Norwegian Viva - Transatlantic Miami to Barcelona

Where this cruise calls, day by day

7 ports and 9 sea days over 15 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Miami, FL

   United StatesDepart

   PortMiami is the busiest cruise port on earth and behaves like it: a lettered row of terminals strung along Dodge Island - A for Royal Caribbean, B for Norwegian, C for MSC, D through F for the Carnival brands, V for Virgin. Traffic funnels in over the Port Boulevard causeway or through the tunnel under Government Cut, and on a Saturday with six ships turning around, both back up.

   • Ocean Drive and the Art Deco district in South Beach, 20 minutes across the causeway
   • Wynwood Walls and the warehouse murals around it
   • Calle Ocho in Little Havana - a cortadito and the domino tables at Maximo Gomez Park
   • Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, a 1916 bayfront villa in Coconut Grove

   Getting ashore

   Terminals A-G and V sit on Dodge Island, reached by the Port Boulevard causeway or the PortMiami Tunnel; Miami International is about 8 miles west, usually 20-30 minutes but longer on a heavy turnaround morning.

   Best months

   Nov-Apr (Aug-Oct is peak hurricane season and August ashore is punishing)

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3 · At sea

4. Day 4 · At sea

5. Day 5 · At sea

6. Day 6 · At sea

7. Day 7 · At sea

8. Day 8

   Ponta Delgada, Azores

   PortugalPort

   The main town of Sao Miguel, and usually the only land a transatlantic itinerary touches between Europe and the Americas. The island is volcanic and green rather than tropical, with crater lakes, hot springs and hydrangea hedges along the roads. Weather changes fast here, so the viewpoint that is socked in at ten can be clear by noon.

   • Sete Cidades, the twin crater lakes seen from the Vista do Rei viewpoint
   • Furnas, with its steaming fumaroles and cozido cooked in the ground
   • Lagoa do Fogo and the north-coast tea plantation at Gorreana
   • Whale and dolphin watching from the harbour

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock at the Portas do Mar terminal in the middle of town; you walk straight off into Ponta Delgada.

   Best months

   Jun-Sep (mildest and driest; rain is possible any month)

9. Day 9 · At sea

10. Day 10

    Lisbon

    PortugalPort

    Ships come in under the Ponte 25 de Abril and tie up alongside the Tagus with the city climbing the hills in front of you, which makes this one of the better arrivals in Europe. Lisbon spreads across seven hills, so a port day means trams, funiculars and a lot of stairs. The monastery and tower at Belem are a separate district downriver and need their own leg of the day.

    • Jeronimos Monastery and Belem Tower, plus a pastel de nata at Pasteis de Belem
    • Sao Jorge Castle and the Alfama lanes below it
    • Tram 28 through Graca, Alfama and Estrela
    • A half-day to Sintra and the Pena Palace, about 40 minutes out

    Getting ashore

    Most ships berth at the Lisbon Cruise Terminal at Santa Apolonia, close enough to walk into Alfama in about ten minutes.

    Best months

    Apr-Jun and Sep-Oct

11. Day 11 · At sea

12. Day 12

    Palma de Mallorca

    SpainPort

    Mallorca's capital wraps around a wide bay with a sandstone Gothic cathedral, La Seu, standing right on the seafront where you can see it from the ship. Beyond the cathedral there is a genuine old town of narrow lanes, courtyards and patio bars that has nothing to do with the package-holiday coast further east. Most calls are long enough to add a mountain drive or a beach afternoon.

    • La Seu cathedral and the adjacent Almudaina royal palace
    • Bellver Castle, a circular hilltop fortress with views over the whole bay
    • The Passeig del Born and the old-town lanes around Placa Major
    • A drive over the Serra de Tramuntana to Valldemossa or Soller

    Getting ashore

    Ships dock at the Estacio Maritima terminals on the western side of the harbour, about 3-4 km from the cathedral; take the shuttle, the number 1 bus or a taxi.

    Best months

    May-Jun and Sep-Oct (Jul-Aug is very busy)

13. Day 13 · At sea

14. Day 14

    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)

15. Day 15

    Villefranche (Nice)

    FrancePort

    Villefranche-sur-Mer sits in a deep sheltered bay just east of Nice, and it exists on cruise itineraries mainly as the anchorage for the Cote d'Azur. The village itself is a steep stack of ochre houses with a 14th-century covered lane, the Rue Obscure, but nearly everyone leaves. Nice, Monaco and Eze are all short hops along the coast, and the local train from the station above the harbour makes doing it independently realistic.

    • Nice's Promenade des Anglais, Cours Saleya market and Vieux Nice
    • Monaco and Monte-Carlo, about 30 minutes by train
    • The hilltop village of Eze and its exotic garden
    • The Chagall and Matisse museums in the Cimiez district of Nice

    Getting ashore

    This is a tender port - ships anchor in the bay and tenders land at the quay in the village, with the railway station a steep 10-minute climb away.

    Best months

    May-Jun and Sep-Oct (Jul-Aug is heavily crowded along the coast)

16. Day 16

    Barcelona

    SpainArrive

    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)