Why Not Stay A While?
Beccy Miller
You can make more of your holiday by adding a few days on land at the start or end – or both! Here are four of our favourite spots for a pre or post-cruise stay.
It's all Greek to me
What a fantastic city Athens is; lively, exciting and filled with ancient temples to explore. The first stop has to be the Parthenon, sitting high on the Acropolis, but don’t miss the Ancient Agora, Temple of Hephaestus, the Acropolis Museum and the narrow streets of the Plaka. And when you’re done with the city, day trips to the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion or Delphi await. Five days should just about do it.
See all Athens sailings here
The ultimate playground
Kids or kids-at-heart will be in their element in the playground of Orlando. Enjoy a week or so with Mickey and pals at Walt Disney World, or get your thrills at other exciting theme parks, like Universal Resort or Busch Gardens, before setting sail from Port Canaveral. You can explore the Kennedy Space Centre too. What more can we say?
See all Orlando sailings here
The city that will live forever
Ancient Romans dubbed their capital the Eternal City because they believed it would live forever. How right they were. Thousands of years after their empire collapsed, their legacy lives in Rome. Allow at least three days to explore its fountains and squares, see the Parthenon, Colosseum and Sistine Chapel in the Vatican and still have time to tuck into authentic Italian pasta.
See all Rome sailings here
Cathedrals, tapas and an eccentric architect
Welcome to Barcelona, a city immortalised in song by Freddie Mercury and Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballé that’s famous for its buzzing La Rambla boulevard and Anton Gaudi’s unfinished Sagrada Familia cathedral. You can tantalise your taste buds with tapas, get lost in the labyrinthine Gothic quarter, and visit Camp Nou, home of Barcelona FC. Allow at least a couple of days.
See all Barcelona sailings here
Here are our Cruise Specialists' favourite cruise & stay destinations...
Roberta: I have a list! Miami, because it's great to work on my tan before the cruise, Athens and Barcelona, because the food and café culture is fantastic, New York for the shopping and Singapore for the fantastic street food and Gardens by the Bay.
Nicola: I like Dubai, it's great for every budget too, you can keep it simple or go for something lavish if you wish! Transport is very reasonable, hotels are such a high standard and forever changing so you can keep going back, plus it's perfect for a bit of winter sun before your cruise.
Beccy: I love the Italian Lakes, Lake Garda is only a 1 1/2 hour train journey from Venice and Lake Como is about same distance from Genoa. I team a cruise from either of those destinations with a few days exploring the lakes first.
