Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Part I: Review of Naples/Athens/Kusadasi/Istanbul and Mykonos

Denverite

Recommended Posts

212cruiser

212cruiser

Posted
Posted

Our first stop was in Ephesis, and the only objection I have with the tour there is the unexpected stop at a leather factory for a 'show' and sales pitch.

 

Why are you linking people directly to a Princess Cruise Line sales commercial?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...
  • 4 weeks later...
  • 4 weeks later...
sea-explorer

sea-explorer

Posted
Posted
Anyone else had a Tour with Ekol ? I do no see them mentioned very often

 

Hi,

I haven't booked with Ekol, we are travelling next Summer, but booked with one of the independent tour guides instead. (Levent Solmaz). There are quite a few independent guides in Turkey & many are mentionned on these boards & highly thought of.

 

I put in a search on these boards for tour guides, Ephesus etc as well as googling. When I had a list of names & companies, as well as looking on their websites, I put their names into the search function here..Ekol travel etc..find posts. I emailed a few & got quotes/availability etc before I made my final decision.

 

It really helped me a lot. Good luck in your search.:)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
WeBeGone

WeBeGone

Posted
Posted
Where are Parts 2 and 3? I appreciate Part 1. We are traveling on the 11/21 Star Princess...Rome to Rome. Think we are in Kusadasi and Instanbul on 11/25 and 26 then Myconos and Eygpt. Do we need to arrange with ekoltravel before arrival? We have a group of 9.

 

Hey ballroomdancer - We have a VERY LARGE roll call group going. The first of over 4,000 posts is here.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=360036

 

Come over and ask questions. Many of us are flying in early and about 30 of us are meeting the night of the 20th for dinner. One of our group lives in Rome and has arranged everything. You can't possibly read 4,000 posts but maybe just sign in, tell us who you are, and when you're arriving. The last page is http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=360036&page=202.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
endeavourol

endeavourol

Posted
Posted
Where are Parts 2 and 3? I appreciate Part 1. We are traveling on the 11/21 Star Princess...Rome to Rome. Think we are in Kusadasi and Instanbul on 11/25 and 26 then Myconos and Eygpt. Do we need to arrange with ekoltravel before arrival? We have a group of 9.

 

Did you find the rest of the review ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
cruisetoscrap

cruisetoscrap

Posted
Posted

So neat to see others from Denver taking this cruise. We too are considering using Ekol for tours in Nov '09 (I know I'm planning in advance). They answered my e-mail very quickly and will provide a car seat for our son and won't charge for him, just in case anyone is wondering.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 4 weeks later...
MercedMike

MercedMike

Posted
Posted

We had a great independent custom tour from Kusadasi with Hülya Terzioðlu <hulya462002@yahoo.com>.

Rather than the ruins of Ephesus and the Virgin's house, we chose the hill village of Sirince, the Artemission (Temple of Artemis/Diana), a carpet factory where we bargained for some great prices, and finally a real Turkish Bath (Hamam)!

 

Check out our review and pics at http://www.elite.net/~thehalls/holyland.html

 

She will be happy to arrange things any way you like and prices are very reasonable.

 

Have a GREAT cruise!

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Denverite

Denverite

Posted
  • Author
Posted

To Lost at Sea 23: Here is the review I wrote for our 2006 trip to the Tuscany and Umbria area. If you have any specific questions, let me know.

 

Rome:

We had been to Rome before and wanted to do something different pre-cruise this time. We decided we wanted to spend a couple of days in the Tuscany area and a day in the Umbria area post-cruise to maximum our time. So while this review is not cruise-related, if you have been to Rome before and are looking for something else to do before or after your cruise, this may interest you.

 

We arrived at the Rome airport at 5:25 pm and Stefano of Romecabs was right on time meeting us as we exited from baggage. We had arranged for airport pickup and a short nighttime tour of Rome before heading to our hotel. Stefano drove us through the unbelievable Rome traffic to see some of the sights we had missed on our previous trip. He had a surprise for us—he took us by the Trevi Fountain to once again throw a coin in to ensure we will return to Rome. He then recommended a great restaurant near our hotel for dinner. As we were walking back to our hotel after dinner, we passed a church and heard music. We went in the church and they were having a concert of music from West Side Story. We stayed at the Hotel Diplomatic (a few short blocks from the Vatican). This is a small hotel but very comfortable and a really nice breakfast room. We talked with some other people staying there (some business people) and they said they always stay there and it is usually booked up. We booked through one of the on-line booking sites and got a great rate (although remember we were there the end of October and not in prime tourist season).

 

The next morning Stefano picked us up for our trip into the Tuscany area. While it is true that you can rent a car or take the train, we really wanted a no-hassle trip with someone explaining some history and recommending good restaurants. We stopped at Monteriggioni (atop a hill as all the small towns are) with wonderful views of vineyards and olive trees below. Next stop was Siena—the highlight is the Duomo—unbelievable floors and frescoes. We had lunch at a little restaurant recommend by Stefano—the pasta with wild boar was wonderful! Next stop: San Gimignano, our stop for the night. We stayed in the Hotel Cistern within the city walls. The rooms were nice (some larger than others) and unbelievable views from the balconies—you could see for miles around, again vineyards, olive trees, red tiled roofs. Once again Stefano recommended a first-class restaurant, the Trattoria Chiribiri—try the beef in chianti sauce, and the bill for 5 of us was only 60 euros. The city was magical at night—no tourists, only us and the locals. The streets are very narrow (like maybe one car width if that) and Stefano was unbelievable navigating those streets. You can drive to the hotel to drop off your luggage, but then you have to park the car far away.

 

The next morning we had breakfast at the Hotel Cistern (included in the price) in a breakfast room with, yes once again views of the vineyards, olive trees, red-tiled roofs. Think “Under the Tuscan Sun”…

 

We left San Gimiginano to see Tarquinia and Tuscania before Stefano dropped us off at the ship in Civitivecchia. Stefano really knows Etruscan history and it was interesting to see and hear about the people who settled before the Romans. We also worked in a quick wine tasting at a local farm. We were onboard the Golden Princess by 3:30pm. Note: If you are looking for a quick tour prior to boarding the ship, Tarquinia and Tuscania are very near the port (about half an hour away). Tuscania has two very old churches and a very good restaurant. Tarquinia has the Etruscan necropolis and museum. I thought the museum was quite interesting and I am not a big museum person. For information on Tuscania, see: http://www.romeartlover.it/Tuscania.html and for Tarquinia see: http://www.romeartlover.it/Maremma1.html and http://mysteriousetruscans.com/tarchna.html

 

At the end of the cruise, we again booked Stefano for a tour through the Umbria area since we couldn’t get a flight out until the next day. If I thought the Tuscany area was beautiful, the Umbria area also had its own uniqueness and charm. If you do nothing else, visit Assisi. The basilica of St. Francis of Assisi (where St. Francis is buried) is the most amazing church I have ever seen (and I have been in Notre Dame in Paris, the Vatican in Rome, and many other churches). The frescoes are amazing. It is a very special place and one I will remember always. We also visited Perugia briefly (had to buy chocolate) and Orvieto. Once again, there is an amazing Duomo in Orvieto—the outside is being renovated but it is truly incredible. I am running out of adjectives. Stefano then dropped us off at the Rome Airport Hilton (about 7:30pm) and we searched for a place for dinner. We were looking for something light but alas could find nothing so we walked over to the airport (via their covered walkway) and found some fruit.

 

We couldn’t have been happier about our decision to have Stefano Costantini drive us through Tuscany and Umbria. He is a true gentleman, a delight to be around, and I feel like I have found a friend in Rome. In addition, he knows his history and is a remarkable driver. It also helped to have someone who could speak Italian and interpret menus and make suggestions and know which restaurants to visit. He made the trip very memorable.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
redhead58

redhead58

Posted
Posted

Denverite or anyone having taken the Metro from Piraeus to city center:

I have read it is about a 20 minute walk from the cruise ship dock to the metro station. Is it difficult to find or is it best to take a taxi to the station?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...