PK Travel Greece Shared shore Excursions in Athens question?

[catmad]

Quick Question. to those who used PK for the taxi and not a private guide, are you sorry you didn't have a guide? This is for the one day Athens tour.

 

We have used PK travel twice. The Taxi drivers are very knowledgeable and can give lots of information but they would not join you on a tour of the Acropolis. So you might benefit from joining a guided group. The first time we visited the Acropolis we were on a guided coach tour and it was good but we felt too rushed and that we wanted to go back and have a longer look. That's why we chose a taxi firm to take us back.We were dropped as close as possible, rather than in the lower car park. We were also advised as to how to minimise the queuing. And we had as much time as we wanted, whilst the taxi driver waited for us.

 

On leaving the Acropolis we had a tour of Athens that was far better than the coach one. We got to see lots of different things in addition to the usual. We were given loads of detail and information about daily life and taken to a lovely cheap local restaurant for lunch. Even better, as we had shared our taxi with another couple, the whole trip was cheaper than the guided coach tour.

[Got2Cruise]

Thanks for the replies. PK was very quick to reply. We arrive by ship. It is where we disembark. July it's going to be hot, so I'm leaning towards the full day tour so we don't get cranky or heatstroke figuring how to get from one venue to another. Then after the tour go to the hotel to rest, before going out in the evening.

[catmad]

Thanks for the replies. PK was very quick to reply. We arrive by ship. It is where we disembark. July it's going to be hot, so I'm leaning towards the full day tour so we don't get cranky or heatstroke figuring how to get from one venue to another. Then after the tour go to the hotel to rest, before going out in the evening.

 

I was worried about how we would find the taxi when we got off the ship. We had to go through the terminal and immigration. The taxi driver was waiting for us just outside the main arrivals exit. It doesn't matter where you arrive, you still have to go through the same building. But PK travel should tell you how to find him. Just one warning, we found loads of taxi drivers outside arrivals, waiting for a fare. Do make sure you know the name of your driver to be sure you have the right one.

 

The taxi driver will drop you wherever you want at the end of the tour. Hotel, ship or airport.

[MaySeptember]

Using their website, we signed up for a shore excursion in Athens with PK Travel several weeks before our trip. The company required a deposit of half the price of the tour, with the rest being paid to the tour guide towards the end of the tour. At 8 AM on the day of our visit, the guide was waiting for us in the cruise ship terminal. After a 40 minute drive, we arrived at the highlight of any trip to Athens: the Acropolis. Fortunately, it was early in the day, and we did not feel crowded or crushed in during the relatively long walk up from the parking area and then on the site. There is a tremendous amount of construction going on around the Parthenon, but the building is still awesome. We had plenty of time to look around, before most other tour groups arrived. We then had a brief visit to a number of other sights in Athens: the Temple of Zeus, the Olympic Stadium, the Hill of Lycabettus (with a magnificent view of the entire city below us), the Changing of the Guard, and so on. We then had some free time for lunch and shopping in the Plaka district. Finally, we ended up at the New Acropolis Museum, which holds many important relics from the Acropolis area. The tour guide was eloquent as she described the many missing pieces which are scattered around Europe, notably the British Museum in London and St. Marks in Venice. Although it is possible to do much of this itinerary on your own, the tour provided a much more convenient way to get around, at a relatively low price.

 

MayDecember cruisers

[HLGW60]

We plan to use PK travel for a shore excursion during our Carnival Vista cruise on May 23, 2016. In fact....I have already formed a group for that date under semi private shore excursions on their website if anyone cruising on the Vista would like to join us. I think the maximum is 16.

[HLGW60]

We plan to use PK travel for a shore excursion during our Carnival Vista cruise on May 23, 2016. In fact....I have already formed a group for that date under semi private shore excursions on their website if anyone cruising on the Vista would like to join us. I think the maximum is 16.

 

 

UPDATE: I had to cancel this tour because of a change in travel plans. Anyone interested in doing this tour can organize and get a group started though.

[NZ_Made]

Dealing with PK Travel was so simple, and any follow-up communications were effortless. Our tour group had the privilege of Michaela as our guide. Our driver was excellent too - very skillful and patient.

 

On this one day tour we enjoyed the Acropolis, Panathenaic Stadium, the changing of the guards, Plaka and New Acropolis Museum. Michaela came into her own as she took us on historic journeys using the artefacts about us as props. The Museum is stunning.

 

Michaela was so knowledgeable, absolutely friendly, and very accommodating of all of her guests. She was also very caring that we were always okay, and made sure she had us all on the bus as we went from place to place. Her knowledge of Athens, and her passion for all of the antiquities - as well as the overall city - was greatly appreciated. It was a pleasure to be reunited with tales of ancient Greece, which had been learned in childhood, through Michaela's enthusiastic and thorough narratives.

 

I can't speak highly enough of the tour and the service, from the time we were met at the cruise terminal to the time we had to say goodbye. When next in Greece we'll definitely arrange another tour with PK Travel.

 

Thanks so much for an unforgettable experience.

[SandG]

We used PK on our visit to Athens last month and it was an Athens/Cape Sounion combination. Someone asked in the thread about this combo. What you usually give up for this is free time at the Plaka. This was the second time we booked PK for a cruise in Athens and we did the Athens/Plaka option the first time. Going to Cape Sounion means close to 3 hours round trip drive in the van/bus, but the destination is beautiful and the drive was scenic. We stopped for lunch on the way back to Athens. I'm very glad we did it. The alternative is shopping around the Plaka, eating lunch there, and poking in the stores. We and the folks on my tours didn't think that missing the Plaka was a big deal because we were stopping at other Grecian ports with lots of opportunities to shop and eat at local restaurants.

 

We were very happy with our tour as well. We had Paul (the Dad). BTW, when I booked PK the first time, it was called Paul's taxi.

 

Sue

[SimplyCool]

We have booked with PK for August and is happy to read the reviews - just a bit worried about the Greece Crisis. I know the ship will skip that port if there is problems. I hope not, looking forward to seeing Athens!!

Hope things clear up by then.

Edited July 1, 2015 by SimplyCool

[Got2Cruise]

July 28, 2015 we had PK travel meet us at our ship.

 

We are a family of 7 and Peter was fantastic as a guide.

 

He was overly accommodating and we had a great day. Peter

 

knew his history and our 3 grand children were enthralled.

 

Private air conditioned van and perfect time. One of our best days so far

 

on our 2 week holiday.

 

 

We had a similar great experience on July 18 and 19. We were only a party o two and were driven around in the 95 degree heat by Constantine in a Mercedes sedan. Worth every penny and really not expensive when compared to the cost of ship excursions

[mamagina]

We had a similar great experience on July 18 and 19. We were only a party o two and were driven around in the 95 degree heat by Constantine in a Mercedes sedan. Worth every penny and really not expensive when compared to the cost of ship excursions

 

We will also be just two because it seems like there are no semi-private tours available from our ship on September 3, 2015 (Rhapsody of the Seas). Did you have a tour guide too? or was just the driver enough in your opinion?

 

Did you do a half day or a full day?

[Got2Cruise]

We will also be just two because it seems like there are no semi-private tours available from our ship on September 3, 2015 (Rhapsody of the Seas). Did you have a tour guide too? or was just the driver enough in your opinion?

 

Did you do a half day or a full day?

 

First, I would write PK an email, perhaps there are other folks interested from another ship. On the otherhand, having your own driver and air-conditioned Mercedes, was great. No worrying what others are doing. . .:)

 

We did not have a guide, I had the Rick Steves Guidebook. I am sure a guide would be worthwhile if you are very interested in the details of symbolism, life at the time etc. The guide would be most worthwhile at the Acropolis, because it is huge. There were actually guides waiting at the entrance for you to hire if you wanted to. We just wanted to walk around and soak it all in without having to concentrate with what the guide was saying.

 

We did a half day because it was the day we disembarked so we went to the hotel and walked around and had lunch after we checked in. If you were only there for a port stop you could do the entire day, I think it includes time on your own for shopping and having lunch.

[Holly2]

We had booked a half day but were having such a great time and getting so much out of it that we extended to 6 hours. Our guide was very informative and we also had Rick Steves.

[mamagina]

Thank you both. We booked the private half day (5 hours) without a guide and I'll report back on how it went when we get back.

[Got2Cruise]

Thank you both. We booked the private half day (5 hours) without a guide and I'll report back on how it went when we get back.

 

 

You will be amazed how much you'll be able to see, and so glad you went for it.

[Svenson]

:)Just wanted to share the review I just posted on TripAdvisor for PKTravel. We were on the NCL Spirit Grand Mediterranean Cruise, July 5 - 20. Feel free to PM me with any questions:

 

After reading many positive reviews online, we booked PK Travel for a walking tour in Athens. We reserved the “Half Day Walking Tour 3” after reading the various options on their website, and we were scheduled to meet our guide at a certain spot near the Acropolis at 9 AM. Unfortunately, our ship disembarked in the port of Piraeus over 40 minutes late, and we also had misjudged how long it would take us to get into central Athens by Express Bus. Realizing that we would be a full hour late, we were fearful that one of three things would happen: she would cut our four hour tour short and skip some of the scheduled stops; or she would give us a three hour tour and offer the fourth hour for an extra fee; or she would simply leave the meeting spot and we would be left stranded in Athens with no guide at all. We are pleased to report that our wonderful guide, Maria, did NONE of the above! She showed no signs of irritation when we arrived an hour late (as she was standing in the unbearable summer heat), and she still gave us a FULL four hour tour! Maria started our tour by saving us much time using her privileged express line at the Acropolis to purchase our tickets for us, as this was the PEAK tourist season in Greece. Maria was very professional and shared an incredible wealth of information throughout our day. She was patient with our endless photo stops and our many questions. At the end of our tour, we asked her to recommend a lunch spot, and she pointed us toward The Greco’s Project, where we thoroughly enjoyed a delicious traditional Greek lunch with reasonable prices and great service. We would highly recommend Maria as a tour guide and would definitely use PK Travel if we ever are lucky enough to visit Greece in the future. Having toured several other ports on our own, and having spoken to several other people who took those horrible large group tours where you are herded like buffalo around major sites, I can truly say that PK Travel private tours are the way to go! Thank you, Maria!

[BunnyLebowski]

We just loved our 1/2 day Athens tour in August 2015 with PK Travel. Tasos was the best guide we ever had! He asked us about our preferences and tailored the tour to our tastes. We are a family of 4 with 10 and 12 year old boys so we opted for more touring of ancient sites and fewer museums.

 

Tasos was waiting at our cruise ship terminal in Piraeus with our name on a sign. So easy to find. The van was very clean, roomy, comfortable, and air conditioned. Very nice!

 

We went straight to the Acropolis, then to a lookout point where you could see all of Athens, then to a couple of other ancient sites within the city. All the while, Tasos pointed out Athens landmarks and told stories. Then Tasos took us into a beautiful Greek Orthodox Church, and we ended at the Agora with some extra time for a drink at a cafe and shopping nearby.

 

But we could have done pretty much anything we wanted that day. We just thought it best to let our driver guide our choices- after all he does this for a living and knows what works and what does not. For example, he got us to the Acropolis so that we were leaving just as the huge cruise ship crowds arrived. It was perfect!

 

Tasos is an AMAZING driver- we always felt at ease. It was so relaxing knowing we were in good hands. He also spared us some waiting in long lines by knowing when and where to purchase our entrance tickets.

 

Highly recommend this service for a fantastic experience

[mamagina]

Wow! Thank you all. Sounds like everyone has an incredible experience with PK.

[cardbucfan]

Question for those of you who did the private tour where it ended up just being two of you-how much was it? I emailed them but haven't heard back yet (and I have no patience lol!) and I don't want to risk being in a group of 16 if we do the semi-private tour. So far folks on our roll call are interested in other things (although we are still a long way away!).

[arabels]

Very reliable. Met outside port gates at 7.30am air-conditioned vehicle for 8 ranging from 4 to 76.Had lots of refrigerated water bottles on tap which was a blessing in August heat. Managed to have covered the Parthenon by 9 when crowds were amassing and heat rising unbearably.

Very flexible- took older parents to cafe while younger members walked up Parthenon.

Saw changing of guard outside presidential mansion/ only previously seen it by tomb of unknown soldier . It was less crowded with more shade. Children loved it. Saw other temples and Olympic Stadium before having meze type lunch in Plaka and a little shopping.

 

A day which could have been quite gruelling made very comfortable.

 

Would definitely recommend. Next time might visit Cape Sounion.

[Holly2]

Our guide found us a spot in the shade with the best view of changing of guard!

[Brendalu]

We used PK Travel for our shore excursion in Athens. Toli was wonderful. We got to the Acropolis before all the crowds and saw everything we wanted to see in the day we had. We saw many of the sights in Greece including the Parthenon, the Temple of Zeus, the Olympic stadium, and the Changing of the Guard. We then drove along the beautiful coast, had lunch at a seaside restaurant and saw the Temple of Poseidon. Toli was very informative and entertaining. I would highly recommend PK Travel for your shore excursion.

[plan09]

We booked a full day Athens tour with others from the Equinox.

Our guide Michael was great. His knowledge and enthusiasm really made the day enjoyable. I felt like we learned about history and life in Athens today. He paced the walking very well especially the climb to the Acropolis. Even our driver was wonderful (Demetri?) as he performed maneuvers through traffic and narrow passages.

Going with a guide really enhances the experience. The time in the New Acropolis Museum was so much more interesting because of the information and presentation by Michael, he should have his own myth

[tjd59]

What a fabulous excursion! Our guide Athanasia was amazing. She is an archaeological expert in Greek history and really brought our visit of the Acropolis/ Parthenon, Acropolis Museum, Temple of Zues, Hill of Lycabettus, the Old Palace and the Plaka to life. She pointed out Mars Hill from the Acropolis where Paul explained the Unknown God which, without her guidance we would have completely missed! She helped us identify the various periods in history at the Acropolis Museum - like seeing the statues with smiles and then moving to the Greco-Persion era where the statues had no smiles! The transportation was very comfortable and they were very punctual with pickup and drop off - we had no concerns about getting back to the ship on time even though the excursion was jam packed. We had a wonderful Greek lunch with the most delicious food. The excursion was fast paced but we never felt we didn't have time to experience each of the places we visited. I highly recommend you book an excursion with PK Travel. They have professional and engaging guides.

Edited October 10, 2015 by tjd59

[Zoey1]

We booked a full day Athens tour with others from the Equinox.

Our guide Michael was great. His knowledge and enthusiasm really made the day enjoyable. I felt like we learned about history and life in Athens today. He paced the walking very well especially the climb to the Acropolis. Even our driver was wonderful (Demetri?) as he performed maneuvers through traffic and narrow passages.

Going with a guide really enhances the experience. The time in the New Acropolis Museum was so much more interesting because of the information and presentation by Michael, he should have his own myth

 

Another thumbs up for pktravel. We are currently in Athens now, used them yesterday, first let me say how wonderful they were to communicate with. Our itinerary was changed by Celebrity 3-4 times, all emails were promptly returned and Potoula was most patient about all of the changes. Toils met us at the pier and was absolutely delightful, gave us lots of insight to Greek life and Greek mythology , charming, trust worthy and so knowledgable , cannot recommend them highly enough!