If you want to visit multiple destinations and do not want to worry about renting a car, hotels, finding places to eat, and arranging tours, a cruise is your best option. Wanting to do our first family vacation in Europe (summer of 2024), we chose to go with Celebrity which had an itinerary that covered the places we wanted to visit and some more, and also fit our summer schedule. The cruise was scheduled to depart from Barcelona and arriving at Rome. This give us an opportunity to visit two more cities we had on our wish list.

Day 0-1: Houston – Munich – Barcelona

Headed out by 11:45 am. The airport by 12:45pm, parked the car at Parking spot. Went through security without any issues. Couple of chicken sandwiches from Dunkin’ Donuts and a bagel from Einstein Brothers. Gate is E18. getting ready to board the plane. It’s at 2+3+2 configuration 12 hour flight to Munich couple hours of break and then a two hour flight to Barcelona. Flight took off on time. Nice smooth flight a little bumpy.

Landed in Munich 9:40 AM local time. We went through passport control. Took the train to terminal K gate 10. Walked around, sat down, charged the phones. Got on the Lufthansa flight to Barcelona on time. Took off around 1PM. It’s a 1hr 50 min flight.

Day 2: Barcelona

It’s raining in Barcelona. Since we went thru passport control in Munich, we don’t have to do it again. Came out of the terminal. Level 2 PC  and ordered the Uber taxi to the Aperthotel Fire Arura. It’s a nice apartment/hotel. Getting ready and walked to a nearby mall to get something to eat. There is a mini grocery store in the mall where we picked up a pizzas and muffins.

Woke up early, got ready and had a really nice breakfast in the buffet downstairs. The tour guide (booked on Viator) picked us up around 9 AM. He is going to move the itinerary around to accommodate for the traffic, first to Montserrat and then come down to Barcelona and Sagrada Familia. 

First stop Montserrat. Beautiful tour. Took a hike to Creu de st Miguel. Beautiful weather.

Next stop is Montjuic. Guide explained the history of the place, showed us the Olympic stadium and other landmarks. We took a stop, walked around the area. After our stop here, we headed to the Barcelona cathedral, gothic quarter and Temple D’August. Walked the alleys with the tour guide. Amazing to see the remains of the Roman structures. The architecture is impressive. Can’t help but wonder what the temple would have looked like in its prime. Last stop of today’s tour is Sagrada Familia. It’s a beautiful basilica. 

After the tour, we were dropped off in the downtown area where we spent some time walking the streets and checking out the stores. I can definitely see one spending a lot more time in this city, and absorbing the culture.  I would recommend staying to the downtown area. We accidentally booked our hotel in a neighboring city. No problems, as Uber availability was pretty good. But would be fun have been to be able to walk around and explore. Next time!!!

Day 3: Cruise Day 1 

Up in the morning. Got ready. Did our laundry. Packed. Checked out. Put out stuff in the luggage locker. Headed to Park Guell. The plan is to stay there till 12:15, and then head to the ship by 2:30 PM. Dang! Sold out. We did not know we needed to purchase tickets in advance. Note for future travelers. 

Walked around the area. Did some shopping. Now back to the hotel room collect our luggage and headed to the cruise ship. Tired and our actual vacation has not year started! Haa Haa. Maybe we get some rest on the ship. 

At the port by 1:40PM showed our tickets, passport, etc. went through all the checks and are on the ship. Went to our room to get the keys, wash up and then headed to Deck 14 for lunch. WOW… chicken tikka masala! This is going to be fun. Once we were done with lunch walked around and explored the ship. Ship set sail at 5:30PM local time. 

The ship layout is quite different from the carnival one we had experienced a few years back. Heading to the theater to see a classical + rock show. We reached towards the end of the show. It was pretty amazing. Changed and headed for dinner. Had shrimp cocktail, salmon and cheesecake for dinner. 

Day 4: Cruise Day 2: Day at sea

Woke up lazily! Around 10am. Got ready, had a heavy breakfast. Attended an art auction. It was fun. My son “kind of reserved” a Kre8 painting that he liked. We later went and declined it. It was a beautiful painting, but he wasnt convinced it was worth investing in, at this time. Hung out in the cafe area for a bit and then got ready and attended the Elesyum show. It was really good. Now back to the Silhouette for dinner. Had sushi salmon. My first time eating sushi. It was interesting. Next up lamb, and then finishing up with crembrule.

Day 5: Cruise Day 3: Marseille

Our day trip got cancelled. Unfortunate! Need to change plans on the fly! We are not of course going to be bums on the ship :-)… We decided to take a shuttle to the city center and explore on our own. Woke up around 8. Got ready, had a heavy breakfast and headed out. Got on the shuttle. Pro Tip: There is also free shuttle to the city center, in case you don’t get tickets on the shuttle provided by the cruise company. Shuttle dropped us off at the Port Mall. We started out by exploring a fort, and then we took a city bus tour. Took 30 min to get on the bus. The busses are supposed to run every 20 min. Not sure what’s going on today. They are running s..l..o..w!!! Finally! We are on our way… the engine started… and stopped… maybe not! Arrg!!! Ok now we begin. It’s a beautiful tour thru the city.

We got a seat under the shade. Nice. Took a lot of pictures. Overall the cancellation of the tour actually worked out for the better. We were able to walk around and explore on our own. Once the round got over we came to the port mall. Spent some time there. Picked up my regional Starbucks cup and then came back to the bus stop. Back on the ship, we headed to lunch. Chicken fajita, yogurt chicken, garlic rice, chicken sewers with some dessert. Finished it off with some hot tea! I’m full!! Came back down to the room. Kids playing games, My wife and I went upstairs to walk. Walked for 10 min and am now back in the room. Ship set sail at 6PM. Will probably skip dinner. Kids will have some though. Will sleep early. Have an early start tomorrow, 7am! But we made sure we attended the Chris Bliss comedy show. It was fun. Next stop, the ocean view cafe, for dinner. Dinner done. Filled the water bottle and headed back to our room. Going to bed. Will wake up by 5am. Need to be at the meeting point by 7:45 am tomorrow. Tomorrow is supposed to be a long day. 

Day 6: Cruise Day 4: Nice, Eze, Monaco, Monte Carlo

Woke up at 5. Got ready. Had breakfast. Assembled at the theater. Took the tender to the shore. On the bus now. Stop 1 Nice. Sabine is doing a wonderful job of narrating. Went to a farmers market. Bought some soap. Continuing on. Going to Monaco/Monte Carlo. Had a wonderful time exploring Monaco. Walked around the prince’s palace, the shops, bought a couple of t-shirts. Now we are heading to Monte Carlo the home of the Grand Prix. We had an amazing time walking around to the casino and then around the formula one track. Looked at lots of fancy cars. Back to the bus. Now headed to Eze. Eze is a little village on top of a hill. Its beautiful. We walked up and thru the town. Parked. Will now head up the tower. Headed up the tower. Had some nugget and carmel nuts. Walked back down and are now on the bus. Will drive back now. After a wonderful trip, we are now back on the boat. Heading back to the ship. Overall this was one of the most fun and learning experiences on tour. My son had a blast in Monte Carlo. Absorbing all the F1 stuff. There are some many Olianders and Bogunvilia trees lining the streets. It is beautiful. 

Day 7: Cruise Day 5: Santa Margarita and Genova. 

Today we are making port at Santa Margarita and are going to explore Genova. We got up at 6am, got ready, had breakfast and were at the theater by 8:30am. We are parked in a beautiful bay. We got off the ship via tender and am stepping into this beautiful town of Santa Margarita. On the bus for our tour, crossing Rapalo, will get on the motorway/freeway heading to Genova. Genoa is a beautiful little village. Doing the walking tour now. Have a headphone over which we are listening to our guide. First stop St Georges palace. Next we went to the St Laurence cathedral. Cristopher Columbus home. Had some focaccia bread and wine. Meeting back at 12:45. Headed to a gelato store to get some ice creme. Gelato was good. Wandered around a bit. Now back on the bus. Will head back to Santa Margarita. Genova is a nice small town. Very historical. From the Roman times. Of course we are in Italy the birthplace of the Roman civilization. Andrea and Diana were excellent hosts. Now wandering around in Santa Margarita. Lots of little streets and lines with stores and restaurants. Sat at one of them for a cake and coffee. Will wander some more and then head back to the ship. Most of the buildings have a painted facade. Nice way to get some pop in the buildings. Back on the boat, showered got ready and watched the performance by Salvatore Hasard. Wonderful. Multiple voices and multiple instruments. After the show we came downstairs to the Silhouette dining for our formal sit down dinner. 

Day 8: Cruise Day 6: Pisa, Florence

We are in Tuscany. The port is Livorno. Today we will visit Pisa and Florence. Pinocchio’s story is based out of the Tuscany region. Took the tour bus and drove into Pisa. Parked and took a 10 min walk to the tower complex. There is the church, cathedral and the leaning tower, which was supposed to be the bell tower. The structures are beautiful. Had some gelato in Pisa and are now on our way to Florence. First stop is going to be a jail which is converted into a restaurant. Will have lunch there. Lunch was wonderful. Lunch consisted of pasta, pesto, wine and finish it off with a sweet wine with biscotti. It was delicious. Florence is a beautiful city. After a wonderful lunch we are now heading to walking the streets of Florence. We walked past Michael Angelo’s house and now we are heading towards the cathedral. Next, the Holy Cross Square, the Basilica of the Holy Cross. Free time. We explored for a bit, and then fond our way to the bus. Florence is quite beautiful. Back on the ship. Had a light snack and then went to the theater to watch Carlos Nebot (Carlosnebotmusic on Facebook). He is performing songs with the celebrity band. Kids went to bed. I took the laptop to the Aft deck and caught up on some work. 

Day 9: Cruise Day 7: Livorno 

Woke up leisurely around 8:30. Got ready. Spouse and I took the shuttle to Livorno. Kids decided to stay back on the ship. Doing the DIY walking tour, using a local map to walk past the points of interest. Stopped at a coffee house (Carroli)to get some coffee/corata and Canoli. Walked around the canals and the sea shore. Returned to the ship around 4pm. Had some chicken curry with noodles for snack along with some stinky cheese (ok I’m sure it’s some really awesome cheese, but it smelt like used socks) with icecreme. We enjoyed our stay in Livorno. Now on to the next destination, with a break in the middle… a day at sea. Watched the show and are headed down for dinner. Having apple pear salad with drumfish for dinner. The staff Jason, Santos, Cruise have been amazing so far! 

Day 10: Cruise Day 8: Day at sea

Took our time walking up.  After the past few days, we needed a break, a bit of rest! Had breakfast. Went down to change our deboarding time from 9:30 to 7:30AM. Also booked a train ride from the port to Rome downtown. Walked around the ship. Watched another show by Salvatore Hasard. Back to the room. Organized our stuff into “to wash” and “clean clothes”. Went back to the theater at 7Pm to watch the performance by YooMia. The talent on the ship is amazing!

Day 11: Cruise Day 9: Napoli, Pompeii

Last full day on the ship ☹️… we all wish the vacation would last longer, but it is what it is… Today we explore Pompeii. Im quite excited it. Naples looks really nice from the port. We are going to grab some breakfast and then go to the theater, get on the bus to Pompeii. The guide is Theresa and the driver is Dominico. Driving by Mt Vesuvius. Taking an exit at Torre-de-something. City of flower genesta. Famous for corals. Stopped at Giovani Apa, Bought a beautiful sea shell. Next we visited Pompeii. It was an incredible experience walking thru the streets, the coliseum, a home and the common areas of Pompeii. Words can describe the feelings, as I walked thru Pompeii. Just imagining how life might have been “back in the day”. Came back to the ship, had lunch and are now relaxing in the room and getting ready for disembarking and the next few days of our vacation. Had a few minutes, so went to the gym and did our second day of exercise. Walked on the treadmill and then did a few of the weight training exercises. Came back to the room and did some more rearranging/packing. Packed … again. Now heading to dinner. Today I will have a mango martini to celebrate an amazing cruise. 

Day 12: Cruise Day 10: Rome

5am. We are docked in the port of Civitavecchia. We head towards our disembarkation location. Grabbed a banana and got off the ship around 7:15am. Picked up the luggage from the terminal. The info lady pointed us to the bus stop. Took the bus to the station. It was $6 per person. Worth it. I guess we were a bit too efficient. Now we have to wait a bit for our train 😂Let’s to explore the station.  Well nothing here. It’s 8am. Have to wait till 9 for our train. There are two types of train routes. There is a direct one and one that stops at all the local stations. We took (accidentally) the direct one on first class. Turned out for the better I suppose. On the train. The first class was the first bogie. Got in, placed our luggage and got to our seats.  Nice smooth ride. Walked with the luggage to the hotel, Hotel Diana. Was a bit of a hike. Didn’t expect that…Waited in the lobby for a bit. Had some coffee and biscotti. One our room was cleaned, we went in.

Put our things in the room freshened up and then took a cab to the meeting point for the Vatican Tour (booked on Viator). We checked in, and then walked around and grabbed some pizza at a local store. It’s a really hot day!!! We did the tour of the Vatican. The Vatican museum, the Sistine chapel and St Peter’s basilica. We found a restaurant outside the Vatican, and got some lunch. 2 pizzas, and canned sodas for each of us. After linner, we went to a gelato place. Next to figure a way back to the hotel. It’s crazy that all cabs out of the Vatican area are 48euros! So we decided to walk back. It was just a couple of miles, and it actually worked out for the better, as we were able to plan a route that passed thru some of the famous attractions in the area, that we might have missed otherwise. Our walk took us thru the Fiume Fountain, Piazza Navona, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain. As we went thru the streets, I bought a leather laptop bag and purse sleeve and then came back to the room. Bunch of fountains were undergoing repairs. The Trevi fountain was there in all of its glory. It was an amazing sight. It’s amazing to see so much history and beauty at every turn. 

Day 13: Rome

Woke up. Had breakfast at the Diana, it was really good. My spouse and I walked to the Starbucks and bought the city expresso cup. Rest. Got some gelato and then walked to the meeting point for the tour of the Colosseum, Palatine Hill and the Forum. Had a wonderful tour of the colosseum, Palatine Hill and the Forum. Learnt a lot about the history. Incredible!!! Found a place nearby, grabbed lunch. Went and got gelato on the way back to the room. I have to say… not only the sights in Rome are incredible, but so is the gelato. My favorite, the pistachio gelato. It’s the best!

Day 14: Back to Houston via Munich

Woke up around 3:15am, got ready. Grabbed some packed breakfast. Did the final packing and went downstairs. Requested the cab. The cab was there around 5:15. 50 euro. Nice cab ride to the airport. Checked in 4 suitcases. Went thru the security without any issues, an on to the main lobby. It was a comfortable flight back to Houston!

Overall Experience

This was the best trip we have had as a family so far! While on land we booked our trips thru Viator, and were extremely happy with the experience in both Barcelona and Rome. While on the ship we booked all of our eversions thru Celebrity, and here too we were extremely pleased with the experience. The staff, the tour guides, the food, the entertainment was exceptional. And most importantly, the places we visited were amazing! It has been an incredible experience.