Five years ago, after celebrating our 25thwedding anniversary, my husband and I discussed ways we would like to acknowledge the next big milestone- our 30th. A “fancy” vacation was what we talked most about doing. Early this year, we decided we wanted to be celebrating thirty years of love in Europe, so we planned a BIG trip!
My husband and I joked that we would love to spend one week in Europe for each decade of marriage, and that’s just about how it worked out. He and I rolled around so many ideas of places to visit, and we finally settled on taking a Mediterranean cruise. We built the remainder of the vacation around the departing and arriving ports and planned a trip of a lifetime. I am excited to share with you a peek into our anniversary trip💗
Here is the itinerary we followed for our anniversary trip:
- Fly from Los Angeles to Barcelona, Spain
- Overnight stay in Barcelona near the airport
- Early morning flight from Barcelona to San Sebastían, Spain
- San Sebastían for three nights
- The flight back to Barcelona
- Barcelona for three nights
- Board seven-night Mediterranean cruise
- Arrival in Rome
- Four-night stay in Rome, Italy
- Fly home from Rome to Los Angeles
San Sebastían, Spain
San Sebastían is a resort town in the Basque region of Spain. It lies on the Bay of Biscay and is known for its beaches, world-renowned food, beautiful architecture, and great wine. Lonely Planet describes it this way: “Once a favorite destination for Spanish royalty, San Sebastián has lost none of its luster over the years. Elegant art nouveau buildings, ornate bridges and beautifully manicured parks and plazas create a captivating backdrop to this seaside city. Far from being mere set pieces, the grand architecture remains an integral part of San Sebastián. The old buildings lining the cobblestone streets of the Parte Vieja have been given new life with charming guesthouses, colorful boutiques and buzzing pintxos bars all part of the great and vibrant mix that is San Sebastián.”
We chose San SebastÍan at the recommendation of friends who lived in Spain for several years. We were not disappointed! In fact, we loved this little gem so much that we hope to return some day. We had perfect weather, great accommodations (a fabulous Airbnb), ate excellent food, and had the best time! We hiked, enjoyed the beaches, explored the old town, visited cathedrals, and wandered all over. San Sebastían iss a walkable town, there is plenty to do, and the people are so friendly.
Some notable dining-
We mostly popped in and out of pintxo bars and didn’t catch the names, but here are three memorable places:
Atari Gastroteka– yummy tapas
La Viña– amazing cheesecake!
Zumeltzegi– we had incredible seafood here
*****
Barcelona, Spain
Barcelona is on the opposite side of Spain from San Sebastían and is the cosmopolitan capital of Spain’s Catalonia region. We stayed at the Hotel Arts Barcelona near the Port Olímpic marina. We loved the location on the water and because it was our anniversary, were given an astounding upgrade to a HUGE corner suite. The views from every window in the room were spectacular! We honestly could not believe how blessed we were to stay in such luxury.
Highlights from our stay:
Wandering through beautiful parks and cathedrals, enjoying an unforgettable spa-like experience here, admiring the architecture, eating delicious tapas (the olives were soooo good!) and gelato, drinking Spanish wine, and walking along the water in Port Olímpico. We referred to this travel guide for most everything while there, and every recommendation was spot on. 😀
*****
The Mediterranean Cruise
We chose Princess Cruises because we cruised before with them and had been very satisfied. We had a lovely cabin with a large balcony on the Crown Princess and couldn’t wait to visit each port.
Our cruise itinerary was as follows:
Saturday- Board Ship
Sunday- At Sea
Monday- Gibraltar
Tuesday- At Sea
Wednesday- Marseille, France
Thursday- Genoa, Italy
Friday- Florence (Livorno), Italy
Saturday- Rome, Italy
Here are some photos from our excursions:
We enjoyed our days at sea where we slept late, relaxed by the pool, ordered room service (it’s free on the ship), took a wine tasting & pairing class, watched movies under the stars, feasted on fine cuisine, and listened to live music. We booked excursions for each day in port because we wanted to explore as much of each city/area as possible. From the ports, we visited Marbella and Puerto Banus, Spain; Aix-en-Provence and Lourmarin, France; Portofino, Italy; Florence, Italy, and the Chianti region of Italy. Most excursions took a full day, and we thoroughly enjoyed each city. The cruise was equal parts restful and busy- the best of both!
*****
Rome, Italy
We disembarked around 9:30 am and had a car waiting for us to drive us to our hotel in Rome. From the port to the city center took about an hour, so we relaxed in the car and gazed out the windows. We arrived at our hotel, checked in, dropped off our bags, and headed out to find lunch and explore the ancient city. Rome is so full of history that we didn’t have to look far to find some masterpiece or ancient ruin. All in all, we spent five days in Rome.
Highlights from our stay:
Exploring the city on foot, visiting cathedrals, an ancient Rome and Colosseum walking tour, a private Vatican tour, and a day trip to Tuscany tour. My husband and I also loved the Italian food (finding gluten-free pasta was fairly easy!), the lovely parks, the history, the countless fountains and cathedrals, stunning architecture, and the wine.
*****
We arrived back home with thousands of photos, hundreds of walking miles logged, golden tans, full tummies, happy hearts, and memories to last a lifetime. For us, celebrating thirty years of love in Europe was a beautiful way to commemorate our anniversary 💗 My husband and I thank the Lord for our strong marriage, our friendship, and his provision in our lives.
*If you are interested in specifics such as car services, the tours we went on, restaurants, flights, or about essentials we packed send me an email at everydaynatalie@gmail.com. I will be happy to share information with you 😊
I am so happy for you that you went for it and celebrated in style – 30 years is an amazing achievement!! Loved your photographs! Much love
Thank you, Jules! We are so thankful for the 30 years of marriage and friends like you who support us 💗