Byzantine Bow – Ravenna to Istanbul via Aegean Jewels

About this cruise

This one leaves Ravenna on August 8, 2027 and spends 10 nights visiting Dubrovnik, Bar and Piraeus (Athens), with additional stops along the Eastern Mediterranean at a pace where every day has something going on but there's always time to just sit and watch the water too. You get off in Istanbul, which is a good excuse to tack on a few days on land. There's a stretch of back-to-back port days, so those days are busy, but the sea days around them give you time to recharge. The route threads through 4 countries along the Eastern Mediterranean coast: Croatia, Montenegro, Greece and Türkiye. Most ports give you about 10 hours, so you can do more than just tick off the main sights. As for the ship itself, Norwegian Viva joined the Norwegian Cruise Line's lineup in 2023. Still has that new-ship feel. By night three you start recognising faces; by night ten you're swapping numbers. That's the magic of a longer sailing. It's peak season, so the weather is at its best and the ship will be full. That's part of the fun. 10 nights of not thinking about anything except where to eat next. That's the pitch.