This cruise charts a course for some of Europe's loveliest - and underrated - coastal towns and islands. After leaving Rome, salt-licked Ponza is first, where you can get an authentic taste of island life, Italian style. Then we visit Salerno, which has all the picturesque charm of the Amalfi Coast but without the crowds, before arriving in Sicily, where we call at historic Messina and then Syracuse, renowned for its ancient ruins. Next, it's time to relax at sea as we spend a day crossing to Greece. Zakynthos is home to the famed Navagio Beach with its striking shipwreck; Chania on Crete stuns with its 14th-century Venetian harbor; while car-free Spetses features lavish 200-year-old Captain's mansions and jasmine-filled gardens. From Piraeus, you can take trips to the legendary Acropolis and Parthenon in Athens, and then we sail south to Milos, where the white lunar-like landscape contrasts strikingly with the blue-green waters. We move next to the seaside city of Kalamata - home of the famed olives - and then on to Corfu, with its glorious sandy beaches and UNESCO-listed Old Town. We cross now to Montenegro to admire the medieval walled town of Kotor, and then to Croatia and the red-roofed city of Dubrovnik, set on the sparkling Adriatic. A sea day takes us to Fusina, for the famed wonders of Venice, and then we overnight in Ravenna to marvel at its astonishingly intricate Roman and Byzantine mosaics. Turning back south, we call at the Croatian island of Korcula, with its beautiful medieval center framed by pine forests, and then Bari, Italy, where you can try delicious Puglian food or take a trip to see the region's amazing trulli houses. After a day at sea, we're back on the sightseeing trail with stops in Valletta, Malta's sunny capital built by the Knights of St John in the 1500s; Trapani, the myth-steeped city on Sicily's dramatic western coast; and Naples, with its incredible food scene. Our journey ends with our return to Civitavecchia.