Santorini??

[jstducky]

jstducky, did I read that correctly that you are going soon on this new cruise? If so, that is unreal - you must be retired (we are too). But have never been so spontaneous with Europe! Good for you; have a great time. How did you do on air tickets?

 

 

twoatsea...

 

I wish I was that lucky to 1) be retired, and 2) be going that soon on the cruise I booked.

 

The cruise I booked this past weekend is for July of 2009. So I have almost a whole year to go before I get to cruise.

 

And unfortunately, I'm not retired. I am a 28 year old who drags my parents along with me on all sorts of adventures. When I got back from the British Isles 3 weeks ago, I was antsy to get something booked for next year. I love Europe and find it to be so incredibly fascinating. My parents and I all agreed that we liked the Med the best, so we began looking.

 

Found an itinerary that was the right length, time, price, and cost and put down a deposit on it. Hopefully it all works out well!

 

Anyhow, one of the stops is Santorini, which I'm so excited about going back to! Now I'll be anxiously awaiting your reviews when you get back from your cruise to see how the tendering worked out for your cruise!

[jstducky]

What's the website to go to to see what other ships are in port the same day I am scheduled to be in port?

 

Thanks!

[CoralReef]

What's the website to go to to see what other ships are in port the same day I am scheduled to be in port?

 

Thanks!

 

www.porttime.com

[jstducky]

www.porttime.com

 

Thank you!

[Toronto Maple Leaf Fan]

We just got off Splendor of the Seas this weekend. At 7:00 AM, those with ship excursions were tendered off the ship to an area where tour buses could park, pick up the passangers and start their tours. These excursions all finished in Fira and those on the tours had to take cable cars down or walk the donkey trail down or take the donkeys.

 

After all those with tours were off the ship, the ship relocated to it's new position and those passengers doing their 'own thing' were then tendered in to the cable car area/donkey area.

 

The Splendor of the Seas never actually docks in Santorini. The boat is continually moving (extremely slowly). The waters are not deep enough to anchor so the ships just slowly drive around.

 

Once you make it to the top of the Island, no matter how you do it, it is a beautiful place.

 

Kim

[jstducky]

 

After all those with tours were off the ship, the ship relocated to it's new position and those passengers doing their 'own thing' were then tendered in to the cable car area/donkey area.

 

Kim

 

Kim -

 

Thanks for the info. That's so interesting. I wonder if it depends on the cruise line then as to how to deal with the cruise ship passengers with tours and those without tours. As some have stated on this thread and a previous one, the ship only drops anchor once and the tour and non-tour passengers go separate ways. But then others have mentioned dropping off tour passengers first and then moving to their second location and dropping off non-tour passengers.

 

I say its strange because generally speaking, a cruise ship doesn't give priority to passengers with tours vs passengers without tours. But since many people have reported this happening, I guess it must happen.

 

When I was on Splendour's sister ship, Brilliance, 2 years ago, this was now how things were done as everyone was given a fair shot at getting off the ship. But things must change.

 

Anyhow, glad you loved Santorini. I too thought it was spectacular. When I went the first time, I did the cable car both ways. Now that I will be going back a second time, I am definitely going to do the donkey one way. I don't want to have gone to Santorini twice and not have at least tried the donkey.

 

(BTW - good luck to the Leafs this year.... I am the BIGGEST Anaheim Ducks fan you'll ever meet!)

[twoatsea]

jstducky, you are just a puppy! Glad you found a cruise; sorry it is so far off, but gives you more time to dream!

 

How wonderful that you travel with your parents. Don't know if you really appreciate their company at this time, but I bet you will be so glad later in life. My Mother traveled with DH & I, & since she died, we are so glad that we had those trips! Our adult son (in his 40's) travels with us now (because last couple of years he has been unattached!). I'm glad that we are building memories for him to enjoy later in life. Enjoy.

[jstducky]

jstducky, you are just a puppy! Glad you found a cruise; sorry it is so far off, but gives you more time to dream!

 

How wonderful that you travel with your parents. Don't know if you really appreciate their company at this time, but I bet you will be so glad later in life. My Mother traveled with DH & I, & since she died, we are so glad that we had those trips! Our adult son (in his 40's) travels with us now (because last couple of years he has been unattached!). I'm glad that we are building memories for him to enjoy later in life. Enjoy.

 

twoatsea ---

 

i love traveling with my parents. i think that most of my friends and some of my co-workers think that its weird that i am so close to my parents. however, i'm an only child and when i was younger my parents never let me stay home during summer vacation. they were always dragging me somewhere. so now in turn, i do all the planning and i drag them. i too am unattached, and while i've traveled with friends, most of my friends don't share my love of travel. so then i pick up the phone, call the parents, get them to give me the ok, and then i am off and running with my travel plans!

 

but yes, i definitely appreciate this time that i can spend with my parents. we are a very close family, so traveling together is just natural.

 

anyhow, back to the topic at hand... it seems that this issue regarding one stop to 2 different tender docks, or 2 stops to 2 different tender docks is getting even murkier.....

[nparmelee]

The wineries are out away from the towns, more towards where Akrotiri is. We found shops that had some tastings and sold wine in both Oia and Fira.

[Paul&Kathy]

Twoatsea, the link to the boat trips we are looking at is :

 

http://www.santorini.com/sailing/dakoutros-boats/boat-trips.htm

[Jade13]

OH NO, jstducky :eek: After struggling with Santorini, I thought I had this all figured out. I got that info from CC - two ports, ship's tours off much faster, long cable car line, et al! Now I am back at the drawing board!

 

Well, we are in a suite, so we can get off the ship fast, I assume. However, we would have to take the cable car both ways & both of us are afraid of heights - but we decided to endure the cable cars with our eyes closed! So, that can be accomplished - unhappily.

 

But.....also heard it is hard to get a bus or taxi back from Oia???? We are going in November & I think the buses only run once every hour - at least that is what I got from CC. And supposedly the taxis are very busy & hard to come by.

 

What do you think? We would love extra time in Oia because we love to take pictures :cool: But we don't push & shove, not even to get on a bus or taxi - so would it be difficult for us to get back to Fira?

 

Noordam let folks on their own off first if willing to leave between 7-9am. They then moved for the shoe excursions...

[twoatsea]

Paul & Kathy, thanks for that link. Looks good.

 

Jade13, hope we can be as lucky!

[jstducky]

I guess then that the lesson is that every cruise ship does something just a little bit different!

 

Crazy!

[Paul&Kathy]

Just home from our cruise and in our case Oceania dropped the tour people off early then moved a short distance to the tender port for the cable car. We could see the bus port from where we were anchored and it did not look far away, so quite understandable that larger ships would run tenders to both at the same time. The ship was anchored in the caldera but constantly drifted around so we had an ever changing view of the beautiful cliffs.

 

Do be aware that porttime.com only seems to list the US-connected ships. When I checked before leaving I think there was only us, Costa Fortuna & Seadream listed. On arrival there was also a Thomsons ship and a Windstar and later 2 other European ships arrived and also a Star Clipper.

 

Santorini was of course very crowded. We tendered in fairly late (about 10.30). There were plenty of boat trips available to the volcano but we decided it was too hot for the walk, so I went up in the cable car (queued about 40 minutes) and DH waited at the bottom. There are a few shops and a couple of bars there.

 

The cable car was OK and I think anyone who is a bit nervous will probably be fine - it is very quick and looks very solid and modern. But I am glad that DH did not come, as anyone with a serious height fear would hate it.

 

The town was very pretty but completely packed with tourists. There was a huge queue to come down (some people later said they waited over an hour) so having seen a lot of people walking down I decided to try it. In fact it was not too bad at all. Of course you have to watch where you walk but the path is wide and the only place it seemed crowded was near the donkey station at the top, where of course the donkey owners were keen to sell rides. Once past there it was very pleasant with scenic views all the way. I counted 608 steps from the bottom of the town back to the tender quay but it is not like a staircase, there are at least a couple of paces between the steps. The donkeys are more like large mules and come by in groups but just walk past without stopping. They always take the outside of a bend, so us walkers soon learnt to stay on the inside !

 

Santorini is a lovely port, hope you all enjoy it as much as I did. Do ask any questions and I will try to answer.

[june1]

Looking for a Greek cruise in winter or spring but not leaving from Rome as have been there before. Thanks, June