ulcards99

On 4/1/2024 at 3:17 PM, JLMoran said:

OK, I'd say those are the stops standard to basically all tours of Santorini. I can tell you right now that the stop at the highest point on the island is kind of disappointing, because you can't actually get to the peak; there is a monastery there that no longer allows visitors, and next to that is a military station that is not open to the public. So your tour bus basically pulls to the side of the road, you get out for 10-15 minutes to take some quick pictures, and then get back on the bus to go to your next destination.

My tour also included a stop at a local winery, where we also got to try three locally made wines while served a very nice lunch. The wines are definitely not bad, but also weren't especially great IMO, especially the last one (dessert wine) that was (I kid you not) made from raisins instead of fresh grapes.

Oia is the town with all the postcard pictures, and there is no denying it's beautiful. But it's also incredibly crowded if you get there in the afternoon, and you need to be ready to navigate some heavy crowds in the narrow alleys that make up a lot of the city. There's a lot to be seen there, and lots of shops selling souvenirs. And you can get some amazing photos. But you'll have to make a choice to explore or eat, because you won't have time for both.

Fira is where all tours end, because that's where you'll board the cable car back down to the shore for your tender ride back to the ship. That's an area you need to be very careful in, there are a lot of pickpockets and scammers there. My wife and I got distracted by a husband and wife arguing, and then we both felt a small child bump into us and run past. We reflexively checked our pockets and bags and confirming nothing stolen, but it was clearly a setup for the kids to pickpocket whatever tourists they could.

 

If you're into ancient history or archaeology at all, I would highly recommend trying to find a tour of Akrotiri. It's a 3,000-year old village that is Santorini's version of Pompeii. Even if you have to go third-party, I would argue it's well worth it. Absolutely amazing stop on the day tour my wife and I did. Cost us an arm and a leg since the tour included all the above stops as well and it was a true full-day outing (9-1/2 hours IIRC), but so worth it! My favorite stop of the entire time in the Greek Isles. (it wasn't with Royal, so I don't know if they have anything similar for a ship-hosted outing)

If you want to be outdoors more, maybe find an option that includes a stop at one of the black sand beaches. My daughters did that tour on our sailing and they really liked that. It also included a short stop at a different local winery along with Oia / Fira, so it's really a matter of how much you want to spend that day on the outing and what you want to see. But I'd definitely suggest a tour that goes above and beyond those few items since there is a lot more to see on the island.

What was the tour that you did that included everything?  That's what I want, but not sure I saw that on the Royal website....but not afraid to do a third party tour either.

1 hour ago, Leroyr55 said:

This is definitely worth it just for the all access tour. It’s around $160.00 per person on my May HOS cruise.  My question is if hundreds of people purchase this how are they going to accompany all of them? If you buy just the tour it is only available on two days. 

On my sailing in December, it is now showing as sold out. I figured they had to only sell a certain number.