- Trip: Rome and Cruise through Italy and Greece (Norwegian Breakaway)
- Dates: September 1 – 15, 2023
- Who: Me (Jess), Emily (one of my best friends), Beverly (my mom), Jeff (my stepdad), Jen (my aunt), and Megan (my sister).
Today we ported in Athens…. well, really, Piraeus which is about 20-30 minutes away. We woke up about 8:45am , threw on some clothes, and met everyone at the buffet. Breakfast was ok…. mainly carbs. This was true every day.
After eating, we all went back to our cabins to get ready for the day. We looked out and it was MONSOONING, so everyone decided to try to wait it out. Everyone was still pretty tired and took a nap. By the time I woke up around 11:30, it had cleared up. Mom and Jeff seemed to still be asleep, so Emily, Megan, Jen, and I decided to go ahead without them.
We’d all booked another excursion through ShoreExcursionsGroup (Hop-On, Hop-Off Athens Highlights Tour). The port was fairly easy to navigate and the bus was right there. I will say that when we got on the bus, we waited quite a while before leaving…. then, we went to another dock and waited a while. Eventually, we got going. We rode a bit around Piraeus before getting on the road to Athens proper.
We rode along, just listening to the audio guide and looking out. The weather was pretty iffy, so we didn’t want to get out too much. We eventually got off the bus at the Acropolis. Jen decided to stay at ground level, where there was a pretty garden. Emily, Megan, and I walked up to the ticket gate to get pictures then up to the free observation cliff to get more. Just a note – this was, per usual, a bunch of old, cobble stone, steps. It’s not an easy climb.
After a bit, we walked back down. As we were coming up to the bus depot, we spotted Mom and Jeff on an arriving bus! They got off, walked around for a few minutes, and then we all got on the Athens route. This took us around to see many areas of interest. If I ever make it back to Athens, I would like to walk through the Plaka and a few of the museums.
About an hour or so into the ride, we made a sinking realization. The description of the tour wasn’t super clear and we didn’t realize until that point that the bus wasn’t going to take us back to the ship (we would need to go back to Acropolis and get back on green). My parents and Jen started to get a little nervous, so Emily, Megan, and I came up with a plan. While we did have enough time to get back to the ship before last call, we also had dinner reservations at Cagney’s and wanted to freshen up. We decided to call two taxis…. we put the older group in the first taxi, while the younger group got in the second.
It was not the best end to our visit, but it was the smartest choice. As soon as we stepped back on the ship, the sky fell out and it started storming like crazy. We all took showers and got ready for our 5:30pm reservation at Cagney’s Steakhouse.
As part of our package with Norwegian Cruise Line, we got one complimentary specialty restaurant. We’d heard that Cagney’s was the best choice, so that’s what we went with. Overall, I’d agree that it was really good! The service was also exceptional.
Pictured above was my dinner…. Crab Cake (good); French Onion Soup (better than the main restaurants, but still not great); Ribeye (excellent); Steamed Broccoli (fine – standard); Au Gratin Potatoes (these were awful – I should have gotten the baked potato); Chocolate Cake (my sisters that I tried – really good); OMG Carmel Butterscotch Cheesecake (this was phenomenal – I wished that I could have gotten this another night it was so good).
After dinner, Emily, Megan, and I walked around the ship for a couple of hours. Mom and Jeff joined us off and on. We sat to watch Deal or No Deal, which is always fun. Afterwards, Em and Megan wanted to go dancing, so I left them, got my nightly H2O, and went back to the cabin to get ready for bed.
Italy/Greece 2023 Trip Report (September 1 – 15, 2023)
– The Beginning (Vivi Alla Giornata!)
– The Planning Process (Rome)
– The Planning Process (Greece Ports)
– The Planning Process (Italy Ports)
– Flight Confusion
– Day 0: Leave for Rome (September 1, 2023)
– Day 1: Rome Arrival and City Tour (September 2, 2023)
– Day 2: Board the Breakaway (September 3, 2023)
– Day 3: Sea Day (September 4, 2023)
– Day 4: Santorini, Greece (September 5, 2023)
– Day 5: Athens (Piraeus), Greece (September 6, 2023)
– Day 6: Mykonos, Greece (September 7, 2023)
– Day 7: Olympia (Katakolon), Greece (September 8, 2023)
– Day 8: Valletta, Malta (September 9, 2023)
– Day 9: Messina (Sicily), Italy (September 10, 2023)
– Day 10: Naples, Italy (September 11, 2023)
– Day 11: Florence/Pisa (Livorno), Italy (September 12, 2023)
– Day 12: Disembark and Vatican City (September 13, 2023)
– Day 13: Rome (September 14, 2023)
– Day 14: Leaving Rome (September 15, 2023) and Some Final Thoughts
Related Reviews
– IterItaly (Private Tour: Rome 3-Hour Orientation Tour)
– Shore Excursions Group (Exclusive Santorini, Oia, and Winery Tour)
– Shore Excursions Group (Hop-On, Hop-Off Athens Highlights Tour)
– Shore Excursions Group (Exclusive Mykonos Old and New)
– Shore Excursions Group (Spirit of Olympia and Magna Grecia Farm)
– Shore Excursions Group (Taormina and the Blue Grotto)
– Amalfi Driver (Private Tour: Sorrento, Positano, and Limoncello Tour)
– Bella Italia Tours (Private Tour: Florence, Pisa, and Chianti Wine Tour)
MyFriendJess 
Leave a comment