petpringles

PP - I would also love to have the PDF of the cruise happenings. I am taking this cruise in less than 3 weeks and I can't wait. Send them to: kknott1130@gmail.com

 

Thanks

Just sent it....let me know when you get it.

PP

PP - I would also love to have the PDF of the cruise happenings. I am taking this cruise in less than 3 weeks and I can't wait. Send them to: kknott1130@gmail.com

 

Thanks

Sure...will send tomorrow AM! petpringles

aprilrad...those kids overall were very well behaved and respectful of others. That's typically hard to maintain when there are a lot of them at one time. I believe the chaperones did a wonderful job giving them enough attention and guidance! Hats off to you and your team!:)

OK, here's my two cents for those of you seeking information on this ship. I accompanied our senior class on ten days in Greece. What a fabulous time we had. The cruise was part of our trip and I had no expectations before boarding the ship. I was expecting a ferry with some type of berths and was pleasantly surprised by what we found. That being said, if you go into this with low expectations you will be much happier.

• Boarding and disembarkation: Prior to boarding we stood in a line outside the terminal for about 45 minutes. Not too bad but not exactly pleasant. Once the line started moving we were on the ship pretty rapidly. They still process by hand, no computers, so it was interesting. I had a moment of panic when they took my passport to give back to me at the end (having spent five days in Greece prior to the cruise I knew that passport theft is rampant) but all went well and passports were returned prior to disembarkation with no problems. In fact this is pretty brilliant on their part, our students could have cash accounts but could not pick up their passports without settling thier accounts.
  
• Cabin, we had an inside for three. It was very similar to cabins on other ships. Cabin was clean, no smells. TV and sound system. The biggest problem with the cabin was the paperthin walls. We could hear the conversation of all three cabins around us. In fact, late one night some adjoining high school students were actually having conversations through the walls.
  
• Food and dining - I was very surprised by this. It was quite good. No, it was not equivalent to other cruise lines' foods but it was very good. Service in the dining room was mediocre, frequently we had no refills on water, and service was very slow but the food was similar to maybe an Olive Garden experience.
  
• Ports - the Greek isles are fabulous. We loved our ports. On Mykonos, Crete and Santorini we did not have excursions booked and were fine without them. Patmos and Ephesus were very interesting and we had private excursions on both. Our tour company booked these. My biggest complaint is that we just did not have enough time in port. Most ports were half days at most, Mykonos and Santorinin we arrived late afternoon and all aboard was about 10 pm. Just not enough time to really enjoy and explore. The people on the islands are friendly and helpful. This is unlike the people in Greece mainland. We found the people there to be very cold and the whole place was depressing. Beautiful country, amazing history but I'm wondering what is wrong with the people. Perhaps it's the economy. People were the least friendly of any where I have ever visited. Crime in Athens is high and human trafficking is in evidence everywere.
  
• To the parents who are sending students on a trip - please insist that they are accompanied by an adult at all times. It is not a safe place to be a teenage girl. Our tour guide was exceptional and pointed out to us in every area, including the islands, areas of crime and things to be aware of. I just don't think that a group of teens is perceptive and careful enough to manage on their own.
  
• Overall this cruise was a fun experience. If you've been on cruises before don't expect that type of cruise. There's not much to do on board, but it's not needed. The point of the cruise is the ports. Go expecting to enjoy the ports, go with a good attitude and you will have a fantastic time.
  

If you have any questions I will be glad to answer them. One final thought. One of our chaperones was pickpocketed our last night in Athens. Anyone who is going needs to be very vigilant with their belongings at all times. It was actually kind of surreal to watch them "work our group" to try to get our belongings.

I have a cruise booked on the Celebrity Solstice next month and now I can't wait to again experience a "real" cruise!

Petpringles, thank you for the review, it was very helpful. I can not figure out how to PM, as I am new to CC. Could you please send me the PDF of the daily cruise letter? Thank you!

jennifer.heitz@gmail.com

Will do this on Monday...Jenn! It think it will give you an idea of the "happenings" on the ship. PP:)

Path',

 

Please do us readers a favor by posting a note containing your daughter's impressions of her cruise. Young people are remarkable in that they can easily overlook minor annoyances and make sure they have a good time. By contrast, some adults seem to look for problems so they can report how miserable things were. I hope she has a blast!

This is such a good point T.A.K. as all the kids we saw really enjoyed themselves and they appeared to have seen pass beyond the minor irritants. Lots of laughing and camaraderies were going on....such lucky kids I was thinking to myself; creating such wonderful memories and perhaps lasting friendships.

My daughter is going on a school trip to athens in next week and this cruise is part of her trip....I keep telling her not to expect too much, so she wont be disappointed. Out of the 44 travelers, only 5 or 6 have been on a cruise, so they really wont know what to expect...

I do have to say that the youngsters on their school trip looked like they enjoyed their cruise. They danced at the discotheque, ate out at the Sunshine Deck, played basketball, etc. How lucky for your daughter to experience such a trip. My 2 boys enjoyed the cruise because of the kids they met who were in their school trips.

Petpringles, thank you for your timely and comprehensive feedback. This report is probably the most current review of this cruise and would certainly benefit many CC members like myself who are searching for feedback. Sounds like your family enjoyed the islands and you set your expectations at the right level about the ship itself. As I am travelling to Athens in September, I still have time to decide, but I am leaning to spend 2 nights on Santorini to see those little white houses. Thank you once again!

I can't tell you how jealous we were to see some passengers disembark in Santorini. We only had four hours to taste the island. Pretty much all stops is just a taste...but certain islands like Santorini warrants a lot more. I like the idea of spending 2 mights in Santorini...hope you can swing it!!!

Yes, please let this experience not be judge as the standard of cruises but more of a ferry (with few extras) to take you to the most wonderful sights!

We just finished a cruise of the Jewel of the Aegean and have promised to post. I had a hard time trying to get current information on this cruise so for the others that are planning, here's my experience.

The Ship: yes it is old as stated by others, yes it is dated, yes some parts need work/replacement, but if you view this ship as a safe vessel to get you to the most amazing destinations and at the same time, lowering your expectations, you will have a fine time. This mental adjustment worked for me.

Embarkation is as early as 8:30AM in Pireuas. The line forms and you are directed to the counter in which you exchange your passport for the Boarding Passes. You receive your passport back the night before you disembark. Our passports had Mykonos arrival and departure stamped on them. Disembarkation was early….about 6:30AM, you leave your baggage outside your cabin by midnight. You pick them up at the terminal after disembarkation. Turned out to be an easy process and we had to wait for our driver about 20-30 mins to the agreed time of 7:15AM.

Boarding Pass: this will be in the form of a card (like most cruises), you will have your picture taken and they match this every time your leave and board the ship. Do not loose this as the line for replacement can be long at the reception desk for various reasons.

The Crew: close to 400, Greek and international team composed Filipinos, Romanians, Bulgarians, Bangladeshi, Pakistanian and more. They all seem to get along well and constantly cleaning and polishing everything.

The Weather: we were lucky as the prior cruise were windy to the point that they had to stop the cable cars in Santorini. 2 days prior to boarding the ship, Athen's Acropolis and Sounion were super windy to the point that I decided that it will be pointless to bring nice clothes for the cruise since the wife might just get seasick...was I wrong! When we sailed, the waters were calm as a sleeping baby.

The Cabin: clean yet small but you will be there only to sleep and not really hang out. The bathrooms are quite tiny even for me (5’6” in height). Bed was so-so, you can ask for more pillows if needed. Turn down service and daily straightening is standard. Room slippers we brought made things comfortable. Although we did not find the bathroom smell offensive, a wall stick on deodorizer may help others.

The Activities: Daily flyers clue passengers in to the drink specials of the day, embarking/disembarking time, weather conditions, hours of operations to duty free, casino, etc. They try to emulate the larger ships to keep passengers occupied while at see and they do a fine job. Basketball, gym, discotheque, library are all there for use. I kept this daily flyer, PM me is you wish to receive it via PDF file so as you can peruse and get an idea of the activities offered.

The Passengers: There were independent ones like us, those on tours with Trafalgar, Cosmos, Lonely Planet, Insight, etc. There were those in school group tours as this time was Easter/Spring break time for most. Half of the passengers were high school students chaperoned by teachers and parents…generally, they were well mannered. My two boys ended up hanging with them while the ship’s at sea as they were the same age. We met few families from our area through our boys.

The Attire: We did not bring any nice clothes to our dismay. For there were 2 nights when the theme were more dressed up and those in the tours like Cosmos and Insight were dressed to kill. We were more laid back and felt a bit awkward for not participating. We left our better clothes at our hotel in Athens thinking that it was useless to bring them.

The Cuisine: So-so, not to my liking but edible nonetheless. There were 3 areas to eat and the lines were not long at all even on a full ship. The taverna, outside upper deck, less formal is one. The second one is the bistro not too formal and then the Avalon, sit down a la carte style…more dressed up and 2 sittings. Plan your day accordingly. We did eat out of the boat when ever we can, mostly depends on when you are docked. Dinner in Mykonos and Santorini were delicious but our lunch at Rhodes was beyond.

Drink options: yes there are packages for alcohol and non-alcohol, for families as well but none of them really offered a good deal for us since my max would be about 2 bottles of beer a day. We did not opt for this option after careful evaluation. It was something roughly 28 euros/day for the alcohol option and 15 euros/day for non alcohol. Drinking (and gambling) are is 18 years old. My son turned 18 the bay before we embarked.

The Tours: The tours they offered were good but you do not have to take them all. Hindsight, I would have probably just taken a few such as Santorini, Ephesus, and Rhodes. The rest you can do on your own. So read up on your destinations and study it. This is where most of our final on board cruise expenses went.

Amenities: Of course, pictures whenever opportunity starts. Hairdryer can be borrowed from the reception desk. Safe use was minimal charge but losing the key is 100 Euros to replace.

Overall impression: the cruise is to give you a flavor of each of the island so that you can narrow down to the islands to want to spend time during your next visit; which for us would be Mykonos, Santorini and Rhodes. Note also that larger ships have more people and docking next to a pier is not as easy as with smaller ships as we have been told by other passengers. For the price of the Aquamarine and what it has to offer, I believe that it is still good value. Please note also that this is just my humble evaluation and others may differ.

Hi Petpringles, I would love to hear your experience after your cruise to get some current feedback of the Louis cruise line and their ships. I will be in Athens after a HAL cruise in October, and am considering this 4-day Greek Island cruise due to time constraints like you. However, the reviews of Aquamarine are mixed, ranging from very poor to very good, and the reviews are not very current, so maybe they have improved now? We are not fussy travellers, but do expect a minimum level of cleaniless and quality. Some of the reviews really alarmed me. So any latest review from you or other travellers on this cruise in the near future is appreciated. I have a post for feedback under "Greece port", and here is the link below where you can read feedback from others: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1163240

2curious...will definitely post. As I too have the same problem as youa s trying to get hte lastest info. I have warned my family not to expect much more than a ferry with very few amenities...best, petpringles.

Thanks for the input...leaving in a month's time and yet another level of lowering my expectations. But you are correct and I knew that when I booked out trip that it will be a way to go from point a to b and really nothing more. Thanks for the reality check nowayjose3! I've already alerted my wife and 2 boys and hopefully not to many frowns and disappointments along the way. What do you suggest we should bring so add a bit of comforts of home? Room fresheners? Slippers? Hairdryer? Soft towels? Handiwipes? Thanks in advance!

I took the 5 day Greece cruise last year and as long as you see the ship as a place to get from point A to point B and nothing more you'll be fine. The food is pretty bad, but luckily you'll have plenty of choices to eat on shore. There was a baggage handlers strike that caused the entire ship to board a few hours late my first day. By the time we got on and did the mandatory safety drill the kitchens had closed already and all the passengers told tough luck until dinner time. I really feel they should have acted in a more professional manner and adjusted the times to reflect the situation especially if it was outside the passengers control. Also, I hope you like wine, because if you don't good luck getting something to drink at dinner. Every time I ate in the dining hall I had to ask at least 3 times for a glass of water, many times not getting it before I finished my meal. Another frequent problem I had was finding somewhere to sit in the cafeteria area. Passengers would often race to the tables to throw down their coats as 'place holders' and then spend 20+ minutes in the buffet line getting their food while their table sits empty. By the time you are through with the line and have your food there's a sea of "empty" tables yet not one space you can actually sit down at. Think of Louis lines like a late night meal at Denny's:ts cheap, it does the job, and "service" is a very subjective term. ;)

Ballwin Babe, ITA Yes, lowering expectations eases the disappointments a bit...I think that's key and it's been said that this boat is not the destination but a vessel to see the fantastic islands. BTW, does anyone know how to change the username...I am new to the forum...thanks!

And here's a family of four (me, my wife and 2 boys, ages 17 and 13)...booked for March 29, 2010 sail for a 4 day cruise. A bit apprehensive but due to time constraint opted for this inter-islands cruise. I am equaling my expectation to a cruise down the Nile...I may be wrong because we were really pampered then. So I am not setting my expectations too high and perhaps that will help...with a bit of luck...this may turn out to be an OK experience! I want to hear from more people!