Windstar Overview

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Athens to Haifa

Quebec’s French-flavored history, Prince Edward Island’s anachronistic charm, the fusion of Acadian and Scottish cultures in Nova Scotia—each province distills its own blend of Old World and New, bucolic and urbane. Browse the shops and boulangeries along Quebec City’s picturesque Petit Champlain, the oldest street in North America. Fall under the spell of Charlottetown and Gaspe with their bright red covered bridges and Anne of Green Gables vibe, and Halifax with its lively pub culture and majestic Citadel.

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Day 1: Athens

With 3,000 years of history, you can’t turn around in Athens without encountering the past. The Acropolis, a UNESCO site, the Plaka, and the Acropolis Museum are must-sees. But leave time if you can to climb Pnyx Hill for photos of the Parthenon at sunset, to buy your own set of Greek komboloi (worry beads), and to explore the metro stations that serve as mini-museums for the relics that are constantly being unearthed.

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Day 2: Mykonos

Wake this morning to the postcard-like scene of Mykonos, the classic Greek isle dotted with hundreds of whitewashed churches and thatch-roofed windmills, in a harbor bobbing with fishing boats and luxurious private yachts. An optional tour including a scenic ferry ride takes you back to the 6th century B.C. to the tiny island of Delos, a UNESCO site and the mythical birthplace of Apollo.

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Day 3: Heraklion

Heraklion is the birthplace of El Greco, Nobel Prize winning poet Odysseas Elytis, and Nikos Kazantzakis. The major site of Crete’s biggest city is Knossos Palace, the Minoan-era castle unearthed by British archaeologist Arthur Evans. But the first site you will see is the Koules Venetian Fortress built in the early 1500s on the harbor walls, it houses restored interior and exterior reliefs of the Lion of St. Mark. A typical feature of Heraklion’s city center is the number of Venetian and Turkish fountains, the most notable being the Morosini Fountain, built to supply Heraklion with 1,000 barrels of water a day.

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Day 4: Rhodes

This gracious oasis, known as the “Island of Roses,” was home to the legendary Colossus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Today it is a yachting paradise, whose shores are lined with sparkling beaches and lush green mountainsides. A scenic drive leads you through quaint villages and lemon groves to the ancient Acropolis of Lindos, standing guard over the picturesque town or to the Old City of Rhodes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site

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Day 5: Rhodes

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Day 6: Limassol

Limassol is known for several historic buildings like the Limassol Castle, Built in 1000 A.D. and used as a prison from 1790 to 1940 with a collection of artifacts covering 400 to 1879 A.D. Sites to see include the Archaeological Museum of Limassol, which exhibits artifacts from the Neolithic to the Roman period and the Folk Art Museum with a Cypriot Folk Art collection that awarded the museum the Europa Nostra prize in 1989.

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Day 7: Ashdod

Ashdod is one of the most ancient cities in the world. Visit the Korin Maman Museum, which has a permanent archaeology exhibition called “Philistian World,” Climb to Giv’at Yonah, the highest point of the city at 492 feet, with a city lighthouse atop and named after the prophet Jonah, believed to be buried there. Ashdod is your gateway to Jerusalem, the Mount of Olives, the Western Wall and the Temple Mount.

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Day 8: Haifa

The major seaport of Haifa has many fascinating sites like Elijah’s Cave, a pilgrimage site for believers, the Stella Maris Church and Monastery, located near the Cave, Muhraka, now a Carmelite monastery on the site where Elijah the Prophet defeated the prophets of Baal, and the Bahai Shrine, a lovely gold-domed shrine where the remains of Said Ali Muhammad, one of the two founders of the Bahai religion are buried. Three gardens of note are The Remembrance Garden, Gan Ha’em, situated in the Carmel Center, and the Sculpture Garden, where 22 bronze statues overlook the striking bay area and landscape. Here is your gateway to Petra with an overnight tour.

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Day 9: Haifa