It’s mid-December and I’m dining al fresco in Star Legend’s Veranda restaurant – enjoying the feel of the sun on my face and the mild 60-degree temperature. My most pressing decision at the moment: Shall I order a second Chardonnay?
At home on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, the “feels like” Fahrenheit number is 21, snow is threatening, and I’m wondering whether to ask my pet-sitter to put the bathroom spigots on drip to avoid frozen pipes.
And yet, I’ve just boarded Star Legend in Malaga in southern Spain, the birthplace of Picasso and a place I’ve never been. I’m wild about Windstar Cruises’ “Winter Escapes” Mediterranean itinerary. I’ve been to Barcelona but all the other ports – Gibraltar, Cartagena, Valencia and Palma de Mallorca – will be new to me.
Work has been crazy-busy for months and I need a recharge, a refresh. Travel does that for me.
My waiter, Dede from Indonesia, stops by my table with a bottle of Robert Mondavi Chardonnay. Oh sure, I tell him, uno mas, por favor.
Loving the Picasso Museum in Spain’s Malaga
I arrived in Malaga a day early to get my body attuned to the time change – and what better way to do that than to luxuriate in a ritzy hotel? The Gran Hotel Miramar, beautifully decorated for Christmas, is as posh as it gets and it’s just two blocks from the seaside promenade. Me? I barely left my room and slept like a rock. I think I’m going to start every cruise this way going forward. No rush – and adventure-ready.
Our cruise from Malaga to Barcelona spends a week sailing along Spain’s southern coast, visiting ports such as Palma de Mallorca, Cartagena, and Valencia along with the U.K.’s Gibraltar.
After boarding the ship, the thing I wanted to do most while in Malaga on Spain’s storied Costa del Sol: visit the Picasso museum and the house where the artist was born. Star Legend made it easy – pretty much everything I wanted to see was within a 10-15 minute walk of the pier, nicely located right in the heart of town.
The vibe was not Sunday morning calm. The Malaga Marathon was under way with thousands of runners in motion. Streets were closed, spectators everywhere. Orange trees everywhere, too – and in glorious bloom. An abundance of pedestrian-only streets and great signage made the museum a cinch to find. The museum itself, housing 200-plus pieces, was a revelation. I’m no artist but as a writer, I loved this quote from Picasso: “We all know that art is not truth. Art is a lie that makes us realize the truth.” Talk about a mind-bend.
I had no idea that the scope of Picasso’s work included bronzes and ceramics. And at his birthplace, I learned about his influence on the dove as a symbol of peace – and why he named his daughter Paloma, “dove” in Spanish. Nuggets like these fill me up.
As a journalist, at work I’m writing a column about how older adults often feel invisible, unseen. Not me, at least not on Star Legend. When I returned to the Veranda for a late afternoon lunch, the waiter said: “Welcome Ellen. Chardonnay and water? Cabin 508, right?”
And, oh, incidentally, it’s snowing at home.
Monkey business on Gibraltar
Gibraltar has been on my bucket list for years. It didn’t disappoint.
Just 2.6 square miles, the Rock, as it is known, is a British Overseas Territory with views of North Africa. Yep, that was Morocco in the distance. Home to one of the world’s busiest shipping channels, this island at the tip of Southern Spain is where the Atlantic meets the Mediterranean Sea. There’s something poetic about that.
Gibraltar has roughly 38,000 inhabitants but it was this population stat that fascinated me more: 300 Barbary monkeys. These large-ish apes run free-range at the top of the Rock and they communicate by grooming one another. How had I not heard of them? They are a marvel to watch. Definitely, a highlight of the itinerary – as was St. Michael’s Cave with its impressive light show.
On our way back to the port, our guide turned on the bus’s “air con,” as the Brits call it. That’s how wonderful the moderate temperatures are in this part of the world in December. There wasn’t enough time to visit the town. Next time, I hope.
During sailaway, a couple lolled in the hot tub while folks soaked up the sun from loungers. Except for doing Wordle every day, I’m pretty much off the grid. On the way to Cartagena, I jump into the novel I’ve brought – called “Snow,” of all things.
Savoring quiet time in Cartagena and Valencia
I did a walkabout in Cartagena and enjoyed the ancient Roman Theatre and the not-to-miss Calle Mayor, the pedestrian-only main street made of marble. Valencia? Raining out of the Bible. Enough said. Instead of exploring, I made it a point to savor my quiet time, something that’s been all too rare recently. I read, streamed a couple of movies, napped, and ordered smash burgers from room service.
I also took in the special touches that my cabin steward delivered. He cleaned my eyeglasses, a mess always, and left a wipe. And my book, resting open, suddenly had a bookmark in it. That’s over the top – and typical, I’ve learned, of Star Legend’s service.
The ship was in dry dock before we embarked in Malaga and arrived with two big updates: new carpet everywhere and an Asian-Mediterranean fusion restaurant called Basil + Bamboo. The artisan whole burrata salad and the miso black cod with a little taste of the grilled Spanish octopus? Best meal of the trip.
Palma de Mallorca offers a winter wonderland
I now understand winter’s appeal when it comes to cruising the Mediterranean – but it hit home with an exclamation point in Mallorca. Picture this: Late morning, sunny. Two buses are in the parking lot of Bellver Castle, built in the 1300s and the oldest of five round castles like it in the world. Except for the buses, both ferrying Star Legend passengers, the lot is empty. Not a tourist in sight.
“It’s calm,” our guide tells me. “No people.”
It’s also green. At the moment, olive trees are tinged silver in the sunlight as our bus heads toward the hilltop village of Valldemossa. January and February, the almond trees will erupt with white blossoms. Friends had urged me to visit Valldemossa, a village tucked into the Tramuntana mountains, and I’m glad they did. It’s best known as the spot where writer George Sand and her lover, classical composer Frederic Chopin, took refuge in a monastery during the winter of 1838-1839.
Chopin composed 32 pieces during their sojourn. The view from the rooms where the couple stayed is something to savor. Sand, in her book “A Winter in Majorca,” put it this way: “The view is astounding for it leaves nothing to the imagination and nothing to desire. The reveries of poetry and art are fully realized here.”
Later, nibbling on a potato bun at an outdoor café, I closed my eyes and enjoyed the warmth of the sun. Now this is the kind of winter wonderland I can get behind.
Looking for a Plan B in Barcelona
I was in Barcelona a few years ago and focused then on the work of architect Antoni Gaudi, best known for his masterwork, the still-unfinished Sagrada Familia church. Today, my last day onboard Star Legend, I decided to revisit Las Ramblas, the famous pedestrian walkway that has a colorful farmers market, sidewalk cafes and shops. If Barcelona has a heartbeat, Las Ramblas is it.
Unfortunately, La Rambla is currently a massive construction zone and the inescapable sound of jackhammers was almost triggering. I saw plenty of people on the popular pathway with hands pressed over their ears. I needed a new plan for the day. Just a few blocks away, in the Gothic quarter, I found it: the Barcelona cathedral, which dates back centuries. Known as La Seu, the cathedral was comforting and quiet. I took an elevator to the rooftop, which has sweeping views of the city. At noon, chimes, resonant and deep, sounded from the clock tower.
I had been in need of a reset. The quiet embrace of the cathedral and the soulful sound of the chimes delivered that today.
Winter itineraries in the Mediterranean are genuinely special. A few tips:
Visiting Spain and Gibraltar in the low season was a revelation: warm weather, fewer tourists, shorter lines. But prepare to be nimble when it comes to shore excursions. Two that I’d signed up for were canceled due to not enough passengers signing up. In that event, talk to the shore excursion team about what else you might do if one falls through.
Also, be aware that some shops and restaurants do close down, particularly in smaller villages and cities, during winter. In larger cities like Palma de Mallorca, Malaga and Barcelona museums and shops, along with restaurants, abound. And, if you are a solo traveler like me, keep an eye out for single supplement discounts on winter itineraries. I had a rather nice one that shaved a good bit off my cruise fare.
And finally, this: Windstar Cruises offers unique “Local Season” itineraries in the Mediterranean from November through March, focusing on intimate, small-ship experiences without summer crowds. These voyages feature overnights in cities like Rome, Barcelona, and Venice, visit smaller, charming cities from Athens to Dubrovnik, from Genoa to Livorno for Tuscany, and specialize in experiences focusing on holiday markets, historic sites and local culture and art. And just as nice: the weather is typically quite moderate.
Editor’s Note: Read more about Windstar’s “locals’ season” of winter cruises here:
- If You Love Culture and Art, the Mediterranean is Perfect Year-Round
- The Surprising Perks of Visiting Venice in Winter
- Choose Your Adventure: In Dubrovnik, Embracing the Culinary Tradition of Peka
- This May Surprise You: Winter can be the Most Magical Time to Cruise in the Mediterranean
- On Windstar, Build Your Own Christmas Market in the Mediterranean
