RClark6369@aol.com Posted July 6 #1 Share Posted July 6 Hi, Couple of off the wall questions - 1. Does HAL use luxardo cherries for Old Fashion cocktail ? 2. Will an Old Fashion made with Bullet whiskey or Knob Creek incur a charge above $11, what is the house call brand for whiskey ? 3. Piraeus or Athens - which is a better pre-cruise choice if time is limited (we arrive at 3pm the day before sailing) 4. Restaurant recommendation for the Plaka if we stay in AThens or in Piraeus if we stay there ? 5. Must do in Mykonos and Malta ? 6. Is HAL still serving stuffed Problano Peppers at dinner ? YUM !! Thanks for any help. Please dont badger or disrespect me if you dont like my questions, just move on. I intend to write a full account of my sailing starting in a few weeks leading up to my sailing so that I can hopefully help someone else answers to questions. Cheers !!! Rex 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 0106 Posted July 6 #2 Share Posted July 6 Here is Beverage Package list of included alcohol. My DH drinks old fashions. He asks for Buffalo Trace and if they are out of that Makers Mark and they are under $11. Knob Creek is over $11. Bourbons will vary by ship. They look like maraschino cherries to me. They still serve chile rellenos made with poblano peppers in the MDR. You should post on your Roll Call to see what other cruisers are doing- I find Trip Advisor gives excellent restaurant and tour recommendations. Another source is the Greek ports of call forum. Have a great cruise! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Gail & Marty sailing away Posted July 6 #3 Share Posted July 6 Must do in Mykonos Eat a Gyro. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RClark6369@aol.com Posted July 6 Author #4 Share Posted July 6 Thank you for the replies everyone! Crazy how I am asking about the Problano peppers and most of the interest in food on this site is lobster tails. LOL I like boutique hotels in Europe, so I was hoping someone might have a recommenation for these in Athens or Piraeus. I have read the reviews on Priceline and Tripadvisor, but I am still trying to decide. I am a 3 star Mariner with HAL and I booked a balcony guarantee. I have never booked a guarantee before with HAL. A Seabourn guarantee got me a 6 category upgrade last year, but I am not sure I will be so lucky on HAL. I just read that "more is not better" in terms of receiving an upgrade, so now concerned. The 14 day itinerary is so port intensive that little time will be spent in the cabin anyway. I was on NS for its inagural year, has anything physically changed with the ship since ? I have sailed on Koningsdam twice and Rotterdam twice, so this class of ship is not new to me. For some reason, Koningsdam is my favorite of the 3 ships, but we will see if that changes when I re-sail on NS. I tried to book Club Orange, but its sold out. Fingers crossed that something will open up since we are just now at final payment window. Cheers Rex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gibbie42 Posted July 6 #5 Share Posted July 6 The cherries in the old fashioned are good. They are not the bright red maraschino cherry like you find in the grocery store. They're the expensive classy ones you get in a good cocktail. I believe the default bourbon is Buffalo Trace. It generally run a couple of dollars more than the 11.00 of the package but you only pay the overage. Do yourself a favor and try the smoked old fashioned from the Ocean Bar at least once. And it's poblano peppers, there's no r. I did not see stuffed peppers on the menu at anytime. Sorry. 🙂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Haljo1935 Posted July 7 #6 Share Posted July 7 14 hours ago, RClark6369@aol.com said: ...I was on NS for its inagural year, has anything physically changed with the ship since ? During last years drydock, the staircase at the casino was removed, the spa was reconfigured and the ship became ADA compliant. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RClark6369@aol.com Posted July 7 Author #7 Share Posted July 7 Thanks for the replies. Yes, the Luxardo cherries are dark, not bright pink like the red dye #5 cherries served in umbrella drinks. LOL Thanks for correcting my spelling for the peppers 🙂 Thanks for the beverage package listing as well.....so nice of you !! I was sorry to see that Bullet Whiskey was not on the list, but Buffalo Trace is okay. Our flight is into Milan because airfare to Europe from Atlanta is off the charts and especially direct into Athens. Delta and their transatlantic cartel (aka SkyTeam) wanted almost $1900 roundtrip which is crazy. Price fixing with your partners...SHAME ON YOU DELTA (Skyteam) !! Disgusting!! So we booked a fare for $900 to Milan and added $125 EasyJet connection into Athens. Has anyone flown EasyJet before ? Would be interested in hearing about your experience. Cheers Rex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiserBruce Posted July 7 #8 Share Posted July 7 On 7/6/2024 at 4:09 AM, Gail & Marty sailing away said: Must do in Mykonos Eat a Gyro. Or just about anywhere in Greece...and lots of places in Europe. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNSJ Posted July 7 #9 Share Posted July 7 On 7/6/2024 at 3:18 PM, Gibbie42 said: smoked old fashioned from the Ocean Bar Superb!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNSJ Posted July 7 #10 Share Posted July 7 3 hours ago, RClark6369@aol.com said: and added $125 EasyJet connection into Athens. Just be sure to understand the costs with EasyJet. You pay for everything and they are sticklers for weight and size of luggage, Its not a long flight, but its not Delta I assure you!! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNSJ Posted July 7 #11 Share Posted July 7 On 7/6/2024 at 10:36 AM, RClark6369@aol.com said: someone might have a recommenation for these in Athens or Piraeus. We stayed at the Phidias Piraeus Hotel for two nights before a HAL Eastern Med cruise in 2023. It was clean and renovated. The staff was great. I arranged an airport pickup through them and they had a free shuttle in the morning to get me to the cruise port. I book a Piraeus Food Tour the day before the cruise which was very nice. Piraeus has nice restaurants alongs its semi-circular waterfront and we felt safe and enjoyed the atmosphere. It is a few short blocks from the hotel to the restaurants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cccole Posted July 7 #12 Share Posted July 7 RClark6369@aol.com - Have you looked at the Athens Gate Hotel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartexas Posted July 7 #13 Share Posted July 7 2 hours ago, CNSJ said: Just be sure to understand the costs with EasyJet. You pay for everything and they are sticklers for weight and size of luggage, Its not a long flight, but its not Delta I assure you!! If you're not familiar, the European discount airlines almost always board/deboard away from the terminal. I am not certain about EasyJet at those two airports. You have to ride a bus to/from the plane and walk up/down the stairs. If you have a tight connection, you need to factor this in. It also means your boarding position is fairly meaningless because the person who runs off the bus fastest boards first, although which bus you get on matters. I equate EasyJet with Allegiant, vs. Ryanair, which is more like Spirit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cccole Posted July 7 #14 Share Posted July 7 bartexas - I don't think that it is just "discount" airlines that use buses to board and deboard in Europe. In November/December 2023 we took 15 flights and it was not unusual to see buses outside the plane instead of a jet bridge. And these were major airports and major airlines. When landing in Helsinki when it was -11 I wanted to scream when I saw the buses. I think Frankfurt has been using buses for decades. I do think that the extra costs add up on "discount" airlines and they are no longer discount but have to disagree that only "discount" airlines use the buses in European or African airports. Cherie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNSJ Posted July 8 #15 Share Posted July 8 3 hours ago, cccole said: Athens Gate Hotel We stayed there post cruise on the same trip. Be sure to ask for a room WITHOUT the view. The rooms with a view are on the major street side of the hotel. Noisy. Breakfast is in the rooftop restaurant, incredible views of the Acropolis with great lighting from the rising sun as you enjoy your morning meal. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heartgrove Posted July 8 #16 Share Posted July 8 It is common at European airports to use stands that you are bussed to. That way they can increase the number of aircraft capacity without increasing the size of the terminal. Four years ago we were flying back from Italy through LHR and had to board our British Airways 777 using mobile stairs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavecreekguy Posted July 8 #17 Share Posted July 8 Was on the Nieuw Statendam in May. The first couple old fashioneds I had didn't taste quite right. During mixology class Anne Marie said the HAL bartenders no longer muddle the fruit unless it's requested. They tasted better once I started requesting the muddled fruit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joyleroy Posted July 8 #18 Share Posted July 8 We are on the same cruise and trying to decide on a hotel for the night before the cruise. Is it safe to book near the port? Should we book one in Athens? Looked into the Phidias Piraeus Hotel but there are no vacancies for that night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RClark6369@aol.com Posted July 8 Author #19 Share Posted July 8 Hi, Thanks for the gyro recommendations. Any specific places - street vendors or a particular restaurant ? I will definitely try the smoked Old Fashion !! Do you know which whiskey is used ? Thanks for the EasyJet advice, I actually purchased a "hold bag" (aka check bag) slot just in case they dont like my carry on size. Wow, that is crazy that bartenders dont muddle the orange and cherry unless requested. That is like leaving out mixing steps to a cake recipe. We land in Athens mid-afternoon, so we decided over the weekend to pick a hotel in Athens. We chose the Luwian Athens Boutique Hotel. Then we purchased door to pier transfers for $28. At the conclusion of our cruise, our flight out of Athens is 11:30am, should we be sweating bullets or will that be an easy departure to make ? Thanks again for everyone's generous input to my questions. This is fun !! Rex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNSJ Posted July 9 #20 Share Posted July 9 3 hours ago, RClark6369@aol.com said: At the conclusion of our cruise, our flight out of Athens is 11:30am, should we be sweating bullets or will that be an easy departure to make ? Sweating a bit. After our October 2023 cruise on N. Statendam we arrived in Piraeus and left the ship by 8 am. It was close to pandemonium at the pier as three ships were all discharging passengers and there was a shuttle bus from pier area to the terminal where luggage and transportation was. We gave up on the shuttle (along with a few hundred others) and walked the 100 yards to the terminal. No order there, and about 500 people in line to get a taxi. We waited more than an hour to get a taxi, which took us to our Athens hotel in 20 min. The airport is about a 45 min taxi ride with typical traffic. Suggest you carry all luggage off and get off ship as fast as possible. Since there are many Greek Gods, find the God of Smooth Travel, and spend some time in his/her Temple. On the other hand... taking a later flight or flying the next day will make the entire trip much less stressful! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joyleroy Posted July 9 #21 Share Posted July 9 Just saw the US issued a Travel Advisory for Tunisia in May 2024. Possibility of terrorist attacks. Any thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaMatesNYC Posted July 9 #22 Share Posted July 9 On 7/6/2024 at 1:15 AM, RClark6369@aol.com said: Must do in Mykonos Take the public bus or taxi from Chora to Elia beach and enjoy the beach and a lunch at Cafe Elia. Take a taxi to Fokos beach and beach and cafe lunch. Arrange your return pickup when you take taxi there. Take a taxi to Kiki’s for lunch (not much beach there) and enjoy the authentic no electricity cafe. All food is amazing. Pork chop is signature. As well as salads. Google the opening time and get there before and wait in line. One of the most popular lunches in the island. Also pre-book return taxi. Don’t fight for a seat at sunset bars. Over priced. Crowded and chaotic. Climb up hill to Rochari Hotel bar. Ask directions. Say hello to Stavroula, owner and gracious hostess. Have cocktails at Lola Bar in town. Be prepared for some drag. Or go to Scandinavian Bars and be prepared for rude Vikings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RClark6369@aol.com Posted July 9 Author #23 Share Posted July 9 LOL, CNSJ !! yes, I will be seeking the God or Goddess of Smooth Seas (is that Poseidon ?) and Smooth Travels. Joyleroy - I wonder if the ship will change itinerary, but I had read where the ship called there earlier in the Med season, so maybe not. Kind of concerning tho. 😧 Seamates - thank you for of all the recommendations in Mykonos !! When docked in Sicily (Messina) , has anyone taken a ferry over to Italy mainland ? The pictures of the beaches in that area look spectacular, but the ship doesnt offer anything for that area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartexas Posted July 10 #24 Share Posted July 10 On 7/7/2024 at 6:35 PM, cccole said: bartexas - I don't think that it is just "discount" airlines that use buses to board and deboard in Europe. In November/December 2023 we took 15 flights and it was not unusual to see buses outside the plane instead of a jet bridge. And these were major airports and major airlines. When landing in Helsinki when it was -11 I wanted to scream when I saw the buses. I think Frankfurt has been using buses for decades. I do think that the extra costs add up on "discount" airlines and they are no longer discount but have to disagree that only "discount" airlines use the buses in European or African airports. Cherie You are correct. I didn't say discount airlines were they only ones that do. Lufthansa does this in Frankfurt, but United does not, for example. I just stated that it was highly likely on Easyjet. This can be surprising to a lot of Americans who don't travel in Europe frequently, so I wanted to highlight it. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RClark6369@aol.com Posted July 11 Author #25 Share Posted July 11 Anyone recently off of a Med cruise ? I had read that they were in a heat wave similar to the US. Greece and Turkey get hot every year anyway. I was just on the Enchanted Princess in the Caribbean and it was stifling out on deck even when the ship was moving. I like temperate to cool sailings - 75-80 day, and 60 at night. Hoping for those conditions on my Med sailing in October. Cheers Rex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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