Greece / Turkey Cruise for Spring 2025

[SelectSys]

We are looking for a cruise for next spring.  Our basic idea is to book something that is at least a couple of weeks long.  The cruise could be composed of a single cruise or something that is "back to back."  For any "back to back" cruises, we would like to have a cruise that doesn't tend to repeat all of the same ports.  Even though the vast majority of our cruises are on RCCL, we are open to other lines as well. 

 

RCCL's sister company, Celebrity has a 10 day roundtrip cruise from Athens which includes an overnight in Istanbul, but we'd actually like something a bit longer. I could do a second loop and pick up a couple of other ports on the following 9 day trip.  These cruises are my current "default" option even though the second trip is somewhat redundant in terms of ports to the first. 

 

Does the Cruise Critic community have other ideas in terms of lines and itineraries? Thanks in advance.

[Essiesmom]

I suggest you go to cruisetimetables.com.  Choose a departure port from the ‘Cruise from’ tab.  Then choose the time you want to cruise.  It will show you who is sailing, and their itineraries.  Alternatively, you can choose a port or two you would like to visit from the ‘cruise to’ tab.  Again the time you want to travel.  It will show you who calls there and their itineraries.  EM

[SelectSys]

25 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

cruisetimetables.com

That's a good idea.  I will do so from both Athens and Istanbul.  

[edinburgher]

20 hours ago, SelectSys said:

Even though the vast majority of our cruises are on RCCL, we are open to other lines as well. 

 

Have you considered Holland America?  As they do W and E Med cruises of longer  than 10 days duration  could be worth checking their website.

[zdcatc12]

I would take a look at Celestyal if the ship size/age doesn't matter. Here is what the 14 day would look like, a B2B: Athens | Thessaloniki | Kusadasi | Crete | Santorini | Mykonos | Milos | Athens | Kefalonia | Dubrovnik | Kotor | Bari | Corfu | Katakolo | Athens. 

 

 They were far cheaper than NCL, RCCL, etc. We did the first ones on the above and had a great time. Also, they still do other things that most lines have cut back, e.g. twice daily room cleaning.

 

 We went in April and there were only two other ships in Santorini which was a blessing. Shoulder season is a great time to visit Greece if you don't like crowds.

[Essiesmom]

I was on a a Celestyal ship back in 2005…but then they were Louis Lines.  Very small, old ship.  Six islands in four days.  Basic ship, but service was great.  Great Greek based food.  The first dinner I did t let them remove my salad plate because I was dipping my delicious break in the oil.  Each night after there was a dish of olive oil at my place.  EM

[SelectSys]

21 hours ago, edinburgher said:

Have you considered Holland America?  

I really did not think about them.  I looked at both Princess and NCL.  I will check out there offerings too too see what the have.

 

16 hours ago, zdcatc12 said:

I would take a look at Celestyal if the ship size/age doesn't matter. Here is what the 14 day would look like, a B2B: Athens | Thessaloniki | Kusadasi | Crete | Santorini | Mykonos | Milos | Athens | Kefalonia | Dubrovnik | Kotor | Bari | Corfu | Katakolo | Athens. 

That is also s line I haven't considered.  The port list you put up is the type of list that I would like plus in addition to a few in Turkey.

 

14 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

I was on a a Celestyal ship back in 2005…but then they were Louis Lines.  Very small, old ship.  Six islands in four days.  Basic ship, but service was great. 

Did the line get sold or was it simply a name change?  Nice to see another vote for Celestial.

 

To all - thanks so much for your input!  I think I am good with the options that are out there.  Currently, I am still leaning towards Celebrity with a "land vacation" at the beginning and end to fill in some of the gaps.  I have also been looking at some of the midsized/smaller ships such as Explora and Oceania at a higher price point.  

[cruisemom42]

Which Celebrity ship are you looking at? I like their smaller ones for the Med. Easier getting on and off and size is still big enough to offer decent entertainment options at night.

[Essiesmom]

3 hours ago, SelectSys said:

I really did not think about them.  I looked at both Princess and NCL.  I will check out there offerings too too see what the have.

 

That is also s line I haven't considered.  The port list you put up is the type of list that I would like plus in addition to a few in Turkey.

 

Did the line get sold or was it simply a name change?  Nice to see another vote for Celestial.

 

To all - thanks so much for your input!  I think I am good with the options that are out there.  Currently, I am still leaning towards Celebrity with a "land vacation" at the beginning and end to fill in some of the gaps.  I have also been looking at some of the midsized/smaller ships such as Explora and Oceania at a higher price point.  

They changed their name.  EM

[edinburgher]

9 hours ago, SelectSys said:

I really did not think about them.  I looked at both Princess and NCL.  I will check out there offerings too too see what the have.

 

Thank you, and yes, do look at what they offer as there may be something to tempt you.

[SelectSys]

7 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

Which Celebrity ship are you looking at? I like their smaller ones for the Med. Easier getting on and off and size is still big enough to offer decent entertainment options at night.

It's on the Infinity which I believe is about the smallest ship in Celebrity's fleet these days.  The size reminds me of RCCL's Radiance class ships which are fine by me in terms of onboard spaces.

1 hour ago, edinburgher said:

do look at what they offer as there may be something to tempt yo

I did. look at NCL, Princess and Holland America.  If I wanted to mix in other areas such as the Adriatic, all of them have some compelling offers.  For this trip my focus is really on the Greek Islands with a bit of Turkey mixed in.

 

[cruisemom42]

29 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

It's on the Infinity which I believe is about the smallest ship in Celebrity's fleet these days.  The size reminds me of RCCL's Radiance class ships which are fine by me in terms of onboard spaces.

 

Great ship. And I believe I just read that she's getting a wonderful full modernization soon. I'm sure you can look up details on the X board if you weren't already aware...

[edinburgher]

17 hours ago, SelectSys said:

For this trip my focus is really on the Greek Islands with a bit of Turkey mixed in.

Could be tricky to find one which has only Greece and Turkey on the itinerary.  Some of the smaller lines might offer something like a "Greece intensive" itinerary with a couple of Turkish ports in the mix which you could try googling for. Try Azamara and Oceania  for starters.