While the overall excursion was nice…
While the overall excursion was nice there some things that kept me from giving 5 stars. We were strongly encouraged to speak with cruise staff to ensure we were on first tender off ship to ensure we would make the excursion time. We were able to do so. After arriving at meeting point in Santorini we waited 1/2 an hour for other guests who then were taken before us to start their tour! We weren’t the only ones it happened to. I was made to feel like a disgruntled, Debbie Downer because I spoke up about this unfair way of organizing the tour. I believe there were 3-4 small tour buses with the company. The tour guides had lots of energy and lots of great knowledge. But spent a lot of time reminding us that they were the best tour company on the island and although the start was chaotic, it was organized chaotic. Also, reminding us that the most important thing is that the best part of excursions should be the last memories, not the first impression so then everything is fine. They said we would not have use of bathrooms for 2 and half hours, it ended up being 3 and half hours. They also stated in their contract that we would have the option of a lunch at a restaurant or we could choose to eat on our own with instructions on how to get back to departure area. That never happened. We really wanted to eat on our own but as I said, we were never given the option. Only mentioned in the document. We were brought to Mario’s restaurant. Our table waited almost 25 min before a server could make it over for drink orders. Our two guides were eating their meals before I even received a glass of water. Crazy. I also noticed that there were 2-3 other tour buses with the same business logo in parking lot. I guessing they have a working relationship with the restaurant owner. While the sites we saw were great and commentary informative, there is lots they could do to improve the experience for all customers.