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Opinions on these ports


dateacher
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Here are our choices. Can anyone tell us why we should pick one over the other? The only difference between #1 and #2 is Naples v. Mallorca. Thanks in advance.

 

1. Mykanos, Rhodes, Santorini, Athens, Naples, Malta, Messina

 

2. Mykanos, Rhodes, Santorini, Athens, Mallorca, Malta, Messina

 

3. Santorini, Athens, Naples, Olympia, Corfu, Montenegro, Dubrovnik,

Edited by dateacher
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Much depends on your interests -- I would suggest you do some reading on the history/sights of each place and see what appeals to you.

 

You list "Sicily" but there are at least 3 ports there -- which one is included?

 

My only 2 cents would be that Mallorca isn't high on my list of favorite stops. Naples offers a lot more. But the third itinerary also looks nice.

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I'd go for #1 or #3. The third one probably gives you a wider variety of scenery and things to see and do.

 

I agree. Although my personal preference would be #1. Loved Malta and in Messina did a tour with Rome in Limo to Mt. Etna and Taormina that was fantastic!!! Tons of choices in Naples from Pompeii to the Amalfi Coast. We did Pompeii, Positano & Sorrento with RIL in 2013 and it was breathtaking, and then DIY'ed a ferry to Capri in 2016 which was equally amazing. Athens is amazing and will be doing Santorini in May of this year and cannot wait! Mykonos we haven't been to yet so not sure what we will do, maybe Delos or the Monastery. Living in Florida makes us less interest in beaches ;)

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You have received some great advice.....and yes,,,do look carefully at the times in each port (the more the better). Assuming that this is your first visit to these parts of Europe we would choose #3 as the first choice....followed by #1. Why #3. Both Dubrovnik and Kotor are wonderful cruise ports and both can be done DIY (Do it yourself) if you desire....which saves a lot of money over excursions. And Naples is one of the great ports of the Med....not so much because of Naples but for all the other wonderful day trip options (Pompeii, Amalfi Coast, Capri and more). Palma (Majorca) would be low on my list of priorities.

 

Hank

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Thanks everyone for some great advice. Would it change your advice if you knew that

 

1. Is Celebrity Reflection

2. Is Celebrity Ecslipse

3. Is HAL Koningsdam

.

We have been on both lines and other than the food (Celebrity better) we thought they were close enough in all other aspects.

Edited by dateacher
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I think #3. Santorini is just beautiful and such an experience. Seeing the ruins in Athens and looking out at the view is wonderful. In Naples, we had a fully packed day and saw so much. People will be surprised to hear this, but we could have skipped Capri. Spend more time in the other towns. Cruising into Montenegro is spectacular...really. We took a tour which included the curvy road which was a little scary. Dubrovnik is a great port, I would like to go back, it was so crowded we didn't get to do everything we wanted to. At the time we were told that they were going to limit the number of ships in port at one time which would be great. Istanbul ports were cancelled at the time and many ships rescheduled ports which included Dubrovnik. You will love it though. So exciting to plan!

 

We have found that each ship is so different, it can be the same line, but each ship has a different experience. You just make the most of whatever that ship has to offer.

 

 

 

 

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Thanks everyone for some great advice. Would it change your advice if you knew that

 

1. Is Celebrity Reflection

2. Is Celebrity Ecslipse

3. Is HAL Koningsdam

.

We have been on both lines and other than the food (Celebrity better) we thought they were close enough in all other aspects.

 

Personally, we'd pick the ship with the smallest number of passengers for a port intensive cruise.

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Thanks everyone for some great advice. Would it change your advice if you knew that

 

1. Is Celebrity Reflection

2. Is Celebrity Ecslipse

3. Is HAL Koningsdam

.

We have been on both lines and other than the food (Celebrity better) we thought they were close enough in all other aspects.

 

 

 

I choose 3 and would stick to it even knowing it is HAL because the cruise is so port intensive you don’t really need to party hardy past 11 pm.

 

 

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I think #3. Santorini is just beautiful and such an experience. Seeing the ruins in Athens and looking out at the view is wonderful. In Naples, we had a fully packed day and saw so much. People will be surprised to hear this, but we could have skipped Capri. Spend more time in the other towns. Cruising into Montenegro is spectacular...really. We took a tour which included the curvy road which was a little scary. Dubrovnik is a great port, I would like to go back, it was so crowded we didn't get to do everything we wanted to. At the time we were told that they were going to limit the number of ships in port at one time which would be great. Istanbul ports were cancelled at the time and many ships rescheduled ports which included Dubrovnik. You will love it though. So exciting to plan!

 

We have found that each ship is so different, it can be the same line, but each ship has a different experience. You just make the most of whatever that ship has to offer.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

 

 

Just saw that it was Corfu, Montenegro. We did not visit that port, I'm sure it's beautiful too, we went to Kotor. I also agree with a previous poster, a smaller ship is a good choice for these ports although I would pick the itinerary that I like best overall. Our last Med. cruise was on NCL Spirit, we actually loved the size and the seating on the back of the ship. It turned out to be one of our favorites.

 

 

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Just saw that it was Corfu, Montenegro. We did not visit that port, I'm sure it's beautiful too, we went to Kotor. I also agree with a previous poster, a smaller ship is a good choice for these ports although I would pick the itinerary that I like best overall. Our last Med. cruise was on NCL Spirit, we actually loved the size and the seating on the back of the ship. It turned out to be one of our favorites.

 

Corfu is in Greece.

Kotor is in Montenegro

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One possible financial advantage of #3 is that it includes Montenegro, which is not a member state of the European Union.

When a cruise starts & finishes in an EU port and doesn't visit a non-EU port, you may have to pay EU tax on all your purchases on-board (other than excursions, cos the tax is already included in shore excursions)

 

I used the phrase "may have to pay tax" because it's a bit of a minefield - some ships / countries charge it, some charge cruise-long, and the rate of tax varies from country to country. The tax cruise-long may depend on your embarkation port - neither Mykonos nor Santorini are embarkation ports, so where do these cruises start?

 

As I said, doesn't affect #3 because it visits Montenegro, so since the cruise isn't wholly within the EU there's no EU tax..

 

JB :)

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It starts and ends in Rome.

 

The issue is whether all the ports are in the European Union (EU) for tax purposes. Malta is a member of the EU. Montenegro is not.

 

Agreed, there will be no EU taxes on-board on the cruise which includes Montenegro.

 

In theory the other cruises are subject to tax because they include only EU ports.

But this is where it's all a bit of a grey area.

 

I see a lot of complaints on Cruise Critic about the tax being added to EU-only cruises out of Barcelona & other Spanish ports. I believe the current rate in Spain is 10% on food (ships' pay-restaurants only, not the included dining) and on drinks, and 21% on-board shop purchases.

 

I've also heard of the tax being applied on cruises out of Greek ports. In Greece the tax for most purchases is a whopping 24%, hence my concern about your embarkation port.

 

In the UK it's 20%, which grieves me but is of no concern to you on this trip.

 

I've not heard of the tax being applied to cruises out of Rome - but mebbe it is :confused:.

Or mebbe it's applied only in Greek or Spanish waters. :confused:

Hence my use of the words "may have to pay" - I'm no expert on EU taxes, I'm only expert on knowing that it's a grey & complicated business and that different countries have their own interpretations of the EU rules.

 

So to sum up, for the cruise which includes Montenegro there is no tax applied at any point.

For the others, tax might be applied cruise-long or just between certain ports or not at all. And the rate varies from 10% to 24% depending what you buy on the ship & where the ship is when you buy it.

 

For brevity I've called it an "EU tax", but to be politically-correct it's a national tax which should be applied in EU countries. Due to different languages, in the UK it's called VAT, in Spain it's called IVA, in Greek it'll have some other (unpronounceable :D ) name.

 

The tax is also charged on your purchases ashore, but you won't notice this because unlike US taxes it's included in ticket / menu prices.

If you make a significant purchase (I think the minimum price is €90) for something you take home you can reclaim the tax though that too is a bit complicated. You can't reclaim on things like your drinks bill.

 

Here's some light reading on the subject. Pour yourself a stiff drink before you read.

http://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/Insights/On-Europe-cruises-getting-acquainted-with-VAT

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2501440

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2215458

 

Roll on Brexit :D

 

JB :)

Edited by John Bull
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