Costa Victoria-Greek Isles and Croatia

[TCinCT]

Here's a quick update of our 7 day cruise April 18th out of

Venice. I write it, hopefully to help others who are yet to cruise, and wish to express my thanks to others here that wrote so much helpful information for our trip!

It was a great time to cruise because the crowds were virtually nonexistent. The weather was in the 60's and a bit cooler than I expected but great for walking. I was glad I brought a coat! Formal dinners were held on Wednesday and Saturday. There was a wide range of attire worn from dressy to quite casual, moreso than any other ship I have been on. There were about 200 English speaking passengers on board. Do consider bringing your own hairdryer-the one they provided had plastic tubing that cracked and took more than 2 days to get repaired. Another couple we sat with at dinner had the same experience. Much as I enjoy not having to bring one along, I'll make the room next time.

Our trip began Sunday, when we arrived in Venice, from JFK to the Marco Polo airport. We took the Aliguna transfer at the airport (10E pp-about a 45 minute ride) to St Mark's Square to stay overnight at the lovely Locanda Orseolo, a short distance from St. Mark's Square.

On the 18th, we returned to St Mark's Square-back to the same Aliguna stop we came to from the airport. You can get a transfer (20 minutes for 5E pp) to the Marittima Port. There will be signs to check your luggage at a tent-like structure near building 107. We made the mistake of bringing all our luggage into building 107 and waited in a customer service line to find out we needed to go check our luggage. When you check your luggage, you get a ticket with your boarding number and won't need to check in again. You just patiently wait till they call your number to board. Embarkation was a bit slow-from the time we arrived, checked luggage, and got to board the ship, it was about 3 hours.

The cruise ship does keep your passport when you arrive and gives you a photocopy to use to go ashore.

Bari, Italy- You can walk from the port to the old section of town. There were few shops open during the time we were there and the churches were closed until 4PM. We walked around the outside of St. Nickolas Cathedral, walked the streets for a bit and were glad to go back to the ship. It was our least favorite port of the cruise.

Katakolon,Greece-we signed up for one of the cruise excursions to Olympia for about 50E. You take a 40 minute ride by bus and explore the scenic ruins with a guide. We enjoyed the tour very much.

Santorini and Mykonos-Wow! Breathtakingingly beautiful Santorini! You tender to shore. We rode the donkeys (7E per couple!) up the mountainside to Thira. What a great adventure! The donkeys we rode on were well behaved and easy to ride. It was a highlight of our trip! Because of our limited time here we arranged a cab to take us to Oia (about a 20 minute ride) had him wait an hour while we walked around and he brought us back to the ship for $50E. Other people we met able to arrange a one way taxi ride for $12E. Don't be afraid to negotiate! We returned to Thira and took the cable car back to the tenders for $7E for 2. Later that same day the ship arrived in Mykonos. There was a 5 minute bus transfer to town (for 5E pp RT) You might just get to see some very big pink pelicans near the shops while you are there.

Rhodes-We went on another cruise excursion by bus (about 50 E pp) to Lindos which was about an hour away from the port. The tour guide, Anthony, was excellent There were many stairs to get to the Acropolis. You won't need to work out on the stairmaster on this day! We returned to the port and explored the scenic walled old town. I'd love to go back!

Croatia-Another beautiful old walled city! It was a shuttle bus ride (5 minutes-5E pp RT) from the port. We did climb the walls. There were some steep steps. It's another day you can skip the stairmaster!

Overall, the Greek Isles and Croatia were some very memorable places to visit The Costa Victoria was a good ship to travel on for such a port intensive cruise.

[cruiseonly]

Thanks for the great review. Sounds like you had a good time.

 

What else do you do in Mykonos. Ship arrives 6:00 p.m. and stays until 11:00 p.m. Is it worthwhile getting off the ship.

 

Did you enjoy your meals.:)

[TCinCT]

Hi Cruiseonly,

 

Mykonos was definitely worth getting off the ship! There's shopping (most stores were open) and restaurants to sample Greek food and drinks on the waterfront in little Venice. It's not far from the windmills that you'll see when you get to the port. Seeing the pelicans was a treat!

As for food, my husband had fish every night for dinner and enjoyed it all. I had beef most of the time and only had a tough cut once. You can reorder if you don't like what they serve. The lobster was fair at best but pasta dishes were consistently good. There were some tasty rolls and brushetta served as soon as you sat down for lunch and dinner.

Lunch-the buffet was limited for variety but there was still plenty of food to choose from. The dining room at lunch was open seating and we had some great meals there.

Breakfast in the buffet had an omelette station that was good. Skip the scrambled eggs if you don't like them lumpy and made from powder. The dining room breakfasts we had only a few times and they were adequate. Service was very, very good.

We had initially asked for a table for 2 but ended up sitting with other 2 other couples. We enjoyed the opportunity to meet some great people, had some enjoyable conversations and lots of laughs!

[cruiseonly]

Hi TCinCTAre you the same person that sent a post "Live From Victoria"

 

How was the duty free shops. Were there any bargain, or just the usual cruise ship stuff.

 

How was the entertainment at night. I guess they did not have time to bring in any Greek dance or singers aboard for entertainment.

 

Did you notice if they had egg beaters (just egg whites) in the omelette line.

 

Thanks for all your info. It is very helpful.

[2cruiseagain]

Thanks for the insight. My family will be in Santorini in July. Our port time will be 7am – 1pm. Is this enough time to do the donkey excursion? Also, did you book through the ship or once you got to shore? And, do you think junior high kids would enjoy this?

 

Thanks for any help you can give.

[CgyTravelJunkies]

I was on the same sailing,and will post my review shortly... but to answer some of the questions above.

 

 

No there were no egg beaters (egg white only)

 

Entertainment at night was pretty bad in comparison to other cruises. Small theater... that often sat empty at night... shows were very short and the huge productions grown accustomed to.

 

Shopping: On board, nothing special... no sales like on past cruises... unless you can count the obligatory gold by the inch!

 

Donkey "excursion"... this isnt an excurion at all. It is a means of transportation. when you get off the ship in Santorini, you will have to options in getting to Fira (the actual town that is atop a cliff). You can take the gondola/Trolley that is 350 Euro each way, or you can climb on a donkey and ride up the hill. This takes about a 1/2 hour, and the trolley takes about 5 minutes.

 

More later!

[TCinCT]

Thanks for the insight. My family will be in Santorini in July. Our port time will be 7am – 1pm. Is this enough time to do the donkey excursion? Also, did you book through the ship or once you got to shore? And, do you think junior high kids would enjoy this?

 

Thanks for any help you can give.

 

Hi 2Cruise,

 

I hope this info helps!

Our port time was about 3 hours. From what I recall, there are 3 ways up to Thira and back down to the tender. You can

ride the donkeys

take the cable cars

or walk the donkey trail.

 

With your port times, I think you'll easily be able to ride the donkeys up or take the cable cars from the port to Thira. The price is the same and both were great ways to travel. When you get off the tender there are signs to the cable cars to your left where you go to buy your tickets. The donkey trail is right before the cable cars and there were homemade signs and some men asking if you want to ride the donkeys. As for the teens, I would encourage them to give the donkeys a try! We were told always take the donkeys up rather than downhill because they are fed at the bottom of the trail. Some people did walk up and back down the donkey trail. If you do that, do be very careful where you step!

If you do ride the cable cars on your way back you'll want to allow a little extra time for getting your tickets and for the lines that will form when people are returning to the ship.