Several months ago, friends suggested we join them on a cruise celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary. After expressing gratitude for being included in this milestone celebration, our first question was “Where to?” Unless we need a quick get-a-way, (like the cruise I wrote about here) the most important thing to us when choosing a cruise is the ports of call. The cruise our friends proposed was eleven nights, leaving from Venice, Italy, and arriving in Athens, Greece. Ports of call included Trieste, Italy, Zadar, Croatia, Hvar, Croatia, Dubrovnik, Croatia, Bari, Italy, Kator, Montenegro, Corfu, Greece, Heraklion, Greece, Santorini, Greece and Athens, Greece. There would be one sea day sandwiched in the middle.

It seemed aggressive to us to manage a different port of call each day, but after mulling it over for a minute, we said yes. Croatia has long been a bucket list item and this cruise was heavy on that destination. We decided that flying to Venice and sailing right away would be too much, physically, so we designed a week on the front of the cruise to acclimate and another week on the back end to decompress before flying home. Both decisions served us well. I shared our Bavarian experience in this post, and will share the story of Lugano, Switzerland, and Lake Como in a future post.

Note: please click on the photographs you wish to view in their entirety.

Venice, Italy

We took the train from Milan to Venice on day 8 of our journey and checked into our hotel rested and ready to cruise. Having arrived a few hours ahead of our travel companions, we ventured into the city for lunch and a walk.

Venice has changed since we were last there. It is still beautiful, and I recommend going to anyone who has not yet toured that historic city. Three nights here would be ideal for sightseeing. However, expect grafetti, crowds, and high prices.

Boarding the Silver Ray

Boarding day is always exciting, especially when we walk onto a ship we have never sailed. This ship was especially nice because it was only a few weeks old, and we were its third sail. The Silver Ray is one of the largest ships in the Silver Sea fleet at 728 passengers. That may sound large to some, but the space was plentiful with eight bars and lounges, a library, two decks for swimming, a gym, a spa, a cigar and whiskey room, a theater, a Bocci Ball court, walking paths, and ten restaurants.

We boarded at 2:00 and our luggage arrived at 3:00, giving us plenty of time to have a quick lunch and explore the ship before returning to our stateroom to unpack. The first order of business was to meet our stateroom attendant (Silver Sea calls them Butlers) and make a few requests, which included extra hangers and directions to the nearest laundry. Yes, I did laundry on the ship. I also ironed a few pieces that got squished along the way. I love this feature on the Silver Sea ships and wish all cruise ships had self-service laundry.

Our balcony stateroom included a king-size bed, dressing table, full sofa, walk-in closet, and a large bathroom with a full-size shower. There were two chairs and a table on the balcony. This ship offers balcony rooms only and is known for its overly spacious rooms starting at 357 SF.

A Typical Day

We pre-selected our excursions well in advance of the cruise. Most of our selections required an early departure from the ship, with a return time between 2:00 and 5:00. Often times we were awake by 6:00, having breakfast by 7:00, and departing by 8:30. There were several options for breakfast, including room service, which we availed ourselves of twice, a coffee shop, (The Arts Cafe), the main dining room, (Atlantide), and The Marquee. The Arts Cafe quickly became our ‘go-to’ place for a quick, light breakfast and a good cup of coffee.

The ship frequently docked at industrial ports, and sometimes they docked more conveniently near town centers. Some ports of call required dropping anchor and tendering passengers ashore. Our excursions consisted of walking tours, bus tours, activities like kayaking or boating, and exploring on our own.

We returned to the ship each day, tired, but fulfilled by most of our experiences. Like all cruises, there are hits and misses among the ports of call. Shower, rest, catching up on news events and emails completed the afternoon.

We pre-booked most of our dinner reservations and were typically seated by 7:30 or 8:00. Cocktails at 6:30 became the norm as we gravitated to Dolce Vita for drinks and an excellent pianist. Dinner was a two to three-hour event each night, so we rarely made it to the evening show.

Rather than go port by port trying to explain what we did, I have grouped our excursions into categories; active and educational. You can see our progression on the map on the left from the floating city of Venice to the volcanic gem of Santorini. The terrain softens and peaks in dramatic fashion along the way.

Waking up to a new day was always entertaining. Will there be mountains, red rooftops dotting the hillside, sailboats, and yachts in the harbor? Or will I see tankers and canisters waiting to be loaded for transport?

From the cliffs of Dubrovnik to the gentle slopes of Kotor, we loved immersing ourselves in these waters, learning about the history and commerce of each location, and soaking up lessons for future travels.

Educational and Enlightening Excursions

We took a Salt Works tour in Zadar, Croatia where we learned about harnessing seawater from the Adriatic Sea in giant fields to produce salt. Wind and sun create just the right atmosphere for this process, along with the expertise and physical labor of families involved in the process for generations.

A walking tour of Dubrovnik, Croatia, (on a very hot day) did not do the UNESCO World Heritage site justice as we were in a large group, surrounded by other large groups, with listening devices which made everything seem somewhat impersonal. However, we did appreciate that the town’s moniker – Pearl of the Adriatic, is well deserved with its beautiful churches, Renaissance architecture, and polished marble streets. For those Game of Thrones fans, you might recognize the staircase from the scene of Cersei’s ‘walk of shame’.

Kumquat tasting in Corfu, Greece was a fun outing as our group was small and our tour guide was excellent. A scenic and at times harrowing bus ride took us high above Corfu as we navigated narrow streets and hairpin turns to reach a vantage point that offered the best views of the sea below. Our guide explained that olive oil production is second to tourism on Corfu, but kumquat production is gaining popularity. After a rest stop for gelato, coffee, and pastries we continued back to the city where we visited a kumquat distillery. Here we sampled liquors and sweets made from local kumquats. Malcolm and I couldn’t resist purchasing a bottle of kumquat wine and a basket of candied kumquats to share with our travel companions at dinner.

Spinalonga Island in Crete, Greece was a full-day trip we enjoyed with our friends. Visiting here captivated my senses with its juxtaposition of sadness and beauty. Built by Venetians the city fell to the Ottomans in 1715. The island remained a defensive stronghold and a settlement grew within its walls, adding to its unique architectural style. From 1903 until 1957 the island functioned as a Leper Colony. Today it stands as a museum.

After departing the bus, we boarded a small boat that ferried us to the island. The first thing that strikes you about this unique place is the water. Shades of blue and green, so clear you’ll want to immerse yourself immediately. Spinalonga Island is near Elounda, which fits in a category between beach town, and fishing village, with its fine hotels, waterfront eateries, and shops. It didn’t feel overly touristy or pricy here and I would love to return for a longer stay.

I loved this guided tour of the island even though I lagged behind the group taking photographs. Unfortunately, we visited on a day with full sun almost directly overhead, so my pictures do not convey the beauty and solemnity of this place. I saw several ‘Instagram’ shoots and although it felt irreverent to take those kinds of photos, I found myself imagining my beautiful daughter, dressed in white linen filling every frame.

Back on the mainland, we were served a lunch of traditional Greek foods, including Feta cheese, pita bread, hummus, olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, and stuffed grape leaves. We were given ample shopping/exploration time before returning to the ship.

The last of our educational tours was in Santorini, Greece. This was another six-hour tour, which began with a Tender from the ship to the ferry port on Santorini Island. We were taken by bus to the city where our tour included a stop at an Ouzo museum for a tour and tasting, a stop at Profitis Ilias Monastery, and a walk through Santorini.

I love ‘how to’ talks about almost anything, and when tasting is involved, I’m all in. Such was the case when touring the Canava Santorini Distillery Museum. This museum has replicas of workspaces and houses with original contents meant to display the craftsmanship of making ouzo. Our energetic guide shared information with a flair unique to Greek culture as she danced in Zorba the Greek style while we sipped and sampled.

I had never tried Ouzo, although Malcolm loves this licorice-tasting spirit. Not surprisingly, I enjoyed the tasting and we purchased a couple of bottles to share with our companions.

It is worth mentioning that there were seven, yes, seven cruise ships in the harbor on the day we arrived. The street below and others like this in Dubrovnik evidence the need to regulate the number of visitors allowed on any given day. The people of these islands have a love/hate relationship with tourism. Based on conversations with locals, most would favor regulation, even at the cost of lost income.

Active Excursions

We had two high-activity days, the first in Hvar, Croatia, and the second in Kotor, Montenegro. We took a Tender to the dock at Hvar where we joined a group of mostly (who am I kidding), all younger people, and continued walking to the kayak center about a half mile away. We met our guide and were given safety instructions for our hour-long paddle to a ‘secluded’ beach where we would be left to ourselves for about two hours. Trust me, we needed the two hours to recover from a one-hour sea paddle. Malcolm and I are good paddlers, but we paddle in the river, where the current is predictable. Ocean paddling is very different as currents and wind come into play. I thoroughly enjoyed the day while Malcolm was a bit worse for wear for having done the lion’s share of the work. This outing happened on the third cruise day and I couldn’t wait to take my first dip in the Adriatic Sea. It was everything I’d imagined.

The rocky shore and ocean bottom were challenging here, but we both wore water shoes and managed to have a refreshing swim.

Our second ‘activity’ day was a speedboat ride to the Blue Cave in Kotor. The ride was delightful as we raced boats filled with tourists heading to the same destination. The blue cave is a natural wonder made of limestone and accessible only by boat. While the cave isn’t really blue, light reflects off the water, the sandy bottom, and the walls casting an iridescent blue light throughout. Swimming inside the cave is allowed, but the day we visited was high-traffic. The number of boats allowed into the cave at once is governed, but we chose to enjoy the light show safely on deck and take our swim at the next stop.

We spent about twenty minutes in the cave, took all the photos we wanted, and moved on to our next stop. We were offloaded at a beautiful beach, complete with beach chairs and cabana boys. It doesn’t get better than this.

All Dressed Up With A Place to Go

Destination cruising is all about enjoying snippets of each location, packing as much into a day as possible, while having the comfort and security of a floating home to return to. Dinner is often the culmination of a beautiful day and Silver Ray delivered the icing on the cake most nights we were onboard. Like ports of call, there are hits and misses to dining experiences. Malcolm had more than his share of misses during this cruise, but I was mostly satisfied with my meals. His complaint was typically undercooked fish or raw hamburger meat.

The good news was that there were multiple venues to choose from and if we didn’t like one, we just moved to another for the next meal. This ship covers everything from casual to fine dining, Italian, French, Japanese, and Destination-inspired cuisine. Some restaurants have an additional charge for dinner (La Dame, Kaiseki, and Chef’s Table). We ate at Kaiseki for lunch and avoided the charge. Our friends celebrated their anniversary at La Dame, so we paid the upcharge there which we thought outrageous, but the meal was outstanding, so when in Rome… Atlantide is the Silver Ray’s equivalent of a Main Dining Room. We had several good meals there. LaTerrazza is what other cruise lines call a buffet. It was open for breakfast and lunch and changed to an Italian restaurant for dinner. We tried the Silver Note, which required reservations but not an upcharge. It didn’t suit us. This restaurant serves tapas-style plates in a unique atmosphere. All the tables face the center of the room where an entertainer performs nightly. Nice concept, but we dubbed it the Flat Note, based on the lack of a cohesive menu -more confusing than enticing and undercooked fish. Who can’t cook fish on a cruise ship?

We loved a lot about this cruise ship, especially the itinerary, and will book it again if it makes sense. We have our eye on a Transatlantic crossing in April. Fingers crossed that it will work out.

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