Tour Guide Recommendations that don't require I sell my kidneys

Heya,

So hopefully (haven't booked yet) my mother and I will be joining an NCL cruise on a 10 day Western Mediterranean Cruise. It's port heavy and it visits Italy, France and Spain.

The ports in in Italy are

1- Departs from Civitavecchio (Rome) 5 PM

2- Livorno (Florence/Pisa) 6AM - 7 PM

3- Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy 10 AM - 6 PM

4- Messina 8AM - 6 PM

5- Naples/Pompeii, Italy 7AM - 7PM

6- Arrive back at Civitavecchia (Rome) @6AM

I plan on spending the full day in Rome upon arrival on Friday + Monday (2 days)... fly out Tuesday. Honestly - I don't know much about Cagliari/Messina (I WILL be researching that). I am very excited about Florence/Pisa, Naples/Pompeii and Rome! I was very excited until....

... recently I learned that in Italy there are licensed guides vs drivers "guides" (who can't leave the car). It's irritating to me in a sense that now official guides will easily charge 1500 Euro (not even a "skip-the-line" and some don't include admission tickets!!) for a 2 day tour of Rome. I understand it's to vet out questionable guides - but that's where this site, TA, Yelp, Google Reviews etc etc are for! Maybe Italy is that expensive I don't know. And drivers charge 700 euro... really? I don't mind joining a small group - but I've visited the top 20 companies listed on TA and none of them offer a guide option for a small group (just private oO).

I'm hoping to do a full day combo tour in Florence/Pisa and Naples/Pompeii from my cruise port. Then a full 2 day Rome tour - any recommendations that won't have me in debt for the next year or so. I understand that I can just walk around... then do a land trip and visit the sites on my own accord etc etc. But I'll be honest with you - my plans for the next three years don't include Europe. This may very well be my last chance to see Europe/Italy in a LONG time. (Most of my trips are Scuba Dive based).

Thanks!

PS. Any advice, thoughts, recommendations of ANY kind are appreciated. Feel free to privately message me

I can't really give you advice for tour guides as we didn't use any in Rome. However, a website that I found was invaluable when I was planning/researching our 6 days in Rome was RomeWise.com It is written by a North American (American I believe) ex-pat living in Rome and gives all kinds of advice and links for sites, hotels, restaurants, and tours. Perhaps it can give you what you are looking for. I learned a lot from that website. I hope it helps!

Hi,you can diy Rome quite easily by doing a little bit of homework.Use the subway system and book all the major attractions online with timeslots which enable you to jump the line.Just make sure you use the official websites.Cheers,Brian.

Hi Baz Al,

On this cruise critic you can find other people who are on the cruise you plan to take. That’s called a roll call. On my iPad, I touch “Browse” then I get a drop down. That will show “Roll Calls” touch that, and then select NCL. Then you’ll be asked to select the ship. Next a whole bunch of different dates should pop-up and select your cruise. Hopefully, some of the other passengers will be forming small group tours for your ports of call.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

You might try obtaining some books by Rick Steves. He is very prolific

in writing about touring in Europe. You may also find some of his tv

episodes on YouTube.

One of the books I purchased is titled: "Mediterranean Cruise Ports".

It is very detailed and offers free audio tours to do on your own.

Got to hear Rick Steves at the New York Times Travel Show a few years ago! His videos are very good but in person amazing! His tour books are the Bible for traveling and if you visit his website, http://www.Ricksteves.com there is a forum where others post updates. It helps to keep the books info updated.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Yes, guides can be expensive, and there is an economy of scale. A private guide for 2 will cost much more per person than if you find 6-8 friends to split the cost. That's where your ship's Roll Call can help.

I've done driver only, and guide with driver. Our driver was moderately knowledgeable about the area, but as noted, did not leave the car. We were dropped off and given a pickup time and place. We learned so much more, much more than a guide book could tell you, when we've had guides as well.

Florence/Pisa should be relatively easy to do on your own. Lots of good information here on how to get the train/bus. You do not need a guide for Pisa. There's only so much to see.

Naples/Pompeii is also easy to get to, though arranging a guide to meet you at Pompeii may be worth the cost. We really enjoyed our guide there, as there is so much to see and my kids still talk about how much the learned there. Even all the little details were really interesting. (Disclosure, we did Pompeii on a land tour, so I have no personal experience on getting there from the port.)

We loved Sardinia, and used a private guide to take us into the mountains to learn about the culture and food. We had kids with us and then spent a couple hours at a pocket beach with locals. https://www.secretsofsardinia.com/shore-excursions-cagliari.html They have the option to join a tour, max 9 passengers. Again, economy of scale.

Advice? Sure. Do what we have been doing for over forty years of extensive travel and simply Do It Yourself (DIY). If a person is intelligent enough to find themselves to Cruise Critic and figure out how to post, then they are also smart enough to do a little pre-trip homework and DIY. The cost savings can be staggering and the satisfaction level also quite amazing. For example, if I am walking (with DW) near the Piazza Navona (Rome) and want to relax for a few minutes (or a few hours) DW and I will simply choose one of the outdoor cafes and sit for some coffee, wine, etc. We do not worry about a schedule, don't have to stand around waiting for the one slow person that is on every tour, etc. We simply do what we want, when we want. If we are in a place that we really enjoy we simply stay awhile. If we are walking down a street and see an interesting market, shop, etc. we simply stop and enjoy. With a structured tour this is not what happens.

Are guides valuable? Absolutely. When we went to the Hermitage (St Petersburg) for our first visit we simply joined together with 1 other person and hired a private guide (for a lot less than a cruise ship excursion)? If we want a guided tour of the Vatican we can arrange that directly with the Vatican and get a guide specific for that venue. But we do not need a guide to show us the Trevi Fountain or Spanish Steps. We have eyes, a working cell phone (with data), and often a decent guide book such as the Rick Steves books.

Hank

For the original poster, just a heads up, the private message function does not work on here and never has.....so no way for anyone to reach you that way.

Our Walking Tour Guide in Rome through the agency Rome In Limo cost us under 200 Euros, this was a couple years ago but am sure it can't be that much more. We also had a guide for the Vatican Museums for about the same price.

Our all day driver/guide in Rome was wonderful and very knowledgeable. This was also through Rome In Limo and didn't cost anywhere near 1500 Euro...

I would contact Rome In Limo and whatever other tour agencies with good reviews, tell them what you're looking for and am sure you can find something that will work for you.

The Limo in Rome is brilliant! Apparently you can start a group and have others join... if I can get 8 people - that's 81.25 euro/person!

I should do that for all the ports - since they have great reviews and great shore activity descriptions. It's best to post this in the roll call section? I hope people join. Given it's in August - when is the best time to post this so people join?

The Limo in Rome is brilliant! Apparently you can start a group and have others join... if I can get 8 people - that's 81.25 euro/person!

 

I should do that for all the ports - since they have great reviews and great shore activity descriptions. It's best to post this in the roll call section? I hope people join. Given it's in August - when is the best time to post this so people join?

Yes, give detailed information about the tours on your cruise’s roll call. Give ur email address so people can contact u but write it like this so it doesn’t become a link:

CC at ( instead of @) provider dot (instead of .) com. Good luck :)

Sent from my iPad using Forums

The Limo in Rome is brilliant! Apparently you can start a group and have others join... if I can get 8 people - that's 81.25 euro/person!

 

I should do that for all the ports - since they have great reviews and great shore activity descriptions. It's best to post this in the roll call section? I hope people join. Given it's in August - when is the best time to post this so people join?

You can join your roll call at any time but you might as well do it as soon as you book the trip. Read through it as you may find others who are arranging tours and still looking for additional people. My next trip in 2 weeks has a phenomenal roll call with multiple tours set up. People even maintained wait lists so that as some early cruisers cancelled others could be filled in. It is one of the great benefits of using this site.

For your specific ports I would personally do Florence on your own with a little preparation and a good guidebook. As I often say, Florence is a gorgeous city with art, wonderful architecture, history and great gelato. Pisa on the other hand is a nice town with a tower that leans. Unless having a picture of yourself holding up the leaning tower is a must I would skip it and dedicate the whole day to Florence.

An easy approach to Messina is to arrange any method, OYO, ships transport, etc. to get to Taormina where you can again easily wander to all the sites.

Our all day driver/guide in Rome was wonderful and very knowledgeable.

No such thing. A driver can be quite knowledgeable and entertaining but they are not a guide.

The Limo in Rome is brilliant! Apparently you can start a group and have others join... if I can get 8 people - that's 81.25 euro/person!

 

I should do that for all the ports - since they have great reviews and great shore activity descriptions. It's best to post this in the roll call section? I hope people join. Given it's in August - when is the best time to post this so people join?

If it’s this August, you will find very active roll calls already set up. A quick glance shows many excursions set up on the various Spirit August roll calls.

A reminder, with Rome in Limo you generally don’t have a guide...just a driver.

Heya,

 

So hopefully (haven't booked yet) my mother and I will be joining an NCL cruise on a 10 day Western Mediterranean Cruise. It's port heavy and it visits Italy, France and Spain.

 

The ports in in Italy are

1- Departs from Civitavecchio (Rome) 5 PM

2- Livorno (Florence/Pisa) 6AM - 7 PM

3- Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy 10 AM - 6 PM

4- Messina 8AM - 6 PM

5- Naples/Pompeii, Italy 7AM - 7PM

6- Arrive back at Civitavecchia (Rome) @6AM

 

I plan on spending the full day in Rome upon arrival on Friday + Monday (2 days)... fly out Tuesday. Honestly - I don't know much about Cagliari/Messina (I WILL be researching that). I am very excited about Florence/Pisa, Naples/Pompeii and Rome! I was very excited until....

 

... recently I learned that in Italy there are licensed guides vs drivers "guides" (who can't leave the car). It's irritating to me in a sense that now official guides will easily charge 1500 Euro (not even a "skip-the-line" and some don't include admission tickets!!) for a 2 day tour of Rome. I understand it's to vet out questionable guides - but that's where this site, TA, Yelp, Google Reviews etc etc are for! Maybe Italy is that expensive I don't know. And drivers charge 700 euro... really? I don't mind joining a small group - but I've visited the top 20 companies listed on TA and none of them offer a guide option for a small group (just private oO).

 

 

I'm hoping to do a full day combo tour in Florence/Pisa and Naples/Pompeii from my cruise port. Then a full 2 day Rome tour - any recommendations that won't have me in debt for the next year or so. I understand that I can just walk around... then do a land trip and visit the sites on my own accord etc etc. But I'll be honest with you - my plans for the next three years don't include Europe. This may very well be my last chance to see Europe/Italy in a LONG time. (Most of my trips are Scuba Dive based).

 

Thanks!

 

PS. Any advice, thoughts, recommendations of ANY kind are appreciated. Feel free to privately message me

You don't need tour around Rome , just decide what you want to see, and walk or take taxi there . You can book Vatican tours right from Vatican web site, and Coliseum torus right by Coliseum (35 E ) there are many tours in many languages.

Cagliari we just walked around DT no need of tour there. Download Google map , mark places you want to go and save yourself lots of money.

Advice? Sure. Do what we have been doing for over forty years of extensive travel and simply Do It Yourself (DIY). If a person is intelligent enough to find themselves to Cruise Critic and figure out how to post, then they are also smart enough to do a little pre-trip homework and DIY. The cost savings can be staggering and the satisfaction level also quite amazing. For example, if I am walking (with DW) near the Piazza Navona (Rome) and want to relax for a few minutes (or a few hours) DW and I will simply choose one of the outdoor cafes and sit for some coffee, wine, etc. We do not worry about a schedule, don't have to stand around waiting for the one slow person that is on every tour, etc. We simply do what we want, when we want. If we are in a place that we really enjoy we simply stay awhile. If we are walking down a street and see an interesting market, shop, etc. we simply stop and enjoy. With a structured tour this is not what happens.

 

Are guides valuable? Absolutely. When we went to the Hermitage (St Petersburg) for our first visit we simply joined together with 1 other person and hired a private guide (for a lot less than a cruise ship excursion)? If we want a guided tour of the Vatican we can arrange that directly with the Vatican and get a guide specific for that venue. But we do not need a guide to show us the Trevi Fountain or Spanish Steps. We have eyes, a working cell phone (with data), and often a decent guide book such as the Rick Steves books.

 

Hank

Exactly .

No such thing. A driver can be quite knowledgeable and entertaining but they are not a guide.

We had a driver who was also a licensed guide once.

Other times our drivers who were strictly drivers still had a lot of knowledge about Rome and the Amalfi Coast.

Hmmm is this the roll call? It's one post right?

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=56274739#post56274739

I'm trying to post - but for some reason I get blocked each time I try to post... I followed the format - to many links maybe? I want to see if anyone wants to join the Rome in Limo tours for Florence, Naples/Pompeii and Messina.

The Limo in Rome is brilliant! Apparently you can start a group and have others join... if I can get 8 people - that's 81.25 euro/person!

 

I should do that for all the ports - since they have great reviews and great shore activity descriptions. It's best to post this in the roll call section? I hope people join. Given it's in August - when is the best time to post this so people join?

If it’s this August, you will find very active roll calls already set up. A quick glance shows many excursions set up on the various Spirit August roll calls.

 

A reminder, with Rome in Limo you generally don’t have a guide...just a driver.

OP, just to note - Rome in Limo and Limo in Rome are two different companies, although the names are very similar. If you’re using one or the other because of specific recommendations, maybe double-check that you have the right one.

Yeah that seems very pricey. I'm paying 560 Euro for an all day 10 hour tour for 3 from Naples, goes to Pompeii, Vesuvius, and Herculaneum with a guide for Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Also you can only sell one kidney, not both. Unless you were each going to sell one.

Yeah that seems very pricey. I'm paying 560 Euro for an all day 10 hour tour for 3 from Naples, goes to Pompeii, Vesuvius, and Herculaneum with a guide for Pompeii and Herculaneum.

 

 

 

Also you can only sell one kidney, not both. Unless you were each going to sell one.

It’s going to be worth it [emoji4]. I bet the large group ship tour for three people isn’t that much cheaper. Just make sure you get back to the ship in a timely manner. Enjoy!

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Best excursion we ever took was from liverno by pappilion , we had 8 people in a new Mercedes van, went to Pisa, then Florence with tickets to museum with David , then a wine tasting at a organic vineyard. Under 100 per person. We had 6 others from our roll call join us, guide/driver was just great. Also liked Rome in limited for Rome .