Hello! This will be our first cruise, and we’re doing the "Village of Oia on Your Own" excursion. I was wondering if you could help clarify how it works. Our reservation states a 4:30 PM start time-does that include the time it takes to tender, or does the 45-minute bus ride to Oia begin at 4:30? Royal Caribbean hasn’t provided much detail, so I’d really appreciate any insight. Thank you! 😊
Thank you for watching! Our Royal Caribbean excursion was first thing in the morning for our ship. If your ship tenders in the afternoon, I would say you take the tender as a group at 4:30 pm. Usually you all meet in the theater first. Once you take the tender then you get on a bus to Oia. Do you know how many ships will be there that day? Looks like you will be able to see a beautiful sunset there! 😊
@@adventuresofet Ahh thank you so much for the reply! This was very helpful :) I believe there will be around 4 ships including ours, so it'll probably be a little chaotic (2 ships will arrive earlier around 7am while ours and another ship arrives around 2pm). Either way, we're still super excited!!
Thank you for your comment. 😊It was not a rush because this was a cruise ship sponsored excursion. We met in the theater and were escorted off the ship first. Loaded on the first tender to the port where buses were waiting. If you have any further questions please comment me back. Thank you
Hi there, They have updated our tour now to include an hour to shop around in Fira and then they will take us back by motorcoach to the Athinos port, so we don't have to worry about the line at the cable cars. They did put an option in there, that we could stay in Fira and just notifiy the tour operator. So, I was wondering if an hour was enough time to do shopping in Fira or if we could take our chances with the cable cars down if we stay later. We have a 1 pm arrival that day and depart at 11 pm. The other 2 ships in port leave at 6, so I think the cable cars will be busy around 3ish and we would only be "competing" with our ship for the cable cars. Do you think it' s risky to stay later in Fira? I would love to hear your thoughts! Thanks!
Hi! Thanks for watching! You will have a great time in Santorini. If your cruise ship is the only one left after 6pm I would recommend staying and going back on the cable cars. One hour is not enough time in Fira. That is my opinion. 😊
Our tour was one of the first buses to Oia in the morning. Our goal was to get the iconic photos of the blue domes etc. without many people there. If you and your family want to shop, then the 90 minute time frame in Oia will be too short. However, there are many shop and restaurants in Fira which is where the tour ends. That’s where we ate lunch and shopped for souvenirs before taking the cable car down to the tender area. Hope this helps! Have fun on your Mediterranean cruise with your family! 😊
Thank you for your information because the Royal Caribbean description was not clear as to which port you will be tendered to. Our “first” cruise takes place in August 2024. Our family/party consists of 5 virgin cruisers. I am doing my research but it can be difficult to navigate thru the weeds of information.
Thank you for your comment. 😊It was not a rush because this was a cruise ship sponsored excursion. We met in the theater and were escorted off the ship first. Loaded on the first tender to the port where buses were waiting. If you have any further questions please comment me back. Thank you
Yes, the bus is waiting at the port, you do the bus tour first to Oia and then you end in Fira where you can shop and eat lunch and then take the cable car down. The cost of the cable car is included in your Royal Caribbean Cruise excursion. Hope this helps! 😊
Hello! This will be our first cruise, and we’re doing the "Village of Oia on Your Own" excursion. I was wondering if you could help clarify how it works. Our reservation states a 4:30 PM start time-does that include the time it takes to tender, or does the 45-minute bus ride to Oia begin at 4:30? Royal Caribbean hasn’t provided much detail, so I’d really appreciate any insight. Thank you! 😊
Thank you for watching! Our Royal Caribbean excursion was first thing in the morning for our ship. If your ship tenders in the afternoon, I would say you take the tender as a group at 4:30 pm. Usually you all meet in the theater first. Once you take the tender then you get on a bus to Oia. Do you know how many ships will be there that day? Looks like you will be able to see a beautiful sunset there! 😊
@@adventuresofet Ahh thank you so much for the reply! This was very helpful :) I believe there will be around 4 ships including ours, so it'll probably be a little chaotic (2 ships will arrive earlier around 7am while ours and another ship arrives around 2pm). Either way, we're still super excited!!
Santorini is such a beautiful place! Have a great cruise!🚢
Thank you for your comment. 😊It was not a rush because this was a cruise ship sponsored excursion. We met in the theater and were escorted off the ship first. Loaded on the first tender to the port where buses were waiting. If you have any further questions please comment me back. Thank you
Hi there, They have updated our tour now to include an hour to shop around in Fira and then they will take us back by motorcoach to the Athinos port, so we don't have to worry about the line at the cable cars. They did put an option in there, that we could stay in Fira and just notifiy the tour operator. So, I was wondering if an hour was enough time to do shopping in Fira or if we could take our chances with the cable cars down if we stay later. We have a 1 pm arrival that day and depart at 11 pm. The other 2 ships in port leave at 6, so I think the cable cars will be busy around 3ish and we would only be "competing" with our ship for the cable cars. Do you think it' s risky to stay later in Fira? I would love to hear your thoughts! Thanks!
Hi! Thanks for watching! You will have a great time in Santorini. If your cruise ship is the only one left after 6pm I would recommend staying and going back on the cable cars. One hour is not enough time in Fira. That is my opinion. 😊
@@adventuresofet Thanks so much!!
The excursion description states that you have 90 minutes to tour Oia. Is that enough time? I read that the shops in Oia don’t open until 10am.
Our tour was one of the first buses to Oia in the morning. Our goal was to get the iconic photos of the blue domes etc. without many people there. If you and your family want to shop, then the 90 minute time frame in Oia will be too short. However, there are many shop and restaurants in Fira which is where the tour ends. That’s where we ate lunch and shopped for souvenirs before taking the cable car down to the tender area. Hope this helps! Have fun on your Mediterranean cruise with your family! 😊
Thank you for your information because the Royal Caribbean description was not clear as to which port you will be tendered to. Our “first” cruise takes place in August 2024. Our family/party consists of 5 virgin cruisers. I am doing my research but it can be difficult to navigate thru the weeds of information.
Thank you for watching my video!
Was it a rush for you to get to Fira since tender starts at 7am and excursion starts at 7:30am?
Thank you for your comment. 😊It was not a rush because this was a cruise ship sponsored excursion. We met in the theater and were escorted off the ship first. Loaded on the first tender to the port where buses were waiting. If you have any further questions please comment me back. Thank you
Thank you!
@@adventuresofet is the bus waiting at the port or do you have to take the cable car first? Thanks!
Yes, the bus is waiting at the port, you do the bus tour first to Oia and then you end in Fira where you can shop and eat lunch and then take the cable car down. The cost of the cable car is included in your Royal Caribbean Cruise excursion. Hope this helps! 😊