I enjoyed the cruise and would consider cruising again. The staff were friendly and attentive and the food was good.

Finally, with all that food available, there is the infamous saying….. ‘You go on as passengers and come off as cargo’