Cruising From Athens, Greece
When I think of Greece, I dream of white mission-like buildings with a contrast of the crystal blue ocean. Athens was far from that. I was surprised to see how busy and chaotic the city was. Athens has lots of history and full of character. I enjoyed my time in Athens but I dreamed of a more relaxed holiday. With only a few days in Greece, I could not escape to the famous Santorini or Mykonos. Lucky for me, Greece has 6000 islands. Some are in close proximity to mainland Greece!
At midnight while I was hurling over a toilet after my local Greek friend fed me his choice of booze (as I could not read Greek), I decided to book a cruise to three islands in the Aegean Sea: Hydra, Poros, and Aegina. Booking this cruise may have the been the best and worst idea ever. Worst was that I was on a cruise while any sort of movement made my stomach turn, but the best as this provided the escaped that I needed.
I booked an all day cruise with Athens Day Cruise for €112 with transportation to the port. The cruise lasts 12 hours with half of the time spent on the 3 islands. While on the island, you get to explore on your own free time.
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Athens Day Cruise
My day started at 6:50 with our bus ride from a nearby hotel to the port. This ride was a struggle as I was still queasy. We boarded our ship and find a place outside to sit and enjoy the view. During our cruise, an announcement was made over the speakers asking the passengers to attend a meeting. They broke the meeting in terms of languages. During this discussion, one of the crew members gave us a timeline of our day. The itinerary is as follows:
- 11:00 – Arrive in Hydra
- 12:55 – Return to the ship
- 14:00 – Arrive in Poros
- 14:55 – Return to the ship
- 17:00 – Arrive in Aegina
- 18:55 – Return to ship
- 21:00 – Arrive back in Athens
The ride to Hydra was about 1.5 hrs from Athens. The cruise ship had three floors of rooms where passengers can sit, relax, or eat. I spent most of the time enjoy the outdoors until it was time for breakfast. We headed inside for a nice breakfast. We had eggs, cheese, and bread. Next thing we know, we were in Hydra.
Hydra
We had about 1 hour and 45 minutes to explore Hydra. Hydra was my favorite island of the three. It had several nice little boutiques that wrapped around the harbor. There were donkeys lined up waiting to give travelers a lift to their destination as no cars are permitted on the island. Hydra was romantic and the views were breathtaking. My only wish was to be able to dip my feet in the water. The island had a boardwalk and swimming in the harbor was not easily accessible.
PL and I walked the boardwalk and sat at one of the local patio restaurants. We ordered one of the best smoothies ever and I ordered some kabobs. The kabobs were tinder and fulfilled my cravings. Lunch was provided on the cruise ship but we didn’t know when or where. We didn’t see any advertisments regarding to lunch so we made sure to grab food throughout the day.
Poros
From Hydra to Poros was about 30 minutes. We only spent a good 50 minutes on this island. It was strange to go from an island with zero vehicles to an island with vehicles. We didn’t stray too far from our ship. We walked along the pathway and find a place to dip our feet in the water. We weren’t sure if we were able to splash in the water in Aegina so we made it worth our wild. The water was a perfect temperature. I only hope Aegina won’t disappoint.
Aegina
Aegina is the largest island in the Saronic Island. I felt it the moment i stepped off the boat. We had two hours to explore the island but it was not long enough. I utilized google in hopes to find interesting sites on the island. Somehow, we stumbled on a beach!!!! We kicked off our shoes and finally dived into the perfect calm shores. Can I stay here longer?
After exploring 3 islands, we were exhausted. We made our way to the bottom floor of the ship where we found booths in the dining area. We slept for a good hour. We were energized and ready to hit the town again.
While I imagine Santorini and Mykonis to be more breathtaking, I enjoyed my taste of the Greeks islands. Next time i visit, I can’t wait to explore more islands!
→ Trip was taken on May 24, 2019.