Happy island hopping

Feb 22 2008 Chris Rowland

Chris Rowland drops anchor in the historic ports of the Aegean Sea

The ship's Tannoy crackled into life and a sense of anticipation filled the cabin. It was not yet 8am but this was to become the defining moment of the day.

Clanking anchor chains had signalled our arrival at a new port. Now the reassuring yet authoritative voice of Captain David Warden-Owen proceeded to tell us where we were, how we got there, what the weather was like and what would happen next.

After a few days, we could barely contemplate leaving the cabin without this wake-up call. We were aware of the itinerary across the Aegean Sea on our ship, the Spirit of Adventure, owned by Saga Holidays, but it was strangely comforting to have the scene set each day.

Our route took in seven islands plus the sights of Athens, two fascinating small towns on the mainland and the unforgettable Corinth Canal.

Carrying just 350 passengers and with a draught of less than five metres, Spirit of Adventure is slender enough to berth in many small ports in the Aegean that are out of bounds to bigger 'floating hotels'. We joined the ship in Istanbul after a memorable coach journey from the city's airport in Asia, across the Bosphorus Bridge into Europe, and through the teeming streets of this historic capital.

An initial day of gentle cruising in the Sea of Marmara and the Dardanelles strait took in a view of the Gallipoli monument.

It was then on to the island of Kos, which has spectacular sandy beaches and some of the most interesting archaeological sites of the whole Mediterranean region.

On Rhodes, possibly the sunniest place in Europe with an average 300 days of sunshine a year, a walking tour through the historic Old Town, with its twisting alleyways and mix of Byzantine, Turkish and Latin architecture, took us to a host of ruins.

Next came Crete, largest island in Greece, where the ship berthed in the busy capital of Heraklion (named after Hercules), handily placed for a trip to the ruined Palace of Knossos, built by the Minoans in around 1900BC.

We then dropped anchor under the steep black cliffs of volcanic Santorini where an eruption in 1650 BC, culminating in one of the biggest explosions in the history of the planet, caused the centre of the island to collapse into a massive crater that was filled by the sea.

To reach Rome, Spirit of Adventure was towed by tugs through the Corinth Canal.

Only three metres separated the ship from the vertical cliffs that form the sides of the canal as our captain described how a previous British cruise ship emerged badly damaged after scraping the sides.

Needless to say, we emerged intact, exhilarated, and flushed with our own Spirit of Adventure.

Travel facts...

Chris Rowland was a guest of Spirit of Adventure which offers a 14-day cruise from September 4, 2008, voyaging from Venice to Istanbul, via Kotor (Montenegro), Sarande (Albania), Corfu, Katakolon, Itea, Piraeus, Nauplion, Heraklion, Santorini, Rhodes (all Greece), Kusadasi, Kepez and Istanbul (all Turkey).

Packages from £2,676 per person (inside berth) include return flights ex-Gatwick/Manchester, insurance and cancellation cover, airport/port taxes, all meals, entertainment and 24-hour room service, choice of excursions in most ports, on-board gratuities, transfers, porterage of luggage; all visas.

Reservations: 0800 015 6984 and www.spiritofadventure.co.uk