Athens 1st time...princess tour, private or DIY

good evening. We are visiting Athens for first (and maybe) only time in July.

We are considering 3 options

Cruise excursion

Greece private tours

DIY

We usually prefer to do our own thing, not big on scheduled tightly, history or architecture but maybe in this case need that to see as much as we can

Concerns... if we DIY will we waste time finding things and not really getting enough understanding of what we are seeing

Deciding between cruise tour and private we are vacillating..

Greece private tours slightly more expensive and seems to be similar to princess cruise

Really looking for advice of those who have been before and could recommend

All replies appreciated

I would strongly recommend Manos or Dimitri from http://www.athenstourdriver.com they are both lovely guys, very friendly and informative. They will tailor make a trip for you if you don't see a tour you fancy on their website.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

If you want to DIY, Tom's Port Guide has a lot of helpful information

https://www.tomsportguides.com/port-guides.html#greece

PK Travel Greece taxi tour. How can you compare as similar a large coach bus with 50 pax to be driven around in your own personal Mercedes sedan?

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

A lot depends on how much you are willing to put into it.

Logistically speaking, it's easy to tour on your own (DIY) in Athens. There is an express bus that picks up at the cruise terminals and deposits you near the Acropolis in Athens, very cheap.

HOWEVER...

If you DIY, you have to be willing to do a little reading/research to figure out what you want to see and how to get to it. Plus I would highly advise bringing a guidebook (or mp3 if you prefer) for information once you get to the sites -- there is not very much information or signage on the Acropolis or in the Forum. The Acropolis museum is better, as it is quite new and well set up.

Most of the private tours being recommended are basically a driver who will provide you with some information but will not go with you into the sites. Some of these tours are great, others less so -- depends a lot on the specific driver. Best benefit over the ship tours is that you can modify your schedule as desired -- more time at one place, less at another, etc. Plus not waiting for 50 people to go to the bathroom and the gift shop.....

Ship tours -- if you really don't want to do any prep work, but are interested in having a guide walk you through the site and impart information, this may work for you.

I'm normally someone that likes to DIY, but on my first visit to Athens I was with my mom who was a nervous wreck about the ship leaving without her. (Something that is very overplayed by the ships, IMO....). So to appease her I booked a small group tour through Princess, maybe half as many people as the big buses. It actually was one of the better tours we did on that cruise, so if they offer something similar still, you might consider it. It was pricey though....

I'm looking at doing a private tour in late September and I'm debating between going to the Acropolis first, or doing the Acropolis museum first (and the private tour company does recommend this). Aside from maybe seeing the Acropolis with more crowds if I see it a bit later, is seeing the museum first a good idea? The ship is docked between 7am and 5pm.

I'm looking at doing a private tour in late September and I'm debating between going to the Acropolis first, or doing the Acropolis museum first (and the private tour company does recommend this). Aside from maybe seeing the Acropolis with more crowds if I see it a bit later, is seeing the museum first a good idea? The ship is docked between 7am and 5pm.

Personally, I'd check opening times of both places and start wherever I could start earliest.

We did the museum first (because the ticket sellers at the Acropolis were on strike and we couldn't get in until noon) but I don't think it would have made much difference if we did it after.

you can ALWAYS customize your own tour WAY under what they charge you on the cruise ship.....You can also get on your roll call and see if anyone has set us a private tour and you could join.