Med Port & private tours vs Ships excursions Advice

[ltcusarmy@aol.com]

Anyone with past experience on setting up private tours in port to avoid the ships over priced excursions. Ports are Livorno (Pisa/Florence), Villefranchie (Nice), Mykonos, Kusadasi (Ephesus), Santorini, Naples, & Piraeus (Athens).

[Kviolasr]

Check out the Med Board in the Ports section, tons of recommendations for private tours.

[mlbcruiser]

We've done some excursions on our own at a few of the ports you mentioned, which I will list below (additionally, we will be going to some of the others you mentioned in summer of '06!):

 

Naples: got off the ship, walked to the nearby high speed ferry ticket place (just ask where it is or follow the throngs!). Took the ferry to Capri, and then the "funicular" (tram - you will easilyi find it at the base of the mt.) up to the first level of the town, and then caught a cab on up to Anacapri at the top. Just georgeous! There are cafes, lots of winding, narrow streets, and a chairlift (very cheap!) that rides you up a steep grade, above little gardens and such until you get to the top. From there you can see ALL AROUND and it's just beautiful!!! (You can get ice cream or a drink up there while you shoot a few photos, etc.) We had lunch on the covered porch of a restaurant on a quiet sidestreet after that, shopped around and headed back to our ship. (Just a tip re: a popular tour there: people who went to see the Emerald Grotto said the whole thing wasn't worth it. It was over in a minute and overpriced!)

 

From Livorno we did take a ship's tour - sort of. Merely purchased the bus transportation to Florence through the ship, actually. Though we could have gone to the train station, the guide on the bus did give us a lot of great info. on places to see and shop (and I don't think she only gave us names of stores she got a kickbacks from), and a time/place to meet for our return. Luckily, I had read in a Rick Steves or Frommer's guidebook how to make ADVANCE reservations for the Academia and other popular Florence museums, which I did do prior to even boarding our ship - from a pay phone in a roadside store! (You can even do this from the states.) This meant we went to the museum at our appointment time and avoided a 2 hr. wait in high heat and LONG lines! (The ship has tours that help you get right in, but they are a lot pricier!) You can just walk all around Florence and see a LOT, too. Another tip: At this stop, many people felt they just HAD to see the tower at Pisa. We spoke to a NUMBER of people who did, and frankly, they seemed to think it really was no big deal at all. There isn't much else of interest in Pisa. So think twice about using your time for that.

 

Villefranche (this is a lovely and very small seaside town w/sidewalk cafes that are nearly in the traffic lanes, and a rocky beach you can just walk to and swim or sun at). Tip: if you want to catch the train to Monte Carlo, for instance, get to the train station FIRST THING! In our case, we got there a bit late and realized we wouldn't get a ticket at a time early enough for us to see Monte Carlo and get back for a tour we had booked a tour through the ship that included a short drive around Nice and a ride to Ez, a lovely, very tiny and stunning medieval town. (It's VERY high up, perched on a mt. above the sea, etc. The stores are in little caves!). After Ez, we decided to ditch the bus and catch a cab w/some other cruisers and head over to Monte Carlo to the casino. Since we didn't see any cabs around, a local man who almost seemed to be sort of a cab or tour agent called one for us and we had to wait for one to come. (They don't just sit around the street by the parking lot up to Ez waiting for customers). But finally the cabbie came & drove us to Monaco and dropped us off in front of the casino. (I do want to mention that there was some disagreement between members of our group and the driver as to what price we had agreed upon earlier w/the man who called the cab for us. The driver wasn't happy, but there were too many of us for her to really argue with and win.) We just walked around that area for a bit, went into the casino to buy a chip for our friend who collects them, and then caught the train back to Villefranche.

 

Like the previous poster suggested, go the ports of call section of these boards and I'm sure you'll find other posts dealing w/some of these places.

[dlhamlten]

Just Back from the Grand's Grand Med Itinerary 14-26 May

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

I feel that I owe some time to write answers to some questions that others have since we gained so much valuable info from these forums ( Cruise Addicts, too ). We just returned from the Venice to Barcelona trip and it would take forever to give impressions, but ...... Overall, a wonderful trip with a varied and impressive itinerary.

 

Some misc comments :

 

The Caribe Deck Balconies ARE the BEST as we learned on this Forum. Large and half of it covered and half of it unprotected which is nice for sunning. We spent a lot ot time on the balcony with 2 chairs, 2 chaise lounges ( ask Steward on first day to get limited cushions ) and a small table. Very good for sailaways and arrivals and the Dock in Venice ( the second one since they moved after the first night ) was breathtaking. We were Portside Forward C-210 and had very little noticable movement on only 2 days since seas were generally calm.

 

Weather was very hot in Athens so be prepared for even hotter days ahead which can make climbing the Parthenon steps arduous. Long lines everywhere for main attractions which are bothersome but probably unavoidable. Just be prepared to wait and our Guide in Istanbul said the traffic congestion and crowds were the Worst she had encountered in 20 yrs due to nice weather, a National Holiday and Free Admission for their citizens to the Mosques and museums.

 

The Capt was Alan Wilson as answered earlier. If that is important to you, then you should know he is a younger looking and very warm Scotsman with that great accent ( like my Grandfather's ) The Cruise Director was leaving after our cruise to go home so there will be a new one.

 

The Princess Check-in in Venice was a shambles perhaps because it was their first there this Season. Just be aggressive like all the other rude people and get to the front of the inside waiting area and stand in line if you get there before Noon when they start the process. Huge throngs of passengers with only 2 X-Ray stations and then more lines to surrender your Passports which are returned onboard on the second last day after Turkey.

 

We were able to avoid the 2 to 2 1/2 hour waits at the Vatican Museum you have read about because we were part of a Private Tour arranged by other Cruise Critic readers. It was much better than being herded on the Ship's buses with 50+ other passengers and less expensive.

 

Food is highly subjective. We were overall disappointed since we are Platinum Circle and feel the quality and taste has slipped. You will not go hungry and the unlimited lobster tails toward the end of the cruise tend to erase other weak items. While we have always selected Early Fixed saeting, my wife and I will opt for Personal Choice next cruise. There are many long days of tours on this port intensive Itinerary and lots of cahnces to get back to the Ship later than scheduled with too little time to relax befor Dinner. Also, around the 6Pm start time is when many sailaways begin which you will miss.

 

Obviously I could go on and on, but I need to end on a happy note. The absolute highlight of our voyage was a Private Tour I organized with 2 other Forum reader couples for Naples. Nine hours including a personal guided tour of fascinating Pompeii, thrilling rides along the breathtaking Amalfi Coast with many picture taking stops and a fantastic saeside lunch near Positano at a charming family-owned restaurant. No forced stops at Cameo Factories for shopping. ( But if that is your passion, there was a Cameo artisan right on the Ship for several days and you could watch him in person. )

Should a Naples Tour interest you, I highly recommend getting directly in touch with the affable, prompt, safe, courteous Giovanni of

 

http://www.info@Benvenutolimos.com

 

who operates this service with his Father and will pick you up right at the Ship. He was great !

 

Bon Voyage

 

dlhamlten

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#19 Yesterday, 11:16 PM

[JEMS]

We have not taken private tours, just Princess ones, but we have a cautionary alert to give you. (We did get off @ Naples and took local bus to the Pompeii museum. Very easy to do and interesting)

The alert is about something we read 2 years ago before we took our Med cruise. ALWAYS TAKE A PHOTOCOPY OF YOUR PASSPORT WITH YOU!!

A group of passengers took a private van to go out of Naples on their own. Upon returning, they were delayed by car wreck (not theirs) and local parade that caused major traffic jam. The ship sailed w/out them! None of them had passports so had to fax the ship for proof of such. Couldn't get air travel from Naples and went to Rome in order to fly to Athens. A real headache plus they missed the day at sea between Naples and Athens. Seems like they had no extra funds with them.

When your tour is Princess, the ship always waits for you!!

This being said, the Med cruise was fabulous - ENJOY!!!

[sema4]

Thanks for some of your tips on the Med/Greek Isles cruise. My wife and I are also sailing the summer of 06 on The Golden Princess(06/03/06). When are you going and what ship are you booked on

Patrick?

[maulie]

Anyone with past experience on setting up private tours in port to avoid the ships over priced excursions. Ports are Livorno (Pisa/Florence), Villefranchie (Nice), Mykonos, Kusadasi (Ephesus), Santorini, Naples, & Piraeus (Athens).

 

We took the ship tours on the May 14-26 sailing of the Grand. If we could do it over again, we would do private tours or the "elite" princess tours that have smaller groups. In Florence, we did it on our own-but used the princess bus, and made reservations at the accademia. We just didn't have enough time there.

 

Kusadasi and Mykonos you can do on your own. Princess had a free shuttle to town in Mykonos, or you can rent a scooter at a shop very close to the ship. In Kusadasi, we shopped and bought a rug. The shopping area is right off the port.

Naples do on your own as well. The hydrofoil is right by the ship if you want to see Capri. We went to Pompeii with the ship tour, and didn't have nearly enough time there. I heard the Princess Pompeii, Sorrento, and Capri Tour was wonderful, but a long day. Do not do a private Amalfi Drive on a Sunday unless you are there during the off season. The traffic can make you miss the boat.

 

We enjoyed the "elite" smaller tours we took much more than the bus tours of 40 people. However, they were quite pricey.

 

Maulie

[sondi 14]

Hi,

 

We cruised with Princess last year and visited some of the ports you have

requested info on. We used private tour companies in Naples and in

Athens. I also know of someone in the Villefranche area that friends used

this year and absolutely loved.

 

In Naples we used Benvenuto Limos and we had the best day of touring

with them. We visited Pompeii and then spent the balance of the day

visiting the Amalfi Coast.

 

In Athens we used Paul's Taxi, but I have also heard that Spiro's Taxi is

excellent.

 

In Villefranche area, the name of the company is Revelation Tours and

the operator is Michele LeGrand. Our friends couldn't say enough nice

things about the day they spent with him in the South of France.

 

Hope this helps. If you want more info - just let me know.

 

Sondi

[mlbcruiser]

One of the problems w/a cruise is that there is NEVER enough time to see everything you'd like. For instance, when we went on a 7 day med cruise 4 yrs. ago, we spent 4 days in Italy on both ends, and were SO GLAD we did. For instance, we didn't have to worry too much about what we would miss on land in the Naples area because we knew at the end of the wk. we would disembark in Civitaveccia, get a car, drive to Pompeii, drive down the Amalfi Coast, and then stay a couple of nights in Positano (Breathtaking! Our favorite place on the trip!). So Capri by ferry (hydrofoil, actually) on our own worked great for us. A couple of posters mentioned the LONG (9 hr.) tour that takes you to Pompeii, the Amalfi coast, etc. Well, depending upon how often you are likely to visit the area, if I we weren't such do it yourselfers I'd for sure spend the time on that tour. The things you see are just wonderful and it's a "we may never pass this way again" type of chance.