7th July 2023 was an eventful start of the holiday! After losing track of time, nearly missing our flight, sprinting to the gate only to find out although the gate was ‘closed’ the plane was delayed anyway, to boarding the flight and being stuck on a hot plane for an hour before take off, we finally arrived in Corfu ready to board the Marella Explorer! We checked in, headed to our cabin to get our key cards, done a quick safety briefing and headed to the late night buffet for an 11.30pm dinner before enjoying a nice mocktail and cocktail in the indigo club and casino! As there were other delayed flights on their way, the ship was delayed in sailing which meant the casino and on board shopping wasn’t open for our first evening, but it was the perfect excuse for an early night ready for a day at sea tomorrow!
Our first day at sea was a fun filled day. Whilst I spent the day out sunbathing around the pool, Lee enjoyed catching up on sleep followed by a game of poker. We met up for a nice sit down lunch in the latitude 53 restaurant. The broccoli soup for starters was so good, followed by a ploughman’s lunch! After we finished in the sun for the day we headed back to our cabin to get showered and made up ready for the weekly ‘dress to impress’ night! We headed back to the latitude 53 restaurant where we enjoyed a prawn cocktail followed by steak for dinner. After dinner we went to watch the show, then went to the bar for drinks and a silent disco which was so much fun, before heading to bed for the night! The evening entertainment is the best part of being on a cruise! The shows are brilliant, there are multiple bars each with different types of music from pianists to live bands and even a club with a DJ there really is something for everyone! With an onboard casino, shops to browse and even a cinema you cannot get bored on here!
The next morning we woke up ready for our first land day - Santorini. I was so excited for this as it was somewhere I’ve always wanted to see and an even more special day as we had exciting plans for our day! We got the tender boat over to the island as the ship was unable to dock directly ashore. Once we reached the dock, we got the cable car up the mountain to Fira town. This was €6 each per journey but was well worth it to avoid the 45 minute, steep, donkey path walk! When we reached the top we walked through the town and out onto the main road where we found a taxi company to take us to oia for €35 each way. Enroute the taxi driver detoured to a really beautiful photo spot overlooking the sea, showed us the Nobu hotel which looked unbelievable and then we continued our drive to Oia. This really was a beautiful town, well maintained white buildings and cobble streets to walk through with plenty of shops and restaurants to stop in! We walked through the town to find the best photo spot in Oia, overlooking the sea with the beautiful blue domed churches. This was such a special day as we were taking a special photo with our baby scan ready for our baby announcement tomorrow. The shot was perfect and everything I had imagined and a photo to treasure forever! We finished looking around and finding all of the good photo spots with views of the white buildings going up the cliff, the fort and the windmill. Once we had finished walking around the town we got the taxi back to Fira where we stopped in a local restaurant for a traditional Greek gyros! This didn’t disappoint it was incredible and just what we wanted! We then wanders back through the town and back to the cable car ready to get back to the ship.
Once we were back on the ship and set sail we got ready for dinner and went to latitude 53 Italian restart for dinner. I had cod and Lee had lasagne and we both enjoyed our meals! We finished dinner, went to see the show and then headed to bed for the evening ready for our day tomorrow!
We woke up anchored next to the beautiful island of Mykonos. As the port was too small we had to get the tender boat over to the island again. Once docked we took a stroll through Chora, The old town, and then headed towards the local beach - Megali Ammos beach. When we reached the beach we spotted Mykonos Bay Beach club with options for loungers on the beach and by the pool. The beds here were really reasonable compared to some of the other beach clubs in Mykonos, costing €30 per bed for either pool side or beach! The pool and facilities were beautiful and luxury and everything looked new and well looked after! Food/drinks here were on the pricier side, for example €8 for a coffee, €12 for a milkshake, €8 for a beer, and food was €12 for some pitta and tzatziki, €12 for a portion of chips or €30 for a burger but the vibe here was lovely with chill music when we arrived with the music picking up a little before we left without it being too loud and disruptive. We had a really nice day here, celebrating our first wedding anniversary, and I would definitely recommend it! At around 3pm we wandered back towards the port, stopping to see the windmills and Little Venice on the way and walking back through the town to get a gyros and souvenirs before heading back onto the ship.
We booked a special dinner at the dining club for the evening, a fine dining experience with 6 courses. The service here was incredible and the food delicious! We started with a pallet cleanser of tomatoes with caviar and a tapioca powder with a champagne (for Lee). For starters we had a king prawn cocktail with Marie Rose dressing. For mains we had a chateaubriand for two which was carved table side and served with mash potato, vegetables and a selection of sauces to choose from (paired with a glass of red wine for Lee). For dessert I had a vanilla soufflé and Lee had a chocolate praline roll which was equally as tasty! After dessert came the cheese and crackers, a selection of Stilton, Camembert, Wensleydale and Red Leicester to choose from with pickle, walnuts and celery paired with port (for Lee). Our final course was tea/coffee with a chocolate truffle. The experience took around 2 hours in total and we had a lovely evening being winded and dined! After dinner we just about made the late show, so watched this before heading to bed.
The following day we were supposed to be docking in Rhodes but due to strong winds causing bad sea conditions our ship was unable to get into port. They looked into the option of the tender boats but this was not cleared due to the strong current and choppy sea. We waited around for a while to see if the winds eased off but they didn’t so instead we headed straight to Crete to dock for an overnight stay so this day ended up being a day at sea. I spent the day lounging round the pool and finished my book - it ends with us - Colleen hoover (great read!) whilst a sunburned Lee found something to do inside! In the evening we went to the tapas restaurant on the boat where we had olives, bread with a tomato and garlic dip, meatballs, mushrooms and chicken in sauce. The portions were very small but the food tasted great! After dinner we went to see a Latin dance show whilst we waited for the boat to pull into port. The dancing was fantastic and we enjoyed watching the show. The ship docked around 10pm and we got off the ship and headed to Chania town/harbour to experience some of the nightlife. It was a bustling harbour with a lot of people still having their dinner served at nearly midnight! There was lots of little shops to look in that were also open until around midnight as well as a selection of bars. We met another couple and jumped in a taxi with them and it cost us €15 between 4 of us, each way which wasn’t too bad! Drinks on the harbour were around €9.50 for a cocktail and €6-8 for a beer. It was nice to be able to explore a town in the evening and an unexpected surprise as this was not part of our original itinerary.
7am and our alarm went off to wake us up for our first organised excursion seeing Gingilos white mountains on the Omalos Panoramic views trip! The coach journey took around an hour each way up and down the mountain and the views were incredible! We reached around 1000m high overlooking the Samaria gorge - the longest gorge in Europe. Our tour guide was so nice and gave us loads of information about the history of Crete and the mountains as well as the culture of the people who reside in the mountains! After looking at the views we stopped in a local taverna for coffee or herbal tea, some local cheese which was delicious and bread and cookies. This was a family run taverna and a great little stop. On the way back to the ship we asked our guide where we could get some of the local thyme honey he was telling us about and the local herbs, so we took a slight pitstop at a local street side hut, where the bus driver actually goes to get his supplies, and we got some honey, white oregano and mixed herbs to take home for our cooking! We got back to the ship and relaxed on the deck watching the boat sail away. After we set off we went back to the room to get ready for dinner. Our night consisted of a three course meal, a Whitney Houston tribute act show, karaoke in the ship pub and an evening in the casino!
The end of the first week on board and we arrived in Katakolon. We didn’t have anything planned for our visit so decided to go with the flow and see what was about. We met up with another couple we had made friends with, Caitlin and Jamie, and went to find the local beach. On Katakolon beach there was a little place called Banana beach, where there were sunbeds and umbrellas to hire for €3 for the day and a little bar/restaurant for refreshments. The sea here was so calm, warm and shallow with soft (but hot) sand. They had a netted section in the sea which I think was to keep the jellyfish out. We chilled here for a few hours and then walked back along the beach to the harbour, where we stopped in a little local restaurant for a gyros pitta (and gyros plate for lee) which tasted AMAZING! After this we had a little mooch around the shops before heading back to the ship to go and chill in the coffee port for a while! We had dinner booked in Kora La Indian resturant tonight which Lee was buzzing for!
The food was nice but we did have to get the dishes changed as the first lot the chicken was gristly and hard to eat and my lamb was undercooked despite requesting well done. We switched both curries to prawn and once recooked they were very nice!
Day 8, and the start of our second week, we woke up in Corfu. We had an excursion booked called the sea caves of Palaiokastritsa. We had to drive to the other side of the island where we caught small boats to go and explore the sea caves which were cool to sea and the sea was crystal clear and blue! After we arrived back at shore we drove up into the mountains (where there were some very thin and steep roads) to stop at the view point where you could see the heart shaped bay of Palaiokastritsa as well as views across corfu. From here we drove to see the local Monastery which is looked after by the nuns. We lit a candle here which symbolised wished of health for your family and respect to those who are no longer with us, before returning to the coach. After this we were taken to Corfu town where we had free time to wander around and get some food. The weather here was extremely hot and humid, as Corfu was experiencing the start of an extreme heatwave with temperatures expected to reach around 45 degrees Celsius, so we didn’t stay here long and instead headed back to the ship to jump in the pool and cool off! That evening the ship put on a sail and shine party on the pool deck where the bands and entertainment team came down to perform live music and dances for us. We had to wait for a late plane to arrive in Corfu before sailing so we didn’t wait up to see the ship set sail.
Our next day was another day at sea, to take us to Koper, Slovenia. We got up, had breakfast and then I spent the entire day at the pool in the sun, reading a new book Meet me in London by Georgia Toffolo - I couldn’t put it down and nearly finished the entire book in a day! Great read! At 5pm we went down to the squid and anchor bar for a game of bingo, but unfortunately we didn’t win! We did however win on the slot machines at the casino so it was not all bad! The evening was the ship's weekly dress to impress night, so we got dressed up and went for dinner where they were serving French onion soup and Beef Wellington! After dinner we went to watch the show and then went to bed as we were knackered from the sun and the heat and have a super busy week ahead.
Day 10, and the start of our busy week of excursions, we arrived in Koper - Slovenia. We booked a trip called ‘Best of Slovenia’ where we first travelled for around 1 hour and a half, to the city of Ljubljana, for a walking tour and to learn about the history of the city. Our tour guide was brilliant, giving us lots of information about the area and how it came to be what it is today. We stopped for some lunch (of course Lee found a Gyros restaurant) and then headed back to the coach for our 1 hour drive the the next stop - Lake Bled. Wow! This place is breathtaking! Photos don’t even do it justice how beautiful it is! We hired a rowing boat with another couple, Shannon and Mark, and went out onto the lakes which was fun but actually quite hard to steer! We stopped in a cafe to try the original bled cake which was delicious! Like a trifle in a pastry cake! We didn’t realise there would be time to go swimming here so we didn’t bring any swim stuff which we were gutted about so if you come here be sure to bring your swimwear and a towel! After our 2 hour stop we got back on the coach and had a 2 hour drive back to the ship.
Our next day we arrived in Trieste, Italy and embarked on our 2 hour coach journey to Venice for the day. Once we arrived here we had to get a water taxi over to Venice where we then had 3 hours free time. We picked up a gondola near Saint marks square and went on a 45 minute trip around the Venice canals which was relaxing and nice to see. These were charged at €80 for 25 minutes or the 45 minutes we managed to get them down to €120. Once we got back on land we found a small Italian restaurant down one of the side streets, called Rossopomodoro, and it was one of the best pizzas I’ve ever get eaten. I had the marinara pizza, which consisted of San Marzano DOP tomatoes, garlic, oregano, extra virgin olive oil from the Sorrento peninsula DOP, basil and then I added mozzarella cheese to it and lee had the Diavola but added the 3 different tomatoes to it. 2 pizza and 2 cokes came to €43 but the pizza started from as little as €8 each. After lunch we took a walk down the little side streets and over the bridges to get a feel for Venice and then had a walk around Saint marks square but it was incredibly hot as we had reached the heatwave and so walking around was not particularly easy and it was very busy everywhere with people all trying to stay in the shade wherever they could! We stopped in a bar along the waterfront where Lee got a beer which cost €15 so it’s much more expensive on the front! We sat here for a while admiring the view before heading back to the water taxi for our journey back to the ship. I am glad we got to see Venice but I can’t say that it is somewhere we’d return to now we’ve seen it!
From Italy we travelled to Croatia with our first stop being Split. From split we drove to the Krka National park to go and see the waterfalls. This was one of my favourite days of the holiday! It was absolutely stunning here - photos do not do it justice! It was a very hot day but as it was a National park walking through trees there was a lot of shade. You are no longer allowed to go swimming in the National park but there were certain spots that you could dip your feet in to cool off! At the bottom of the falls there were a few huts where you could get food/drinks/ice cream. As expected in the middle of nowhere with limited options the refreshments are a little on the pricey side. After our free time we climbed back up the steps and walked to the coach stop where we began our journey back to the ship. It took roughly an hour and 15 minutes each way!
Once we returned back we had a bit of time before the ship left so we took a 10 minute walk into split to see the town and harbour! It’s such a lovely place and I can see why it’s becoming more popular to visit. The town is pretty with incredible architecture. The shops, restaurants, homes etc are all within an UNESCO heritage site which is an old Roman palace and right on the harbour! We found a little takeaway Ba!će down a side street where we could try the local (actually Bosnian) delicacy ćevapi which is grilled mince in a flatbread with onions and sauce (I chose the cream cheese sauce and Lee chose the red pepper sauce). It was soo tasty with so much flavour and definitely a must try when in Croatia/Bosnia.
The next day in Croatia we stopped in Dubrovnik. We had booked to do the game of thrones tour via the ship. We had a 10 minute coach journey to get to the old town and from there we climbed up a lot of steps into Lovrijenac Fortress. We were shown a comparison from the series the real life so you could see what scenes were filmed here! The views over Dubrovnik from here were beautiful! As we climbed back down the fort we stopped to see the bay (known as black water bay on GOT) before heading inside the city walls to see the old town. The old town is stunning, with all matching buildings and stone floors all around. We then had free time to walk around but it was so hot it was unbearable to walk in so we went into the Hard Rock Cafe where Lee got spicy prawns and I got a milkshake. After this we headed back to our meeting point and stood with our hands in the fountain to try and keep cool until the coach came! Once we had cooled down in the aircon back on the ship we attempted to venture out again around 3pm but it was still so hot (even the breeze felt like someone was blowing a hot hair dryer on you whilst trying to walk in 37 degree heat!) so we gave up, popped into the local supermarket and then walked straight back onto the ship to look up what to do tomorrow.
Our last full day was in Kotor, Montenegro. We had an excursion booked to go to the olive farm and taste the olives and local olive oil with bread etc, but unfortunately they couldn’t get enough people on the trip so this got cancelled. Instead we found a hotel and beach club a 7 minute drive away from the port. The beach club was called Virtu beach and they told us the beds were €100 each for 2 beds or a minimum spend in the beach club of €200 and then the beds were at no cost so you may aswell just get €200 of food and drink. The beds are non reservable and on a first come first served basis. On arriving we saw the hotel above the beach club, Huma Kotor Bay had an infinity pool overlooking the beach with sun loungers so asked if we could sit around the pool for the day instead. This cost €35 per lounger for the day and they provided towels also. It was €5 per soft drink up here so much less that what we would have spent on the beach and we were still able to go down to the beach and go in the sea. The views from the hotel/beach were incredible with all mountains surrounding us! It was the perfect way to spend our last day - relaxing in the sun and cooling off in the water! We went to virtu for lunch. I had the steak sandwich and Lee has the smash burger with a cappuccino and home made lemonade. The food was incredible and well worth the money! Our bill came to €66 so all in all today we spent €146 plus €5.60 each way for a taxi. (Make sure you get them to use the meter if you ask how much they just say €15.)
After a nice relaxing day it was time to get back on the ship and pack to go home! We sorted the room, went for dinner and our last show and then back to the room to finish packing and leave our big cases out to be collected and taken off the ship for us tomorrow.
8am check out time and our last day here. We decided not to get off the ship today and just spend the day chilling on the ship around the pool. I spent the majority of the day in the sun and heat until I'd had enough and wanted to go into the aircon and get ready. We were offered a complimentary cabin to go back and shower in for 20 minutes later in the day which was helpful, but we ended up booking a massage/facial and using the showers in the spa instead, before being collected for the airport at 6.30pm.
Corfu airport was definitely an experience. We were warned about how busy it got and we got lucky as the queue outside was long when we joined but was 3x longer 10 minutes later. We queues outside to get in the airport for around 30 minutes and then a further 50 minutes once inside the airport. We finally checked our cases in and then queued again to get through security! We got through in time, grabbed a Burger King and then got to our gate and the plane didn’t start boarding when it said it would. We boarded at around 9.30pm but our 9.40pm flight didn’t take off until 11.20pm! We finally arrived back to Gatwick around 1am (3am Corfu time) knackered and ready for bed!
The cruise has been great and we will certainly be booking another one!
Comments