We weren't afraid to try things on our own! And it was great!

First, this thread needs to start with a HUGE thank you to Hank, GSP, Globaliser, Heinbloed, and all the others who gracioulsy took time to respond to my questions, no matter how petty or inarticulate. You gave me the confidence to do 9 out of our 12 ports on our own- and in turn, my husband and I had the best vacation of our lives! In the spirit of paying it forward, I have posted a BRIEF description of what we did in each port (including those we did not DIY). Should anyone have any further questions or want additional information, I'd be happy to share.

London (time frame approx 9:30am to 7 pm): Walked to Harrods from our hotel, Holiday Inn Kensington Forum to grab lunch to go. Took HOHO bus to Buckingham where we had tickets to tour the Staterooms at Buckingham. Then rode the HOHO over to Tower of London. We pre-purchased tickets and joined the last Yeoman Warder Tour (free). Then took the complimentary (with HOHO ticket) River Cruise up to Westminster and London Eye. Saw those sights, then took HOHO back to Harrods and walked back to hotel taking in a pint or two along the way!

Vigo, Spain (Port time: 8-5): Attempted to use the public bus system to get to Samil, but they were running an hour behind so we opted for a cab (8 euro). Once at Samil, enjoyed walking the beautiful beach promenade, then had cab drop us off at Parque Del Castro where we enjoyed hiking around. Then walked from there into the city center where found the oyster market and enjoyed a glass of wine at a cafe. Loved the wine so much I bought a bottle!

Lisbon, Portugal (Port time: 8-5): Walked from port to tram stop for tram 15E. Took that to Belem. Saw Monument of Discoveries and Tower of Belem. Then went to the Monestary and paid to go in- well worth it! Walked down the street to have the obligatory pastry (and a tasty pastry at that!). Caught tram 15 E back into the city then changed over to cable car 21 which took us near the Castel of Sao Jorge. Walked up the hill to the Castel and toured that. Then caught tram 21 to the 15 E again back to the ship.

Cadiz, Spain (Port time: 9-9): Walked to train station then took the train to Jerez La Fronterra. Walked through Jerez to the Tio Pepe bodega. Toured the bodega, then walked back to train station. Took a cab from Cadiz train station to the Cadiz Cathedral (could have walked but it was too bloody hot!). Went through the Cathedtral then walked through the square and shops and walked back to the ship.

Gibraltar (Port time: 8-5): Walked into town and caught the city bus to the cable car station. Took the cable car up the rock, then walked to St. Michael's Caves, the Great Siege Tunnels, and the Moorish Castel. Then walked down the rock to the shopping area and caught a shuttle back to the ship.

Malaga, Spain (Port time: 8-7): Joined CC group from our roll call on a tour to the Alhambra. Had approximately 4 hours at the Alhambra and 2 hours in Grenada. This was approximately $41.00/pp vs the hundreds NCL wanted for thier Alhambra excursion. Great savings and a great tour!

Olbia, Sardinia (8-5pm): Joined CC group who shared 2 taxi's to San Paolo where some had just a beach day and other chose to snorkel. It was beautiful and they had great gelato!

Naples (Port time: 8-8): Joined 2 other CC couples and hired a private driver to the Amalfi Coast, Positano, Sorrento, and Pompeii.

Rome (Port time: 8-8): Walked to the train station in Citavecchia, took the train to Ostiense stop then the metro to the Colleseum stop. Toured Colleseum (with Rick Steves walking tour downloaded on IPOD), then walked to the Forum, toured that again with Mr. Steves. Walked from the forum to the Pantheon (Go Rick, again on the IPOD), then stopped for lunch (pizza...yay!). Then walked onto the Trevi Fountain where we caught a cab to the Vatican. Toured St. Peter's Basillica (Mr. Steves with the commentary again) then went VERY quickly through the Vatican Museum and spent the last porition of our day (and a few more quality moments with our buddy Rick) in the Sistine Chapel. We then walked to the San Peitro train station and caught the train back to Citavechhia.

Livorno (Port time 8-7): Our only day with a small glitch! We had arranged to rent a car here and drive to Pisa and then onto the Cinque Terre. Our car was not able to be delivered to port due to security, so we were going to head into the city, via NCL's 5 euro/pp shuttle, to get our car from the Hertz office. Well, our NCL shuttle got lost for OVER AN HOUR!!! It was scary and disappointing as we watched the time tick away. Many on our shuttle were catching the train to Florence so it was even worse for them. Paul and I decided to abort our car rental plans and take the train instead. Which we did. We trained to Pisa, had an hour "layover" in which we had a taxi take us to te tower to take the necessary pictures. Then trained to La Spezia, where we changed trains to head to Riomaggiore. We only had 3 hours in the Cinque Terre due to the morning's events, but we got to see Riomaggiore, Manorola, and Vernazza- we also walked the Via Del Amore' which was lovely. We then trained back via a euro star from La Spezia directly to Livorno, caught a city bus to the city center where the ship's shuttles were, and then were back on board in plenty of time. This was the only day we had setbacks, and they were pretty minor, all things considering. I was glad to have 3 hours in the CT as opposed to no hours at all! Now we just have an excuse to go back!

Cannes (port time: 7-2): Due to the short port time and my husband's desire to see Monaco, we took the NCL excursion. It was worth it and we are glad we got to see how the other half lives in Monaco!

Barcelona: Our cruise debarked here, and Paul and I stayed the remainder of the day. We chose to take the HOHO bus, as there was a stop right outside our hotel, which was in the Exiample neighborhood. We went to Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell (my favorite!!!), and then to Las Ramblas. From there we walked back to our hotel and capped the final day with a Tapas dinner at Cerveceria Catalana- which was great!

This was truly the vacation of a lifetime. I will be totally honest in saying I consumed myself with research- but to me that was alot of the fun, as in every port I could take ownership of our experience. I am 100% confident that the memories we have, complete with dashing through train stations to make connections, wandering through alleys totally lost, and swallowing my pride to try and speak Italian or Spanish to ask for directions, would not have been the same had we decide to join the throngs on overcrowded buses and tours. I feel we saw alot of the "real Europe" not tourist Europe and it is because of that that I know it is no longer a matter if IF I will go back but rather WHEN.

Thanks again to all who helped make our memories so great!

~ Krista

Way to go Krista! Knew you could do it :) Your experience in Livorno is really worrisome. You deserve kudos for quickly adjusting to the situation and using alternative transportation, We have also run into problems at the port of Livorno with rental cars, but Hertz was the one company that seemed to always be able to get their cars through security and on to the pier (we have our theory as to how they accomplished this mission). These days its almost like rolling the dice to see if you can get a car delivered to the port. In May of 2008 we had arranged for a pier-side delivery with a local rental car dealer only to get an e-mail (2 weeks before our cruise) that the car rental company had been notified that they would not be able to deliver the car due to enhanced security demanded by Princess Cruise Lines. Guess we will continue to advise folks on reserving cars in Livorno, but to have a back-up plan.

Hank

Thanks for posting your wonderful review. I hope you'll stick around and answer questions for other wanna be DIYers on these boards! (And specifically to provide rebuttals to those who post saying "You can't possibly do it all without a guided tour!") :D

Thanks for your review. We have downloaded Rick Steves for 3 of our stops. Did you listen to his full tour at each location or fast forward etc? I was wondering if it would be annoying to have him in my ear or how it would be. Did he go at a good pace or was it too much info? Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Thank you so much for posting your experiences. I am so glad that you have discovered the freedom and delights (as well as the adventures) that DIY travel brings.

We will be visiting Barcelona for the first time next May, and I have noted the name of the restaurant you recommended!

Hank- re: the car in Livorno: That situation was bothersome to us too. We were literally one of the first people off the ship, and we wandered around the port trying to find our car and the Hertz representative. We then talked to a port agent who gracioulsy used her personal cell phone to call Sifracar/Hertz to ask what the issue was. Apparently because the Jade had to park in the industrial port, they could not get the car to the pier. However, had we been parked where the RCI ship was parked in the more commercial port, it would not have been an issue. Upon returning home, I did have a message from Sifracar from the night before our day in Livorno, informing us that our car was not going to be able to be delivered...so they tried to tell us. Unfortunately, I did not have my cell phone along. My advice to those wishing to rent a car in Livorno would be to be sure that you are in the commercial port, not the industrial one.

Larie- Re: Rick Steve's tours- He was great for the Colleseum, Forum, and St. Peter's Basillica. The paces were great and I definitely feel like his audio guide enhanced our experience 10 fold. In the Pantheon and the Sistine, the tours were a little harder to follow and a little long, as both those sites were pretty crowded by the time we got to them, and it was hard to maneuver through the crowds to see what he was describing. But, still very worth it in my opionion- and hey, they're free so why not- you can always turn it off. Another aside- my husband and I bought off Amazon a $5 IPOD splitter so we could both have our own set of heaphones, rather than trying to share. A worthy investment!

CintiPam: I just posted on another link about Cervceria Catalana on these boards, under the Spain link. Here is the info. It was so great- both Paul and I loved it. The place is just brimming with locals, and it has the best atmosphere. It is by no means a quiet romantic dinner, but rather a lively local experience with customers and waitstaff shouting orders at the bar (we got a table so could watch that from afar!). I hope you get the chance to enjoy it. Also, we decided Barcelona was one of our favorite cities. It is so clean and beautiful...you will surely enjoy your time there!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=21181946#post21181946

CintiPam: I just posted on another link about Cervceria Catalana on these boards, under the Spain link. Here is the info. It was so great- both Paul and I loved it. The place is just brimming with locals, and it has the best atmosphere. It is by no means a quiet romantic dinner, but rather a lively local experience with customers and waitstaff shouting orders at the bar (we got a table so could watch that from afar!). I hope you get the chance to enjoy it. Also, we decided Barcelona was one of our favorite cities. It is so clean and beautiful...you will surely enjoy your time there!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=21181946#post21181946

Thanks, I have just started to follow the Spain board in anticipation of our three days there post-cruise in mid-May.

What ever thread I read, Livorno always seems to be the biggest problem.

It's such an ugly port and there is no romance or excitement when you are sailing in.

It's such a pity that they couldn't have constructed an attractive Cruise Terminal so that at least you don't see containers and cranes all around you. Once the liners berth in this commercial port, I think it's unfair that you have to pay to get the shuttle out of the port - unfair as you can't just walk out.

Even though I live in Malta, I still feel excited when entering and leaving the Grand Harbour.

I agree with the OP - the regulars really help folk to DIY.

We personally think that Livorno is the worst, most cruiser unfriendly port, in all of Europe. In fact, having been to more than a hundred ports around the world we would probably rate Livorno as the worst! In is amazing to us that Italy can have a friendly port such as Civitavecchia where they do nearly everything right, in the same country where they have Livorno,,,where they do nothing to help cruise passengers. Unfortunately, the cruise lines (and passengers) have no leverage to get things to improve in Livorno since there is no other port alternative for those wanting to see the wonderful places in the region. We once asked a local official why they didn't simply run a shuttle service between the port and the train station and he just shrugged his shoulders. There is another little known fact about Livorno. They do technically operate an internal port shuttle bus which is supposed to pick you up anywhere in the port and shuttle you to the "shopping center" and the port entrance...which does house several rental car companies. On more than 15 visits to that port (we lost track of the actual number of visits) we have never seen this port shuttle.

Hank

Hank (HLeitner) said:

There is another little known fact about Livorno. They do technically operate an internal port shuttle bus which is supposed to pick you up anywhere in the port and shuttle you to the "shopping center" and the port entrance...which does house several rental car companies. On more than 15 visits to that port (we lost track of the actual number of visits) we have never seen this port shuttle.

Whereas the internal shuttle at Civitavecchia does run, and is pretty efficient....

Could the fact that the two ports are in different regions, and therefore come under different regional governments (Lazio & Tuscany), have anything to do with it?

Great concise yet detailed review- do you have your own travel blog or website yet?:) I'm not sure where your restaurant was in Barcelona, but we were in the Eixample area also in June/July for pre-cruise. Stayed at your friend Rick's recommended Hostal Neutral & ate across the street at Cerveseria D'Or.

What would we do without the helpful cruisers at CC?:)

Hank (HLeitner) said:

 

 

 

Whereas the internal shuttle at Civitavecchia does run, and is pretty efficient....

 

Could the fact that the two ports are in different regions, and therefore come under different regional governments (Lazio & Tuscany), have anything to do with it?

Good question, but like most things in Italy I suspect nobody (not even the port officials) could answer the question. The answer we would get from our Italian friends would be just a shrug of the shoulders, lots of arm and hand motion, and a "It's Italy, what do you expect." :) And by the way, we totally agree about Civitavecchia. We find their port shuttle service to be the best at any port.

Hank