Cruise around the Med including Greek Islands
We sailed on 05 October for 7 nights from Venice on MSC Sinfonua in ocean view cabin number 1183 on Deck 11. Venice is a fantastic port to sail from, as you get to see some great sights including St Mark Square whilst sailing along.
Our itinerary
Day 1 Venice. Italy
We flew with Ryanair from Stansted to Venice. Once we arrived at Venice we were met by MSC rep, as we had arranged return transfers from the airport to the port as part of the service. When we arrived at the port, we had a long wait for checking on board the ship as we were called by colour code. We had included in our cruise package drinks and gratuities. The ship was a little dated but onboard facilities were okay.
Day 2 Split. Croatia
We arrived in Split which was familiar territory to us as we were in Split last year for a city break. We loved it and we can both recommend Split as a great city break. Whilst there we had a lovely ice cream on the harbour and also visited the local market where they sold local produce and lavender. We ventured around the city reminiscing the places we saw on our last trip, more than happy to visit Split again on this cruise.
Day 3 Day at sea
Day at sea we had a lazy day and spent time in the casino losing lots of money! We also took the chance to explore the ship facilities. We found the ship had entertainment during the day including dance lessons, bingo, quizzes etc plus evening entertainment which was daily throughout.
Day 4 Santorini, Greece
We arrived in Santorini around 8am where there were 4 other ships also arrived at the port. It was busy with queues for the donkeys up to Fira town and also the cable car. We took an alternative option of taking a ferry from Fira port to Ammoudi Town with a short bus ride to Oia town. This option was cheaper and better costing around euro 15.00 per person. Oia Town is a pretty little town with lots of character, especially with the white and blue buildings like you can see on the picture postcards.
We were told that Oia Town has amazing sunsets and sunrises plus it offers lots of bars, restaurants and shops. Shame we didn’t get chance to explore. we were on a tight timescale to get back to the cruise ship by 2 pm so we took a bus back to Fira port, missing a chance to explore Fira town which looked lovely with lots of souvenir shops and restaurants. We would definitely like to go back to Santorini, when there were less cruise ships around as we would love to explore this beautiful island.
Day 5 Mykonos,Greece
We arrived in Mykonos late evening 8pm when restaurants and bars were coming alive in the evening. We ate onboard the ship, which meant we missed out on trying the local food which was a shame. We would love to have seen Mykonos in the daytime, to see what it has to offer. Our short time spent in Mykonos felt like this could be amazing island. We would love to come back again to experience it, staying for a few days.
Day 6 Dubrovnik,Croatia.
We arrived in Dubrovnik at 1pm where we had to pay for a coach transfer to take us into the city centre. Once we arrived in the city centre we were both pleasantly surprised by Dubrovnvik and what it had to offer. We both thought this would be a great city break another time?
Dubrovnik is famous for being the setting of the TV series Game of Thrones. It also has a lot of history including city walls tour and a medieval castle. Again we would love to visit this city for a break to experience lots of great restaurants and shops.
Day 7 Ancona. Italy
We arrived in Ancona at 10am. We both didn’t know much about this city and were surprised to find the amount of things you could do in this wonderful city. Again Ancona has a lot of history plus shops and restaurants. We managed to explore the cathedral, which has amazing architecture with great views of the city and port (it’s a hilly location). We also went to the local market where we found local fresh produce. Whilst in port we saw the ship builders yard, where we saw the Silversea ship Silver Moon being built which was fascinating. We think Ancona would make a city break as it has some lovely parks and squares.
Day 8 Venice/Home
Sadly time to go home. We were delayed due to fog in Venice and almost missed our flight home. Luckily we had booked transfers with MSC to return back to the airport from the port.
On this trip we saw some amazing places, and would love to spend more time in these destinations. A good thing about a cruise is that you get a chance to see lots of places, and decide to go back there in the future to explore. My tip would be to check the itinerary of sailing to make sure you get the maximum time in port. Also check you are suited to the best cruise line for food, entertainment, excursions etc.