Taking a cruise is a great way to keep your vacation costs manageable, and that’s true for lots of reasons. Mainly, because you’re paying for most of the big expenses up front you’re better able to keep track of your overall vacation budget – and by paying in your home currency you also don’t need to figure out what the exchange rate is. Plus, when you’re looking at cruises that include several of your usual holiday expenses in the price, you’re getting a lot for your money.

So, with all of that taken into account, how does a sale on cruises in the Mediterranean sound? Yeah, I thought it might sound pretty good.

MSC Cruises is offering discounts on cruises in both the eastern and western parts of the Mediterranean on several 2009 departure dates. You’ll find cruises in April, May, October, and November of 2009, with per person rates as low as $733 for a week-long cruise. In the eastern Caribbean, all the trips sail from Genoa in Italy, but in the western Mediterranean the departure ports are either Barcelona in Spain or Livorno in Italy. All the cruises available on this sale are at least seven nights, and some are eight nights. You can read more about the deal, including all the rules involved, and check out all the itineraries on offer.