Please critique my itinerary (tours)! Eastern Med cruise in August (Rome to Athens). Long post, sorry

[nattie]

I have not been to the Mediterranean since last century and could really use some modern and “been there done that” perspective on the tours I am choosing. 

For some background, we are a family of 3 and are doing this trip mostly for our 13 yo DS (he will be 14 on the trip) who is very interested in history and archeology. We have planned a lot of “private” or “small group” things to accommodate for probably A LOT of questions and various fitness levels in our group (DS and I can tour all day, but DH requires frequent rest breaks). My biggest hurdle was to try finding reputable tour operators that are not $$$$.

 

Thank you in advance for any insights or tour company reviews/recommendations!

 

ROME:

Arrival day – arrive at 7 am and go to hotel (booked the night before arrival, so can actually check in!), in the afternoon do a Villa Borghese Gallery & Gardens small-group tour.

Day 1 – Custom all day private tour with “Through Eternity Tours”. We have requested an underground Colosseum tour with arena and walking tour of the city. So we have an all day tour with a break for lunch.

In the evening we are planning to do a Rome River Boat Cruise. Not confident on that one, mixed reviews. Could be nice to just sit and see the sights after all day of walking.

Day 2 – Free in the am, planning to just enjoy morning in Rome and may be hit a street market?

In the afternoon we are doing “Crypts, Bones & Catacombs: An Underground Tour of Rome” with Walks of Rome. This is a small-group tour, could not bring myself to pay 600 euro for 3 hours for private!

 

Cruise

Naples, Italy

Reserved private tour to Pompeii, Herculaneum and Mt. Vesuvius. Climbing Mt. Vesuvius is a must and private option offered additional stop at Herculaneum. Extra bonus for no mandatory cameo factory stop vs all the ship’s tours! We opted for the option that includes archeologist guides at both Herculaneum and Pompeii. Booked this on VIATOR with Worldtours as tour operator (hopefully a good one). This option is significantly more $$$ than ship’s tour, but ship’s tour is also for 40 people.

Crete, Greece

On the fence on this one. I originally wanted to just go to the beach, but DS insisted on Knossos Palace at least (Minotaur and all that…). Right now I have a “Knossos Palace- Zeus Cave -Traditional Villages - Old Wind Mills” private tour booked. None of ship’s tours offered the Zeus Cave or at least I have not seen it. Is the cave really worth the extra $$$? Another major drawback on this tour is that there is no guide at Knossos. If Princess posts more tours with lower passenger capacities like they normally do closer to the sail date, I might switch.

Kusadasi, Turkiye

Doing a private tour with Ephesus Shuttle of “Ephesus, including Terrace houses- Artemis Temple - House of Virgin Mary Tour”. Same price as group tour on Princess. Also, wonderful customer service so far from the tour operator.

Istanbul, Turkiye

Again, doing a private tour with Ephesus Shuttle. Mine is a custom tour, as I wanted to do a Bosphorous cruise and didn’t care about churches or mosques visits. The more I read about Istanbul, the less I am inclined to actually do the Bosphorous cruise due to time constraints. Regardless, I figured if we decide against it, we can just go have some tea at Galata Tower. We are scheduled to tour Topkapi Palace (Harem is optional), walk through Gulhane Park and past Hagia Sophia (not stopping there), visit Underground Cistern, Hippodrome Square and Grand Bazaar. We are scheduled to end with Bosphorous cruise before getting back to port, but, again, might skip that based on timing.

Mykonos, Greece

I wanted a beach day but was overruled by DS and we are going to Delos. Doing a Princess tour here, couldn’t find any tempting private/small group options.

 

Athens, Greece

Day 1: We are staying in Athens for couple of days and are planning to do a debark tour to Cape Sounion on arrival to kill time before hotel check-in. I chose the “no lunch” option tour with Athenian Transfers for this. I LOVE all Mediterranean food, but I am not sure about my family, so it would be best to go somewhere all of us can agree on and enjoy vs what the host picks out. Plus no lunch option offered a stop at Lake Vouillamegni (I am sure I am spelling it wrong).

Day 2:

PRIVATE - ACROPOLIS, ACROPOLIS MUSEUM & MYTHOLOGY TOUR with Alternative Athens. In the AM we are doing Acropolis and surroundings and in the PM a walk tour of the city.

Day 3:

I have reserved the “Ancient theatre of Epidaurus -Sanctuary of Asklepios - Eleusian Mysteries” tour because it offers the snorkeling of the sunken city of Epidaurus. This tour is through “Easy Experiences”.

Day 4:

Unfortunately for us this day is a major Greek National Holiday. Also since our flight is at 6 am next day I am inclined to do just a half day catamaran cruise. Have not booked anything yet. I really want to do a Delphi/Thermopylae trip with Easy Experiences (includes a stop at the hot springs!), but the duration is 12 hours. Should I tough it out and just go for it?

 

 

[Mary loves to travel]

Looks pretty complete for the time you have available.    We did all 3 weeks of the Med cruise last September, with a week in Rome first.  
We did the Princess tour to Knossos in Crete, it included a guide, which I think you’ll need.    When we returned to Heraklion town center with the tour, we chose to stay in town longer and walk back to the ship on our own (or you could taxi back).   We had a light lunch right on the square, then spent an hour plus at the excellent Archeological Museum.   No guide needed for that museum.  
 

Good you found a tour in Ephesus that includes an inside visit of the Terrace houses.   Just looking from the outside doesn’t do it justice.  
 

 

Enjoy,

Mary

[trinitygirl]

I agree, you have squeezed a lot into the time you have - my only advice would be to make sure that you have scheduled days when you can just sit and stare at the ocean.  It's hot and crowded and adrenaline can only carry you so far until someone has a melt down.  I think that your day in Istanbul sounds great - I have visited all of those places but I did it over a week rather than a day.  Don't miss the harem, its awesome, so interesting!!  Ephesus is fascinating; the terrace houses were not fully excavated when I visited about 20 years ago so I am totally excited to go back in August and see inside.    I agree that you need a guide for Knossos - without someone to tell you what is what, its just a big plot with stones and looks totally unimpressive (and also confusing!).   The best thing we did in the few days we spent in Crete was to walk up Butterfly Gorge - so beautiful!  we went early in the morning and it was peaceful and lovely.  We stayed in Heraklion for 4 days, and it was such a lovely town - I plan to spend our day there in August just wandering the old town.   It's going to be great!!

[atobols]

We took our boys on the 14 day Med cruise last July.  They were 16 and 14 at the time we went.  My kids are more into science and math than history.  They loved the cruise but the highlights for them were definitely in the food, culture, and some of the history.  If we went again, I would cut back on the touring we did.  Our cruise had 12 port days and only 2 sea days.  My kids were physically and mentally exhausted by the time we were done.  They have requested to never do such a port intensive cruise again.  It was also really hot and humid, which we aren't used to.  One hundred degree days are fine but that humidity was our undoing.   Also, private tours and guides are definitely the way to go.  We did two tours through Princess and they were nowhere near as good as our private guides.

 

The only advice I have is to maybe rethink the Pompeii, Herculaneum, and climbing Mt. Vesuvius day.   It's hot (unbelievably hot!) and you start to lose interest in the ruins after 4 or 5 hours.  We did much better with tours that allowed us to get out and see things for an hour or so and then get back into an air conditioned van to get a break from the heat before we went back out to see some more.

 

The private guide for Knossos was a blessing.  We had a small private van that got us there as soon as the gates opened.  Our guide was wonderful in that she helped us to know what was really important and pointed out the fascinating things we would have missed if she wasn't there.  She also got us to the front of the crazy long line for the throne room.  That alone saved us at least an hour of waiting in line.

[LibertyBella]

I went on my first Greek cruise as a teen about the same age as your son, and although I enjoyed seeing all the sights, I certainly did not have the same depth of knowledge and historical understanding that I do now (Yes, I actually have one degree in Classics, and graduate work in archaeology). It was my first cruise, and I certainly enjoyed the overall cruise experience as well as all the stops. Most recently I cruised the Greek isles in 2019 on Celebrity. I will only say do not over-book yourself so much on tours that you do not take time to truly enjoy the cruise experience.

 

I am actually on the same cruise you are, but a month earlier.   I chose just to cruise for the one week, because I also wanted to do some pre-and post-tours. I also really like this particular itinerary.  I love hot weather, and I do like tramping around in the sun, but not everyone can tolerate it, so you may need to look at endurance issues with all your tours. I frequently book the cruise tours because most of them include the highlights, and DH and I like full-day tours that also include lunch so we have no worries.  I do not try to penny-pinch my shore excursions, and I do like comfortable air-conditioned transportation. However, because I know a LOT already about what and where I am visiting, if I do not find a tour up to snuff, I will book something privately.  At this point I do not really like any of the Princess Istanbul tours--not comprehensive enough for us. I would pass on a Bosphorus cruise since we will be on the ship seeing everything anyway.

 

Have you had to deal with jet lag lately?  That will be your first challenge upon arrival, even though you have the hotel room. Although they are beautiful, I am not sure I would prioritize seeing the gardens the first day (or even see them at all).  

 

If I were taking a child, I would do something more fun for them, such as taking a gladiator lesson at the gladiator school before or after seeing the Colosseum. Of course you are seeing the Forum during your tour, I expect, but hopefully will see other famous Rome sights like the Spanish steps, the Vatican, the Trevi fountain, etc.  I actually just bought Fodor's Rome 2023 guidebook today, to start giving myself a refresh.

 

We are planning all the Roman tour stuff, especially the Vatican with the Sistine Chapel (all of which we have seen before), but I am also adding on a day tour to Hadrian's Villa and Villa D'Este. Your river cruise sounds relaxing--I have done those in Paris with dinner, and enjoy them a lot.  Of course our transfer day down to the port will mean not doing much in Rome that AM.

 

I think your Naples day  tour is just too much. I am not sure why climbing Mt. Vesuvius is a must. Are you serious hikers?  I do not think your DH will make it that day.  Additionally, I think you should choose EITHER Pompeii or Herculaneum--not try to cram them both in together--just overwhelming, especially with the hike.

 

Again, I think you are trying to see/do too much in Crete--caves should not be the priority. We are taking the Princess tour to Knossos which also visits Agios Nikolaos and includes lunch. Ephesus is a shorter stop, so see as much as you can physically handle (then perhaps the ship's pool?)

 

I personally am enthralled with Delos, and can go back again and again, but it is basically an abandoned island full of ruins--not everybody's cup of tea to enjoy.  The other challenge is the Princess ship docks in the afternoon--so the tours will be in the extreme heat. I prefer going to Delos early morning before all the masses of tourists arrive.  I think it is very fun to explore all the narrow streets of Mykonos, visit the windmills, and have a leisurely lunch and/or an ice cream. One of my husband's favorite memories was swimming in the lovely blue waters of Greece, so if you can build in one day of swimming, I would say go for it here.  BUT if you must see Delos, you will have the late afternoon and evening to enjoy Mykonos strolling.

 

Well, we all know there is just too much to see and do in and near Athens.  You need to prioritize what you really, really want to check off--of course, the Acropolis, any museums?.  Your (long) day tour sounds really fun for your son with the snorkeling included.  Since I just saw the Acropolis again a few years ago, I am hoping to (maybe) get back to Delphi and Mycenae, and I would really like to get to Meteora, although it is a bit far.

 

At this point I am still finalizing my hotels in Athens and Rome, so I have not yet booked those land tours.  Yes, it is certainly great fun to plan.  I wish your family a wonderful and exciting journey!

[nattie]

Wow! THANK YOU to everyone, such a great wealth of knowledge!

 

We are all "elite" on Princess and are doing a "just relax" cruise in April, so I am not worried about missing out on "cruise experience" per se. We did  very port intensive cruises before in the Baltic and Alaska and I agree with everyone that it is A LOT. That's why I was thinking of more chill beach days here and there, but DS insists on seeing the sights on this cruise. Since all the history/archeology stuff is his bailiwick, I am inclined to accede.

I think I'll switch to Princess excursion in Knossos or look for private guide for just that and may be spend part of the day walking around Heraklion instead of full day excursion. 

We are from MD, so hot and humid is how our summers are and we are pretty used to the heat. Vesuvius hike is only 25-30 min, so shouldnt be an issue. Part of the reason I was thinking about private excursion here is so my DH can just stay in the car if he doesnt want to do the hike or is done with ruins. I'll research more if we actually want both Herculaneum and Pompeii.

Generally Princess excursions have been a very good quality lately, my only issue with them is the size of the group. We did all Princess excursions in Alaska last August and they were all great, but we did pay extra for "small group" tours where available. However, Alaska/Caribbean excursions are not where you actually NEED to see/here your guide like you do in the Med.

LibertyBella, Meteora sounds AMAZING! 

[DCThunder]

When in Istanbul, you can spend an entire day in the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar.  Look at some of the carpets for sale and pretend you're interested in buying.  You'll then get the rug merchant giving you the full sales pitch including the green tea and the little sweets.  I was in Istanbul on business years ago and loved the city.  I was there while the Turkish national futbal team was in the finals of the World Cup and the whole city was focused on its fortunes.  BTW, you MUST do he Blue Mosque.  Don't miss that even if you aren't interested in mosques/churches.  When I was there Hagia Sophia was a museum, but I understand it's gone back to being a mosque.  But it's a fascinating building.

[JimmyVWine]

We too have a daughter who caught the history/archaeology bug at a young age and she is now 24 with a Bachelors Double Major in Classical Art/Archaeology and Anthropology and a Master Degree in Classical Archaeology.  She lived in Athens for a year and traveled extensively in that region. When she was a Freshman in college we did our first trip to Athens coupled with a cruise much like yours.  The big differences were that we started in Athens with four days there and our cruise was much more "Greek Island" concentrated.  (Princess doesn't really offer this itinerary at the moment).  But we did a second Med Cruise this past October as an overdue graduation present to our daughter after she completed her Masters.  She served as our very able tour guide, so we did not need to book private tours.  I asked her if she wanted to do any private tours to get another perspective and she reminded me how much her education cost me and told me that if she couldn't fill the role as a private guide, all that money would have been wasted. 

 

Anywhooooo, I just have a couple of thoughts about your itinerary having done most of what you have planned, save for the Turkey portion which I have not been to.  My perspective is as someone who traveled with an aspiring archaeology major on one trip, and as someone who traveled with a successful Masters candidate in archaeology on the other trip.  It was mentioned above and I will reiterate it here.  Your Naples Day is too busy.  I tried to convince my daughter to guide us through both Pompeii and Herculaneum in one day and she said that it had to be "either/or" and we would do the other on another visit.  She voted for Pompeii and that is what we did.  To beat the crowds we hired a driver to take us straight to Pompeii with our tickets already bought and printed.  We arrived around park opening and stayed until 3:00.  From there we crossed the street to the train station and took a train back to Naples, assuming that we would walk to the ship from there.  It was pouring rain, so we took a cab.  Trust me when I tell you that we only saw about a fifth of what we could have.  This was a "greatest hits" tour of Pompeii as selected by my daughter and the idea that we could have squeezed in Herculaneum on top of this would have been laughable.  And to add in Vesuvius? Not in a million years.  Yes, I know that there are excursions and private tours that will do all three.  But every single second that you spend elsewhere is time that is cut from Pompeii.  There is simply no way around it.  If you are satisfied with your "chance of a lifetime" trip to Pompeii being a two hour visit, then perhaps this would work for you.  For my archeologist daughter, this was out of the question.

 

Second:  Don't doubt your decision to go to Delos for a second.  That was a "must see" stop for our daughter on our first trip when she was in college.  I had never heard of it.  Boy was she right.  We hired a private guide (if you watch the Rick Steves show when he visits Delos, it turns out the he and I hired the same guide.  Didn't intend it that way, but it just happened.)  Even with a full visit to Delos we had ample time to roam the streets of Mykonos before it was time to leave. 

 

Third:  While in Athens, (and hopefully the Greek Holiday won't mess this up), you must, and I say this as loudly and firmly as possible, MUST find time to go to the National Archaeology Museum.  It may be the single best museum I have ever been to, (and I have now been 4 times).  When my daughter was studying in Athens she had a UNESCO/Museum Student pass that allowed her unlimited free visits to pretty much everything in Athens and she practically wore that museum out.  The Acropolis Museum is absolutely worth the visit, but its content is "limited" to just the Acropolis.  The National Archaeology Museum has everything else.  When you combine the Acropolis Museum and the the National Archaeology Museum, and then throw in the museum at Olympia, you have pretty much checked all the boxes.  You don't need a private guide for that.  Just do some reading ahead of time.   

 

 

 

 

 

Beyond those few tips, what you have planned sounds like my kind of trip.  Just understand that you will need a vacation from your vacation when you are done!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cruisequeen4ever]

Looks good to me! 

[kilili]

HI Nattie,

You have planned a busy trip!  Last summer I spent 32 nights on a land trip to Europe, the last 7 nights were on a cruise of the greek isles.  In 2014 I went to Turkey.  I say this to give you some perspective.

 

For me private or small group tours are the way to go.  So good job on that.  In Rome, we did the Catacombs tour (with Walks of Italy, I think we are referring to the same company).  We really enjoyed that tour and it was definitely a surprise.  I am not sure where the river cruise would be, but to us the river did not look too enticing.  If it were me, I would switch things up a bit and do the catacombs on day 1, and Borghese on the day you leave for the cruise in the morning.  On day 2, consider a trip to Ostia Antica from Rome.  I think your son might enjoy that a lot.

 

I agree that the Naples days is too busy. Pompeii is huge. And HOT.  And I live in the Caribbean, so we are used to hot.  So I would choose either Pompeii or Herculaneum.  Maybe see a bit of Naples, or just have a relaxing pizza lunch.

 

In Crete I also agree you need a guide for the Palace of Knossos.  Heraklion is nice to walk around, be sure to try a Bougatsa. We had a really short time in port and wished he had more time in Heraklion.

 

Mykonos is really lovely to walk around.  We used a private tour that showed us around the island and then took us to Delos, and gave us a guided tour of Delos.  I highly recommend them and can send you info if interested.  Our tour started at 2:30 pm (so if what I saw in the comments above about the time you arrive in port is correct, then it might work for you).  The water can be very choppy around Mykonos so if anyone gets seasick bring medication or patches.  In our case we arrived at this port in the morning, and left really late.  In the morning we took the bus the most famous beach and were really disappointed.  We had to sit on a rock because the entire beach front was occupied by private clubs that shared 60€ for two chairs and with a minimum consumption of 20 € pp for third row chairs.  The water was also cold, and there is no sand, just pebbles...

 

Kusadasi is a great port, great that you included the terrace houses.

 

Athens.  Since you have free time, you might consider a day trip (or half day) to Corinth.  We did this privately as well.  I can recommend the company if you would like.  

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[nattie]

Kilili,

Thank you so much for the insights! Yes, please I would love a recommendation for a tour company for Mykonos and Athens! My email is hilliardmn@starpower.net if you dont want to post it here.

We cant do anything on the day we board in Rome, as we are sharing a private transfer with some folks to the port, plus I am planning to use that day as "relax" day. Says a lot about my itinerary if boarding day is considered relaxing! 😜

I might switch things around and do night tour of Catacombs on day one, which will free up a day for Ostia. Need to do more research on that. We do normally deal well with jet lag, but 2 tours on arrival day with one of them being night tour might be too much.

I am hearing everyone on the Naples day... Will look into private excursion with just Pompeii/Vesuvius. 

As for Athens, the Epidaurus trip includes Corinth Canal stop. Still would love a tour company recommendation just in case they have something else I  might like!

[Dididi]

Here are some suggestions based on our experiences over time -- and you're doing a lot in just one short trip!

 

One your first day in Rome, how about a food tour?  Eating Italy does a fantastic tour in Testaccio.  We went on the morning version -- the whole family enjoyed it -- but they also offer a dinner time version and private tours.  There will be some walking outdoors to help overcome jet lag and lots of delicious snacks along the way.  To eat in a restaurant "inside" a hill made up of testae (pieces of ancient Roman pottery) is very cool -- and it's cool inside, not matter the weather.

 

We enjoyed the Underground Colosseum tour.  It's a great way to visualize how the Romans would put on their "shows."  For your last morning in Rome, which I'm assuming will be on a Saturday, how about a visit to the Palazzo Colonna?  It's only open on Saturday mornings (for the general public, tours can be arranged for other days of the week) and it would only take an hour or so to visit.  You might have seen the ornate Galleria Colonna in "Roman Holiday" with Audrey Hepburn.  I've been there several times and always feel like a princess.

 

https://www.galleriacolonna.it/en/colonna-gallery/

 

I agree with others about focusing on Pompey on your day in Naples.  It will be very hot.  Instead of rushing from one "outside" place to another, I  even would suggest visiting the Archeological Museum.  It's indoors, a relief after a long walk exploring Pompey.  And have a traditional pizza -- you're in Naples!

 

Knossos with a guide, yes.  The Archeological Museum has great signage so you can visit it on your own after touring Knossos.

 

We loved the Underground Cistern and Topkapi in Istanbul, and also the Blue Mosque (worth it and won't take long). I would recommend Rick Steves' Istanbul book.  We love his books but this one in particular is written by Rick and two Turkish guides who really know the city.  Fantastic practical advice.  Three additional suggestions: a quick lunch at Sultanahmet Köftecisi, which is in front of the Sultanahmet tram stop (near the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, etc.).  The menu is simple: kofte (meatballs) and side dishes, that's it.  I also like Mado (a local chain) for ice cream, snacks and desserts, for when you need a break.  And finally Ipek Magazasi (ipek means silk in Turkish) where you can buy the most beautiful scarves and ties: silk, wool, embroidered, etc.  The store, owned by a wonderful Sephardic family who'll make you feel like you're part of their family, is on Istiklal Street.  Turns out Ipek is on Rick Steves' book. You can take the traditional wood tram from Taksim Square to the store.  I would rather visit that part of Istanbul (which is closer to the pier than the Grand Bazaar and the other main sites) than to take the Bosphorus cruise.  

 

Lastly, another vote for the Archeological Museum in Athens.  It's one "greatest hit" after another. Ancient Greek sculptures and objects you have seen in photos throughout your life all in the same place.

 

Enjoy your cruise.  We took the Athens to Barcelona itinerary that follows yours last summer.