Europe - Eastern Mediterranean Cruise Reviews

We had a wonderful time from the moment we stepped on the ship.  The crew could not have been any nicer from our cabin steward to our amazing dining room servers. The excursions were great and we felt we really enjoyed each port and what they had to offer.  If you are looking at seeing the Greek Islands and unpacking one time this is the cruise for you!  

All of the workers we talked to had prior cruise line experience and they all stated Azamara treated them the best which definitely showed in their work.  The Captain was extremely visible and social.  We only have 2 areas for improvement.  First, they should improve the quality of their in house entertainment.  The first production show of the cruise was like a high school musical production quality.  We didn't go to any other shows because of that.  Their guest musicians were of a high caliber but geared toward a much older crowd (piano and cello recitals).  Second, directions to/from the Pireaus port should be included with paperwork.  We got directions from hotel staff who said that the port was just across from the Metro station.  This is true.  But to get to slip 12 from #4 (where Metro station is closest to), it's a one mile walk.  And when this walk includes pushing 2 large suitcases and carrying a backpack in hot weather, it's a recipe for disaster.

We really enjoyed the size of the Journey, especially for cruising the Greek Isles and Adriatic, and are probably going to look for similar ships for future cruising. No more large boats for us. However, what really sets Azamara apart in our minds was the staff - from the crew to the wait staff. On this ship, the captain (Johannes Tysse) and the cruise director (Eric De Gray) are in a league of their own and a lot of fun but everyone was super courteous and helpful. 

The only thing I would look for next time is for a less port-intensive trip. As nice as the islands were, we both would have enjoyed a day or 2 more at sea just to enjoy the ship's amenities. Also should mention that having access to a laundry room was awesome. It really cut down on the amount of clothing we had to bring.

This was by far the worst cruising experience I have ever had. The Norwegian staff was extremely un accommodating and allowed for several guests to verbally and physically harass me and my husband during our honeymoon cruise (this cruise). After several complaints were filed and nothing was done, I met with the head of security and wrote a formal complaint. My "vacation" consisted of being harassed and picking up glass from the floor while security sat around and did nothing. I would never recommend Norwegian cruise lines to anyone, especially not anyone with children. This was a horrible experience and I wish I would have never booked this cruise with Norwegian. 

The favorite part of the cruise are the land base tours specifically Santorini, Olympia and Mykonos. Corfu was another destination but not very interesting (maybe another port of call location would be an improvement). The food was very good and the entertainment and general ship board activities were average. The crew were polite and very accommodating always ready to serve to make our vacation memorable.

Daily shore excursions were a plus. Tours offered were good very good with tour guides very knowlegeable and very informative, good value for price.Ship evening entertainment was very good.However there was a complete lack of information about the ports in relation to the cities visited,..unless you booked a tour you were completely blind about where to go, what to look for, etc.

cabin was good but towels were very worn and no wash cloths were provided.

Food aboard ship was very pedestrian versus other cruises we have taken. Everythting was extra cost,...ie; coffee, soft drinks except at breakfast.Food quality was not what was expected.

....seems equivalent to Carnival low cost cruises, lacks a bit of class.

best part was food and service; although uneven, it was apparent the crew's job was to be pleasing. Special kudos to Chef Darrin who made every encounter special (demonstration, market tour) and created a lovely presentation for our table when we asked for a special appetizer. With one exception (we were yelled at by a waiter because 'we took too long' - he said 'I have other tables!' - we noticed he had one other table), the crew in most cases makes an effort to please.  Having said that, poached eggs should not come out under cooked and then over cooked, the bathtub should not be blocked, sinks should not be leaking and air conditioning and Jacuzzi tubs should be in working order. We advised staff but the Jacuzzi was never fixed.  The cruise ports were not exceptional; some of the ports consisted of a small town (all stores were closed but they were ordinary shops, what might be found in any lower middle class area for local shopping), this might have been the Montenegro and Corfu stops.  In other words, you would never hop into a car and decide to visit these places. Windstar boasts that its small ships enable visits to interesting ports that larger ships cannot dock at but that SHOULD NOT MEAN NO OTHER SHIP WOULD WANT TO DOCK AT THE SELECTED PORTS BECAUSE THEY HAVE NO SIGNIFICANCE! We did the HIGHLIGHTS OF MONTENEGRO; a complete waste of time, we were driven around for hours, there were two 5-minute stops off the side of the road (!) for the view, then a stop at a restaurant (located next to an abandoned building) where plates with a few pieces ham had already been laid out on table (who know how long?).  I can guarantee that no one asked for seconds! The only part interesting was the short walk to old town at end, where the tour guide spoke a few minutes.  The rest of the commentary by this guide, OMG terrible, uninteresting, repetitive, no interest/ability to connect with tour passengers.  We along with a few other participants made Windstar staff (Richard) aware - don't you think Windstar should have reimbursed us for this (we spent $200) disastrous waste of time? We decided not to take any other excursions based on this awful experience!  I know Windstar takes an interest in improving its service, please feel free to contact for additional details.

The staff on the ship were great, they absolutely make you feel valued and welcome as well as giving great customer service.This was ship wide, not just the few staff that are a assigned to your suite. The food was excellent as well.

The only sad part for us was because of the ports and schedule,  we did not get to use the water sports platform at all.

I was very unhappy with the corridors odor in deck 3 particularly by my cabin 3002, it smelled like sewage all the time.

The checkout process was handled very unprofessionally, had mistakes, and we had to do it three times, it was a nightmare.

The ship didn't accept my debit card to pay for mi expenses I had to use a card I didn't want to, 

The ports were amazing!! The service and bartenders were amazing as well!! The food was OK and the nighttime and daytime activities were not great. ..........................

The port excursions were beyond lovely.  The Norwegian Jade staff were exceptional. The entertainment was superlative.  The whole experience was extremely nice.

What was there not to love?  Santorini was my favourite but also loved Rhodes, Mykonos, Athens and Ephesus.  The history is amazing, boat was great and loved having a balcony- don't forget your binoculars!

Our stateroom was great and our dining team was wonderful. Our ship did not have very many activities as we thought it would. The spa was really nice with the steam room and sauna. The food for dinner was good. I like that everyday it was something different for the buffet. 

This was my first cruise with Celebrity line. Booking via Hilton Honors was easy, but I found it difficult to decipher the different package options, which is best to review PRIOR to booking. The Celebrity website had a lot of server problems, and it was easier to call them directly to ask questions. I booked late but was able to obtain a Concierge class midship room (1104). The location was right off the library and was quiet. The room size and balcony size was more than adequate. Room was clean, and staff provided both morning and turndown service daily. The room stewards are great. The food I found fair. Breakfast buffet had omellates cooked to order in addition to the usual potatoes, pancakes, waffles, etc. I did order room service twice and it was delivered on time and was good, although warm instead of hot. Lunch buffet was ok. The quality could be improved. We ate dinner in the specialty restaurants 6/7 nights and the food there was very good, although very rich and fatty. Given this, I would be interested in the healthy alternative Resturant "Blu", that is only for aqua class guests. The Conciege class offered the balcony and reported priority with Resturant reservations plus early disembarkation from the ship. I did not find any particular advantage with the Conciege class, which is another reason I would consider Aqua Class on my next cruise. We booked the 5 dinner specialty package, which was worth it. Bear in mind, however, that you must dine twice in Silk Harvest (Asian), and then once in the Italian and once inte French Resturant. I did not realize the package was predetermined in this way, but the food was good in all 3 restaurants and worth it. We upgraded to a premium "Best" package that had prepaid tips, Internet, premium drinks, and also premium water (Evian). It was totally worth it, particularly because we got an on board credit of $300 that went towards our extra dinner and massages. The spa experience was fair. We went twice. First for a healthy feet leg massage that was standard. Second for a couples aromatherapy massage. The massage room we found too bright and not very relaxing as a result. Plain water was offered but nothing else (not even the fruit water that is offered all over the ship!) A massage does not include access to the steam room/sauna, which is an extra charge. The aromatherapy massage was a hot oil rub and nothing more. My husband commented that it was the worst massage he has had to date! Rather disappointing. Ship entertainment is ok. Poolside music and activities were kind of dull, the nighttime shows were more entertaining. They had several musical bands that, some of which were very good, and a few of which were just awful! 

The ports of call were all beautiful and interesting: Athens, Santorini, Rhodes, Mykanos and Ephesus are all worthwhile stops. Tours offered with the cruise were expensive, and I found private tours for a similar price. I would shop around given this. Overall a nice cruise, shy from great but very good.

This was an excellent cruise-from the itinerary to the staff.  I can't say more about the staff-they were superb. The ship was easy to navigate and offered many activities-day and night.  We traveled with one family member who was 16 years old and she had a difficult time finding evening activities to attend because she had to be 18 years old to get into the dance areas. 

Cruised from Venice to Dubrovnik, Athens, Santorin, and Split.  Awesome destinations and an incredible cruising experience aboard the Norwegian Jade.  The customer service exceeded all of my expectations and the food was excellent.  Cagney's is a must do!  The steak is cooked to perfection and their mac and cheese is the best I have had in my entire life.  The cruise director and his staff also did an excellent job of keeping us informed, comfortable and entertained throughout the entire cruise in a smooth and efficient manner.  I would definitely cruise with Norwegian again.  In fact, I already placed a down payment on my next one.

The cruise was really nice - the food was great, the ports of call were very scenic (Venice, Dubrovnik, Athens, Santorini, Split, Venice).  Be prepared to pay for entertainment onboard (bingo, behind the scenes tour, etc).  Also allow for time to deal with tenders in Santorini and in Split, which can cause you to miss or be late for non-NCL excursions.  We didn't have any problem meeting with our excursions booked through this site though!

My husband and I took this cruise as part of our honeymoon and loved every minute. Our room with a balcony was amazing. We watched nearly every sunset from the balcony...We loved the freestyle cruising and not worrying about getting dressed up or having a set time to eat. While the pool area was crowded, we were able to move chairs to the sun or shade when needed. 

The cruise was great, the boat is really nice, the entertainment was excellent, the food at the buffet was very good, the food during the sit down dinner was not as good but we decided to just go to the buffet every night instead and that worked out well with the show schedules. I recommended!

this cruise was fantastic for people who are not all about the ship. The ports of call were beautiful and amazing!!! The ship itself was very nice and clean (!) everywhere - even the gelato machines (that's right, ice cream was gelato 😱😍).  Embarkation/disembarkation were extremely smooth, not a long wait at all. All in all a fantastic vacation. Would definitely recommend two thumbs up 👍🏼👍🏼