I have been on many Caribbean cruises, but this was my first European cruise. I was very hesitant, thinking language was going to be a problem. No problem at all. Everyone spoke English or was able to get their point across from dealing with tourists. We embarked at Barcelona, where we spent two extra days before the cruise. What a fantastic city. So much to do. I highly recommend it and want to go back. We stayed at the Alma Hotel and they treated us like absolute royalty, and we're just T-shirt wearing midwesterners.

Boarding was very quick. Our boarding time was 2pm, but of course, we went at noon and got right on with no problem. We were in room C-108 with a balcony. It was perfect and our room attendant Jirasin was great. We were on the Ruby Princess twice in the past, and this ship is an exact replica so we knew our way around well.

Marseilles. France was a pretty little sea town. We were there on a Sunday, so not as much open. We walked around their market area. You had to take a bus $16.00US each, to get to the town from the ship. Monday was Florence and Pisa. We did a walking tour where they just dropped you off and we explored each place ourselves. This was fine. Again, some of the main sights in Florence are closed on Monday, so I would like to go back and spend more days there to really see all the art, etc. On to Rome to see the Vatican and the Colliseum. Definitely pay for the full tour with Guide for this day. The crowds were unbelievable. If we were not able to bypass the lines for tickets, we would still be there! The Vatican really rushes you through the Sistene Chapel, but our guide was great on gathering us up and explaining things before we were rushed through. We had a great BIG meal at the "MoMo" Restaurant in Rome which was included in the tour price. Flowing wine, water, and lots of food and dessert were included. The Colleseum was great too, and again we were able to bypass the LONG lines to get in with our prepaid tour. Read more