jas283a

Our flight is around 5 PM, so I think we'd have time from what I've read.

Just picking up this thread. Quick question, I had seen somewhere that you can often do a tour of Stonehenge (or Windsor castle) on a transfer to the airport. We’re on Princess in June and they offer this. Any recommendations for companies to look at?

Thanks for summarizing for us. I tried to follow that thread, but after page 2 of 50, I needed the gist!

We did Mendenhall walk-up. There was plenty of other buses, didn’t seem like a problem. Granted this was pre-COVID. Grabbed a car in Victoria, it was fine.

I did it in March. It’s at least a hour, between an hour to a hour and a half. We’ve done it twice through Native Choice, highly highly recommend. You will not be disappointed and they will easily make sure you’re back in time. The nice thing on the way back is you have the AC to cool you off from the jungle.

Something to be aware of, we just found out the hard way, that the shuttle goes until only 1 PM. Because of our daughter’s missing luggage, we got off the Metro much later than anticipated and were there about 1:10. After waiting 10-15 minutes, we decided to do the 30 minutes to walk it (on maps we thought it was a little less than a mile, we’re pretty sure it was close to 2 miles). It all worked out, but several of us would’ve been left in the lurch if our family didn’t just decide to walk.

We did ruins with my then 6 year old (who is not necessarily a go with the flow child, especially then). It was not a fun experience, especially for my wife. The problem was her getting hot and sweaty quickly, which you can’t avoid in the jungle. I would not recommend with a 3 year old unless they’re super easy going and adventurous. Even them still a long bus ride. I think the aviary at the port was really fun and I think would be perfect for you 3 year old and your 14 year will probably like more than they admit it. But that’s 30 minutes 😂. We’ve never done Mahahual or beaches there, so couldn’t say. Maybe 7 colors lagoon?

We took a pirate ship whale watching excursion, an independent one but bet it’s the same company. We used the Buccaneer Queen, the company is Wild Cabo Tours, I think. If it’s the same company highly recommend them, we had a wonderful time with the ambiance, food, drinks, etc. outside of the actual whale watching.

Our guide was Edder and our driver was Miguel. Say hi if you happen to see them, you’ll have a great time.

Sorry we did a ship excursion and had a longer port day, can’t help you there.

I’ve been to Corfu, Santorini, and Olympia (Katakolon), sorry can’t help on the others. Assuming you want to go to Olympia, it’s an hour away from the port. We were there last July so things in port were just starting to open, so we went through the cruise, I was glad. We did a ship excursion in Corfu, loved it, but could be done DIY depending on what you want to do. Santorini, I would say same thing as Corfu (that time we did DIY to Oia). Here’s how I would rank the 3 on these factors: Need Good Physical Stamina 1 Santorini 2 Olympia (Katokolon) 3 Corfu Amount of Planning 1 Olympia (Katokolon) 2 Santorini 3 Corfu

We were going to do Delos on our own, I think pretty easy to do, just be aware of the ferry schedule from Mykonos to Delos and when you ship will be there. I would just look it up online. Also some ships dock in port (and then you have to walk or take a water taxi to the main area, but the water taxi takes you right next to the Delos ferry), or tender, so factor that in to the timing of your port time and ferry departures/return ferry. Our schedule would’ve worked out just fine. We didn’t go because we were too tired. I think you were given good advise on beach, we didn’t do the beach so I can’t recommend anything. There’s a strip of cafes and restaurants very close to the Delos ferry, I would plan to meet up there when your family is due to return and grab a bite or very yummy gelato!

I’ve done Native’s Choice twice. Hands down I would do them again. It’s about a 25 or so minute walk from leaving the ship (if you don’t take the pier shuttle) to their office, 15 minutes or so for pier and port area and 10 or so minutes once you exit the port. They drop you off right outside the port area so it’s a shorter walk back. They do an excellent job explaining how to get there. One time it was an air conditioned bus, another time air conditioned van. Both very comfortable. Had water to keep you hydrated. First time just ruins and about 25 people (pre-pandemic). Second time ruins plus authentic Mayan meal, there were 8 of us (March 2022). The last time with the meal was easily one of the best excursions we’ve ever done, and sailed quite a bit. The food and cultural experience was unforgettable (though it is a much longer day, but the meal part was very low key and relaxing). You make your own tortilla from scratch, eat an authentic meal made from scratch using all ingredients grown in the garden where you are eating (the hibiscus drink was particularly memorable), while they explain what all the trees and plants are, and how they’re used. And it’s not a tourist trap, either, felt very authentic. Both times the guides were excellent, responsive, and could answer any questions you asked. Also moved at a pace to avoid any crowds from others coming. They are very observant of time and you feel confident the whole time you will get back to the ship with time to spare. I understand if you have the ship credit, but again I can’t more highly recommend Native’s Choice!

It’s the same way with my wife and I, absolutely get it!

Great specific advise for each port (at least the one’s I’ve been to), I would agree with all of it. I’d add for Heraklion, we did Knossos and the museum DIY, using a Hop on/Hop Off bus. We chose not to, but you can hire guides once you get there. The museum was amazing and I would highly recommend. I might also say pace yourself, especially if you don’t have any sea days. If you have multiple all-day excursions you will wear yourself out quickly, especially since it will be pretty hot in August. So if, for example, you are out all day in Heraklion with Knossos and the museum, maybe you plan for an easier, shorter day ashore the next port in Mykonos (unsure an itinerary, just an example).

First of all, congratulations you will love it. I usually do a mix and it depends on a couple of things. First, how far away from the port (or complex is it) to get to the thing I want to see? Farther/more complex=go through cruise. Second, how much of a planner are you or how much time do you have to plan? You can do all the same things often on your own (referred to as DYI in the forums), but it will take research and planning, and sometimes a small leap of faith. These forums are invaluable for that (as are placed like Trip Advisor), but it also depends on things like risk tolerance and whether planning/research is your thing. Independent tour operators that you’ll find on Cruise Critic forums can often be a happy middle ground. Third, what’s the price difference? Sometimes the price difference isn’t much and then why not through the ship. Other times there’s a BIG difference and it feels worth it. Flexibility plays into this too. Sometimes you want to do X not Y, but on a ship tour you get what you get. But sometimes sacrificing that for peace of mind is worth it.

Yes it worked out great.

I can’t say, we used the cruise line for the excursion (last July when Covid made everything iffy). It was a great experience, we also had lunch and dancing at one of the local restaurants. I don’t know that you will save much $$$ and it was absolutely at trip highlight. It’s about an hour away, so choose wisely, so you don’t get stranded. And NCL just put out that Greece and other EU need boosted. And Greece requiring masks for now (who knows by October).

If you have sea days that helps. We didn’t, so we figured out the need to pace ourselves quickly. You will expend a lot of energy in Santorini like other posters said, might be with saving for Athens or Naples (both would be higher on my list than Santorini).

We didn’t go with them, but saw them at the cave tubing. Either it’s a new requirement or for the van/bus because we saw no masks on the River at all.

We did our own thing and it worked out great. We used the Hop on Hop Off (bought in port no reservation) and that worked out well. The big draw is Knossos palace, with the corresponding archeological museum (where you find all the Knossos artifacts). That’s where we spent our time, though there were other cool things on the stops we didn’t have time for. The bus dropped of and picked up very close to the port.

Tough to say, though I understand why. I don’t know Nauplion or Argostoli, but of the first 3, I would say Mykonos would be a good low key one. You could walk port area, maybe a picture or two of the windmills and call it a day (what we ended up doing). Also know Santorini is beautiful, but exhausting, so keep that in mind (and I consider it a must see as well).

I will preface this by saying we went last July, so Covid made everything different in so many ways, not sure what’s similar or different. We went to the Acropolis site, used a QR code to buy tickets online at the site. Saved us a 10-15 minute wait in line to purchase tickets (this was the preferred way), no line to actually get in. It would’ve been nice to walk right in vs. taking the time to buy on my phone at the gate. We went on a Sunday around noon. The Acropolis museum down the hill where all the cool artifacts are, however, was a different story. It was sold out at our time because it was capacity controlled (Covid), the wait time and line was hours long for later time slots, and you had to wait in line even if you had a reservation. We had to skip the museum to not miss our cruise, which looked super cool from what we could see. That’s where a “Skip the Line” pass or tour guide package would’ve been 100% worth it. We met someone who had bought that, they just walked up, met their guide, and then walked past all the masses right inside. I bet there are combo tickets where you can do both. I don’t know about one type vs. another, hope this helps.

As first time cruisers, first of all congratulations. My wife and I were about your age when we went on our first cruise (that time we took our kids) and we've kind of been hooked ever since. As far as to answer your question, all of the bigger, cheaper cruise lines (Royal, Carnival, Norwegian) tend to have more kids because they are cheaper. But basically, no matter the line, you will find more kids if you go when kids are on vacation, which makes sense. You will find adult only spaces on almost every cruise line and ship if that's what you are looking for (and spaces catered to family if that is what you are looking for). My wife and I did Greece last year with NCL (it was adult only because of Covid and vaccine requirements, so I couldn't say how it is normally) and we had an amazing time. I would say 2 deciding factors if you're looking at Greece. First, I think the itinerary would be a really big deal, probably even more important than what line you're going on for this type of cruise. Second, what type of things do you like to do? Certain ports stops are more amenable than others for, say, cultural activities vs. the beach. Just things to think about.

We went to Mr. Sanchos and didn’t do the all-inclusive. They let you on a separate beach area they call a La carte. There is an expectation you’ll order food/drink plus you have to pay for any water activities, but you can use their changing facilities and such. The snorkeling is decent in the area and you don’t get bothered by vendors, unlike other beaches I’ve been to.