In early November, 2003 we took a cruise around the Western Mediteranian on FESTIVAL CRUISE LINE'S M/S EUROPEAN STARS. We purchased the cruise from the internet web site SKYAUCTION.COM. This cruise was very late in the season and it was NOT taken for the weather.

When we arrived in Genoa Italy, we found the temperature was 4c or 39f. The wind was fierce!!! That night it snowed in the hills just above Genoa and we could see the snow the next morning as we taxied to the ship. Of course, the farther south we went, the warmer it became. The temperature never got much above 70f in the day time even in North Africa.

I would like to say that this ship seemed to be even more "money hungry" than those that sail the Caribbean. We were confronted with the "opportunity" to purchase "special packages" right and left. There was the wine special where you would receive a bottla a day from each of the regions for the price of 179 Euros or about $210.54 US, the coffee special where you got espresso or capiachino for a fee or the ever helpful breakfast waiter who was always ready to sell you a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice for 3 Euros or $3.50 US.

Also, be aware that as speakers of English you will be very much in the minority. There were only 20 of us on this cruise. This lead to problems such as shore excursions being canceled due to too few signing up.

The itinerary was as follows: (Click on a port to see the pictures I took)

Genoa, Italy
Naples and Pompeii, Italy
Messina and Mt. Etna, Sicily
Tunis, and Carthage Ruins in Tunisia
Palma De Majorca, Spain
Barcelona, Spain
Marseilles and Avignon, France