Back from Nautica...with a review...

Here's the "rough draft" version:

First, at the risk of offending the diehard Oceania fans out there (who always seem to defend the line with a passion), I will try to be as accurate and even-handed as possible--so, please excuse me if I sound a little negative at times--I honestly do not intend this to be a negative review...I only want to be honest. ALL cruise lines do some things well, others less well. All have areas where they can stand to improve. The criticism, in part, is in hope that the cruise line will recognize the deficiencies and improve.

There is also the notion that EVERYONE has different criteria, different standards and put different weight to the importance of those criteria. There are no absolutes. There is no way for anyone to say ANY cruise line is better or worse in any area in any objective way and for it to mean the same thing to every reader. I might feel the entertainment is sub par, but someone else might love it...and to some people, they could care less as it is simply an unimportant part of the experience (Yes, we met people who never even went to a single show). I could say the food is excellent and someone else might think it poor--it's a matter of individual taste--perhaps influenced by what we're accustomed to eating back home or what we grew up with.

So, basically, what follows are MY opinions...based on MY criteria, my experience and my weighing of importance...

Istanbul: Spent 2 nights there plus the "overnight" on the ship. Fascinating city, great history. Stayed at the Conrad-which was absolutely first class all the way. If there's an issue at all, it's that the location is not in the heart of the tourist area (but maybe that's a good thing). Luckily for us, we had private tours arranged and people picking us up at the hotel so location was never a problem. I really recommend the Orient House Dinner/Show...really a highlight.

Entertainment on the ship the night in Istanbul consisted of some EXTREMELY amateurish local dancers followed by a very good belly dancer...

Next day was at sea...

Then Kusadasi--where we had a very fascinating private tour to Ephesus, Miletus and Didyma...

Next Rhodes--did a half day excursion to Lindos through the ship and wandered Rhodes on our own...Not sure I'd do Lindos again...a long drive and a lot of stair climbing for a few pictures...not as nice a town as Rhodes...

Next was the bizarre day in Mykonos...We were supposed to have visited Delos until noon and Mykonos from 2 pm until 11 pm...

Early in the morning we learned that we would not be anchoring at Delos due to high winds...but that we would be charged $69 (rather than the $49 originally charged) for our excursion to Delos since the extra $20 would go for small boats to bring us there from Mykonos...We were in the Nautica Lounge around 8 am waiting for them to call our tour when the announcement came that the Shore Excursions to Delos were cancelled completely...We could pay $20 for bus transfers into town if we liked...but, we figured that price was a bit steep and we'd find a taxi...But since no one expected the ship to be there that early, there were no taxis at the pier, so we opted to walk--about a 35 minute walk from the pier to town...We found an internet cafe, then some shopping, then stopped in a local cafe for a little lunch...Little did we know that by around 10 am, they were no longer letting ANYONE off the ship...Most of the passengers never even got into Mykonos! Around 1:30 pm, while we were eating lunch, I spotted a Nautica crew member informing some other passengers at a nearby table that they had to return to the ship immediately...Strangely, the guy didn't bother searching out to find there were another couple of tables of Nautica passengers at that restaurant!!! Luckily, I overheard and called him over...We were told to walk to a waiting bus and get back...that the ship was LEAVING, the winds were too high for them to stay anchored at the dock...We got back to the ship around 2:00...and the ship LEFT the dock at Mykonos, short 45 passengers still unaccounted for somewhere on the island (as they were located, they tendered them to the ship)...

Next was Athens...It was supposed to be Santorini next, but Oceania changed the order due to the number of ships in each port on each respective day...probably for the better, but it wreaked havoc with our prearranged private tour...We didn't find out until we boarded in Istanbul...and we had to call our driver, Spiros, by cell phone...and, as luck would have it, he was NOT available on the changed date...He sent a friend, but I'd guess, based on Spiros' reviews...and on our experience with the friend, Fotios, our tour was somewhat downgraded in the commentary and insight department...Still, it was a very interesting day of ancient sites in the Pelopennese--Corinth, Epidaurus, Mycenae, et al...Mycenae ranks among my wife's favorites...

On Santorini, we took the cable car up and down and we rented a car and visited Ancient Thira on our own--an incredible site on a mountain top...the road and hike were both something we will not soon forget...Also did lunch on the far side of the island and some wine tasting...

Next, another day at sea, then...

Amalfi...We did a full day tour with Salvatore of the Amalfi Coast--EXCELLENT guide and driver...

Taormina...we did a ship's excursion to Mt. Etna...A major change in pace from all of the ancient archaeological sites we had been visiting...We were a little disappointed--we had booked a FULL DAY Shore excursion to My. Etna and Taormina. But, when we got to the ship, there was a note awaiting us that it had been cancelled...The explanation we got was that the ship wasn't in port long enough for the entire tour. Didn't Oceania know this AHEAD OF TIME? Why hold our money for several months? The port times didn't change. Couldn’t they have just slightly abridged it with a little bit less free time on the crater? As it was, after the Etna tour, we never got to Taormina...not that there wouldn't have been time--there definitely was, it's just the logistics of finding a taxi and knowing that we'd be able to find one to come back to the ship (It docked fairly far from Taormina) were pretty daunting...So we walked around and had lunch in Naxos instead... Had they told us earlier that this tour wasn't available, we would have hired a private driver for the day...

Kotor...Surprisingly charming little town...We did a shore excursion to Sveti Stefan and Budva. Sveti Stefan was picturesque, but otherwise dull...Budva had much more charm to it...We walked through town and up and around the town walls (a bargain at 1 euro apiece) ...Apparently, everyone in Budva is either going to or coming from a beach...and there must be some sort of local ordinance requiring all young women to wear skimpy bikinis...Kotor itself was charming and picturesque...but it may take them some time to gear up to standard tourism--not a decent T-shirt to be bought in town...Friends, catch it now while it is still relatively unspoiled!

For Dubrovnik, we had planned on doing it on our own, but they added an excursion that didn't waste time in Cavtat (We were bored with Cavtat last time)...It was a brief tour of Dubrovnik, followed by a visit to a remote local farm for a very good and entertaining lunch...with wine, wine and more wine...Very good excursion...

Venice, we'd been to several times before...we had three nights there, the "overnight" plus two more at a hotel, the Anastasia...Our hotel was a VERY WELL located and reasonably priced (130 Euro per night including breakfast) 17-room hotel--very close to San Marco and the Valaresso Vaporetti station, wedged between the Westin and the Violin d'Oro on a very quiet little courtyard...with elevator, air conditioning, etc. We ended up taking the Vaporetto there from Piazzale Roma...and were pleasantly surprised when we left to find that our Vaporetto pass (can be bought for 24 hours for 12 euro or 72 hours for 25 euro) INCLUDED the bus ride all the way to the airport! In Venice, we wandered at length for three days, including visits to the Ghetto, the Ca Rezzonico and to the island of Burano (absolutely beautiful)...

Okay, on to the ship...

Cabin: Ample and well designed, comfortable bed, decent storage space...

Public rooms:

Grand Dining Room: A little crowded in places (They might as well remove the pretext of "tables for two"...and replace them with larger tables for six since they stack three "two-spots" close together in a row--so you're just as close to the next couples as if you were sharing a table)--not really a complaint--we LIKE eating with others...

Toscana and Polo--much more intimate, very nice rooms, long and narrow with views from Deck 10...

Terrace/Tapas on Terrace/Buffet--Buffet area (the food serving part) is a bit small and limited, the seating is adequate with some nice views from the outdoor tables on the rear deck...at least in the morning while it's still relatively cool...

Horizons (lounge on Deck 10)...very nice as a bar, but horrendously laid out for other uses (for some inexplicable reason, they held Karaoke here for the two nights they had it)...the stage is small and not visible from MOST of the tables/seating...the bar is really designed to drink and gaze out the windows, not as an entertainment venue...

Casino/Piano Bar ("Martinis")...The casino is quite small (a few slots, four blackjack or poker tables and a roulette wheel) but seemed to be the most (and only) crowded venue at night after the show...The piano bar is attached, meaning the sounds of one are infringing on the sounds of the other.

Grand Bar: Nice little bar at entry to Dining Room, making it a little less amenable for drinking--mostly taken up by people awaiting their dinner dates...

Nautica Lounge: A fairly nice, intimate venue for a "show room"...I do like the "lounge/bar" style seating arrangements...

Library: Very nice and most comfortable little room.

Pool Deck: For those thinking they are avoiding "big ship" problems by going on a smaller ship, it's not necessarily so...All the same "chair hog" problems you'd find on Carnival, Princess or Royal Caribbean and not an unclaimed chair to be found after 8 am on an at sea day...I have one giant problem regarding the much-ballyhooed "Cabanas"--they seemed to be the one part of the pool deck that was underutilized...They're lined up along the front of the ship in a location that otherwise would have provided great viewing and photography area for, say, the sail into Venice...

Food: On the whole, excellent. A few minor disappointments: The New York Steak in the Grand was not up to expected standards...and the "gratinated" Lobster in Polo was somewhat dry and tasteless...Otherwise, most entrees, appetizers and desserts were quite good--definitely not disappointing even the higher expectations...

Service: Cabin Steward and assistant cabin steward were excellent...Dining Room staff was very inconsistent...Some days good, most days either slow, forgetful, impersonal...Several times, they got the orders wrong, one meal, they forgot my soup entirely. I'll go into my cruise line comparison a little later, but one very noticeable lacking is the "waiters who get to know you"...obviously, there are both good and bad points to "open seating", but for me, a major failing is in that lack of relationship between the waiters and customer...I drink a LOT of Iced Tea...and I like it replaced FREQUENTLY...That rarely seemed to happen on Oceania...sometimes I'd get a waiter or assistant waiter who would catch on--ONCE in 14 nights I got a waiter who finally recognized that I immediately remove the lemon wedge and he stopped bringing it with the lemon...But, most nights, I'd have to continually ask for refills and MAYBE get one or two refills...

Entertainment: This is DEFINITELY NOT one of Oceania's strong points...we were prepared for a lack of "production shows", but it goes beyond that...I'm sure a lot of it is basic economics, but...here's the rundown:

In some order or another, the nightly "shows" consisted of:

1) The amateur Turkish dancers and Belly dancer

2), 3), 4) and 5) The four assistant cruise directors singing boring, unimaginative medleys of 80 songs in 45 minutes, trying to fit in a bland version of something for everyone (Note: Some of these kids were talented, for sure, but the productions lacked staging, style and variation)

6) and 7) A magician and his assistant--actually quite good...I'd say the best shows onboard

8) and 9) Oceania's Entertainment Director, Mark Friedman and his wife Rodi...Decent enough and professional enough for one good show

10) and 11) A singer who apparently sang somewhere in the background of the original pilot of the "Love Boat" -- Okay I guess, but I've seen a lot better...

12) The Piano Bar piano player moving his act to the "big room"...He's not bad...but, on most ships, this is what you go to the piano bar for...

13) The "lecturer" giving a "prime time" talk with slides on the subject of......Benny Hill (I guess you have to have been a Benny Hill fan)...and

14) The "finals" of the Karaoke contest (the "winner" being a 12 year old kid doing show tunes in a key other than his own...)...

The bottom line is that it seems MOST passengers certainly don't sail Oceania for the entertainment...

Other entertainment/activities/things-to-do...Again, scale and economics comes into play...smaller ship, fewer venues, less people translates to far less to do...Whereas on most cruise lines, the daily schedule, especially on "at sea" days takes up three pages with multiple activities in multiple venues going on at the same time, on Oceania, it's about half a page...There's the "Team Trivia" at 4:30 daily in the Grand Bar...two nights had "Name That Tune" in the Piano Bar, two nights had Karaoke in Horizons..."Dancing" was often listed in the program but rarely seemed to materialize undoubtedly due to lack of interest...or maybe musicians...

Food, other than meals: Well, I guess they had "Tea" at 4 pm each day, but we were usually in port...Past there, there was scant little to be found, especially in the late night...We are accustomed to eating dinner before the show, then venturing out to other venues and capping off the night with a little late night pizza...or milk and cake or some fruit or whatever...But, on this ship, everything but room service is closed down after dinner...and we really just like a small nosh and don't want to deal with room service...

Cruise Director: David Shermet...a really nice guy...and a Southern Californian...Overall, seemed to be a really hardworking guy...

Other notes:

Prices for goods and services onboard tended to be a little on the HIGH side...

Oceania T-Shirts in the gift shop started at $35...though late in the cruise they put out some on a "Sale" table for a mere $20...Clothes, jewelry, purses, and gift items in the ship ALL tended toward the expensive end of the spectrum...

Drink prices were high with "well" mixed drinks going for $7 AND UP...and the drinks were not exactly "amply" poured...Often, I felt like sending it back and asking if they wouldn't mind filling the glass to at least the halfway mark! In the past on these boards, I've always scoffed at the folks who like to bring their own booze on board and pour their own...but, with the bars on Nautica, I'm beginning to see their point...

Internet usage was an outrageous $0.95 per minute on a system slower than molasses with frequent disconnects...

Dress code: For me, I particularly like not having formal nights...I hate schlepping a tux and having to get all decked out...On the other hand, my wife loves that and missed having it on this cruise...

"Open Seating": I am sort of a traditionalist--I love having an assigned table and dedicated waiters and the same tablemates each night (hopefully we get assigned a good bunch)...Even on traditional seating ships, we still get to meet a lot of folks at breakfast and lunch--which are usually open seating...But there are also a few advantages, especially on an itinerary such as this--If there are late hours in a particular port, going to dinner (except at Polo and Toscana where you have to reserve a specific time) is at your leisure--show up when you're ready...Of course, it seems like MOST people showed up around 7:30-7:45 (Dining hours went from 6:30 to 9:30 nightly, shows generally started at 9:45)...Going at around 7:30 seemed to fit with most folks schedule--So, if you went to dinner at, say, 6:30 or 6:45, you'd be in a fairly empty dining room for awhile...We did a couple of times...Of course, the wait staff seemed to go at a particular pace no matter what time you started, so it seemed we ALWAYS ended up finishing at the same time, whether we showed up at 6:30, 7:00, 7:30 or 8:00...They seemed to just catch everyone up during the appetizers and by the time dessert came, we were all on the same schedule...

Overall, it was an enjoyable experience...As I kept saying "It is what it is"...If what you want is a smaller, quieter cruise with a very slow pace...and you really only want to tour the port, come back and have a drink and eat a slow-paced elegant dinner, then off to bed, it's a near perfect cruise...The ship is elegant, the food is excellent, the service is decent, the cabins are ample...It is very casual--both in terms of dress AND pace...

The cruise itself is decent value for the money (so long as you don't drink too much or add on their overpriced hotel packages)...The passengers were mostly upscale...very few families with kids...I'd say the bulk of the passengers were between 50-75...They really don't cater to younger folks at all--no kids programs (Heck, even older teens and college-aged kids would be bored--they like to stay up late on most ships, hanging out at the Pizza bar or buffet late into the night--and those just don't exist here)...The people we met on the cruise were, overall, a really good bunch...dinners and other meals were pleasant, conversation lively...The fellow passengers may have been one of the better aspects of this cruise...

And the real highlight of this cruise was the itinerary itself...a truly outstanding collection of ports with decent hours in port for most of them...

All in all, though I still prefer Celebrity for the greater variety of activities and off-hour food and better dining room service, we'd likely cruise with Oceania again--perhaps to the Baltic, where they often offer a three-night stay in St. Petersburg...

Steve,

I happened across your review moments after you posted. I have been reading your posts for some time and have been anxious to read your comparisons between Oceana and your past Celebrity Med. cruise. We just did the Brilliance 12 day Med/Venice this June and would love to go back in a year or two. I have been looking at the Celebrity Mille cruise that goes to Venice and Santorini among other places and the Oceana cruises like yours and the one that does Venice to Athens.

I appreciate your honest evaluations and they make sense. I really enjoyed our Brilliance cruise and after reading your reiview I am leaning towards the Mille cruise for next time. How would you compare your overall satisfaction of those two Med. cruises now that you have done both?

Thanks again for posting the review...I have always enjoyed your informative posts.

KathiB

good review, although after reading other posts and advertisements, I would think that you would know in advance that entertainment and late night snacks are limited. We are frequent Celebrity cruisers (which proibably is our favorite) but are trying O on our next cruise. Incidently, on our last X cruise in February, the food dropped a notch and 3 production shows were repeats from a year earlier cruise.

...I ...have been anxious to read your comparisons between Oceana and your past Celebrity Med. cruise. ... How would you compare your overall satisfaction of those two Med. cruises now that you have done both?

Thanks, Kathi,

I'm always happy to hear that people find my posts informative...

As far as a comparison, please consider that the two ships/cruise lines both offer enjoyable cruises...but they are like "apples and oranges" in a number of ways...

A lot has been said about "big ship vs. small ship"...but NEVER assume that small ships are better than big ships (or vice versa)...It really all is a matter of personal tastes and desires...

Both the Millennium and the Nautica have around the same space-to-passenger ratio (680 passengers in 30,000 gross tons versu 2,000 passengers in 91,000 gross tons)...so neither ship is very "crowded"...Where the size of the ship really does make a difference is:

1) The variety of choices and the economy of scale: The Millennium can offer more venues with choices of entertainment and more elaborate entertainment, more food choices, etc.

2) Walking distances: On the larger ship, it's a long way from the Dining Room to the Showroom...On Nautica, you're from one end to the other in about 90 seconds...

3) Intimacy: On Nautica, you'll meet just about everyone else on the ship some time within your 14 nights while on Millennium, you'll get to know your tablemates fairly well, but not meet many of the people in the other "seating"...

By the way, here's a funny one...like the big ships, Nautica offered Bingo...but the crowds are noticeably smaller and prize values are a function of the number of players...One day, the TOP prize at Bingo on Nautica was a whopping $21...Problem is that the "buy-in" to the game is $25...People were competing for the chance to only lose $4!!

Food, I give the slight edge to Nautica, though I've always been more than happy with Celebrity's food...

Service, I give the edge to Celebrity...not that Nautica's is bad...just that the open seating system and shared tipping pool just doesn't lend itself to personalized service...

Celebrity's entertainment is far superior...

The ships are both nice...

So, it really comes down to what parts of cruising are more important to you...

That...and th eitinerary...We took Nautica this time largely because it went to some ports we hadn't previously visited...And, for the MEditerranean especially, it's all about the ports...

All other things being equal, the Millennium still stands as my favorite cruise I've ever taken...for a variety of reasons...but, mostly, it just hit more of the things about cruising that are important to ME...If your priorities are different, you could easily feel differently...

Hope that helps...

Steve,

Thanks for your comments. I do realise the experiences would be different and I appreciate your comparisons. I think we will choose one or the other for our next cruise and probably will let itinerary be our guide. I'm sure we will have a great time whether it is with Oceana or Celebrity.

KathiB

Great, great unbiased review. My husband's words were exactly the same as yours with regard to the "tables for 2" in the Grand Dining Room. Hopefully they will change them. You actually end up being closer to others than if you were seated at a table for 8 or 10. Thanks so much for a very thorough report. Appreciate it.

Good review! I, for one, hope they keep the tables for two as they are. I know they are close, but they still are separate and you don't feel the need to be interacting with the other tables for two if you don't want to. We joined up to six others at dinner some nights and other nights we had a table for two. Both experiences were very enjoyable.

Another great offering from Steve! I always have to read what you have to say and as usual very informative. Hubby has his heart set on Oceania for 2008 and now I'm not so sure. It is the itin that appeals.

Isn't it funny how people who have cruised for sometime like the traditional dining experience and new cruisers want the freestyle anytime dining? I still like to have the same waiter night after night. At least that way I have some control over whether he/she gets a tip or not.

Hi Cathi..Stu and I have been on over 55 cruisies and most of them were set dining..I happen to love open seating and would hope never to go back to set seating..some nights we like to eat at 6:30 and some nights at 9:00 depending on our mood..and we love sitting with different people and having different waiters and learning about them and the countries they are from..

I admire Steves report because it is honest about what HE likes..as he says we dont all like the same things..I am one of those that never goes to a show..so I dont care about entertainment on any ship I go on..I like the ability to relax with a book and not have people playing games around me at the pool or announcements over the loudspeaker every few minutes..so I respect Bruin Steves feelings and admire him for telling us what he feels about the different venues!!

Jan

*****

Thanks for the review - I have seen so little regarding Nautica, and the cruises to Greek Isles and Italy. I'm going to some of the same ports in early October, so I was interested in what you thought of them. A couple questions: In Santorini, I'm also thinking of renting a car (there only, nowhere else). Was that pretty easy, and was the driving up those roads ok? Is there a car rental place near where the cable car lands you? It looks like a Hertz isn't too far from there, but I can't be sure. Also, for Taormina, did you actually dock somewhere (Messina?) or did they use tenders to get you from a location where they anchored? Thanks for any info you can give me!

Hi Steve,

Good review! So glad you had a good time on Oceania. DH and I have been on over 25 cruises (Jan, you have outdone us). I love cruising on all the different size ships!! We just took our 13 year old granddaughter on the huge Navigator of the Seas. She had a wonderful time -- we had a good time!!!! We only went on RCCL because of the teen program and Johnny Rockets, the ice rink, miniature golf, the climbing wall, etc., but 3,600 passengers was a bit much for us after being on the Oceania three times in three years. But, the shows were wonderful -- especially the ice show with the Russian skaters. We are now scheduled to go on a 95 passenger yacht to some of the same ports you have just traveled. I doubt if they will have more than a piano player. So, there are different cruise experiences for different people -- we all have to just enjoy the differences.

Sheila

Thanks Steve for the review. We're researching our 08 cruise right now and leaning toward the big O due to it's great itineraries. I'm beginning to read more and more O boards to get a feel for the line and ur review is the kind I like (no bashing or cheerleading, simply objective).

Grazie e Ciao,

Hi Steve! I was anxiously awaiting your review, hoping to compare it to ours! (of course, ours is still "under construction"). Suffice it to say that we had seen all but one of the production shows before on other Oceania ships, but then again, like Jan, we don't choose Oceania for her nightly showroom offerings! :)

An interesting pointr you make about Spiros...as we too had booked him....and guess what ......he sent another friend. Same Cruise as you.

The friend was OK but not as knowledgeable as some others we had used elsewhere.

Brian

Steve,

Thanks for your honest review. Just wondering on Santorini what winery you went to for your wine tasting?

Thanks

Steve,

Thanks so very much for the detailed review of the Nautica. Although we sort of knew many of these things it was great to see a list of the entertainment, a review of each lounge and your overall impressions. I wish more people would do this type of review as it really help me, confirmed my thoughts. Others who might be considering Oceania hopefully will read this and understand what an Oceania cruise is and isn't.

We will probably be somewhat like you in that there are times we will want the mass market lines/bigger ships with more activity/entertainment and other trips where we just want to kick back and relax. Sounds like we made the right choice for our 07 cruise on Nautica and that we'll be back to looking at RCL for 08 as I'd like to take the kids (25, 23 so not really kids).

In Santorini, I'm also thinking of renting a car (there only, nowhere else). Was that pretty easy, and was the driving up those roads ok? Is there a car rental place near where the cable car lands you? It looks like a Hertz isn't too far from there, but I can't be sure.

When you get into Fira town (after the cable car ride up, walk about a block directly inland...there are several rental car places, including Hertz. I'd advise against the one we used (Spiridakos/Budget)...We had a rather unpleasant experience with them that I didn't really want to get into here. They charged us 45 euro plus 9 euro for "insurance". The car had numerous scratches and scrapes on all four sides and a couple of major dents. When we checked out the car, they only marked the dents on the form. When I pointed out the scrapes the guy merely said "we know". I guess I should have been more insistent that he mark it down, but that would have required about 15 little xs on the form...When we returned the car, another guy checked us in and pointed to a small scratch on the rear bumper (not even throughthe paint), a couple of inches from a major scrape which exposed the black bumper) and said "This is new". They put a 400 euro charge on my AMEX card which I will now try to fight. I wouldn't trust these guys.

As far as the roads go, most are really not that bad. But be wary turning into small towns off the main roads. We ran into one road which was so narrow, we considered trying to back up out of it. But that seemed impossible, so I cautiously navigated my way through--probably 2 inches of clearance on either side. The road from Kamari up to Ancient Thira was quite a harrowing experience. It's one lane (total for both directions) with about 30 hairpin turns...You've got to be very watchful for cars coming the other direction...and try to meet them on the turn since the road widens a bit around the hairpin...if you meet on a straightaway, one of you would have to back up. Luckily, not too many cars were on this road.

Also, for Taormina, did you actually dock somewhere (Messina?) or did they use tenders to get you from a location where they anchored?

For Taormina, we docked at Naxos--no tenders...You can walk right into Naxos, but you'll need a tour or a cab ride to get you to Taormina.

Steve,

Thanks for your honest review. Just wondering on Santorini what winery you went to for your wine tasting?

Thanks

Gavalas...It's a very small winery where the grapes are still stomped by foot. the tour lasted about 5 minutes and there was a 1.5 euro charge for each wine sampled.

Last time there, we visited Antoniou with a ship's tour...a slightly larger operation. Antoniou also owns a jewelry store in Fira. One of our tablemates bought his wife about $15,000 in jewelry there on that cruise and Mr. Antoniou treated us all to a lot of wine sampling during the jewelry shopping experience :)

Hate to correct you Steve but as I recall at Taormina we were tendered into Port,

Brian

Hate to correct you Steve but as I recall at Taormina we were tendered into Port,

You're right, Brian...

What was I thinking?

Oh that's right...I'm not thinking...my brain is still 9 hours off schedule...

YES...we were tendered in...to Naxos...

Also tendered in at Santorini and at Dubrovnik...

Thanks for the report! I'll be on our first O cruise next year-Istanbul to Athens. The only island I'll be revisiting is Mykonos, so I'll be pretty sad if we miss it. However, I've experienced the high winds and seas there. It can be exciting!

Quick question: Which guide did you use for Istanbul and Ephesus?

Thanks!

Which guide did you use for Istanbul and Ephesus?

We used Ekol Travel in both Istanbul and Kusadasi.

Had them pick us up from the airport (next time I'd just use a taxi for that).

They picked us up from the hiotel for a full day tour of Istanbul on our second day there. The guide was named Levent Evkuran...Pretty good, informative...knew his stuff, very personable. ($170 total for the day, not including lunch or tip)

They also picked us up at the hotel and took us to the Orient House for the Dinner/Show

http://www.orienthouseistanbul.com/index1.html

I highly recommend this. I booked it through Ekol for $70 per person. You might want to check it out to see if you can book direct and just use a taxi or the Orient House van for transportation (Or, if you're staying nearby, just walk. The show was one of the highlights of our trip.

We also had Ekol pick us up at the ship for a Bosporus Half Day cruise and tour to the Spice Bazaar. Oceania charged $59 per person for this tour, Ekol charged us $39. You can probably book on your own for cheaper but will need a taxi to Sultanamet.

In Kusadasi, they picked us up at the ship and did a full day tour with lunch included for $150 total for two.

Steve - thanks for the review - I generally concur, but don't have time to write my review yet. I loved the tables for two - met many of our friends that way at breakfast or lunch and ended up sharing a table for four or eight with them at dinner. I'll go into more detail after I catch up with the work e-mails that I ignored at $0.95/minute on board. Loved the Anastasia too.

An interesting pointr you make about Spiros...as we too had booked him....and guess what ......he sent another friend. Same Cruise as you.

 

The friend was OK but not as knowledgeable as some others we had used elsewhere.

 

Brian

Spiros did that to you too?!? And I thought we were the only victims of his bait-and-switch technique!!!

Hello and thanks for the review. I joined cruiscritic.com tonight just to ask you a question. By way of introduction, I've been on all of 1 cruise, unless you count Antarctica, in which case I've been on 2. At the end of Sept., my husband and I are going on the Nautica and it seems as though our itninerary is the same as yours. You referenced the private guides you hired in Athens, Istanbul and Kusadasi. Can you please tell me how to contact them? Or where to go to find a list of private guide recommendations?

Thank you in advance.

Sharon