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Greek Isles 2005.

Bop

By Bop,
in Other Mediterranean and Black Sea Ports

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Bop

Bop

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We're thinking of booking the Greek Isles cruise on the Grand Princess in October, 2005. We did the Grand Med and loved it and don't mind repeating Venice and Ephesus. Has anyone else cruised the Greek Isles on another itinerary/Line. Any thoughts or recommendations. We love Princess but are willing to try another line for a better itinerary. The Grand Princess definitely brings a crowd and a smaller ship may interest us.

 

Bop

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Bop

Bop

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Hi Sue,

Thanks for the input. I am on the verge of booking the Grand so that we can get a Caribe balcony amidship but will look into Oceania. Our TA is giving Oceania good reviews but the reviews I have read on the Boards have been mixed (as always!). What itinerary are you taking? We want to include Rome as that is the one city we did not tour on the Grand Med cruise in 98. Itinerary will probably be the final factor in making our decision. We usually end up coming back to Princess as it was our first, and so far, favorite line. We have to be more adventurous and Oceania may be a good replacement for our favorite ship, the Royal Princess.

So many places to see, so little time.

Good cruising and thanks,

Bop

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suefrankw

suefrankw

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We are doing the 10-day Athens to Rome- with stops in Mykonos, Rhodes, Santorini, Malta, Sicily, Sorrento (overnight), Amalfi,, Rome (overnight on ship). I really liked this mix of ports and the small size of the ship. And we got a good rate including air so we said why not.

 

Sue

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zebra

zebra

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We are totally Princess fans - but their Med itineraries were less than inspiring. So we choose Celebrity. We have just got back from cruising on the Millenium and it was outstanding! We went Barcelona, Villefranche, Florence, Rome, Amalfi (Naples), Athens, Mykonos, Santorini, Dubrovnik and Venice - totally awesome!!

 

Your question about the Greek Islands - Mykonos is very quaint and we had a wonderful day shopping and eating/drinking there (no need to take a tour on this island unless you want to go over to Delos). Santorini was the highlight of our trip (as well as the Amalfi Coast). Oh my goodness - it's gorgeous. We had a private tour guide for 5 hours and went from Fira to Oia (pronounced Ee-a) and then to the Monastery at the other end of the island to take great pictures of the Caldera. From there we had lunch at Camares - super beach. He also took us to Red Beach, this is a beautiful photo op the entire beach and cliffs above are comprised of red volcanic rock. But Oia is unbelievable, built on the side of the cliff (volcano) - we want to go back and stay there for a few days. Lots of shops and galleries as well as restaurants and bars. Fira is the main town and is bustling with tourists - many people just get off the ship and go up the funicular (or on donkey's) to the town of Fira and don't see anything else on the island, this is a great shame because this island is very diverse and has so much to offer - the Akrotiri Ruins and many wineries to name just a couple of other things to do. just make sure you wear good walking shoes - lots of steps and uneven surfaces!

This was a superb itinerary with a fabulous ship, absolutely the vacation of a lifetime!

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TedC

TedC

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We did a RT from Venice last May on the new Westerdam - beautiful comfortable ship.

 

We had a private guide in Athens, Paul, and a private guide and driver in Kusadasi through Meander Travel. Since we'd been to Ephesus before we went to the Three Ancient Cities of Priene, Didyma and Miletus.

 

 

Santorini is one of our favorites and easy to do on your own. We also went to Samos, Rhodes and Katakolon in Greece as well as Dubrovnik and Malta.

 

It was a wonderful itinerary and the food and range of selection on the Westerdam was great. We liked the ship so much we are booked on the Barcelona to Fort Lauderale repositioning cruise in November.

 

The Med is a great cruising venue and Venice is such a treat as you sail in and out! ( we had a day in Venice prior to sailing as part of the itinerary and we stayed a day on our own post cruise.)

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Bop

Bop

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Thanks Folks,

Now I am thoroughly confused. They all sound good. I have to throw the date of the cruise into the mix. Our birthdays and anniversary fall in the first 9 days of November. Greek Isles for birthdays and Rome for our anniversary sound ideal. I'll check Celebrity, Oceania, and HAL for a fit.

BTW, I have a pretty good file on many Med ports that I would be happy to share. I also have the name of a wonderful guide in Istanbul.

 

Sue,

Please e-mail me if you have time. I would be interested in your rate and where you got it.

Thanks,

Bop

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Cruise Junky

Cruise Junky

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We are totally Princess fans - but their Med itineraries were less than inspiring. So we choose Celebrity. We have just got back from cruising on the Millenium and it was outstanding! We went Barcelona, Villefranche, Florence, Rome, Amalfi (Naples), Athens, Mykonos, Santorini, Dubrovnik and Venice - totally awesome!!

 

Good to hear...that's our itinerary. Glad you had a good time.

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TedC

TedC

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Ocean Queen,

 

 

Paul was great and his almost new Mercedes very comfortable! Four of us spent the day with him touring the sites in Athens this past May and then went south to Cape Sounion. He can be reached at :

 

*****

 

 

Paul lived in the States for several years and speaks perfect English. And he's probably the only adult male in Greece who doesn't smoke. ( He said there was one other!)

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TedC

TedC

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Ocean Queen,

 

While Paul has a lot of good tips and suggestions, he's not a guide per se, just an excellent driver.

 

We told him where we wanted to go and had done our homework. Three of the four of us had been to Greece at least once before.

 

( In Kusadasi, we did have a driver and a guide.)

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  • 6 months later...
whyme

whyme

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Hi Sue,

Thanks for the input. I am on the verge of booking the Grand so that we can get a Caribe balcony amidship but will look into Oceania. Our TA is giving Oceania good reviews but the reviews I have read on the Boards have been mixed (as always!). What itinerary are you taking? We want to include Rome as that is the one city we did not tour on the Grand Med cruise in 98. Itinerary will probably be the final factor in making our decision. We usually end up coming back to Princess as it was our first, and so far, favorite line. We have to be more adventurous and Oceania may be a good replacement for our favorite ship, the Royal Princess.

So many places to see, so little time.

Good cruising and thanks,

Bop

WE JUST RETURNED FROM OUR SECOND CRUISE ON OCEANIA.. BALTIC AUG 03.BUENOS AIRES FEB 05,THE SHIP IS LOVELY ,THE FOOD SUPERB ,ENTERTAINMENT WEAK ,BUT OVER ALL GREAT

WHYME71842@AOL.COM

DAVID

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