Live Report - Jade From Athens 17th April

[Meldon22]

5 hours ago, KeithJenner said:

Currently waiting for the coach back to Thira from Oia, so I’m taking the opportunity to post some pictures from here.

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccr9CEqIrm_/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Thank you for your posts.

 

We are doing this cruise in July. Just have a question about the Santorini stop. We are scheduled to be in port from 1230 to 930pm. Was your stop the same. 

 

We have a 5 hr custom private tour booked from 1:30pm to 6:30pm and then we're hoping to book a nice dinner we are a group of 9. Just concerned about timing. Will leaving a Fira restaurant at 830pm or 845pm be enough time to get back to the ship?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[KeithJenner]

8 minutes ago, Meldon22 said:

Thank you for your posts.

 

We are doing this cruise in July. Just have a question about the Santorini stop. We are scheduled to be in port from 1230 to 930pm. Was your stop the same. 

 

We have a 5 hr custom private tour booked from 1:30pm to 6:30pm and then we're hoping to book a nice dinner we are a group of 9. Just concerned about timing. Will leaving a Fira restaurant at 830pm or 845pm be enough time to get back to the ship?

 

 

That is quite a late arrives in Santorini. We arrived at 8am.

I wouldn’t recommend your timing for return. The last tender leaves at 9pm and you need to get down the cable car. Apparently the last cable car goes at 8.30. I wouldn’t want to be arriving there after 8pm personally.

 

[Meldon22]

8 minutes ago, KeithJenner said:

That is quite a late arrives in Santorini. We arrived at 8am.

I wouldn’t recommend your timing for return. The last tender leaves at 9pm and you need to get down the cable car. Apparently the last cable car goes at 8.30. I wouldn’t want to be arriving there after 8pm personally.

 

 

Thank you. Wish we arrived earlier and had more time. Not sure if we should get dropped off in Fira at 630 and walk around for a bit then have a late dinner on board. 

 

Edited April 23, 2022 by Meldon22

[complawyer]

were where on the jade 9 day tour from athens apr 8 through 17th.

 

we  live in los angels,and had a covid test done locally on the 5th. the results were back by 2:00 a.m onthe 6th. we had a 6 am flight l.a. to jfk, jfk to ath.

 

whenwe got to the dock, there were 2 lines, eurofins, yes and no. we were inthe yes line and at the end there were a number of stations. they check your passport and give you the standard covid materials, plastic bag holding a swab and the vial of liquid. there  also had a tag with a letter and number attached. like a bingo number mine was d 52.

 

you re then instructed to wait and are given a color coded sticker. when this color is called we proceeded to another station where the covid test was administered. you then went into the boarding area and needed to wait until your bingo number was called up. if you tested - you were given a paper band on your wrist and allowed to proceed to actual check in. after that it was clear sailing.

ist day out was a sea day, 1st port was jerusalem on the 10th.

 

on the 9th (sea day) there were people from the israeli health ministry on board to once again administer their own covid test.

unfortunately, the ship was not allowed to disembark any passengers unless and until all the prior days tests were checked. we had a tour scheduled at 7:30, and didnt get off the ship until after 12.

 

we stayed in athens on the 17th. we were inthe marriott hotel, and next door was a hospital. we had the required covid test done there (to get back into the states) took about 30 minutes at no cost

 

all together, painless,but time consuming.

 

 

hope this helps to clarify the requirements

[KeithJenner]

We had Teppanyaki to ourselves tonight 🙂

[complawyer]

that's strange but great for you. usually teppanyaki is the toughest reservation to get

[KeithJenner]

Another great day today.

 

Our preference is usually to visit places independently, but we do tours when needed. Sometimes we book private tours but are quite happy to use NCL if they offer what we want. As we wanted to see Oia, we booked the NCL tour.

 

On that tour, the tender takes you to the port towards the south of the island, which is the only place on this side of the island which has vehicle access. A coach then takes you to Oia where you have about 90 minutes to yourself and then you are taken back to Thira where you are left to yourself again and can take the cable car/tender back to the ship.

 

Oia is lovely. We walked around and stopped at a cafe with a great view for a coffee/soft drink. I’m really glad that we went,

 

We were back on the ship in the early afternoon. The ship has been quiet for most of the day.

 

We booked the early Teppanyaki sitting. There are four tables on the Jade, but they have only been using three. As we are in Santorini until late, it looks like only one table had been booked, but the others didn’t turn up, so there were just the three of us. It was very enjoyable. We were able to chat with the chef rather than him have to do his show.

 

We are now relaxing in the cabin and will be sailing away soon. Santorini looks really nice from here at night.

 

Time to travel home tomorrow. I will write up some conclusions in the next couple of days, but for now thanks to everyone who has contributed here. Hopefully some of it has been useful.

[casofilia]

We were in Santorini a couple of years ago and did the equivalent of NCL's ultimate Santorini, we would highly recommend it.

[carolerwo]

We will be doing the same itinerary in just three weeks-can check in tomorrow. Really appreciate your live thread and you taking us along with you. Looking forward to your final thoughts.

Safe travels home.

[kmurph22]

Keith it sounds like you had a wonderful trip! 
 

my brief review from the Haven (we scored a nice upgrade through the bidding process):

 

a couple of overall pieces of info : 

 

the Jade is just 2 weeks out of dry dock and her public spaces look bright and new. 
We were told there were about 1200 passengers on board. 
The staff was wonderful throughout the ship.

We didn’t attend any of the big theater shows or bingo -  just not our thing. 
We did an NCL tour of Ephesus in Kusadasi due to the short port time ,  a private tour in Istanbul and Volos,  just walked around Mykonos and Rhodes, and rented a car to explore Santorini. 

‘PROs

• boarding and the testing process at the port. was seamless probably took 45 minutes total. 
• haven cabin was so nice to have ,  Bruno is a great concierge and seemingly everywhere he needs to be. 
• Mykonos and Santorini are wonderful in April although many shops and restaurants were just opening for the season -  but we definitely avoided the crowds but still had some prime people watching.  The long port time on both islands was very welcome,  it was great to stay on land for the famed Santorini sunset.
• Rhodes was a pleasant surprise to me ,  I really loved the old town and atmosphere. 
• we didn’t run into many pushy vendors in any port.
• specialty restaurants were all good.  We especially loved the sushi bar - if you use a dining package there they give 4 rolls PER PERSON plus an app…. We were able to split our dining package and use one of our nights to go there twice
• Le Bistro escargots 
• Cagneys shrimp cocktail and great waiter, Rajesh
• Moderno was great too -  try the capriniha and grilled pineapple is a must.
• we enjoyed concerts every evening in the champagne bar and frequently a before dinner drink at the Whiskey bar. 
• we both won money in the casino (! That never happens !) -  not a lot,  but we went home happy.  The casino was generally a bit quiet -  I noticed that the slots didn’t have any volume turned on -  maybe I’m a geek but i enjoy that beep beep boop  action!   However -  after I mentioned this to one of the bartenders in the whiskey bar,  magically the sound was on later in the cruise! 
• disembarkation was also smooth,  just 10 minutes in total but we disembarked fairly late as we are staying in Athens and didn’t have to rush.  Disembarkation was the only  time we experienced crowded elevators! 
• we got a $25 room credit just for stopping by the Cruise Next desk and being Platinum.  We also got Platinum pins!
   

CONS

• Our master shower had a slight problem,  but they corrected it and made it right. thanks Bruno! 
• vs another Haven cruise (on the Getaway) , we did miss having a dedicated bar, restaurant, and concierge desk. Nice to have coffee and breakfast options in the room,  pool, and Moderno though. 
• Rainy and cold weather in Kusadasi and Istanbul put a literal damper on those ports,  of course not NCLs fault.  This is the risk of an early season cruise . 
• the only really poor meal I had was in O’Sheahan’s.  I ordered a lunchtime burger that was truly inedible.  The meat was just gross.  We have always enjoyed O’Sheehans on other ships. 
• the hot tub in  The haven was nice to have , but not quite hot enough.  Maybe because there were a lot of kids staying in the Haven?
• at the end of the Ephesus tour we were taken to a “carpet making demonstration” near the port.  Not sure if we could have skipped this, but it felt like a hard sell and we had to walk through a fairly pushy jewelry store to exit. It was a little uncomfortable. 

 

overall a great cruise.  It is so nice to return to travel ! 
 

also if you are staying in Athens,  highly recommend the King George hotel and Welcome pickups transfer service -  ask for Andreas, who this morning presented us with a little Greek Easter basket!

 

I will write blog posts and post here when I have some more time after digging out of work ! 

 

KMurph22

Edited April 24, 2022 by kmurph22

[KeithJenner]

11 minutes ago, kmurph22 said:

 

• we enjoyed concerts every evening in the champagne bar and frequently a before dinner drink at the Whiskey bar. 

You may have seen us a few times then. We were often playing cards at the table right by the bar in Tankards.

 

I was also the drunk one on Thursday in the champagne bar when the piano player was on. Sorry if I was annoying. It was the beer in Rhodes that did it (and all the wine they made me drink at La Cucina didn’t help).

Edited April 24, 2022 by KeithJenner

[jennjess]

Thanks for reviews on your cruise it's very helpful for cruisers in the next few weeks.

 

In your opinion is it worth getting tested before boarding or just wait until boarding?

 

[kmurph22]

1 minute ago, KeithJenner said:

You may have seen us a few times then. We were often playing cards at the table right by the bar in Tankards.

 

I was also the drunk one on Thursday in the champagne bar when the piano player was on. Sorry if I was annoying. It was the beer in Rhodes that did it (and all the wine they made me drink at La Cucina didn’t help).

Ha ha we probably were too. I recall singing along .   I believe that was the night we discovered the “Rum Cake” martini 🙂 

[kmurph22]

Just now, jennjess said:

Thanks for reviews on your cruise it's very helpful for cruisers in the next few weeks.

 

In your opinion is it worth getting tested before boarding or just wait until boarding?

 

I tested at home before traveling because it gave me a little peace of mind -  although not a guarantee,  I was hoping not to test positive right from the get-go!  

[blueseas2sail]

18 hours ago, complawyer said:

 

whenwe got to the dock, there were 2 lines, eurofins, yes and no. we were inthe yes line and at the end there were a number of stations. they check your passport and give you the standard covid materials, plastic bag holding a swab and the vial of liquid. there  also had a tag with a letter and number attached. like a bingo number mine was d 52.

 

you re then instructed to wait and are given a color coded sticker. when this color is called we proceeded to another station where the covid test was administered. you then went into the boarding area and needed to wait until your bingo number was called up. if you tested - you were given a paper band on your wrist and allowed to proceed to actual check in. after that it was clear sailing.

 

hope this helps to clarify the requirements

  You had eurofins documentation. So what do you mean when you said "if you were tested" ?

[jennjess]

59 minutes ago, kmurph22 said:

I tested at home before traveling because it gave me a little peace of mind -  although not a guarantee,  I was hoping not to test positive right from the get-go!  

This is what I am now thinking to do.  Test at home the day before travelling (just to check we are negative) then test at the port when boarding.  We are travelling to Athens the day before the cruise which makes getting tested difficult in the 24 hour period as we arrive in the evening.

[fabnfortysomething]

On 4/23/2022 at 8:07 AM, KeithJenner said:

Rhodes is my favourite Greek port. The old town is great to just walk around, and you dock very close so it is easy to walk on and off.

 

We went out in the morning and afternoon and really enjoyed just wandering around. Then we found a bar.

 

We were offered medium or large beer. I went for large and my wife medium. This meant that she only got a litre, compared to my two litres. 🙂

 

It all went downhill from there really. Dinner in La Cucina was excellent and then we went to the champagne bar to watch the piano player. I have vague memories of going back to our room at the end of the night.

 

I’m currently sitting in The Great Outdoors drinking coffee to try to prepare myself for the Santorini tender.

 

Quite a few pictures from Rhodes:

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccp9uxLIP5y/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
 

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccp-GNkocc2/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
 

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccp-Ywsr-Vg/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Keith, I have some photos of the evening in the champagne bar that might jog your 'vague' memory. Ian 🍺🍸😁

[complawyer]

blue seas2sail...they tested everybody, regardless.

 

i was only giving an account of the procedure to get on the ship

[complawyer]

blueseastosail. i figured most people would interpret the - as meaning negative. I guess you failed high school algebra. in any event  if you tested negative (-), you were given a wrist tag and then were allowed to check in. sorry you misinterpreted the (negative)  - sign

 

the question posed was "was there testing at the pier?" the answer was yes, and no charge. i tried to give a step by step picture of the entire procedure, at least for our cruise. 

 

ncl was calling the shots, so i wasnt about to not follow their requirements.

 

our last cruise was july 2018, and since then we've had 8 cancelled.

 

there was the ncl jade, beautifully docked in front of me, magically  and sensually calling my name to "come aboard, come aboard"

if ncl wanted me tp stand on one leg and sing the greek national anthem, i would have tried my best to comply

[KeithJenner]

I think that the one thing the first couple of sailings from Athens have shown is that there is little or no point in worrying about other peoples experiences. It isn 't just NCL that are calling the shots, but the Greek and (if applicable) Israeli authorities.

 

We didn't even have consistency last Sunday on that sailing, let alone comparing what may happen in future weeks.

 

I would just advise people to get whatever tests they are instructed to by NCL, but do so knowing that they may not be required. If you don't and something goes wrong then you may have problems.

[room with a view]

Thanks, Keith for your informative blog . 

We are on the mid September sailing ..staying three days in Athens before the cruise.. I hope that by September all these concerns about testing have been resolved . 

Enjoy your planning for your next cruises ...far away places ??

[KeithJenner]

As a demonstration of how confused the testing situation is, it looks as though the per country protocols were changed again a few days ago. The information for Athens (test paid for by NCL at the port) conflicts with that for Greece (test not required at port if you have a test within 24 hours, with guest paying for the port test if they don't have their own).

 

They actually seemed to be doing a confused mix of the two last week (although I don't think they charged anyone anything).

[KeithJenner]

1 hour ago, room with a view said:

Enjoy your planning for your next cruises ...far away places ??

We've already got the Prima booked for August this year. We are now planning out first few cruises without our son. British Isles to start then probably Viva (Lisbon to Rome) and maybe a transatlantic if we can get it to fit with other things.

[Papawizz]

Hi Keith sounds like you had a great time! 
quick question on the electric sockets in the cabin’s of the Jade! 
Am I correct in thinking there is  both Europe and American style ? 
also is there any usb sockets as there’s more need for them nowadays 

thanks 
 

[KeithJenner]

10 minutes ago, Papawizz said:

Hi Keith sounds like you had a great time! 
quick question on the electric sockets in the cabin’s of the Jade! 
Am I correct in thinking there is  both Europe and American style ? 
also is there any usb sockets as there’s more need for them nowadays 

thanks 
 

Yes, there are both European and US.

 

There are also USB posts on the bottom of the light each side of the bed. It is easy to miss them.