Greek Isles and Turkey on Celebrity Equinox

11 nights roundtrip cruise from /to Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy

July 23–August 3, 2012
Celebrity's Equinox

Pied Piper once again offers its popular cruise to the Greek Isles and Turkey on the ultra stylish new ship, Celebrity Equinox! A journey to this sun-drenched part of the Mediterranean is an unforgettable mix of ancient culture and contemporary relaxed society. The beauty of the region is undeniable.

On this Pied Piper gay group cruise, you will sail round trip out of Civitavecchia (Rome) Italy through the calm and cerulean blue waters of the Mediterranean visiting the romantic and picturesque islands of Santorini and gay friendly Mykonos. You'll have an overnight visit in Istanbul, the gateway to the Far East. Join us on this cruise into ancient history in modern comfort.

All this is yours while you are pampered with gracious service, gourmet dining, and numerous venues for entertainment on the brand new and most up-to-date luxury cruise ship.

Celebrity's Equinox

The very essence of luxury, this is Celebrity Equinox. Shimmering in sophistication from bow to stern, she will exceed your expectations as soon as you step aboard. Delight in your choice of ten exceptional dining venues; relax in spacious and well appointed accommodations; or let the grass between your toes take you out to sea at the unprecedented Lawn Club. With every imaginably comfort, along with Celebrity's unrivaled guest services, you are bound for greatness no matter your destination.

Celebrity Equinox upholds the standards of Celebrity's Solstice class with the tradition of signature service, quality dining and personal amenities. Like others in its class, the Equinox offers wireless Internet, flat-screen televisions in large staterooms, plush bedding and additional space for storage.

Spa enthusiasts staying within the AquaClass category of veranda staterooms are just a few steps away from the relaxing AquaSpa, which encompasses a solarium with lap pool, Persian Garden with steam rooms and sauna, and private treatment rooms. The AquaSpa Café is also located on the premises and serves light, healthful dishes, and AquaClass guests gain exclusive, complimentary access to Blu, a 130-seat specialty restaurant.

Eight additional dining venues are available, including the Silhouette Dining Room, the casual Oceanview Café and Bar and Murano, just to name a few.

In the evenings, the Equinox offers an impressive array of evening entertainment. Take in a fabulous production in the Equinox Theatre, enjoy a late-night comedy show at Celebrity Central or explore the ship's bars and lounges, each with its own unique atmosphere.

One of the ship's most interesting features is The Lawn Club that boasts a freshly manicured lawn of real grass and casual outdoor activities. Overlooking this park-like area is the Patio on the Lawn, which is the perfect place for relaxing with a good book and cup of gourmet coffee.

Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy

Once the center of the ancient world from which emperors ruled over nearly all of western civilization for hundreds of years, Rome is still considered by many to reign over all other European destinations. Here you can breathe the air once breathed by great Roman gladiators in the ancient halls of the Colosseum. Gaze upon the very ceilings Michelangelo painted at the Sistine Chapel. Or visit a monument to both size and faith, St. Peter's Basilica, the largest church ever built.

Colosseum
Completed 80 A.D., the circus was home to centuries of gladiatorial combats and featured 76 numbered entrances, marble seats and subterranean passages, where animals and apparatus were kept. The arena floor could be flooded to host naval combats.

Roman Forum
The ruins of the forum stand in mute testimony to what Byron described as the "grandeur that was Rome".

Sistine Chapel
The gem of the Vatican Museum is the celebrated chapel that is home to Michelangelo's frescoes 'The Creation' and 'The Last Judgement'.

Spanish Steps
The heart of Rome's old Bohemian Quarter (Keats and Shelley lived nearby), the steps take their name from the 16th century Spanish Embassy to the Holy Sea. Today the area surrounding Piazza Espagna is the city's chic shopping district.

St.Peter's Basilica
By far the largest church in the world, St. Peter's Basilica took more than 100 years to build. Some of the greatest figures of the Renaissance were employed in its creation, from Bramante and Bernini to Michelangelo and Raphael.

Trevi Fountain
Blue-green water cascades over the Baroque figures of Rome's most famous fountain. Follow custom and toss a coin into the fountain, a gesture that insures your return to the Eternal City.

Vatican City
The spiritual and administrative centre of Roman Catholicism is also one of the smallest independent states in the world. The Vatican mints its own coins, prints its own stamps, and maintains its own army of Swiss Guards.

Santorini, Greece

35.25 degrees north. 25.20 degrees east. Perfection has coordinates. Here on Santorini, you'll find whitewashed houses accented by roofs of the bluest blue - there's no doubt that azure waters of the Aegean have served as creative inspiration. Among the many historic sites on the island is the ancient city of Akrotiri, once buried under a thick blanket of volcanic ash over 3,600 years ago.

Known as the "Black Pearl of the Aegean," Santorini has one of the most dramatic backdrops of cliffs, sea and sky in the world. The island was not always crescent-shaped as it is today. A volcanic eruption during the Bronze Age caused the middle of this once-circular island to sink, leaving an enormous sea-filled crater flanked by mammoth cliffs. This cataclysmic event is the reason for many of the island's remarkable features -- from its black-sand beaches and exquisite wines, to its fascinating archeological sites.

Akrotiri
Visit Akrotiri, where Minoan Pompey, a well-preserved archeological site from the Bronze Age, was excavated. This ancient city was covered in pumice when the island's volcano erupted. Some believe these ruins to be the lost city of Atlantis.

Santo Winery
Santorini's climate and volcanic soil allows for an exceptional grape-growing region. The Santo Winery sits at the peak of the cliff-like caldera and offers superb views.

Fira
The largest town on Santorini is a cluster of whitewashed buildings clinging to volcanic cliffs and at sunset it could perhaps be the most beautiful place on Earth.

Istanbul, Turkey

In exotic Istanbul, it's easy to spend an entire day strolling through the grand Bazaar, exploring the famous Blue Mosque, or wandering through the majestic Topkapi Palace, with its gardens, libraries and 400-room harem.

Blue Mosque
One of Istanbul's most well-known landmarks with its cascading domes and six minarets. The Blue Mosque is spectacular both inside and out.

Topkapi Palace
One of the world's largest and oldest palaces still in existence, this palace was converted into a museum and now houses many Turkish artefacts from the 15th century onwards.

Grand Bazaar
The Grand Bazaar consists of 60 streets and 5,000 shops and is perfect to purchase jewellery, hand-painted ceramics, carpets, embroideries, spices and antiques while soaking up the bustling atmosphere that surrounds it.

Turkish Baths
No visit to Turkey is complete without a traditional hamam.

Sultanahmet
The old peninsula of Istanbul is home to some of the most important buildings in the city. The Sultanahmet Mosque is the only mosque in the world with six minarets.

Istikal Street
One of the city's leading shopping and entertainment districts.

Ephesus (Kusadasi), Turkey

Nestled along the craggy shores of the Aegean Sea is the Turkish port of Kusadasi. Renowned as one of the most beautiful cities along the Aegean, Kusadasi is blessed with sunshine an average of 300 days a year. This beautiful city is the perfect setting to begin your journey to Ephesus.

Ephesus
The Magnesia Gate entrance leads to a downhill, marble-paved road into the ruins of this Roman provincial capital and continues past the Odeum, the Celsus Library, the Temple of Hadrian, the Fountain of Trajan and the Great Theatre. The theatre had seating for 25,000, and is the site where St. Paul preached to the Ephesians.

Basilica of St.John
Built by the Emperor Justinian over the tomb of St. John the Apostle, the Basilica, now in ruins, apart from a number of graceful columns and colourful mosaics, once rivaled St. Sophia in size.

House of the Virgin Mary
The Vatican has recognised this small house in the Solmissos Mountains as the final resting place of the Virgin Mary. A small shrine dedicated to St. Mary was found when the ruins of the house were first discovered.

Ephesus Museum
This small museum in Selcuk boasts an incredible collection of Hellenistic and Roman statues, carved reliefs and artifacts unearthed from the ruins of Ephesus.

St.Mary's Church
Located inside Ephesus, the church was used for the education of the Ephesian priests and is believed to be the first church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the World. The Third Ecumenical Council was held in this building in 431 A.D.

Miletus
These ancient ruins lie on a hill near the Aegean Sea and feature an ancient theatre, built around 4th-century B.C. to accommodate over 15,000 spectators along with the well-preserved Bath of Faustina, named after the wife of Marcus Aurelius, who ordered their construction.

Didyma
The entrance to the Temple of Apollo, one of the largest temples from the Helenistic Period, is marked by a marble Persian lion. A grand stairway leads to 103 remarkably well-preserved Ionian columns, some still stretching toward the heavens. The colossal scale of the monument, intended to dwarf the pilgrim, placed man in an inferior relationship with the gods.

Athens (Piraeus), Greece

Your adventure in Athens begins five miles southwest in Greece's largest seaport, known as Piraeus. While here, be sure to take notice of what is considered to be one of the greatest contributions from the ancient Age of Pericles, the city's infrastructure, which today we know as a city block.

Acropolis
The Acropolis is the heart of classical Athens and the site of the Parthenon, the Propylea, the Temple of Athena Nike (or Wingless Victory), the Erectheion, and the Acropolis Museum.

Ancient Corinth
Once the wealthiest and wickedest city in Greece, Corinth was evangelized by St Paul in the 1st century.

Corinth Canal
This 19th-century engineering marvel bisects the Peloponnesian peninsula and connects the Aegean and Ionian Seas.

Delphi
Perched on the slopes of Mt Parnassus, the temple complex was home to the ancient world's most revered prophetess.

National Archaeological Museum
The museum boasts important archaeological finds from all over Greece.

Old Olympic Stadium
The site for archery competition and the finish of the marathon in the 2004 Olympics, the stadium originally hosted the first modern Olympics in 1896.

Mykonos, Greece

Few places in the world compare with Mykonos. Here you'll find whitewashed houses clinging to cliffs against a backdrop of indescribably blue sea. Follow a maze of tiny streets, visit one of the world's most superb beaches, or see the mythical birthplace of Apollo, the island of Mykonos.

Chora Village
Walk the labyrinth streets of traditional white-washed and beautiful churches and chapels. Visit the famous white-washed windmills for a fantastic view of the Little Venice.

The Islet Delos
One of the worlds leading archaeological sites which dates back to 3000BC and was the birthplace of the highly respected Greek God. Situated 2km to the west of Mykonos the whole island has been declared a national musuem.

The Church of Panagia Paraportiani
The most photographed of Mykonos' 250 churches is made up of four tiny-whitewashed churches and the main church, magnificent and asymmetrical.

Aegean Maritime Museum
Housing a collection of ships from the pre-Minoan period through to the 19th century.

Naples/Capri, Italy

Located on the southern coast of Italy, Naples has spectacular scenery that attracts artists from around the world. From this key spot, you can embark on a trip to the ruins of Pompeii or shop the many boutiques of Sorrento. You may work up an appetite for one of Naples' greatest inventions - pizza - invented to honor the Queen of Italy in 1889.

Pompeii
The ancient Roman resort was buried in ash during the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 A.D.

Capri
This gem in the Bay of Naples has been a popular destination since the days of the Caesars.

Amalfi Coast
The Amalfi Coast, stretching from Sorrento to Salerno, is one of the most stunning coastal drives in the world.

Positano
Jumbles of whitewashed and pastel-coloured houses make this one of the most photogenic villages on the Amalfi Coast.

Sorrento
Set along the cliff tops, the flower-filled town is the gateway to both Capri and the Amalfi Coast.

Villa San Michele
This lovely garden villa is found in Capri's village of Anacapri.

Herculaneum
Like Pompeii, Herculaneum was buried during the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 A.D.