The Mediterranean

Spring comes early to the Mediterranean and we can expect temperatures in the high teens throughout the cruise. The winter rains, long past, will have left the countryside green, making this an ideal time to visit the Mediterranean and her islands. Unlike most of our cruises, this one starts with a flight. Days at sea can be very enjoyable, but our flight to Cyprus increases the proportion of days we spend ashore and also means we are not covering the same ground (so to speak) at sea. We start our holiday in Limassol with a night in a hotel followed by a day in Cyprus. Once on-board Boudicca our journey west through the Mediterranean begins. Our first port of call is Crete, an island blessed with both ancient history and great scenery. From here we cruise north overnight to Athens, the birthplace of western civilization. If you have not been, standing on the Acropolis with the spread out around you is an experience you will never forget. Malta is our next port of call, the island of the Knights of St John (whose museum is in Valletta where we come ashore) and of St Paul, who is said to have introduced Christianity here nearly 2000 years ago. Continuing west we come to Palma de Mallorca. The island has some great walking and charming villages – we hope to give a flavour of this during our day on the island. Continuing to the Iberian mainland we come to Cartagena, a lesser known Spanish gem which has fascinating monuments from Roman times and is close to a wild coastline. 

We next come ashore in Málaga from where we travel inland to the beautiful town of Ronda, perched above a gorge and surrounded by typical Andalucian countryside. Boudicca now leaves the Mediterranean for the Atlantic. Before the final leg of our journey we call into Leixoes in Portugal to visit Porto, centre of the port wine trade. Here, as in many of the other ports we visit, a local guide will open our eyes to the charms of the city and greatly add to the experience. Finally Boudicca brings us back to Dover. During our cruise our floating home will always offer a warm welcome when we return from our shore excursions, with its great food, charming crew and many comforts.