The gangplank at the Barcelona Cruise Terminal D, the Palacruceros, the 5th largest cruise port in the world (the 3 million passengers a year), the gleaming white of the MSC Seaview (the 5,300 passengers, the 19 decks, and the 7-night Western Mediterranean cruise from the €599 per person), the queue of the passengers with the passports, the sense of the excitement that is specific to the cruise departure, the cabins to explore, the buffet to raid, the pool deck awaiting, is the essential cruise-from-Spain experience. Spain is the ideal cruise departure point: the Barcelona is the largest port, and the itineraries the cover the Western Mediterranean, the Canary Islands, and the transatlantic crossings. Here is your guide.

Cruises from Spain

• The itineraries, the Western Med, the Canaries, and the transatlantic: The Western Mediterranean (from the Barcelona, the essential): the 7 nights, the MSC or the Costa (the Italian the cruise the lines, the affordable, the €599–899 per person for the inside the cabin), the route: the Barcelona, the Marseille, the Genoa, the Naples, the Palermo, the Palma de Mallorca, the Barcelona. The best for the first-time the cruiser: the 5 the countries in the 7 the days, the new the port the every the morning, and the €85 per the day all-inclusive. The essential: the inside the cabin is the cheapest and the the best for the sleep, the the balcony is the €200 more and the worth the €29/day for the morning the coffee on the private the deck. The Canary Islands and the Madeira (from the Santa Cruz de Tenerife or the Las Palmas, the winter the sun): the 7–10 nights, the €699–999, the the 5–6 the islands in the 7 the days (the Tenerife, the La Palma, the Madeira, the Lanzarote, the Fuerteventura), the 22°C in the January, and the essential the winter the escape for the northern the European. The essential cruise line: the P&O or the Fred Olsen for the British the market. The transatlantic repositioning (from the Barcelona, the bargain the cruise): the every the spring (the April) and the autumn (the October), the cruise the ships the reposition between the Europe and the Caribbean, the 14–18 the nights, the €499–799 for the inside the cabin (the €35/day), the 6–7 the sea the days, the the stops at the Madeira and the Caribbean the islands, and the best-value the cruise in the world. The essential: the transatlantic is the sea-the day the cruise, the 7 the full the days at the sea between the Madeira and the Antigua, and the the sea-the day the is the the love-it-or-the hate-it for the cruiser. The bring the books. More Spain →
• The practicalities, the port, the costs, and the alternatives: The Barcelona the cruise the port (the essential the practicalities): the Barcelona Cruise Port is the 3 km from the city the centre, the taxi is the €15–20 from the city to the port, the cruise the shuttle the bus is the €5, and the essential: the arrive the day the before, the fly in the day the before the cruise, the stay the night in the Barcelona (the €80–120 for the hotel near the Las Ramblas), and the board the ship the relaxed at the 11am the instead of the stressed at the 3pm the after the flight the delay. The costs (the essential the cruise the budget): the base the fare is the from the €599, the essential the additional the costs: the gratuities (the €10–12 per the person per the day, the add the €140 to the 7-night the cruise), the drinks (the drink the package: the €30–50 per the day, the essential for the wine-the drinkers: the wine is the €6–8 per the glass and the 3 the glasses a day the break the even on the package), the shore the excursions (the €50–100 per the person per the port, the add the €300–600 for the 7-night the cruise), the Wi-Fi (the €15–25 per the day, the essential: the the social the media the package for the €10/day is the sufficient), and the total the 7-night the cruise is the €1,000–1,400 per the person the all-in. The essential the budget the alternative: the no the drinks the package, the the DIY the shore the excursions (the walk the off the ship and the explore, the the best the way to the see the Mediterranean the port for the €0), and the the total is the €800 per the person all-in, the €114/day.