Larry H. Ludmer - Hunter Travel Guides Cruising the Mediterranean: A Guide to the Ports of Call

Cruising the Mediterranean: A Guide to the Ships & Ports of Call

Larry Ludmer

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Acknowledgments

The seemingly simple task of compiling the facts about cruise lines, their ships, and destinations for presentation to the reader has become more and more difficult because of the sheer volume of choices. Any travel writer who wants to do the best for his readers must seek out the assistance of others to help amass this information. Ship facts and information on which ships have been assigned to cruising Mediterranean routes were provided by the media relations staff of the cruise lines. It is important to note, however, that their role in providing information and/or services to me in no way affects what I have to say about a particular cruise line or ship. Having said that I am still especially grateful to and would like to acknowledge the special help and consideration that has been provided to me by Karen Tetherow and Susanne Ferrull of Princess Cruises; Michelle McCarthy of Holland America; Jaye Hilton of Royal Caribbean; Elizabeth Jakeway of Celebrity Cruises; Heather Krasnow of Norwegian Cruise Line; Irene Lui of Carnival Cruises, Cheryl Fenske of DMOA Public Relations for MSC Cruises; and Darren Osta of Costa Cruises. All opinions expressed here are based on information gathered from a variety of objective sources and, most importantly, by firsthand experience.

Preface

There are two reasons why this was a good time to introduce a new edition of Cruising the Mediterranean . To begin with, the constantly evolving cruise industry means new ships with an ever-increasing array of new amenities, new ports of call and new itineraries. In the case of the Mediterranean market, the changes are even more pronounced than in other popular cruising areas. That's because when the first edition was released, it was soon followed by significant events of a geopolitical nature. First came the intifada . It didn't take long for most cruise lines to start eliminating Middle Eastern ports from their itineraries and those that didn't (at least among lines catering to American visitors) followed suit after the terrible events of 9/11. Although travel to Europe by Americans has rebounded nicely, the cruise lines have shown a great hesitancy to return to the Middle East.

The other reason for a new edition is that, as I write new cruise guides or revised guides for other cruising markets, I am always tinkering with format, style and content changes. I like to think that each edition becomes better for you, the reader and user. This edition reflects many of those changes and I hope that you find them useful.

1. The World of Mediterranean Cruising
   1. Cruise Popularity
   2. A Survey of the Mediterranean
      1. Geographically Speaking
      2. Man & the Mediterranean
   3. The Way to See the Mediterranean
      1. Advantages of Mediterranean Cruising
      2. Disadvantages of Mediterranean Cruising
2. Cruise Lines & Their Ships
   1. Types of Cruises
      1. Destination
      2. Duration
      3. Type of Ship
      4. Style of Cruise & Level of Luxury
   2. Cruise Lines
      1. Ship-by-Ship & Line-By-Line Evaluations
         1. Mass Market Lines
            1. CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES
            2. Celebrity Cruises
            3. Holland America Line
            4. Norwegian Cruise Line
            5. Princess Cruises
            6. Royal Caribbean International
            7. Costa Cruises
            8. MSC Cruises
            9. P & O Cruises
         2. Non-Mass Market Lines
   3. Setting Priorities
      1. Selecting Your Dream Cruise
   4. Evaluation of Ship Itineraries
      1. Onboard Activities
      2. Options in Port
3. Practical Information
   1. Accommodations on Land
   2. Climate & When to Go
   3. Costs
   4. Dining
   5. Disabled Travelers
   6. Dress (On & Off Ship)
   7. Driving/Rental Cars
   8. Electrical Appliances & Other Technical Tidbits
   9. Financial Matters
   10. Formalities, Documents & Paperwork
   11. Gaming
   12. Home-to-Ship Transportation
   13. Health & Safety Concerns
       1. THOSE NASTY LITTLE VIRUSES
   14. Payments, Cancellations & Refunds
   15. Recreation in Port
   16. Shopping
   17. Staying in Touch
   18. Time Zones
   19. Traveling with Children
4. Zo, It's Your First Time Cruising...
5. Ports of Call & Cruise Sightseeing
   1. Gateways to the Cruise
      1. Major Ports of Embarkation
      2. Lesser Ports of Embarkation
   2. Onboard Sightseeing
   3. Which Ports Are Included?
   4. Tourism Information
   5. How I Present Port Information
   6. The Major Ports
      1. Ajaccio (Corsica), France
      2. Alexandria, Egypt
      3. Alicante/Cartagena, Spain
      4. Antalya, Turkey
      5. Athens/Piraeus, Greece
      6. Barcelona, Spain
      7. Bodrum, Turkey
      8. Cdiz/Seville, Spain
   7. Cagliari (Sardinia), Italy
      1. Cannes, France
      2. Casablanca, Morocco
      3. Catania/Syracuse (Sicily), Italy
      4. Corfu (Ionian Islands), Greece
      5. Dubrovnik, Croatia
      6. Genoa, Italy
      7. Gibraltar
      8. Heraklion (Crete), Greece
      9. Hvar/Korcula, Croatia