ChefSpencer Posted July 23, 2019 Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 Hello everyone! My wife and I just booked our first European cruise and we are very, very excited! As the booking excitement wears off I am finding myself wondering about things that I had not worried or thought about on past Caribbean cruises we have been on. I am looking for some guidance or tips for this new experience for us! I used some of the tips I have seen on here when it came to booking flights and I have already taken a look at the trains and other transportation to the cities where the ports are not as close to the city in question. As my name may imply I love food and my wife and I love to eat, and experience different foods and culinary cultures. One of my big questions I guess is have any Royal Caribbean Blog foodies here been on a trip similar to mine? How did you help control the costs of food? One of the things I have loved about cruising is, aside from a little spending and tipping money, the costs are up front making it very easy to plan for. That has held true over the cruises we have been on so far, but now we are going to be in Nice, Rome, Barcelona, Naples, and Portifino. I would by lying to myself if I pretend that we would be back to the boat to eat in the windjammer or even the dinning room when we are in this gastronome's paradise. I am also wondering about if past cruisers have felt the beverage packages are still "worth the money" when, in theory, we would be on the ship less than a Caribbean cruise. We did the deluxe beverage package on our last cruise and loved it, but we were also on the boat a lot more than we are planning to be for this adventure. As an additional note I would love to hear about favorite experiences or adventures in these stops or things you don't think we should miss out on! My apologies for rambling a bit, and I appreciate any help or input! Edit. I forgot to mention that when we get back we have an extra day in Barcelona before leaving so any ideas on possible day trips or places to see that are possibly outside the city would be awesome! ellcee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted July 23, 2019 Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 What a GREAT itinerary. I love, love, love the Amalfi coast. Portifino is going to be incredible (talk about EATING !!! OMG !). Naples is a bit "meh" (I go there for work quite often). Don't miss Herculaneum (the Italians will tell you they have no idea what you're talking about if you say the word "Herculaneum" to them (THAT'S A GREEK WORD !) so you may have to ask for Ercolano) if you get the chance. It is a much simpler, shorter, and WAAAY better (IMO) way to see the Vesuvius aftermath than Pompeii. Everything is just much better preserved and it's way smaller - you can see more in a shorter period of time. It's just as hot as Pompeii though..... Enjoy your trip !!! Morganno and mom2mybugs 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChefSpencer Posted July 23, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 10 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said: Don't miss Herculaneum (the Italians will tell you they have no idea what you're talking about if you say the word "Herculaneum" to them (THAT'S A GREEK WORD !) so you may have to ask for Ercolano) if you get the chance Thanks so much for the tip! We were already looking at excursions or tours of pompeii WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2mybugs Posted July 23, 2019 Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 T@ChefSpencer we leave tomorrow for our first European cruise. I will be in Barcelona as well as Rome. I hope to do a live blog that you can check out I'm there life blog section...I will let you know what we do in those cities. We decided to get the drink pkg if nothing else than for the bottled water and the wine at dinner. I think that with coffee and our sea day drinks, we will break even but it was a tough decision. In the end we decided to do it in part so we could prepay and not have a big cost at the end. Definitely look for the cruise planner sales. Jane Morganno 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChefSpencer Posted July 23, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 That is so awesome! I am sure you will have an amazing time. I look forward to virtually tagging along for the adventure lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellcee Posted July 23, 2019 Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 Never took that cruise but can tell you food and drink is not that expensive in Italy. I found the prices very reasonable in the restaurants. Also, the street food is cheap and good. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morganno Posted July 23, 2019 Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 I haven't researched it so much but yes you will get great value on eating off the boat but it will only be lunch. What are your return times to the boat, we have done the med twice and the return times have been really early so no chance for dinner. You have picked a great time as in the summer the restaurants will open much later and might not do lunch. To be honest we did the med twice and I wouldn't have bought the drinks package as you can get great drinks for $5-6 in southern Europe and a bottle of wine will set you back maybe 25$ Have a great time look forward to hearing about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChefSpencer Posted July 23, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 5 minutes ago, Morganno said: I haven't researched it so much but yes you will get great value on eating off the boat but it will only be lunch. What are your return times to the boat, we have done the med twice and the return times have been really early so no chance for dinner. You have picked a great time as in the summer the restaurants will open much later and might not do lunch. To be honest we did the med twice and I wouldn't have bought the drinks package as you can get great drinks for $5-6 in southern Europe and a bottle of wine will set you back maybe 25$ Have a great time look forward to hearing about it. It looks like the boat leaves at around 7-8pm in most places which to me means dinner off the boat should we want it. I am also very willing to believe there are big cultural differences on what time of day a meal is traditionally served. My thought on the drinks is similar to yours so we will hold off on a drink package for now. Thanks so much for the help! Morganno 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miguel Posted July 23, 2019 Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 I just came back from a Western Med Cruise and found food prices in all ports fairly reasonable (except for Portofino). We used Google Maps to search and found ratings to be very accurate. Our rule of thumb is that if it has above 4.3 stars and has more than 50 ratings, it had good food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtread Posted July 23, 2019 Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 Sounds like a fantastic cruise with some great ports on the itinerary! We are gathering similar info for a Greek Isles cruise June, 2020. I've never been to the Med so it is all new to me but I keep hearing about pickpockets, especially around Barcelona. For that reason we are going to be wearing RFID blocking money belts for credit cards, ID, passports, cash, etc. The belts will be under our shirts, not on the outside. I'm no chef but I appreciate good food so I'll be watching this thread for sure! Have a great cruise! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FManke Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 1 hour ago, rtread said: I've never been to the Med so it is all new to me but I keep hearing about pickpockets, especially around Barcelona. For that reason we are going to be wearing RFID blocking money belts for credit cards, ID, passports, cash, etc. The belts will be under our shirts, not on the outside. I've read Rome is especially bad for pickpockets as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fonemanbob Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 We love Barcelona. We spent 1 day before and 3 days after our cruise there last year. Tapas and wine for lunch everyday and dinners at various restaurants was incredibly delicious. Going back next year. As WAAAYTOOO said Portifino is truly incredible. YUM!!!!!!!!!!!! A perfect day in Santorini far outweighs a perfect day in COCO CAY. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fonemanbob Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 We had no trouble in any of the Med cities. That is why we are going back again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
princevaliantus Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 I was thinking of doing this cruise but found one that included these port (except Potofino..been there several tines) and more. I just couldn't refuse it and the offer !! Also staying a couple of days before and after the cruise!! fonemanbob 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChefSpencer Posted July 24, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 Thanks for all the input so far! We will look in to securing our personal effects and trying to minimizing our risk of pickpockets. I was just thinking about the stops and I am wondering if the customs or process of getting out of the ports are longer than we may be accustomed to at the ports in the Caribbean and Mexico? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellcee Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 5 minutes ago, ChefSpencer said: minimizing our risk of pickpockets. The RIFD covers are great. I used a slash free bag that had zipper locks. One of my tour mates got her credit cards stolen last month, she blamed herself for not being aware. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDIAZ72 Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 Hi everybody! About pickpockets we have seen them in Rome and Naples but the only try to take advantage of the misattention of the tourist without violence. In Barcelona you have two types: pickpockets like comentes and robbers that use violence to stole your valuables. There are some "professionals" specialized in watches. Be careful with the city areas but enjoy a beautiful city like Barcelona. One of the most beautiful cites of Spain. Enjoy your nice cruise. Marco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChefSpencer Posted July 24, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 10 minutes ago, MDIAZ72 said: Hi everybody! About pickpockets we have seen them in Rome and Naples but the only try to take advantage of the misattention of the tourist without violence. In Barcelona you have two types: pickpockets like comentes and robbers that use violence to stole your valuables. There are some "professionals" specialized in watches. Be careful with the city areas but enjoy a beautiful city like Barcelona. One of the most beautiful cites of Spain. Enjoy your nice cruise. Marco My wife and I have lived in big cities our whole lives so I assumed it wouldn't be much different. You always have to be paying attention to where you are. Thanks for the tip! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hayley_bopp Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 3 hours ago, ChefSpencer said: Thanks for all the input so far! We will look in to securing our personal effects and trying to minimizing our risk of pickpockets. I was just thinking about the stops and I am wondering if the customs or process of getting out of the ports are longer than we may be accustomed to at the ports in the Caribbean and Mexico? I've not done Caribbean cruise yet but have done 2x Med cruises. Getting off/on the ship at the ports is hassle free: You walk straight off and through the terminal building. Getting back on, you just show your sea pass card. In a couple of ports (can't remember which) you had to go through 'airport style' security (metal detectors and bags x-rayed) before then going through the same process on the gangway. You'll have a great time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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