Medieval monuments, sophisticated cities, a diversity of dramatic landscapes, and so much more: Europe is a living museum, a veritable treasure trove of cultural, historical, and natural riches.

Measured strictly in miles, Europe is comparatively modest: of the seven continents, only Australia is smaller. By any other benchmark, however, it’s impossible to beat. The birthplace of Western civilization, Europe is home to a disproportionate number of the world’s most important architectural and artistic masterpieces, from London’s Tower to the priceless collection of paintings housed in St. Petersburg’s Hermitage.

All told, more than fifty independent nations are contained within Europe’s borders. Together, they share a common heritage, but each country has its own special identity – and a unique story to tell. To learn more about each destination’s legends and lore, climb aboard a cruise ship: a vast majority of Europe’s very best cities and towns are located along (or a short distance from) the water, making cruising the convenient and affordable way to explore the continent.

Broadly speaking, your European cruise will fall into one of three major categories: a voyage to the British Isles/Northern Europe (many of these itineraries will include a stop in Iceland), a Scandinavian/Russian (Baltic) sailing featuring passage through the majestic Norwegian Fjords, or an itinerary that calls upon ports along the Mediterranean.

All of the world’s most popular cruise lines set sail for Europe including:

• Carnival Cruise Line
• Royal Caribbean International
• Celebrity Cruises
• Holland America Line
• Princess Cruises
• Disney Cruise Line
• Virgin Voyages

All of the world’s leading luxury and river lines cruise Europe, too:

• Crystal Cruises
• Oceania Cruises
• Regent Seven Seas Cruises
• Viking River Cruises
• Uniworld River Cruises

 

• England: Southampton, the U.K.’s busiest cruise port, is your gateway to London’s legendary assemblage of attractions (Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, and many more) plus nearby Wiltshire, site of the mysterious Stonehenge, Britain’s prehistoric marvel.
  
  Additional ports of call include Dover, world-famous for its White Cliffs, and Liverpool, birthplace of the Beatles.
• Ireland: Gently rolling green fields, genuinely friendly people, and great “craic” help make Ireland one of the world’s most beloved tourist destinations.
  
  Dublin, the capital of the Republic, is chock-full of must-sees including Trinity College and Christ Church Cathedral; colorful Cork (Cobh) is another highlight, home to the Blarney Castle and its eponymous stone (kiss it, they say, and you’ll be blessed with the gift of eternal eloquence).
• Scotland: Elegant Edinburgh — with its sweeping skyline, dominated by the city’s ancient castle, portions of which date back to the early 12th century — is the country’s indisputable cultural and commercial hub. Head north to the Scottish Highlands and you’ll call upon Loch Ness (and, perhaps, its legendary monster) plus adjacent attractions like Urquhart Castle and the Falls of Foyers.
• Iceland: Iceland’s strange and beautiful landscapes, shaped by volcanic forces that are still at play, are unlike anything else found in Europe (or on Earth, for that matter; back in the 1960s, America’s astronauts famously used the country’s highlands as training grounds for moon missions).
  
  Reykjavik, Iceland’s quirky and compact capital, is equally surreal, home to some of the planet’s most outlandish architecture, a thriving and seminal arts scene, and a nightlife that’s notoriously boisterous.

 

• Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Amsterdam, with its historic canals and gabled houses (and, come springtime, its large and rainbow-like tulip fields) is rightfully regarded as one of Europe’s most picturesque ports of call. It’s also home to two of the world’s very best museums — the Van Gogh Museum, dedicated to the works of the post-impressionist master, and the massive Rijksmuseum, containing a vast collection of art and artifacts from the Dutch Golden Age — and the deeply moving Anne Frank Huis (House), which draws over one million visitors each year.
• Copenhagen, Denmark: “The Venice of the North,” notable for its appealing hodgepodge of architectural styles including Renaissance, Baroque, and Rococo.
  
  Pedestrian friendly, it’s best explored on foot: go for a stroll along Nyhavn — the city’s brightly colored waterfront, lined with charming cafés and restaurants — and wander the grounds of Tivoli Gardens, the city’s most popular attraction. Additional highlights include Edvard Eriksen’s iconic Little Mermaid statue and nearby Kronborg (a.k.a. “Elsinore”) Castle, which serves as the setting for Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
• Stockholm, Sweden: Sweden’s stylish capital is a bewitching blend of the old and the new. It’s renowned for its modernist design ethos, but its Gamla Stan, or “Old Town,” is one of the biggest and best-preserved medieval city centers in all of Europe; it’s the most populous municipality in all of the Nordic nations, but remarkably civilized.
  
  Constructed across more than a dozen islands and connected by nearly fifty bridges, it’s another great walking city. Leading attractions include the Royal Palace, the Moderna Museet, Skansen (Sweden’s first open-air museum and zoo), and Stockholm City Hall, which plays host to the Nobel Prize Committee’s prestigious annual banquet.
• Warnemünde (Berlin), Germany: This seaside resort town, once a sleepy fishing village, is now a major center of maritime traffic and one of the world’s busiest cruise ports. It has a lot to offer passengers in its own right, including some of Europe’s biggest and most underrated beaches, but most crucially it’s your gateway to Berlin and that city’s amazing array of attractions.
  
  Historical/cultural points of interest include Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag, the graffiti-tagged remnants of the Berlin Wall, and the capital’s celebrated collection of cabarets and nightclubs.
• St. Petersburg, Russia: Founded by Peter the Great (but named for St. Peter, his patron saint), this gorgeous city was the seat of imperial Russian power for over two hundred years. And while the country’s royalty may be long gone, St. Petersburg has lost none of its luster: laced with canals and stuffed full of extraordinary buildings, it’s arguably the most attractive destination in all of Europe.
  
  The State Hermitage Museum, located along the Neva River, is far and away St. Petersburg’s most essential attraction; the world’s second-largest museum (trailing only the Louvre), it boasts the planet’s biggest collection of paintings.
• Tallinn, Estonia: Long overshadowed by the Mediterranean, its more famous neighbor to the south, the Baltic Sea is enjoying a renaissance among cruisers, who have begun to rediscover the proud and peaceful ports of call that dot its shorelines.
  
  Tallinn is a perfect example. Historically besieged by other European nations, independent Tallinn now stands tall as Estonia’s largest city and its capital, and it’s become one of the Baltics’ busiest and most vibrant cruise ports. Tallinn’s medieval Old Town — almost perfectly preserved, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site — is the major attraction; the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and picturesque Kadriorg Palace are also well worth investigating.
• Geirangerfjord, Hardangerfjord & Sognefjord, Norway: Carved by glaciers over thousands of years, the Norwegian Fjords are among Europe’s most spectacular natural attractions. All told, there are well over 1,000 to traverse, and each is remarkable in its own way, but these three are unquestionably among Norway’s biggest and very best.
  
  Geirangerfjord’s most notable features include the abandoned farms that line its route and its impressive collection of waterfalls (the Seven Sisters, the Suitor, and the Bridal Veil); Hardangerfjord, surrounded by mammoth mountains, is the fourth-largest fjord in the world; Sognefjord, a.k.a. “the King of the Fjords,” is the longest and deepest fjord in all of Norway.

 

• The British Isles, Northern Europe & the Norwegian Fjords: Europe is large, obviously, and the continent’s climates vary widely — the Mediterranean, for example, enjoys warm and sunny weather pretty much year-round, while temps in the British Isles and Northern Europe can dip well below freezing come wintertime — so there is no single “peak” season, per se, and the factors you’ll need to consider will differ from region to region.
  
  Broadly speaking, however, the summer months remain the most popular time to cruise Europe, and this is when pricing (and crowd sizes) will begin to swell. You’ll find the vast majority of British Isles, Northern Europe, and Norwegian Fjords cruises departing between late May and the beginning of September, with select cruise lines — river cruise lines, especially — offering a smattering of autumn and wintertime sailings geared towards travelers interested in seeing the Northern Lights and/or Europe’s revered Christmas markets.
• Scandinavia, Russia & the Baltics: Once limited to the height of summertime tourist season, these itineraries are now broadly available throughout the better part of the year, i.e. late spring until early fall. And while the weather can get a little chilly on both ends of that range (especially in the evening), you’ll often find the very best deals available on sailings that depart during its “shoulder” months (May and September).
  
  June and July, in particular, attract tourists in droves, lured by the pleasant temperatures (70° and upward) and the promise of the Midnight Sun/White Nights, the region’s naturally occurring phenomena.