Viking Mediterranean Cruise: Venice to Athens Deep Dive

Discover what to do during a pre-cruise stay in Venice (and why getting around isn't as easy as you'd think) and how to get to Chioggia to embark on your cruise. We'll share hidden gems you might not know about, like Piran, and experience the breathtaking views and cultural treasures of iconic ports like Dubrovnik, Kotor, Corfu, Santorini (you’ll never guess what happened that day), Olympia, and Athens.

We'll walk you through our favorite excursions at each stop, including third-party tour options we experienced firsthand. We share the unique aspects that made each destination special, and give you honest insights about the challenges and surprises we encountered. 

Whether you're planning your own Empires of the Mediterranean cruise with Viking, deciding which excursions to prioritize, or dreaming about this historic itinerary, you'll get our perspective on what makes this vacation spectacular and how to make the most of every magical moment.

The links below will help supplement this episode and take you to the tour companies we used to book excursions when we didn’t go through Viking: 

• We love Walks and Devour tours - search the Venice options to see what piques your interest. We highly recommend the “Venice in a Day” tour and “Venice at Sunset: Cicchetti, Food & Wine Tour”
• The Tour Guy made it possible for us to visit Murano & Burano from Venice in a half-day.
• Shore Excursions Group has a "back to ship guarantee". We did excursions with them in Zadar, Dubrovnik, and Corfu.
• Pack an AirFly for your cruise so you can go wireless on excursions. 
• Book your excursions via Viking before your cruise in My Viking Journey. 
• Here's exactly how to get from Venice to Chioggia with the public bus (with private transfer suggestions too).
• Docking in "Athens"? You'll really be in Piraeus.

Transcript

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Dan (00:35)

Hello and welcome to this week's episode of Small Ship Cruise Talk. We just got back from our very first Viking Ocean cruise.

Our itinerary was the Empires of the Mediterranean. Now we have two other episodes about this particular cruise. It was Viking Ocean vs River and we have Viking Ocean Food and Beverage. So, talking about this particular cruise, check those out.

But this week we're gonna dive in and talk about our itinerary from that cruise.

Mikkel (01:06)

That's right, so today we are taking you through our day-by-day itinerary and actually even starting with our pre-cruise activities that we added on by choice and booked ourselves.

So we're going to share that and we are going to reveal the excursions that we enjoyed with Viking and also a third-party option that we tried for the first time.

And we embarked on the ship in Chioggia, which the cruise lines still deem as Venice, but we're going to tell you why that's kind of a little bit of a white lie and is more so a marketing move on their part. And we will take you all the way through from Venice and Chioggia to our last day in Athens and what our experience was like getting to the airport using transportation arranged by Viking. And all of this is to help you decide if this particular cruise is right for you. 

I also want to point out that while our cruise was named or is named Empires of the Mediterranean — and again that's from Venice to Athens — there are multiple itineraries that are almost identical with other names.

We went on Viking Saturn, but other ships of course sail this itinerary as well. We were talking to another couple on a Facebook group for Viking Ocean that basically had the same itinerary — left a day before us.

So just keep in mind there's a lot of options for this itinerary.

So without further ado, let's dive into our pre-cruise experience. So we decided to fly to Venice and took the train immediately from Marco Polo Airport in Venice to Bologna.

Mikkel (02:57)

I don't want to get too much into our days in Bologna. You know, it could vary so much whether or not to go to Bologna from there or Florence. They're all really easy to get to with the trains in Italy, but we went from the Venice airport to Bologna. It was a two-hour train ride. And then we went back to Venice. So let's start in Venice pre-cruise because we wanted to tour Venice for a few days because if you land the day you embark, you might have a couple hours to explore Venice. But we were boarding the ship in is an hour away from Venice.

So it's actually not that close. So if you land at the airport and use Viking transportation to get to the ship, it's important to know that you're still going to be an hour away from Venice. So we wanted to make sure that we had ample time in Venice. It was my second time there, but I would say first time as a real adult because I hadn't been there since I was 18, which was, you know, over 25 years ago and Dan had never been there.

So we were in Venice on our own for, was it two nights, Sunday to Tuesday? Sunday, Monday, yeah. And we booked some tours on our own that I definitely want to call out because it made it a great experience and we used the tour company that we absolutely love.

Dan (04:07)

Yeah, two nights.

So one thing I want to note about Venice: it's not easy to get around. The water taxis, they work, they're there, but it's not exactly clockwork as far as getting around. And you're waiting for taxis, you're not sure which way they're going. So just be prepared to be slightly frustrated with that. But overall it's very beautiful and I get it and I get why people want to go there and, spend their vacation there but just keep that in mind that it's not the easiest to maneuver.

Mikkel (04:54)

You're absolutely right that the water taxis were confusing. I also want to make a distinction. There are private water taxis that cost a lot of money for you to get on. We're more so talking about the public "water taxi," which is called the vaporetto. And it's just like a public bus, but Venice doesn't have any cars— downtown Venice in particular. There's also mainland Venice

in the province. This is all very confusing, but you know, we did so much research about this that we just want to be really clear. So the vaporettos that you buy the passes for can be frustrating because there's a lot of lines just like a subway or a bus line. They don't all stop in the same place.

And we found in our experience, that they're not always on time. would say most of the time they were not on time. So it's a good point because you can pop into Venice for the day, but we highly recommend staying at least one night, if not two. So you're not feeling rushed. You're not feeling like you're wasting time commuting, let's say. I think us staying two nights allowed us to feel like it was more so part of the experience and the journey. And also the thing that

Mikkel (06:14)

You don't really realize until you're there or you're researching it is that you can be in downtown Venice — and this is where, you know, the Bezos got married, it's like where the Clooney's hang out (I don't know where their house is, but this is where most people want to be in historic downtown – it could take you 45 minutes on the Vaporetto to get from point A to point B in the different neighborhoods of Venice. So you are going to spend some time commuting, so to speak.

You can buy a 48-hour pass for a vaporetto. And I was really frustrated because from all my research, it was like, this was the way to go, you know? And it was over 80 euros for the 48 hours for two tickets for it. And it starts the counter the first time you scan it. Cause one of my questions was, is the Vaporetto 24 hour pass from 12 AM? Is that the 24 hours? Or is it, let's say, if you scan it at 10 AM one day, then it expires at 9:59 AM the next day. And that's how it is. It's the latter. 

So I was frustrated because we ended up walking the first day after we scanned the Vaporetto tickets because the line was just so long for the Vaporetto from the train station. 

that if you are an able-bodied person, that it's actually more walkable than we realized because of all those bridges. So that's a great point. That's all to say that Venice is busy. There's millions more tourists than residents there. It's a very busy city, very popular for tourists, and you need patience and time to get around.

Dan (07:37)

Right.

Mikkel (07:57)

So if you're gonna book a pre-cruise experience, whether through Viking or on your own, and we did it on our own as we do most of the time for pre and post-cruise experiences, I would say give yourself two nights there as we did.

Dan (08:11)

Yeah, I would definitely agree with that because the city has a lot to offer and there's a lot to explore. You just have to bring some patience with you.

Mikkel (08:19)

Yeah, so the first day we got there on Sunday, we left ourselves time. We booked a dinner reservation. Food's very important to us. So we wanted to make sure we were eating at some great places. And then the next day we did some tours with our favorite tour group.

Dan (08:36)

Yeah, so our first tour of the day was with a company called Walks. So we've been on countless number of tours with them in the past. Their sister company is Devour Food Tours also. So we did both a Walks and a Devour tour in Venice.

Mikkel (08:54)

There's no better combo than Walks and Devour. So that was truly a great day. So the, you know, as, as we were just saying, we had somewhat limited time, even though we gave ourselves cushion room with the two nights there, but we chose to do the Venice half day tour. And one of the reasons we did that tour was because not only did it take you to the highlights and into the Doge's palace, which was amazing, but it also included a 30 minute gondola ride. Now the gondola rides, if you book on your own,

Dan (08:55)

All right.

Mikkel (09:22)

are almost 100 euros. They're regulated by the city of Venice. So if you take one with one vendor versus another, it's going to be the same price. So this was amazing because I thought 30 minutes was plenty and it gave us the experience and it was included in the price of the tour.

So that was the highlights. What did you think of that tour?

Dan (09:42)

I thought it was a really top level view of Venice. You saw all the hits.

Mikkel (09:50)

Yeah, and we have linked that in the show notes for you, the show description, so you're very easily able to click that and book it for yourself. We decided to do lunch on our own. We had a delicious pasta lunch, as you do when you're in Venice. Seafood's very popular in Venice because obviously it's surrounded by water. And then we had a food tour with Devour starting at 5 PM.

Dan (10:07)

Mm-hmm.

The thing we really love about the Devour Tours is pretty much you have a drink, then you have a bite, and then you have a drink, and then you have a bite, and you know, repeat across the city. But it's not, you're not going to chains or anything like that. You're going to very local establishments and for me, you really get the sense of what the locals do after work.

You feel like you're part of the city.

Mikkel (10:46)

Yeah, it definitely took us to a neighborhood we wouldn't have otherwise explored. We drink alcohol and we eat meat. But there were two people that do not drink alcohol on the tour and they just had soft drinks instead of all the cocktails. And we've been on Devour tours with vegetarians, too. I would say if you have dietary restrictions, just talk to them and email the company first before you book. So you're not going to be disappointed and kind of ask what the alternate options are for those bites. One of the things I really loved about Venice is it reminded me of the pintxos in Spain. And those were the cicchetti. The cicchetto is one. Cicchetti is multiple, like spaghetti is multiple strands of spaghetti, and spaghetto is one strand of spaghetti. But these are kind of like crostinis with toppings on them. And they are unique to Venice, so that was really cool.

Dan (11:21)

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm, yeah. Yeah, it was a really good tour. I liked that.

Mikkel (11:38)

Yeah. And then you discovered a twist on a spritz that you loved.

Dan (11:44)

What was the name of that? What did they call it? I can't even remember.

Mikkel (11:46)

So instead of Aperol or Campari, which are both Italian liquers, I guess, they have Select. Yeah.

Dan (11:52)

Select. That's what it was. Yeah.

It was was punchy, refreshing. Quite memorable, I would say. Yes.

Mikkel (12:01)

Yeah, it was herbaceous. You really liked it. We don't love Campari and Aperol because we're not like big... There's like a citrusy bitterness that I want to love, but I don't. So the Select Spritz was just perfect for us. So that was a nice surprise. And again, all this was our Devour Food Tour in Venice that we have also linked in the show description. So that was a full day. The next day, we went on a tour with The Tour Guy in the morning.

Mikkel (12:30)

And I really wanted to go to Murano, which is famous for its glass, and Burano, which is famous for its colorful buildings, small town. And they are just a 45 minute ride by boat and a 30 minute, 25 to 30 minute boat ride. And The Tour Guy tour had an amazing tour guide, Flavia. She was amazing and took us on a private boat. So we didn't have to wait for transportation. The boat is prearranged by the tour company.

And Flavia made it really fantastic and had such a positive attitude despite what she could not control, which was the absolute downpour that was happening all morning. So the tour happened rain or shine. We were there with umbrellas and raincoats on. You had never been to Murano. We had both never been to Burano. What were your impressions of seeing that classic legendary Venetian glass and that city?

Dan (13:26)

Yeah, the glass was extremely impressive. True artisans working on these sculptures, these, like, pieces of art. There was so many examples of glass work that I just didn't understand was possible with glass.

Mikkel (13:41)

Like what?

Dan (13:42)

Some of the layering that they were doing was very fascinating. And then how large some of the pieces were also. Like it's hard to wrap your mind around a chandelier that's all glass and what is as big as my

Mikkel (13:57)

Yeah, yeah, that's for sure. There were definitely one or two chandeliers that I had my eye on, but I suppose luckily for us, our ceilings aren't high enough in our house for chandeliers. ⁓

Dan (14:07)

All right. Well, ceiling fans in Florida are more important than chandeliers.

Mikkel (14:14)

Right.

Haha! And that was a four and a half hour tour experience, including transportation. I thought they timed it really nicely. One day we'll do it in the sun. But that was not the day, but it was a great tour nonetheless. So thanks to The Tour Guy for that and our tour guide, Flavia.

The nice thing about that day was that Tuesday was our embarkation day for our cruise, but we didn't have to be in Chioggia until later on in the day, which was around 7 PM. was like kind of like the time you had to check in by and the ship didn't leave until 10 or 11 PM. So 7 PM was the time we had to be there. 10 or 11 PM was the time it left. So I wanted to see Chioggia. You wanted to kind of just hang out on the ship. We took a public bus to get from Chioggia to Venice. The other option is you can hire a private boat, which obviously the bus once we figured it out which was definitely confusing and hard to find information about so I'm happy to say we have an article on our website to help you because we experienced it and we don't want other people to have frustration like we did researching it for the first time. So you are benefiting from our experience. 

Check out that article if you are curious how to get from downtown Venice to Chioggia. And Chioggia, I had to have a little lesson from an Italian at the front desk at our hotel, Pesoro Palace, I recommend. It was great. It was a beautiful hotel. It was not the Viking hotel.

We booked this on our own, but it was fantastic. There was a vaporetto station right there. We could walk there from anywhere nearby.

The front desk woman, I said, we're trying to get to Chee-o-gee-a. And she said, what are you talking about? Finally, after a couple of rounds of this, I showed her on a map the name and she laughed at me and said, "Oh, Chioggia!" So the "ch" in Italian, a language I never had a lesson in ever, which showed is ca, it's a K sound. So it's kee-o-ja.

Mikkel (16:22)

Once we had that figured out, we were able to take the Vaporetto from right outside our hotel to

Piazzale — kind of like a little plaza — Roma, which is where the buses leave from. And somebody in the ticket office was fantastic, spoke English. She looked like she was just out of college and was able to help us buy those tickets.

A private water taxi to take you from downtown Venice to Chioggia via water could be hundreds of euros and this bus cost us less than 20 euros. I'm pretty sure it was 13 euros for the two of and it was very direct. You just have to be aware of where to get off but we got off we walked 10 minutes to the ship and we embarked in Chioggia.

Dan (17:05)

So that's another important thing to note is the bus is not going to drop you off at the port. So there will be a small walk, mostly sidewalks. There was a few times we had to cut through a parking lot here and there, but... it is. Yeah. You're not taking your life in your hands, but it's not door to door

Mikkel (17:19)

It was all paved.

Yeah, yeah. But it was totally worth it for mostly direct, point A to point B, including that little bit of a walk and very easy once we figured it out. So be sure to check out our article linked in the show notes if you are also trying to do the same bus route. So once we were on the ship, I was happy that there was a shuttle to get directly to downtown Chioggia, which is less than a 10 minute boat ride, but it was really nice that Viking provided

the boat shuttle to get from directly in front of the ship — you just boarded the little nice boat — to downtown Chioggia. What is there to do in downtown Chioggia? Not a ton. But we have another article on that as well if you are interested. My favorite thing as a photographer was walking around to find different photo vignettes, I would say, and just go on a little photo walk myself.

Mikkel (18:17)

So I ended up in downtown Chioggia around 5:30. Again, Dan, you stayed on the ship to relax and check out everything that the ocean ship had to offer. And I also went to a grocery store. I bought us a bottle of wine. You're allowed to bring wine on board. You know, clears through security. I'm sure the Italians support you bringing wine on board. So I got us a bottle of wine. I got myself some pasta from the grocery store that I don't see often this particular kind of pasta in the United States.

So I did some last-minute shopping in Italy because after this day, the next day we were leaving there. So it was worthwhile to see Chioggia. I would say you don't need more than two hours there unless you're sitting down for a meal. There's a pharmacy in Chioggia if you need it. There are actually multiple pharmacies in a very small radius, which was surprising. There were three of them. So it's a nice place to walk around for a little but you don't have to allot too much time there.

So again, we were leaving that night to head to Slovenia.

Dan (19:17)

Piran, Slovenia was our first port. Now, Mikkel, you've been there in the past.

Mikkel (19:21)

Yes.

Dan (19:23)

It's a really cute port city.

Mikkel (19:27)

I like hearing what you thought of it.

Dan (19:29)

Yeah, definitely feels Old World. It feels authentic, but modern at the same time. But overall, I thought it was cute. And we did the Viking excursion, the city walk.

I think we tendered in a little bit earlier. So we did our own little city walk before the official city walk, the tour started. But

got to see all the hits and then there was little time at the end for just walking around and doing some shopping.

Mikkel (19:54)

Yeah, and there were several different times to do that included walking tour. So if you wanted to do one a little earlier, a little later... that morning, we decided to stay on the ship to do some massages in the spa. We had pre booked that on My Viking Journey. So we were able to do a walking tour a little bit later in the morning, which allowed us to relax after a few days in Venice and boarding the ship. 

Our ship was originally scheduled to go to Koper, Slovenia, which is really close to Piran. And I've also been to Koper. I like Piran a little more. So I was happy that we were there. I have very fond memories of going there a couple of years ago. So Dan, I was so happy to be there with you. It's a very walkable city. You could do it on your own if you wanted to. But we always like the history and the commentary and we were able to ask a local about culture in Slovenia and such. 

Again, seafood is the specialty there. I missed some Slovenian foods because they don't really have štruklji, these dumplings that I love that Dan hears me talk about all the time. So they don't have that. It's very much seafood based and salt is a very popular souvenir from there. They're famous for their salt flats. So it's a great town. We tendered in. 

The tender was very easy and the boats were like state of the art and it was a quick tender. It was about 10 minutes. You could see the ship from the shore. They just can't dock there directly. So the tendering was smooth. And then we were back on the ship. Another popular tour that you pay for from Piran or from Koper is to Lake Bled. And there's a famous abbey and a little island in the middle of the lake there.

So famous in fact, that it is the screensaver on our Apple TV. So it's that iconic. So that's also a great excursion if you're interested in that. Full disclosure, we didn't take the Viking excursion, but I've been there before. It's definitely worth going there if you're interested in that. And it's for sure over an hour bus ride, if not more from Piran. But worth it if you want to see a screensaver worthy photo. Right.

Mikkel (22:07)

Then the next day we were in Zadar, Croatia. I thought what was really interesting that we quickly learned, especially being in Piran, was it was great to start in Venice because all of these cities have a history of being under the Venetian Empire centuries ago.

Dan (22:27)

Yeah.

Mikkel (22:28)

And you could see that throughout the city because the lion holding a book is the Venetian...

Could I say that? Logo? Symbol. Yeah. Today it would be a logo. Back then it was their kind of a crest logo.

Dan (22:37)

Yeah, I would say national symbol, but logo probably works. Yeah.

Crest. Yeah.

Mikkel (22:47)

Yeah. So they were all under the Venetian empire. So this Empires of the Mediterranean cruise was taking us so far through the Venetian empire and its history, which was really cool. And Zadar was no exception. This was a day that the weather called for some rain, but miraculously we booked a Krka National Park tour and we did that through a third party. This was the first time we tried Shore Excursions Group and I was really impressed with how smooth everything went.

Dan (23:19)

It was very smooth. So, we had a private tour. The gentleman picked us up right at the port, got in and then spoke great English and gave us a lot of commentary on the city. But then as we went out to the national park, he gave us a lot of history there. But also what I enjoyed too, is he gave us space. He didn't talk the entire time. There was a nice balance there.

Mikkel (23:40)

Yeah, we are not fans of when a tour guide does not stop talking the entire time. So he had the perfect balance of both. And it actually was a group tour that ended up being a private tour because we were the only two that booked. So know that if you book a Shore Excursions Group excursion, which we also have linked in the show description, it could be private, it will go with two people if nobody else books. So that was a nice surprise.

Dan (24:07)

It turned out to be the perfect day for a national parks tour. There was a little bit of hiking, there was waterfalls, some sightseeing, but overall the sun was shining, beautiful skies, there was a boat. It was kind of like it checked all the boxes.

Mikkel (24:25)

Yes, and although it called for rain and wind and colder temperatures in Zadar, which is just an hour from Krka National Park, miraculously, like you said, it was the perfect day, not just in the activities, but the weather was the most gorgeous high 60s, low 70s day with some fall colors and we really lucked out because we heard people talking on the ship about how terrible the weather was in Zadar that day. And then we heard a couple next to us saying, "...and those people that went on the national park tour, they must have been miserable." And we said, "I'm sorry, we have to stop you right there.

It actually was gorgeous." So you're on the ship and the weather is looking bad for Zadar in the future and you can still book an excursion to Krka National Park you might want to do that because the weather is different there. It was almost like a microclimate. And Viking offers this tour as well. But again, I really love Shore Excursions Group.

They have a guaranteed back to ship policy that they will get you there by the time your ship is all aboard time to leave. I would just recommend that when you see the tour guide in the morning, remind them of the time you need to be back. It was a six hour tour and we were able to communicate with him that we wanted to just walk around the town a little bit. Ironically, when we got back, the weather was so bad. We walked about a quarter of a mile

Dan (25:47)

Yeah.

Mikkel (25:49)

We looked at each other and said, "Oh my God, it's so windy and wet and cold. We just want soup back on the ship."

Dan (25:54)

Yes.

Mikkel (25:54)

Luckily, the ship was docked right next to the famous ocean organ that kind of plays with the undulations of the ocean water. So that was lucky because I know some ships don't dock right next to Old Town; even some Viking ships don't. But we lucked out and we were right there.

Dan (26:11)

Yeah.

So our third day and third stop was Dubrovnik, Croatia. Also, probably famously known for a lot of the Game of Thrones has been shot there. We did the walking tour of Dubrovnik. Just like the day prior we booked that through Shore Excursions Group.

This was not a private tour - there was other people on the tour but our tour guide was also fantastic. A local. Knew the town and the history and had a lot of great stories and anecdotal kind of things to share with us and she was actively involved. I think she said she was extra number 63 or 65 in some of the Game of Thrones scenes. So she really brought that flavor of what it was like to live and work inside the city, in the old city.

Mikkel (26:55)

Yeah.

And in Dubrovnik, the ship docks outside of the Old Town, but Viking has a very convenient shuttle that takes you into the Old Town. And where it drops you off was actually the location for the start of our tour. So it couldn't have been more convenient. I felt great about our tour. The reason we signed up for this tour was because Shore Excursions Group made it really affordable to also include the city walls.

It's important to know that walking the city walls around Dubrovnik is one of the attractions you can't miss there. It's not to miss. And it costs 40 euros per person. So we wanted to include that price in a tour and the Shore Excursions Group tour allowed us to do that. Again, we're going to link this tour in our show description. And at the end of the tour, we were able to opt to stay up on the walls and have some coffee. And we had the most beautiful view. 

And I just loved walking through the town. It was so unique. I don't think we've ever in all our travels in Europe, I don't think we've ever been able to walk through a town like that, that is still enclosed by walls that you literally still need to walk through a gate. We got to explore the area. It just felt unique. I mean, we've been to towns like it, but nothing exactly like it.

Dan (28:35)

You definitely felt like you're stepping back in time and it wasn't that overly touristy when we were there. There was a nice balance. Felt like you could experience the city without running into everybody. There was a film crew that was shooting while we were there. So a lot of the local economy is really

Mikkel (28:55)

film and television.

Dan (28:56)

Yeah, it's been film and television.

Mikkel (28:59)

We were shocked to hear that the show being filmed there was the Outer Banks. So that was really cool to see. I think Dubrovnik was one of my favorite stops during this whole Empires of the Mediterranean itinerary.

Dan (29:03)

Great. I would say it was one of my favorites also. I really didn’t have expectations for it. 

I was reading about the tour. I'm like, city walls, okay, it's probably old and dingy, but it really wasn't that. It was very beautiful.

Mikkel (29:26)

I would recommend if you don't want to pay for a tour there that you should for sure take the included Viking walking tour because you will learn a lot about the city be sure to spend some time to walk around on your own. The shuttle comes regularly. It was every hour if not every half hour. So plan to spend some time there. We were very fortunate to have the most gorgeous day there. So after our tour we, again, had a drink and then walked around some more. We had those city wall tickets that she handed us so we could also go up to a famous fortress where we found out Rod Stewart's son got married. So that was interesting. It was also in Game of Thrones and some other film productions. So we did that, went back on the shuttle and went back to the ship. 

Okay, the next day, another favorite stop. So these were my two

Dubrovnik and Kotor, Montenegro. We docked at 8 AM and I read on a Viking cruise group not to miss the sail in to Montenegro that morning and I would agree. So we made sure we were up and out on our balcony at 7:30 to see the sail in.

Dan (30:41)

Very beautiful sail in. So this was definitely  a nice way to enter into the city.

Mikkel (30:47)

We were docked from 8 AM to 3 PM and even though we were cruising during late October, sunset was after 3 PM So I would say if your docking is from 8 AM to 3 PM, as ours was, you can see the sail out which is just as beautiful. But I would also say give yourself two chances because if the weather is bad in the morning or the afternoon then you have another chance to see it. So I was happy to watch the sail away as well when we sailed on from there. So we paid for an excursion with Viking that day and it was the Highlights of Montenegro tour. It was incredible and scary.

Dan (31:28)

So the premise is you get into a coach bus and then you go up a supposedly two-lane road that goes up a mountain and with traffic coming down and up and trucks and buses and...

Surprisingly,

Mikkel (31:44)

we live to tell the tale because that supposed two-way street is one lane. And when you have multiple coach buses going up that two-way, one-lane road up and up and up a mountain, it is frightening.

Dan (32:00)

Switchbacks, up, down, zigzags and buses backing up, other cars backing up. Somehow this crazy right-of-way hierarchy and it all works.

Mikkel (32:12)

But as we have said in the past and we'll say again, hiking or driving up a mountain is 99.9% if not 99.99% always worth the view and it was spectacular.

Dan (32:29)

The views across the bay were definitely worth the harrowing experience of the bus ride.

Mikkel (32:35)

Yep. So we had that view of Kotor Bay and then we could see even further. I mean, it felt like we could see into the neighboring countries. Our guide was fantastic. We had a stop at a restaurant that served us a snack of bread with ham and cheese. They eat that there and they kind of explain how their prosciutto differs from Italian prosciutto, how they make it. We were able to get a beer or wine or water.

Of course we chose wine at 10 o'clock in the morning. It was totally worth it and I loved that we were treated to some fall colors when we were driving through the mountains because it was late October so that was unexpected. We live in Florida so I miss those fall colors and for some reason I've been really missing them this year so that was incredible and a perk of cruising in October in Kotor, Montenegro. The unfortunate thing about this is it took the full time that we are in Kotor. All aboard time was 2:30 PM for sail away at 3 PM and we got back to the port at 2:30 PM. So we didn't have time to walk around the town, but I would a hundred percent recommend this tour. It was incredible.

Dan (33:49)

I would agree with that.

So next day, we were in Corfu, Greece, changing countries, moving our way down the Dalmatian coast.

Mikkel (33:58)

Down the Dalmatian coast. We were in Corfu and the unfortunate thing about this day was the weather.

Dan (34:04)

Yeah, it was a little poopy out there. The rain – it was very gray and we wanted to love it, but the weather made it difficult.

Mikkel (34:14)

We booked a Shore Excursions Group Jeep tour. We booked three short excursions tours this trip, trying them for the first time. And this also ended up being a private tour. So again, we didn't book a private tour, but ended up having one, which was really special. And our guide had actually moved to Corfu from Romania because he loves Corfu so much and said it's so beautiful. And that ironically they only get a few rainy days a year. And the problem with a Jeep tour going up the mountains during a rainy day is that it was zero visibility. There was a Viking excursion that did something similar and they said— the people we talked to that did it— they did not like it at all.

Mikkel (35:06)

We weren't on that tour, but at least we had the benefit with Shore Excursions Group that it really was small and we ended up being the only two. And we had a phenomenal lunch that he took us to that there's no way we would have found otherwise. Took us to the famous monastery at the top of the hill. We couldn't see past the monastery because of the weather, which was no fault of anyone's, but at least we saw the incredible details inside the monastery.

Dan (35:33)

Yeah, overall I think we got a great kind of flavor and feeling for Corfu. And then afterwards we were able to explore the city a little bit out by the fortresses and before we went back to the ship.

Mikkel (35:46)

Yep. So we were able to see Old Town and Viking has a shuttle that goes in and out of that area. So we actually asked our guide to just drop us off in town, which he got approval to do from his boss and it worked out quite well. So we got the best of both worlds with that situation.

Dan (36:03)

After Corfu, our next stop was Olympia, Greece. So we got to be in the Olympics.

Mikkel (36:10)

Yes.

Dan (36:13)

Mikkel did like a hundred yard dash and then that was the extent of our time trials for the Olympics.

Mikkel (36:19)

It was a gold medal performance.

Dan (36:22)

Hmm.

It was something.

Mikkel (36:23)

So once we got to, I think you pronounce it Katakolon. I do not speak Greek. It's not all Greek to me, but it kind of was when we were in Olympia.

We boarded buses and headed out for this paid excursion that was from 9 AM to 2 PM. It was called "Syrtaki, Greek Food, and Ancient Olympia." My favorite thing about this was it combined history with food. What's better? Win-win.

Dan (36:48)

It's a win-win.

Mikkel (36:51)

This was an absolutely fantastic paid excursion with Viking. We had a great group. We made some friends on this excursion.

We toured Olympia, and this was my favorite tour guide of the entire trip. It was like this Greek grandma, literally a grandma, who had just had a hip replacement, but she was walking with the rest of us. And she just had really funny ways of telling stories that we got a kick out of.

And we saw the Temple of Zeus that they were recreating. There's been amazing archaeological reconstructions of the temple there — all the temples there. It's a whole complex. And she had great history to share with us on the bus ride and some information about the area and Peloponnese, the peninsula we were on. And I insisted to you that we act out some discus throwing in our videos and do that dash that you referred to once we were in the famous Olympic Stadium. I mean, how many people can say that they were where the Olympics really started?

Dan (37:58)

I don't know how many people but it's we are amongst them, yeah. Like you said it truly is a complex there's it's a sprawling area a lot of ruins you have to use your imagination in a lot of it but our tour guide was great it kind of like connecting the dots for us and it really did feel like quite the event of the ancient world.

Mikkel (38:00)

But we are amongst them now. And cool because every two years there's an Olympics. So if you're touring, it's bound to be nearby the Olympics. So it was a good reminder of the torch and that the Parade of Nations always has Greece first because they started there. And I really enjoyed that. Even more so I enjoyed the Greek lunch that we had with some Greek dancers who really got the group into things.

Dan (38:51)

Yeah, there was a cooking demonstration, there was dancing, there was plates being smashed, there was wine. It was all the things you want for lunch.

Mikkel (38:54)

Yes.

Yeah, it was delicious. It was authentically Greek. We had zucchini fritters that we had actually tasted the day before in Corfu during our lunch, and we already knew that they're delicious. So they were just as yummy. We made tzatziki yogurt sauce, and they just had the most delicious and plentiful buffet. They had lemon potatoes, a personal favorite. They had Greek salad. They had chicken. They had rice. They had soup. They had it all.

Dan (39:29)

They had it all and the wine just kept coming.

Mikkel (39:32)

And we did have some plate throwing. Two plates were thrown. It was a crowd hit. So that was great. So then we headed back to the ship. And we were looking forward to

Dan (39:38)

Ha ha ha ha.

Mikkel (39:45)

So the next day.

We supposed to be docked from 9 AM to 6 PM in Santorini, Greece. Now, I was looking forward to Santorini. It was a great stop on our itinerary within Greece. I got even more excited about it from the guest lecturer on board the cruise when I learned that Santorini is kind of a volcano and the caldera is the lake in the center of the five islands that make up Santorini. So we were going to the most major island of those five.

And we were told that it can be windy and that we would need to take a tender into Santorini onto the land and a cable car up. I joked while we were getting ready for our excursion and to go tender at 9 AM... We went out on our balcony, saw the most gorgeous view — on a gorgeous day — of Santorini. We got those binoculars out and we looked at the famous white houses on the side of the mountain.

And then I said a joke to you. I said, "Oh, we're sailing away from Santorini!" And then…

Dan (40:51)

Then we got the announcement that we were not stopping in Santorini due to weather. Tendering in was going to be too hazardous and they had suspended activities on the cable car. So then we waved goodbye to Santorini as we sailed past.

Mikkel (41:10)

Yup, and my jaw dropped listening to the announcement because all we could see was gorgeous blue skies and the most beautiful sun reflection on those white hillside houses.

Dan (41:23)

So another example of when you are cruising, things come up, ports change, itineraries change, and you have to be flexible along the way, or else... well, that's just part of the game.

Mikkel (41:36)

It's part of the game in cruising. And we did learn later on from other people that it is more common than you think to not be able to dock in Santorini. And the swells around those ships and ferries going to Santorini, including the tenders, could be so high they're hazardous, like you said. So Viking did an amazing job in pivoting to making it a day at sea.

So we made the best of it as well and pivoted and enjoyed that day on board.

Dan (42:09)

Yeah, they did a great job of really providing activities for us and also there was a couple free drinks that were floating around a few times just to...

Mikkel (42:16)

Yeah, they couldn't make enough. They had spritzes galore, Limoncello Spritz and Aperol Spritz and they just kept coming around, "Does anybody want a spritz?" It was great. They added more guest lecture talks to the itinerary. Everybody really sprung into action to make the best

Dan (42:19)

Right.

Mikkel (42:32)

of a little bit of a situation. And, you know, it ended up being a great day on board. The next day we were in our last port, which was Athens.

Dan (42:44)

Our final stop on our cruise was Athens. So we docked at 8 AM. It was overnight and then we had a full day in Athens and then the following day was disembarkation.

Mikkel (42:48)

Bum bum bum.

So just to clarify, we docked at 8 AM. We were there all day. And then if you wanted to stay in Athens late at night for dinner, I guess you could stay overnight, but you had to be back on the ship at a certain time just for security reasons. But we were there during the day. Now we had been to Athens before, so we opted just to do the bus tour of the city. It also included tickets to the National Archaeological Museum, which we had not been to.

Dan (43:22)

It was really interesting museum. I thought they did a great job of kind of explaining what they had, but also there was a lot of, our guide did a great job of kind of connecting the dots again of a lot of the things that we were looking at.

Mikkel (43:36)

Yeah, if you have not been to Athens, you cannot miss going to the Acropolis.

Dan (43:44)

Yes.

Mikkel (43:44)

And that is easy to do on your own if you book tickets. It's easy to do with Shore Excursions Group if you want that option. It's easy to do with Viking if you book that. It's a paid excursion to go up to the Acropolis. We've done it. We just did it two years ago, so we didn't feel the need to do it. And I was really impressed by that archaeological museum. I couldn't believe there were gold necklaces with beads that you would buy today from 1600 BCE. That was amazing.

Dan (44:16)

Yeah, there was a lot of really interesting stuff.

Mikkel (44:19)

it was phenomenal. There was a shuttle bus that was very easy to come and go to the ship because it is important to note that although it is Athens on the itinerary—just as in Venice, you're really embarking from Chioggia. In Rome, for example, if people cruise to Rome, it's really Civitavecchia— it's very similar in Athens.

We have another post about this that I've linked in the show notes. If you are going to Athens, you are really in the Port of Piraeus. And depending on traffic, Piraeus is 30 to 45 minutes from Athens. So, thankfully, Viking had that shuttle bus.

Dan (44:58)

Yeah, and I think that's an important note is be prepared to sit in traffic. Athens is a very busy city so you get a little congestion.

Mikkel (45:11)

Yes, that said, it is a modern city and half the population of Greece lives in Athens and it is growing every day.

Dan (45:18)

Yeah, it's a big sprawling city.

Mikkel (45:20)

Yes.

Also important to note for these excursions overall is that the coach buses, even if it looks like there's a restroom on the bus, I don't know why coach buses are this way these days, but nobody ever allows you to use the bathroom on the bus. But something to Vikings credit that I really appreciated, was that every day when they had a port talk that talked about the port that you were going to the following day, the shore excursions manager did note where the restroom opportunities would be. And as someone with bathroom anxiety who always wants to know where the next bathroom is going to be, I really appreciated that.

Dan (45:59)

Yeah, they do a great job with that.

Mikkel (46:01)

Yes.

Dan (46:02)

So the museum, we explored on our own for a little bit. We took the shuttle and we went back to the ship and kind of really enjoyed the last couple hours that we had left on the ship. Because the next morning, they kindly asked us to get off the ship. I know, how dare they.

Mikkel (46:18)

Rude.

Dan (46:22)

So we took advantage of the Viking transport to the airport. So we left at 7:30 AM that morning, I think it was probably an hour 15 out to the airport, again, because of the traffic. It was an easy ride. And then once we got to the airport, it was, we had plenty of time to sit in a lounge, kind of prepare ourself for the flight across the globe.

Mikkel (46:48)

Yes, the flight back over the Atlantic to get back to Florida. I will say that Viking really made it simple and easy to organize with the luggage tag colors. And they are very particular about obviously communicating what shuttle you are going on and what time that shuttle leaves and what time to be where to board that shuttle bus.

We advocated for ourselves with Viking Air. At first, they said, you know, you'll go on a 7 AM flight, which I'm sure they had their reasons for telling us or, you know, suggesting that to us. And we know from past cruises that if you are going to be on a 7 AM flight, you're leaving the ship around three o'clock in the morning. We did not want to do that. So we asked if we could go on the later flight that we looked up ourselves and then knew that they were able to book with that flight carrier, which was Delta. And they said, sure.

So our flight was at 11:50. And at first, I thought, "Oh my god, 7:30!" But then I realized, it’s a great time. And it accounted for the traffic. So we left at 7:30. We didn't get there until 9:15ish. Like you said, an hour and 15 minutes. It was in traffic.

And for geography purposes, Piraeus is, let's say, on the southwest sort of coast. So you have to go past Athens, the city of Athens, and then north of Athens to get to the Athens airport. Or sorry, it was kind of northeast a little bit. So that's why, hence the reason why you can't really go around it any better than they did. That's why it takes a little bit of time. Whew, that was a great Empires of the Mediterranean day by day recap, including that transportation.

Overall, last words, last thoughts about this experience with Viking.

Dan (48:36)

As we talked about, the ocean product and the river product are very different with Viking. And I was extremely impressed with the ocean product and I was impressed with this itinerary. We specifically chose this itinerary because it was so different from anything that we'd done in the past. And I was very excited about this and it lived up to my expectations.

Mikkel (48:59)

And to add on to that, the itinerary is one that you cannot do on the rivers. You cannot get to these places on anything but the ocean. So I really love that about it, whereas you could go to the coast of France via ocean or via river, the interior via river. But you can only really do this on the coast with the oceans, the Adriatic —

the Dalmatian coast, the Mediterranean, as they say. So it was a really wonderful experience. I definitely recommend it. Whether you've been to some of these places or not, it is a very different experience cruising. And I was grateful I was there with you and on Viking.

Dan (49:45)

Yeah, it was a lot of fun. Next week we're going to have a first look at the Celebrity Xcel ship, especially The Retreat because we talk about the ship-within-a-ship concept and we're excited to bring you our take, our point of view on Celebrity's new ship.

Mikkel (50:02)

And we are so grateful that we have one of the first looks of anyone of Xcel. So be sure that you follow us and subscribe. And we will see you and talk to you next week.

Dan (50:16)

Keep cruising.