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First MSC and Mediterranean cruise - good itinerary?


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I am planning a 30th wedding anniversary celebration with a cruise to the Greek Islands. Can anyone tell me if this is a good itinerary for someone that’s never been overseas? Any advise would be helpful. I am a bit daunted by planning a vacation out of my comfort zone.

 

Bari

Katakolon

Santorini

Piraeus

Corfu

Kotor

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The only port I haven't been to is Kotor. Katakolon is the port for Olympia; Piraeus for Athens and the Parthenon on the Acropolis. Santorini and Corfu are beautiful places to visit; we did a taxi tour of Bari once which turned out to be far more interesting a place than at first glance.

 

We're doing a very similar itinerary in September - for the third time.

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Been to all of these places, they are a good choice for a Greek island cruise.

 

Bari you have to walk to the port gate where you will find various transport including a hop on / off bus.

 

Katakolon is a small town with a train and taxis available to Olympia.

 

Santorini is a tender port where you can get the cable car to the top or take a tour that goes by boat and bus to the top of Santorini.

 

Piraeus has a nice town but an uphill walk, there are hop on / off buses a short walk from the pier into Athens.

 

Corfu our favourite Greek island having been about 16 times, most on land holidays. The town is a 15 minute walk from the port gates, there is usually a shuttle bus from the ship. There should be tours to Achillion palace, Paleokastritsa and Bella Vista.

 

Kotor, the ship will be moored unless there are other ships there as there is only one pier, the Old town is a short walk from the pier, there is also a hop on / off bus. There is a small shopping centre where they have great cakes as well as coffee and Lemon Tea.

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I am planning a 30th wedding anniversary celebration with a cruise to the Greek Islands. Can anyone tell me if this is a good itinerary for someone that’s never been overseas? Any advise would be helpful. I am a bit daunted by planning a vacation out of my comfort zone.

 

Bari

Katakolon

Santorini

Piraeus

Corfu

Kotor

Yes, very good

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I am planning a 30th wedding anniversary celebration with a cruise to the Greek Islands. Can anyone tell me if this is a good itinerary for someone that’s never been overseas? Any advise would be helpful. I am a bit daunted by planning a vacation out of my comfort zone.

 

 

 

Bari

 

Katakolon

 

Santorini

 

Piraeus

 

Corfu

 

Kotor

 

 

 

I’m also planning a 30th wedding anniversary cruise and first hop across the pond - the choices are staggering! There is a section of cruise critic devoted just to ports - it may help you (and myself) get a sense of what they are like. Happy planning!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Can anyone tell me if this is a good itinerary for someone that’s never been overseas?

It is more or less the best you can get in the Eastern Med.

 

Bari -> You directly walk from the ship into the very beautiful old town. Much better place than Brindisi, the other option in southeast Italy.

 

Katakolon -> Visiting Olympia is fun (one time, this is one of the ports that will not bring too much happiness when you revisit)

 

Santorini -> Certainly the best of all Greek Islands, maybe a Top 10 of the world destination. Not many better places in the world for a wedding anniversary.

 

Piraeus -> Athens, Acropolis, no more need to say. Birthplace of modern society, a must.

 

Corfu -> Corfu, what a beauty. Walk to the town and jump in the sea.

 

Kotor -> Norwegian fjords in the Med? What a spectacular bay, what a wonderful old town.

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I am planning a 30th wedding anniversary celebration with a cruise to the Greek Islands. Can anyone tell me if this is a good itinerary for someone that’s never been overseas? Any advise would be helpful. I am a bit daunted by planning a vacation out of my comfort zone.

 

Bari

Katakolon

Santorini

Piraeus

Corfu

Kotor

 

They are all great ports for your first Med cruise.

 

Santorini is stunning and romantic. Watch Mama Mia as it was filmed there. You take a cable car to the town as it’s on top of the hill. Amazing views.

Piraeus for Athens which is a stone throw away to see the Acropolis etc.

Corfu is a lovely seaside place just to walk about, have a drink and people watch.

Kotor is beautiful and the ship docks a few mins walk from the town.

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Corfu ... If you have a full day and you can get four of you together or more, hire a taxi for a tour of the North East Coast, visit Kalami, Kaloura and Kassiopi.

Then ask to head to Paleokastritsa via Sidari and to stop at Vistonas and Bella Vista.

You will see a few of the best places on Corfu.

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Thank you all for the comments. It looks like I picked a good itinerary. I will be spending lots of time on the port boards but was looking for a general overall opinion on this itinerary vs. others.

I’m new to MSC as well but the prices could not be beat.

I have so much to learn. Flights hotels transfers tours ...

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As everyone here says this is a wonderful itinerary. I have been to all those ports except Kotor. If you're interested in History and some nature this is the best itinerary for you!

 

 

Let me to just give some additional notes:

 

 

If you're far out of your comfort zone, book all your shore excursions from the ship. I don't know for now, but they used to have a reasonably priced package that will grant you a basic though almost complete shore excursion just in every other port of call, except I think the "main" embarkation one if you're entering ship in one of the secondary ones. Contact your TA about this.

 

 

All the prices on ship will be in EURO. The currency for Italy and Greece will be the EURO as well. Kotor I don't know, but EURO might be accepted and a credit card might be generally accepted as well.

 

 

Itineraries like this are wonderful, but generally they are done on the smaller and older ships. No "bells and whistles" in terms of amenities... They are quite "basic", but clean and nicely decorated ships though. Some of those ships have been recently refurbished.

 

 

Have a nice day!...

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If you want to get in the Greek mood before hand, find "The Durrels in Corfu" from BBC. There's only 10 episodes split between 2 seasons. It's based on an autobiography from the youngest son, and their unusual upbringing after mom and 4 kids move from England to Corfu. It's delightful. I do have no clue how true to Greek life it is, but it does paint Greece in a good light. :)

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As everyone here says this is a wonderful itinerary. I have been to all those ports except Kotor. If you're interested in History and some nature this is the best itinerary for you!

 

 

Let me to just give some additional notes:

 

 

If you're far out of your comfort zone, book all your shore excursions from the ship. I don't know for now, but they used to have a reasonably priced package that will grant you a basic though almost complete shore excursion just in every other port of call, except I think the "main" embarkation one if you're entering ship in one of the secondary ones. Contact your TA about this.

 

 

All the prices on ship will be in EURO. The currency for Italy and Greece will be the EURO as well. Kotor I don't know, but EURO might be accepted and a credit card might be generally accepted as well.

 

 

Itineraries like this are wonderful, but generally they are done on the smaller and older ships. No "bells and whistles" in terms of amenities... They are quite "basic", but clean and nicely decorated ships though. Some of those ships have been recently refurbished.

 

 

Have a nice day!...

.

 

Great advice. I have a credit card with no foreign fees so thats the one i will use I dont need bells and whistles just a clean safe ride

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Not sure if you have actually booked this yet or not. If you have booked it, the itinerary is fine. However, if you haven't yet booked this would not be my itinerary of choice. Especially for a first time European visitor.

 

1) You are missing Venice. It's magical. Every-time I go there I fall more in love. Are you sailing to/from Venice? If so, disregard this and be sure to spend an extra 3-4 days in venice at each leg of the journey.

2) You are missing Mykonos. IMO it's the second gem of the greek isles. Different than Santorini, but not nearly as crowded and still iconic Greek Isle scenery.

3) You are missing Croatia which is a pretty typical stop on this itinerary and MUCH more beautiful than some of the stops on your itinerary.

3) Check status of Corfu garbage problem. We were there in 2016 and while the island is lovely, and the beach was terrific, the garbage both in the city and along the 'dumps' outside of the city was a serious bummer. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful island and we enjoyed our entire circle tour, but the politics of the garbage problem did effect our enjoyment. Sadari can probably help with this issue, I think he has a place there or vacations there often. Our friends from the UK used to visit Corfu annually but they have since stopped. Be sure to research trip adviser for garbage status. It's probably not a deal breaker, but something to be educated about.

 

Great parts of this itinerary:

1) Your stop in Athens (Piresus) ishould be a great day at the Acropolis (but all greek isle trips stop here). Any trip to the greek isles needs a day in Acropolis (IMO).

2) Kotor is a fabulous port and stopping in Montenegro means this is not a EU tax trip which is very good. The sail in/out of Kotor is really spectacular. Whatever ship you decide, try to make sure it is not EU closed loop to avoid those heavy taxes.

3) SAntorini: It's the iconic stop. If your goal is a greek isle cruise, than you must stop in Santorini. What are your times here? Check the santorini port schedule to see how many ships are in port and then compare to your times. You want to be the first (or second) ship into port. There are only so many donkeys and gondola seats and if you aren't the first ship in port, you can easily eat up hours getting from the ship tender to the top of Fira (and visa versa).

 

I think that European cruises are much more about the ports (and the time you are in port) verses the ship or cruise line. Some lines have great port times, and other lines tend to be the last in/first out and it DOES matter.

 

Again, if you have already booked this cruise, then by all means, go and enjoy. I'd rather be on this itinerary than at work any-day :).

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Not sure if you have actually booked this yet or not. If you have booked it, the itinerary is fine. However, if you haven't yet booked this would not be my itinerary of choice. Especially for a first time European visitor.

 

1) You are missing Venice. It's magical. Every-time I go there I fall more in love. Are you sailing to/from Venice? If so, disregard this and be sure to spend an extra 3-4 days in venice at each leg of the journey.

2) You are missing Mykonos. IMO it's the second gem of the greek isles. Different than Santorini, but not nearly as crowded and still iconic Greek Isle scenery.

3) You are missing Croatia which is a pretty typical stop on this itinerary and MUCH more beautiful than some of the stops on your itinerary.

3) Check status of Corfu garbage problem. We were there in 2016 and while the island is lovely, and the beach was terrific, the garbage both in the city and along the 'dumps' outside of the city was a serious bummer. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful island and we enjoyed our entire circle tour, but the politics of the garbage problem did effect our enjoyment. Sadari can probably help with this issue, I think he has a place there or vacations there often. Our friends from the UK used to visit Corfu annually but they have since stopped. Be sure to research trip adviser for garbage status. It's probably not a deal breaker, but something to be educated about.

 

Great parts of this itinerary:

1) Your stop in Athens (Piresus) ishould be a great day at the Acropolis (but all greek isle trips stop here). Any trip to the greek isles needs a day in Acropolis (IMO).

2) Kotor is a fabulous port and stopping in Montenegro means this is not a EU tax trip which is very good. The sail in/out of Kotor is really spectacular. Whatever ship you decide, try to make sure it is not EU closed loop to avoid those heavy taxes.

3) SAntorini: It's the iconic stop. If your goal is a greek isle cruise, than you must stop in Santorini. What are your times here? Check the santorini port schedule to see how many ships are in port and then compare to your times. You want to be the first (or second) ship into port. There are only so many donkeys and gondola seats and if you aren't the first ship in port, you can easily eat up hours getting from the ship tender to the top of Fira (and visa versa).

 

I think that European cruises are much more about the ports (and the time you are in port) verses the ship or cruise line. Some lines have great port times, and other lines tend to be the last in/first out and it DOES matter.

 

Again, if you have already booked this cruise, then by all means, go and enjoy. I'd rather be on this itinerary than at work any-day :).

 

I appreciate your expertise. I have been debating between the same above cruise or this one, as it includes Dubrovnik that some family members would like to visit.

Any thoughts?

Thank you!!!

UBO1.jpg

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I have been debating between the same above cruise or this one, as it includes Dubrovnik that some family members would like to visit.

Any thoughts?

Thank you!!!

UBO1.jpg

 

 

This would also be a 'duty-free' cruise due to inclusion of Sarande, Albania.

 

We're doing an almost identical itinerary in September, though going to Bari instead of Brindisi. The only new port for us is Sarande. Dubrovnik is amazing (if you're a Game of Thrones fan, a walk on the city walls is a must - though you need Croatian currency to pay the entrance fee). If this port is really what some of your family members want to visit, I would recommend choosing this itinerary. I also agree with BermudaBound that a stay in Venice is another must.

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There is also the Castle next to Dubrovnik city walls that was also used in Game of Thrones along with the small bay that delegates them.

 

There was a game Of thrones tour that was conducted by some extras on the set , found out about it too late

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This is why I am so torn.....

 

We either miss Dubrovnik and Mykonos on one itinerary or we miss Santorini and Kotor on the other.

 

I understand it is going to take at least a couple of cruises to cover most of what we want to see, just can't decide what to do first. Sarande, haven't been but doesn't strike me as something I want to do right now, and based on the cruises available during the time we can go, there really isn't anything else close to what we would like.

 

You would be surprised how many cruises do not include Piraeus (Athens), which limits how many are actually viable for us.

 

Thank You

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I appreciate your expertise. I have been debating between the same above cruise or this one, as it includes Dubrovnik that some family members would like to visit.

Any thoughts?

Thank you!!!

 

I am by no means an expert as many of the fine regulars on this forum actually live across the pond. But I have been fortunate enough to travel to Europe multiple times. You asked for my thoughts, so here goes....

 

Is it at all possible for you to extend your time in Europe? I always recommend a minimum of 2 weeks. I know that isn't always possible, but I've never done anything less than a 10 day cruise when traveling to Europe because you get so much more by extending the dates. It's more costly of course, but if this is a bucket list trip there are multiple itineraries that hit all 5 of your desired ports.

 

Here is a sample of a 10 day on another cruise line that hits all 5 of the ports you've mentioned. Personally, the cruise line/ship matter very little to me when selecting a European voyage and ports and port times are significantly the most important. Based on the little I know about your group, this NCL itinerary hits all 5 ports you have mentioned: Venice; Split, Croatia; Kotor, Montenegro; Corfu, Greece; Santorini, Greece; Piraeus (Athens); Mykonos, Greece; Argostoli, Greece; Dubrovnik, Croatia, Venice.

 

To complicate the choices further, I would personally recommend an open jaw itinerary over a closed loop in Europe. It's simply the best way to see the most in the least amount of time. I would hold firm that your cruise should end in Venice (if you start in Venice that's fine too, but I prefer ending in Venice because it's the crown jewel). If you have never traveled to Europe and aren't likely to return anytime soon, starting in Barcelona or Rome and ending in Venice will give you many more of the the iconic Med. highlights.

 

If you can't extend your trip (and if there is any way you can I reeeeaaaallllly suggest it), then what I'd do is prioritize ports first and find a line that includes the most important places. IMO, any cruise line will do for Europe, it's the ports that matter.

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