We're 2 married couples in our 30's trying to decide which way is best for us to see Greece. We have traveled independently through most of Europe (most enjoyable trips were to the Dordogne, Provence, Ireland, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, Italy). We are not into late night partying, we enjoy hiking and other outdoor pursuits (enjoy the beach but not huge sun worshippers), strolling through small villages and seeing the cultural sights are a MUST for us.

We came across this fantastic itinerary on the Star Princess Sept. 27-Oct. 7 (mega-ship) that is port intensive with longish port days (typically 8-6): embark at Rome (so a few days pre-cruise is possible), Naples, Santorini, Athens, Kusadasi (Ephesus), Rhodes, Mykonos, Katakolon (Olympia), Corfu, Dubrovnik, and disembark Venice (few days post-cruise possible). The biggest appeal of the cruise for us is that we could see quite a bit in a shorter amount of time (no waiting around for ferries, etc.).

We are seeking opinions from people with similar interests who have done the island hopping thing in Greece and likewise opinions from people who have cruised on a big ship. Did you feel you had enough time in the ports? Thank you in advance.

It sounds like a fantastic cruise, but I really couldn't imagine going to Santorini without a few days to explore. The same with Mykonos. There's nothing like just relaxing on these islands for a few days at a time, going on day trips, etc. To me rushing through the islands would be missing the essence of island-hopping. I would do the cruise with the understanding you will most likely want to go back to some of these places and spend more time!

Considering your timetable I think the cruise might be the better choice. It'll be pretty quiet then in the islands. Under better weather conditions I'd definitely say go it alone, but that time of year might be windy, and the villages of the Greek islands will be very quiet with not a lot to see or do, so cruising in for a few hours will probably be best seeing as how you've only got 10 days and are covering a lot of ground. If you have 6-8 hours on Santorini, I recommend you take a taxi to the village of Oia for a look at the most beautiful and traditional-looking village on the island.

We have done Greece both ways, first by car and then by cruise. Driving is great if you have lots of time and patience. You definitely see more, but the road signs are not only in Greek but written in the Greek alphabet. We took the ferries to the islands and spent time in Mykonos, Santorini and Samos. But we had three weeks. Then we took a Celebrity Cruise and, perhaps because we were a little familiar with the ports, we loved it and found the time ashore sufficient to get a feel of the place. We took a train from Pireas to Athens, a bus from Fira on Santorini to Oia, and the train into Rome. It was not complicated and much less expensive than the shore trips from the ship. Besides, we saw what we wanted to, not what the bus took us to. We thought our visit to Greece and Turkey would be a once in a life time trip, but we've been back twice since and would go again in a minute.

My favorite thing in Greece -- on all the islands was strolling at night and picking out a restaurant, maybe having a drink on some terrace and just absorbing all the night time atmosphere. If I had to leave each island and get back on a boat and eat in their dining room every night, I'd feel drastically cheated -- I don't care how good you think the ship's food might be.

We spent three nights each on five islands and a week on Crete and couldn't begin to enjoy all that each island offered. I can't imagine thinking you're experienced any Greek island being there between the hours of 8 and 6!

Hello:
My husband and I have done both (cruise Greek Islands and the Mediterranean) as well as separate land vacation (Santorini, Mykonos, Rhodes).

Santorini was my favorite.
It was pretty awesome sailing into the caldera in Santorini and looking up at all the houses on the cliffs.

However, it was even better (in my opinion) to stay in Santorini for several days.
We stayed in Oia village (hotels: Esperas the first time, and Perivolas the second time when we wanted to splurge!).
The sunsets were spectacular... the evening strolls were wonderful, poking our heads in small galleries and unique shops, having dinner at a different little taverna every night.
We even took that silly donkey ride back up from the beach and my screams filled the whole place (I felt the donkey and I were going to fall off the cliff).

One day, we explored on foot and ended up in a small fishing village. We walked around to see a fisherman leaving his tiny boat, holding a bucket.
With hand gestures and broken English, we somehow communicated we were hungry.
He gestured we follow him... to his waterfront little cafe. He laid out his catch from the bucket (several fish, octopus).
I pointed to the octopus.
In front of us, he whacked it into several pieces, took it in the back and returned with a plate of heavenly, fresh calamari!!
He also grilled a whole fish (head and tail intact) which tasted so fresh - it only had salt, pepper and lime sprinkled on it.

I don't remember the name of the place (!), but it was so relaxing to sit in this tiny cafe, battered chairs and all, feeling the wind in your hair and watching the little boats bob in the distance.

I think cruises are great to see many places in a short period of time
However, I love having the TIME to explore hidden corners and streets and to savor food and drink...
PS
Ruins at Akrotiri are a must; cruise ship will have shore excursions there.

Reading your first paragraph, it is pretty obvious that you have already got it sussed. You will see and experience more of the greek islands by using the greek ferries see here for Piraeus departures:-
http://egov.yen.gr/Folder.2003-07-23...03-07-23.3731/

Most islands have good hiking routes, these islands are thankfully never touched by cruise ships.

Chirs -- My wife and I are in the same boat as you -- same age and interests and having the same conversation about our trip to Greece in September.

When you add it all up, the cost is not that different between the two options, so it is really a matter of philosophy: the breadth of a cruise vs the depth of a private charter. My thought is that as a first-timer, we should go for the cruise to get a sampling of each port and come back in a later year to spend more time in the places we liked best. My wife thinks that chartering a yacht is a fairly unique opportunity ("you can take a cruise ship anywhere, anytime&quot and that yachting will be more of cultural experience.

If you decide to do a charter, consider dropping me a note. I would love to hear about where you are thinking of going and for how long.

Jeff

I think you will get every answer on this one. I prefer to travel independently but Greece is one place I wouldn't have minded taking a cruise. Getting from place to place often wasn't that easy, and, while I agree with Patrick that it was enjoyable to stroll around at night to find a place to eat, generally we didn't care for the food in Greece. I liked Akrotiri, but a day would have been enough for me in tourist-packed Santorini.

Chris, Check into the option of chartering a sailboat. You can get a bareboat (provided you have sailing certificates) or a skipper. It costs less than you think and you get the best of both worlds. You can eat on the boat, or in port. You can hang at the islands you like best, or move on.

Check out: http://www.charterayachtingreece.com/

Here is an inexpensive option to check out: http.//yacht-cruises.com/
This is a site for Viking cruises. Tho their ships and itineraries have changed somewhat since we took a Cyclades cruise with them in '96(followed by our exploration by car of the "mainland" --don't miss Monevasia...)their offerings still look interesting. We were on a boat with 20 other people. Most in their 30's , 40's (which we were not!!). All very interesting people. Definitely not luxurious...but we enjoyed it just as much as cruises that cost 10 times as much. (Truly)

Typing in that address doesn't seem to work.. but copying and pasting does:
http://www.yacht-cruises.com/index.html

From reading all of your responses I don't think that I have much to add except that I agree that the independent island hoping is the way to go. I have never taken a cruise before, but that is what I had to way myself before I made my decision to island hop. Maybe this will help... for 3 weeks of travel including lodging and airfare I only spent $1,600 versus one week on a cruise for $1,500. If you want any info on where to stay cheap, nice but not extra extravagant let me know. I have a few places for you. In return I am doing some research on Norway and Sweden and noticed that that was one of the places that you have been to and enjoyed. I am planning on traveling in July for about 10 days with two friends. I typically go on vacation for the beaches but I thought I would try something different this time and wanted to know your thoughts on the time frame and ideas of what there is to do and see durning the month of July. Any thoughts would be helpfull. thanks in advance and good luck with your Greece decision! =)

Thank you for all your responses. We have decided to travel independently to Turkey and Greece! After much reading and research we realized there is so much to see in Turkey so we have actually decided to skip the Greek Isles this time and concentrate mostly on Turkey and the Greek mainland, we hope to fit in a 4-day gulet "blue cruise" along the Turkish coast. I think a full week on a yacht would be too much for me, we are also concerned with the unpredictable winds in October.

Kirsing, Norway is wonderful! We spent one week on the Lofoten Islands and about 8-days traveling around the Western Fjords. We travelled with another couple in early August 2001, so splitting a one-way car rental cost and cabin/room costs (cooked most of our own meals) made Norway very affordable. We splurged on flying to Aalesund (much better than Bergen IMHO, 2 nts. in a private room at the IYH), drove to Aandalsnes to see the Trollveggen (cloudy), drove over the Trollstigen and down the Ornevegen to Geiranger(amazing views along this route-2 nights in the WONDERFUL 2 bdrm cabins at Grande Hytteutleige ) we took the local Geirangerfjord boat tour to the Skageflå stop (arrange with boat before hand-this is the awesome picture often shown of a farm high on a cliff above Geirangerfjord) we hiked up to Skageflaa and back to Geiranger, then drove via the scenic Gamle Strynefjellsvegen (though we wouldn't know since it was fogged in) to the Kjenndaslbreen glacier (near Stryn), we stayed 2 nights at a 2-bedroom apartment at Helset on the amazing blue waters of Lake Lovatnet (about $72pn tel. 57877631). We would sit out in the evening and watch chunks of ice from the hanging glacier across the lake come crashing down. daytrip to the Brikdalsbreen glacier for the glacier walk (highly recommend!). Drove to Borgund (ferry crossing Sognefjord) to the Borgund Stave church (a MUST see!) and then over the Snovegen (very scenic) down to Flaam (2 nts private room at IYH). Daytrip doing the abbreviated "Norway in a Nutshell" RT from/to Flåm. We feel our day would have been better spend just hiking somewhere (maybe just up the Flåmsdalen and train down), though the bus ride to Stalheimskleiva is fantastic. we drove to Bergen for 1-nt (IYH NOT recommended here) drop off car and fly home. The only change we would make to this itinerary is to cut out Bergen all together-it just seemed so touristy after all the lovely more off-the-beaten-track places we'd been. Also skip most of "NIAN" since most of the train is in tunnels. I think the "NIAN" is really set up for people who don't have a lot of time coming from Oslo. Hope this gives you some ideas. If I had 10-days I would do this trip adding the few extra days along the coast (boat excursion to Runde or drive along the Atlantic Road?) Let me know if you'd like to know about our week in the Lofoten Islands.


http://www.geirangerfjord.no/
http://www.vandrerhjem.no/ (youth hostels)
http://www.geiranger.no/
http://www.grande-hytteutleige.no/
http://www.briksdalsbreen.com/
http://www.sognefjord.no/english/sta...ch/borgund.asp
http://www.flam.no/
http://www.visitalesund.com/
http://www.jostedal.com/
http://www.fjordnorway.com/
http://www.atlanterhavsveien.no/e_index.html

Kirsing, I have just become aware of these new no-frills flights within Norway and to Stockholm and London, flight between Norway and Aalesund for example about $36!
http://www.norwegian.no/

and www.nordicairlink.se