Best cruise line to the Greek Islands?

Question

Cruise the Greek Islands starting in Venice Italy. We prefer September travel. Is this a good month to cruise the islands?

Answer 1

Definitely. I'm an agent and can suggest the following:

All of the large cruise lines such as Princess, Holland-America, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, etc. have itineraries in the great islands, however, for a better experience I'd recommend the following:

Oceania Cruises - Only 684 passengers on a ship vs. 2,000 on any of the others.  They offer unique itinerarys and their shortest cruise is 10 days.  The ships are exquisite and the food is incredible.  The cruise line usually has promos for free or $199 coach air to Europe, which is a great deal.  Excellent value. www.oceaniacruises.com

Windstar Cruises - Offers motorized sailing ships with 148-300 passengers (depends on ship).  Just like a conventional cruise, but when the wind is above 10 knots the ship runs up the sails and it makes for an exceptional experience.  Again, great ship and excellent itineraries.  www.windstar.com

SeaDream - Categorize their ships as mega-yachts with a capacity of only 110.  Great ships and all-inclusive.  So if the price is a bit higher, remember it includes your drinks, gratuities, use of their watersports equipment, and mountain bikes that they keep on boardand many other extras.  Outstanding ship.  Again, unique experience. www.seadream.com

The Moorings - This is a yacht charter company, however, their division, Moorings Signature Cruises, offers cabins on board their yachts for individuals who want to book a yacht cruise, but don't want to charter a yacht.  Maximum of 12 passengers on a 6 cabin yacht.  The captain sits down with the passenger the day before sailing to plan the cruise itinerary based on what everyone wants to see and do.  They will even consult you about the menu and your favorite beverages.  I know you're probably thinking I can't afford something like this, but it's actually in line with cruise ship pricing.  Like these because its like having control of your own ship - you decide when to leave a port or when to arrive and the ship can get into ports and visit Greek islands that the larger ships can't.  http://www.mooringssignature.com/

If you'd like to discuss or need more info, please don't hesitate to contact me at 866-485-8175.

Answer 2

I have looked through for you and there is only one cruise that offers everything that you are looking for. It is the Oceania Insignia which is a luxury line with mostly American and English clientele.

Check out this...

Ship: Insignia Sailing Date: September 03, 2007



Day  Port Arrive Depart

1   Venice, Italy  

2   Venice, Italy

3   Dubrovnik, Croatia 2:00PM 11:00PM

4   Kotor, Montenegro 8:00AM 4:00PM

5   Sarande, Albania 8:00AM 6:00PM

6   Cruising The Ionian Sea,    

7   Aghios Nikolaos (Crete), Greece 8:00AM 6:00PM

8   Santorini, Greece 8:00AM 6:00PM

9   Kusadasi, Turkey 8:00AM 6:00PM

10   Delos, Greece 8:00AM 12:00PM

10 Mykonos, Greece 2:00PM 8:00PM

11 Athens (Piraeus), Greece 5:00AM

5 stops in Greece, starting in Venice in September which is an awesome time to cruise.

Have fun!

Answer 3

The summer season in the Greek islands runs from May to October. From late May to mid-September - it is almost guaranteed to be hot, bright and clear.

There only a few cruise lines that actually sail the greek islands that start in Venice... There are a few itineries where they end in Venice. Some of these cruise lines include:

Royal Caribbean, Silversea Cruises, Orient Lines and  Princess Cruises.

I think you may have to compromise on either venice or the greek islands... as many with both only have one stop in one greek island, but cruise to other places in the Mediterranean. Some Greek Island cruises and their cruise lines can be found here:

http://www.idealcruising.co.uk/results.p...

Answer 4

September is a great month to visit the Greek Islands. It’s most likely to be sunny , warm and bright. I'm not in any way associated with 'Ships Ahoy', but the cruise mentioned looks great. It takes you to both Italy and Greece but also to Turkey. Thats a bonus! Kusadasi is a lovely place to visit. You’ll be amazed by the difference in culture compared to Greece. The place is getting a bit crowed these days because it gets more and more popular by tourists from the northern European Countries like Germany and The Netherlands.

Have fun!

Jack

Answer 5

If you want to feel like a King or Queen, sail on Windstar out of Venice. If you want the fancy shows at night and the dressing up with high heels stuff try one of the BIG cruise ships, take the advise from the lady above, but whatever you do, don't confuse price with quality. You get what you pay for. Stay away from Sterling Cruise lines. Great price but old, old ships and you will be lucky if the toilet flushes. If over that way, make sure you visit Ephesus in Turkety and of course Santorini and Rhodes. If you get a chance Istanbul was remarkable!!