Ferry across the Adriatic
We started this adventure by boarding the Superfast II ferry from Ancona Italy to Patras Greece. It’s one of the most convenient and quickest ways across the Adriatic. It saved us several days of riding and got us to the real start of our adventure in Greece and Turkey. The cost varies by route, ferry, and accommodation, but when you figure the time, fuel, food and lodging costs, it works out well.
There are several online options for booking a ferry. We’ve personally used directferries.com and aferry.co.uk and both are pretty good. You can search by origin and destination and then book the number of passengers, vehicle type, and accommodations. Not all ferries are alike, just like airplanes some are newer and some not. The accommodations are spartan, but rooms have decent beds and a bathroom with shower. The food is OK and there are some traditional meals available too.
We’ve been able to island hop in Greece, cross both ways from Greece to Italy and back, and cross the Baltic to and from Scandanavia (more to come on that trip!). Loading and unloading the bike is pretty easy, just ride up into the belly of the ship, tie the bike down with the help of the attendants and it’s all good. All that and you get a great ride on the water. What could be better?