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- Greece
Miriam from York (May 30, 2008 - 1:12 pm) - We spent three days in Athens before our cruise. On the first we took a half day tour that took us to the ancient Olympic Stadium, Temple of Zeus, Acropolis and Parthenon and a city tour. The hike up the Acropolis was not easy….lots of stairs….but the view of the city from the top was quite magnificent. Our guide was a teacher from the local university and she specialized in mythology so had lots of information about the Greek Gods and their stories. After the tour we went to a local museum that had closed early because of the upcoming holiday, May 1. We took the Metro back to our hotel for a rest and then headed to the Plaka Area for our evening meal.
The Plaka is an area of narrow streets, outdoor cafes, shops, and etc. It is always moving with people and we enjoyed sitting at the café and just watching. The waiters are never in a hurry to give out the checks so you can sit as long as you want.
Thursday was May Day and a big demonstration was organized by the communist party. It started in the main square with a march to the US Embassy. We avoided that area and went instead to the flea market. Eventually, we found a tram that took us around past more of the ancient sites. In the evening we went back to the Plaka.
On Friday we went to the archeological museum in the morning and returned about 1PM to meet our cab that took us to the port of Piraeus and our ship.
Our hotel was small, but very comfortable and had an enormous buffet breakfast that held us until our evening meal. The Metro system in Athens was built for the Olympics and was clean, safe and efficient.
Our ship sailed about 6PM and by morning we had started near Gallipoli and the Dardanelles. We ate breakfast on deck so we could enjoy the scenery. We docked in Istanbul quite near the old part of the city in mid afternoon. Chuck and I walked a couple of blocks, caught a cab, and walked to the Grand Bazaar. We had been there before, but it is quite a spectacle. As it closed at 6Pm for the rest of the weekend, we wanted to have a little time to explore. After we left the traffic was so bad we could not get a cab, so we walked back down the hill and across the bridge to the ship. The next day we once again took a cab to the area of the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia and Topaki Palace. We spent quite a bit of time there and then drifted back to the ship. The cab driver didn’t get us to the right port so we still had a walk to the correct spot. Chuck said there were a lot of forced marches on this trip.
The next day we stopped at Mykonos, a small but famous member of the Cycladic group. The main town has narrow winding streets, white washed buildings with blue trim, famous windmills, lots of outdoor cafes and many shops. It is a favorite island of the jet set group because of its many beaches. We took a shuttle bus into town and explored. It was hard to find your way around because there was no order to the streets. You had to just aim in a particular direction and wander this way and that until you got where you wanted to go. We went in a small grocery store and found that eggs were $4.00 a dozen. Fuel was also about $9.50 a gallon.
Tuesday morning we stopped at the small island of Patmos. Some of the people visited the ancient monastery of St.John, but we mainly enjoyed exploring the small village where we docked. We then sailed for Kusadasi Turkey about 45 miles from Patmos. We had been there before when we toured Turkey, so did not take the side trip to Ancient Ephesus. Instead we found our way up a hill and a mile or so from the port to the area where the locals were holding their Tuesday Market. All kinds of fruits, vegetables, spices, bread, clothes, plants, flowers and etc. were being sold. It was an interesting side trip. The main ports are always teeming with shops and cafes, so it was good to get out of that area and see some of the places were the locals live.
The next day found us in Rhodes. Here we took a tour of the city…an ancient walled fortress…before driving to the small town of Lindos. Lindos is one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites and no new building is allowed inside the city. All changes to any properties have to be approved. Once again we found a village with narrow streets and a steep path that led to an Acropolis and the Temple of Athena. It was possible to take a donkey part way up, but they looked pretty smelly and mischievous, so I hiked instead. Once again the view was beautiful from all sides…so guess the arduous trek was worth the effort. In the afternoon I went back inside the walled city and did a little more exploring.
On Thursday we spent the morning on the island of Crete anchored near the town of Agios Nicolaos. This was our least touristy town and we were able to walk along the waterfront and explore some of the streets. In the afternoon we arrivied at Santorini….probably the prettiest of the islands. All of the towns are built high above the sea overlooking what was once the crater of a volcano. We took the bus to the village Oio at the north end of the island. The views all over the island were magnificent.
That night we sailed for the mainland. Our cab picked us up at 7:30AM and took us to the airport where we started the 40 hour saga that would finally put us home Saturday afternoon.
The ship we sailed on was the Cristal of the Louis Cruise Lines. This was a clean well managed ship, but lacked a lot of the frills you would find in those of the Princess, Royal Caribbean and etc. This is the ship used by Trafalgar, Globus, Cosmos, Insight Vacations and etc for their Greek Islands cruise. All of those tour companies as well as two Canadian companies had clients aboard our ship. Of course they were accompanied by tour directors, however this is a very easy trip to manage for independent travelers.
Flying is just not fun, and the frustrations are many. On a bright sunny day in Omaha, we departed for our non-stop to Newark and on to Athens. Once we were delayed an hour in Omaha, I knew we would never make our Athens flight so had us reaccommodated on a flight that went from EWR to AMS to Athens. We boarded our Omaha plane and then sat on the runway for an hour causing us to miss our second flight. Once we arrived in EWR they reaccommodated us on a flight via Madrid, so we arrived in Athens about 8 hours later than originally scheduled. Of course our baggage did not arrive so we once again joined a long line to file our lost baggage claim. We did not arrive at our hotel until 9PM that night…too tired to even have supper….it was a power bar and bed. Our return flight was a nightmare. The over-the water flight was great, arriving ahead of schedule. We had a four hour layover, but at about 8:00PM noted that our plane to Omaha was beginning to have a delay. At 11PM we were assured the plane had arrived and was ready for take-off, but they were just waiting for the flight crew. The stewardess arrived, but the flight crew never arrived. At 12PM the flight was canceled and once again we headed to customer service. Even though we had been told at the gate that the problem was not the weather, by the time we reached a representative, they were trying to tell us all it was weather related. I asked for a room voucher, but was told they had no more rooms available nearby. Later I learned that some people had been given room vouchers….even those behind us in line. Anyway, Newark Airport is not the most comfortable place to spend the night while waiting for our morning flight. We drove into our driveway in York forty hours after leaving Athens.
I certainly have no answers for the state of air travel in this country, but one thing is true, the service on airplanes seems to go down in direct proportion to the rise in prices.
There is one thing I did note while standing in line in Newark on our return. All of the time I was in line the man ahead of me was working with his travel agent to try to be placed on a flight the next morning. The airlines had already placed us on flights by the time we got to customer service, and whatever he was doing with his agent in the record caused those flights placed by the airlines for the next morning to be canceled. By the time he got to the head of the line, there was nothing left and they had to put him on a much later flight.
- Riu Santa Fe in Cabo
Lesli (May 28, 2008 - 9:30 am) - The rooms were nice—nothing special but very clean. Darin and I were a little disappointed with our bed. We had two twin beds pushed together to make a king size bed—not very comfortable with a big crack down the middle. Kraig and Carolyn had a nice king size bed. (I would just be specific in requesting a king size bed when booking a room.) Our view was not good (unless you like to look at run down dessert property) but we really didn’t spend much time in the rooms so we weren’t too bothered by that. We ate most of our meals at the free buffets and it was pretty good—plenty to choose from. Making reservations for the restaurants is kind of a pain. We never did get to any of them. The beach was beautiful. The waves are pretty strong so swimming isn’t really an option although Kraig and Darin tried their hand at riding the waves—yikes! The resort property is gorgeous-- great pools, everything is very clean and nice! The Riu Santa Fe and Riu Palace are definitely the nicest resorts in the area! I would highly recommend them to anyone! I would go back in a heartbeat! Thanks again.
Lesli
- Israel and the Holy Land
Steve Glenn (March 29, 2008 - 1:58 pm) - View Photos! - Executive Travel just completed a fantastic tour of Israel and Jordan. This was a life changing experience that allowed us to walk back in history. We visited all the main attractions throughout Israel and attached are just a few of the 985 pictures I took while on tour.
- Petra Jordan
Steve Glenn (March 29, 2008 - 1:42 pm) - View Photos! - Just back with a tour of Israel and Jordan and the group went to see Petra, Jordan which is now listed as one of the eight wonders of the world. This is a must see sight in addition to all that is in Israel. Jerash was also on the tour and it was amazing as well
- Sun Village in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Jo Sterling (March 25, 2008 - 3:04 pm) - Our trip to Puerto Plata was wonderful! The resort was beautiful and the room was very large and spacious. We really did not get off of the resort except to go snorkling. It was amazing to see so much poverty all around and then this beautiful resort in the middle. I would recommend it to anyone else.
- Breezes Runaway Bay Resort - Jamaica
B. Wilson and J. Stewart (March 25, 2008 - 3:04 pm) - We just returned from a 6 day/5 night stay at the all-inclusive Runaway Bay Resort near Ocha Rios in Jamaica. It was the perfect vacation - the only thing that could have improved it was many more days! The beaches were the best-yet (comparing to our past travels to Cancun, St Thomas, Barbados, etc). Temps were upper 80-90, which is just what we like. Beautiful white sand beaches and crystal-clear warm water (sharks don't like the warm water, we were told, so that was a good thing) All staff members were unbelievably friendly and helpful; the food was delicious and plentiful (I do Adkins and had no problem staying on target). And, of course, the beverages were delightly and plentiful. Our deluxe room was very, very nice and comfortable. There were on-going activities available - we chose scuba (our third time and it was the best one yet), hobie cat/catamaran, glass bottom boat rides, water skiing, horse-drawn carriage ride, circus trapeze lessons, the beaches - all included. We opted to purchase tours to the nearby waterfalls and also a shopping tour. The selection of goods while shopping was not as good as some of the places we'd been in the past but that didn't stop us from getting plenty of souveniers.
A special thanks to Corey at Lincoln's Executive Travel for his patient assistance in putting in all together. The price was right and we're looking forward to a return trip - we'd recommend it to anyone to enjoys lots of sun, fun, relaxation in a tropical setting. - Hawaii; Mike and Robyn Neben Maui Trip
(March 25, 2008 - 3:03 pm) - We stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel in Maui at Wailea. The Four Seasons was one of the best hotel experiences we have ever had. The food, service and accomodations are all top of the line. You are treated like royalty. The concierge service is awesome!
Here is our rating of the restaurants and excursions we experienced (1-10, 10 being highest):
Restaurants:
Ferraro's 9
Pacific Grill 7
Mama's Fishhouse 10
Spago 10
Nick's 10
Excursions:
Maui Mountain Cruisers (Bicycle Trip) 9
Alii Nui (Snorkeling/Whale watching) 10
Drive to Hana (Don't miss the Winery) 9
Wailea Gold Course (Golf) 9
Kapalua Plantation Course (Golf) 10
Comments:
Many thanks to Jennifer and Steve at Exucutive Travel. You guys know how to pick the best spots to travel. We will definitely be back to have you help us plan our next vacation.
- Hawaiian Paradise
Larry & Barbara Hartig (March 25, 2008 - 3:02 pm) - Everything was perfect about our trip. Cory suggested that we ask our hotels for an upgrade when we got there and both of them did upgrade us.....with very nice rooms and beautiful ocean views. All of the shuttles were where they were supposed to be, when they were supposed to be there. The lei greeting was excellent....very friendly group of people. We are 100% happy with our Hawaiian trip.
- Cabo is a relaxing getaway
Lloyd and Jeanne Scheve (March 25, 2008 - 3:02 pm) - Just returned from our 5th trip to Cabo. 10 days at the beautiful Finnesterra Resort on the Pacific side of the famous Arch. Private sand beaches with NO timeshare hassles for 10 days. Jr. Suite with a view of the ocean allowed us ample opportunity to get in some whale watching from our deck. Poolside relaxing in 82 degreee weather was wonderful and the service was great.
We like the Finnesterra also because it is easy walking to the Marina area to do plenty of shopping and eating at many of the great little spots on the wharf.
First time flying Frontier out of OMA and the smaller plane to DEN was cramped, but the plane from DEN to Cabo was great with TV's on the back of every seat. It made the 3 hours fly by. Customs was better through DEN then PHX on Am. West.
Cory put the package together for us and did a great job. We can't wait for '06 - Cancun Palace
Kim Nelson (March 25, 2008 - 3:01 pm) - Wow What a wonderful vacation!! We caught a chartered flight out of Kansaas City and within 4 hours we were standing in the Cancun Palace with a glass of champagne in hand. We spent 8 days enjoying the beautiful beaches, deep sea fishing and exploring the fantastic shopping of the Mayan Rivera!! The staff was so friendly and always available for anything!
If you are looking for a great escape this is it!!!