Greek Economy could affect travel plans

[nick_arch]

Thank you Terry for the huge effort to inform travellers and especially cruise ship passengers.

 

I 'd like to underline some substantial differences in political traditions between USA and Greece.

Some of the expressions published in intl media are taking Greek expressions at face value, when they shouldn't.

For example: when a union leader says "I 'll start a war with the Government" this does not mean a war as we know will start.

This is just a form of expression and refers to union war or an excessive strike action. These expressions should not be taken in face value.

 

Other than that, you 'll hear all possible opinion here about what the consitions are and how they can be resoved. Unfortunately or fortunately, this is a time when everybody is right and every opinion may have a share of correctness.

For example, an aged pensionner has all the moral right to complain when he / she sees the monthly pension payment getting severely shrinked. On the other hand, some pensions are exorbitantly high, even with Northern European standards. If someone sees the tables of how pensions are shrinking, it is profound that pensions on "higher floors" are getting shrinked in a much higher ration that those that are substantially smaller.

At the same time, it is extremely painful to see public property being sold, especially when this is done in low prices, still wherever the government has actively involved during the last 30 yrs, all you could see was at the end laziness and low productivity. I am afraid this has been the case in many places in the world.

Greece is in a painful transition period now and i guess it will be in such a stage for two - three years. It is transforming from a government protected economy to a free economy. This is a sheer change, even at structural points of the economy and wherever hapenned it leaves many people disturbed and disappointed.

 

What a tourist will see from all this? Perhaps nothing, except if being unlucky and being here on one of the 5 - 6 strike days per year. Even on these days, being in Athens may not be a problem since things are available to do, shops are open, restaurants too. Athens is a pretty big place and evryday life here flows normally each day with Monastiraki full of locals and visitors having their souvlaki, Gazi area packed with clubbers at weekend, avenues at their frenzy traffic as always, ancient sites full of visitors.

 

Your advice ( check latest updates ) is very sound and is the sensible thing to advise. Even if things ARE safe in Athens, someone has to check latest updates, especially regarding strikes that take place 5 - 6 times a year.

 

To conclude, i wish all this gets sorted out quickly. Greeks are very capable people, extremely hospitable, have the luck to live in one of the most beautiful countries, blessed with wonderful climate and abundance of history and tradition. They have consistently proved they are hard workers; they have consistently proved they can work out huge projects with minimum means in their disposal.

 

Nevertheless, this is not enough. A traveller may care for how capable a country is. Nevertheless this is really a matter mostly of political science. What a traveller cares about more is smoothness / consistency on his itinerary, good infrastructure and a good content to see, enjoy and feel.

 

Greece has a pretty good infrastructure, a fantastic content, still smoothness and consistency is sometimes, admiteddly rarely, severely disrupted. It may be 5 - 6 times a year for 24 hours but if you count in hugely bad publicity ( sensibly expected ) damage is even more.

 

So, i wish Greek government sorts out these problems as fast as possible and in a justified and balanced way. Greeks are very good people and hard workers and it is a pity to see them having such a difficult time.

 

Will they be able to sort things out? No one knows :) We have to accept though that this is probably the only historical country in the world full of history of tasks that seemed impossible to be accomplished. Maybe it's time for another set of accomplished Hercules' tasks :)

 

My wish is full of heartfull thoughts for luck, clear mind and courage. This country has proven it can sort out all kinds of riddles and tasks and i hope they do the same now.

[4774Papa]

Thank you Terry for the huge effort to inform travellers and especially cruise ship passengers.

 

I 'd like to underline some substantial differences in political traditions between USA and Greece.

Some of the expressions published in intl media are taking Greek expressions at face value, when they shouldn't.

For example: when a union leader says "I 'll start a war with the Government" this does not mean a war as we know will start.

This is just a form of expression and refers to union war or an excessive strike action. These expressions should not be taken in face value.

 

Other than that, you 'll hear all possible opinion here about what the consitions are and how they can be resoved. Unfortunately or fortunately, this is a time when everybody is right and every opinion may have a share of correctness.

For example, an aged pensionner has all the moral right to complain when he / she sees the monthly pension payment getting severely shrinked. On the other hand, some pensions are exorbitantly high, even with Northern European standards. If someone sees the tables of how pensions are shrinking, it is profound that pensions on "higher floors" are getting shrinked in a much higher ration that those that are substantially smaller.

At the same time, it is extremely painful to see public property being sold, especially when this is done in low prices, still wherever the government has actively involved during the last 30 yrs, all you could see was at the end laziness and low productivity. I am afraid this has been the case in many places in the world.

Greece is in a painful transition period now and i guess it will be in such a stage for two - three years. It is transforming from a government protected economy to a free economy. This is a sheer change, even at structural points of the economy and wherever hapenned it leaves many people disturbed and disappointed.

 

What a tourist will see from all this? Perhaps nothing, except if being unlucky and being here on one of the 5 - 6 strike days per year. Even on these days, being in Athens may not be a problem since things are available to do, shops are open, restaurants too. Athens is a pretty big place and evryday life here flows normally each day with Monastiraki full of locals and visitors having their souvlaki, Gazi area packed with clubbers at weekend, avenues at their frenzy traffic as always, ancient sites full of visitors.

 

Your advice ( check latest updates ) is very sound and is the sensible thing to advise. Even if things ARE safe in Athens, someone has to check latest updates, especially regarding strikes that take place 5 - 6 times a year.

 

To conclude, i wish all this gets sorted out quickly. Greeks are very capable people, extremely hospitable, have the luck to live in one of the most beautiful countries, blessed with wonderful climate and abundance of history and tradition. They have consistently proved they are hard workers; they have consistently proved they can work out huge projects with minimum means in their disposal.

 

Nevertheless, this is not enough. A traveller may care for how capable a country is. Nevertheless this is really a matter mostly of political science. What a traveller cares about more is smoothness / consistency on his itinerary, good infrastructure and a good content to see, enjoy and feel.

 

Greece has a pretty good infrastructure, a fantastic content, still smoothness and consistency is sometimes, admiteddly rarely, severely disrupted. It may be 5 - 6 times a year for 24 hours but if you count in hugely bad publicity ( sensibly expected ) damage is even more.

 

So, i wish Greek government sorts out these problems as fast as possible and in a justified and balanced way. Greeks are very good people and hard workers and it is a pity to see them having such a difficult time.

 

Will they be able to sort things out? No one knows :) We have to accept though that this is probably the only historical country in the world full of history of tasks that seemed impossible to be accomplished. Maybe it's time for another set of accomplished Hercules' tasks :)

 

My wish is full of heartfull thoughts for luck, clear mind and courage. This country has proven it can sort out all kinds of riddles and tasks and i hope they do the same now.

Nick,

I appreciate your effort to present one view from Greece. However, I fear that your comments have crossed the political line that must not be crossed on cc.

Your view is clearly from the left side of the spectrum and I am on the opposite side. I won't comment further, since I might cross the line.

 

I will say that regardless of my political opinion, that it appears that some strikes and demonstrations have adversely affected the Greek tourist industry. When the archaeological workers (Greek Government workers) at the Acropolis struck for half a day (the day I was in Athens on a cruise), it adversely affected my trip, just as another strike eliminated our trip to Myceane.

 

As a lover of Greece and its history, it is painful to see the strife in Greece, but it makes me think twice about coming back. I wish Greece the best.

 

The USA has a debt problem, not as extreme as Greece, but we may be in the same straits in the not to distant future.

[nick_arch]

I have a hard time to see how my post was political and especially on the left side of the spectrum.

I consider my post quite balanced : - )

 

If you read my post on July 1st, i post exactly what you said: A strike can severely disrupt the itinerary of a cruise ship passenger in a non reversible manner.

 

I really have a hard time to see where exactly we disagree, except if you consider my statement that <wherever government kept public property, this has been a tremendous disaster> as a leftist opinion. I guess a post on the left side of the spectrum would say the fully opposite.

 

Other than that, my post's intention was to provide simple data on when a strike takes place. It's 5 - 6 times a year for 24 hours or 48 hours each time, mostly Tue, Wed or Thu.

Besides what written in intl media, this is a debt ridden country but not a strike ridden one. This is my humble opinion.

[cruisemom42]

I have seen MUCH more politicized posts than Nick's on other forums (particularly the Egypt forum :rolleyes:) in recent months, and these have apparently been allowed by the mods.

 

There is a simple solution if anyone thinks any post does not belong on CC; click on the red triangle above each post which will take you to a screen allowing you to report the post and give a reason why it should not be allowed.

 

The moderators make their own decisions as to what stays and what goes.

[vjmatty]

I don't think "left" and "right" in Greece are necessarily the same as they are here in the US, and therefore the post was certainly not "clearly" one or the other. Also I think nick is in a better position to comment on what is happening there than any of us who are not familiar with the Greek economy and how it relates to the EU.

[4774Papa]

I have a hard time to see how my post was political and especially on the left side of the spectrum.

I consider my post quite balanced : - )

 

If you read my post on July 1st, i post exactly what you said: A strike can severely disrupt the itinerary of a cruise ship passenger in a non reversible manner.

 

I really have a hard time to see where exactly we disagree, except if you consider my statement that <wherever government kept public property, this has been a tremendous disaster> as a leftist opinion. I guess a post on the left side of the spectrum would say the fully opposite.

 

Other than that, my post's intention was to provide simple data on when a strike takes place. It's 5 - 6 times a year for 24 hours or 48 hours each time, mostly Tue, Wed or Thu.

Besides what written in intl media, this is a debt ridden country but not a strike ridden one. This is my humble opinion.

Nick, perhaps I read too much into your post. I guess I took your comment "it extremely painful to see public property being sold" the wrong way. My apologies.

 

Greece is going through a lot of strikes. I wonder when it will end, if at all. When a country creates such huge debt and a dependency culture, getting back on track is like a drug addict going on withdrawal.

[Judge_Mental]

Thank you all again for the "on the scene" info. Things seem to be settling down for the foreseeable future and I guess we'll just have to stay tuned via the exhorbitant and extremely slow internet on our ships. We were on a Carribean cruise when the Haiti earthquake struck. Family was freaking out for a few days and we were completely oblivious...

[TLCOhio]

The good news is that there have not been any recent stories on strikes and delays in Athens. BUT, the economic challenges continue in Greece and for other parts of Europe. From the Reuters news wire within the past hour, they have this headline: "Euro zone shifts to accepting possible Greek default" with these highlights: "The euro zone acknowledged for the first time some form of Greek default may be needed to cut Athens' debts, but markets seized on the lack of a deadline for action and a lukewarm response from the IMF to heap pressure on Italy and Spain. Dutch Finance Minister Jan Kees de Jager said on Tuesday euro zone finance ministers had effectively accepted that if they wanted to have the private sector involved in a second bailout of Greece, a selective debt default was likely, despite the European Central Bank's vehement opposition to such a move."

 

This story also notes: "The lack of immediate action and the increased likelihood of some form of default sent European bank stocks and debt markets into a spin and propelled the euro sharply lower against the dollar. The euro fell to a four-month low against the dollar in part because IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said the lender and its EU partners were not yet ready to discuss terms for a second Greek bailout."

 

Full story at:

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/eurozone-pledges-steps-help-greece-051554607.html;_ylt=AgXilpX75xjSdhvCP_X7UEeYn8h_;_ylu=X3oDMTNlZmZqcjNkBHBrZwNhMDQ1ZGNhNi1mNzlmLTMwMjctYjUyNS0yYmY3NjU4NmY2MmMEcG9zAzQEc2VjA0xhdGVzdE5ld3MgTGlzdGluZwR2ZXIDZjAxNjNkYjAtYWM3Ny0xMWUwLWI3Z

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Just back from a June 7-19 Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. These postings are now at 20,449 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2011, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 46,309 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

[TLCOhio]

From the Guardian in London today, they have this headline: "Greek taxi drivers disrupt tourists in mass deregulation strike protest" with these highlights: "Greek taxi drivers protesting against the liberalisation of their profession – an IMF-dictated reform enacted in exchange for the debt-stricken country receiving emergency aid – caused chaos on Monday as they blocked access to ports, archaeological sites and Athens international airport. On the first day of a 48-hour strike, described as "the beginning of a battle", cabbies took over roads, toll-booths and entries to the ports of Piraeus and Patras in a mass display of defiance against government plans to deregulate their trade."

 

As added background: "Drivers, who vowed to take to the streets on Tuesday, have been spurred into action by a government decision to open up their business by making it easier, and cheaper, to buy taxi licences. The socialist administration implemented the reform as part of efforts to liberalise over 150 "closed shop" professions blamed for stunting competition and Greece's economic growth. With the country mired in recession, the 23,000-strong sector says its earnings have dropped precipitously."

 

From the Reuters story, they noted: "The blockage stopped buses drawing up alongside ships to pick up passengers, but tourists could still walk to their transportation, the official said. Ten cruise ships were docked at Piraeus, meaning up to 16,000 tourists could be affected, he added."

 

Full story at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jul/18/greek-taxi-drivers-disrupt-tourists

 

Plus, from other key news sources:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/18/us-greece-strike-taxi-idUSTRE76H1AC20110718

http://www.euronews.net/2011/07/18/greek-taxis-strike-over-austerity-inspired-reforms/

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Just back from a June 7-19 Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. These postings are now at 22,136 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2011, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 46,787 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

[Judge_Mental]

Sheesh---48hr strike on Mon./Tues.- there goes the theory on mid-week strikes publicized well in advance. Doesn't really leave a lot of options for tourists. If one were to hire a taxi for the day beforehand via e-mail, what is the likelihood that the driver will uphold their prior commitment and not join a strike?

[nick_arch]

Indeed, a 48 hrs taxi strike is taking place yesterday ( Monday ) and today.

This is not a public employees strike,meaning that sites, museums and public transportation run normally.

 

Nevertheless, this specific taxi strike did cause *many* problems during these two days, specifically for those going on taxi tours and those commuting to the airport.

 

Passengers on DIY visits had no problems at all but those having booked a taxi tour probably had.

 

Problems also appeared to passengers commuting to the airport, since everything in public transportation was running normally but the taxis were not.

 

Knowing Greek drivers myself, my estimation is that those having booked a taxi tour or a taxi transfer to the airport may have been served by private cars from the same drivers, still this is just a personal estimation :)

 

Still, what i said about large magnitude sites that affect museum / sites / public transportation, causing wide scale disruptions remains unaltered: They are announced before hand and take place midweek.

[TLCOhio]

From Cruise Critic UK today, they have this headline: "Cruise Lines Abandon Athens Calls; Striking Taxi Drivers Blockade Port" with these highlights: "Cruise ships were forced to abandon calls at Piraeus, the port for Athens, Monday, July 18, and again on Tuesday as striking taxi drivers blockaded the port, preventing passengers from getting to their sightseeing coaches. Four ships were due in Piraeus yesterday: Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas, Seabourn Odyssey, Ruby Princess and Pullmantur's Zenith. Two more, MSC Armonia and Celebrity Solstice, were due in port today. Today, Celebrity Cruises has cancelled the proposed call of Celebrity Solstice and the ship will spend the day in Crete instead."

 

We were on the Solstice last month, so this "breaking news" is a little more "personal" than normal.

 

Full story at:

http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/news/news.cfm?ID=4551

 

From CBS News, they have this headline: "Greek FM says European debt deal is 'attainable' " with these highlights: "The Socialist government has faced months of anti-austerity protests, and has seen a recent slump in popularity and struggling with unemployment that topped 16 percent in March. Weak tax revenues have kept Greece from meeting its ambitious fiscal targets this year. In the latest sign of public discontent, striking taxi drivers blocked roads to the country's main airport and harbor Monday as part of a two-day strike, which is occurring at the heart of the vital tourist season. They were protesting proposed changes in licensing laws that would make it cheaper to operate a taxi."

 

This story notes many more details for how and why that the overall Europe finances are still challenged and uncertain. The euro is at $1.4165 this morning. Full story at:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/07/19/ap/business/main20080612.shtml

 

THANKS! Terry in Ohio

 

Just back from a June 7-19 Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. These postings are now at 22,381 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2011, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 46,888 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

[nick_arch]

Local update:

It seems taxi strike is not stopping tonight midnight but extended indefinitely.

What does that mean? It means that we may expect similar incidents to what took place yesterday and today at Piraeus port but also other smaller seaports around Greece.

 

Yesterday 10 cruise ships reached Piraeus as their itinerary was, 2 though did not, specifically "Ruby Princess" και "Voyager of the Seas".

 

Today, two cruise ships changed their itinerary, specificlaly "Armonia" of MSC, going to Nafplion instead and executing Athens tours from there and "Celebrity Solstice" going to Crete / Chania instead.

 

------------------------------------

 

So now?

This is still an escalating situation. We have no indications how this will roll from here. My estimation ( plz, this is only a personal estimation ) is that things will smooth out in two - three days, meaning we will not see extensive port blocking as we saw yesterday.

This is a taxi strike, so sites remain open, museums, too and city is on its normal pace. Travellers being here are once more not affected BUT substantial problems rose with cruise ship passengers, seeing taxi shore excursions not being available. Another big problem regarding Piraeus was that people disembarking could not commute to the airport, except on subway.

 

It's a "wait and see" situation. Nafplion is near and a good alternative for Athens, meaning that cruise shis can sail there and do the Athens tours, still it's really a fluid situation now.

 

--------------------------------

 

Why are taxi drivers striking?

Fasten your seatbelt and read: Taxi drivers are not striking. Those striking are the taxi owners.

What?

Yeap.

Taxi owner is the one having issued an official permission of owing and operating a cab. This was up to now, a "regulated" profession, meaning you couldn't go to the dedicated public service, tell "i wanna be a taxi driver", go through some tests and go on. Number of permissions was not infinite and, basically, Taxi Union was the one "regulating" the business.

Getting a taxi permission has gradually reached having a price, like 200k euros. Basically, you 'd buy pff a cab vehicle AND the permission along. Somehow, like "Guilds" were running 4 centuries ago.

 

Greek Goverment is trying to "open" access to the profession, meaning, giving the right to everyone who onws a driver's license to operate a taxi, if he wants so, after some basic tests like driver skills, etc.

 

Taxi owners, on the other side ( who don't drive their vehicles but rent them ) are opposed to this.

 

Despite what the dispute is ( what follows is my personal opinion ), no union in the world has the right to block a seaport or an airport and disrupt travellers' plans. You wanna strike? Get your vehicle off the road. Tha's what i know a strike is.

 

Anyway, we 'll have to see how things escalate or descale.

For the time being situation does not affect tourists in general, Athens being in full throttle and full of visitors that go on their daily itinerary normally. Nevertheless, it DOES affect cruise ship passengers, primarily those on a taxi tour or getting a taxi instead of public transportation to an airport.

 

My suggestion is "wait and see". This has nothing to do woth closures of sites and museums, or any general safety issues, still seems to be potentially disrupting.

 

We 'll have to see how things go next days.

[Judge_Mental]

From my understanding of "eyewitness" accounts, such deplorable and short-sighted action by the taxi owners AND drivers (in collusion since no one forced the drivers to behave the way they did/do) has had a VERY huge impact. With the only option being public transportation, this was extremely jam packed and led to huge delays. For those who managed to make it to port, a lot of time was wasted in transit.

[wantocruisemore]

We were in Athens on July 6th. They called a 24 hr. taxi strike the night before. The cruise ship announced it frequently on the pa system and to make alternate arrangements.

 

We had a private tour set up with Private Greece Tours (Nikos) and with a guide (Anna). It did not effect us at all. Our tour went as scheduled and we saw all we went there to see. For others on our cruise, Nikos had originally arranged for 2 different couples to have 2 taxis for tours. Once the strike was called he worked and got a tour van for all 4 of them so they would have their tours as they had hoped. Thanks to him, the strike had minimal effect on them.

 

For the ones who had planned to use taxis, obviously they had to make other plans. I heard the metro was extremely crowded. We were leaving the Acropolis as some from our ship were just arriving who took the metro. By that time they had shut the gates to wait for some of the crowd on the Acropolis to finish, so there was a huge congestion at the gate. The rest of the sites were very quiet, and at both the Agora, and the Temple of Zeus there were only a handful of people. There were only a few people at Parliment when we were there.

 

The only other thing I noticed is that Nikos remarked traffic seemed a little heavier than normal.

 

You have to make your own choice as to whether to go or not. Unexpected things can happen at any port and you may have to miss it. I would not hesitate to go to Greece again.

[Hoyaheel]

We're flying to Athens - arr Sept 2 - for a cruise embarking Sept 4. I'm still looking forward to my 2nd trip to Athens (first was many many years ago:p) and the Black Sea cruise. But am certainly paying more attention to what's going on now - wasn't too concerned before, because we were planning on spending 2 days wandering around seeing the sites. Now contemplating back up plans for airport to hotel, hotel to port - with luggage:eek: Ah well. Fingers crossed it will be a quiet smooth weekend when we're there;)

[TLCOhio]

Appreciate the added info, especially from nick_arch. From this news wire story within the past hour, it confirms his info and they have this headline: "Greek taxi drivers extend strike indefinitely". Here are their story highlights: "Greek taxi drivers extended a two-day strike against plans to deregulate their trade indefinitely on Wednesday after their union said they had not even been able to meet transport ministry officials. A statement from the taxi drivers federation issued late Tuesday said it was now an open-ended action, after having originally called just a two-day strike. The action, which has hit Greece at the height of the tourist season, created massive traffic jams on Monday, particularly in the capital Athens. Thousands of yellow taxi cabs staged coordinated actions on the motorways leading out of Athens to other cities to the north and south."

 

Full story at:

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/1142007/1/.html

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Just back from a June 7-19 Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. These postings are now at 22,495 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2011, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 46,888 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

[TLCOhio]

From the Associated Press/AP newswire within the past hour today, they have this headline: "Striking Greek taxi drivers clash with police" with these highlights: "Greek taxi drivers clashed with police Wednesday as they vowed to continue an open-ended strike that has caused big disruptions at airports and harbors during the peak of the country's vital tourist season. Hundreds of taxi drivers protesting planned licensing reforms threw stones and water bottles at riot police guarding the transport ministry during negotiations with the government, and were dispersed with tear gas. The taxi driver walkout has alarmed tourism industry officials, after strikers blocked access to the country's main airport and harbor for hours on Monday. Over the past two days, strikers have periodically shut access to regional ports, airports and highways, to protest the proposed licensing changes."

 

There are added details below from this USA Today story in the last hour through a writer for Travel Weekly.

 

Full stories at:

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/07/20/general-eu-greece-financial-crisis_8574717.html

http://travel.usatoday.com/cruises/post/2011/07/athens-taxi-strike-port-block/177688/1

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Just back from a June 7-19 Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. These postings are now at 22,495 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2011, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 46,888 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

[wwinfl91]

I will be on the Mariner when it hopefully stops in Piraeus for our visit to Athens on Thursday Sept 29. I know none of us can tell the future but given that is over 2 months away what is the opinion of others of the chances for us to see Athens?

 

I would hope that RCL will also be checking into what other options would be available for an alternate port if there are still problems going on. I saw where an MSC ship was able to stop at a different port when the Athens port was having problems.

 

I will probably decide to do a ship's tour since if the stop is cancelled I will be assured that my money will be refunded for an tour that didn't occur. I would much prefer to take a small group private tour but with everything going on safety will probably will out.

 

Have a great next cruise.

[TLCOhio]

I will be on the Mariner when it hopefully stops in Piraeus for our visit to Athens on Thursday Sept 29. I know none of us can tell the future but given that is over 2 months away what is the opinion of others of the chances for us to see Athens?

 

September 29 is a long, long ways off. Lots more, both good and bad, can and will happen. This is a tangled and larger story about Europe's finances versus certain Greek customs and its challenged economics. The good news is that the ship officials are closely following activities. AND, there are close and nearby options where ships can shift and use as an alternative docking location, maybe. That's not the Parthanon, Plaka and Athens, but they will be prepared to adjust accordingly, if and when needed.

 

From the Reuters newswire within the past hour today, they have this headline: "Greek taxi drivers extend strike, block highways" with these highlights: "Greek taxi drivers on Wednesday extended indefinitely a two-day strike against government plans to open up their sector to competition and vowed to step up protests. Hundreds of taxi drivers rallied outside the transport ministry, jeering and holding banners reading 'Hands off our taxis'. Police fired teargas at a group of drivers who hurled plastic bottles and stones at officers. After meeting the transport minister, taxi union officials said talks on the terms of a key reform had reached a deadlock and the walkout, which has already disrupted traffic and blocked thousands of tourists at ports, would continue."

 

Tourism is big, big in what's left of the difficult Greek economy, with this point hit in this part of the story: "The government has accused the taxi drivers of hurting the country's vital tourism industry by blocking roads at airports and ports. 'The country is fighting for its survival ... and you have made a decision to hurt Greek society,' Transport Minister Yannis Ragoussis told taxi drivers, according to a statement released by the ministry."

 

Full story at:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/21/uk-greece-strike-taxi-idUSLNE76K00Y20110721

 

Plus, this story from Bloomberg/Business Week:

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9OJBUB80.htm

 

From the AP story within the past hour, there is this highlight item illustrating that this impact is wider than just in Athens: "A harbor police statement says about 50 taxi drivers are preventing more than 800 passengers from three cruise ships from boarding tour coaches on the northwestern island of Corfu. A fourth cruise ship carrying 2,400 passengers was due at Corfu later Thursday. Strikers also stopped 2,400 passengers from two cruise ships from boarding coaches for scheduled excursions at the Cretan port of Iraklio and blocked three highways leading out of the northern city of Thessaloniki."

Full story at:

http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2011/07/21/protesting_greek_taxi_drivers_disrupt_cruise_ships/

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Just back from a June 7-19 Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. These postings are now at 22,832 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2011, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 46,969 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

[laxfanmom1]

I would love to hear from anyone who has been on the Navigator of the Seas this week as we are scheduled to board her in about a week. There are port stops in both Athens and Crete and I would really like to know what kind of experience passengers had.

 

Our family chose this itinerary because my DD earned her college degrees in Classical Studies and Anthropology and is fluent in Latin. She wanted to see all of the wonderful historical sights. We have been to Greece but wanted to make it available to her. The taxi drivers are shooting themselves in both feet, IMHO. Who will schedule a trip to Greece after this?

[vjmatty]

Our cruise is in September also, on the Queen Victoria. Luckily that is outside the peak season and also we are embarking in Venice. The Greek port stops are in Corfu, Rhodes, Santorini and Athens.... all of which have plenty to see on foot or by metro but we have rented cars everywhere except Athens, where we planned a ship's tour to the Corinth Canal.

 

This would be a great time to be a Segway or bicycle tour operator ;)

[TLCOhio]

From the some of the posts and personal experience there, plus what others have mentioned on another board, I agree that in Athens and some other cities you need to watch, be careful in dealing with cab drivers and their pricing tricks/policies. In my view, you need establish the price in advance, etc., as you handle your transportation needs/costs Certain cab drivers can be "creative" in pricing and saying "you didn't understand" to blame you for the higher price they are seeking to get. Always make sure the meter is running when you start the trip. Otherwise, they will tell you it's a set, fixed price that is much higher than normal or allowed.

 

On Tuesday of this week, according to the one media report, Celebrity used Crete as the alternative port for the Solstice in place of Athens. Then, the AP story today indicates that these taxi strikes and/or "block outs" have spread to other ports and cities. Most the strikes and problems last year and earlier this year have been focused in Athens. If these actions spread to other and smaller ports, that could get challenging. Many small ports on certain islands in Greece don't have the docking and/or infrastructure to handle larger boat-loads of passengers. If this continues, it can get challenging to figure out the options and alternatives.

 

Within the past couple of hours, here is an added story from the BBC with this headline "Greece taxi strike hits tourists on Crete and Corfu" and these highlights "A port blockade by striking taxi drivers in Greece has disrupted travel for hundreds of tourists on the holiday islands of Crete and Corfu. The action prevented tourists on several cruise ships from boarding buses waiting for them on Corfu and at Heraklion port in Crete."

 

This BBC story also gives this overview to the situation: "Tourism accounts for 16% of Greece's total economic output (GDP) and is vital for the country's planned recovery. In May 2010 a joint EU-International Monetary Fund rescue package was agreed for Greece, worth 110bn euros ($156bn; £97bn). But Greece's debt woes have worsened and now a package of similar size - also with strict conditions for Greece to fulfil - is being negotiated." Full story at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14239531

 

THANKS! Terry in Ohio

[TLCOhio]

From the French AFP newswire today, they have this headline: "Greek taxi strike enters second week" with these highlights: "Greek taxi owners launched a second week of strike action on Monday in a protest against government deregulation that has caused major disruption at the height of the busy summer tourist season. Thymios Lyberopoulos, president of the Attica taxi owners' union, said the strike would go on indefinitely, while plans were underway for a demonstration at the parliament in central Athens on Tuesday."

 

The story continues with this background: "Taxi owners argue that full liberalisation will sink the value of their operating licenses, which until now were worth hundreds of thousands of euros (dollars). The protest at the height of the holiday season has angered tour operators and Tourism Minister Pavlos Geroulanos who said the action was damaging the country's reputation abroad."

 

Full story at:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hZTXG6VXCHqc92RbMCKeisCfRL8Q?docId=CNG.2b17a77189556ccd97e4abe61a3f838c.131

 

From the Guardian in London, they have this story with this headline: "Travellers to Greece warned to check insurance as disruption continues" and these highlights: "Holidaymakers going to Greece this summer should check with their travel insurer that they are covered for expenses incurred because of wildcat strikes and other protests. In the past two months, Athenians have held several strikes and protested on the streets against austerity measures designed to set the country's economy back on track, and following the bailout measures announced last week it is possible these will continue. Cruise companies had been having trouble getting taxi drivers to take their travellers off ships, she said, while backpackers had found they could not get ferries because of strike action."

 

Full story at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/jul/25/insurance-travellers-to-greece

 

There are not any other recent news stories out there that detail what ships have skipped Athens last week and/or where they have docked in place of visiting the Greek capital.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Just back from a June 7-19 Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. These postings are now at 23,925 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2011, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 47,258 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

[cruisemom42]

I just want to say again what a wonderfully informative and useful thread this is, especially with the contributions of Terry (from the US perspective) and Nick in Athens, as well as all the anecdotal reports from recent travelers to Greece.

 

I'm not headed to Athens this year, but I would certainly suggest reading the recent posts should be "required" for anyone headed there soon.