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Harmony V

Variety Voyager

Tortola

My husband and I had a wonderful experience on the Variety Cruises' Harmony V doing it's Classical Greece itinerary. We had never been to Greece before and we couldn't imagine seeing it any other way. The cruise itinerary had a very nice mix of destinations and because of the ship size, we got to see some obscure islands that we would have never seen otherwise like Monemvassia, Kea and Kythira. We loved the fact that we could visit a new place every day and the ship even stayed docked until early morning so we could really enjoy the nightlife that many of the islands offered.
The crew was fabulous and we especially enjoyed our Cruise Director, Joseph's knowledge and amusing personality. The maid service was so efficient and would clean our room almost the moment we stepped out. The ships chef was also top notch and we had some of the best meals on the ship. The ship was beautiful and spacious with an intimate feel. There were about 30 people on our ship and although we got to know everyone, the ship was big enough to give you personal space.
I would highly recommend this cruise line to anyone and we are already planning another Variety Cruise vacation with some friends.

Perfect way to see the Greek Islands

I had the absolute pleasure of spending the end of June aboard Variety Cruises' Harmony V doing its Classical Greece itinerary. I had been to Greece several times before and I have to say that having done the whole island hopping thing using catamarans and car ferries, constantly packing and unpacking, there truly is no better way to travel than this. We would literally wake up to a new port of call every single day and the best part about these types of cruises is that the ship literally stays docked on the islands up until very late at night so that you can go out and enjoy the nightlife as opposed to the other cruises which literally have you spending only 4-5 hours at each port of call.
The itinerary itself is a very nice mix of the more popular and well known ports of call like Mykonos and Santorini but, then it also covers some of the more out of the way, not so touristy, more exclusive spots like Kythira, Monemvassia and Hydra for example which I have never been to.
The ship itself is magnificent, modern and sleek in design, it's the closest I'll probably ever come to feeling like Aristotle Onassis. The staff was excellent and the service could not have been better, they were literally picking up after me in my cabin at least two or three times a day it seemed. The great thing about these small ship yacht cruises is that you really do get a very personalized experience. The ship is small enough so that you get to know everybody on board and yet at the same time it is also large enough so that it never feels too crowded. There were about 25 people on our trip so I believe that the ship was about half full. There's free wifi on board as well which definitely helps pass the time while you are on board.

Variety Cruises' Harmony V - all I can say is wow!!!

With the exception of Santorini we were able to dock at each port and even there we had a good-sized tender to take us to the Cable Car to Fira. On the first evening Captain Emmanuel warned us that he didn't think he would be able to go directly to Delos and would proceed to Mykonos. He was right! The Meltemi winds were blowing and the sea was dancing with white caps. We arrived in Mykonos early in the AM and after breakfast left for Delos on one of the regular tour boats. Sometimes an ill wind does blow good because it made Delos tolerable when on a non-windy day it would have been dangerously hot. Others have complained about Variety's changes in plans, but in our case, instead of dinner in Mykonos,because we had to leave port early, we had a great fish dinner in Paros and watched the ferry from Athens disembark crowds. Paros may be the new Mykonos.  We were particularly interested in visiting vineyards in Santorini, our next port, so our on-shore cruise director arranged for twelve of us to go on a wine tour instead of the usual itinery. We found some REALLY good Greek wines and an incredible Vin Santo at Arguros Winery.  Our gang of ten opted for the beach at Rethymno instead of Knossos in Crete. The beach was equipped with umbrellas and chaises as well as water sports facilities. The people who chose to go to Knossos returned to say that the 3-hour bus ride was tiring and the heat awful. (I wonder if Variety could dock Harmony V nearer to Knossos for that reason.)Greek night took place on Crete with a small troupe of excellent dancers who introduced us to classical dancing, followed with some wild Cretan versions of dancing to bouzouki which we all tried to emulate, not necessarily well.    We skipped Kythera early the next day--more Meltemi. But we went on to Monemvassia, the fantastic castle town. Some people even found a beach. We arrived in Nafplio in the evening instead of the next morning and were able to have dinner at an exceptional fish restaurant on the quay in one of the most beautiful towns in Greece. The next day we went off to Mycenae, which reminded us that we needed to make another visit to the Archaeological Museum in Athens to catch up with the real "Mask of Agamemnon."  Nafplio has competition from Hydra,where the natives are serious about preservation. Hydra is even more sophisticated than Santorini in certain ways. The Captain's Dinner took place that evening anchored at Aegina. The next morning we woke up in Marina Kea.  We did not have a full complement of passengers on the cruise--only 36--which probably added to the positive experience. The wait staff and room staff were pretty young women from the Ukraine and the bartender was a young Russian; she made fantastic Mojitos and Margueritas. The crew were friendly and helpful. Our fellow passengers were really compatible; as far as I know there were no complaints and no "primadonnas." There were four Americans besides our group of ten while the rest of the complement were European and Australian.  The cruise is good value for money. The staff are well trained and the service exceptional. Breakfasts were better than our 5-star hotel in Athens, the lunches very good, but perhaps the chef shouldn't try so hard to produce a "gourmet meal" for those dinners aboard. His moussaka and stuffed tomatoes were as good as mine and his lamb on "Greek Night" superb. This is not a cruise for someone who wants casinos, daily pseudo-Broadway entertainment, non-stop eating, and pampering. It's for people who like a laid-back experience and are capable of entering the spirit of small ship cruising.

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