Cruising tips for non-cruisers -- Part 2.
A couple of weeks ago, we posted the first in a series of tips designed to help independent travelers enjoy cruising. European cruises are such a good deal this year, even hardened non-cruisers might want to reconsider.Our first tip was to get away from the hoards by renting a car. You can read that post at http://www.tripaddiction.com/blog/post.cfm/cruise-tips-for-people-who-dont-like-cruising.
Tip number two is to book a cruise that goes to less frequently visited ports. These off-the-beaten-path destinations are usually more intimate and easier for independent travelers to explore on their own.
Last September, we went on a cruise that called at Kotor, Montenegro; Split, Croatia; Ravenna, Italy, and eight other ports.
We'd already been to Portofino, so we planned to walk the seaside path from there to Santa Margherita Ligure. When rough seas kept us from calling at Portofino, we docked at Genoa, and Princess provided transportation to Santa Margherita.
We spent a lovely morning walking along the promenade, checking out the mega-yachts in the harbor, and visiting the local castle and basilica. After a beer in a harbor-side café, we headed back to the ship with great photos and fond memories. During our visit, we'd bumped into fewer than 20 tourists.
In Ravenna, we caught the Number 44 city bus out to Classe to see the fabulous mosaics at Sant'Appolinaire. You can buy a bus
ticket from the tobacco shop in the town center.
There were probably a dozen other people in the church during our visit. We caught the bus back to town and used our combination ticket to see the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Sant'Appolinaire Nuovo, and San Vitale. Amazing!
In town, we ran into a shore excursion in Sant'Appolinaire Nuovo, but when they went left, we went right, and that was that.
We had the local specialty -- piadines -- at a sidewalk café near San Vitale with one other English-speaking couple. And headed back to the ship, exhausted but exhilarated, on the last shuttle bus.
With a little planning, you can have a day ashore as rewarding as any independent travel day, but with none of the hassles of moving your bags, getting from here to there, or settling into a new hotel.
