chinita415

2 minutes ago, chinita415 said:

Are you there June 11th? If so it was the new Sun Princess that pulled out and made news.

 

https://www.cruisehive.com/princess-cruises-ship-cancels-port-visits-due-to-congestion/128358

Never mind looks like you are there June 10th. What is the actual pax count if not 3075?

24 minutes ago, AlaskaGoer said:

Epic and in a week.

 

There was a 2pm ship that is no longer listed. 

Are you there June 11th? If so it was the new Sun Princess that pulled out and made news.

https://www.cruisehive.com/princess-cruises-ship-cancels-port-visits-due-to-congestion/128358

This appears to be the official port schedule so I am checking here instead of CruiseMapper etc which are aggregate sites.

https://www.santoriniports.gov.gr/en/cruise

2 hours ago, AlaskaGoer said:

Interesting enough, I checked cruise mapper to see if there were any changes to the amount of ships docking.

 

For our day it's now 1 less. 

When are you scheduled to be there and on what ship? People on MSC Davina made it there this past 2 weeks. I am trying to figure out what numbers are acceptable and it seems there have been days with 10-11k allowed. So far my sailing still has Santorini but people are finding out a month ahead on MSC Davina which is calling there weekly.

Read about landslides mitigations from another social media platform. This makes sense why they are now actually trying to limit numbers. Still crossing my fingers and toes we get to go.

So just like Alaska last summer we are affected by local landslides. What are the chances?

https://neoskosmos.com/en/2024/05/27/news/greece/controlled-access-measures-enforced-on-santorini-and-therasia-to-prevent-landslide-risks-throughout-the-tourist-season/

RavenCruiser - I was supposed to be on your sailing. I am learning about that excursion you took which is bus and tender both ways. That is the all day 8 hours Best Of Santorini one correct? 
 

edinburgher - I knew full well it would be crowded when I rescheduled to August with Olympics. My mom and I have been to Paris a number of times already and we won’t stay in the city because it is stupid expensive. We are staying near Disneyland and will take RER in for a day to show the kids the city. If we do get to go to Santorini, we will likely do a photo shoot at Imerovigli which should be less crowded than Oia or Fira.

2 hours ago, edinburgher said:

Lesson #1 when booking a cruise.

 

Never ever book a cruise for one specific port of call as there are too many reasons why a call could be cancelled right up until the last minute.

Of course I know this but it is disappointing nevertheless. Over spring break last month I was on a cruise to nowhere from Galveston on Disney. The harbor was closed at Progreso and we could see it and the captain hung around and really tried. But weather didn’t cooperate. Luckily for me we had no grand plans but I felt bad for people who booked that sailing to go to Chichen Itza.
 

Changes due to unforeseen things like weather or mechanical issues are less aggravating than cruise lines overbooking. Serious question- do they really not coordinate with each other and do the port authorities have no control like the cruise lines can’t book that port unless approved by port authorities? Is it different because it is a tender port?

14 minutes ago, erby2283 said:

We are slated to stop on September 11th and there are 6 ships in port with an estimated 8,199 projected passengers. We are the 5th ship to arrive that morning and the 2nd ship to leave. 🫢  We've already booked a ship excursion to avoid the cable car up and just plan to head back extremely early to try and avoid the lines at the cable car.  But we also plan to know it will be a cluster f - so just trying to keep that in mind so we know what we're getting into. 

That is a reasonable number for 5 ships. Yes go in with low expectations and be surprised if it all goes well.

1 hour ago, mapleleaves said:

But the boat is only a one-way transfer to Amoudi Bay (below Oia).  You still have to get to Fira and ride the cable car down to the pier. The queues going down can be as bad as the queue going up.

Last summer someone posted about a separate boat company at Amoudi Bay (at the bottom of the staircase) that was taking people back to the tender dock. 

It would be great if someone could report back on whether it's currently operating.  That would be a game changer.

Yea I have read only one way from tender port to Ammoudi Bay. It would be one method to reduce queue times at Fira and also for those with anxiety about the cable car heights. I am currently booked on a cruise excursion for one way tender port to Ammoudi Bay and then buses to Oia and Fira and cable car down. Would be good to have option to go down and back via boat as well.

6 hours ago, VMax1700 said:

They made it public quite a few years ago.  Why do they need to make a public statement about enforcing their own rules?  It is our responsibility, as travellers, to find out the local rules and regulations before we plan to visit.

As you can see from my signature I am not a naive cruiser nor a naiver traveler. There is just too much information to gather. Why am I being lectured on for asking? And most definitely the cruise lines have to be more responsible about booking ports they can’t deliver. But I suppose this is the same as airlines routining overbooking flights.

Thank you Shella73 for sharing . Are you on NCL Viva? Thought I saw it on the August schedule. Seems like cruise lines are doing this voluntarily then? 
 

I am booking independent photo shoot in Santorini so will let vendor know we might get canceled and have good cancellation policy. 

So far people on MSC through the first week of July are finding out about cancellations.  Not all sailings but those with over 10k pax scheduled. It is unclear if MSC is voluntarily rescheduling vs there is some background negotiations we are not privy to. The emails to MSC guests just mentioned cancellation due to “port congestion.” Apparently this happened last summer too.

Whatever government entities came up with the 8000 pax per day limits and are actually enforcing it need to make a public statement. Or MSC needs to let customers know they made the decision voluntarily. It is just aggravating having to wait. Like I said last summer it was a little bit of a wait with lots of rumors for Alaska but at least they made a decision for the whole season. Sounds like they are still figuring out things a month at a time.

i truly think this is the only time my mom will make it to Greece. Won’t be and of the world if we miss Santorini but it will nevertheless be disappointing. We have Mykonos still but also apparently some cancellations there last year too.

I understand this is totally a first world privilege problem.

MSC is letting people change to other sailings within 2 weeks so those affected can pick another week with few ships. We don’t have that flexibility.

We were supposed to be on the cruise last week but had to reschedule due to work. Not only are we in Paris during Olympics but now this. My mom is 78 so who knows when she will have the opportunity. If we do make it to Santorini, I will try to book a private photo shoot with transfer from top of cable car. 
 

I am making an educated guess we might make is as some of the June and July dates still have 9000-10000 after cancellation of MSC Davina that I know about. Our date has 11k. But maybe MSC is the loser and we will get bumped instead of Princess and Royal with more clout. Our ship arrives first at 8A then Sun Princess at 9a. Royal arrives at 1p. Hopefully we can take advantage of this by getting off an early tender.

I will just keep updating here. This is the official port website:

https://www.santoriniports.gov.gr/en/cruise

Someone from the MSC Davina June 28th sailing just mentioned they were canceled. They were supposed to be there July 2nd. Even without Davina there are still 9000 people. 

I am not so confident I will get to go. Will it be MSC, Princess, or RCL that has to cancel on my date? Those are the mega ships on my August 13th date.

Yes the only articles were about Sun Princess cancelling. Probably because Sun Princess news is worthy. I want to know what they are doing for the rest of the summer. I added up wrong. Looks like my date there are about 11K total so maybe ok. But again on the MSC Davina Med group in another social media platform people are reporting cancellation of Santorini for Marmaris Turkey for sailings in the next month. So looking for information how these changes are determined. Wonder if anyone on RCL sailings seeing cancellations.

But don't local authorities have the final say on bookings? Not saying cruise lines are not a fault. The travel sector especially cruising has definitely rebounded since COVID shut down.

We are in California so traveling all this way means we want to see as much as we can in a multi center trip. Santorini is on my mom's bucket list but she only wants to see the Insta famous spot so a cruise stop was the perfect way to accomplish this.

I am just looking for some concrete information. I understand cruise stops change all the time and experienced this last summer in Alaska. But that change was out of the control of the cruise line and local authorities. What ended up deciding who got bumped was the contracts for the docks. For Santorini there does not seem to be any information. 

Bumping to see if anyone else on Sun Princess or Odyssey of the Seas has heard any more information. 

Have not found more overall information so asking here...

We are on MSC Davina August 2024. People are finding out Santorini port canceled about a month out right now. The only thing I can find from online news wise is that Sun Princess cancelled June 11 stop voluntarily.

MSC Davina, Sun Princess, and RCL Odyssey of the Sea are the 3 big ships calling all summer and are there the day we are there on August 13th. Anyone else on these ships or others with more information? I understand the 8000 cruise passengers limit was established years ago but it appears they are starting to enforce it now? What a bummer that the local authorities allowed booking of well over 10k pax on many days this summer knowing this limit. How will cruise lines and local authorities decide who has to cancel? I am sure a lot of background negotiation is happening. 

We booked this specific sailing because of Santorini. Probably won't have much flexibility to change.  

We were in Alaska last summer on Quantum of the Sea and had Skagway canceled because of the landslide. They canceled for the whole season a few weeks before we sailed. I wish they would make firm decisions so people can make plans rather than leave us hanging. 

Look at the app Bounce. They partner with local businesses to store bags and it's about $8 a bag. Like Airbnb and Turo. I am using this to store carseats as we are in town for the day but docking at Pan American Pier. Usually hotels or businesses. There are a bunch in Old San Juan and other parts of town.

Yes I am still hoping they will offer a motor coach shuttle since it sounds like usually day visit ships normally dock at Old San Juan and only those starting and ending at San Juan are out at Pan American Pier. 

I think we will just stick to the food tour and wandering around Old San Juan. Will venture out on another visit when the kids are older. I am sure we will be back on the future  

It's actually 5 ships total that day. Very disappointed that DCL will not arrange for motor coach transportation into Old San Juan. We are in port from 8:30a to 4:30p.

I have figured it out. Will use our own carseats for Uber or taxi. Store the seats at a Bounce location (Hotel Casa Blanca) in Old San Juan. Take Flavours of San Juan food tour. If the kids get antsy we will take turns outside the restaurant with them. We did a walking food tour in Havana when we cruised with my oldest when she was 8m and it was fabulous. Hoping this will be the same.

There are other people on our sailing in same situation with kids needing carseats or people in wheelchair. Not many accessible tours from DCL or for younger kids. I will definitely give DCL feedback. We have been to other ports (in Europe most recently) where the ports were out of main parts of town but had motor coaches as shuttles into town. Would except the same here.

Will be in town for the day on Disney Fantasy on January 11th. Apparently 3 other ships in town and we dock at Pan American which I understand is not walking distance from Old Town.

Want to do a walking tour or a food tour. We did something like that in Havana when we had just one kid at 9mo a few years ago and it was great. I will have a 5yo and 19mo. We will have our own carseats. Maybe I can find a private tour guide with a car??

Are there car service with car seats? 

Any suggestions?

Good tips already. My DD just turned 2y. She cruised when she was 8 months and 16 months. Much harder at 16 months because she was so mobile and curious. About the shower - we just put towels on the shower floor to make it less slippery. Did it when she was 8 months with her sitting and 16 months with her standing. I did not want to bother with the inflatable thing.

We use the Summer Infant 3D lite stroller for the first trip and the GB Pockit Plus for the recent trip. Would love to get the Babyzen Yoyo but have sticker shock. The GB is not as sturdy but I love how small it folds and great for carry on size so you don't have to wait at the gate. We also bring our own carseat (the Cosco Scenera Nex) and it nests perfectly in most umbrella strollers. I use 2 bungee cords to secure it to the stroller.

As for eating, MDR was easier as we did not have to schlep our own stuff and staff loved entertaining her as many have kids at home that they miss. We got to see staff members' kids' photos many times.

Pay for the photo package. We have great formal family photos from both cruises with her. The most recent one was our "grandma" cruise with both GMs. We definitely got our money's worth. Not sure how it works for Carnival, but for Princess as long as someone in the cabin who got the package is in the photo it is included in the all inclusive package.

I was on the Royal Princess in April and here was our PnP in our room. Pretty sure we had a deluxe. DD was 16 months on this cruise. Her first cruise she was 8 months old and we went to Cuba from Miami. We had a small ocean view cabin then and initially had a PnP but sent it back because it was too cramped. She co-slept with us on that trip. 

We gladly paid for gratuities for her on both trips. The staff works hard and I don't mind paying for them . 

As for general tips, she was much easier on the first cruise because she was not that mobile yet. She had her first of many solids food on that sailing. We did not ask for puree food but ordered mostly soups and other soft foods off the MDR menu. MDR worked much better than buffet because you did not have to carry all your own stuff. DD was able to sit through longish dinners at 8 months. At 16 months, not so much so we ended up taking turn walking around with her. At 8 months, we did bring the umbrella stroller but mostly wore her in a carrier so we could just walk up and down the stairs. We did fine in the shower for both trips. First trip, we laid towels on the shower floor so she could sit on it and use the shower head.  We knew she could not use the pool so spent an extra 3 nights in a Miami hotel so she could use the pool.

On 9/6/2019 at 8:31 PM, Bellie said:

How did you like the Pockit? I've been looking at it and similar models potentially to get.

 I like for the portability and carryon size. The plus (not original) reclines so good for naps. Not so good is the small wheels. Somewhat harder on cobblestone or broken sidewalks or dirt. But feasible if you lock the front wheels. Also the fold is sometimes hard especially if you have something small in the basket. 

We use the Pockit Plus at home too. We use the Summer Infant when we go to amusement park and need more basket space.

I would get the Babyzen Yoyo if I wasn't so cheap. Also carryon size but easier to open and close and sturdier wheels.

We were on the Royal Princess in April with my then 16 months old daughter. I bought the GB Pockit+ for that trip because it is carryon size for the plane. Previously have traveled with the Summer Infant 3DLite. We also had my mother in law in a manual wheelchair. It was a pain to wait for the elevator during peak times but we dealt with it.

We cruised with daughter last summer when she was 8 months old to Cuba. We brought the Summer Infant but mostly wore her in a carrier then. It was much easier that way as we could walk the stairs.