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GREECE, AUTUMN CRUISE – 2025

PREPARATION

From 11 JULY TO 25 SEPTEMBER 2025

As recorded in our Spring 2025 Blog 4, we returned to the UK from Greece in mid-July after our three-month cruise through the islands off the coast of Croatia.

Overview of Spring 2025 Cruise in Croatia

In total, we spent six weeks of the summer at our family beach chalet at Calshot, where we were joined for two weeks by our granddaughter Emmy. During that time, Helen took Emmy to visit her niece Lucy, whose daughter Sophie, as an employee, had arranged tickets to Cadbury’s World, which Emmy had always wanted to visit!

Emmy and Helen meet Bertie Bassett at Cadbury Word!!

Emmy about to start a 2-day RYA dinghy sailing 

course at the nearby Calshot Activity Centre

For three weeks during the remaining period Helen went to help out one of Mike’s ex-Army friends who had had a replacement hip operation.

Meanwhile, Mike remained in Harrogate and spent most of his time sorting out the usual 3-month accumulation of house and administrative issues. We both fitted in a series of medical and dental appointments.

On 16 September we stayed at Will and Lesley’s flat in London. Regrettably our car, parked outside, was broken into overnight. Two of our smaller bags were removed and the larger hold bag was ransacked. Fortunately, we had a separate bag of valuables, including our passports, inside the flat and hence decided to simply go ahead with the flight that day and sort ourselves out once in Greece!

At the airport Mike was temporarily stopped from boarding since, although his passport showed that it did not expire until July 2026, under the post-Brexit EU 10-year rule, it was out of date. We were not aware nor were we advised in advance by EasyJet of this Agreement. Fortunately, EasyJet were prepared to let Mike fly since he has a valid 5-year Greek Residency Card. Whether the UK will let him back in again is a different matter!

Since our Autumn Cruise will be restricted by the weather to two months, we spent the minimum time on the hard in the boatyard preparing for sea, before launching and completing a 2-hour sea trial to the Santa Maura quay at the north end of the Levkas Canal, where we are currently berthed alongside for a couple of days to sort ourselves and the boat out – and more importantly to watch the Southern Hemisphere Four Nations Rugby matches and the Red Roses win the Women’s Rugby World Cup.

A busy morning at Aktio boatyard (opposite Preveza) with ID alongside the launch dock waiting for the office’s paperwork

We now plan to cruise north to and recce Corfu and its satellite islands, together with the adjacent Greek mainland, and, if time permits, spend some time in the Gulf of Amvrakikos.

Chart of our proposed cruising area