I did a cruise once....hated the idea of the cruise, because you come back to the ship for the evening meal and all night life is in the ship and you miss a lot of what you went to see. I also didn't like the sensation of motion....and felt it for several days after.
BUT...I cruised for 11 days in a part of the world that I could not possibly have seen were it not for a nice floating ship in the harbor with clean beds and safe drinking water.
To see a lot in a short time, it's a good thing....but to see in depth, not so good.
But you don't have to "change hotels" and once you unpack, you are ready to do vacation...not constantly packing and unpacking.
I think part of the fun of seeing a country is staying in the hotels, ordering breakfast, strolling in the evening and with a cruise, you miss that.
Linda c

My parents just did a Mediterranean cruise last summer. They loved it. It allowed them to see many different places without the hassles of figuring out how to get there, where to stay and without having to speak the native language.

I think I would do a cruise if it was my first time to visit that area, then you can see what cities you really loved and you can schedule a return visit to that specific area.

My Mom said that they did sightseeing all day and were exhausted by the end of the day, so they welcomed coming back to the ship showering and then off to dinner. While you are sleeping, they head off to the next port of call and when you wake up you're off to see what that city has to offer.

On some cruises, they stay two days as the large cities like Rome, and only one day at smaller ports. I could definitely see how you couldn't visit everything in a city when you're on a cruise just because of the time factor. But, if you want to see alot of places while you're over there I think it's a great way to travel!

My hubby and I are thinking about doing a Mediterranean cruise ourselves once the youngest is off to college. Personally, if we didn't go the cruise route, I think we would waste half our vacation time driving around trying to find our hotel, sites to see etc. Traveling in a country where you don't speak the language all by yourself makes me a bit uneasy.

If I was just going to one city like Rome or Paris, I would be ok with going on our own, but to travel to multiple cities or countries like a cruise does, I think a cruise is the best option.

I love cruises and have taken them to Alaska and the Caribbean. They're a ton of fun, but I think the best way to see Europe is to get a rail pass.

The trains in Europe are so much better and faster than the ones here and you get a much better feel for the cities when you really immerse yourselves in them and eat in the little whole in the wall places. The trick of course is to pack light. One good pair of daytime walking around town shoes(sneakers will pretty much scream American, but if you must) and one pair of sexy, evening sandals that take up no space in your luggage. Lots of light weight mix & match separates.

We did a Mediterranean cruise this May. It was wonderful. It was a 10 day cruise that went to: Rome, Sicily, Athens, Mykonos, Kusadasi, Rhodes, Santorini, Naples and back to Rome.
For me this was the best way to see these islands. I highly recommend Celebrity Cruises.
We did a Baltic cruise last year that was also great.

I've not done a Mediterranean cruise, just the Caribbean and Alaska. Cruising is very nice with great food and OK entertainment, but as a way of experiencing another country, for me, it is like kissing through a screen.

Living and eating at least some meals on the ship, forced to get back on the ship at night limiting the distance inland you can get, and being part of a large number of people who exit the ship every day causes you to see a version of a country that is somewhat different than you would see as a land tourist.

It is perfect for some people, it was stifling for me. None of my great travel memories came from the cruises, save for seeing the glaciers of Alaska.

I think Caroleoh summed it up perfectly.

I was a District Sales Mgr for a cruise line 10+ years ago and don't consider myself to be a cruiser (LOL!!). I had lived in Europe briefly and had traveled extensively in Europe but did take a couple of my cruise lines European cruises. I went to places that I never thought that I would go and discovered places where I would definitely want to travel back to and spend some more time. It was nice to let the ship do the driving and put your head on the pillow at night in lieu of driving to your next destination. The only drawback is that if you really like a place you can't extend your stay.

5 years ago I was "dragged" on a family cruise to Alaska. It was an incredible experience and I think it is the only way to see Alaska.

In two weeks, the family is going on a New England cruise to celebrate my folks 50th anniversary. We're having a good chuckle about our stop in Boston (where we live) but we know we can't put a price on the time spent with our family.

Try to forego some of the cruise line's shore excursions. Go out and experience some of the flavor of the ports that you are visiting.

I've only ever sailed on Windjammers in the Caribbean. We really loved the casual nature of that scene. With only 72 people aboard the ship, there is not a sense of being part of a herd. You can also dip into smaller ports.

I don't love the idea of giant ships, but I understand the appeal, either for certain places (like Alaska) or certain circumstances (family reunion, discomfort with independent travel).

My advice is to try to find the smallest ship you can still afford to book.

Larger ships work better for those with motion sickness. I've only been on one cruise- for 8 days- and it was a huge ship. It wasn't until the end of the cruise that I realized the boat had two dining rooms.
Anyway, I still had to wear armbands all the time to help with the nausea, which was constant although very mild.
I would not cruise again unless it was another giant boat.

I have traveled and would never wish to be stuck on a cruise ship with my itinerary planned down to the nth degree.

More and more people are using travel agents once again. As consumers have become more savvy and started using online vacation planning, the travel agents too, have become more knowledable and can streamline the process. Just like with shopping for real estate, nowdays the consumer can do their own research and be armed with knowledge but still depend on an agent to tie up any loose ends and explain any contingencies.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TRAVEL/08/12/travel.agent.comeback/index.html

Here is a link that might be useful: Travel Agent Comeback Article.

I definitely agree on getting a travel agent to help you out with trip planning. They know all the little things and special out of the way places to go. Oh, and before I meant to write "hole" in the wall. Whole in the Wall is a fantastic organic restaurant here. I must have been hungry when I wrote that.

I've never been on a cruise nor had the desire to go on one, but if I did, I'd do what Amy did, travel by a smaller ship. Wait, I'd love to go on an Alaskan cruise in July! lol.

I see pictures of those HUGE ships and something about it turns me off.

I don't think I'd like the idea of pulling into port during the night. I'd want to see the land in daylight as we approached it.

I'd use the money for plane tickets to a country, then travel by rail as mentioned above.

And darn, I've been invited to England next month with the girls (friends), but I can't get away! Waahhhh.

My sister is a cruise addict. She's been on many, and most recently she went on a cruise that went to several places in Europe. I'm not sure where but know it also included Ireland, she says it was and they are amazing.

This is great information. I think that given that the girls and I are foreign travel virgins, (Well, DD2 is going to Ireland for her honeymoon) a cruise would be good for us for this first time. I also think we'd be less likely to kill one another that way. We all have a tendency to need our down time away from one another.

Our goal is to get our feet wet, then later, as we're more accustomed to the exotic locales of foreign speaking countries, we'd fly and wing it. I'm going to check with my extended family as they've all been to Italy...we have distant family still in Sicily, so it'd be neat to find out about that option for another trip.

Thanks for the tip about the travel agent. I forgot about that! DH isn't much of a traveler, so when we do go...it's usually close enough that we can plan it ourselves.

If you are just trying to 'get your feet wet' so that you can return someday and 'wing it' I would suggest going with a tour group. I've done it.

All the travel arrangements are made for you. This would be airfare to Europe and motorcoach to get to designated sights, and possibly even another air trip to a further destination in Europe. It's not as hectic as it sounds. It's not the *If It's Tuesday This Must Be Belguim* hamster wheel. There is less stress if all the plans are made for you and you don't feel so much like flotsom and jetsom, bobbing around Europe. The tour groups also schedule 'free time' for the group so you can do what you want at that time.

There are always planned activites like museums and shopping, but some confident types break from the group and jump in a taxi and do things on their own making sure they are back to the mortorcoach on time. The planned activities give you a "taste" of the various cities and towns. You always have an interpeter for things, like ordering from a street vendor or how to inform the hotel that the toilet is broke, and the guides are savvy enough to steer you away from questionable situations. If you are going to visit the smaller towns or any of the former Soviet block countries you will find the NO ONE speaks English in these parts. Not only that but the lettering in countries like Poland and Checkoslovakia in incomprehensible to the average American so trying to read signs and menus is nearly impossible.

By going on a tour group they will tell you what different requirments are for each country. Some countries require travelers health insurance in case you get sick, for instance, some don't require it. They will also tell you of customs so that you don't find yourself in hot water or even arrested for doing something that seemed "OK". For instance, it it rude to take a person's picture with a camera in some parts of Europe and it could start a fight.

Since you say you wish to see Italy and Greece consider the option to fly there, and then take one of the ferries across from Italy to Greece so that you can experience the Mediterranean by boat. Since you are not going all over Europe, flying to Italy/Greece and taking taxis, busses, or trains around the country side would be a good experience. Tour groups often combine different styles of travel for siteseeing adventures. The tour I went on had motor coach for the main planned event but the guide would arrange a hired driver (for extra fee) for those who wanted to go elsewhere and not with the group.

You will also find some comeraderie by going with a tour group and some of them will be seasoned travelers who can hwlp out also. Tour group is the way to go for older "first timers" to Europe who just want to get their feet wet.

The dark side of tours is that the camaraderie can often turn into feeling like you cannot escape the people on the bus, day after day. And you have to unpack and repack every day or so, often having your bags outside your door at the crack of dawn. I hear this from friends who love to go on group tours. So, this is not a gripe from the disenchanted.

That is one beauty of being on a ship...you unpack once and sleep in the same bad every night. I have done the seven-places-in-four-weeks type trip, complete with planes, trains and automobiles. Even though I am an avid traveler, it can get to be a bit much.

Another thing to think about is whether you want to skim the surface of a place, a new port every night, or really dig deep and understand a locale. The latter speaks to renting a cottage or apartment for a week. Even my most peripatetic trips are punctuated by an extended stay where I can start to understand an area by actually living there...cooking, shopping, getting to know the locals, even on a superficial level.

I haven't been to Greece, but in Italy you will not find the language barrier insurmountable. Just not an issue, IME.

TripAdvisor.com saved me time and a lot of money before our cruise.

I agree with Dilly about traveling with a tour group versus a cruise if what you want to do more than get a superficial look at a country. The tours I have taken have had fabulous local tour guides.

There are generally enough personality types on the bus to enable you to find your niche. But you can end up with one or two toxic personalities who you may want to throw off the bus by day 2.

The bags-outside-the-door-by-6AM system allows you a carry-on, so you pack and put the bag out before going to bed, keeping your morning toiletries and jammies in the carry-on.

The other thing I like about a cruise is you can do the group tour thing - and on the Mediterranean cruise my parents went on, they did do the large tour bus all day tours once they were in port. In some of the smaller cities, they opted to go to the lecture on the ship, and my Mom had read up ahead of time on things to see and they went off on their own for the day. Site seeing and shopping.

I think hanging with the same busload of people would get old, but my Mom has told me they have had alot of fun on bus tours themselves, so I guess its how friendly you like to be with strangers.

This summer they went on a cruise of the Baltic Sea area and went to Germany, Finland, Russia, Estonia, Denmark and Holland. Just to see some of these cities and experience the culture even for a short day or two would be exciting to me.

No advice on the cruise, but my cousins just went on a group tour to Italy. Interestingly, what worked for them was to go with an IRISH tour group. (They met family in Ireland and went with them.)

That might be an idea for you . . .the whole idea of the "ugly American" can be true, sadly. When I travel I really don't like to spend my time with Americans, personally. I would much rather be with local people. Maybe a tour group from another country would be a compromise!

Just a thought! (Oh, and when do I pack so that I can hide in your suitcase :) ?)