Frequently asked questions

Accommodation in a cabin of the chosen category, meals in the main restaurants and at the buffet, onboard entertainment, port charges and service fees. Drinks, excursions, internet and the spa are paid separately; exactly what is included depends on the fare.

An inside cabin is the most affordable, an ocean-view cabin gives you daylight, a balcony adds your own way out to the sea, and a suite is larger with extended service. A manager will compare the options on your chosen ship and tell you where it is quieter and rocks less.

Yes. Most ships have kids' clubs, pools and a children's menu, and children sharing a cabin with their parents often travel at special fares. The minimum age depends on the cruise line and the itinerary; a manager will check it for the cruise you choose.

Choose a cruise and a date, click «Cabin prices and availability», pick a cabin and a fare, and fill in the passengers' details. A manager will confirm the booking and send you an invoice for the deposit.

It is best to start with the airport and only then choose the itinerary. Pick a port you can reach comfortably from Warsaw or Kraków, and match the available cruises to it.

When planning the trip, it is worth allowing for a night before the cruise and another after it ends, because flight times do not always align well with embarkation and disembarkation hours. It is worth reaching the port 2–3 hours before the scheduled departure. If you plan a transfer from the airport to the port, at least 5 hours should remain between landing and departure.

Flights are booked separately from the cruise, so any change of dates needs to be checked in both the cruise and the flight reservations.

Yes, especially from southern Poland. The most convenient direction is Genoa and the neighbouring Ligurian ports.

Families and groups often choose this option to avoid the baggage limits that come with flying.

Terminal parking is paid and booked separately. We can suggest where best to leave the car for the duration of the cruise.

The itinerary decides. If all the ports lie within the Schengen area, an identity card is usually enough for EU citizens. For calls in Tunisia, Türkiye or Egypt, a passport is required.

Your travel document stays with you throughout the cruise — reception does not retain it. For embarkation you will also need the boarding pass issued at online check-in, which is worth having in printed form.

For passengers travelling on non-EU passports we check the requirements individually, as they depend above all on the passport held and the course of the route.

The basic fare covers the cabin and full board. Additional costs most often appear with drinks, shore excursions and speciality restaurants.

The service charge is compulsory and accrues per person per night, children included, at the given operator's rate. It is worth building it into the budget before you book.

A drinks package bought before the cruise is usually cheaper than the same package bought on board. Excursions in the ports can be purchased from the operator or arranged independently.

If you are not tied to the school holidays, it is worth choosing May, June, September or October. The weather is milder then, the ship is calmer, and prices are often lower than at the peak of the season.

Booking earlier gives you a wider choice of cabins and better positions on board. Last-minute offers can be cheaper, but the choice is usually much smaller.

Christmas and New Year dates sell out fastest.

Most often 7 nights. That is the standard length for cruises in both the western and the eastern Mediterranean.

Shorter cruises of 3–4 nights, well suited to a first sailing, are also available, as are longer 10- and 14-day itineraries that take in more ports.

On top of the cruise itself, it is worth allowing a day to fly out before departure and a day to return after leaving the ship.

Prices on the site are shown in zloty, while the contract is concluded in euros or US dollars, in line with the operator's settlement currency.

Payment by transfer can be made in euros or in zloty. The payment link processes payments in zloty only.

We do not offer instalment payments. A booking is made with a deposit, and the remaining amount is payable before the cruise.

The organiser is Biznes i Turystyka Piotr Skupiewski — a Polish company entered in the CEOTiPUT register, paying contributions to the TFG and TFP funds, and holding insurance guarantee UNIQA no. 3800003856, valid until 04.05.2027.

The telephone is answered in Polish between 9:00 and 18:00.

After the purchase we stay in touch with you and help with online check-in, changes to the reservation and matters connected with your documents.

Travellers holding passports from Visa Waiver Program countries do not need a traditional visa. What is required instead is an ESTA — an electronic travel authorisation.

The application is made online, with no consular visit. If any member of the party holds a passport from a country not covered by the visa-waiver scheme, the rules may be different. In that case it is worth mentioning it at the time of booking.

An ESTA is an electronic travel authorisation issued under the visa-waiver scheme. It is usually valid for two years, or until the passport expires if the document runs out sooner.

A visa requires a separate procedure and may be necessary for people who do not qualify to travel on an ESTA.

The application is best made right after buying the cruise and settling the journey through the US, not a few days before the flight. Officially you should allow up to 72 hours for a decision, though in some cases verification may take longer.

Current information, the fee and the form are on the official site esta.cbp.dhs.gov. It is worth using only the service on the .gov domain.

Yes. The choice of such cruises is smaller, but there are itineraries that begin outside the United States.

Martinique and Guadeloupe are French overseas departments and belong to the European Union, so EU citizens can travel there on an identity card or passport. Cruises also depart from Barbados and the Dominican Republic, among others.

There are fewer such connections than cruises starting in Florida, however, and their availability depends on the season and the specific date. It is therefore best to check the routes for your chosen dates.

Usually with one or more connections — through a large European hub or through another airport in the United States.

Remember that a transfer at a US airport also requires meeting the American entry conditions, including holding an ESTA for those travelling under the visa-waiver scheme.

Air tickets are bought separately from the cruise, and the route network changes with the season and the date.

For cruises beginning in the US we strongly recommend arriving at least a day before embarkation. The ship does not wait for passengers delayed by a flight or a missed connection. It is worth reaching the port 2–3 hours before the scheduled departure. If you plan a transfer from the airport to the port, at least 5 hours should remain between landing and departure.

No. The Atlantic hurricane season lasts from June to November, with the highest activity usually in August and September.

Cruise prices in this period are often lower, but you should allow for a higher likelihood of changes to the programme.

For safety reasons the operator may change the order of the ports, skip selected calls or direct the ship onto a different route. The cruise itself usually goes ahead, but the programme may differ from the one originally planned.

If visiting one particular island matters especially to you, the safer choice weather-wise is the period from December to April.

The most popular Caribbean cruises last around 7 nights, but 10- and 14-night itineraries are also available.

On top of the cruise itself you need to allow time for the flight, a night before embarkation and the return journey.

In practice, a week-long Caribbean cruise usually means around 9–10 days of travel in total.

These are two different matters.

The price of the cruise is shown on the site in zloty, while the contract may be concluded in euros or dollars, depending on the booking. Payment can be made by transfer in euros or in zloty. The payment link works in PLN only. We do not offer instalment payments.

On many cruises beginning in the United States, the onboard account is held in US dollars.

If the payment terminal offers to settle the transaction directly in your card's currency, it is worth checking the rate — the automatic conversion offered by the terminal operator is usually less favourable than settling the transaction in the currency of the onboard account through your own bank.

The organiser is Biznes i Turystyka Piotr Skupiewski, a Polish company entered in the CEOTiPUT register and paying contributions to the Tourism Guarantee Fund and the Tourism Assistance Fund.

The company holds insurance guarantee UNIQA no. 3800003856, valid until 04.05.2027.

We serve clients in Polish by telephone between 9:00 and 18:00.

On Caribbean cruises we also help with the elements around the journey itself: we pay attention to matching the flights properly to the embarkation date, remind you about the formalities connected with the travel authorisation, and help with online check-in.

Yes. Many people drive to the Danube ports in their own car. From southern Poland, Passau or Vienna can be reached within a single day.

The drive to the Rhine and the Moselle is longer but still feasible. For Paris and Lyon, a flight is usually the more convenient solution.

Quay parking may be paid and is not always directly at the berth. We check the available options for the specific cruise.

Choose the Danube if capitals and a relatively short journey matter to you: Passau, Vienna, Bratislava and Budapest.

The Rhine and the Moselle are a better choice for lovers of castles, vineyards and smaller, atmospheric towns.

The Seine combines Paris with Normandy, while the Rhône runs through Provence and usually offers the warmest climate.

It is best to start from what you want to see. We will match the right river to that, not the other way round.

Above all in the scale and rhythm of the journey. A river ship usually carries a hundred and something guests, moors close to the town centre and barely rocks at all.

In exchange, it does not offer the extensive infrastructure typical of large ocean ships: multiple pools, big shows or a wide choice of restaurants.

A river cruise is more intimate, but the cost of a single night can be higher than on a large ocean ship.

The fare always covers the cabin, full board and the voyage between the towns.

The remaining services depend on the operator. Some include drinks with meals, others shore excursions, and a few both.

It is one of the biggest differences from ocean cruising. That is why, with river cruises, it is not worth comparing brochure prices alone, because a cheaper offer does not always mean a lower cost for the whole trip.

The operator may change the cruise programme. Part of the route is then sometimes covered by coach, or passengers transfer to a second ship beyond the problematic stretch.

The cruise still goes ahead, but its course may differ from the brochure.

The risk rises during an extremely dry summer and after heavy rainfall. Before the purchase, we check how the specific operator handles such situations.

From the end of November to the end of December, most often on the Danube and the Rhine.

These are usually short cruises of a few nights. Their great advantage is mooring in the town centre, which puts the markets often just a few minutes' walk from the ship.

The best dates sell early, so it is worth booking them in advance.

Prices on the site are shown in zloty, while the contract is concluded in euros or US dollars. Payment by transfer can be made in euros or in zloty.

It is worth remembering that the brochure price most often applies to one person sharing a double cabin. If you travel alone, the operator adds a charge for single use of the cabin. On river cruises this supplement can be high, because the number of cabins is limited.

We give the exact price before booking.

The organiser is Biznes i Turystyka Piotr Skupiewski — a Polish company entered in the CEOTiPUT register, paying contributions to the TFG and TFP funds, and holding insurance guarantee UNIQA no. 3800003856, valid until 04.05.2027.

The telephone is answered in Polish between 9:00 and 18:00. We stay in touch after the cruise ends as well.

No. Prices come from the same system the line uses, and the agency's remuneration is covered by the cruise line, not by you.

The difference lies in the service. You have contact with a person who knows your booking and helps at every stage — after the sale as well.

It depends on how much flexibility you need. Promotional and last-minute fares can offer the lowest price, but usually come with more restrictive conditions regarding payment, changes and cancellation.

Early-booking fares give a wider choice of cabins and gentler conditions.

Fares with a drinks package included are worth comparing against the basic fare plus a separately bought package — either variant can come out ahead, so it is worth costing both before you choose.

As a rule, it runs for the whole cruise and, in principle, cannot be bought for selected days only.

MSC's rules may require that a corresponding package is also held by the other people covered by the same booking or staying in the same cabin. Appropriate non-alcoholic packages apply to children.

A package bought before the cruise is usually cheaper than one bought on board. The range of drinks varies between packages, so it is worth checking which variant best matches the way you travel.

The closer to departure, the more, and the rules may differ for shorter cruises, longer ones and MSC Yacht Club.

In some cases the charge is calculated on the full brochure price, not on the discounted amount you actually paid.

We show the exact rules for your sailing before any deposit, and for more expensive bookings it is also worth considering cancellation-cost insurance.

Online check-in is available before the cruise within the window set by MSC — it opens a few weeks before the sailing and closes shortly before departure. It is worth reaching the port 2–3 hours before the scheduled departure. If you plan a transfer from the airport to the port, at least 5 hours should remain between landing and departure.

You enter document and contact details, and in some cases a passenger photograph also needs to be added.

We help you through the form, though some steps have to be completed by the passenger themselves. It is worth reaching the port 2–3 hours before the scheduled departure. If you plan a transfer from the airport to the port, at least 5 hours should remain between landing and departure.

The choice of ship matters a great deal. Large vessels, including the World-class ships, offer extensive facilities — aqua parks, promenades, numerous restaurants — which suits families with children.

Smaller, older ships are calmer, quicker to get off, and can enter smaller ports.

MSC Yacht Club is a set-apart, more exclusive area with a higher standard of service, available on part of the fleet.

Prices on the site are shown in zloty, while the contract may be concluded in euros or US dollars, depending on the booking. Payment by transfer works in euros or in zloty; the payment link takes PLN only. We do not offer instalment payments.

The currency of the onboard account depends on the ship and the region of the cruise.

The card can usually be linked to the account before the cruise or once on board, in line with MSC's procedure.

Our service does not end when the documents are issued. If a problem arises during the cruise, we help clarify it and contact the cruise line on the client's behalf, to the extent that this is possible.

The organiser is Biznes i Turystyka Piotr Skupiewski, entered in the CEOTiPUT register, paying contributions to the Tourism Guarantee Fund and the Tourism Assistance Fund, and holding insurance guarantee UNIQA no. 3800003856, valid until 04.05.2027.

This means that after the purchase you still have contact with the Polish-speaking service of Center Cruises.

No. Ships call at Gdynia on Baltic itineraries, but regular cruise departures do not begin there.

The nearest popular embarkation ports are Warnemünde and Kiel on the German side, plus Copenhagen.

If an offer mentions a “cruise from Gdynia”, it is worth checking whether it in fact means coach transport to a German port.

Choose the fjords if landscape matters to you: waterfalls, steep mountainsides and deep valleys the ship sails into.

The Baltic is the better choice if you prefer cities — Copenhagen, Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallinn and Riga in a single itinerary.

The fjords make the greater impression the first time; the Baltic is easier logistically and often better value.

Warnemünde is a few hours by car from western Poland, and Hamburg correspondingly further. It is one of the few cruise destinations where a flight is optional.

Terminal parking is booked separately. We can help check its availability for your dates. It is worth reaching the port 2–3 hours before the scheduled departure. If you plan a transfer from the airport to the port, at least 5 hours should remain between landing and departure.

The season lasts mainly from May to September, with the widest choice of routes in July and August. Outside that window the number of cruises drops noticeably, as most ships move to warmer waters.

Demand is compressed into a few months, so the better cabins on fjord sailings sell early — often around a year in advance. Last-minute offers do appear, but the choice is then much smaller.

If your leave is tied to the school holidays, it is worth treating an early booking as part of the plan.

Even at the height of the season, temperatures in the fjords are often in the mid-teens, with frequent rain and wind.

You need a waterproof jacket, a warm layer and comfortable shoes — the pool is rarely the point of this cruise. It is also worth packing something smart for the evening: on many ships an evening dress code applies regardless of the weather outside.

On northern routes, often yes. Some sights lie far from the berth, and the ship's time in port can be limited, so organised transport reduces the risk of missing the ship and lets you see more.

On city calls such as Copenhagen or Tallinn, independent sightseeing is very easy.

Usually not. Itineraries that include Iceland — and especially Iceland together with Greenland — tend to be longer than the classic week-long routes, and you also need to allow for the flight to Reykjavik and often an additional night.

A week is the natural format for the fjords and the Baltic, where the distances between ports are smaller.

The organiser is Biznes i Turystyka Piotr Skupiewski — a Polish company entered in the CEOTiPUT register, paying contributions to the Tourism Guarantee Fund and the Tourism Assistance Fund.

The company holds insurance guarantee UNIQA no. 3800003856, valid until 04.05.2027.

The telephone is answered in Polish between 9:00 and 18:00.

Essential cruise packing list: passport and document copies, travel insurance, medications (including seasickness remedies), universal power adapter, comfortable walking shoes for excursions, formal evening attire, and sun protection. Also recommended: plastic bags for wet clothes and a small backpack for shore excursions.

Most cruise ships have European (Type C/F) and American (Type A/B) outlets. MSC Cruises ships typically have both types. A universal adapter is recommended. Power strips with surge protectors are allowed, but irons and kettles are prohibited on board.

No, irons and other heating appliances (kettles, immersion heaters) are prohibited in cruise ship cabins due to fire safety regulations. For ironing, you can use the ship's laundry service. Some ships (Princess Cruises, Holland America) have self-service laundry rooms.

Unlike air travel, cruise lines typically do not limit luggage quantity. However, cabin space is limited, so one large suitcase and one carry-on per person is recommended. Luggage is checked at embarkation and delivered to your cabin by porters.

The base cruise price typically includes: cabin accommodation, dining in main restaurants (buffet and table service), entertainment (shows, pools, fitness center, kids' clubs), port fees and taxes. On luxury lines, drinks, Wi-Fi, specialty restaurants, and shore excursions are also included.

Additional charges apply for: alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages (unless included in your fare), specialty restaurants, spa treatments, shore excursions, Wi-Fi, laundry, photos, and casino. MSC Cruises and Royal Caribbean offer drink packages that significantly reduce costs.

Yes, dining in the main restaurants — buffet and table service — is included on all cruise lines. Also included are 24-hour snack bars, pizzeria (on MSC), and basic room service. Specialty restaurants (steakhouse, Japanese, Italian) are usually extra, ranging from 15 to 50 USD per dinner.

A drink package is worthwhile if you plan to consume more than 4-5 drinks per day. MSC Cruises' Easy package includes water, juices, coffee, and beer at a significantly lower cost than buying drinks individually. If you only drink water and coffee, a package may not pay for itself.

The shortest options take three nights and the longest ten. Three nights bring you to one or two ports; five add a private island. Above seven nights the route already leaves the archipelago. To the sailing itself add a day out, a day back and a night before departure.

By air with a connection, out of Warsaw or out of Kraków; sometimes a second connection follows inside the United States. It is worth arriving a day early, because check-in shuts two to three hours before the ship leaves and the port wants you there with time in hand. The airfare is not part of the cruise price, but we can arrange it alongside the booking so that the timings line up. The five-hour figure that circulates around cruises means something else: it belongs to a transfer booked through the line and says nothing about when you report at the quay.

Sailing from Florida or Baltimore means entering the United States, and the requirements depend on your citizenship rather than on the ship. Polish nationals travel under ESTA, an electronic authorisation. If anyone in the group holds another passport, we will check that case separately at the booking stage — tell us early, because the paperwork is best done right after purchase.

It covers the cabin, meals in the main restaurant and the buffet, the entertainment programme and the passage between ports. Charged separately: alcoholic and soft drinks, speciality restaurants, shore excursions, the spa, the internet and gratuities. The flight and the night before embarkation are also bought separately.

On three nights, rarely: the days go by ashore and on the open decks, and the cabin is mostly for sleeping. From five nights up, and especially when a group sails together and comes back to the cabin during the day, the supplement holds up. We will advise which side to pick on a given ship.

Yes, and it is one of the easier ones. A short span, warm water, children’s clubs on the larger ships and a private island with a shallow beach instead of a full day of sightseeing. Just check the minimum age with the line, as it varies.

Less often than on the ocean. The ships on this route are large and stabilised, and the legs between islands are short and sheltered. Anyone who reacts badly should take a cabin lower down and closer to the middle, and buy a remedy at a pharmacy at home beforehand.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

We stay in touch until the trip is over. We remind you about online check-in and about the deadline for entry formalities, send the documents, and help with changes and with questions to the line. Online check-in shortens the formalities at the port but does not replace registration on the spot. Call +48 576 977 555 and speak Polish between 9:00 and 18:00.

The Atlantic itself most often takes twelve to seventeen nights, and routes with extra calls run longer. Check-in shuts two to three hours before the ship leaves and the port wants you there with time in hand. A day also has to be added for the flight out before departure and a day for the way home, since a flight from the other continent rarely works out on the same day. The same filter also lists shorter repositioning sailings that never cross the ocean. The five-hour figure that circulates around cruises means something else: it belongs to a transfer booked through the line and says nothing about when you report at the quay.

On a classic crossing, six or seven days without land in a row, and over the whole route there can be more of them than there are ports. That is not a flaw but the essence of the format — anyone after a port every morning should choose a different sailing.

It is not. You buy two single tickets, because you sail from one continent and step ashore on another. We help choose them alongside the booking so that the way home is at least a day after leaving the ship.

Layers rather than one set of clothes. The temperature at each end can differ by a good many degrees, and it is always windy on the open ocean. It is worth taking a windproof jacket, something warm for evenings on deck and one formal outfit, as gala evenings are the rule on longer sailings.

It does, over a satellite link, and it is charged separately from the fare. The speed is enough for mail and messaging, less so for video calls and streaming. Packages are bought on board, either for the whole route or by the day.

The service language is English, and announcements are often repeated in German, Italian and Spanish, depending on the line and on who is aboard. Polish-speaking staff are rarely found on these routes — which is why we handle the booking and the contact with the line ourselves.

The cabin, meals in the main restaurant and the buffet, the onboard programme and the passage between ports. Charged separately: drinks beyond the basic ones, speciality restaurants, shore excursions, the spa, the internet and gratuities. Flights and hotels at either end are bought apart from the cruise.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

We stay in touch until the trip is over. We remind you about online check-in, send the documents and help with changes and with questions to the line. Online check-in shortens the formalities at the port but does not replace registration on the spot. Ring +48 576 977 555 and speak Polish between 9:00 and 18:00.

It depends on how you travel. Flying, the simplest options are Civitavecchia through Fiumicino airport or Naples, as both are well connected from Polish airports. Driving from southern Poland, Genoa is one of the nearest. Decide how you are getting there first and pick the itinerary second — the other way round usually ends in an expensive ticket or a night transfer.

We advise flying in a day early and staying overnight in the port city. Boarding closes two to three hours before departure and the ship will not wait for a delayed flight. For Civitavecchia, add the journey from Rome, because the port sits outside the city — and there the five-hour figure is about standing on the quay. At the other ports the same figure covers a transfer booked through the line.

Yes, and for anyone in southern Poland it is a sensible option — in our offer it is usually Genoa, then Savona. Our clients do exactly that, particularly families and groups who would rather not fight airline baggage limits. Parking at the terminal is paid and booked separately; we will point you to somewhere to leave the car for a week.

In the first few days. From Genoa the route usually heads west, towards Provence and the Balearics; from Civitavecchia more often south and east, towards Sicily, Malta or Greece. The ship and the fare can be identical, so compare itineraries rather than operator names.

The fare covers your cabin, meals in the main restaurant and the buffet, onboard entertainment and the passage between ports. Gratuities, which on most ships are added to the onboard account automatically, drinks beyond the basics, speciality restaurants, shore excursions, the spa and laundry are charged separately. For every sailing we set out what the particular fare includes.

No. On a ship, all inclusive means a drinks package you have bought, not everything without exception. Meals in the main restaurant come with every fare, package or not. Before you pay the supplement, work out what you actually drink — sometimes the package does not pay for itself.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

Your contract is with us, so a complaint comes to us rather than to an operator abroad. We hold an insurance guarantee against the organiser becoming insolvent. In practice most matters — a cabin change, a question about paperwork, a problem during the sailing — are settled by telephone in Polish during office hours.

By the list of ports, not by the name. If Marseille, Genoa or Civitavecchia appear, you are heading east and will see three countries. If Palma, Ibiza and Menorca keep recurring, it is an island loop. Commercial names can mislead — two quite different cruises may share one.

For most of the year, yes, and that is one reason Barcelona suits a Polish passenger better than the other Spanish ports. The schedule does shift by season, so we check it against your specific sailing dates before you confirm the booking.

We advise flying in a day early and staying the night in the city. Boarding closes two to three hours before departure and the ship will not wait for a delayed flight. A night before the cruise costs less than a cruise you miss. The five-hour figure that circulates around cruises means something else: it belongs to a transfer booked through the line and says nothing about when you report at the quay.

Yes, and it is among the better choices to start with. The itineraries are short, the crossings overnight and calm, and the distances between ports small. If you do not know how you will take several days at sea, three or four nights test it more cheaply than a week.

In the choice of dates and the length of the routes. Barcelona has the most of both in our offer, running island loops as well as week-long sailings east. Valencia offers mainly short cruises of three or four nights, though the run in from the airport is shorter. If your leave dates are fixed, start with Barcelona — the odds of something fitting them are better.

Four nights cover Palma and Ibiza; seven let you add Menorca and a mainland port. Less than three nights is a test of the sea rather than sightseeing: boarding and disembarkation eat the first and last days, leaving two full ones.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

Your contract is with us, so a complaint comes to us rather than to an operator abroad. We hold an insurance guarantee against the organiser becoming insolvent. Most matters — a cabin change, a question about paperwork, a problem during the sailing — are settled by telephone in Polish during office hours.

In scale and pace. A sea ship takes several thousand passengers, leaves from a port outside the centre and covers the distances overnight. A river ship holds two hundred, ties up in the middle of town and sails by day. At sea you see several countries in a week; on a river, a dozen towns of one country.

Usually with one change, as direct flights are few and often seasonal. We check the schedule against your sailing dates. The run from the airport to the terminal is short, but plan to fly in a day early — boarding closes two to three hours before departure. The five-hour figure that circulates around cruises means something else: it belongs to a transfer booked through the line and says nothing about when you report at the quay.

Yes, and that is the commonest shape of a week in the western basin: Marseille, one or two Italian ports, Barcelona or the Balearics, then back. It is why you should compare lists of ports rather than cruise names — the same route can be branded quite differently.

That there is no berth alongside and passengers come ashore in small boats, by tender. The transfer takes time and can be cancelled in a heavy swell. If you have something booked for a set hour, check whether the port is a tender port.

If you are flying with a change, almost always — you lose a day travelling anyway. Aix, Avignon and the Camargue are an hour or two by car from Marseille, and three days of car hire cost less than a full set of shore excursions bought on board.

It is a good choice if you want Normandy, Southampton or the fjords rather than a warm sea. Routes from Le Havre are seasonal and concentrated between May and September. September on deck there can be cooler than April in Provence.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

Your contract is with us, so a complaint comes to us rather than to an operator abroad. We hold an insurance guarantee against the organiser becoming insolvent. Most matters — a cabin change, a question about paperwork, a problem during the sailing — are settled by telephone in Polish during office hours.

From Piraeus if the islands are the point: you will see four or five instead of one. From Italy if you want Greece combined with Italy and a shorter flight. Piraeus needs a flight to Athens, usually with a change; Italian routes start from ports that are served more often.

Five or six hours in practice, though the schedule says eight or nine. The ship lies at anchor, you go ashore by tender, then queue for the cable car. If Oia and the sunset are the plan, check the time you must be back aboard before you buy any tickets.

Probably not. Boarding closes two to three hours before departure, and the trip into the centre plus the visit takes half a day at least. Flying in a day or two early and staying in Athens is the safer plan — that is the commonest arrangement among our clients. The five-hour figure that circulates around cruises means something else: it belongs to a transfer booked through the line and says nothing about when you report at the quay.

The ship does not come alongside but lies at anchor, and small boats carry the passengers. Going ashore and back takes time, and in a heavy swell it can be called off. In Greece, Santorini and several smaller islands are tender ports.

In tender ports it usually is, because passengers holding an excursion go ashore first, and that can be worth an hour. In ports with a berth — Mykonos, Corfu, Heraklion — exploring on your own is cheaper and easy, as the towns sit beside the port.

Mainly in July and August. The strong northerly does not endanger the sailing, but it can cancel a landing in a tender port. It happens rarely, yet exactly at the height of the season, so a plan for Santorini in August is worth a fallback.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

Your contract is with us, so a complaint comes to us rather than to an operator abroad. We hold an insurance guarantee against the organiser becoming insolvent. Most matters — a cabin change, a question about paperwork, a problem during the sailing — are settled by telephone in Polish during office hours.

Technically yes, in practice we advise against it. A delayed morning flight costs you the cruise rather than one item on an itinerary. We recommend arriving the day before and staying the night.

Twenty to thirty minutes by taxi off peak, and closer to forty in the morning rush. The distance is about fifteen kilometres.

The name of the terminal is printed on the boarding documents for your sailing and only that is binding. The port register lists 7 terminals: A, B, C, D Palacruceros and E Helix on the Adossat quay, the separate Terminal MSC on the same quay, and the World Trade Center Barcelona on the Barcelona quay. Helix is not a separate place beside the lettered ones. It is terminal E.

No. The port estate is not crossed on foot, and the last stretch is covered by port shuttle or taxi even if public transport has already brought you close.

Boarding usually opens in the early afternoon and check-in closes two to three hours before departure, so you want to be at the port well ahead of that. In July and August we add a separate hour for the queue. Here the five-hour figure means a cruise line transfer, not being at the port as it does in Civitavecchia.

One night is enough to board without running for it, and a second turns the journey out into part of the holiday. The place is walkable, so even a short margin of time goes on the city rather than on transport.

It happens, but in our bookings it is a handful of cases a season. The drive takes two days with a night on the way, and parking for the length of the cruise is booked together with the cabin.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

The counterparty on your contract is a Polish tour operator, not an intermediary registered abroad. Its entry in the Central Register of Tour Operators and Entrepreneurs Facilitating the Purchase of Linked Travel Arrangements (CEOTiPUNPUT) and its UNIQA guarantee are quoted in full in the section on who sells and who answers.

Warsaw, Kraków and Gdańsk. The hardest part of the journey is not the flight but the eighty kilometres from the airport to the port.

Because the port for Rome lies in Civitavecchia, eighty kilometres north west of the city. Operators name the region their port serves rather than the address of the quay.

It follows from where you sleep. Staying near the Vatican makes one station the obvious choice. Staying by the main hub makes crossing the city for a faster train pointless.

It is short and flat, so yes, although heat makes it tiring. Anyone who would rather not walk takes the local bus, which follows the same road.

No, and there is no exception for a short distance. Everyone rides the shuttle from the gate onwards, and it costs nothing.

Five, and that figure is not caution for its own sake. It adds up the ride out of Rome, the change onto the shuttle, the desk itself and a reserve for a train that runs late.

No, and confusing the two ends in an argument at the desk. One figure belongs to a service sold by the line. The other belongs to this page and means your presence on the quay.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

The difference sits in the kind of trip, not in the quay. One direction is chosen by car and the other by air, and that decides whether the starting city gets seen or merely passed.

The embarkation points are Cologne, Düsseldorf and Basel. The classic route runs through Koblenz, Rüdesheim and Strasbourg, and sailings from the Dutch side start in Amsterdam.

It does, which is why the question is worth settling before booking. The classic arrangement runs from Amsterdam down to Basel, so you step ashore several hundred kilometres from wherever the car was left.

Vineyards running down to the water, towers above the bends, and the Lorelei rock where the channel is at its narrowest. The ship takes that fragment slowly, so it is part of the programme rather than scenery passed on the way.

German is the main language, because A-ROSA is a German operator. The crew speak English and information on board is duplicated.

Six of them do so as a matter of course: AmaWaterways, Avalon Waterways, Viking, Uniworld, Scenic, Emerald. CroisiEurope works bilingually, French alongside English.

The usual length is 7 nights. The schedules also hold shorter sailings of 4–5 nights and longer ones of 10–14 nights, usually combined with a neighbouring stretch of river.

The extent differs between operators and between fares, and most often concerns drinks with meals, shore excursions and transfers. The terms depend on the fare and the route, and current rules are given at booking and checked before the deposit.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

The Rhine is above all castles and landscape, while the Danube runs through capital cities. We describe the two rivers separately, and the language on board works the same way on both.

In our offer more sailings begin in Passau than anywhere else, and Vienna is the second point. Budapest appears less often and only on selected itineraries.

No. Linz is a port of call where the ship stops during the itinerary, not an embarkation point.

The Austrian stretch usually does, while itineraries finishing in Budapest usually do not. That decides whether a car left at the start will be waiting for you or whether the way home needs a ticket of its own.

In Passau and in Vienna the berths lie close to the centre, so the walk with a suitcase is short. Further downstream that is not always so, and we put the question about a transfer before the operator on your behalf when booking.

A river ship keeps to a fixed hour and does not wait. Catching it up at the next port on the itinerary is possible, but getting there is the passenger’s own affair, and that is exactly why we recommend a night on the spot.

It is shorter, from 4 nights, and the day on board ends early because darkness comes early. The programme moves off the observation deck into the towns and the markets by the berths.

German. English is available at reception at most, and the language on board with the other operators is described in detail on the Rhine cruises page.

The currency of the contract is either the euro or the US dollar, and the booking itself decides which. Payment goes by transfer, in euros or in zloty, to the details we set out in the document. With a payment link the settlement runs in zloty only. Prices on the site are shown in zloty at the day’s rate.

Yes, and among our clients it is a frequent choice for a first cruise. The route runs through capital cities, and the Austrian stretch is often shorter and simpler to plan than sailings further downstream.