Day in Mykonos Review

[Keith1010]

Very nice report.

 

Keith

[Chairsin]

It was very worthwhile.

[edtorious]

We just returned from our trip and I am happy to report we finally made it to Delos. The company is called Delos Tours. I booked on line and was told to show up 1/2 an hour before the boat's 10AM departure to pay for and pick up the tickets. As our ship did not arrive until 9 and the first shuttle bus to town was reserved for Seabourn's ship tours, once we were dropped at the edge of town we had to run around to the far side of down where the tour boats depart for Delos. We arrived 10 minutes before departure but our spot was held. The boat -- filled with both those on tours and those who planned to tour Delos on their own-- took about 1/2 hour to get there. We were then given our entry tickets by our guide and bypassed the hoards waiting to get in. There were about 20 of us in the group--- more than I would have preferred-- but I was very glad to have guide as without her it would have been difficult to understand the ruins. Even on this relatively cool partly cloudy day it was hot and she was always trying to find us a shady spot when she went into a lengthy dissertation of a particular subject. At about 12 we had a free half hour to wander on our own and visit the museum until we rebounded the boat for the return trip.I cannot reiterate enough what others have also stated -- wear sturdy shoes and a brimmed hat, slather the sunscreen lotion and carry twice the water you think you will need.

 

 

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We hired Delos Tours also for our shore excursion there. We were told to meet them at Delos port and I'm trying to figure out how to get there. Our cruise ship Norwegian will be at Mykonos port, I don't know if they will dock or tender there. I don't want to be late before the boat leaves for Delos and so do you have any suggestions on how and what should we do? Please advise, any help or suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[jason3695]

The shuttle that was provided by Princess, that was free? I will be on the Celebrity Reflection in June and I am hoping to just walk around the town as we will have a 1 year old with us. I wonder if Celebrity will have a shuttle?

 

Do you think if they don't have a shuttle, the walk is too long?

 

This review is excellent! Thank you for taking the time to do this!

[Sweetmarie1961]

For our last day on board, we were up early enough to enjoy the arrival into the port of Mykonos. Now THIS was what I expected a Greek island to look like – all white buildings with accents of blue, many bars, cafes at restaurants at the water's edge :-)

 

 

As usual, we headed up to the Horizon Terrace for our breakfast. There were quite a few people out there, no doubt because the view was quite impressive. But it was also VERY windy. All sorts of things were flying around – trays, bits of bacon, napkins… all quite entertaining. I indulged in a Mimosa with my freshly made omelette.

 

We had no excursions booked, but in the day before we arrived we thought perhaps we might enjoy a walking tour or trip to Delos or both, but everything was sold out. We usually are DIY people anyway, so that was fine. We considered walking into town, but we could see the road leading from the port to the town (we did not have to tender). It didn’t look that far, but the road was busy and had no sidewalks, and no shade. I’m fair and burn very easily, and had already had a bit too much sun in Istanbul and Venice, so we opted instead for the shuttle offered by Princess. The shuttle process was fast and efficient. They had plenty of big buses lined up, and in about 15 minutes we were in the town.

 

Mykonos is certainly very picturesque and photogenic. As in all the places we had visited on this cruise – Venice, Corfu and Istanbul, we found the main thoroughfares and streets lined with touristy shops to be quite busy, but if you took a turn onto a side street you were often on an empty street. Of course, the ‘streets’ in Mykonos (also like Venice and Corfu) were often only big enough for a couple of people to walk side by side! We watched a small truck delivering bottled water navigating these narrow, twisty streets. He didn’t quite make one turn, and side swiped both a wall and all the t-shirts displayed on it. He just backed up and tried again. Only tourists paid any attention – no doubt it happens every day.

 

We meandered through the back streets, and eventually found the famous windmills. From there we walked down the hill a very short way to the Little Venice area, and found a perfect spot overlooking the water for a glass of wine. From there we wandered around a bit more. I had seen an embroidered linen table runner with an olive motif that I quite liked in a store window. It was only 18 Euros, which I thought was a bargain. But I was by myself when I saw it as Jeff had gone off to find an ATM, and I thought Jeff might hate it, so I didn’t get it.

 

 

 

 

When walking around we saw the same table runner in another shop window and Jeff commented that he thought it was nice. Well, that’s all I needed to hear. Jeff REALLY hate to shop, and he actually seemed interested in buying something, and we both agreed we liked it! We went into the shop, and with some difficulty (as the woman in the store spoke very little English and our Greek is limited to ‘thank you’) we found it the price: 25 Euros. For a difference of 7 Euros we thought it was worth it to try and find the first store that I had seen the linens. Amazingly we were able to retrace my steps and find the store. The woman in this store had better English, and was lovely. We ended up buying the table runner, six napkins and a bread basket, all for about 60 Euros. That was our biggest purchase for this cruise.

 

 

 

 

My husband is interested in all things related to sailing and boats, so a visit to the Maritime Museum was a must. Following the directions on our iPhone GPS, we managed to walk right by the museum. We asked someone where it was, and he pointed right behind us. We had walked by it several times – it just didn’t look like a museum! It wasn’t large, and the entrance fee was only 4 Euros each, but it was housed in an old house, was well done and very interesting, and boasted an impressive collection of some very old (as in 400 BC) artifacts. What I particularly loved was the little open courtyard at the back of the museum, a nice respite from the hot crowded streets. They had lemon and orange trees out there, a lighthouse, a little lizard running around, and a nice clean washroom :-)

 

We were now ready for lunch, and I had already pre-selected a place before leaving home that I hoped we could go to. Katerina’s had good reviews on a few site, and a perfect location in Little Venice. We found it with no difficulty. Curiously, an American man outside asked if we had come to Katerina’s specifically or had just found it while wandering. I said I had specifically planned that we would have lunch there if possible. He said “OK, I’ve got a great table for you by the window. Go downstairs and tell them you’re at Table 3.” I had hoped we would be sitting outside, but Table 3 was by an open window and was really perfect. The balcony on the other side of our window looked nice too, but it would have been much more cramped to eat out there. We shared a spinach pie, the best Greek salad we’ve ever had (and we eat Greek salad quite often), and the freshest, and best ever calamari we’ve been lucky enough to enjoy. Our meal was SO delicious. When we were leaving, the American guarding the door asked if we had enjoyed that table, and we said we had very much. He handed me a card for Katerina’s and said that they would love it if we could post a review on TripAdvisor. So, the moral of the tale is, if you choose to eat at Katerina’s in Mykonos (and you should!), tell the guy at the door that you heard about the place on TripAdvisor and plan to post a review!

 

 

At this point we were hot, and the streets of Mykonos were really crowded, so we walked back to the shuttle bus stop. We were looking forward to getting back on board and enjoying our last afternoon.

 

I'm sorry we didn't get to Delos - we'll have to go next time. My husband was concerned that I would look like a lobster if I walked around in full sun for two hours, even with a hat and sunscreen, and he's probably right :-)

 

Please note: all of my photos of Mykonos can be viewed on Flickr. To see all photos from this cruise, please click on the link below in my signature.

 

 

Thank you for your review. We will be in Mykonos in October 2015 and were wondering about doing it on our own. Your review has made us decide yes for sure and look forward to having lunch at Katerina's . My husband loves seafood so this sounds perfect. Also looking forward to a runner purchase. Love runners. ;) any other help would be great.