Norwegian Epic - Western Mediterranean

Where this cruise calls, day by day

5 ports and 3 sea days over 7 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Barcelona

   SpainDepart

   The busiest cruise port in Europe, and for many Western Mediterranean itineraries the place the whole trip starts or ends. Barcelona is a full-scale city rather than a port town: Gaudi's unfinished basilica, a dense medieval quarter, and a working waterfront all within a few metro stops. Ships berth on a long industrial mole well outside the centre, so the day begins with a bus ride rather than a gangway stroll.

   • Sagrada Familia - book a timed entry well ahead; walk-ups are usually turned away
   • Park Guell and the Gaudi mosaics on Carmel hill
   • The Gothic Quarter and Barcelona Cathedral, on foot from Placa de Catalunya
   • La Boqueria market and a walk down La Rambla to the Columbus monument

   Getting ashore

   All cruise ships now use the Moll d'Adossat terminals roughly 3 km from the old city; the paid blue Portbus shuttle runs to the foot of La Rambla, and walking out is not practical.

   Best months

   Apr-Jun and Sep-Oct (Jul-Aug is hot, crowded and expensive)

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3

   Cannes

   FrancePort

   Better known for its film festival than its history, Cannes is a compact seafront town of grand hotels along La Croisette with an older hill quarter, Le Suquet, behind the harbour. Ships anchor offshore and tender in beside the Palais des Festivals, which puts you in the middle of everything immediately. The two Lerins islands, a short public boat ride out, are the quiet counterweight to the shopping streets.

   • La Croisette and the Palais des Festivals red-carpet steps
   • Le Suquet, the old quarter, and the Musee des Explorations du Monde in its castle
   • Marche Forville, the covered produce market
   • The boat to Ile Sainte-Marguerite and the Fort Royal prison cells

   Getting ashore

   A tender port - ships anchor in the bay and tenders land at the Vieux Port right beside the Palais des Festivals.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct (avoid mid-May, when the film festival closes off the town)

4. Day 4

   Livorno (Florence/Pisa)

   ItalyPort

   Livorno is a container and ferry port with a canal-laced old quarter called Venezia Nuova, and almost nobody comes for it. The call exists because Florence is about 90 minutes inland and Pisa about 45. Understand what that buys: a Florence excursion is roughly three hours on a coach around four hours in the city, and the Uffizi alone can eat half of that.

   • The Duomo, the Baptistery and Piazza della Signoria in Florence
   • The Uffizi, or the Accademia for Michelangelo's David - pre-booked, or you will not get in
   • The Leaning Tower and the Campo dei Miracoli at Pisa
   • Venezia Nuova's canals and the Mercato Centrale in Livorno itself

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock in Livorno's commercial port with a shuttle to Piazza del Municipio; Florence is about 90 minutes away by coach or train and Pisa about 45.

   Best months

   Apr-Jun and Sep-Oct (Jul-Aug very hot, and Florence is overwhelmed)

5. Day 5 · At sea

6. Day 6

   Naples

   ItalyPort

   Naples is one of the few big Italian calls where the ship parks in the middle of the city - the Stazione Marittima sits at Molo Angioino with Castel Nuovo directly across the road. That makes it a rare port you can genuinely walk out of, though most passengers spend the day at Pompeii or on Capri instead. The city is loud, sooty and unpolished.

   • Pompeii or Herculaneum, both on the Circumvesuviana line from Garibaldi station
   • The Museo Archeologico Nazionale, which holds the mosaics and bronzes lifted out of Pompeii
   • Spaccanapoli and the Cappella Sansevero, home of the Veiled Christ
   • A hydrofoil to Capri from Molo Beverello, a few minutes' walk from the ship

   Getting ashore

   Ships berth at the Stazione Marittima on Molo Angioino in the city centre, a ten-minute walk from Piazza del Plebiscito with the hydrofoil pier next door.

   Best months

   Apr-Jun and Sep-Oct (Jul-Aug hot and crowded, and Pompeii has almost no shade)

7. Day 7 · At sea

8. Day 8

   Rome (Civitavecchia)

   ItalyArrive

   Civitavecchia is a working port town on the Tyrrhenian coast, and it is not Rome - the city is about 80km southeast, roughly 80 minutes each way. Budget for that honestly: a Rome day is some four hours of transit bracketing whatever you actually see. The port has Fort Michelangelo on the quay and good fish-market lunches, a real option if you have done Rome before.

   • St Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Museums, with a timed entry booked well ahead
   • The Colosseum and the Roman Forum, a short walk apart on the Termini side
   • The Pantheon and the Trevi Fountain on a walking loop of the centro storico
   • Fort Michelangelo and the Terme Taurine Roman baths, for a day that stays in Civitavecchia

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock in Civitavecchia and a free shuttle runs to the port gate at Largo della Pace, from where it is a short walk to the station and a 70-80 minute train into Rome.

   Best months

   Apr-Jun and Sep-Oct (Jul-Aug hot, and the Rome queues are brutal)