catmad

Hi Sunnydale

We are taking similar cruise to yours next October on Celebrity Silhouette and had heard that last year Celebrity were charging $20 a day for their shuttle bus and also that those not taking a cruise excursion could not get a shuttle until all the regular excursion buses had left. What was your experience last November? Any information would be very much appreciated. I cannot find much up to date information on this anywhere so it seems to have only changed in 2016!!

Many thanks

Carol (Pinky60)

We have visited Ashdod twice on Thomson Spirit. The ships usually dock by a customs shed that everyone has to pass through. On the other side of the shed there are taxis lined up plus the shuttle buses. We booked our taxi with David Vazana (dvazana80@gmail.com). He was great. He picked us up by the shed, took us to Jerusalem and showed us round. He has a port licence and a licence to enter old Jerusalem.

All of the regular excursions left the Spirit before others got off however, they allowed us off early because we had booked a time for the taxi!!

If you have not booked your taxi in advance there are some taxis waiting at the entrance but they were charging more than we paid. Jerusalem is about 1.5hrs from Ashdod by taxi.

Hi, we are visiting Ashdod for two days in March on Thomson Spirit. We visited Jerusalem last March and had a great and very enjoyable private day tour, visiting the main sights.

We'd like to do something different this time. Do you have any suggestions please? We'd take a private taxi from the ship and it would probably just be me and my husband. Judging by last year, we'd probably be able to get off the ship at about 9am on first day. I have walking difficulties so this needs to be taken into account. And we are not rich so we are looking for budget suggestions. We prefer to see sights, local people, local customs and eat local food rather than visit shopping malls.

Whilst walking round Jerusalem, on the way the to Church of the Holy Sepulchre we passed through a wonderful market street/area. We didn't have time to stop so I would like to go back there.

We were thinking of maybe Galilee? Is that possible by taxi? would it be expensive? Maybe Nazareth? What else? We wouldn't mind a short photo stop at the Dead Sea but we wouldn't want to stay for too long. Sadly, Masada is not possible for me. Also, we didn't go to Bethlehem because we already had too much walking that day...so a short visit would be good. Lastly, the Holocaust Museum would be good but I hear there is a lot of walking.

So what wonders can you suggest please

Hi everyone,

 

I wanted to introduce myself and let you know I'd be happy to answer questions you have about Israel and visiting Israel. (I'm not a travel agent nor am I associated with any agent, I'm just a smiling resident happy to help out.)

 

I moved to Israel from New Jersey almost 10 years ago, and live in a Jerusalem suburb. [i'm about to take my first cruise- to the Mexican Riviera :-).]

 

I'll try to check this board a couple of times a week, and while I'm sure I don't have the answers to all your questions, I'll be happy to answer those I can.

 

Israel is a beautiful country, and I'm sure you're going to love every moment of it!

 

[That's a pic of my town in my signature- we live in the Jerusalem hills.]

the ports weren't closed, celebrity just chose not to stop there.

Several other cruises lines have continued. The Holland America Rotterdam was in Ashdod yesterday. Regent Seven Seas was here last week.

We cruised on Thomson Spirit last March 2015. Everyone was wondering if our 2 days in Ashdod would be cancelled because of violence in Jerusalem a couple of days before. We discussed safety in the tour briefing and were told that some cruise lines, particularly the big American ones, cancelled their visits more often than British ones because government travel advice differed.

We visited Ashdod. We went to Jerusalem on a private tour and had a brllliant time! The 'violence' turned out to be a couple of youths throwing stones in a park. I'm so glad the stop was not cancelled because of that!

We are cruising on the Thomson Spirit again on 16 March 2016. We are supposed to visit Crete, Turkey and Ashdod. With the current turbulent situation in the Middle East it seems that the visits to Turkish Alanya and Marmaris, and Israel Ashdod could be under threat. As we only have one other port and we live in Cyprus, the cruise could be completely ruined if the ship did not dock at any of these ports.

Have been on 20 cruises and never have had the ship hold our passports - reading about cruising to Israel & Greece on the Celebrity Silhouette in September 2016 and it sounds like the ship holds your passport except when going to Israel - could someone explain? We usually keep our passports in the room safe and always carry copies when getting off the ship -except in Russia where they stamp your passport getting on and off ship.

We cruised on the Thomson Spirit last March, visiting Greek Islands, Turkey and Israel. The ship held our passports and gave them back for Israel. It wasn't a problem. The ship used them to apply for our Turkish Visas and to apply for clearance for Israel. It wasn't a problem!

As regards stamping of passports, this doesn't usually happen in the Eastern Med because there are a number of countries that would not allow you in if you have certain stamps in your passport!

Thanks for the replies. PK was very quick to reply. We arrive by ship. It is where we disembark. July it's going to be hot, so I'm leaning towards the full day tour so we don't get cranky or heatstroke figuring how to get from one venue to another. Then after the tour go to the hotel to rest, before going out in the evening.

I was worried about how we would find the taxi when we got off the ship. We had to go through the terminal and immigration. The taxi driver was waiting for us just outside the main arrivals exit. It doesn't matter where you arrive, you still have to go through the same building. But PK travel should tell you how to find him. Just one warning, we found loads of taxi drivers outside arrivals, waiting for a fare. Do make sure you know the name of your driver to be sure you have the right one.

The taxi driver will drop you wherever you want at the end of the tour. Hotel, ship or airport.

Quick Question. to those who used PK for the taxi and not a private guide, are you sorry you didn't have a guide? This is for the one day Athens tour.

We have used PK travel twice. The Taxi drivers are very knowledgeable and can give lots of information but they would not join you on a tour of the Acropolis. So you might benefit from joining a guided group. The first time we visited the Acropolis we were on a guided coach tour and it was good but we felt too rushed and that we wanted to go back and have a longer look. That's why we chose a taxi firm to take us back.We were dropped as close as possible, rather than in the lower car park. We were also advised as to how to minimise the queuing. And we had as much time as we wanted, whilst the taxi driver waited for us.

On leaving the Acropolis we had a tour of Athens that was far better than the coach one. We got to see lots of different things in addition to the usual. We were given loads of detail and information about daily life and taken to a lovely cheap local restaurant for lunch. Even better, as we had shared our taxi with another couple, the whole trip was cheaper than the guided coach tour.

While my kids and I are at the water park, I'm trying to customize a tour that gives us enough time to enjoy the park, but also includes attractions that are not too difficult for my MIL to navigate. She's 75 and is fairly mobile, but we want to avoid anything requiring steep inclines, climbing, lengthy broken paths, etc.

 

In addition to House of Virgin Mary, they also plan to visit Temple of Artemis. Can anyone suggest other attractions that would be suitable? Thanks.

You should be aware that there is a cobbled area and steep hill on the approach to the Virgin Mary's house. Ask whoever is driving you, to drop you in the lower car park which is closer. Also, it is possible for a car to get into a car park right on top of the Temple of Artemis... coaches sometimes park further away.

Visiting the ruins at Epheseus, usually the coaches drop people at the top. Then people follow a 1km trail through the ruins on uneven ground. On a hot day this is a long walk! Our taxi driver said that he could drop us at the bottom of that trail. We wouldn't see the whole area but at least we could see some. We chose to do that next time.

Does anyone know of a tour from the Kusadasi Port that goes to both the House of Virgin Mary and Terrace Houses? Didn't see anything from Ekol Travel, unless I missed it. Open to other tour companies, as well. Thanks.

We visited the House of the Virgin Mary with a taxi last year after the excursion desk cancelled my excursion booking because I am disabled and the cruise staff considered the visit unsuitable! I was devastated at missing it, so approached a taxi company (Kusadasi Taxi?) outside tourist information in Kusadasi. The taxi driver, Ismail was very knowledgeable and able to give us lots of detail. He also recommended that we reverse the order of our itinerary to avoid crowds...a good idea because it got busy at the Virgin Mary's house as we were leaving.

It turned out, that we enjoyed our private tour more than a number of our fellow cruisers if only because we could choose what we saw, in what order and for how long.

I am doing an Eastern Med cruise in June on the Reflection, but I am not into ruins at all. I am mostly interested in the beauty of the coastlines, shopping, and good food. I am considering skipping Ephesus and just exploring Kusadasi coastal restaurants and maybe pigeon island. However the reviews of Ephesus are across the board excellent. Would it be a mistake to skip Ephesus? On that same note, would a drive by view of the Acropolis be sufficient in Athens with a focus on Plaka shopping?

 

Thanks for any advice.

Last year we visited Piraeus, Greece on the Regal Princess. We have visited Athens a number of times and wanted to see something different. We booked a day trip with Konstantinos Xylouris of PK Travel and he took us to Cape Sounion. It was a beautiful day. We looked at Vouliagmeni Spa and had a leisurely drive along the coast to Cape Sounion. We took some awesome photos of the landscape, the coastline and the temple at Sounion then we drove back, stopping off at Ta Kalamia at Attika for a fresh fish lunch. This is the second time that Konstantinos has been our driver and I can't recommend him highly enough. Having got to know what we like, he has devised a list of alternative places to see next time we are in Greece.

As to Kusadasi, we have visited a number of times on cruises and decided to take a taxi to the Virgin Mary's House near Epheseus, rather than the ruins. We found a number of taxi companies by the tourist information. I think we used Kusadasi Taxi. I also asked to see how carpets were made and the driver took us to his uncle's workshop. They were very patient and although the owner was persistent, he accepted our refusal to buy. We were also taken to a leather workshop and had numerous photo stops along the way.

Believe me, in both Greece and Turkey there are many things to see in addition to ruins and most local taxi drivers will have suggestions if you ask. You should ALWAYS agree a price and basic itinerary with the taxi driver BEFORE you get in the taxi. I base the maximum price that I am prepared to pay, on the prices charged by the cruise ship and my budget. If I can't strike the right/fair deal I walk away. Give off the beaten track a try...it works for us!

We have used PK travel and their driver Konstantinos Xylouris twice now and have had brilliant tours on both occasion.

The first time was in June 2013. We were visiting Pireaus on a cruise and we had heard, whilst on board, that we would be there on a strike day. I found a recommendation for PK Travel on Trip Advisor so emailed and arranged a trip to the Acropolis and a tour of Athens. Konstantinos was brilliant and got us to everything we wanted to see in just a few hours.

We have just used them again whilst cruising on the Regal Princess last month. My husband and I were delighted to see Konstantinos because he is a good, safe and amusing time. He had suggested that we do something different this time, as we had been to Athens ... so we went to Cape Sounion for a half day. We drove through some lovely suburbs of Athens, had a photostop at the beautiful Vougliameni Spa.. next time we will take our swims and have a swim there...it looked so inviting! Then we drove to Cape Sounion to see the Temple of Poseidon and also the ruins of Athena's temple. The Temple of Poseidon was beautiful and very photogenic! We didn't have a guide for this, we might have missed the information but the guide book was very good.

After this we wanted some lunch and Konstantinos took us to one of his favourite traditional tavernas 'Ta Kalamia' near Attiki. It was a brilliant choice! Beautiful location beside the beach, delicious fresh fish with a Greek Salad, fresh bread and then fresh watermelon and cake.

Then Konstantinos took us back to our ship, stopping off at Athens harbour for photos at a Naval museum that would be another idea for a visit.

We actually had a better tour, saw more and, even though it was just my husband and me, we paid a lot less than our cruise packages were offering.

If you are cruising and go to Athens... I highly recommend PK travel. Their communication is great and there is so much to see in the Athens area than just the Acropolis!

It's possible they might show both movies and the games. That MUTS screen is on ALL the time it seems. There will be TV in the Churchill Lounge (or the equivalent) so there might be fans congregated there. Lots of fans will be on the cruise, I promise, and they won't take kindly to be being characterized as not "true fans." I live with one. We were in Paris a couple of years ago during the World Cup where the streets were thronged with fans, non-stop revelry and noise, and DH was a happy camper. We were there for reasons other than football, but he felt that fortune had smiled on him. It's not possible to please everyone on a ship, and I have learned that tolerating the sports nonsense is less trouble than trying to stop it. :D

Ok I understand people like football and will be pleased, but what about those of us who do NOT like football? Will we have a way to escape the shouting and cheering on the deck and in the sports bar? Will films be shown for us "under the stars" or will it only be wall to wall football? Also, does Proncess have any idea how unappealing 'football related activities' will be to those of us who don't like football will be? Cruises are the only time I get to play bingo and do trivia quizzes... Basing these round football is going to be awful!

I was really looking forward to our cruise on Regal a Princess, now I'm not so sure....come on Princess please put our minds at rest...please confirm that non-footballers will not be buried by football fever and the we will have fairly-distributed entertainment :mad:

I enjoy MUTS but I find this really disappointing. An occasional sporting event is fine, but 64 matches? Really? And why can't this be shown in a sports bar or on one of the tv channels instead. Movies are fairly easy to tune out when lounging by the pool but sporting events not us much, especially when fans are shouting at the screen.

I do agree! We HATE football. We will be cruising on the Regal Princess next week. We chose to cruise to get away from the World Cup. I hope that Princess recognise that not everybody likes football. We will be very angry if our cruise is ruined by a concentration on all things football related. We were looking forward to the films that were being advertised for MUTS during our cruise, I hope they will still be shown

I have really enjoyed your reports... it has really wetted my appetite for our cruise on Regal Princess in a couple of weeks.

I was really interested to read your remarks about PK travel. We used them for a shared tour round Athens last June when we were cruising on board the Salamis Filoxenia. Our driver, Konstantinos was brilliant too. We enjoyed ourselves so much that my husband and I have booked a tour with them when we dock in Athens on Regal Princess on 23rd June. We've done Athens a couple of times so we are doing a half day trip to Cape Sounion. I'll let everyone know how that goes!