My daughter and I are taking the 12 day Greek Isles and Mediterranean cruise next month. Should we use the ships booking for ports of call excursions, or try booking on our own. Haven't been to Europe before, wondering how easy and safe it would be.

Don't know your ports of call but there will be rides ( Taxis and tour guides) available at each port.

It should be safe at all the ports you will visit on your cruise.

I've been on a number of cruises and am booked on the same cruise as you, departing in October. I've already booked my shore excursions. But then, I'm somebody who likes shore excursions for a number of reasons. First, I don't have to worry if the guide is going to be one that is "worth the money". Also, when I go on a tour I feel like I learn so much more than when I'm on my own. We have such a short time in port, I want to learn and see as much as possible, and a tour enables me to do that. If I really like a port I'll return someday on my own and spend time there. Everybody has their own way of doing things--shore excursions from cruises are the way I do it.

Don't worry about safety. Cruises are very safe. Europe is very safe. And the tour directors aren't going to take you into places that aren't safe. They have a reputation and insurance to maintain.

If you were in a big group I would say go ahead and tour on your own if you want, but since it's just you and your daughter you may want to book excursions through the cruise. I have not been to Greece, but I have been to Europe and I would feel pretty safe taking a cab/bus/train to touristy places even by myself. Not so sure about going off the beaten path, though. Only thing is, you're responsible for getting back on time and if you're late the cruise ship will leave you. Maybe do a combo of both, tour on your own in places where you're comfortable and book cruise tours in other places. Do your research, price compare, etc.

Don't know if you already booked tours but there are a few articles about doing it yourself on frommers.com
http://www.frommers.com/articles/5349.html

Also on about.com you can put in your city and get all kinds of help for doing it yourself. We're going on an eastern Mediterannean cruise in October also and have one tour planned for Kusadasi and are doing the other ports on our own.
Have fun.

I don't care for the ship's shore excursions--there's something about being herded around with 30-40 people that doesn't appeal to me--there are always lengthy bathroom and shopping breaks that seem to take forever. And just because the cruise line contracted with a local tour company, there is no guarantee that the guide will be good.

I would suggest going to www.cruisecritic.com and looking at both the ports of call boards for each of your stops as well as the roll call board for your cruise to find like minded cruisers to share a private excussion.

We've done two Med cruises and have either toured the ports on our own after I did research about it or hired private guides.

The cruise lines shore excursions are often inferior. Occassionaly they are the only option. But most ports have tour operators readily available and with a little research online you can find reliable ones. Often they are cheaper. Unfortunately many tours share a common problem: Shopping opportunities. Try to avoid them. On cruise tours they may take up a large segment of the tour. We have found that we had less of a comprhensive view with a cruise line tour than even on our own. Remember that not all ports need tours. For example on Santorini, Mykonos, Split, Venice are very doable on your own.

I agree that doing the Greek ports on your own or with a private guide is a much better experience than using ship's tours. If you list all of your ports - we can offer some suggestions. Cruise Critic is a great site to be using as well.