DIY or Book Tours-MED

What are the pro's and con's of booking tours either through Princess or private versus touring on your own in the bigger cities such as Athens?

If you are going to DIY, you really need to have it planned out. If youjust get off the ship and then try to figure out how to get to the first sight, you will be wastingmuch of your time.

A lot of people will say private tours are much less expensive than the cruise line tours - so far we have always gone through the cruise line, mainly because we know the ship will wait for us if the tour is running late. We also had one instance when the tour was absolutely horrible, Princess refunded 100% of the cost for the six members of my family on that tour, we appreciated that Princess stood behind what they sold us.

A lot of people will say private tours are much less expensive than the cruise line tours - so far we have always gone through the cruise line, mainly because we know the ship will wait for us if the tour is running late. We also had one instance when the tour was absolutely horrible, Princess refunded 100% of the cost for the six members of my family on that tour, we appreciated that Princess stood behind what they sold us.

Well said! I completely agree, I would do it through Princess. Everything is taken care of and planned out. And for whatever reason the excursion may need to be refunded, you will get $100% refund. Plus I like the fact the ship will wait for you if running late...major plus.

Have fun in the med!!!! I spent an entire month in Europe this summer and loved ever second in the med. :)

We did private tours in Italy and Turkey. In Italy we used romeinlimo.com for a Rome tour and a Florence tour. There werre six of us. They used vans. The advantage was the vans could get a lot closer to the ruins and the sites we wanted to see. At the Vatican the driver gave us a cell phone and told us to call him when we were finished. Because we could get closer to what we wanted to see, we saw a lot more then the Princess bus tours. In Turkey we used Ekol tours. No upfront $$$ was required by either tour company. I highly recommend you look into these two compaines.:)

If you were to list the ports of call on your itinerary, you may get some responses specific to each port.

As for us, we have done ship sponsored, private, and do it yourself excursions throughout the Med.

Since you mentioned Athens...we did it ourselves. We walked to the train station in Piraeus and took a train from there close to the Plaka neighborhood of Athens where we enjoyed browsing the shops and then lunch. We then walked to the Acropolis where we explored before heading back to the ship.

Piraeus is one port where you do not want to hire a taxi for a tour. You're much better of with an organized excursion or doing it yourself.

Enjoy your cruise...

Lew

If there is a problem in port you do not have to worry

Hi There

Some rules we use

Do they speak english if not Ships tour

Is it many miles away from the port Ships tour

Is there a high risk of missing the port Ships tour

If never been to a major city before Ships tour

If well known local tour companies book local

If low risk item local tour company high risk ships just for safety

If going with foks who have been before local company

If visiting an island by ferry boat etc ships tour

If just going to a museum etc local company

If just touring local company

yours Shogun

Get a copy of Rick Steves' new book Rick Steves' Mediterranean Cruise Ports. He covers most of the ports and tells you how to get from the gangway to the transportation, how long it will take, what it should cost, where the tourist info sites are, where the bathrooms are, what to see and how long to spend there as well as cost, where the budget eats are...And how to catch up with the ship should it leave without you. I have had trouble finding it in bookstores, I think it is too new for them to acknowledge the value - or they can't keep it in stock. I pre-ordered mine from Amazon, and have about read it twice already! EM

Get a copy of Rick Steves' new book Rick Steves' Mediterranean Cruise Ports.

I have this book, that is why I am thinking we might be able to do Athens on our own because of the great information Steve gives. Thanks for all the great input from everyone.

We rarely take a ship's tour. I guess about half the time, we join a private tour, usually one organized by someone on our Roll Call. The rest of the time, we just get off and do our own thing. Sometimes, we just walk or take a shuttle to town. As mentioned above, Athens is a great DIY port. We ran into a number of people from the ship on the Metro as we all headed to the Acropolis and the Platka.

I think Shogun's post illustrated it best. They are just all kinds of factors to consider.

You can save a lot of money and see more on a private tour weighed against the risk of something going wrong and not making it back to the ship on time. Princes will wait for its tours. Also Princess will refund your money if you cancel up to about 24-36 hours before the tour and you cannot say the same for some private companies.

I have done both private and ship's tours. It just depends on the port, what you want to see, and the cost. Sometimes if you want to see something special and the Princess tours do not go there, you have no choice but a private tour. Is the private company reputable? Check out your roll and the shore excursions area for suggestions on private tours that others have taken. If you do miss the ship, how difficult is it to get to the next port of call? These are all things to consider.

The good news is, whichever method you use, you are in for some great sight-seeing! The Med is fantastic.

On our Med cruise we did all private tours with the exception of Messina. We decided to do the ship-sponsored tour to Mt. Etna there. Mainly as something different from all those cool ruins we saw. We did Rome on our own two days pre-cruise and one and a half days post-cruise. All of our privately booked tours were great. We have no regrets and the personal attention was great. I'm usually not happy to be part of the giant tour with the brightly colored sticker on my shirt so I don't get lost from the group. Choose the method of touring you're most comfortable with.

Have a great time!

I think Shogun's post illustrated it best. They are just all kinds of factors to consider.

 

You can save a lot of money and see more on a private tour weighed against the risk of something going wrong and not making it back to the ship on time. Princes will wait for its tours. Also Princess will refund your money if you cancel up to about 24-36 hours before the tour and you cannot say the same for some private companies.

 

I have done both private and ship's tours. It just depends on the port, what you want to see, and the cost. Sometimes if you want to see something special and the Princess tours do not go there, you have no choice but a private tour. Is the private company reputable? Check out your roll and the shore excursions area for suggestions on private tours that others have taken. If you do miss the ship, how difficult is it to get to the next port of call? These are all things to consider.

Rarely have we made any advanced payment for private tours.

On our Ocean P cruise in April and May you had to cancel ship's tours at least 60 hours in advance.

We have done 3 European cruises, two in the Med and one in the British Isles. On all 3 we did mostly private tours. IMHO, the ship's tour is usually the worst option, because (1) it is usually the most expensive option, (2) you are crowded onto a bus with 50 of your closest friends, (3) everyone moves at the pace of the slowest person, so you will have to sit on the bus waiting for the slowest person to get out of the bathroom or the gift shop, (4) they usually involve unwanted sales "opportunities" such as the infamous Turkish rug demonstrations.

Our private tour guide in Istanbul started his career as a guide on the cruise ship tour buses. He says those guides are paid a fixed amount per bus (e.g, 100 Euros) plus the guide shares with the cruise company in the kickback from the retail shop they force you to visit. On our cruise, an entire busload of passengers came back complaining because their Bosphorus cruise excursion was cut short so the the bus could have time to stop at the cruise-line-approved jewelry store.

I suggest you join your Roll Call and see if others are researching private tour and DIY options. And research the ports of call boards for your stops. There are lots of very helpful regulars on those boards.

There are many reputable companies doing private tours in the Med and know that their reviews on Cruise Critic are very important.

A lot depends on the specific ports and the days you'll be arriving there. For example, the Vatican is closed on Sunday and some museums in Florence are closed on Monday. If you join the roll call for your cruise, you'll find that a lot of people are doing research and/or may have been to the ports before. If you've got a good roll call going (or at least one I consider good), different people will organize tours for different ports of call, sharing the labor and the cost.

Something we like to do if using a private tour is to be off the ship early so that we get to the tourist attractions before the ship tours and are reboarding at least an hour or two before the posted return time. That way we build in some time for potential travel delays on our way back to the port. If doing a half-day tour, schedule it for the morning.

I remember one private tour we took in Iceland (for $US60 vs. the ship's $US229). The ship's tour did include lunch. Our guide skipped the first two photo ops to get well ahead of the ships buses. We then stopped for those photos on the way back.

Private tours usually will cost less than a ship's tour, but will sometimes cost more.

I have been on private tours with from four to 28 people. The advantage is that you will usually see more than if taking the equivalent Princess tour. The good guides will have you at the sights at times the various cruise ship busses are not there. You also will not go to any shopping stop that you do not want to.

One advantage of some Princess tours is that they can sometimes go to museums or some other places that are closed to the general public that day. As an example, on a cruise of the Greek Islands, many people said they would take a ferry from Mykonos to the Island of Delos and visit Delos for much less cost that the Princess tour. It turned out that day was the day of the week the island is closed for the general public and only the Princess tour was able to go there. Those expecting to do Delos on their own were then mad at Princess for not telling them before the cruise they would not be able to go to Delos unless they signed up for the now full Princess tour. So, if you are planning a private tour, be sure in advance that the places you want to see are open when you want to see them.

Absolutely, if you are going on either a private tour or a DIY tour, you MUST do your homework.

I would suggest the following

Look at the ports of call, lots of info and opinions there.

DIY is always cheapest but requires you to figure out travel time, deal with foreign country and foreign public transportation etc. etc. In many ports its easy in others the best sites are far away.

Cruiseline tours are easy, the cruise company takes a huge cut. Think how much you pay for a soda and that is the kind of premium you are paying. If you are really rich see how much the private car thru the line cost :eek:

SO for most its the big bus tour with 30-40 other strangers doing the tour at the slowest pace for the slowest tourist who can't keep time.

If you do private you can taylor the tour. You will almost be in a small private car with 4-8 people. That means much smaller group, faster and more efficient.

I highly recommend if you do tour go private and or tourshare for not the cost but for the best experience. For the price of a big bus cruiseline you get a private vehicle and tour share for 8 people will be similar cost but sooo much better experience.

If one doesn't have time and infinite budget, go private car thru the cruiseline. If you got some time and want to be smart do private non cruiseline. If you are adventurous and not in a hurry, DIY.

What are the pro's and con's of booking tours either through Princess or private versus touring on your own in the bigger cities such as Athens?

I like to DIY -- and I really mean DIY, not a private tour. But it's not for everyone. You really do have to plan. The ports of call boards for the Med are full of folks who've done this and/or booked private tours and can give great, very detailed information.

As for some of the standard objections, I have to disagree.

-- In most of the Med destinations visited by large cruise ships, English is understood by a high percentage of the population. They may not be fluent, but you can certainly communicate.

-- The fear of missing the ship is very overblown, particularly in the Med where tours/guides are professionals. It's not like the Caribbean with Joe Schmoe and his dilapidated jeep. Most private tours drive Mercedes or similar cars, and they have backup vehicles and drivers available should anything happen. Ships tours are late to the ship because they KNOW they can be. Private tours are not late to the ship because they KNOW they can't be.

-- Similarly, the horror stories of strikes on public transportation in Europe are very out of proportion to reality. Strikes are announced in advance (and often called off). In Italy, for example, even when there are train strikes, there are usually a few trains that will still run. And so on....... Of course, rare events will happen, but to read these boards, you'd think the trains were on strike every other day....

-- You CAN do it yourself or take a private tour if you've never been to a particular port before. There are many good sources for information. My sister and BIL took their first Med cruise a few years ago and with information from various guidebooks and from me, they were able to DIY in every port (including Rome and Florence using public transportation) and they had a great time.

Good luck with your planning. If that's the route you want to go, there's nothing stopping you from doing it! :)

Get a copy of Rick Steves' new book Rick Steves' Mediterranean Cruise Ports.

 

I have this book, that is why I am thinking we might be able to do Athens on our own because of the great information Steve gives. Thanks for all the great input from everyone.

We used Rick for his walking tours in Athens. We were up at the Acropolis by 0800 and done before the ship's tours even showed up....when it was 105'.

His walking tour of Dubrovnik saved us $$$$ which was well-spent elsewhere! A little homework makes for a far more pleasant visit and you can learn a bit more in the process!!

msk1

We have done 6+ cruises in the Mediterranean over the years. We generally visit ports on our own.

Whether you use a ship tour, private tour or explore on your own depends on what you want to do.

We much prefer to explore ports on our own. Because we love to wander around in a city and discover the place on our own. We don't care to simply see the typical tourist traps or museums for the most part. We speak a number of languages which helps us explore on our own.

We do some research before we go, have a good idea of what we are interested in and go from there.

There are a few exceptions, we did take a ship tour in Eypgt because of concerns about security and the distance involved in travel to and from the ship.

Most Mediterranean ports are easy to enjoy on our own, provided you don't need to see everything in one day. We always count on coming back again and we have many times. Each time we return we do something different.

On our first Med cruise we did many private tours, checking on CC and also on other sites to cross-reference those guides that people love. We had a great time, and wonderful guides. We thought we could do Athens on our own. Hated that port...soooooo, this cruise (just finished on the Ruby) - we hired a guide. Ended up being one of our favorite ports. Having a local guide that tells additional stories, gets to places that a big tour bus can't go, etc. is priceless. All of our private excursions cost less that the ship's tours, and I really feel you see twice as much. This is there living, they will make sure you get back in time...

I'm so glad to hear that Rick Steves has a new book for cruising the Med. I have used his books for years on land based trips. They are very thorough and interesting. I always felt we could travel anywhere in Europe with Rick's books to guide us.

We did the Med on a cruise a couple of years ago, and we hired a taxi driver when we left the ship in Athens. There are many of them there to greet you. We just made sure what he was going to charge before we got in the taxi, and listened to make sure he spoke understandable English. He was very accomodating and took us all around the city. I'm sure we saw more of the sites than the people on the ship's big bus tour (we have also been there and done that). He told us a lot about the city, but he did not go into the sites with us as a guide. He was very careful to return us to the ship in plenty of time. If you want someone who will be your guide at the different sites, then you would be better off booking a private guide before you leave home. We always try to do private tours or taxis when we feel comfortable with it.