Oceania Allura: 10-Night Mediterranean from Barcelona

Barcelona cruise port is the busiest in the Mediterranean, handling millions of passengers a year across multiple terminals. The city behind it earns that traffic.

Built on a narrow strip of land between the Mediterranean and the Etang de Thau lagoon, Sete is a working fishing port of about 45,000 people on the Languedoc coast. The city calls itself the Venice of Languedoc for its network of canals, though the comparison undersells what makes Sete different: this is a genuine fishing town where trawlers unload the catch at the port each morning and the restaurants cook what came in that day.

Marseille cruise port is France's busiest and one of the major stops on western Mediterranean itineraries. The city is France's second largest and its oldest, founded by Greek sailors over 2,600 years ago, and it has a rougher, more authentic edge than the polished Riviera towns further east.

Monaco is a sovereign city-state on the French Riviera, just 2 square kilometers in size with about 39,000 residents, making it the second-smallest country in the world. Monte Carlo, its most famous district, is synonymous with wealth, casinos, and Formula 1 racing.

Florence (Livorno) cruise port is the main Tuscan stop on Mediterranean itineraries, but it's worth being clear about what you're actually docking at. The port is Livorno, a working industrial city on the Ligurian coast, about 85 kilometers west of Florence.

Rome's cruise port is in Civitavecchia, a working port town about 80 kilometers northwest of the city. That distance is the single most important thing to understand about this stop.

Salerno is the eastern gateway to the Amalfi Coast, one of Italy's most celebrated stretches of coastline. Cruise ships dock at the Stazione Marittima in Salerno's port, a short walk from the city center and the starting point for trips along the legendary coastal road to Amalfi, Positano, and Ravello.

Messina cruise port sits at the northeastern tip of Sicily, directly across the narrow Strait of Messina from mainland Italy. Ships dock right at the city waterfront, making it one of the easiest Mediterranean ports to step off and explore.

Santorini cruise port is one of the most visually striking arrivals in cruising. Ships anchor in the flooded caldera of a volcanic crater, with the whitewashed villages of Fira and Oia perched dramatically 1,000 feet above on the cliff edge.