Explora Ii Itinerary

What Explora II's Autumn Mediterranean Season Is Actually Like

Autumn on Explora II is a season of two halves. The first half is the Adriatic and Aegean in the last gasp of shoulder season. The second half is a long run west, toward Rome, Barcelona and the Atlantic islands, with December arriving along the way. Cruise-line schedules are not exactly known for their candour, so here is what the calendar shows. Itineraries come from published timetables, and our own database is missing port lists for these sailings.

The weather: sweater, not swimsuit

This is not summer in the Med, and anyone booking on a Santorini sunset fantasy should adjust. Long-term averages show how fast it cools:

• Athens (Piraeus): November averages 18.9°C/66°F highs and 12.2°C/54°F lows, with about 70.8 mm (2.8 in) of rain. By December it is 14.4°C/58°F and 8.7°C/48°F.
• Venice (29 October departure): October averages 18.5°C/65°F highs and 10.5°C/51°F lows, with about 72.0 mm (2.8 in) of rain. It is also in flood-tide season, because Venice is often threatened by high water between autumn and early spring.
• Barcelona: December highs run roughly 14.5–15.1°C (58–59°F), depending on the weather station.

Pack layers, a proper waterproof jacket, shoes that survive wet cobblestones, and one warm layer for the December ports that you'll resent carrying around the Aegean in November. Bring a swimsuit if you're sailing the Canary Islands, but don't plan around beach weather.

Seas and shutters

Autumn winds in the Aegean can disrupt ferry services, and early in October 2026 they led to a sailing ban and cancellations. A cruise ship is a sturdier way to see the islands than a catamaran, but a wind-affected port call is still possible, so keep your plans flexible. The islands are also shutting up shop. Ferries in Greece says the majority of tourist businesses close from late October until early May, and that most hotels, tavernas and souvenir shops are not available in that period. The Aegean calls on the 29 October and 9 November sailings, including Mykonos, Milos, Paros and Santorini, fall inside that window, so don't count on every shop and taverna being open. Explora's pitch for its Mediterranean winter season, which it says runs from November 2026 through March 2027, is calm coastlines and an unhurried pace. The 29 October Venice sailings leave just before that season starts. It is brochure language, sure, but a ship that stays overnight in Casablanca is at least putting its itinerary where its mouth is.

What's actually on the calendar

The 20-, 22- and 29-night sailings extend these routes. The 29-night one runs Piraeus to Barcelona via Lisbon and the Spanish coast. Today is 28 October, so tomorrow's Venice departure is practically a last-minute booking.

Which length suits whom

• 6 nights: A sampler. The Piraeus to Civitavecchia version covers Santorini, Valletta, Messina and Naples. It suits someone who wants the greatest hits without a week-and-a-half commitment.
• 10–12 nights: The sweet spot for most people. The 11-night Venice sailing gives you Dubrovnik and Corfu, the 10-night Piraeus loop adds Kotor, Bari and Santorini, and the 12-night Barcelona sailing heads out to Casablanca and the Canary Islands. None of the 10–12-night sailings in the table calls at both Kotor and Dubrovnik, so pick your fighter. The 20- and 21-night sailings do visit both.
• 20+ nights: For the retired, the remote-working, or the very well organised. You are signing up for a long stretch of late autumn, and on the 29-night sailing, Christmas Eve in Málaga.

Two things stand out. Casablanca and Funchal are genuine overnights. The ship arrives in Casablanca at 08:00 on 12 December and leaves at 20:00 the next day, and in Funchal it arrives at 10:00 on 18 December and leaves at 18:00 on 19 December. After Casablanca, the timetable shows no port stop until Arrecife in the Canary Islands on the morning of 15 December. This ship is small by cruise standards, with 922 guests on 13 decks, built in 2024. Her latest CDC inspection, on 24 February 2026, scored 97 out of 100, and you can check the details through the CDC inspection lookup.

For the full sailing list, see our Explora II itineraries page, or the ship overview for specs. Check final port times with Explora before you book, since timetables do change.