Athens, Greece Planning

For Athens, the ship docks in Piraeus. I have been to this port a few times and it can be quite a zoo. I have read that the Acropolis is now limited so I will need to balance the need for a timed ticket entry and the need for transportation to the center of the city. I will be using the 2023 Rick Steves Greece Athens and the Peloponnese guidebook.

Currently, I have purchased the Athens on Your Own shore excursion. Given the $50 per port credit as well as the 15% discount for status from NCL, the cost for 2 persons is less than $100.

I did this exact plan last time I was in Athens in May of 2022 on the Norwegian Gem but by cruising solo the excursion was free. I was on my own from 9:30AM to 2PM last time but I didn't have to fight my way through the Acropolis.

The excursion bus was large and the ride took about 45 minutes to the Plaka where they drop everyone off. Then they give us 5 or 6 hours on our own.

I plan to do the 2 hour Rick Steves self-guided tour of the Acropolis *** and the 2 hour Rick Steves self-guided tour of the National Archaeological Museum *** to see the Antikythera mechanism. 

If there is time to kill, we will explore the Plaka and the Anafiotika **. I do not feel the Acropolis Museum makes the cut for this short visit.

We may need to hit a grocery store for a snack and a water before hopping back on the bus back to the ship.

If a hop on hop off option is offered through the cruise ship, I may elect to switch to that option. Note that for me, those are usually best when you hop on at the ship and hop off when it returns to the ship. Otherwise, it can be difficult to get back on the bus. You end up waiting in the hot sun a lot from my experience or you end up grabbing a cab back to the ship.

Is this a good plan? What do you think? Is this helpful to you?

Happy Cruising!