Mediterranean cruise
For the May holidays of 2013, we decided not to stay at home and go on a Mediterranean cruise)))) Especially since a Russian group was offered on the Sovereign liner of the Pullmantur Cruises company. Cruise route: Barcelona (Spain) - sea - La Goulette (Tunisia) - Civitavecchia / Rome (Italy) - Livorno / Florence / Pisa (Italy) - Genoa (Italy) - Villefranche / Nice / Monte Carlo (France) - Barcelona ( Spain).
Because the time of arrival in Barcelona and the time of departure of the liner did not coincide, it was decided to spend two nights in Barcelona and at the same time see this wonderful city. We stayed at HOSTAL EDEN 2 * - a rare hole)))) But in the old center of Barcelona, walk 1 block and Batllo's house, in general, you can walk to all the sights. What we did - we walked all day: Casa Mila, Sagrada Familia, Park Gü ell. I will not describe in detail - all the info is on the Internet. Along the way, they also did some shopping))) Who cares - in Barcelona the best Zara - the prices are 3 kopecks and the quality is excellent (in Ukraine, the quality is worse and the prices are several times higher). Russian administrators work at the reception in the hostel, who will tell you everything - where to eat deliciously, how to get where, etc.
I will not describe the landing on the liner - the procedure is standard, about the ship itself: if possible, choose another cruise company. Pullmantur Cruises' Sovereign is a fairly old ship in need of renovation and quite small for the number of passengers. And given the fact that the bulk are Spaniards, it seems that there are twice as many of them as the declared number))) They are everywhere - in bars, in the pool, there are queues everywhere, they are too loud, but they are friendly. The liner has an all-inclusive system, decent food, drinks, cocktails - I liked everything. Regarding excursions: on the ship along the entire route, you can book organized excursions, or you can travel on your own. Because we were traveling with a company of 8 people, I ordered individual excursions with Russian-speaking guides, which I found via the Internet. Payment is always at the end of the tour, it was not necessary to pay anything in advance. For the price - not much less than on the ship, but the main thing is that the tour is individual for us, and not 40 people who run with headphones after the guide and do not really have time))) In Tunisia, the tour is not needed at all, we left the ship , took a state taxi, went to Si Bu Said, saw the village, walked, (I highly recommend trying the local tea with nuts) and returned to the liner. We arrived 4 hours late to Rome and our guide was already busy. It turns out that a Russian guide for May holidays in Rome is in short supply, because. there are a lot of us. And transfers are mostly separate from guides, so our transport took us to Rome, where we safely walked around the center, the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain. Then we were picked up at the agreed place and taken to the Vatican, and then to the port. Then there was an excursion to Florence, Pisa, we didn’t take an excursion in Genoa - we just walked around the city, since the port is right in the city.
I really liked the excursion to Monte Carlo, which is still reminiscent of perfumes from the Fragonard factory)))
We arrived in Barcelona, walked a little more, shopped and went home! In general, I really liked the trip, unlike bus tours, it is not tiring, you relax on the ship, have fun, sleep, and in the morning - a new country, a new city.
I will be glad if my report will help someone in planning a vacation)))))
