Hrant

Hello everyone! My and my GF are planning another europe trip, Which crosses with my gf's work trip so We decided to visit some countries after the work is done.

We will take a cruise in November on MSC World Europa ship starting from Marselle and ending in the same place.

After that we are thinking of visiting one country to relax a little bit and see the whole country if possible in a week.
But we can't decide Between Italy and Portugal.

Is the weather too bad in italy in november?
And what about Portugal? ))
please help 🙏😊

Traveler_Nick

You aren't going to see all of Italy in a week. You aren't going to see even one of the larger regions.

Big issue in November is rain. If it doesn't rain it's fine.

You're taking a cruise in November?

dfourh

I would lean toward Italy because when we are talking about brown landscapes, encroaching darkness, and possible rain, the more bright, lively cities with medieval enchantment in the looming shadows the better. Porto is, albeit, one of those, but Italy has quiet a few places with buzzing humming atmosphere and classic attractions even in dark dreary-making times.

Michael

Set your sights on going farther south if you want a higher guarantee of less rain. There are flights from Marseille to Marrakesh. When we went there, we did a little less than two weeks to visit the three Imperial cities: Marrakesh, Meknčs and Fez by train and bus.

uktravelover

You can fly to Portugal from Marseille, so you could consider visiting Lisbon and Porto or Faro. For Italy, one option could be to take the train to Genova and then visit Florence and Bologna, however as mentioned the weather is likely to be mixed and not particularly warm.
Since you are taking a cruise from Marseille, have you considered going to Spain? Take a train to Narbonne or Perpignan for a night and then go on to Barcelona. Alternatively fly from Marseille to Malaga and explore Seville, Cordoba and Granada.

Hrant

Yes we are taking a cruise in November and will see 3 Italian cities (Palermo, Rome, Genoa)
I see the rain in Italy is that bad huh?
It's colder in Italy in November then in Portugal right?

Hrant

will consider that, thank you !

Hrant

yeh it's a great idea but i am from 3rd world country and i need bunch of Expensive Visas and documents to travel... multi visa and staying in shengen zone is my best bet. Thank you😊

Hrant

Yes it seems that Portugal is a better option, i have been in Barcelona and the cruise includes Barcelona as well, should i try to go to Andorra from Barcelona? Or it's crazy to go 6 + hours on a road and come back to the ship all in one day))

bilboburgler

This year with climate change no one knows what the weather will be in November. Since the polluting-fat-boat is going to Italy I'd go to Portugal and focus on Lisbon and Porto

SusanP

Yes, I think it's crazy to take a road trip from the boat and back again for 6+ hours!

Madam397

I agree with the previous posters. I would either take a train from Marseille to Barcelona or I would fly from Marseille to either Lisbon or Porto. It really depends how much time you do have for this add-on trip and what you are most interested in seeing and doing.

uktravelover

The Algarve is likely to be warmer than Lisbon or Porto. Faro is a lovely town as I am finding on a short break there at the moment, so you could do 2 centres Lisbon and Faro.

bvlenci

The weather in Italy in early November is not as dire as people would have you believe. I just checked the historic weather in Milan for the first week of November. In the past 3 years there was one rainy day in the first week of November, plus a few days with morning or evening showers. Further south the weather would be similar or better. Temperatures were mainly around 15C at midday.

As someone else said, in a city you can find plenty to do if it rains. Milan is an exciting city, which has become more exciting in the past 10 years. I would suggest spending a week there and taking day trips.

Sassafrass

Which week is your cruise? Looks as if it goes from Marseille on the 4th, then does a longer one to Egypt, then two more from Marseille the last two weeks of November. Could you do your week in another country the week before the cruise?

With any cruise, it makes logistic and economic sense to visit areas close to the first or last ports. OTOH, that may not give you the kind of sightseeing you want or the weather may not be ideal for visiting that area.