Advice on Greek Island Cruise - which one?
 

Context:
Asking for young adult daughter and her childhood friend. They are not drinkers and not party people. They would prefer a cruise more suited towards older people and intend to go to bed earlyish and rise early (not describing older people - I'm describing these 2 young people). They want to have a couple of local village type experiences including good food and people but also interested in general sightseeing. They have never been to this part of the world before and have only done the major big cities of western europe. Their interest in a cruise is that it is all inclusive with optional extras plus they love the water. Their interest in the greek islands comes from no actual knowledge but the general idea that crusing the greek islands is kind of magical and often seen as a bucket list thing to do.....if not cruising them then at least seeing them but the thought is that cruising them is a good way to see them. They are thinking about cruising next June (2025)

I don't know anything about the Greek islands and so my questions are;
1) when thinking about seeing "the greek islands" what are the common places people think of and what are your recommended must sees - based on your priorities only
2) They are looking at about 10 to 14 days at an average cost of $200 per person per day (2 people) and open to other ports eg anywhere from Spain to Instanbul - so if the greek island portion of that trip is the most important than how many days should be at the islands to get a good but introductory coverage of the main spots - I hope this question makes sense
3) what other ports either side of the greek islands would you recommend?
4) Is there any reason based on the context provided above that you think the greek islands is probably not the best choice for them and if so then what other location or type of cruise would seem to you to be more appropriate for them?

I understand that my context is limited so happy to add more info. Also happy for your bias and your perspective and your priorities - I'm not requiring the ultimate exact one right answer - just wisdom from those who know more and know better than me.

Thanks for any and all help

IMO, they would do much better traveling without a cruise. If they want to experience a bit of what Greece offers, then they might find benefits to staying overnight in some of the places they visit; they might value dining at Greek restaurants (such wonderful foods!); they might appreciate experiencing the warmth of Greek people who welcome tourists, even while they dislike the problems that cruise ships and cruising tourists bring to them. IME, the reactions of local people to the hordes who descend upon them when cruise ships arrive in port are markedly different than the welcome they provide to those who are there in the evening or early morning -- after cruise ship passengers have departed or before they arrive.

Your daughter and her friend sound like they are open to travel and the challenges it can involve. My recommendation is to suggest that they consult some good guidebooks and choose for themselves what they want to see and experience. I could easily be wrong, but I suspect they will be much better informed about, and much more interested in, the places they visit if they choose their itinerary for themselves.

I'm not well positioned to answer your question about "must see" islands -- I wasn't looking for beach time or some image of what the Greek islands might be. I suspect that many people will recommend Santorini and Mykonos. FWIW, I found the crowds on Santorini completely off-putting. During my brief stop on Mykonos, I saw it's beauty, but thought it too resort-y and too oriented to high end tourism. I enjoyed Naxos greatly and loved Crete. And you might suggest that they consider Nafplio -- it's not an island, but it has a beach and seems to meet their other interests.

Hope that helps!

Great help
thanks

I hope it helped! Best wishes.

Look into NCL. They had several cruises for around $1900.00 to $2100.00 PP for 10-11 days for June 2025. They include open bar, speciality dining which usually mean 3 meals each at speciality restaurants for no extra charge, free wifi which is a misnomer as its around 300 minutes and they say free excursions but not really as they are discounted usually around $50.00. Do bear in mind that ship excursions are priced higher that private ones. You will find tour operators on shore usually and they will be less expensive. You can also look up ones that do private tours with a google search. We've done this many times before. Just be aware that the ship will not wait too long if you are late returning from a private tour but must wait for passengers returning from one of their own tours. We have never found this to be a problem. We prearranged tours when we went there with private vendors and it worked out just fine. They all know to get you back in time.

You asked about other spots. These cruises I mentioned start in either Rome, Venice or Istanbul. I would personally recommend Istanbul.

You are treated very well on cruises. We have taken 20 of them and have another planned next spring. IME they will bend over backwards to help you.
Food if course is included and is your lodging, room maintenance and entertainment. You will feel quite welcome.

OTOH it's not a fuller immersion as you would get with land tours. However as it's said about a cruise you unpack once and leave the rest to them and this is quite true.

The Greek islands are beautiful. We have been to Athens, Rhodes, Mykonos and Santorini. Personally I liked Mykonos the best,

Do be aware that June is summer vacation time so you most likely will have families with kids and it will pretty warm too.

October and early November are cooler and less crowded as schools are back in session. That's when we went.

Finally try getting a TA who specializes in cruises to see if you can get a group rate. This could save a lot of many and get some OBC or on board credit. NCL has an offer for getting their no annual fee MC and by charging a nominal amount in three mons. you can get 20k points bonus which can be converted to $200.00 OBC.

Hope this helps.

Larry

Thank you Larry, really helps.

In your opinion would Mykonos still be a good experience for 2 young ladies who are NOT wanting attention from men and not wanting to participate in the nightlife?

if you go there on a cruise, you must know that the ship will leave in the evening. I’m not quite sure of the itinerary but the ship could leave anywhere from 6 o’clock to say 10 o’clock at night. Therefore there wouldn’t be much chance for experiencing nightlife.
So yes, you will be fine.

perfect - thanks