Has anyone ever cruised a major cruise line out of Europe

I think the average age on those ships is like 70, just FYI

Coworker just left for Europe to do a week long cruise on NCL and spending a week on the front and back ends exploring. I'll update with her experience in a few weeks when she gets back.

We've done a half dozen European cruises on Carnival -- always on a brand new ship doing European runs after being built in Italy and before making its way over for U.S. itineraries. Those were great experiences with great crews (as those itineraries were used as something of a crew reward for providing excellent service). 3 round trips from Rome, 1 Barcelona to Athens, and 2 round trips out of Dover.

We have another one booked on RCL's Rhapsody of the Seas next summer -- round trip from Athens going to Cyprus, Egypt and Santorini.

Thanks. Sounds like a fun way to travel and that’s coming from a guy that typically hates cruises. I think I may just dislike typical US cruises to the Caribbean. I think a port heavy European cruise would be a completely different animal that I’d enjoy. ESP if it was out of a really cool city like Barcelona that I’ve always wanted to visit anyway.

I have a bunch of times.
Vikings may be a little more expensive but they are worth it.
I just got back from a Viking Empires of the Mediterranean cruise that started in Athens, sailed the Aegean and Adriatic and ended in Venice. It was fantastic.
That was my second favorite cruise of all time. My favorite was the Viking Grand European which we took last year. That is a two week river cruise that sails the Rhine and the Danube.

I enjoy the Western Mediterranean cruises but I do have a couple of complaints about them. For one, they just spend enough time in port to give you a taste of each location. When I visit major cities like Rome, Barcelona, Florence, Naples (or at least the areas south of Naples) I want to spend days there to immerse myself into the culture and enjoy the food scene at night. You are not there long enough to do that.
The other complaint is that the ports are often not within walking distance to where you want to go. Some require a bus ride.

Some places are best experienced on a land trip rather than on a cruise.
The ports on the two cruises I mentioned above don’t fall into that category because you would probably never get to most of them except on a cruise ship or riverboat, and many of the ports are right in the middle of town.

Spending a few days in Barcelona is a great idea.

Ports in the Mediterranean are not picturesque and very industrial. You’re looking at bus rides into the featured city of about 30-60 minutes.

Sail Celebrity.

LINK