Of these ports, which are worth tours and which can easily be done on our own?

[tlkjmac]

We will be on the Star in May. Our ports will be Kotor, Corfu, Santorini, Mykonos and Dubrovnik. We were hoping to pick 2-3 ports to just do on our own. Are any of these ports easily accessible to the beach and/or the city? We are novice travelers and I'm a little nervous about getting lost and then missing our ship.

 

Also, if we hire private tours, how do we know what time to have them meet us? If the ship arrives at 8am, how long will it take us to get on land?

[eclue]

Corfu and Mykonos are easy to do on your own - Dubrovnik is easy if you just want to do the wall and the old town.

[moviefan2010]

Kotor is definitely a DIY and if you are in great shape the climb up to the fortress.

 

 

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[mskaufman]

Concur with the previous poster that Corfu, Mykonos and Dubrovnik are good DIY ports. If you read a number of threads, there are also wants to DIY Santorini.

[anthonyy7]

Most of the time you will get off ship close to time it says such as 8am. In Santorini, you can take a ferry over to Oia then bus to Fira to explore before taking the cable car back down to meet the tenders back to ship. In Dubrovnik, take or share a 5 min taxi to the gates of old town. Walk the walls then explore the inner old city. Mykonos is very easy to do...just explore the maze like streets and take a ferry to Delos archeological site. Here is a good site with loads of info. http://www.tomsportguides.com

 

 

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[Bobal]

I would say all of those ports are easy to do on your own. Obviously, it depends on what you want to do and what your interests are, but if it's just to take a look around and not do a big tour they're all good.

[Hlitner]

All those ports can be done on your own (and we have done so multiple times). The issue is your personal desires, ability, and willingness to do what it takes to do something on your own :). If we go to 100 European/Greek ports it is likely we would not take a single excursion (and simply do every port on our own. Others would take 100 cruise ship excursions...and even others would take mostly private tours.

 

Corfu is a great example. On your own it is quite easy to go into Corfu Town and walk around. But if you want to see more of the island (on your own) you will need transportation. Personally, we simply rent a car at the port and drive all over the island (we have managed to cover the entire island after 3 trips). Others will hire a taxi for the day (much more expensive then a rental car). Just a tip from a long time (over forty years) do it yourselfer. If you are not familiar with a port, take a look at the cruise line excursions to get an idea of the options. Look on some web sites like Tripadvisor (and here on the Ports of Call board) to get some further ideas on the options. Then decide if can reasonably do it on your own with your feet, public transit, rental cars, trains, etc.

 

Hank

[leongcpa]

Of the ports mentioned, I think Mykonos (walk around Little Venice and Delphi ferry side trip), Santorini (Tony's Rental Car), and Dubrovnik (walk around the old town, and take the funicular up for great views) are the easiest to DIY. I would say Kotor would be a good place to hire a driver (Perast/Budva/Stari Stefan). Corfu - you can DIY the Old Town and Mouse Island, but if you want to go see Achileillon Palace, you're going to need a rental car...

[tlkjmac]

Thank you all for your help! I think we've decided which ports to do on our own.

 

And Anthonyy7, thank you for the link to Tom's port guides. That was a huge help.

[apeller]

Thank you all for your help! I think we've decided which ports to do on our own.

 

And Anthonyy7, thank you for the link to Tom's port guides. That was a huge help.

Another good site for research on ports ishttp://www.shorebee.com

 

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[Grant2000]

You've selected a good cruise. The ports-of-call that you are visiting are all wonderful and are also easy to navigate on your own. Enjoy!

 

http://cruiseports.ca/europe/index.html

[Lawhouse]

All are easy to do on your own on foot

 

 

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[Cornishpastyman1]

We will be on the Star in May. Our ports will be Kotor, Corfu, Santorini, Mykonos and Dubrovnik. We were hoping to pick 2-3 ports to just do on our own. Are any of these ports easily accessible to the beach and/or the city? We are novice travelers and I'm a little nervous about getting lost and then missing our ship.

 

Also, if we hire private tours, how do we know what time to have them meet us? If the ship arrives at 8am, how long will it take us to get on land?

I did this at those ports, if it's of any help. You just get off the ship/tender and off you go. All the best, Tony

 

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