Tour Guides: Marseille, Villefranche, Livorno, Civitavecchia, Naples

[suntanzi]

I am researching tour guides and looking for recommendations. Also trying to decide which areas to explore on our own. Here are sites I have seen on the board:

 

driverinrome.com (Danielle)

seesorrento.com (Marcello)

drivinguide.com (Paolo)

papillonservice.com

azur-guides-interpretes.com (Sylvie)

dream-tours.com

minibus-tours.com (seemed pricey)

provence-travel.com

 

If you used any of these or any others and have an opinion about it, please share your info. Thanks so much!

[cruisintwinsmom]

We used Claudio Caponera in Florence and Rome, limoinrome.com and Gennaro for the Amalfi coast, sorrentolimo.com. We enjoyed them both. In Athens we used Rania Vassiliado (can't rember her website, but you can google her). Loved her, too.

[Guest Crazeecat5]

We used driverinrome.com a few weeks ago when we were on the Splendour and we stopped in Rome. We had been corresponding with Danielle prior to the trip and thought he would be our driver. When Aldo appeared that morning as our driver, I was a little disappointed, at first. That disappointment disappeared rather quickly when we discovered how wonderful Aldo was. He was charming, knowledgable and patient. We had a spectacular day with him and saw so much more than we ever could have imagined. I highly recommend this company and will be using them again next year when we cruise on the new Carnival Liberty and we stop in Livorno. We are also looking into booking Revelationtours with Michel.

Good luck!

Sheryl

[suntanzi]

Thanks!!

[suntanzi]

I am waiting to hear from Daniele. Already heard from Michel at Revelations and they are booked. Sophie was my next option til I found lots of negative feedback in one thread. Still working!

[traveler2772]

We used Sylvie in Villefranche and driverinrome for Florence and Rome last year. We too had Aldo as our driver. He was an excellent tour guide.

We are returning to the Med this year again on Splendour and again have booked Sylvie, who was fantastic, I know she has gotten some negative comments this year but that was because she lost her other driver Carolyn. I certainly would recommend you booking with her. We have also booked with driverinrome for Livorno, Citavechia (Rome), and Naples. We have requested to have Aldo for all three days but I am confident whomever we get will be an excellent guide.

Have a great time on your cruise!

Helen

[dperales]

Just back from the Brilliance and we used Daniele's company in Livorno and Civitavecchia. In Livorno he sent Samantha who was a very cute and informative. We had a wonderful day with her. In Civitavecchia we had Remo, Daniele's father. What a joy! Both days were wonderful and I would not hesitate using the company. Remo told us that they are very busy!

There were 10 of us each day.

 

In Naples we used Marcello. He was just what we wanted, but he might not be for everyone. We had a wonderful, relaxing day and saw more beautiful views than I can even remember. The lunch he took us to was one of the best ever! If you want to shop and browse the towns you pass through, this is not the guide for you. He was great for what we wanted and we knew his views going in. The ten in our group had a wonderful day!

Donna

[lbenson]

Were were on the July 1 sailing. We used Revelation Tours in Villefranche and were very happy with our guide and the company. They allowed me to book at the last minute when another company bailed on me a few days before sailing. In Rome and Livorno we used driverinrome and had great days. Our driver (Fabarizo) was lots of fun. In Naples we used Giovanni Lerusce (giovanni.lerusce@tin.it) and had a wonderful day. He is an excellent driver for all of those tricky roads. All of our experiences were great.

[suntanzi]

"In Naples we used Marcello. He was just what we wanted, but he might not be for everyone. We had a wonderful, relaxing day and saw more beautiful views than I can even remember. The lunch he took us to was one of the best ever! If you want to shop and browse the towns you pass through, this is not the guide for you. He was great for what we wanted and we knew his views going in. The ten in our group had a wonderful day!"

 

 

Do you mean that he just drove through everywhere without stopping at all or that it was a rushed trip without time to linger because of so many sights?

[dbh62ark]

We used Dream Tours (from Monte Carlo, but I think they also will pick up in Villefranche) in May, and it was fabulous. We had Jean-Marc for our driver, and he is very charming and knowledgeable. You didn't ask for itinerary info, but I'll be glad to provide that, if needed.

 

We also used Papillon tours (http://www.papillonservice.com/tours.htm) out of Livorno. Our driver was Max, and he was just great too. Papillon is--or at least they were in May--more inexpensive than the other guides for this port, but they were as good or better than any private tour we've ever been on, and we've been on many.

 

If you have specific questions, please feel free to e-mail me.

 

Hope you have a great time,

Donna

[joan24]

Donna,

I would love to know what itinerary you used out of Monte Carlo with Dream Tours. We don't go until May, but I'm trying to arrange our tours now. Was the driver flexable or did you need to set up the tour in advance. Do they require a deposit. Thanks for any information.

Joan

[suntanzi]

Hi Donna

 

I saw that Papillon is less expensive with the driver only option and about the same with a driver and guide. I had figured that the driver might not speak english or give much commentary. But it sounds like you are saying he did...am I understanding correctly?

[dperales]

Suntanzi,

Marcello doesn't like shopping, but we stopped for so many picture opportunities! I took 3 rolls of film that day. We were able to drive from Naples to Sorrento. From there we went clear to the tip of the peninsula where we could see both the Bay of Naples and the Bay of Salerno. After eating lunch up on a hill near Ravello, we drove along the Amalfi coast until we got to Cetara or thereabouts and went back over the hill and went to Pompeii about 4:45. Marcello had a guide waiting for us and we saw Pompeii without the crowds and the heat. There was a nice breeze that time of the day.

It was a wonderful day, full of beautiful sights and wonderful food!

[dbh62ark]

Hi Joan 24. Our Dream Tours itinerary was customized for our group based on our requests. We had one in our group that was dying to see Cannes (even though we were advised that there's not a lot there--as compared to the other locations in this area--other than the film festival area), so we started there. I would have preferred Gourdon, so I hope to see that village on our next trip. I was glad in the end because we drove on the spectacular coastal roads after we left Cannes, and the scenery was spectacular. We went to Eze, to several scenic overlooks (the Riviera, Nice, and Monaco), and had St. Paul de Vence as our main use of time on our tour. St. Paul is too wonderful for words, and we were so glad that we concentrated our time there. We also were in Nice, but just briefly for about an hour. We were dropped off in Monte Carlo, and we stayed there until we sailed at 11:00 p.m. If you haven't see Monte Carlo, I think you can easily see it on foot in a short time--the Frommers walking tour is great--because it is very compact. The views of the harbor from the castle are amazing. We loved our tour and thought Dream Tours did an outstanding job.

 

Yes Suntanzi, you are reading my Papillon recommendation correctly. Our driver did speak fluent English. I get a little tickled about telling others that he has driven Nicole Kidman and Don Johnson (separately--we don't want to start any rumors!), and you know that they would have the best. My understanding for Papillon's lower prices is that they just entered the cruise tour market (they previously marketed through only hotels in the area) and the distinction you noted between the driver/guide and just the driver. Max was our driver, and he was also outstanding. He gave us a lot of commentary and knew a lot about the region. He took us on the scenic roads through Tuscany with beautiful landscape and villas. I imagine that the other drivers for this company are also great (and have read comments to that effect) because all of my correspondence was handled in a highly professional and prompt manner too. I think it's a quality company. I can't imagine our tour being any better than it was.

 

Hope you both have a great time,

Donna

[joan24]

Thanks for the information, Donna.

Joan

[dbh62ark]

You're welcome, Joan. I forgot to tell you that both drivers (and the other private drivers that we have had) were very flexible during the day about changing routes or the amount of time spent at the stops. In fact, we loved our Papillon tour so much to San Gimignano and Sienna that we decided to extend for 2 hours. Our guide said there would be no charge, but we didn't feel right about that and just figured what the tour would be per hour and paid him for the two extra hours, and it was great to have the flexibility to spend that extra time in San Gimignano since it was so wonderful.

[Glendamcd]

Dear Suntazi

My husband and I were one of the ones that found out via the threads

that there might be issues with any reservations made through Sylvie Di

Cristo. We had heard so many nice things about her and her tours. We

booked with her many months ago for our trip in October. Although

many speak highly of her, if I had not contacted her she would not have

contacted me and left me stranded upon arrival. Which I find unforgiveable.

We have since booked with Jean Marx and very luckily he was still available.

I am not sure what we would have done if we showed up in Nice and there

was not one waiting on us. Our tour of Monte Carlo would have possibly

been ruined. Sylvie should have notified us asap that she had booked

another group and could not take us because of her friend Carolyn's problems.

Just another persons view of Ms. Di Cristo's business ethics.

Caio

[suntanzi]

Thanks everyone!

 

 

As a result of all of your help we will be using:

 

Catherine/Provence Tours--Marseille

Alain/Dream Tours--Villefranche

Driverinrome.com--Civitavecchia

Papillon--Livorno

Marcello/seesorrento.com--Naples

 

So excited!:)

[suntanzi]

Dear Suntazi

My husband and I were one of the ones that found out via the threads

that there might be issues with any reservations made through Sylvie Di

Cristo. We had heard so many nice things about her and her tours. We

booked with her many months ago for our trip in October. Although

many speak highly of her, if I had not contacted her she would not have

contacted me and left me stranded upon arrival. Which I find unforgiveable.

We have since booked with Jean Marx and very luckily he was still available.

I am not sure what we would have done if we showed up in Nice and there

was not one waiting on us. Our tour of Monte Carlo would have possibly

been ruined. Sylvie should have notified us asap that she had booked

another group and could not take us because of her friend Carolyn's problems.

Just another persons view of Ms. Di Cristo's business ethics.

Caio

She sounds disorganized at the moment, unfortunately her disorganization could ruin your day. Thanks for the info. I had only seen the good things and then caught another post with a warning, otherwise I was going to book her. I am glad you found Jean Marx!

[itsjb1]

We toured with Sylvie on August 7th and she was wonderful. The problems that she has had are as aresult of her partner being pregnant and being ordered to stay home by her doctor.

 

Now that Sylvie is aware of the problem I assume that she will only accept bookings that she can fulfill personally.

 

I highly recommend Sylvie( as we had a great day) and would not hesitate to book with her if she is available.

[Cruise Junky]

We toured with Sylvie on August 7th and she was wonderful. The problems that she has had are as aresult of her partner being pregnant and being ordered to stay home by her doctor.

 

Now that Sylvie is aware of the problem I assume that she will only accept bookings that she can fulfill personally.

 

I highly recommend Sylvie( as we had a great day) and would not hesitate to book with her if she is available.

 

I feel terrible for the slagging that Sylvie has received from this board. Everyone has situations that are out of their control. I didn't hesitate to book with her for next year and I'm very happy that she's available.

 

For anyone that is counting on someone else to make their vacation, have a back up plan...know the train schedule..know how you can get from A to B. Stuff can happen.

[Glendamcd]

Yes, Sylvie has gotten a lot of negative responses, but deservingly so. We can understand that she lost her other driver, but what we cannot understand is how she

could leave so MANY people out to dry on their dream vacations and not notify them and or notify them right before they leave for their trips which did not give them time to re-book with anyone else. Sorry, I have no sympathy for treating anyone that way

But I am sympathetic to her other driver having medical problems and hope she is well

[desertheat]

I totally agree with glendamcd in regards to booking with Sylvie. She may be a fantastic guide but leaving people who booked with her stranded is not a good way of doing business. She should have notified her clients of her partners illness and assist them in finding another tour. Plus, after a few emails with her (we also were ready to book) she said we would be charged for the rental car even if the ship didn't come in. Needless to say we booked with someone else. I'm sure we will have a great time.

[suntanzi]

A note on Sylvie: I had inquired about doing a tour and then had 2nd thoughts about it. She recently emailed to see whether I was interested or not. So it seems that she is trying to be sure to confirm all bookings.

[ljrfrm]

I'm just beginnning to explore the idea of a med. cruise - and found this post very interesting, as we would like to book our own private tours if we can. I'm just curious about prices....some of you are talking about groups of 10 or so booking your own guide.....what about just two people...is it cost effective? What kind of prices would I be looking at? Thanks.