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Question for those who have cruised in Europe


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My family and I will be cruising on Wonder this summer - our first European cruise.  I have a few questions.

1. How do people dress on these cruises?  I know the official dress code, but I am wondering how people actually dress vs Caribbean cruises.

2. What is a rough breakdown of Americans vs Europeans on board?

3. I am usually a "book my own shore excursion" guy in the Caribbean.  Does this work as well in Europe?

4. Any other differences to be aware of? 

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Hi!  We cruised in Europe in the summer of 2019.  Barcelona, Mallorca, Marseilles, Rome, Florence/Pisa, and Sorrento.

1. I would say the dining room for dinner is about the same minus the Caribbean shirts.  Many men wore golf/polo shirts and suits (with and without ties) for formal night.  Daytime was about the same.  Keep in mind, if you go sightseeing at church's, men's knees and women's shoulders must be covered so there were less tank tops or women would wear a shawl over their shoulders and men were in linen or lightweight pants.  Women wore capris.

2.  There were far more Americans on board than Europeans!  I would say the ratio was quite similar to what you see on any ship.  The increase in Europeans was barely noticeable.

3.  We did a combination of both.  Be careful....some of the ports can be quite far away from the city center (like Rome and Florence).  Any reputable company will work and we didn't have a problem getting back to port.  Prices can be much cheaper using private excursions.  

4.  Depending on what you want out of the cruise, I found the European cruise to be go go go and see see see instead of relaxing like a Caribbean cruise.  Of course, we wanted to see as much as we could so we did it to ourselves.  🙂  These cruises give you a brief taste of each port city so you will want to go back and explore more!

PS - I will add by saying we took this cruise to show our kids Europe.  My husband and I spent 12 days in Italy for our honeymoon many years ago and loved it so this type of adventure was perfect for our teenage kids.

PS again - We are going on a Greek Isles cruise next year and can't wait!

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23 minutes ago, Funeegal said:

Hi!  We cruised in Europe in the summer of 2019.  Barcelona, Mallorca, Marseilles, Rome, Florence/Pisa, and Sorrento.

1. I would say the dining room for dinner is about the same minus the Caribbean shirts.  Many men wore golf/polo shirts and suits (with and without ties) for formal night.  Daytime was about the same.  Keep in mind, if you go sightseeing at church's, men's knees and women's shoulders must be covered so there were less tank tops or women would wear a shawl over their shoulders and men were in linen or lightweight pants.  Women wore capris.

2.  There were far more Americans on board than Europeans!  I would say the ratio was quite similar to what you see on any ship.  The increase in Europeans was barely noticeable.

3.  We did a combination of both.  Be careful....some of the ports can be quite far away from the city center (like Rome and Florence).  Any reputable company will work and we didn't have a problem getting back to port.  Prices can be much cheaper using private excursions.  

4.  Depending on what you want out of the cruise, I found the European cruise to be go go go and see see see instead of relaxing like a Caribbean cruise.  Of course, we wanted to see as much as we could so we did it to ourselves.  🙂  These cruises give you a brief taste of each port city so you will want to go back and explore more!

PS - I will add by saying we took this cruise to show our kids Europe.  My husband and I spent 12 days in Italy for our honeymoon many years ago and loved it so this type of adventure was perfect for our teenage kids.

PS again - We are going on a Greek Isles cruise next year and can't wait!

My wife and I have also been to Rome and are primarily doing this to show my 15 year old a sampling of Europe.  We are also spending 4 extra days in Rome.

 

Thanks for all the advice!

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We have enjoyed our European cruises. Best packing tip would be layers, and good sturdy shoes for walking on the old streets. 
 

We booked all our own excursions. The Rick Steves guidebooks include some for a wide range of European ports. They list specific guides you can hire, with contact info. We’ve had great luck with booking these guides. Also, trip advisor will have good suggestions, as well as the port boards on cruise critic. I’m not sure where Wonder is stopping, but if it’s anywhere I’ve been, I’m happy to share guide recs. We usually have them pick us up at the ship and take us all around the area, including an authentic local lunch. Most will offer a general tour that you can customize to meet your interests. We’ve never had an issue getting back to the ship on time. 

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31 minutes ago, YouthD said:

I would definitely look up a golf cart tour of Rome, so fun and you can get much closer to everything, than in the busses. 

A lot of Europeans take European cruise lines, especially if they speak a different language.

I did this with my disabled mom.  I thought it was awesome!

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