Inspiration: Erinn’s Family Cruises the Mediterranean

Last Updated on January 6, 2023

At Scenic and Savvy we’re thrilled to hear about other people inspired to make dream travel a reality. Our Inspiration stories give a glimpse into the experiences of such travelers as they personally detail their journeys to dream destinations around the world. Take a sneak peek and you may just find your travel muse with inspiration to take a similar trip! 

Erinn and her husband Matt took their two boys, Gavin, age 10, and Landon, age 4, on a week-long Mediterranean cruise. Here she gives us a glimpse into their dream vacation where they were able to experience so many exciting destinations in a short period of time.

THE BASICS

1. Where did you go? We embarked and disembarked from Barcelona (Spain) and stopped in Palma De Mallorca (Spain), Palermo (Sicily), Civitavecchia (Italy), Savona (Italy) and Marseille (France)
2. When did you travel there? May 2018
3. How did you get there? We flew into Barcelona and embarked from there.
4. Who did you go with? My husband Matt and two boys, Gavin (10) and Landon (4) and my sister Jenna with her husband Spencer and three kids, Mila (10), Harper (5) and Finn (1).
5. Reason for your trip? My sister lives in Germany and we wanted to go to visit her, but also see other parts of Europe. After trying to figure out how we could travel around Europe with 5 kids, we decided that a cruise would be the most relaxing and enjoyable option.

THE DETAILS

1. Describe what you did on this vacation. Wow, there is so much I could say here! This was a 7 night cruise with 5 stops along the way. Everyday was a new city except one day we were at sea all day on our way from Mallorca to Sicily. Each morning we would wake up before we arrived at the port to have breakfast and watch the spectacular views as the ship approach land and docked. We typically had a loose plan for what we wanted to do or see at the port, so we would try to disembark as soon as we could to get the most out of our day. We did a lot of walking and sightseeing and we tried to have at least one good meal of the local cuisine. Once we were back on the ship for the evening we would go back to our cabins for a bit to relax, nap and freshen up before dinner. Our cruise line was Italian, so dinners didn’t start until later than we are used to in the states. We had the early dinner slot which was at 7:30 (the 2nd dinner time was 9:00!).
2. What were your accommodations during your stay? We stayed in balcony cabins. The room had a queen bed and twin bunk beds for the kids.
3. What mode of transportation did you use while there? The cruise boat of course! At the ports though we did a lot of walking and a few taxis here and there.
4. Any special food/restaurants to describe from your trip? We loved the pizza in Sicily, all the delicious gelato on our Italian ship and patatas bravas in Spain. Patatas bravas are fried potatoes with a spicy aioli type sauce on top.
5. Cost of trip: (Budget ($), Mid-range ($$), Expensive ($$$), Luxury ($$$$) I would say this was a mid-range to expensive trip.

THE MEMORIES

1. What’s your favorite memory from this trip? We have so many great memories from this trip! Our day in Rome, though it was incredibly busy, was memorable because we saw so many ancient buildings and ruins. We definitely could have spent a few more days there to really explore the city and see all the sights.

   

2. Did you bring back a favorite souvenir? I didn’t really bring back much for souvenirs, just took a lot of pictures. My oldest collected hats from different countries and my youngest collected keychains.
3. Any bad experiences or lessons learned during this travel? No, not really.
4. Why does this rank as one of your most memorable trips? This trip was so memorable because we were able to experience so many new places in such a short period of time.
5. What do you want others to know about this destination/itinerary? If you go on a cruise with kids I would say do a little research about each port you will be visiting so you have a loose idea about what you may want to do or see, but don’t be too regimented or no one will have fun. It was nice to have one or two things we wanted to do or see and then spend the rest of the day wandering the city, trying new foods and letting the kids play.

So what tops Erinn’s travel bucket list now?

I would love to spend more time in Barcelona. We really loved the vibe of the city and the architecture. There was so much we were not able to see in the short time we were there. The food was amazing, too! I also want to go to Greece.

Thanks, Erinn. Cheers to more dream travel in the near future!