Italy, Greece, Turkey Doable with walking issues?

[scidee]

Hello Viking Friends. We have long planned this 21 day cruise beginning Oct 20, 2022 from Venice to Greece, Turkey, Italy, France and disembarking in Barcelona.   I had an ankle surgery in June with a projected recovery time of 8 weeks.  It has been slow going and has left me walking with a cane and not for real long distances.   My question is for those of you who may recently traveled to these  places is doing the included Viking excursions a doable thing for me? Is the terrain too rough?  Walking 30 min without stopping?    We do have a 24 hour cancel window, but it's closing fast.  Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

[Selion]

We did Venice to Athens in March and took all included tours except for one.  We took the included tours in Venice, Split, Dubrovnik, Corfu, and Katakolon.  The terrain wasn't difficult, but the routes may include a few steps here and there and getting on and off the tour buses.  That said, the walking tours lasted 1.5 to 2 hours.  While they were mostly stop-and-go every 5 to 10 minutes or so, there weren't opportunities for participants to sit if they so desired.  You can expect to be on your feet for the duration of the tours.

[BluebonnetTexan]

Which specific cruise or cruises are you doing? In general if the included tour states it is "panoramic" (for example Panoramic Athens & Archeological Museum), then generally that is a bus tour driving by the sites with maybe a photo stop or two. I will state in that example, we just returned from a 10-day trip to Greece (non-Viking) and spent 5 hours at the Archeological Museum on our own - however, there are a few seats around the museum to rest a minute as well as a cafe with chairs/tables. We observed a couple of ship excursions touring the museum while we were there and of course their guide just takes them to the highlights, while we were looking at everything! 😉 Viking has this included tour labeled as Moderate.

Since you mentioned Turkey, I expect you are likely going to Ephesus. I just checked the Viking Included tour and it is called "A Gentle Journey into the Ancient World" and keeps you on the lower part of the archeological site which is much easier walking than the upper part. We were just there Oct. 1 and I don't recall many places to take a rest. Viking has this tour labeled as Easy.

If it is a walking tour, such as at Rhodes (Rhodes Town Walk & Palace of the Grand Masters), it too is listed as Moderate activity. So, my advice is to carefully read the descriptions of the included tours and check the activity level mentioned. Let us know which specific cruise you are on and people may be able to give more specific info about the included tours. 

If you do decide to go, you might want to get a set of walking sticks to use on excursions instead of the cane. I recently purchased a pair on Amazon that are quite lightweight, sturdy, and collapse small enough to fit even in a carry-on for only about $30.

Looks like a great trip and I hope you are able to go and experience it to the fullest!     

[scidee]

Viking Jupiter Iconic Adriatic Antiquities-October 20, 2022

This is the cruise we're hoping to take.  I have purchased a cane with a seat attached which will give me a quick sit when touring.  Getting on and off busses are okay for me.  My doctor has also said it would be fine for me to use my "boot" again which will give me more support.

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[RBachmann]

Earlier this year I went on the Ancient Mediterranean Treasures itinerary with my 85 year old mother who can walk ok for 30 min or so and can do steps but was concerned about getting tired. We brought a lightweight folding “transport chair” on the trip which she sat in and I pushed when she got tired, she leaned on it while pushing it empty or I folded and carried it up steps. Don’t rely on someone else to push it but the bus drivers and tour guides accommodated it just fine. 

Edited October 12, 2022 by RBachmann
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