Cruise ports

[Heidi13]

2 hours ago, Aquahound said:

If memory serves me right, that’s Viking Ocean. They are on my radar because they seem most attractive to me of the more premium brands. Unfortunately, it’s on an outer band of my radar range though.  Pesky career gets in the way of longer cruises. 

 

Affirmative, Viking is our preference. Just booked the '23 World Cruise.

 

Radar - been retired for 8 yrs and forget what they look like😀

[GrJ Berkshire]

Ports are important, but so is the convenience of not driving and packing up in several hotels every few days. Like others we prefer the small ship experience, why we sail Regent, with all inclusive experiences and no water slides, climbing walls etc

[Hlitner]

We plead guilty to being both cruise people and land people :).  That is why our favorite trip involves several weeks (or more) ashore doing our own thing (often driving trips) combined with a long cruise.  Over our lifetime of travel these cruise/land combination trips have been our favorite.   I once posted that we learned a lesson many years ago in Italy.  We had been to Florence on 4 or 5 cruises (day trips from Livorno) and found Florence just OK.  Then while on an extended driving trip in Italy we decided to spend a few nights in Florence and quickly fell in love with the city.  Staying in Florence is a completely different experience then visiting on a port day and that is true for most destinations.

 

Hank

[clo]

56 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

we decided to spend a few nights in Florence and quickly fell in love with the city. 

That's why cruise only will never work for us. The flavor of a place, IMO, can't be gotten in six or eight hours. I want to meet locals, eat a local restaurants, etc.

[ldubs]

On 12/30/2020 at 2:30 PM, Cruzaholic41 said:

I totally agree with you. I like to board early. That first lunch on board is one of my favorites, and is somewhat symbolic. 
 

Besides, if I’m abroad, or embarking from any place I fly to, I knock out the local meals before cruise day. 

 

Even though we board "late" we would typically have a leisurely lunch on board.  But I don't think we have ever had an embark lunch in the MDR.  Like someone already said, it probably isn't open by the time we board.   

 

Regarding the discussions about port visits vs cruise ship experience, I don't like a lot of sea days and would not take a cruise just for the on-board experience.  I enjoy being on the ships, just as long as it is between port stops.  I suppose some might think it an issue, but any travel beyond about 15 days is not appealing.   

[sverigecruiser]

On 12/31/2020 at 3:54 PM, cruisemom42 said:

 

Cruises that have this kind of value factor are what I look for. Some additional examples:  a cruise with various stops in Greenland and Iceland. Going around the Greek isles, or the Black Sea. Or Antarctica.

 

 

I can absolutely understand Greenland and Antarctica. Iceland and Greek isles are easy to do without cruise if it's ALL about the ports. For me a cruise with various stops in Iceland should be perfect for the ports and the cruise experience.  

[clo]

24 minutes ago, sverigecruiser said:

Greek isles

Yep. We spent a few days in Athens and then took ferries to three islands IIRC. Had airbnb's, hung with the locals, ate incredible meals. Can't honestly imagine needing or wanting to do it any other way.

View from our balcony on Paros.

 

[Hlitner]

Must admit that DW and I do love the Greek Islands including many islands not accessible by any cruise ship.   There are over 1200 Greek Island and 150-200 are inhabited.   One of my favorite spots is "Shipwreck Beach" on the island of Zakynthos.   Those who only cruise will never see this place unless they decide to cruise on a yacht :).

 

Hank

[clo]

27 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Must admit that DW and I do love the Greek Islands including many islands not accessible by any cruise ship.   There are over 1200 Greek Island and 150-200 are inhabited.   One of my favorite spots is "Shipwreck Beach" on the island of Zakynthos.   Those who only cruise will never see this place unless they decide to cruise on a yacht :).

 

Hank

But the ferries go there, don't they? We've not been there but I believe I've read that it's very popular.

 

[iancal]

Our all time favourite cruise embarkation ports......Istanbul and Sydney.   

 

We love the Greek Islands but very much prefer to do it on our own steam.   By ferry, with carry on only, and with no set agenda. Sometimes going not where we planned but where the ferries happened to be going that day.  Same for the Med coast of Turkey and the coast of Croatia.

 

We spent 8 days on Zakynthos and 10 days on Kefelonia this past fall.  Not near enough time on either island for our us.  They are back on our bucket list!

Edited January 2, 2021 by iancal

[clo]

43 minutes ago, iancal said:

We spent 8 days on Zakynthos and 10 days on Kefelonia this past fall.  Not near enough time on either island for our us.  They are back on our bucket list!

That's great to 'hear.' I honestly wouldn't go back to Santorini if you paid me. Swarming with tourists. Almost as bad as Dubrovnik where we also wouldn't return. 

[Hlitner]

14 minutes ago, clo said:

But the ferries go there, don't they? We've not been there but I believe I've read that it's very popular.

 

I assume there are some ferries from Corfu.  We went there on a small yacht cruise (20 passengers) and it was amazing.  Our Captain dropped anchor off that remote beach (only accessible via boat) around mid-morning just after we had all finished breakfast.  The Captain then came into the parlor and told us where we were (we had no idea until he explained) and said if we wanted to go ashore to the beach the only way was to jump off the ship and swim in.  Our fellow passengers were 10 Germans, 8 Dutch, and  we two Americans.  For most of our week cruise nobody was sober and that morning was no exception :).  The beach is a famous place (with a rusted out smuggling ship on the beach where it ran aground smuggling cigarettes) and there is a viewing place on the edge of a cliff hundreds of feet above the beach.   Photos of the place have graced the covers of some travel magazines including National Geographic.  It was all so much fun.  In over forty years of extensive independent travel that trip was a true highlight.  Here is picture of the yacht we were on which is now billed as a luxury yacht.  That is far from the truth :).

SEA CROWN Yacht Charter Price - Castros Asti Luxury Yacht Charter (yachtcharterfleet.com)

 

As the time this yacht was chartered by a company called Zeus Cruises.  That was later to become part of Variety Cruises which is a yacht cruise line I still talk about here on CC.  The thing about these kind of yacht cruises is that they do not cost more then many mass market cruises.   It is a different experience.  When we boarded the Sea Crown in Corfu we were met by a Dutch guy who handed us a beer and said, "you must be the Americans....welcome aboard!"  He quickly became a good friend.  On that yacht (calling it a yacht is debatable) it was one big party.  In the morning we would pull up to a quite area in the Ionian chain, and jump off the boat to swim and go to shore.  Then we moved on for a few hours to another island where we stopped for lunch and the afternoon.  The it was dinner on the boat and often ashore with the other passengers to find the nearest watering hole.  During the night while we were asleep the Captain moved us to another island to start the entire sequence all over again.  

 

Hank

 

Hank

 

Hank

 

Hank

[cruisemom42]

3 hours ago, sverigecruiser said:

Iceland and Greek isles are easy to do without cruise if it's ALL about the ports.

 

Depends on what you want to do ashore. I'm not a beach or scenery person. With me it's generally a museum or archeological site that I want to visit.

 

[clo]

9 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

I assume there are some ferries from Corfu.

Google was my friend 🙂

 

http://www.ferries-greece.com/travel-guide/ionian/zakynthos/

[iancal]

We ferried to Corfu from the mainland.

 

Our tentative plan was to depart Corfu but ferry but it turned out to cost only slightly more to fly to Kefelonia..  Then a ferry from Poros to Zakynthos Town.

[clo]

8 minutes ago, iancal said:

We ferried to Corfu from the mainland.

 

Our tentative plan was to depart Corfu but ferry but it turned out to cost only slightly more to fly to Kefelonia..  Then a ferry from Poros to Zakynthos Town.

We thoroughly enjoyed the ferries. And on our return to Athens we had all manner of leftover goodies for lunch. Sat at the back and it was just great.

[Hlitner]

It is good to see some discussion of these islands.  Perhaps other cruisers will realize that there are some good reasons to explore beyond what can be done on a cruise ship.  While we always enjoy places like Santorini (even when it is packed with cruisers from 4 large ships) there is a lot more to be found for those that expand their horizons beyond cruise ports.

 

Hank

[ilikeanswers]

We had a trip planned for Greece this year. We were going to a road trip on the mainland and then some island hopping via ferries. Here is hoping next year we can fulfil these plans 🤞😉

[clo]

2 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Santorini

To each their own. 🙂 I had to laugh when a shop owner told us that Chinese couples will come there for their wedding photos. Not their weddings; just the photos.

[ilikeanswers]

1 minute ago, clo said:

To each their own. 🙂 I had to laugh when a shop owner told us that Chinese couples will come there for their wedding photos. Not their weddings; just the photos.

 

The wedding photo industry in China is no laughing matter 😂. It is a billion dollar industry and ironically usually taken before the wedding:

The Chinese wedding trend that captures ‘the dream’

[clo]

14 minutes ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

The wedding photo industry in China is no laughing matter 😂. It is a billion dollar industry and ironically usually taken before the wedding:

The Chinese wedding trend that captures ‘the dream’

Wow! Thanks SO much. I love learning new things 🙂

[iancal]

The last two times we have been in the Cyclades we did not even consider getting off the ferry in Santorini or Mykonos.  

Edited January 2, 2021 by iancal

[cruisemom42]

18 minutes ago, iancal said:

The last two times we have been in the Cyclades we did not even consider getting off the ferry in Santorini or Mykonos.  

 

It's still possible to enjoy Santorini and Mykonos on a cruise ship if you go off season and look at schedules. 

 

A couple of years ago when I was in Santorini in early April, we (350 passenger ship) were the only ship there until around mid-afternoon. The Akrotiri ruins were empty, as were the two museums in Thira and we had a lovely lunch at an uncrowded local restaurant on one of the black sand beaches. 

 

Same in Mykonos. In late November, Delos (from Mykonos) was wonderful -- not broiling, and not crowded. If it wasn't for Delos, I have no idea what one would do on Mykonos for more than a lunch. 

 

 

1 hour ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

The wedding photo industry in China is no laughing matter 😂. It is a billion dollar industry and ironically usually taken before the wedding:

The Chinese wedding trend that captures ‘the dream’

 

I think I posted before one of the photos I snapped in Oia of a couple (not sure if they were Chinese, Korean or ?) taking wedding photos, standing precariously on the top of the roof of one of the iconic Oia churches. The mother of the bride was ordering everyone around; meanwhile I was holding my breath (as were all of us watching) as it seemed they could tumble off at any moment...

 

I'll have to look that one up and post it again.

 

Edited January 2, 2021 by cruisemom42

[ilikeanswers]

1 hour ago, clo said:

Wow! Thanks SO much. I love learning new things 🙂

 

If you like learning new things I recommend the doco mentioned in the article. It is weird, funny, fascinating and touching at the same time

[clo]

2 minutes ago, ilikeanswers said:

 

If you like learning new things I recommend the doco mentioned in the article. It is weird, funny, fascinating and touching at the same time

I started reading it and will continue. It's fascinating the Asian culture.