Best Experiences Athens, Mykonos, Patmos,Santorini

Whenever I want to find out about any city or country, I go into Wikipedia and pull the city up. Then I cut a copy of the article to read at my leisure.
We went on a Celebrity cruise to Malta, the Greek Isles, and Turkey in May, and it was great.
We arrange our shore excursions independently--off Trip Advisor or just by Googling the city's tours. Most of the smaller islands like Santorini won't need a tour guide, as we just rented an ATV and rode all over the island tandem. The other small cities they drop you off on are best seen by walking.
Cannot help you on Athens as other than the Parthenon there wasn't much of interest to us. It was a quite large city of 6 story white concrete apartment buildings as far as the eye could see.

The one bit of advice I've gathered (from reading the wails by cruise-takers): bite the bullet and take the oh-so-pricey shore excursion at Santorini. You confront 2 disadvantages:
• Typically there are 3-4 cruise ships anchored out in the "caldera" (deep water) of Santorini, not at a dock or pier... so all passenger must be taken onto the "old pier" by tender -- a smallish boat (50-100 capacity?). If your ship has 2500 passengers, that could be 25++ trips. To make it worse, there are only 2 ways to go up the cliff face ... by riding poor beaten donkeys (don't!!) up a steep staircase in the rock... or taking a cable car with LOW capacity. This means it can take you more than an hour, just to arrive at the "Top" of the island, which is where the houses are.

• your cruise ship takes advantage of the above, to "privilege" those who sign up for the shore excursion. These people are ushered on the first several tenders, leaving the others standing on deck fuming. By signing up, you at least will get on shore quicker, and there will be busses to take you to OIA the village at the end of the island, and then back to Fira Town, the main village.

Alas, even taking the shore-excursion will not save you from major delay in returning to the ship, because use of the cable car is first-come first-served .... I have seen lines of hundreds of people baking in the sun. In order not to be among them, you probably need to head for the cable car a full hour before you're expected to be on board. Also, if there are 3 large cruise ships in port on your day, that means at least 7,000, sometimes 8,500 cruisers clogging the small lanes of Santorini villages (which off-season, are quite attractive when sparsely populated).

This is what they don't tell you in the promotional brochures ... but forewarned is fore-armed. I've read one account on a forum by a seasoned and perhaps less-scrupulous cruise passenger who implied strongly that at Santorini she and her husband were able to get on the first tender by greasing the palm of the official(s) involved, and then were able to avoid the cruise excursion, get into a car that was rented in advance online, and go on their merry way. That's an individual's decision.

There is a fleet of tender boats, NOT JUST ONE, so even if it takes 25 trips to bring all passengers ashore it doesn't happen one boat at a time. The cruise ships try to stagger their schedules to avoid everyone arriving at the same time.

There is a water taxi that you can take from the tender dock below Fira directly to Amoudi Bay below Oia for €15. The fare includes a shuttle service up the cliff into the village and a bus ticket back to Fira. From Fira you'll still have to deal with the lines at the cable car if you choose not to walk down the urine and donkey poop-encrusted steps back to the tender dock. PLEASE DON'T RIDE THE POOR ABUSED DONKEYS!

Great suggestions from all. And we have not intentions of riding the poor donkeys.

Since we never take cruises I cannot advise you on the type of experience and/or time involved with such. I will say if you want a affordable hotel in Athens then the Attalos Hotel on Athinas St. is a good choice. It's our "go-to" hotel every time we go to Athens. Clean, safe and centrally located to everything one wants to see in Athens and has one of the best roof top bars/gardens in all of Athens.

Thanks Tommyk5. That Hotel Attalos sounds perfect. I have heard negative things about Athens, but we thought we would fly in 1 day early before the cruise , and see a little of this ancient city. What would you suggest if only having a full day in Athens?

In Mykonos consider a short boat trip to Delos. Magnificent! Google it and see what you think.

We have had good luck getting off Celebrity ships on the first or second tender without being on an cruise sponsored excursion. I can't speak to other lines. Just be in the designated area early and have all your party with you. Be prepared to "go". If you do the cruise excursions look for small group options. Those are much more enjoyable if offered.

We have also had good luck with Tours by Locals. They coordinate local tour guides. You pay a little more than you would by finding and scheduling a local tour guide but it's nice have an organized company standing behind the process. They have lots of options. We've used them in Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

We are going to Athens in May have have found several nice private tour options both in the city and for tours of the area. The single price for the entire group makes private tours very competitive. Also you get a lot more for your money and time as you aren't waiting around for 40 people to go to the bathroom or be late returning from shopping.

Dubrovnik is very easy to do on your own. You might seek out a private walking tour of the old town and then spend the rest of the time on your own. The ship will probably have cheap bus tickets to get you back and forth from the ship to old city. In the alternative, a tour out into the country is also very interesting. We did a Celebrity tour 4 years ago and and it was a great day. If you are also sailing into Montenegro then be up at dawn for the sail-in. It is amazing.

I'm one of those people who love Athens. Granted, August will probably be toasty, so plan accordingly. I would check on making sure your hotel has air conditioning. We were there in May, so it wasn't necessary. With one day, you may want to consider a guide for Athens. In you look in the search function on this website, there is a guide named Faye who is really good.

Check out Matt Barrett's website for tips on Greece.

We consider Athens a wonderful city with World-Class Archeological sites & Museums, with numerous excellent tavernas serving authentic Greek Food, even the touristy ones, but if you can find the smaller, out of the way restaurants then you'll get better choices and prices.

Since there is only a small area of Athens one goes to then you should be able to see a lot in the time you have. Obviously the Acropolis is #1, in addition the Agora and Plaka area which are very close to each other. If you have more time then check out Kerimikos Cemetery, Hadrian's Arch, Temple to Zeus and for a wild and exciting time the Central Markets on Athinas St.

For a treat you can go to Anafiotika on the north side of the Acropolis which resembles a small village on a Greek Island. With its white-washed houses and narrow lanes you'll never realize you are in a city of millions.

So much to do, see and experience that it will take many days to see. We go every year and we still find new places to visit and go back to what we've already seen and still find it exciting.

Again, TC, Shelking, Patty, and tommyk5...thanks for the great tips and ideas. Ive made note of it all. Is the most visited areas in Athens in close proximity to the airport or to the cruise port?

Neither is very close to the center of Athens where the major sites are located. The airport is further away than Piraeus by about 30 minutes using the Metro.

The cruise port at Piraeus is at least 30 minutes away by bus. Not sure about the subway. The airport is at least that far away in the other direction.

Ok Lee, TC, and tommyk5. I may very well book the Attalos Hotel that you recommended. Is there another hotel that you can recommend as a back up. I am viewing several on Trip Advisor. Also, what is the best type of transportation from the airport to the hotel? Hoping that we can get basic bus service to get around from our hotel, wherever we end up.

I stayed at the Omiros Hotel on Apollonos Street last May. It is less-expensive than the Attalos and is within easy walking distance to Syntagma Square and the Plaka shopping district. The room was nice and clean and the breakfast was very good. They have a rooftop terrace that looks out on the Acropolis. We had to ask for the key but had it all to ourselves each time we went up there.

As a backup for the Attalos I would suggest Hotel Cecil just a few meters away from the Attalos on Athinas St. Nothing fancy, but it's clean, safe and obviously in the same area as the Attalos, close to everything one wants to experience in Athens. It has an antique elevator that's more for show than going up and down, but it's serviceable. The price includes breakfast which is extra at the Attalos.

There are many other accommodations in Athens that are very good and in a price range for everyone but the Attalos is our first choice and if we can't get a room there then Hotel Cecil would be second. Cecil is less expensive than the Attalos but is perfectly fine as long as you don't expect big rooms, super luxury and over-the-top views.

Then again, why spend a lot of money for a big, fancy and luxurious room when you'll only be sleeping and freshening up there. You'll spend most of your time outside exploring athens.

Go to Matt's Greek Guide to get a discount for the Attalos:

http://www.hotelsofgreece.com/athens/attalos/

The best way to see Athens is by walking and since most everything one goes to Athens for is in a small area then walking if free and gets you up close and personal along the way to wherever you are going.

There are three ways to get from the airport to Central Athens: taxi, convenient door-to-door service but most expensive; Metro which is just across the street from the airport, clean, quick and safe as long as you hold on to your belongings and also depends on where you will be staying. If you are staying anywhere close to Monistiraki or Syntagma Square then the Metro is a very good choice; bus which is the cheapest but also depends on where you are staying and the nearest bus stop.

We use the Metro since it has a stop at Monistiraki Square which is a short walk from the Attalos and Cecil Hotel. I think the cost is now 10 euros or 5 if you are senior citizen.

The main issue with the Metro is pick pockets but for the most part is very safe. We've never had any problem with being taken for or scammed, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't be on guard.

Other than that the Metro is fine, but if you want convenience and less stress take a taxi.