Celebrity Mediterranean Cruise

[im71]

Has anyone been on the Celebrity Reflection for the 11 day Mediterranean cruise in recent months? How was your experience? For an individual with acrophobia, I'm a bit nervous about walking around Santorini. Any advice from fellow travelers with acrophobia to Santorini is greatly appreciated. Thanks jn advance.

[TexSea]

We went on the cruise last July and it was probably our best trip ever. And I would do the exact same cruise again.

 

From the overlooks, looking out over the water might cause you some issues with the acrophobia. I have mild acrophobia and I didn't find it troubling. However, taking the cable car will be challenging for you. It effected me a little, but my partner hated it. He closed his eyes the entire time but made it. Also didn't help that we were sharing the car with a family whose teens were jumping around and trying to rock the car.

 

You can walk down on a donkey poop-strewn pathway. Though it can be slippery and depending what time you go down, it may be dark.

 

Not sure what other options would be for you. I'm sure others will have an idea.

[im71]

Thanks for sharing your experience, jaysonif. I've been on cable cars before and also on funiculars and I don't seem to be affected as much since it was in an enclosed environment. As such, I'm not as worried about that, but just walking up and along the paths that have low walls and no rails for me to literally clutch to. My partner tells me that it shouldn't be that bad, but I remember going up the Spanish Steps in Rome and not being able to go down the same steps that I went up on. Thank goodness for the alternative paths. :)

 

Are there excursions that you recommend for this cruise?

 

Again, I appreciate your insight.

 

Happy travels.

[4774Papa]

I don't recommend walking up the trail with the donkeys and their poop. I know people that did that and wish they had not.

 

You can take an excursion from the ship, like the one that includes Oia and the Winery. You dock south of the donkey/cable car doc. and take a bus up the hill to the top. You will see almost the entire island on that excursion.

[im71]

Hi 477Papa,

 

Thanks for your recommendation. Much appreciated.

 

Best regards.

[Pushka]

We walked down the donkey trail. Didnt mind the poop so much but found the steps very slippery. Actually I fell many times in Greece as the footpaths have marble inserts and my shoes clearly not designed for good contact. We had to take the stairs even though we had free cable car tickets because the queue was horrendous.

 

The Oia entry sounds like a better option.

 

Santorini is absolutely glorious though.

[im71]

Thanks for sharing your experience, Pushka. Much appreciated.

[gormless]

I'm quite acrophobic, and didn't have any issue with Santorini, including the cable car ride up. The only problem was the long wait for the ride up and the ride down. Santorini was awesome, I'd go there again in a heartbeat.

 

Actually, I had a lunch with the family on one of the restaurants on the cliff-side with no feeling of being on the edge.

 

We didn't walk up the donkey trail. Too many people in the queue made it clear what a bad idea that was. :)

[im71]

It's great to hear about the experience of another traveler who suffers acrophobia. Thanks for sharing your experience. Much appreciated, gormless. Best regards.

[Pushka]

I'm quite acrophobic, and didn't have any issue with Santorini, including the cable car ride up. The only problem was the long wait for the ride up and the ride down. Santorini was awesome, I'd go there again in a heartbeat.

 

Actually, I had a lunch with the family on one of the restaurants on the cliff-side with no feeling of being on the edge.

 

We didn't walk up the donkey trail. Too many people in the queue made it clear what a bad idea that was. :)

 

Yes - the queue length was a good tip off - shame we missed that! I hate waiting in line, but that walk down was - um, not great!

[cruise kitty]

The cable car actually runs pretty close to the cliff face, so if you face towards the cliff, with your back to the sea, you should feel pretty secure, but you'll miss the amazing views :)

 

In Oia, many of the winding streets have little walls running alongside them, so that might help you feel a little safer.

 

We rented an ATV for the day, explored most of the island, Oia, the black sand beach, & the winery, it was a lovely day. :)

[morbihan]

We stayed aboard.

 

Blimey, it was hot.

 

We watched all the others crowd on to the island. When they arrived back the most scary ride seemed to be the bus going up the windy road. We saw it! Our neighbour at dinner was less than impressed.

[nekzaadvakil]

Celebrity has the best Mediterranean itineraries by far! We've been to the Med 4 times in the last 5 years (twice on Royal, twice on Celebrity) and the S class ships of Celebrity are outstanding.

 

Santorini is definitely one of the best ports to visit. While the views are outstanding, it can be unsettling for people with acrophobia, however by no means does that mean you should miss visiting this port.

 

Take the funicular up, sit with your face towards the cliff and you'll be up within 2 mins. Smooth ride. Once you're up you can walk in the market place in Fira. We hired a car and drove to Oia (one of the easiest drives, its just a straight road you can't get lost) and spent 4-5 hours at Oia. No issues there, if you don't want to look down, no problem. Lots of shops and stores on either side so no issues.

 

The ship is also amazing, we've been on her sister ship (Silhouette) and we can't wait to go back to the Med.

[Pushka]

We returned to Santorini after our cruise and stayed for 8 nights. Used public buses many times. Maybe I am used to windy roads but they never bothered me.

[Wiltonian]

We went on the cruise last July and it was probably our best trip ever. And I would do the exact same cruise again.

 

From the overlooks, looking out over the water might cause you some issues with the acrophobia. I have mild acrophobia and I didn't find it troubling. However, taking the cable car will be challenging for you. It effected me a little, but my partner hated it. He closed his eyes the entire time but made it. Also didn't help that we were sharing the car with a family whose teens were jumping around and trying to rock the car.

 

You can walk down on a donkey poop-strewn pathway. Though it can be slippery and depending what time you go down, it may be dark.

 

Not sure what other options would be for you. I'm sure others will have an idea.

 

You can also catch a boat straight to Oia. E25 inc bus back to Fira. But you still have to descend to the ship.

[Tiggertastic]

Once you are at the top, providing you keep from the cliff wall you don't notice heights as your only the distance of your body height from your feet to your head.

 

so how are you on the decks of the ship, 15 floors up on the lawn? Again stay away from the edge and you have no idea what height you are at

 

Even if you booked a trip where they take you up by bus you still have to come down the cable car. It's the fastest route down and you can always get onboard and close your eyes to the bottom, it takes less than a minute

 

Don't walk down as it takes 45 minutes and all you see is how high you are

[im71]

Thank you everyone for your feedback. They're immensely helpful and provide me with some idea of what to expect aside from seeing some pics of Santorini.

 

To answer Tiggertastic's question about being on the deck or 15 floor up on the ship, I don't spend much time near the guardrail. :) When I do, I maneuver slowly to the guardrail and then once I'm near enough, I clutch on to it. I have to let my mind adjust itself a little to the height, and then I can at least take some photos of the scenery or look around before backing away. This often makes my partner and friends chuckle. :)

[prish]

You can also catch a boat straight to Oia. E25 inc bus back to Fira. But you still have to descend to the ship.

 

The boat to Oia is a good alternative and seems to work well, operated by NST Tours I believe and cost 20 euros/pp if you book online. We did see some signsfor other operators on the dock when we got off the ship last June but I can't remember the names, suggest you search the Greece forum on CC, there's a long thread about it.

 

We were off the ship by 8am and took the cable car up to Fira, there were no lines at that time and we waited barely 5 minutes for the car to come down. We had rented a car and immediately set off for Oia where we spent a couple of hours before the crowds got there. The Santo Winery next before heading back to Fira, it was pretty hot by then and we skipped a visit to the black sand beach.

[bisabella]

We were on the Reflection last July. Santorini was amazing. I have slight acrophobia and we took the cable car and had no problem. I wouldn't recommend taking the steps with the donkeys for all the reasons mentioned but also because the odor of the donkeys will stay with you all day. After we went back to the ship, we went up to get a hamburger at the outside cafe. While we were sitting all of a sudden we smelled the strong odor of donkeys and we turned around - another passenger had just walked by who obviously had walked up the steps with the donkeys. Glad it wasn't us!!

[Demi1234]

i was petrified while on the bus. Tears, absolute tears. But, Santorini is an amazing island, incomprehensible beauty. We took the funicular down, and that did not frighten me nearly as much as the bus. I, personally, and that is me, would not recommend the bus. Of course, must mention that I was the only one frightened, I could hear people remarking (my eyes were closed) on the beautiful views on way up. Enjoy your visit.

 

Julia

[Escriteur]

We did the 11-night Med cruise last June; Santorini was amazing. As Demi pointed out, the bus ride from the port of Athinios can be very harrowing...it's a narrow switchback road that climbs up the side of a rocky cliff face. I believe most of the ship's excursions leave on buses from Athinios, so you don't have much of an option unless you decide to tour on your own and take the cable car to Fira.

 

You're welcome to look at the photo album from our Santorini trip to get an idea of the views (we took the "Island of Santorini & Village of Oia" tour):

You can see the switchback road I'm referring to in photo #7; the cable car pics appear toward the end of the album. Santo Winery had some amazing overlooks into the caldera; there are walls/railings along the edge of the property, but you can also just hang out under the pergola and in the gift shop if you'd prefer. As for Oia, you can wander the main road if you're not comfortable with looking out over the cliffs. But the white buildings make their way down the cliffs in gradual tiers, so it doesn't appear to be a sharp drop.

 

Have a wonderful time on your cruise. We certainly did! (And if you'd like to see any other photos from our Med cruise, the link to the full album appears in my signature below.)

 

~ Shay

[Ladytainn]

Thanks for those photos, they are great.

I too was worried about the cable car, I am terrified of cable cars, DH has many tales of me sitting (or standing in a huge beast in Switzerland ) with my eyes so tightly shut that my face screws up into a shrunken head pose :o so I was glad to see the pics of the cable car, I think I can handle that one.

[im71]

Thanks for sharing your experience with me, Julia. Much appreciated.

[im71]

We were on the Reflection last July. Santorini was amazing. I have slight acrophobia and we took the cable car and had no problem. I wouldn't recommend taking the steps with the donkeys for all the reasons mentioned but also because the odor of the donkeys will stay with you all day. After we went back to the ship, we went up to get a hamburger at the outside cafe. While we were sitting all of a sudden we smelled the strong odor of donkeys and we turned around - another passenger had just walked by who obviously had walked up the steps with the donkeys. Glad it wasn't us!!

Thanks for your input bisabella. I'm pretty sure I won't be taking the steps up or down, if I can help it. :D

[im71]

We did the 11-night Med cruise last June; Santorini was amazing. As Demi pointed out, the bus ride from the port of Athinios can be very harrowing...it's a narrow switchback road that climbs up the side of a rocky cliff face. I believe most of the ship's excursions leave on buses from Athinios, so you don't have much of an option unless you decide to tour on your own and take the cable car to Fira.

 

You're welcome to look at the photo album from our Santorini trip to get an idea of the views (we took the "Island of Santorini & Village of Oia" tour):

You can see the switchback road I'm referring to in photo #7; the cable car pics appear toward the end of the album. Santo Winery had some amazing overlooks into the caldera; there are walls/railings along the edge of the property, but you can also just hang out under the pergola and in the gift shop if you'd prefer. As for Oia, you can wander the main road if you're not comfortable with looking out over the cliffs. But the white buildings make their way down the cliffs in gradual tiers, so it doesn't appear to be a sharp drop.

 

Have a wonderful time on your cruise. We certainly did! (And if you'd like to see any other photos from our Med cruise, the link to the full album appears in my signature below.)

 

~ Shay

Shay, thank you for sharing your experience and your photo album here. I really appreciate your advice and input. Best regards.