Notes on Cruise From Athens to Istanbul

[pier]

For a cruise that had problems before we finished packing—our flight on British Airways was canceled due a strike so we had to scramble for tickets, and the guide we hired for Ephesus and Istanbul pulled a fast one on us—it ended very well. The service on the Quest was great, and the entertainment was better than we had expected, particularly the two theme nights with the buffet and entertainment by the pool. I hope that what follows will be helpful to others:

 

Athens: We went a day early and stayed at The Athens Gate, which was very pleasant and well located. Taking the advice of others, we booked a Superior room rather than the Standard room. We were on the 6th floor and had a view of the Acropolis. Amazing! Be sure to visit The New Acropolis Museum. It’s stunning and has a nice café.

 

Mykonos: We took the ship excursion to see Delos and were glad we did; otherwise we wouldn’t have known what we were looking at. The guide, a young Greek woman, was excellent.

 

Santorini: We took the tram up, having been warned not to take the donkeys. We took a bus to Oia, a charming village that is supposed to have the best views on Santorini. The views were breathtaking.

 

Rhodes: We spent our time in Old Town, where there is a lot to see. Be careful when you pick out a restaurant for lunch. We did what we usually do, which is ask a shopkeeper where the locals eat. Mistake! The jewelry store shopkeeper pointed to a restaurant just around the corner called Dinoris, where we were ripped off (among the charges was one euro for a single slice of bread!). Within a half hour of leaving the restaurant, we came upon an American at an outdoor café who was shouting about his bill and threatening to call the police. That evening on the boat, we talked to people who found restaurants in Old Town on the back streets where they had good food and were treated well.

 

Ephesus: I can’t say it enough—be sure to see the Terrace Houses. They are incredible.

 

Istanbul: We had three full days in Istanbul,which were packed. It would have been difficult to see as much without a guide. We had the best food we ate on the trip at a restaurant called Amedros, which is on a side street not far from the Sultanahmet tram stop. We usually like to try different restaurants, but this one was so excellent that we ate there two nights in a row. The second night we had a dish called Testi Kebab that was cooked in a clay pot. It was a perfect ending to a great trip. The hotel where we stayed in the Sultanahmet provided our transportation to the airport. The charge was 20 euros because we shared the van with another couple. We were told the usual charge for a transfer is 25 euros.

[Jade13]

 

Athens: We went a day early and stayed at The Athens Gate, which was very pleasant and well located. Taking the advice of others, we booked a Superior room rather than the Standard room. We were on the 6th floor and had a view of the Acropolis. Amazing! Be sure to visit The New Acropolis Museum. It’s stunning and has a nice café.

 

Ephesus: I can’t say it enough—be sure to see the Terrace Houses. They are incredible.

 

 

Thanks for the review. We went into the Terrace Houses when we were in Ephesus. It wasn't on our tour but took a chance and brought cash, told the guide we wanted to go in and they were standing in the same spot with the rest of the group when we came out.

 

We are staying at the Athens Gate next year, and with a superior view too. Glad to hear you liked it.

[vhs]

great info

thanks

which tours did you take through the ship

[pier]

We took the Delos excursion and the Tastes of Bodrum excursion. We used a private guide in Ephesus and Istanbul.

[California Native]

Kalimera Everyone!

Thank you Pier for your feedback!

We are doing almost this itinerary in October/Nov

I just wanted to add a few things about your itinerary

I've taken several cruises with Greek ports and last year we were in Greece and Turkey on our own for a lengthy trip

About 8 years ago in a restaurant on Corfu I was charged on my bill for bread, silverware and the cost to wash the dishes.

My 1st intro to this and most certainly not my last

Last year we ate in restaurants for 90% of our meals and yes they bring you bread whether you requested it or not, you can say no thank you but it WILL appear on your bill as either 1 euro or 50 cent euro. We were eating at local not tourist restaurants, but obviously we're not Greek. We can pass as Irish, English, maybe Scandinavia..but not Greek! Most tourists don't argue with it, so they get away with it.

We just wrapped it up in a napkin and took whatever we didn't eat.

When you are on a land trip paying for all meals every bread crumb counts!!! :D

In Turkey it is the land of hospitality but also the hustle...

if you've been to Mexico before you will understand this...

Turkey touts are grown up chiclet kids....

You just say no thank you and move on. they aren't offended.

they will stop you and offer to assist you to find your next

sightseeing stop....that it is their pleasure...just smile and say you are fine thank you.

With that said I felt very safe the entire 9 days we were in Istanbul!

For those interested in Istanbul photos...

I have some on our personal travel journal...I will be adding Athens by the end of the week.

They are labeled for your convenience.

http://ourpassportstamps.com/TurkeyPhotos_WL9P.html

I've also created A LOT of research links for the above itinerary that you might find useful in planning your trip

with the ports PIER visited

Just scroll to the bottom to see all the port options

http://ourpassportstamps.com/2010Research.html

K

[pier]

We also felt safe in Istanbul. We heard some really funny come-ons in the Grand Bazaar: "Let me help you spend your money!" and "Let me hep you buy something you don't need!" We took it all in a spirit of fun and didn't buy more that a few trinkets. A lot of the stuff in the Bazaar is fake--gold that isn't gold, leather that's vinyl, carpets made of polyester or cotton that are presented as wool and silk. And the origin of much of it is China. So many people have been taken. You can read their horror stories on Trip Advisor. Three years ago when we were on an Oceania cruise, a taxi driver in Gdansk who was showing us the city warned us not to buy amber. "It's all plastic," he said.

 

I probably should have mentioned something in my notes about guides who take you to "official" stores to buy carpets, pottery, etc. Our guide in Ephesus insisted upon taking us to a carpet store even though we told him we weren't interested in buying any carpets. We went, and our last five minutes there were, in retrospect, hilarious. When the owner saw that we had no intention of buying, he signaled his workers to show us more carpets to tempt us. They rolled out carpets in a frenzy, one carpet after another, until the room was flooded with carpets. It was a scene that belonged in a movie!

 

Our guide wanted us to go rug dealer because he was hoping for a kickback. We knew this, but we were too polite to say so. If we had bought a rug, the guide and possibly the agency the guide worked for would get a kickback from the merchant. If a guide tells you that he/she is taking you to an "official" store, don't believe it. Turkey doesn't have official stores; neither do most other countries. Guides in Turkey and elsewhere take you to stores where they get kickbacks. What this means is that you're paying an inflated price because the kickback is included in the cost.

 

I should have put the kickback system in my original Notes posting, although probably belongs under a shopping posting.