DYI Rhodes, Mykonos, Santorini

Our cruise is a year away (Celebrity Equinox) and I am a planner. I've looked at the excursions offered by the cruise line and was not really excited by them.

How easy are these ports for DYI? We've cruised before and have done both private tours with groups we have connected with on our Roll Call and a few ship tours. Never having been to these ports, we want to capture highlights but not be herded around.

What are "MUST SEES" for these ports?

I'm open to suggestions for all.

Our cruise is a year away (Celebrity Equinox) and I am a planner. I've looked at the excursions offered by the cruise line and was not really excited by them.

How easy are these ports for DYI? We've cruised before and have done both private tours with groups we have connected with on our Roll Call and a few ship tours. Never having been to these ports, we want to capture highlights but not be herded around.

What are "MUST SEES" for these ports?

I'm open to suggestions for all.

IMHO Rhodes and Mykonos are easy to do on your own. I have never been to Santorini,but there is a lot of info on this board re all three of them if you do a serach some just posted awhile ago.You have a lot of time to plan your days out.

Santorini is very easy to DIY. As mentioned, there are MANY threads on each port just down the board.

All 3 of these ports are easy to do yourselves, generally. I tend to think that reviewing all the cruise line excursions is an excellent way to determine what is "Must See". They generally do a very good job of offering a way to see just about all of the important things in a location. So I always read them in detail and then decide what I might want to do in that port. Then I research how to do it myself so I don't have to use the cruise line due to the reasons the OP suggests above. It also allows you to pick and choose options from more than one excursion and see if you merge them together into a single DIY day. I doubt you'll find many people suggesting things to do in a the ports that aren't offered as excursions.

Our cruise is a year away (Celebrity Equinox) and I am a planner. I've looked at the excursions offered by the cruise line and was not really excited by them.

How easy are these ports for DYI? We've cruised before and have done both private tours with groups we have connected with on our Roll Call and a few ship tours. Never having been to these ports, we want to capture highlights but not be herded around.

What are "MUST SEES" for these ports?

I'm open to suggestions for all.

We loved Rhodes. Your ship is only a short walk to the Walled City which is just fun to spend several hours walking around. There are some sites to visit and also lots of stores and restaurants and it is just a fun place to walk around.

Keith

We were at all 3 ports on our May Reflection cruise, and I agree that Rhodes and Mykonos are very easy to do on your own. The old town of Rhodes is just a short walk from the ship, has a lot of charm and you can wander as long as you like. We tendered in Mykonos right to the town, I think there is usually a shuttle if your ship docks, but no need for a tour. In Santorini, however, I would check how many cruise ships will be in port with you that day, just google "Santorini Port Schedule" and it will tell you. We had 9000 cruise passengers in port on our day and the lines were monstrous for the cable car up the cliff from the tender drop off. We purchased passes for the the boat to Oia ahead of time, worked great for us as we bypassed the really long line in the hot sun. Lots of info on this on another thread. However, if you have a slower port day, Santorini is also good for DIY, go up the cliff to Fira and then take either a bus or taxi to Oia. Very easy.

We were at all three ports last week on a Windstar cruise.

Here's what we did (all independent from cruise line—all DIY):

Rhodes:

Our Windstar boat arrived at 13:00. For a few hours we went to Ellia beach which was about a 15 minute walk from where our ship docked. It’s a nice beach & it’s adjacent to Rhodes new town which is right next to the Old City.

We then toured the Old (walled) City.

We first went to the Castle (very interesting), strolled along the so-called Knights Street and did the maritime museum.

The balance of our time was consumed by walking on the cobblestoned streets within the Old City. Good shopping (my wife did her jewelry shopping in Rhodes).

There is no need to book a cruise line based excursion for Rhodes unless perhaps you want to travel to Lindos, which is apparently about a 90 minute bus ride away. Windstar ran this Lindos excursion & a number of people did it & enjoyed it.

Santorini:

We unfortunately had an awful experience to start in Santorini (see my posting from Cruise Critic on what happened below).

However Santorini is a beautiful island and Oia is a terrific place to walk around and see.

We ended up taking a taxi to Oia from Fira then back at a total cost of 30 Euros.

There are a number of great restaurants for lunch with views in Oia.

Don’t miss Oia.

Also after returning, we walked around in Fira, which was also a very nice town.

Enjoy your time in Santorini.

Since all cruise ships tender in Santorini, build in time to tender to & from and also time to go up then down on the cable cars.

CAVEAT EMPTOR---SANTORINI PLANET---BOAT FIRA TO OIA THEN BUS RETURN

A warning to anyone thinking about booking the Santorini Planet transfer, boat to Oia then a return bus back to Fira.

Having a reservation & having paid your money in advance means absolutely nothing.

Over two months ago I made a reservation for two people for the 9:45AM transfer on June 12 and had pre-paid for the excursion.

My wife and I arrived via Windstar on 6/12/14, tendered to shore then walked over the Boatmen’s desk ( who actually operate the transfer). They told us that no Santorini Planet tours were being run on that day.

The Boatmen’s got Chimenta Gianluca Manfredi (from Santorini Planet) on the phone and we spoke.

He told me that the transfer runs only when a minimum of 15 people are booked.

I asked him, if he knew that the tour was not going to be run, why he didn’t send me an e-mail so that I could make alternate plans.

Mr. Manfredi gave me a lot of nonsense on the phone about why he couldn’t do.

However, thank goodness Josuf (the person at the Boatmen’s desk) couldn’t have been more helpful.

He called for us and arranged for a taxi friend to get us to Oia (for 15 Euro total) then this person arranged a return transfer back from Oia in the afternoon ( again at 15 Euro). Thank you Josuf!

As far as Mr. Manfredi, you should NOT promote yourself the way you do, accept people’s money in advance and then not deliver on your commitment. Shame on you.

To readers of this posting , again Caveat Emptor!

Mykonos

We tendered at Mykonos and the tender dropped us off right near the center of town (Chora).

We walked two minutes to the town center where there’s a taxi stand.

We shared a taxi with a couple from the boat, we went to Ornos beach ( 3 miles south of town) & they continued further on to Paradise beach. Total cost 4 people 12 Euros.

The other couple were young & newlyweds, Paradise is a party beach, they said they had a good time ( if you’re looking for action apparently this is the place to be on Mykonos).

Ornos beach in contrast was family oriented & quiet.

We paid 10 Euro for two sun beds + umbrella.

We had lunch in a beachside restaurant think it was about 30 Euro.

The water at Ornos was spectacular, calm & clean, it’s a protected cove.

Coming back we had arranged to also share a taxi with two others from our boat who had arrived later in the day at ornos then we did.

The cost for the four of us was 10 Euro for the ride back.

We then walked around Chora, famous for its windmills but did not see the mascot pelican of Mykonos.

Mykonos has a reputation for the most beautiful beaches & our experience confirmed that.

All three port stops are just wonderful please have a great time when you do go.

Mykonos and Santorini are very easy ports to DIY. Check out my detailed blog about these ports and others along with pictures at

winenchocolate dot com

You will love Greece.

We rented a car in both Santorini and Rhodes. In Santorini, we got off the ship early, got our car, and went straight to Oia before all the crowds arrived (we were the only ship in port, so it was great!). We spent quite a bit of time around Oia, and then drove around the island, visiting some of the nice beaches, wineries, and a beer brewery.

In Rhodes, we got our car in the old town and drove around the island, visited some wineries, and then went to Lindos. Since our ship didn't sail until midnight, we went back on board for dinner and then went off the ship to enjoy the old town at night time; it was beautiful and less crowded.

In Mykonos, we rented a quad ATV and drove around the island, stopping at Paradise Beach and another beach that I cannot remember the name of. Our ship was in port until midnight, so we enjoyed the sunset in town and the liveliness of the town in the evening.

We rented a car in both Santorini and Rhodes. In Santorini, we got off the ship early, got our car, and went straight to Oia before all the crowds arrived (we were the only ship in port, so it was great!). We spent quite a bit of time around Oia, and then drove around the island, visiting some of the nice beaches, wineries, and a beer brewery.

 

In Rhodes, we got our car in the old town and drove around the island, visited some wineries, and then went to Lindos. Since our ship didn't sail until midnight, we went back on board for dinner and then went off the ship to enjoy the old town at night time; it was beautiful and less crowded.

 

In Mykonos, we rented a quad ATV and drove around the island, stopping at Paradise Beach and another beach that I cannot remember the name of. Our ship was in port until midnight, so we enjoyed the sunset in town and the liveliness of the town in the evening.

Hi

Did you book the car and ATV rental ahead of time, prior to cruise? If so, who did you book it with? If not, where did you go for the rental?

Thanks!

Hi

 

Did you book the car and ATV rental ahead of time, prior to cruise? If so, who did you book it with? If not, where did you go for the rental?

 

Thanks!

In Santorini, we booked the car ahead of time with Tony's. We were off the ship very early, went straight to the car rental, and headed to Oia. We were in Oia well ahead of the tours. We were the only ship there that day, so the crowds were not light. After spending a few hours in Oia, we went to the wineries and beaches for the rest of the day.

In Mykonos, we did not book the ATV in advance. We walked into town where there were a few ATV rental places to choose from. I can't remember the name of the ATV rental.

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We twice have rented cars from Tony's on Santorini; he is located very close to the cable car terminus. I always reserve ahead of time because I need an automatic; cannot drive a stick shift, and the demand for those are great. He turned away several customers looking for one the first time we used his company.

We just returned from cruising the Greek Islands of Mykonos, Rhodes and Santorini.

In Rhodes, we just walked the short distance and stopped for refreshments at a local restaurant. We didn't go into the castle, if you even could, but walked around it.

We took a taxi to Oia. At first the driver was very quiet then he opened up and showed us some awesome sites. He took us to an overlook where we could see Oia.

There was shuttles that took you to Mykonos. There we walked around the shopping area and up to the Windmills. Some friends took some 4 wheelers out and had fun doing that.

We rented a jeep in Mykonos from Kosmos rent a car and had a great experience. We were able to drive all over the island and experience several beaches and a great restaurant at Ftelia Beach.

In Rhodes, we rode the city bus up to Lindos. Once there , we rented donkeys and rode up to the top of the fort there. We walked down checking out all the shops and then headed to a fantastic beach where we had a snack lunch. We hopped on the bus and had time to walk around the walled city before getting back on our ship.

The purpose of the trip was a wedding in Santorini so I can't help you there. We were picked up and brought back by the hotel where the wedding took place.

Have a fantastic time

Connie

PAST CRUISES:

Discovery Sun 2003 Freeport Bahamas Day Cruise

Celebrity Solstice 6/26/09 Eastern Mediterranean

Carnival Conquest 08/10/10 Eastern Caribbean

Carnival Victory 06/10/12 Southern Caribbean http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1659913

Carnival Miracle 07/30/13 Alaska http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=39476968#post39476968

Diamond Princess 12/23/13 New Zealand/Australia http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2112413

I've been to those ports. I just walked around in Mykonos - very pretty place. I was not crazy about Rhodes, and don't remember a whole lot about it, but perhaps I just hadn't done enough research on it before we went. My husband rented a scooter and went zipping around the island on that. In Santorini we rented an ATV (3 wheeler) and drove around the northern half of the island. Driving was easy, as there aren't all that many major roads. There's a good map of the island on santoriniweb.com. Oia was spectacular, and since we're going back there in October, I am looking at new places to discover - although could be happy just going to Oia, I think! I basically do what one of the posters above mentions doing - reading the cruise line descriptions of excursions as a starter, and then trying to decide how to do what interests me. I usually use public transportation (which is decent in Santorini, from what I've read) or sometimes a rental car (also decent, and inexpensive, in Santorini).

I can't find a Santorini port site that lists cruise visits, so I can't tell how many other ships will be in port that day. I looked at cruisett.com and another cruise calendar site (cruisetimetables maybe?) and both sites don't list any ship being there other than us, so I am hoping, hoping, hoping that is the case.

You might want to pull up tomsportguides.com and find the port writeup on Santorini. It has lots of good, specific information. He might have a port guide for Rhodes or Mykonos, too.