Review of Jade & the Greek Isles: Santorini, Mykonos, Istanbul, etc

[thera]

Just wanted to throw this here for anyone interested as this site has helped me so much with planning over the years.  Happy to answer any questions.  This was an anniversary cruise that was delayed due to the pandemic and we finally got to Greece this time in September.  We booked the cruise through a third party and received BOGO flights, drinks package, 2 specialty restaurant visits, 250 mins of WiFi, and $50 off shore excursions.  NCL booked us on very good flights (shocker!), only 1 connection through Philly (coming and going).  We did a one day deviation, left on Friday and arrived Saturday morning.  We had an obstructed OV on deck 8 which was fine for us since we only were in the room for sleeping & getting ready.  We've been on the Jade before, many years ago on a western Med cruise. 

 

I booked a taxi service through Athens Airport Taxi (40 euros, used the ATM in the arrivals hall with no issues) and the driver was waiting for us in the arrivals hall right after picking up our luggage.  Very nice Mercedes van with water provided.  It was around a 30-35 min drive to our hotel, B4B Athens Signature, which I HIGHLY recommend.  We did our COVID tests at a pharmacy (7 Euros) that was a 3 min walk away, had lunch at a great spot called the Coffee Joint and then rested a bit before going back out at 4pm to hike the Acropolis.  There were a lot of folks around but no large line at the south entrance.  After taking a hundred pictures and sweating for a while, we decided to walk to the Plaka and then back to the hotel.  We freshened up and had dinner and drinks at the rooftop of our hotel which was very nice.  

 

The next day, the hotel breakfast buffet was simply awesome.  The hotel provided excellent service throughout our short stay.  We checked out, stored our luggage and got an Uber to the Archaeological Museum, where we stayed for probably 5 hours looking at everything.  Got an Uber back to the hotel, got a taxi to the port and arrived around 2:45 pm.  This is where things started to suck a bit.  The first line they wanted our COVID tests, which we showed them.  Next line was to dump off luggage.  Then another line to get a number and sit inside a tent for a very long time to check in.  When we got to actual check in, they did all the stuff that I did online during that check in process.  It saved no time at all doing it online and I was a little annoyed.  People we spoke to were also complaining about the COVID tests, so much confusion around it.  First thing we had to do on the ship was muster, which thankfully didn't take but a couple of minutes.  We dropped off our stuff in our room, got snacks and drinks at around 4:30pm.  We had dinner in Alizar which was fine, drinks at the martini bar then it was sleepy time.        

 

We were up early for the NCL shore excursion to Ephesus.  Got breakfast at the packed buffet, and went to the theater to be called.  Lots of excursions this day, we waited quite a while and thought, dang, we could have had more coffee.  The tour guide, Phillis, was great, and the terrace houses were definitely something to see.  We stopped for bathrooms and a little shopping.  The unfortunate thing was that we stopped for a carpet sale after that, which was not on the itinerary when I booked, and I was a little annoyed that we could have spent time in Kusadasi instead.  There was a note attached to the shore excursion tickets saying we could opt out and walk back to the port but the store we stopped at was too far away from the port.  We got back on the ship and had lunch and then relaxed poolside for the afternoon.  We had Le Bistro for dinner and it did not disappoint.  The lamb chops were some of the best I've had.

 

Istanbul was very interesting with a ton of history.  Again an early day, we booked a half-day tour with Tour Altinkum Travel, meeting at 8:30am.  Some things were closed, the reason for us picking a half-day tour.  Found our guide where he said he would be at the port and he said we needed to pick up a couple and we would then be on our way.  Traffic is a major issue here so the van dropped us off near the hotel where we picked up the other couple and we walked to Hagia Sophia.  It was around 9:20 am by this time and there was a huge line to get in.  But when it opened, the line moved very fast.  Very neat place.  After learning a lot of the history here, we walked basically across the square to the Blue Mosque, which was under construction, but you could still see some tiles and things inside.  Then walked around the corner to the Hippodrome, another highlight.  After this, we walked towards the Grand Bazaar, but first, our tour guide said we would watch a "fashion show" at a leather store "where they had good bathrooms, unlike the Bazaar."  It was super strange and off putting.   Again, this was not on the itinerary I booked.  After that, our tour guide stated we would stop at a Turkish delight shop and then finally the Grand Bazaar, but we would have to walk back to the port.  This was not stated again on the booking, so I was very peeved at this point.  We walked into the Bazaar for a bit and then decided since we had to walk all the way back, we better start.  I wouldn't book the tour again, I would pick another company.  It took us an hour but we finally got back and then ate a late lunch and rested again in the afternoon on the ship.  We had dinner at Alizar again then hit the hay.

 

Volos was the next stop and we didn't have to leave on our excursion until 12:45 pm.  We had a leisurely breakfast in the MDR and watched the Aegean for a while.  Off to the theater at exactly the time where they were calling our bus tour.  We stopped at the Volos Archaeological Museum which was tiny compared to Athens but our tour guide was an archaeologist so it was interesting to hear from her point of view on the antiquities.  We boogied out of there and started up Mt Pelion to Makrinitsa, a cute village which I enjoyed a lot.  Great views of the harbor way down below and great prices on gifts to bring back home.  The weather was turning cool and semi-rainy and we started back down.  We had dinner at Cagney's and it was delicious.  The ahi tuna tartare was so good.  We probably ate too much though.  Had a nightcap at Spinnaker and went to bed.

 

Up and early once again in Mykonos, we booked another shore excursion to Delos.  We kept laughing at how we were on one boat, then transferred on another boat (tender) to shore to get on another boat to the other side of the harbor to get on another boat to Delos.  That Delos trip had probably the choppiest waters I've seen and we are boaters (albeit on the lake and not the open sea).  I was regretting not taking Bonine, it was that sketchy.  We had an hour and change in Delos (again, another very cool place) before we had to get on the boat again at 11am back to Mykonos.  Once there, I kissed the ground and noticed all the people that had flooded into the town.  We couldn't find the tour guide and someone in our party said we had to walk back to the tender.  Really bad for any folks with mobility issues.  I would have liked to have seen the museum on Delos but found out it's closed.  We took some pictures around the windmills and did the walk back to the tender and ship.  Too many ships and people in town for my taste.  Noticing a trend here, we got a late lunch and relaxed.  Dinner was in the MDR and was good.  

 

In Rhodes we did a DIY tour via the GPSmycity app.  Had a great leisurely walk through town then toured the Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights for 8 euros PP.  Very cool mosaics and view of the harbor!  We continued our walk to the harbor and to where the Colossus of Rhodes once was, then walked back to the ship.  Had dinner again in the MDR.

 

Santorini day, the only plan I had was to find a restaurant for lunch and have a glass of wine while viewing the caldera.  We got off the ship around 10am and did the cable car thing.  Not a fan but there's few options of course.  Took 45-50 mins coming and going.  Walked to Imerovigli, did some shopping.  The views are just incredible, I don't think pictures really do them justice.  Only two ships in port but it still felt super busy.  Checked in for our return flights.  Had dinner at the buffet since we wanted to watch the sunset from the ship. 

 

Last day we were up early since we had a 11:30am flight and did self-debarkation.  We had a quick breakfast in the buffet and retrieved our luggage, but then had difficulty getting off the ship.  The elevators were packed.  We eventually went up to 12 then headed midship and back down to 4 where we walked off.  I had pre-booked the taxi service again but there were plenty of taxis at the port.  Was the same price as a taxi (55 euros) though and a nicer ride in my opinion.  Just a side note if you're coming back into the states.  The olive oil I bought after security in Athens was confiscated in Philly since we had no idea we had to completely go through another security checkpoint there and they wouldn't accept the duty free items (and yes it was in a tamper-evident bag).  They were throwing out everyone's liquid purchased at duty free, not just us.  Last time we flew internationally a few years ago this didn't happen but don't know if it's an airport issue or what.

 

Everyone on the ship was polite and helpful, we had no issues.  Our steward was very efficient.  We used the hot tubs daily which helped us recover from all the walking.  There were some chair hogs out during popular pool times as expected.  We didn't make it to any shows, that's really not our thing anyway.  I honestly didn't have any food on the ship I would consider bad.  Some things were better than others.  Never had an issue with waits at restaurants, it wasn't a full ship but I don't know what the capacity was.  Lots of folks washed their hands at the buffet which was nice.  We did have to walk back to near the Great Outdoors a few times for a seat at popular times, and they have a little buffet out there as well with less people.  We had a fun time trying drinks we've never had before without worrying about a massive bar bill.  The WiFi was very slow but I only used it for checking email and a few other things (I had an eSIM for Greece that worked great, I should have upped it from 1 GB though since I almost used it up).  Weather was almost perfect (pretty hot in Athens).  I'd love to come back and go to Crete, maybe some smaller islands like Paros, but this gave me a good intro.  Overall it was an incredible trip seeing a lot of things that I've only read about in art history classes and the History Channel.

[PapaGoose]

Great review! We had also booked a cruise for the Greek Islands to celebrate an anniversary, as well as our son’s high school graduation, back in 2020. Now that junior is midway through his university journey, we will have a hard time booking something similar for all three of us. I will be using some of your advice to plan something for my DW and myself. Do you think an aft balcony would be worthwhile for this type of cruise?

[thera]

17 minutes ago, PapaGoose said:

Great review! We had also booked a cruise for the Greek Islands to celebrate an anniversary, as well as our son’s high school graduation, back in 2020. Now that junior is midway through his university journey, we will have a hard time booking something similar for all three of us. I will be using some of your advice to plan something for my DW and myself. Do you think an aft balcony would be worthwhile for this type of cruise?

Honestly, if it were me, I'd save the money for shore excursions or something else if it's the same or similar cruise that's port heavy.  We had entertained bidding on a balcony but thought (and we were right) that we would never be in the room to use it, so we stuck with the OV.  🙂

[kevin&randall]

Thank you for the insights.  We leave very soon via Athens.  Do you remember much about the cruise terminal?  I can't determine if it is just a big tent or more modern?  Selfishly, I am in a Suite.  Did you notice if there was a "Concierge / Suite / Haven" special area?

Thank you for the information about Istanbul.  How far is it from the Bazaar to the port?  Is it walkable or must we take a taxi?

Thanks

 

--Randall--

[casofilia]

Who were the senior officers please?  The concierge?   Was an MDR open on embarkation?   

 

Thanks

[Crazy planning mom]

Thanks for your review.  Scheduled to sail on the Jade soon and there haven't been a ton of reviews.

[thera]

12 hours ago, kevin&randall said:

Thank you for the insights.  We leave very soon via Athens.  Do you remember much about the cruise terminal?  I can't determine if it is just a big tent or more modern?  Selfishly, I am in a Suite.  Did you notice if there was a "Concierge / Suite / Haven" special area?

Thank you for the information about Istanbul.  How far is it from the Bazaar to the port?  Is it walkable or must we take a taxi?

Thanks

 

--Randall--

The cruise terminal has tents, the big one is where you take a number and sit for a while.  I think there was a sign for Haven.  The Bazaar to the port is walkable, took us about an hour but we stopped to take pictures occasionally and we were going downhill.  There's so much traffic in Istanbul, you could also take a tram from the port to the Bazaar area as I understand.

[thera]

11 hours ago, casofilia said:

Who were the senior officers please?  The concierge?   Was an MDR open on embarkation?   

 

Thanks

No clue on the first two questions, sorry.  The CD Danny introduced himself while we were at Spinnaker and we talked for a bit.  He seemed very nice.  The MDR was not open for lunch day 1.  

[casofilia]

@thera

 

Thank you

[snorklinbarb]

On 9/30/2022 at 8:50 PM, casofilia said:

Who were the senior officers please?  The concierge?   Was an MDR open on embarkation?   

 

Thanks

Concierge is Suzana Bajramovic who joined Jade a couple of months ago.

Last I heard Mirsad was GM.

 

Always enjoy your posts!

[KeithJenner]

On 10/1/2022 at 12:01 AM, kevin&randall said:

Thank you for the insights.  We leave very soon via Athens.  Do you remember much about the cruise terminal?  I can't determine if it is just a big tent or more modern?  Selfishly, I am in a Suite.  Did you notice if there was a "Concierge / Suite / Haven" special area?

Thank you for the information about Istanbul.  How far is it from the Bazaar to the port?  Is it walkable or must we take a taxi?

Thanks

 

--Randall--

When we sailed from Athens in a suite earlier this year there was a suite check in area, just before the main check in. After checking in we waited in that same area (no snacks/drinks available) before being taken on to the ship.

[SlipperyP]

We did our COVID tests at a pharmacy (7 Euros) that was a 3 min walk away
 

 

Thanks for the great review!  I am doing this itinerary this week.  Do you remember the name of the pharmacy you used?

[thera]

7 hours ago, SlipperyP said:

We did our COVID tests at a pharmacy (7 Euros) that was a 3 min walk away
 

 

Thanks for the great review!  I am doing this itinerary this week.  Do you remember the name of the pharmacy you used?

It was ΦΑΡΜΑΚΕΙΟ ΧΑΛΑΡΗΣ, Kallirrois 15.  Several pharmacies I believe have them at a similar price as well, you can ask your hotel.

[mollymaloney]

Two questions:  In Mykonos did you use tenders or dock?  When boat says it docks at 7:00 AM when do you get off ship and when it says the boat leaves at 9:30 PM, what time do you have to be back on ship?