Mediterranean Cruises: The Ports to Visit for a Fabulous Holiday
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Mediterranean Cruises are a fantastic way to relax and indulge yourself in history and culture with all the beauty, magic, and sophistication of the Mediterranean ports to explore, combined with a wonderful summer climate, and on-board luxury.
There are a large number of cruise lines that offer Mediterranean Cruises, and our readers can find these with ease by using any one of the major search engines. Our purpose within this article is to give a flavour for the possible stopover venues, sights, and sounds, culture and nightlife the cruise holidaymaker to the Mediterranean can experience.
The Mediterranean can be defined as the classic venue for destination-cruising, providing stunning locations, and award-winning cuisine. Your Mediterranean Cruise may offer you a stop in any one of the following examples of the many ports on offer:
THE SPANISH BALEARIC ISLANDS
The Balearic Islands, located between Italy and Spain, make a great cruise stopover with a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere and many sandy beaches, plus a night-life scene second to none.
Palma de Mallorca is the largest cruise port and has port mooring for up to five cruise ships. A modern port with excellent airport connections, it makes a good starting point for your cruise.
Mahon harbour is a natural 6 kilometre long bay and a unique port situated in an extraordinarily beautiful landscape.
The Port of Alcudia situated in the north of the island of Majorca, is a small port unsuitable for large liners, by wonderful for cruise passengers to visit on excursions around the beautiful north coast.
Ibiza Port is the final port we must mention. This port has all the passenger facilities you will ever need and is situated close to the historical centre with a great variety of shops, restaurants and legendary discos which attract a following of visitors from the whole of Europe.
SPANISH MAINLAND PORTS
There are at least seven Spanish mainland ports on the Mediterranean with a great deal to recommend. We will have to content ourselves with listing just two here. Those described here are both the smaller and the large; delightful Almeria, and big bustling Barcelona.
Almeria
Almeria port is the place for excursions in to Andalucía.
This is a land of contrast, which offers a heady combination of history, good
weather, and the convenience of modern facilities. This region was a last stronghold
of the Muslim rulers in Spain only five hundred years ago, so it preserves much
of the charm from those days of moorish style.
Barcelona
The Port of Barcelona recognises the needs of cruise travellers an
has made it it's special task to provide an unrivalled service. By doing
so, it has successfully, attracted the major cruise lines of the world. But,
even without the locals being so keen to please and delight every traveller
in their city, Barcelona already holds a big asset due to its geographic location
on the north west Mediterranean coast. It is a travel hub served by frequent
fights from right across Europe. Not only that, the International Airport provides
a convenient direct travel service from the US, with only 6km (3.7 miles) between
touchdown, downtown Barcelona, and the port.
Once in Barcelona you really should not miss the Old Town, and the Gothic Quarter famed for its historical monuments, its narrow streets and bohemian atmosphere. It is not all old though, and it can be said with justification that this city provides the greatest congregation of Modernist architecture you will find anywhere.
To list Barcelona's attractions in just a paragraph cannot possibly do it justice, but just let us mention the important museums and art galleries (National Museum of Catalonia, Picasso Museum, Miró Foundation, and many more); wonderful concert halls for the performance of contemporary and classical music, (Liceu Opera Theatre, Palau de la Musica - for example); not to mention the many festivals; and numberless lists of places for you to shop and eat (including indulging in the cuisine of world renowned chefs).
THE EGYPTIAN PORTS
Alexandria
Alexandria port is the main port in the Arab Republic of Egypt, and
makes a great stopover steeped in history. The port itself was established by
the pharaohs, and dates back to 1900.
Alexandria port is situated at the western end of the river Nile Delta. It is Egypt's main port, with many antiquities to visit, and is the second most important city in the country. Dikheilah Bay is the western extension of the port where a modern port, known as El-Dikheilah, accommodates cruise ships and other tourist vessels.
Port Said
Port Said port originated from the construction of the Suez Canal in
1869. It is located in the Suez Canal at its northern entrance to the Mediterranean
Sea. This is the stepping-off point from which cruise passengers delight in
spending a day touring around the historic port, and travelling to see monuments
and historical places in and around Port Said and especially Cairo. Of course,
the un-missable attractions in Cairo are the pyramids.
Suez (South of the Mediterranean)
To the north of the Suez Gulf, is the port of Suez. It is as the port
of pilgrimage to the Holy House (kaaba) and another good stopping point in your
cruise.
FRENCH PORTS
The French sense of individuality, and style, need hardly be mentioned. But, we will just mention the names of the Ports of Cannes and Nice, which bring a buzz all of its own, to even the most un-travelled tourist.
All the ports on the Riviera offer access to the traditional heritage of France and the truly cosmopolitan culture of the region. How could anyone not have heard of the Cannes Film Festival, for example, or the Carnival of Nice? You really do have to go to these places, and sample the cuisine, the clubs, and the unique 'Frenchness' of it all.
GREEK PORTS
The hospitality of the Greeks is amazing, and the charm of their nation with its many islands and friendly easy going people, make a stay at one or more of the islands, or mainland Athens an un-missable stop for any cruise itinerary. In the interests of containing the size of this article within a reasonable length we will limit our description of Greek ports to just one, Ancona, which a less well known example, but no less charming for that..
Ancona
Ancona is a natural harbour which again has very ancient origins and
is on the Adriatic coast. Many travellers have always stopped here on the route
between the Baltic countries and continental Europe. As one would expect from
a natural habour of this calibre, even the largest ships can be accommodated.
It has very good links to the international airport as well as to the motorway for those starting their cruises from this port. The city of Ancona is sited in the hills surrounding the port. The combination of its natural elevation and scenery makes this a wonderful berthing experience for all those coming in from the seaward.
There are numerous museums, and art exhibitions are a feature. Don't miss the Trojan Arch of Triumph which was built by the Romans in honour of one of the bravest and wisest of Roman emperors.
ITALY
Our examples of the charms of the Italian ports are demonstrated by two very different ports. From the laid back and relaxing Cagliari, situated on the island with more wonderful wild, beautiful and sandy beaches than almost anywhere in the world, to the metropolis of Naples.
Cagliari, Sardinia
Cagliara port is close to the airport, with which there are fast links.
This area, as with the rest of Sardinia, is not easy to describe without over-using
superlatives. Cagliari, is an authentic Mediterranean town, it has many relics
of its ancient culture and past civilizations, exemplified by the Anfiteatro
Romano, the Phoenician-Punic necropolis of Tuvixeddu, the Grotta della Vipera,
San Saturno's basilica, San Domenico's crypt - and there are many more.
Naples
As soon as you arrive in Naples on you cruise, you enter a world rich
in history, natural beauty and that uniquely Italian Neapolitan vitality, and
joy for living. Take a day out in the city and you will soon find yourself immersed
in their historic past, and the natural beauty of the present scenery.
The dock is just a short one minute walk from the Municipio, the city hall. Similar easy access is also available to connections by train and air. We would also point out that cruise travellers can take one of the high speed, and frequent, trains to Rome, where a new rail-link reduces the journey time to Rome to just 45 minutes. There is no conceivably better introduction to that ancient city and the charms of the Italian mainland, than through this port.
OTHER MEDITERRANEAN CRUISE PORTS
We have not even touched upon the North African ports, or the upcoming ports of the EU Accession states. Nevertheless, we hope that we have brought to you at least a flavour for the enjoyment to be had from the variety of a Mediterranean cruise; one day basking on-board in the warmth and beauty of the Mediterranean's coastline, and the next sampling the unique charms of Mediterranean ports and cities.
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