The short version
Same trip length, same Venice finish, same window after Ella's graduation. The choice is really about what the middle of the trip looks like: Tuscany and Rome on the ground, or a new mega-ship hopping between ports.
Side by side
| Land trip | Barcelona cruise | Rome cruise | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fly into / out of | Venice / Rome | Barcelona / Venice | Rome / Venice |
| Nights in Europe | 10 | 10 | 11 |
| Venice | 2 nights | 2 nights | 2 nights |
| Florence / Tuscany | 2 nights Florence + 3 nights countryside villa | One shore day from La Spezia | One shore day from La Spezia |
| Rome / Vatican | 3 nights, unhurried | One port day, 60–90 min each way from the ship | 2 nights before the cruise |
| Barcelona | Not included | One evening + morning before boarding | One daytime port stop |
| Naples / Pompeii / Amalfi | Not included | One port day | One port day |
| Mallorca / Marseille | Not included | One port day each | One port day each |
| Beach | Optional afternoon at Venice Lido | Mallorca, plus Lido | Mallorca, plus Lido |
| Kids' club and teen lounge | None | Yes, day and night | Yes, day and night |
| Sea days | — | 1 (at the end) | 1 (early) |
| Per person, 10 of us | $4,490 | ~$4,500 | ~$5,400–5,500 |
| Cruise excursions on top | — | +$600–1,100 | +$600–1,100 |
Cruise excursion figures assume one paid outing at each major port. Some of us will skip ports or stay on the ship, so the real number is probably lower.
Land trip
Venice to Rome on trains and a hired minibus, with three nights at a Tuscan villa in the middle. Roughly June 3–13, depending on graduation.
Circles show nights at each base. Siena and Orvieto are stops on the drives, not overnights.
Day by day
| Day | Where | What the day looks like |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Venice | Land, water taxi to the hotel, Rialto and canal walk, cicchetti, early dinner. |
| 2 | Venice | St. Mark's area and Dorsoduro in the morning, gondola ride. Murano glass-blowing or mask painting kids, optional Lido beach afternoon. Adults' cicchetti bar crawl in the evening child care needed |
| 3 | Venice → Florence | High-speed train (about 2 hours). Mercato Centrale for lunch, leather market, sunset on the Arno. |
| 4 | Florence | Climb the Duomo dome, gelato-making class kids. One big sight, then shopping. Adults' dinner out child care needed |
| 5 | Florence → Siena → villa | Private minibus. Couple of hours in Siena's piazza, then on to the villa with a pool. Pool afternoon. |
| 6 | Tuscany | Pienza and Montepulciano for the shoppers; pasta-making with a nonna at the villa kids. Winery lunch for the adults child care or take turns at the pool |
| 7 | Tuscany | Truffle hunt with the dogs kids, Montalcino and San Quirico, free hot-spring river pools at Bagno Vignoni, long relaxed dinner at the villa. |
| 8 | Villa → Orvieto → Rome | Minibus with a stop in Orvieto (hill town on a cliff). Evening in Trastevere. |
| 9 | Rome | Colosseum and Forum for whoever wants it; gladiator school for the kids (2 hours, they get a wooden sword) kids. Bocca della Verità, coin in the Trevi. |
| 10 | Rome | Split day: Vatican for Matt, Eva and anyone interested; markets, cafés, shops and a pizza-making class kids for the rest. Final dinner. |
| 11 | Rome → Houston | Nonstop home (ITA started the route in 2026; 2027 dates not published yet). |
How the days would run
- Mornings are the walking and sights.
- Every afternoon has a kid pick or pool time.
- Most nights we eat at 7 when places open, or casual (pizza al taglio, trattoria). One long dinner per city, not every night.
- The group splits whenever it makes sense.
Food by stop
- Venice: cicchetti, seafood, espresso, pastries, gelato.
- Florence: panini, fresh pasta, bistecca, the market.
- Tuscany: pecorino, winery lunch, pici, villa dinners.
- Rome: carbonara, cacio e pepe, supplì, Roman pizza.
Where we'd stay
Illustrative properties, not reservations. Large-family availability and 2027 rates still have to be checked.
- Venice: a couple of multi-bedroom apartments near each other in San Marco, San Polo or Dorsoduro.
- Florence: Hotel Calimala or a comparable central hotel.
- Tuscany: a Val d'Orcia villa or castle estate with a pool (Il Macchione and Castello di Spedaletto are the style, pool to be confirmed).
- Rome: Hotel Smeraldo or similar near Campo de' Fiori.
Barcelona cruise
One night in Barcelona, seven nights on Royal Caribbean's Legend of the Seas around the western Mediterranean, then fly to Venice for two nights.
The whole trip, day by day
| Day | Where | What the day looks like |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barcelona | Land late morning, drop bags. Afternoon in the Gothic Quarter and La Rambla, Sagrada Família from the outside, tapas dinner. Nobody goes to bed early. |
| 2 | Barcelona → ship | Morning at La Boqueria market and the beachfront, then a 20-minute ride to the port. Board early afternoon, sail in the evening. Kids find the waterslides before we find the cabins. |
| 3 | Cruise: Palma de Mallorca | Caves of Drach, old town, or the beach day kids. |
| 4 | Cruise: Marseille | Aix-en-Provence, Cassis and the calanques, or just the old port. Or stay aboard. |
| 5 | Cruise: La Spezia | Cinque Terre by boat, or the Florence/Pisa day trip. |
| 6 | Cruise: Civitavecchia (Rome) | The Rome day. Vatican small-group tour for Matt and Eva; Colosseum, Trevi and Piazza Navona for everyone else. 60–90 minutes each way. Pick one, not both. |
| 7 | Cruise: Naples | Pompeii, Amalfi Coast, or Capri and Sorrento. |
| 8 | Cruise: Sea day | Slides, pools, kids' club, recovery kids. |
| 9 | Barcelona → Venice | Off the ship by 9, two-hour flight, water taxi in. Rialto and canal walk, gondola ride at golden hour, cicchetti dinner. |
| 10 | Venice | St. Mark's and Dorsoduro, Murano glass-blowing or mask painting kids, Lido beach afternoon, final dinner. Adults' bar crawl child care needed |
| 11 | Venice → Houston | Fly home (one connection; there's no Venice nonstop). |
Want more? Adding a second Barcelona night (or a third in Venice) is about $250–300 per person and a day. Andorra would need two extra nights.
The ship
Legend of the Seas is Royal Caribbean's third Icon-class ship, launched in summer 2026. Icon class is currently the biggest ship class in the world. Advertised: six waterslides, seven pools, Adventure Ocean kids' club (ages 3–12), a teen lounge, and more restaurants than we can eat at in a week. Height rules for the slides and the exact kid-program hours need confirming for our sailing.
Ship schedule (Sunday departure)
| Day | Port | What we could do |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barcelona | Board in the afternoon, sail in the evening. |
| 2 | Palma de Mallorca | Caves of Drach, old town, or a beach day (Eva's beach). |
| 3 | Marseille | Aix-en-Provence, Cassis and the calanques, or just the old port. |
| 4 | La Spezia | Cinque Terre by boat, or a Florence/Pisa day trip (long bus). |
| 5 | Civitavecchia (Rome) | Vatican small-group tour, or Colosseum/Trevi/Piazza Navona. 60–90 minutes each way. Pick one, not both. |
| 6 | Naples | Pompeii, Amalfi Coast drive, or Capri and Sorrento. |
| 7 | Sea day | Slides, pools, kids' club, recovery. |
| 8 | Barcelona | Off the ship by 9, flight to Venice. |
Port order can vary by sailing. Avoid the June 27 departure: it drops Marseille and has two sea days.
Which Barcelona sailing
Same ship, same ports, three Sundays. Prices below are Royal Caribbean's own, checked September 7, 2026.
| Ship departs | Whole trip | Interior fare pp | Per person, all-in before excursions | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun June 6 | June 5–15 | $2,003 | ~$4,450 | Royal Caribbean page |
| Sun June 13 | June 12–22 | $2,064 | ~$4,510 | Royal Caribbean page |
| Sun June 20 | June 19–29 | $2,154 | ~$4,610 | Royal Caribbean page |
Fares are Royal Caribbean's live prices for an interior cabin at double occupancy, taxes and fees included; the link shows today's number. "Whole trip" runs from landing in Barcelona to landing back in Houston. Family cabins and connecting rooms change the real number.
Why this one
- Barcelona is a big, lively, walkable city and the port is 20 minutes from downtown.
- Simplest logistics of the three.
- The sea day lands at the end, so everyone recovers before flying.
- Kids and teens are entertained all week without any of us planning it.
- Ties the land trip on cost as things stand, before excursions.
What you give up
- Rome is one long port day. A Vatican-focused day is realistic; "all of Rome" is not.
- No Tuscany villa. La Spezia is a taste, not the same thing.
- One Barcelona night is a visit, not a stay.
- Less time actually in Italy than either other option.
Andorra: possible as a day trip from Barcelona (about 3 hours each way by bus), but doing it properly means an extra night and roughly $200–300 more per person.
Rome cruise
Two nights in Rome first, then the same ship and the same loop boarded at Civitavecchia, then Venice for two nights. This is Eva's "in and out of Rome" idea.
The whole trip, day by day
| Day | Where | What the day looks like |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rome | Nonstop lands just before noon. Drop bags near Campo de' Fiori, walk to the Pantheon and Piazza Navona, coin in the Trevi, early dinner in Trastevere. |
| 2 | Rome | Split day. Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's for Matt, Eva and anyone interested, unhurried. Colosseum and gladiator school kids for the rest, then Monti for lunch. Everyone back together for a long Roman dinner. |
| 3 | Rome → ship | Morning gelato and markets, then a 75-minute minibus to Civitavecchia. Board early afternoon, sail around 8 pm. |
| 4 | Cruise: Naples | Pompeii, Amalfi Coast, or Capri and Sorrento. |
| 5 | Cruise: Sea day | Slides, pools, kids' club kids. |
| 6 | Cruise: Barcelona | Long day in port (about 5 am–5 pm): Gothic Quarter, La Boqueria, Sagrada Família, tapas lunch. |
| 7 | Cruise: Palma de Mallorca | Caves of Drach, old town, or the beach day kids. |
| 8 | Cruise: Marseille | Aix, Cassis, or the old port. Or stay aboard. |
| 9 | Cruise: La Spezia | Cinque Terre by boat, or the Florence/Pisa day trip. |
| 10 | Civitavecchia → Venice | Off the ship by 7, minibus to Fiumicino, midday flight, water taxi in. Rialto and canal walk, gondola ride at golden hour, cicchetti dinner. |
| 11 | Venice | St. Mark's and Dorsoduro, Murano glass-blowing or mask painting kids, Lido beach afternoon, final dinner. Adults' bar crawl child care needed |
| 12 | Venice → Houston | Fly home (one connection; there's no Venice nonstop). |
Want more? A third Rome night or a third Venice night is about $250–300 per person and a day each. Florence could be added as a detour on the way to Venice, but it costs a full day.
Ship schedule (Thursday departure)
| Day | Port | What we could do |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Civitavecchia | Board, sail around 8 pm. |
| 2 | Naples | Pompeii, Amalfi Coast, or Capri and Sorrento. |
| 3 | Sea day | Slides, pools, kids' club. |
| 4 | Barcelona | Long day in port (about 5 am–5 pm): Gothic Quarter, La Rambla, Sagrada Família. |
| 5 | Palma de Mallorca | Caves of Drach, old town, or beach. |
| 6 | Marseille | Aix, Cassis, or the old port. |
| 7 | La Spezia | Cinque Terre by boat, or Florence/Pisa. |
| 8 | Civitavecchia | Off the ship by 7 am, minibus to the airport, midday flight to Venice. |
Some late-June Rome sailings swap Marseille for a second sea day. June 3, 10 and 17 keep the five-port pattern as currently listed.
Which Rome sailing
Same ship, same ports, three Thursdays. Prices below are Royal Caribbean's own, checked September 7, 2026. They are within about $100 of each other.
| Ship departs | Whole trip | Interior fare pp | Per person, all-in before excursions | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu June 3 | June 1–12 | $2,452 | ~$5,430 | Royal Caribbean page |
| Thu June 10 | June 8–19 | $2,542 | ~$5,520 | Royal Caribbean page |
| Thu June 17 | June 15–26 | $2,448 | ~$5,430 | Royal Caribbean page |
Fares are Royal Caribbean's live prices for an interior cabin at double occupancy, taxes and fees included; the link shows today's number. "Whole trip" runs from landing in Rome to landing back in Houston. Every Rome sailing is about $400–450 per person more in fare than the Barcelona sailing a few days either side, and about $900–1,000 more all-in once the extra Rome nights and transfers are counted.
Why this one
- Proper Vatican visit without dragging everyone along.
- Real Rome time: Trastevere dinners, gelato, ruins at our own pace.
- Everything the Barcelona cruise has for the kids.
- Houston now has a nonstop to Rome (if it runs again in 2027).
What you give up
- Civitavecchia is 60–90 minutes from both central Rome and the airport. Two long minibus rides with all the luggage.
- One more hotel night and about one more day of trip.
- The sea day comes early instead of at the end.
- No Barcelona evening; no Andorra without adding two nights.
- About $900–1,000 more per person than the Barcelona version, whichever Thursday.
The kids
Bennett and Hazel will be 8. Aria will be 13. This is the biggest practical difference between the cruise and the land trip, so it gets its own page.
| Cruise (either version) | Land trip | |
|---|---|---|
| Daytime entertainment | Six waterslides, seven pools, Adventure Ocean kids' club with a schedule of activities, arcade, sports court. Built in. | One planned kid activity per base plus the villa pool. The rest of the day is walking, sights and meals. |
| Evenings | Kids' club runs into the evening; teen lounge for Aria and Ella's crowd. Adults can have a late dinner or a show. | We are the child care. Adults-only evenings mean hiring a sitter or splitting the group. |
| Food | Buffet, pizza, burgers and ice cream available basically all day. | Italian kitchens open around 7–7:30 pm and dinners run long. We'd eat early or casual most nights. |
| For Aria (13) | Teen lounge, slides, pool, tagging along with Ella. | Shops, gelato, markets, and tagging along with Ella. Probably fine either way. |
| Beach | Mallorca port day, plus Lido in Venice. | Lido afternoon in Venice; hot-spring river pools in Tuscany. |
| Bottom line | Easy. The kids will love the ship. | Doable, but it has to be planned around them, and there will be some grinding stretches. |
What the land trip has for them
- Venice: gondola, water buses everywhere, Murano glass-blowing, mask painting, Lido beach, gelato.
- Florence: climbing the Duomo dome, gelato-making class, haggling at the leather market.
- Tuscany: the villa pool, pasta-making with a nonna, a truffle hunt with the dogs, free hot-spring pools at Bagno Vignoni.
- Rome: gladiator school, the Colosseum, Bocca della Verità, throwing a coin in the Trevi, a pizza-making class.
Where the land trip needs child care
- Venice: the adults' cicchetti bar crawl.
- Florence: any adults-only dinner.
- Tuscany: the winery lunch and hill-town day (or adults take turns at the pool).
- Rome: not really; the days split naturally and the kids have plenty to do.
Hotels and villa managers can arrange English-speaking sitters, typically €15–25 an hour. Three kids across several evenings adds up, and someone has to be comfortable with it. Not solved yet.
Budget
Economy airfare, all lodging, ground transport, gratuities and insurance, a food allowance, group activities, and a 3% cushion. Shopping, passports, phone plans, drinks and sitters are on top. Nothing here is a quote.
The headline numbers
| 10 of us | Per person | 12 of us | Per person | Family of 4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land trip | $44,900 | $4,490 | $52,900 | $4,410 | $17,900 |
| Barcelona cruise, before excursions | $45,000 | $4,500 | $53,000 | $4,420 | $18,000 |
| Rome cruise, June 3 or 17 sailing, before excursions | $54,300 | $5,430 | $63,500 | $5,290 | $21,700 |
| Rome cruise, June 10 sailing, before excursions | $55,200 | $5,520 | $64,600 | $5,380 | $22,100 |
| Cruise excursions, one per port | +$6,000–11,000 | +$600–1,100 | +$7,200–13,200 | +$600–1,100 | +$2,400–4,400 |
Ella's friends should plan on $4,750 each; that gives a cushion above the 12-person average on the land trip or the Barcelona cruise. On the Rome cruise it would be closer to $5,300 plus excursions ($5,400 on the June 10 sailing).
The original target was $30,000–45,000 for ten including airfare. The land trip and the Barcelona cruise land right at the top of that. The Rome cruise does not fit inside it.
What moves the number
- Which sailing. Barcelona numbers assume June 6 or 13, where Royal Caribbean is quoting $2,003–2,064 for an interior. The three Rome Thursdays are all $2,450–2,540. That $400–450 fare gap, times ten, is most of the difference between the two cruises. Both tabs have a date-by-date table with links to the live price.
- Cabins. Five double cabins for ten, or two connecting doubles plus family quads. Quads usually bring the per-person number down. We need a real quote for our exact configuration, including taxes.
- Excursions. Booking a paid tour at every port is the expensive way. Two or three that matter plus independent wandering elsewhere saves a lot.
- The pool villa. A June villa with a pool for 10–12 may run more than the countryside places in the original model. The kid activities (gladiator school, truffle hunt, classes) add $150–300 per person; both are inside the cushion but use it up.
- Sitters. Not in any number above.
- Airfare. $1,100 per person open-jaw economy is the assumption. The Houston–Rome nonstop, if it runs in 2027, may price differently.
- Twelve instead of ten. Averages drop a little because hotel, villa and minibus costs spread over more people.
Land trip assumptions (10 of us)
Working total $44,856. Airfare Houston–Venice / Rome–Houston, apartments and hotels at the four bases, two train tickets and two minibus days, gondolas, winery lunch, cooking and kid activities, a daily food allowance, insurance, and contingency. Villas and drivers are the lines most likely to move.
Barcelona cruise assumptions (10 of us)
| Line | Per person | Group |
|---|---|---|
| Airfare, Houston–Barcelona / Venice–Houston | $1,100 | $11,000 |
| Cruise fare and taxes (interior, Royal Caribbean live price, June 6/13 midpoint) | $2,050 | $20,500 |
| Gratuities | $147 | $1,470 |
| Barcelona–Venice flight | $150 | $1,500 |
| Travel insurance | $150 | $1,500 |
| Meals off the ship (3 nights) | $225 | $2,250 |
| Onboard extras | $75 | $750 |
| Barcelona hotel, 1 night | $1,000 | |
| Venice hotel, 2 nights | $2,500 | |
| Transfers | $900 | |
| Gondolas | $300 | |
| 3% contingency | $1,310 | |
| Total before excursions | $4,500 | $44,980 |
Earlier versions of this page used $1,700 and then $1,950 for the fare, from third-party listings. Royal Caribbean itself is quoting $2,003 (June 6) and $2,064 (June 13) with taxes, so this table uses $2,050.
Rome cruise assumptions (10 of us)
| Line | Per person | Group |
|---|---|---|
| Airfare, Houston–Rome / Venice–Houston | $1,100 | $11,000 |
| Cruise fare and taxes (interior, Royal Caribbean live price, June 3 and 17; June 10 is $2,542) | $2,450 | $24,500 |
| Gratuities | $147 | $1,470 |
| Rome–Venice flight | $150 | $1,500 |
| Travel insurance | $150 | $1,500 |
| Meals off the ship (4 nights) | $375 | $3,750 |
| Onboard extras | $75 | $750 |
| Rome hotel, 2 nights, 5 rooms | $3,000 | |
| Venice hotel, 2 nights | $2,500 | |
| Transfers (airport–Rome, Rome–port, port–airport, Venice) | $2,450 | |
| Gondolas | $300 | |
| 3% contingency | $1,580 | |
| Total before excursions | $5,430 | $54,300 |
Excursion examples (per person, from a comparable sailing)
| Port | Excursion | About |
|---|---|---|
| Palma | Caves of Drach | $106 |
| Palma | Beach day transfer | $37–44 |
| Marseille | Marseille and Aix panoramic | $70 |
| Marseille | Calanques boat and swim | $308 |
| La Spezia | Cinque Terre by boat | $158 |
| La Spezia | Florence and Pisa highlights | $178 |
| Civitavecchia | Vatican small group | $288 |
| Civitavecchia | Forum, Trevi and St. Peter's | $142 |
| Naples | Amalfi Coast and Pompeii | $178 |
| Naples | Pompeii only | $103 |
One outing at each major port (Drach, Aix, Cinque Terre, Vatican, Amalfi/Pompeii) comes to about $800 per person. On the Rome cruise the Vatican is done before boarding, so that line drops.
Still to decide
Nothing can be priced for real until these are answered. The first two matter most.
- When can Ella (and friends) leave after graduation? This picks the sailing. A June 3 Rome departure means landing in Rome June 1; the June 17 Rome sailing pushes the whole trip to June 15–26.
- Ten or twelve? Cabin and room counts depend on it.
- Land or ship? Or put differently: is a real Tuscany stay worth more than a kids' club?
- If ship: Barcelona or Rome? Rome buys a proper Vatican day and two Rome evenings for roughly $900–1,000 more per person and an extra day.
- Cabins: five doubles, or connecting doubles plus family quads?
- Is $45,000 for ten a hard ceiling, and do excursions have to fit inside it?
- How much beach is enough? A couple of hours, a half day, or a full day.
- Rooms: five separate hotel rooms everywhere, or are big apartments and a villa fine?
- Which two or three excursions actually matter? Booking every port is probably unnecessary.
- Child care on the land trip: are we comfortable hiring sitters, or do adults take turns?
- Andorra: real priority or nice idea?