Exclusive Athens with Free Time in the Plaka

For guests wanting a general orientation, a little history, time for shopping and exploring on their own, or even an optional visit to the Acropolis, this is the perfect exclusive Athens tour for you or your group, offering more time in the city than cruise line tours.

During your time in Athens, you will drive approximately 30 minutes from the pier. Upon arrival, your professionally trained guide will narrate during a city orientation, viewing such sights as the Temple of Zeus, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and the former Royal Palace, which is now the Greek House of Parliament. You will pass by the University of Athens, the Academy of Athens, and the National Library.

You will also see the Panathenaic Olympic Stadium, where the first modern Olympic Games were held in 1896. From here, you will continue on to the Plaka, one of the oldest parts of the city.

Upon arrival at the Plaka, your guide will give you a time and specific location to meet for your transfer back to the pier.

Your guide will then begin an optional tour for those guests wishing to climb the famous Acropolis. As this is an option, admission to the Acropolis site is not included in the price of your tour. The entrance fee is approximately 20 EUR, and they do not accept credit cards. Admission to the Acropolis must be purchased directly from the guide, as all guests must have tickets for the same time assignment.

The Acropolis of Athens is recognized as the culmination of Greek architecture, art, and sculpture. During your visit to the Acropolis (from Greek meaning above the city), you will view The Parthenon, constructed between 447-432 B.C. as a temple dedicated to the goddess Athena. Its main function was to shelter the monumental statue of Athena which was made out of gold and ivory. You will see the Erechtheon, started in 420 B.C. as a temple for religious rituals; the Propylaea, the monumental entrance to the Acropolis which blends Doric and Ionic building principles; and the small temple Athena Nike, which stands on a protruding mass of rock, protecting the gate to the citadel.

From the Acropolis, you can also look down on the Ancient Agora, Tower of the Winds, Herodes Atticus Theater, and the Theater of Dionysus from your lofty perch. The guide will lead you up, narrating as you climb. The guided portion of the tour ends upon reaching the Parthenon, allowing you free time to browse on your own. Those guests taking the Acropolis option will have approximately one hour of free time after you descend. Your guide will depart after the Acropolis tour.

For those guests not climbing, you will have approximately three hours of free time to explore.

Bordered by the Acropolis to the south and the Ancient Agora to the west, the Plaka is the historic heart of Athens. Blending with the adjacent Monastiraki district, the Plaka area seems to have a little of everything, from the ancient ruins of a Roman forum, the Greek Agora, and Byzantine-influenced churches, to restored 19th-century neoclassical homes and modern-day stores, boutiques, and cafes sprinkled throughout.

The Plaka area is home to several nearby museums including the Benaki, Kanellopoulos, the new Acropolis, and the Greek Folk Art Museum, to name a few. For shopping, you will find Greek souvenirs and clothing, as well as jewelry shops. Greek gold jewelry is often better priced than in other European countries as the labor cost is lower.

For a quick, inexpensive taste of traditional Greece, order a pita-souvlaki or gyro from a walk-up window and eat it standing up. Be aware that any time you sit at a cafe in the Plaka, you pay for the experience, and outside seating carries a higher charge than inside seating. If you want to sit down and enjoy a leisurely meal, look for where the locals are dining, which is almost never on the major streets, but usually on smaller side streets. At the designated time and location, your guide will be waiting to take you to the transportation for the drive back to the pier.

Guests wishing to stay longer in the Plaka should let their driver know, and will need to arrange their own transportation back to the port.

Due to crowds, traffic, or other conditions out of our control, the order of the tour itinerary may be changed but will still cover the mentioned sights.

Please Note: Admission to the Acropolis must be purchased directly from the guide, as all guests must have tickets for the same time assignment. You may purchase these tickets on the day of tour with cash. Please do not purchase Acropolis tickets online on your own.

Exclusive Wonders of Istanbul

This exclusive introduction to Istanbul tour includes an orientation drive and two of the big three sites: The Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia.

After meeting your professionally trained tour guide on the pier, you will begin an orientation drive through the business center of the modern city, across the Galata Bridge, along the banks of the Golden Horn and under the Byzantine Aqueduct of Valens. Along the way, you will see the Suleymaniye Mosque, dedicated to Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent. You will continue around the mighty city walls, which once protected Constantinople from the many invasions and attacks it incurred over the centuries.

In the Old City, your first visit will be to the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, formerly known as the Byzantine Church of Divine Wisdom. Originally built as an Orthodox basilica, it later was used as a mosque. Built in 537 on the orders of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, it served as the cathedral of Constantinople and was the largest cathedral in the world for nearly a thousand years. Upon the conquering of Constantinople by the Ottomans in 1453, Hagia Sofia became a mosque and was used as such until 1931. It was opened as a museum in 1935 until 2020, when it became a mosque once again.

Departing Hagia Sophia, you will next visit the world-renowned Blue Mosque finished in 1616. Sultan Ahmet I commissioned the Blue Mosque when he was only 19 years old. The interior of the mosque is lined with more than 20,000 handmade ceramic tiles in more than fifty different tulip designs. The tiles at lower levels are traditional in design, while in the galleries they become flamboyant with representations of flowers, fruit and trees.

Next, visit the Hippodrome, originally the home of sports games in the Byzantine period. It is estimated that the Hippodrome of Constantine was about 1,476 feet long and 427 feet wide, and capable of holding 100,000 spectators. The track was U-shaped, and the emperor's box was located at the eastern end of the track.

You will be treated to an optional carpet demonstration with about 1 to 2 hours of shopping in the open (uncovered) section of the Grand Bazaar and the nearby covered area of the Grand Bazaar that dates to 1461. Well known for its jewelry, pottery, spice, and carpet shops, it also has areas where stalls are grouped by the type of goods sold, such as leather coats or gold jewelry. What started as one main building has grown into a sprawling complex consisting of 12 major buildings accessed through 22 doors. It is thought to have more than 5,000 shops and stalls, two mosques, two hamams, and many restaurants and cafes. Explore the shops filled with jewelry, carpets, leather ware, and copper goods. You will then be returned to the ship pier. Your time at the Bazaar is enough for an introduction. This is not a "shopping" tour. For the serious shopper wishing more time in the Bazaar, you can end your tour here. Please let your guide know you are not returning with the group. Guests remaining at the Bazaar are responsible for their own transportation back to the pier.

Please note: The Blue Mosque is closed from 30 minutes before until 30 minutes after prayer time, and 2 hours during Friday noon prayer. The covered area of the Grand Bazaar is closed on Sunday; a visit to the Spice Market will be substituted. The carpet demonstration is optional and guests not wanting to attend can use the time to stroll, shop or purchase refreshments.

Exclusive Ancient Ephesus

Meet your professionally trained guide and drive to Ephesus, approximately 30 minutes from Kusadasi. Famous in antiquity for its Temple of Artemus during the years of the Roman Empire, the Greek port of Ephesus became the greatest city in Asia Minor. You will start your 90 minute Ephesus tour at the upper Magnesia Gate, and work your way down through the city, ending near the ancient Harbor.

Along the way, you will see the Forum, the Odeon, the Library of Celsus, Temple of Artemis, the Thermal Baths of Scolastika, and the Great Theater, built in the Greek era and reconstructed in the Roman period. With your skip-the-line access, you can fully enjoy these sites, which have played host to events as varied as Paul and his sermons to the Ephesians, to concerts by Sting, in part due to their remarkable acoustics.

You will walk along the Arcadian Way, where once Mark Antony and Cleopatra rode in procession. You will hear stories of Alexander the Great, the Virgin Mary, and many other famous visitors who walked the same marble streets that you are walking. As you depart the Ephesus site, you will be able to view the hilltop ruins of the Basilica of St. John in the distance, which was erected over his grave in the 6th century A.D. by Emperor Justinian.

Returning to the town of Kusadasi, guests will have the option to end their Ephesus tour in the shopping area, where they can attend a Turkish carpet explanation and explore the shops filled with jewelry, carpets, leatherware, and copper goods, or both. Turkish salespeople expect you to haggle and quite often you can get 10-15% off the listed price. Treat it as an adventure. The cruise pier is a 5-10 minute walk from the main shopping area.

Guests not wishing to attend the optional carpet shopping should stay on the bus and they will be taken directly back to the pier.