Never did we imagined going back to the Mediterranean so soon. We had our Western Mediterranean cruise in 2015. This time we went the other way – Eastern Mediterranean cruise. Our cruise started in Venice then it brought us to south-eastern Italy, Greece, Albania, and Croatia.
Getting there
Obviously, going for a trip like this takes a lot of planning. We have booked trips on our own before but for this trip, we picked out the dates and places we plan to visit then turned over those info to our travel agent (TA). During our first cruise trip, we also used a TA.
Our TA booked our flight from our city to Montreal, then an overnight flight to Venice. Our TA booked us on Premium Economy (there were no First Class on Air Canada Rouge). Paying an extra $100 for Premium Economy was worth it. We had bigger than usual seats on the front row. The meals were good. We were provided with iPads to view movies from the in-flight entertainment server. We slept a bit. The flight attendants kept serving us food or drinks. After over 7 hours of flight, we started descent and circled Venice. We arrived in Marco Polo International Airport – VCE around 10:00 AM (local time).
VCE is fairly decent sized airport but being a tourist destination, it is full to its capacity (passenger traffic, and all). We got through immigration quickly then waited at the carousel to retrieve our checked bags. We have pre-booked our airport-cruise terminal transfer. There are many ways (less expensive as well as more expensive transportation) to get to the cruise terminal from the airport. We pre-booked ours so that it will be less tiring for us especially with our checked bags in tow. There is a shuttle bus (9 euro-one way) from the airport to Piazza le Roma in Venice every 30 minutes.
We waited for over 30 minutes for the rest of cruise passengers arriving the same time as we did at the MSC Kiosk in the airport. Our guide walked us to our bus waiting for us in the parking area. It took us 30 minutes to get to the cruise terminal. By this time, it was almost 12 noon.
Cruise Terminal Check-In
This is 3rd cruise in Europe. This is our first time to experience boarding our cruise in Venice. After we got off from our shuttle bus, we followed a slow line up to drop our checked bags. We entered the cruise terminal filled with cruise passengers all waiting to board. We lined up to pick our Boarding Priority cards. There were not enough seating for all cruise passengers in the terminal. Most were standing up or leaning against the wall.
Boarding didn’t start until 1:00 PM. Our boarding number is 22. Needless to say, it was past 2:00 PM when our boarding number was called. The line was slowly moving past security then to the pier and the gangway. As soon as we got in the ship, we headed to our room on our way to the buffet to eat lunch.
We were able to rest in our room for a few minutes before we were called for the Muster Drill. After the drill, we made our way to the top deck and watch Venice as the ship slowly made its way out of the channel.
The Ship – MSC Musica
MSC Musica is the smaller and older ship we boarded (after Divina, Preziosa, and Seaside). We had an interior room in Deck 12. It is a decent size room for 2. Closet space is enough for the clothes we brought for our 7-night/8-day trip. Bathroom size is similar to the other MSC ships we have been. There aren’t many open public spaces like the bigger ships. We didn’t use the swimming pool nor the gym.
Day 1: Venice – Brindisi
After a long flight across “the pond” and the chaotic cruise boarding, we were very exhausted. We ate at the buffet for dinner and went straight to bed after that. We requested a breakfast room service before we went to sleep.
We had a good sleep. We woke up just before our breakfast was brought to our room. We went to the buffet for a hot breakfast. For the first time, we ate our lunch at the Main Dining Room (MDR). It was a good option because you will be seated by the waiter (instead of looking for a vacant table at the buffet). You get to pick from a menu although a buffet setting is also available.
We arrived in Brindisi after lunch. Our ship docked at an industrial port. A free shuttle bus was available to bring us to the downtown area. Most shops on Sundays are closed in Italy (or at least in Brindisi). After walking around the waterfront, we took a taxi to the mall.
At the mall, we were able to purchase a prepaid SIM for my phone with EU roaming data included. It was a pretty good deal for €35. We also bought some items at H&M and at the supermarket. We got back to the ship before 5:00 PM. We had dinner at the MDR and watched the evening show after.
Day 2: Katakolon
As we approached Katakolon, Celebrity Edge was already docked on the pier to our left. It is a bigger ship with the signature elevating ‘Edge’ on the starboard side. It was raining when our ship docked. It poured harder after we left the gangway. The Duty-Free shop on the pier was able to sell all their ponchos and umbrellas. We didn’t wonder too far from the port. There are small shops and restaurants around/near the port gate. There were buses to ancient Olympia outside the port gate. We went back to our ship for lunch and had a quiet afternoon.
Day 3: Mykonos
Mykonos is known for the windmills near the shore. We arrive in Mykonos around 8:00 AM. We were not in a rush to leave the ship so we took our time to have breakfast. We watched passengers as they made their way to the next pier for the boat shuttle (€7-return) to the town. We didn’t know why a boat shuttle was arranged instead of a bus. We came to find out later that the streets of Mykonos were not designed for big vehicles.
By 11:00 AM, we hopped on our shuttle boat. There were 4 other cruise ships either docked or tendered in Mykonos. The town was packed with cruise passengers. Streets were crowded. Restaurants are starting to fill up. We walk near the waterfront as we headed to the windmills.
We found out that these windmills are residential properties. The view of the shores of Mykonos from the windmills is amazing. It was a little bit windy and cool when we were there. However, it didn’t prevent tourists from taking a dip in the public beach. The building (on the right) near the water in the photo above was the end-scene of the first Jason Bourne movie.
We walked for over 2 hours around the town. By this time the restaurants are full. From their menu, a seafood platter cost €25 (and up). We were tempted but we weren’t sure if our stomach is ready for it. We opted to have our late lunch in the ship instead. Mykonos is worth visiting again. We spent the rest of the afternoon soaking in the Mykonos sun on the open deck taking a nap on the lounger.
The evening shows are nothing special. There is singing (hit and miss), dancing (good), magic act (good), and acrobats (good). The ship’s theater is a good size but the seats are beginning to show their age. On Gala Night (I forgot which day), the Captain of the ship and the senior officers are introduced before the start of the evening show. There is even an opportunity to have your photos taken with them.
At the MDR during dinner time, we finally met our dinner mates. They are retired individuals from Australia. We had a great chat with them during the course of our cruise. The food at the MDR is good. There is always something common on the menu as well as something new for the adventurous foodie. I find some seafood dishes were a bit salty.
Day 4: Piraeus/Athens
Piraeus is the busiest port in all of Greece. We arrived in Piraeus before 7:30 AM. Many passengers were excited to leave the ship and hop-on a bus to Athens. We purchased a guided excursion that included the round trip to Athens and entrance to the Acropolis. We originally planned a DIY excursion but we read a lot of reviews about how bad Athens traffic could be and didn’t want to miss coming back to the ship.
We left the ship after 8:00 AM and boarded our bus. Our tour guide was so passionate about Athens (from the goddess Athena). She was describing that Acropolis could be seen from Piraeus before the tall buildings were built after 1950s. As our bus was dropping us off at the foot of the hill near Acropolis, you can see how Athens traffic looks like on a busy day.
We lined up with the rest of visitors to the Acropolis and taking photos along the way. There are so many people at the top. I’m just imagining how much more people are there during the middle of the summer season. You have a good 360 degrees view of Athens on top of Acropolis.
We boarded our bus after an hour or so on top of the hill. The bus brought us around the Syntagma Square and Panathenaic Stadium (the site of the first modern Olympics). We were dropped of at the Plaka (Athens version of the Ramblas in Barcelona). At 1:15 PM, we hopped on to our bus and made our way back to Piraeus. Traffic wasn’t too bad. We arrived at the cruise terminal before 2:00 PM. We still had time to have a late lunch. We lounged at the open deck until our ship played “Time to say goodbye” to Athens and Greece. The visit was short.
Day 5: Sarande
The forecast upon arrival to this Albanian coastal resort town was rainy. Our ship was tendered a kilometer away from the small port. We lined up to get our tender that will bring us to the downtown pier. As soon as we reached the cruise terminal, it began to pour hard. We waited for more than 30 minutes hoping the rain will ease up a bit. We braved the rain and started walking around the water front. Most shops were closing because of the rain. Some restaurants were open. You will notice that the only people walking around town are cruise passengers. It was still raining when we caught our tender boat back to our ship. We spent the rest of our day in the ship. Before sun down, I was able to snap a beautiful sunset.
On this trip, I forgot to bring my (DSLR) camera battery. I left it charging when we left the house. I brought the camera but it was useless without the battery. So, all of the photos we took from this trip were from our phones. They turned out pretty good.
Day 6: Dubrovnik
We thought the highlight of our trip was our stop in Athens. Little did we know that the charm of Game Of Thrones awaits us in Dubrovnik. A gorgeous bridge greeted us as we approached the cruise port. It was like the bridge in Rotterdam but was hanging on the side of the mountain.
We boarded our shuttle bus that brought us to the Old City. It was an amazing sight. We purchased a pass (€29) to get walk around the wall of the Old City. It was worth it. Besides GoT, some Star Wars VII scenes were Dubrovnik.
I’ve read in some cruise reviews that some passengers get-off in Dubrovnik to spend more time in the city. I might do the same next time.
Day 7: Returning to Venice
Like most cruise last night, you get to say ‘thank you’ and ‘good-bye’ to your MDR waiter/server, your cabin attendant, and to your MDR table mates. We also have to prepare our bags to be picked up. Unlike is some of our cruise trips, there is no self-disembarkation in Venice. You will have to ‘check-in’ your bags. We were told during the Evening Show that arrival in Venice would be delayed by an hour (ETA 10:00 AM).
The cruise line would want you to vacate your cabin by 8:00 AM on the day of disembarkation. We usually get up at 6:00 AM and get ready. After breakfast, we left our cabin before 8:00 AM and went to our ‘assembly’ area for disembarkation. Before 9:00 AM, we were told that our arrival will be delayed until 12 noon because of fog. We can see the thick fog. Other cruise passengers started to panic about missing their flight back home. We scheduled our flight back the following day so no worries for us. We are just disappointed we will have less time going around Venice.
We were able to have lunch in the ship. We eventually docked at 3:45 PM. By this time, you can see frustration in the faces of most cruise passengers. Our group disembarked the ship close to 5:00 PM. We walked to the People Mover station located at the cruise terminal gate. It was a 20-25 minute walk. We were at Piazzale Roma after 5:30 PM to leave our bags and purchase our transit day-pass. We used this transit pass for our boat and bus ride around Venice.
We were not able to visit the places we planned but we were glad, we didn’t have to stress ourselves re-booking our flight back because of our delayed arrival in Venice. We got to our hotel at 9:00 PM. We were able to purchase (our take-out) dinner from KFC near Piazzale Roma. The hotel was the same one we stayed in 2015 during our first trip to Venice. The location is closer to the airport.
Closing thoughts…
We booked this cruise because of the itinerary. We also want to visit Venice again but because of weather, it was a limited visited. Our flight cost a little more but it was worth it. Cruising is not for everybody. We like cruising because it gives us accommodation, food, and transportation (and enjoyment) for about $100/day. You get to visit beautiful places as well.