Rant/Request: Valencia

We are in port on Norwegian Jade, February 19 2015. This is an edited version of what I posted in our roll call. If people cruising on other lines can use this themselves or help, so much the better.

TL, DR Version:

--We are 4, looking for a private tour (or to share) in/out of Valencia. I don't walk that well.

--Try as we may, we can't book anything suitable. Nothing.

--Most operators don't even respond

--We are on a list at "Do Valencia", but they are expensive and don't even guarantee departure, so we would bail out if something guaranteed came up

--If you're a cruiser or tour operator and putting something together with room for four more that requires less walking than is typical, mail me at shawnino@hotmail.com

LONG, SAD STORY

Valencia is, in some ways, a miniature London in the sense that a lot of the classic sights worth seeing are in a reasonably compact area. As such, most of the top tours onTrip Advisor are advertised as walking tours (or scooter, or segway). I kind of understand that. The waterfront is nice, and the only other place I've been is Mestalla (brilliant). But walking from point to point and also standing as one goes through the attractions... all in, too much walking and standing for me. I'd actually like to spend some time in the city, but also maybe see the nature outside. Even in winter. Or not. I'm metaphorically flexible, even if I'm literally arthritic.

So I didn't bother with the operators that seem like strictly walking tours, but I've written the rest at the top of the list on Trip Advisor. Most can't be bothered to reply. That's abjectly ridiculous. Full credit and deep thanks to the two who did, said their product didn't suit our needs, and offered other useful suggestions: Miguel at Valencia Explorers and Roos at Tour Valencia. Thanks you two. The rest were dead silent.

One excursion that looks good is Do Valencia. Trip Advisor page here:

http://www.tripadvisor.ca/Attraction_Review-g187529-d1887315-Reviews-Do_Valencia_Hot_Spring_Day_Tours-Valencia_Valencia_Province_Valencian_Country.html

Shore excursion here:

http://www.do-valencia.com/shore-excursions-valencia.html

I got ahold of Mike there and he wrote back. He needs 10 people for departure and it's EUR 90 pp. Now the excursion looks good in my mind but that's a really high rate when one considers that a few of us have been booking minivans for eight about the Mediterranean at EUR 500 or less. And no guaranteed departure--what's up with that?

So he's taken my name and if he can make ten he'll be in touch. I told him fine, but that in the mean time I'd be looking for something with guaranteed departure. He said he understood. If you are interested in his excursion, please get in touch with him. Feel free to mention that Shawn's four are in port the same day and remain interested, but I'm not organizing this as we don't benefit from a group discount.

So, in the interim, if you are putting something else together and would like four people to join you, please get in touch. If you're an operator who would like to accommodate us, please get in touch. (If you needed a couple more people, I might be able to twist an arm or two in the roll call, but I'm not going to try to chase for eight or ten people unless the overall cost is fixed and we can effectively get a group discount.) Right now I'm just planning on catching a cab to the science museum, and while that'll be OK, I was hoping for more.

Thanks for reading.

Bumping in desperation :(