Canary Islands / Portugal DIY

[Presto2]

Hi, we are due to do our first Canary Island cruise on Britannia in July.

We've only been to the Canary Islands once and that was to Fuerteventura where we don't stop! Basically, despite quite a bit of research, we are still dithering about what to do at each stop.

 

We stop at Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Madeira (over night) and Lanzarote

 

Similarly, we are stopping at Lisbon, Vigo and Cadiz on the way down

 

We like to do a mix of DIY and ship's excursions and are wondering if any of you could suggest any easy DIY ' 'must sees from any of the ports or a fab ship's excursions.

 

We are both early 50s and able to do most excursions within reason. ;)

 

Am off to check out the Ports of Call boards now and hope there is more info on there.

 

Many thanks

[joeholiday2]

Cadiz is lovely.... very walkable and loads to see.

It's great if you like Churches, some are really nice inside. We didn't do the Cathedral (€5 each) but the small Church in the same square is gorgeous inside, don't miss it. We also found the Holy Cave Church (€3 each) which has some Goya paintings inside, it's small but we thought it was well worth the entrance fee.

It's on a street called Rosario, and you would not think it was a Church from the outside. It's worth tracking down though, it took us ages to find it.

 

You could also get the train to Jerez, that takes around an hour, but if you have never visited Cadiz before just walk around the city, the tourist info website has a map with coloured routes on it.

 

The cable car is worth doing in Madeira, there are 2 now so you can visit the Botanical gardens this way without getting a bus or taxi.

[BrianI]

In Tenerife take the new tram to La Trinidad which is in the old capital of La Laguna. It's about a 35min ride up the mountain and the trams run about every five minutes. One way fare is €1.35.

http://metrotenerife.com/home/

You buy your ticket from the machine at every tram stop. Instructions in English.

The nearest tram stop to the port is Fundacion. From the main square, Plaza de Espana, walk away from the port parallel to the shore and you will come to the tramline. About 400yds from the main square.

Brian

[Jo and Rob]

Hi, we are due to do our first Canary Island cruise on Britannia in July.

We've only been to the Canary Islands once and that was to Fuerteventura where we don't stop! Basically, despite quite a bit of research, we are still dithering about what to do at each stop.

 

We stop at Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Madeira (over night) and Lanzarote

 

Similarly, we are stopping at Lisbon, Vigo and Cadiz on the way down

 

We like to do a mix of DIY and ship's excursions and are wondering if any of you could suggest any easy DIY ' 'must sees from any of the ports or a fab ship's excursions.

 

We are both early 50s and able to do most excursions within reason. ;)

 

Am off to check out the Ports of Call boards now and hope there is more info on there.

 

Many thanks

 

I recommend the Fire Mountain and camel ride tour in Lanzarote. By doing the ship excursions you will drive through the lava fields which can't be done by car and are really dramatic. They do three experiments so show why it is called Fire Mountain.

 

 

 

[Jo and Rob]

You will be able to get great photographs of Britannia at Gran Canaria which has a sandy beach within easy walking distance and has great locations to sit outside, enjoy a beer and soak up the view.

 

 

 

 

[Jo and Rob]

In Tenerife Loro Parque is a great excursion and cheaper to go with the ship than doing it independently due to the distance from the port.

 

 

 

 

 

[Jo and Rob]

In Madeira we booked a private tour with Madeira Island Tours. We did their South West Island private taxi tour and the guide met us at 8.30am at the port. It was only 70 euros for all four of us and he also took us to do some Madeira tasting as a bonus when we asked if we could buy some.

 

 

Here is a summary of the tour we took.

 

 

 

Camara de Lobos

The first stop is a small fishing village. It is one of the island’s most atmospheric fishing villages. The village was named after monk seals which frequent visitors to the harbour. The centre of the village, with its whitewashed houses, shops and bar where you can taste the local drink poncha, remains instantly likeable. The stony beach is filled with colourful beached fishing boats . Winston Church choose this village to paint in 1949.

 

Cabo Girao

After visiting Camara de Lobos, your driver will driver you further up to the worlds second highest and Europe’s highest (580m) – (1775 ft).The name Cabo Girão comes from Zarco first exploration of Madeira coast because he got as far as this point and did an about-turned (girão) back to Funchal. You can enjoy the magnificent views of Camara de Lobos and Funchal. At the foot of the cliff the locals made little plots, of vines and vegetables, forming an incredible landscape.

 

Ribeira Brava

Leaving Cabo Girão the tour heads for Ribeira Brava, taking the old road. Ribeira Brava is the next stop on this journey. Located at the foot of a dramatic gorge, with an attractive seafront. Ribeira Brava translates to wild (Brava) river (Ribeira), which reference to the river which flows to the west of the town. The mother church is a sixteenth - century church with a wonderful stone font and pulpit carved with plants and animals. The chequered-tiled roof is one of the most beautiful in Madeira. At the seafront is lined with a series of cafes, where you can enjoy café.

[Presto2]

Cadiz is lovely.... very walkable and loads to see.

It's great if you like Churches, some are really nice inside. We didn't do the Cathedral (€5 each) but the small Church in the same square is gorgeous inside, don't miss it. We also found the Holy Cave Church (€3 each) which has some Goya paintings inside, it's small but we thought it was well worth the entrance fee.

It's on a street called Rosario, and you would not think it was a Church from the outside. It's worth tracking down though, it took us ages to find it.

 

You could also get the train to Jerez, that takes around an hour, but if you have never visited Cadiz before just walk around the city, the tourist info website has a map with coloured routes on it.

 

The cable car is worth doing in Madeira, there are 2 now so you can visit the Botanical gardens this way without getting a bus or taxi.

 

Many thanks for this - love to visit the old churches and potter around on our own. Were these places shown on the ships' port map or did you get a map from somewhere else?

 

Re Madeira - is it easy to get to the cable car on your own? We had hoped to do the ship's excursion with the basket decent, but due to recent surgery that may be a no no. It would be good to do the gardens on our own though.

[Presto2]

In Tenerife take the new tram to La Trinidad which is in the old capital of La Laguna. It's about a 35min ride up the mountain and the trams run about every five minutes. One way fare is €1.35.

http://metrotenerife.com/home/

You buy your ticket from the machine at every tram stop. Instructions in English.

The nearest tram stop to the port is Fundacion. From the main square, Plaza de Espana, walk away from the port parallel to the shore and you will come to the tramline. About 400yds from the main square.

Brian

 

Cheers Brian - will look in to that one. ;)

[Floflegs]

Cadiz is great to do by following the different coloured routes. There is also a Hoho us you can take.

In Tenerife we have done the tram to La Laguna and also the Hoho bus. The bus also gives you free entry into some places.

In Gran Canaria we also dud the Hoho boys as we had never been" then we walked around the town.

In Madeira we took the cable car up, one way, then did the toboggan ride. Where it finishes is nowhere near the caned car so I don't know what people who had bought returns did.our choice was a taxi or walk and we walked. It was much longer than we thought and the tops of my legs were sore the next day. We recovered with a custard tart, a must.

In Lisbon I would do either a private or ship's tour or the Hoho bus.

Vigo you can walk up to the town. Many people go to Satiago de Compostela from there.

We have stayed in Lanzarote on a land holiday so just walked round the town and took a local bus yo Porta del Carmen.

I hope this helps.

[Presto2]

I recommend the Fire Mountain and camel ride tour in Lanzarote. By doing the ship excursions you will drive through the lava fields which can't be done by car and are really dramatic. They do three experiments so show why it is called Fire Mountain.

 

 

 

 

Hi Jo - many thanks for all of the info and photographs - you're a star !

We have booked the Fire Mountain but not the one with the camel ride. Is it worth the extra half an hour? Is it fun? We may be into the big 50 but are game for a laugh. We had thought of that tour and am now wishing we had booked this one.

 

Re Gran Canaria ---- how close is the beach? We are going mid August so am not sure if it may be too busy.

 

Will look at the Madeira tours web site - if I can find it.

 

We had planned a number of excursions, but recent surgery for one of us has meant that we may not be able to do the Jeep Safaris we had planned. It has left us up in the air re what to do.

 

Thanks to everyone - your help is very much appreciated.

[Presto2]

In Madeira we booked a private tour with Madeira Island Tours. We did their South West Island private taxi tour and the guide met us at 8.30am at the port. It was only 70 euros for all four of us and he also took us to do some Madeira tasting as a bonus when we asked if we could buy some.

 

 

Here is a summary of the tour we took.

 

 

 

Camara de Lobos

The first stop is a small fishing village. It is one of the island’s most atmospheric fishing villages. The village was named after monk seals which frequent visitors to the harbour. The centre of the village, with its whitewashed houses, shops and bar where you can taste the local drink poncha, remains instantly likeable. The stony beach is filled with colourful beached fishing boats . Winston Church choose this village to paint in 1949.

 

Cabo Girao

After visiting Camara de Lobos, your driver will driver you further up to the worlds second highest and Europe’s highest (580m) – (1775 ft).The name Cabo Girão comes from Zarco first exploration of Madeira coast because he got as far as this point and did an about-turned (girão) back to Funchal. You can enjoy the magnificent views of Camara de Lobos and Funchal. At the foot of the cliff the locals made little plots, of vines and vegetables, forming an incredible landscape.

 

Ribeira Brava

Leaving Cabo Girão the tour heads for Ribeira Brava, taking the old road. Ribeira Brava is the next stop on this journey. Located at the foot of a dramatic gorge, with an attractive seafront. Ribeira Brava translates to wild (Brava) river (Ribeira), which reference to the river which flows to the west of the town. The mother church is a sixteenth - century church with a wonderful stone font and pulpit carved with plants and animals. The chequered-tiled roof is one of the most beautiful in Madeira. At the seafront is lined with a series of cafes, where you can enjoy café.

 

Sorry, me again --

 

Just wondering what time you arrived in Madeira on day one and what time you left the following day. Trying to work out what we could fit in.

[Jo and Rob]

Sorry, me again --

 

Just wondering what time you arrived in Madeira on day one and what time you left the following day. Trying to work out what we could fit in.

 

We arrived at about 8am I think and last about 5ish? I would definitely do the camels in Lanzarote, all ages did it and it was really good fun.

 

Here is the email address for the Madeira tours:

info@madeira-island-tours.com

You pay the driver at the end so no worries about losing money if you missed the port. The cable car and baskets is a good laugh mind you and not like a roller coaster but you know whether the surgery would be a problem. Here is a link to our cable car and basket tour from 2012, if you go to 2 minutes 31 you will see what we did.

 

The beach in Gran Canaria is about 10 minutes away only so no problem at all to get to.

 

Cadiz is as others have said a great port to do DIY and definitely no need to do the HOHO bus as it is all in easy walking distance. Here is the beach in Cadiz.

 

 

We took a walk through the shaded gardens running parallel to the beach.

 

 

Lisbon is also doable DIY. Here are some highlights

[YOUTUBE]aIXBD9XlhWI[/YOUTUBE]

[P&O SUE]

Presto, if you want to cancel your P&O excursion and re-book the one with the camels you can do it. I changed one of mine the other day - very easy and money was refunded the same day or the next day.

[MattyBarlow]

We did the cable car and Basket in our own this April. 10 euro single in the cable car and 30 euro for two in a basket. Cable car and gardens are easy to do on your own.

In Lisbon consider getting the bus to the aquarium. It's a lovely way to spend a few hours. The aquarium is amazing.

[Scriv]

I would definitely agree with Jo that the Timanfaya National Park (Fire Mountain) via an excursion is a real 'must-see' in Lanzarote. We did the camels and it was great fun, but I wouldn't rate it as a 'must do' if you didn't have much time. But Timanfaya itself, yes!!

[ann141]

If youhave visited Lisbon before i recommend a trip to Sintra. Trains go from Rossi station in the centre of Lisbon i think the journey takes about 3/4 of an hour and only costs a few euros, much cheaper than the ships excursion

[Floflegs]

In Lisbon an alternative train journey is to Cascais or Estoril. We went to Cascais last year. Pena Palace is Sintra is lovely to visit.

[Presto2]

We did the cable car and Basket in our own this April. 10 euro single in the cable car and 30 euro for two in a basket. Cable car and gardens are easy to do on your own.

In Lisbon consider getting the bus to the aquarium. It's a lovely way to spend a few hours. The aquarium is amazing.

 

Hi, this may sound like a daft question, but can you do the cable car both ways? If not is it a case of walking down? We're happy to do the walking bit as long as we know how far it is ;-)

[Presto2]

In Tenerife take the new tram to La Trinidad which is in the old capital of La Laguna. It's about a 35min ride up the mountain and the trams run about every five minutes. One way fare is €1.35.

http://metrotenerife.com/home/

You buy your ticket from the machine at every tram stop. Instructions in English.

The nearest tram stop to the port is Fundacion. From the main square, Plaza de Espana, walk away from the port parallel to the shore and you will come to the tramline. About 400yds from the main square.

Brian

 

Hi, how far is Fundacion from the port?

 

Sorry to sound dim, but we've never been to the Canary Islands we're visiting so I have no idea at all about where any of the places you're mentioning are at all. :) Sounds great though.

[MattyBarlow]

Hi, this may sound like a daft question, but can you do the cable car both ways? If not is it a case of walking down? We're happy to do the walking bit as long as we know how far it is ;-)

 

 

Yeah both ways :-)

[Presto2]

Yeah both ways :-)

 

That was quick - thanks.

 

How long do you think it would take to get there from the ship, visit the gardens and get back on board? We have 2 half days there with an over night stay so are trying to plan our days. (We're also quite careful about wandering off on our own --- don't want to miss the ship). Having said that after this stop it is 3 sea days home so we could get an extra few days in the sun ;)

 

Thanks again

[BrianI]

Hi, how far is Fundacion from the port?

 

Sorry to sound dim, but we've never been to the Canary Islands we're visiting so I have no idea at all about where any of the places you're mentioning are at all. :) Sounds great though.

About a 10 min walk from the shuttle drop off. If you look on Google maps, it shows the bus and tram stops.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Cabildo,+Spain/@28.4660128,-16.2488336,18z/data=!4m6!1m3!3m2!1s0xc4029effe8682ed:0xb01a4bf1c84baf3c!2sTenerife,+Santa+Cruz+de+Tenerife,+Spain!3m1!1s0xc41cb7c8deb66f9:0x7508b800d1bbcb37?hl=en

Brian

[Presto2]

If youhave visited Lisbon before i recommend a trip to Sintra. Trains go from Rossi station in the centre of Lisbon i think the journey takes about 3/4 of an hour and only costs a few euros, much cheaper than the ships excursion

 

In Lisbon an alternative train journey is to Cascais or Estoril. We went to Cascais last year. Pena Palace is Sintra is lovely to visit.

 

Hi both. Thanks for the tips but we have never been to Lisbon, but can store these ideas when we go back on another cruise ;)

[msg_girl]

We were in Madeira last week and did a combination of Ho Ho bus and the cable car up and down. We weren't sure what we would do and failed to take advantage of the combined ticket. We used the yellow Ho Ho bus on the yellow route (city) - they also have a blue route that goes out to the fishing area. On the ship P&O sell tickets for the red Ho Ho bus.

The cost of the yellow route only was 12Euro - if you want to do both routes it was 15Euro. The cable ca return was 15Euro. If we'd known in advance we could have bought a combined ticket for the yellow route and the Ho Ho and saved a little bit.u

If you go to the cable car station first they sell combination tickets; see http://www.telefericodofunchal.com/index_UK.html

We did the Ho Ho first then went up the cable car and had some lunch before returning to the city for a little Madeira tasting and a stroll through the city and the back to the shuttle.

G.