Carmine

Taking a Mediterranean cruise can be exciting. You will visit many fun exotic places and eat lots of delectable cuisine. You will also meet many different people and buy lots of souvenirs. Much of this will be on shore after leaving the ship. The time spent on board the ship, however, should not be ignored. Some of the best times of the trip may occur on the ship.

Your Mediterranean cruise will most likely debark in the morning or early afternoon. The ship will be open for several hours to allow the thousands of passengers time to arrive and settle. Luggage can be given to a baggage handler in the parking lot who will put a tag on it similar to the tags at the airport. He will make sure your luggage arrives at your room.

After checking in for your Mediterranean cruise, you may want to have lunch. There will be multiple dining locations for lunch. There will be a large variety of food to satisfy any appetite. Food choices may be soup or salad, sandwiches or pizza, a variety of hot entrees, hamburgers, hot dogs and dessert. Many Mediterranean cruise ships may offer Mediterranean choices on their menus as well. At night, these same places should be open for dinner; however there will also be one or more dining rooms open for a more formal dinner. Dinner guests are usually seated with other guests at large tables because space is limited on your Mediterranean cruise ship. Dinner will feature more exotic choices than lunch and will have 4 or 5 courses.

There are many options for entertainment on the ship at night. Most ships will have a casino available with all of the standard slot machines and table games. There will also be one or more bars and lounges open at night to keep guests entertained. You Mediterranean cruise ship will be staffed with dancers and actors who will put on fun shows each night in the auditorium. Depending on the cruise line, there will also be one or two formal nights during your Mediterranean cruise. Guests can dress up in formal attire and take pictures. Dinner will be fancier on those nights with lobster or filet mignon as menu items.

During the day, there are fun things to do on board as well. The ship will have one to three pools available for swimming. There may even be a waterslide at one of the pools. Miniature golf is sometimes offered on Mediterranean cruise ships. A spa is usually present as well. Guests can chooses from treatments such as hot stone massages or manicures and pedicures. A library may be onboard for those who enjoy reading. Each room is equipped with a television which will offer a variety of channels and several movie choices as well. The ship may also have computers with internet access available for those who want to stay connected with the outside world.

When planning a Mediterranean cruise, planning excursions and other activities off the ship is expected, but the onboard options should not be ignored.

Michael Russell
Your Independent Mediterranean Cruise guide.