14 Night Cruise sailing from Athens roundtrip aboard Celestyal Journey.

Steps of Paul:
Join us on a mesmerising voyage to discover the romance and the mystery of the Eastern Mediterranean as we follow in the footsteps of St. Paul the Apostle. As we journey through the emerald waters of the sun-soaked Cyclades and the stunning coastline of Turkey, this wonderful 7-night adventure invites you to explore iconic landmarks, savor authentic cuisine and discover the trials and tribulations of St. Paul’s epic journey to the Eastern Mediterranean region.

As you explore the captivating coastal towns and discover charming Byzantine monuments you will learn about how St. Paul’s controversial ideas sparked riots and cast him into prison. Along the way, you will have the opportunity to visit famous landmarks including the Hagia Sophia, the Holy Grotto of the Apocalypse, the Faustina Baths of Miletus and ancient Ephesus, the best-preserved historical site in the Eastern Med.

Three Continents:
Experience the wonderful world of the Eastern Mediterranean with a visit to Europe, Asia and Africa. This bewitching cruise gives you the opportunity to visit some of the world’s most celebrated monuments including the pyramids of Giza and ancient Ephesus – all of which are included in the advertised price!

This awe-inspiring adventure gives you the opportunity to experience the vibrant cities of Cairo and Ashdod, explore charming medieval towns, indulge in the sun-soaked islands of the eastern Med and savor the mouthwatering flavors of authentic cuisine from three continents.

Highlights of this cruise:

Athens
Sun-drenched and mythic, Athens is a big and modern metropolis with inspiring world heritage marvels at its very heart. The most important city-state in ancient Greece and the birthplace of democracy is also the sprawling capital of Greece today, but most of the major archaeological and historical sites are to be found within a compact area around the Acropolis itself. With a recorded history going back more than three millennia, Athens is one of the oldest cities in the world and rightly considered to be the cradle of Western Civilization. Even a short visit of the Greek capital’s highlights, starting with the iconic Acropolis, is enough to fall under its legendary spell.

Kusadasi
In the great atlas of Mediterranean antiquity, few cities shone as bright as Ephesus, part of Izmir province and the most culturally significant and best-preserved ancient city in Turkey. And Kuşadası, which dominates the gulf of the same name along this stretch of the Aegean coast, is one of the most vibrant and popular destinations in modern Turkey. It’s been an important port for centuries, hosting a variety of civilizations and for a time some of the most infamous pirates of the Mediterranean. The Öküz Mehmet Pasha Caravanserai was built in 1618, confirming Kuşadası’s role as a prominent Ottoman trading center. Sizzling beaches next to sparkling blue water, lively bars and a bustling Grand Bazaar add up to exciting times in this buzzing Turkish city, but above all, it is the chief point of entry to the magnificent ruins of Ephesus. South of Kuşadası, ruins of the ancient Greek city of Miletus are located near the mouth of the legendary Meander River.

Istanbul
Few cities represent as ravishing a meeting of substance and spectacle as Istanbul, a grand and sprawling capital that ranks among the world’s truly great cities. Here are grand mosques and churches, palaces and bazaars, museums and sites of unsurpassed natural beauty and of course the legendary Bosphorus, flowing from the Black Sea past the Golden Horn and the heart of the city to the Sea of Marmara. The European part of Turkey straddles the western banks of the narrow strait and Asia starts on the eastern shore, making Istanbul the world’s only city built on two continents: the very definition of exotic! In the sixth century BC, Byzantium was a colony of the ancient Greek city of Megara, and only much later did Constantine the Great move the seat of the Roman Empire here. For more than a millennium and a half this timeless metropolis was the capital of empires— with the advent of Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror in 1453 Constantinople became the seat of the Ottoman Empire, before taking the name of Istanbul with the establishment of the modern Turkish Republic in 1923. Today as in the days of empires past, the convergence of cultures and multi-religious coexistence here is truly extraordinary. In Istanbul traditions from not only Islamic but also Christian and Jewish faiths rub shoulders easily with the vibrant mosaic that is contemporary Turkey.

Rhodes
There are islands in the Mediterranean with captivating history, fantastic beaches and beautiful scenery, and then there is an island like Rhodes that quite literally has it all. Long before the days of the Roman Empire, many a maritime trail led to Rhodes, the largest of Greece’s Dodecanese islands, named for the native pink hibiscus flowers. Unlike some popular Greek islands like Mykonos and Santorini, Rhodes is lush and green, a veritable garden in the eastern Aegean. And with an area of 541 square miles (1,400 square kilometers), it’s large too. Rhodes is also home to some of the most spectacular medieval fortifications anywhere, built by the Knights of the Order of Saint John in the 14th century. The virtually intact Palace of the Grand Master in the town of Rhodes is a Gothic jewel right out of a fairytale; this, combined with the Street of the Knights and some 200 winding lanes, creates a dazzling, living tapestry.

The island of Rhodes is in many ways a microcosm of Greece. The Old Town of Rhodes, at the northernmost point of the island, is probably the best-preserved medieval city in all of Europe. Midway down the eastern side, Lindos (some 55 km south of Rhodes town) blends archaeological intrigue with a panoramic town that is more reminiscent of a Cycladic island like Mykonos. The western side, meanwhile, has many orchards and vineyards as well as impressive ancient ruins at sites like Kameiros. The island’s interior is a place of verdant forests, hills and oases of calm like Seven Springs and the Valley of the Butterflies nature park, bringing to mind the countryside of northern Greece, while the beaches you’ll find in Rhodes are among the widest and best in Greece and indeed the Mediterranean.

Limassol
Limassol, the seaside city in Cyprus that is the island’s second-largest after its divided capital of Nicosia, is located between the ancient sites of Amathous to the east and Kourion to the west. Called Lemesos in Greek, travelers will find much to discover in and around this bustling, historic port. Limassol like Cyprus as a whole has seen many empires and conquerors come and go, absorbing the cultures and flavors they brought with them to become one of the most cosmopolitan ports in the Mediterranean, and indeed the world, today. Turn on the radio in Limassol at any time of day or night and you’re likely to hear everything from Greek, Cypriot and Lebanese pop music to Israeli news and English DJs: this is very much a modern crossroads of the Eastern Mediterranean.