Galaxy Cruise

[Grandma9]

I am planning to take the Mediterranean Cruise to Greece and Turkey. Any advice? What excursions do you recommend?

[Queenk2]

You should read the boards... I took this cruise last summer and had a fabulous time. One recommendation is a private tour form Naples to see the Amalfi coast. I used Nello . He was resonable and terrific. You can reach him at info@drivesorrento.com. Tell him Karen sent you! Athens we used George's taxi. I would NOT recommend the tour operator I usedin Turkey. So read here for some good advise. You will enjoy the trip tremendously!

[firstplacechef]

Karen, could you share the name of the tour you didn't like in Turkey? We have booked a tour in Turkey and Ephesus with the same guide and just wondered if it was the one you had a problem with...BTW what was the problem? Scott

[goldminer1951]

We did this trip last August and it was great. We did two days pre-cruise in Rome, and we could have used another day or two to see the highlights. We went around Rome and the Vatican on our own using cabs and walking, and it was easy. At Mykonos, we took the ship arranged tour to Delos. It was very interesting but not much is left standing there. I regret not having a drink and dinner in town at one of the many beach side places where you return to from Delos, but my teenage daughter wanted to go back to the ship for dinner. At Rhodes, we did a walking tour on our own to Old Town and the Palace of the Knights. We had a great lunch in Old Town. After lunch, we swam at the beach near the dock with the locals.

 

On Santorini, we took the tram up and walked the town visiting the churches and shops, and again had a great relaxing lunch with a fantastic view. We took the adventure of walking back down the 1600 ft. drop to the harbor. The trail down is a great place to take photos of the ships floating in the caldera. In Istanbul we took the two day tour through the ship and it was fantastic. The Haga Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, and Grand Bazaar were very interesting, especially the palace. We had a great tour guide. The second day ended with great lunch at a local place on the waterway. Since you are there overnight, you can go out on the town for the evening on your own to sample local culture. We did get to go to Kusadasi on our sailing (the one before had skipped this port due to local problems). We took the House of the Virgin Mary and Ephesus tour through the ship. Again, it was very nice. We had a good guide that brought the history of the place alive. We swam at the beach in Kusadasi with the locals. At Athens we took the Acropolis tour offered by Celebrity. The Acropolis and the views were nice, but the guide was a little boring and advanced about 10 feet at a time with very detailed history of every event since 3000 BC. We walked on ahead and went through the museum on the top on our own. It is well worth seeing the Acropolis. We had thought about leaving the tour and doing some shopping, but it was quite a distance back to the ship from downtown Athens, so we took the tour bus back to the dock and floated away the afternoon in the ship's pool. At Naples, we took the Pompei tour from the ship and it was very nice. We could have used a little more time to shop for cameos, so if you do this trip be prepared to make up your mind quickly if you want a cameo. There is alot to see in Pompei. Folks that went to Capri said it was pretty but very crowded. Hope you have a great trip. It will be great whether you arrange for private tours on your own or take the ones offered by Celebrity. Several of the ports can be done easily just by walking. We liked the shopping in Istanbul, Rhodes and Santorini the best.

 

'Miner

[Queenk2]

I thin they will not allow mw tipost the name, however I will try.. ***** tours. They were rude and anti American and I think they colored my feelings about Turkey. Of course this was my main reason for going on the cruise. I hope you have another guide booked.

Karen