Turkey & Greece cruise on Louis Cruise Line

[cristal333]

Hello,

 

I am in the process of planning a trip for fall of 2008, and am wondering if anyone out there has taken a **** combined with a Greek Island/Turkey Cruise on Louise Cruise Lines, the Aquamarine or the Perla. Any feedback, good or bad, would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

Cristal

[lisiamc]

Their ships are fairly old and small, which is not really a problem if that's what you are expecting. However, there was a discussion on another website with people who had sailed on the Aquamarine, and they had serious issues. Two people (on two cruises) reported widespread failure of the toilet system, and said they were given buckets to scoop out the contents of the toilet, and told to leave the open buckets in the hallway for emptying!:eek:

 

Based on that alone, I would pass up this opportunity!

 

Lisa

[falcon5travels]

My daughter was on the Louis Cruise Line "SEA DIAMOND", now it remains in the sea. It Sunk after hitting a reef, which was deemed not the captains fault as the coral rock was uncharted. It should also be noted that the evacuation did not go smoothly. Most of the lifeboats were rendered useless by the fact that the cables were painted shut, there was no orderly direction or organization from any of the crew ( and i believe language was an issue), and it was not until the ship started to take on water that the passengers were informed they were in trouble.

 

Compensation: Free drinks on the ship that took them back to Athens that night and a free cruise. ( I am glad she has her life but to a teenager, she lost all her "worldly" possessions)

 

Stick with a better branded ship. It just might save your life.

[tully07]

I travelled to Turkey and the Greek Islands on Louis Cruise Lines (as part of a tour with Insight Vacations) last September. I had the benefit of travelling on the Cristal - the ship purchased to replace the Sea Diamond (my cruise was originally scheduled to be on the Sea Diamond).

 

I have no complaints with the Cristal -it has been refurbished and is the flagship of the Louis fleet - but I have heard complaints about the Perla and othr older ships in their fleet. The crew on the Cristal were pleasant and helpful, the food was good, the ship was spotless, and they certainly took safety and security seriously.

 

However, keep in mind that none of these ships are like those of the major cruise lines -- they are small and the amenities aren't fancy. That being said, you spend very little time on the ship on these cruises. The ship is a place to eat and sleep -- most of the time you will be on shore.

[Mooder]

Great to see this discussion as I am starting to look at a vacation package that includes a cruise on the Cristal. I have been gathering that this is their best ship - would everyone agree?

 

Tully, did you get to Santorini? The itineraries I have been looking at appear to have only a half day there and make it clear that it is dependent on weather. This is one stop that I would be very disappointed to miss. Thanks for the information!

[tully07]

Hi Bermuder

 

The Cristal is the best ship in the Louis fleet. I have no complaints about the ship - we had a superior outside cabin -- it was small, but more than adequate for our needs. We did not spend much time in the cabin.

 

We did get to Santorini - arrived about 3 p.m. in the afternoon which is 2 hours earlier than shown on the itinerary. Took the excursion to Oia -- that's the place shown in all the pictures of Santorini -- it is stunning!! It got a bit crowded as there were 5 other cruise ships there that day -- but I'll be going back there someday. :D

 

The island you are more likely to miss is Mykonos -- the wind there can be fierce! We were able to dock but the other ships that followed us into the harbour (with great difficulty) had to use tenders....and I felt sorry for the people bobbing about in the tenders as they made their way into the port. I know that this is an island that is frequently missed because of the winds as the ships cannot get into the harbour. [And I should note that it was a very rocky ride from Mykonos to Patmos -- didn't bother me, I grew up on the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick, Canada -- I slept like a baby!:D )