Celebrity's '... on Your Own' Tours

[Tammiko]

Hello,

 

We are getting so close to our cruises... really hitting the crunch time here and trying to get the last minute stuff together.

 

We have quite a few tours books privately but there are some ports that we are doing on our own that we need to buy maps for... I'm wondering if the ones that you purchase through Celebrity will provide one before they drop you off the bus?

 

Specifically, if anyone has ever done the 'Florence on Your Own', did they give you a map and/or pamplets?

 

Thank you very much!

[Drink-in-Hand/Toes-in-Sand]

Try the Europe thread on the Ports of Call board. I'm sure you'll find your answer there. Enjoy your trip!

[Lsimon]

I don't recall receiving one. Only thing that bugged me about that trip was the 40 minute "rest" stop at a "leather factory" just outside of Florence where they leather jackets ran 500 to over 1000 euros. Be prepared for this waste of time.

 

We emailed the Firenze tourist bureau (google it) through a link on their site and requested some info prior to out trip and a couple weeks later got a small box full of maps and tourist guides - the kind you'd get at a local hotel with some advertising but a lot of good info too.

 

Before we left for Barcelona we bought a map at a local books store near home (probably Barnes and Noble) called Mapeasy's Guide to Barcelona - it was one of the best tourist maps for a foreign city we've ever had - if they had one for another city we were visiting I'd get one in a second - highly recommend. You should check it out to see if they have one for Florence.

[English muffin]

Hello Tammiko

Did you mean 'Florence on your own' whereby you do your own thing. We did the trip but did not have a lot of time in Florence, only about 2 hours as we had just missed a train and had to wait about an hour for the next one. If you dock in Livorno you first have to get the (free) shuttle bus into Livorno then a bus to the train station which is at the back of the town it takes about 1 1/2 hours approx on the train to Florence, the train stops right in the centre of the town and the famous sites are not far away. The maps you get from the cruise ships are normally very basic, but not sure if they covered Florence or not, we were lucky we met an Italian lady on the train station and she drew us a basic map where to go on a quick tour of Florence. Its very easy when you get into Florence, but unless you have done a lot of your own sightseeing trips it may be a bit complicated especially if you are worried about getting back to your cruise , you have to leave plenty of time. Even though we only had 2 hours it was well worth the trip. You may find that the cruise ship offer 'on your own trip' whereby they take you and leave you in florence (same as Rome) I am sure then you would get a decent map of Florence. You could also go oto the internet and you can get details and maps of Florence. Hope that this information may help.

[SGilly]

Hi Tammiko!

We did the "Pisa & Florence" on your own excursion when we were on the Summit in August. Truthfully I wasn't thrilled about the excursion. First of all, I thought we spent way too much time in Pisa (sounds like you're not going there?) and I didn't think we had enough time to fully discover Florence. Next time (if there is one) I'd prefer to do a private excursion in Florence-we much preferred our Rome and Athens private tours!!

 

During the bus ride to Florence, our guide, Svetlana ( yes-they gave us a Russian guide in Florence!) handed out a small map of Florence. The map had numbers that coincided with recommended places to see. She went through each of these locations, told us if that place would be open (we were there on a Monday & many of the "places to see" were closed) and what there was to see in each. The bus then dropped us off and she walked us all a few blocks to the Piazza di Santa Croce where she set us loose for 3 hours. I have a great sense of direction & never get lost-well I got lost in Florence!!! You can't go too far of the beaten path because the Arno River will guide you back to the center of things-but it was a little nerve racking!!

 

What I suggest is to get a small "street map" of the central area of Florence (maybe an email to their tourist board before you go might help) and use that in conjunction with the map that they you give on the bus. Cruise critic friends that were on that excursion with us took advantage of the Hop On-Hop off in Florence & I think they were able to see alot more than we did-it might be something worth considering!

 

Hope you have a wonderful cruise!

Terri

[dorakk]

We just got back from our Med. cruise last week. For the port of Livorno, we hired a private tour. Our ship were docked at a suburb area, and celebrity offered an overprice shuttle service to the town ($12 per person). Take this into consideration when planning your itinerary for that day.

 

Florence is a very wonderful city with most of their tourist attractions packed in a small area, within walking distance. So it's not difficult to do it on your own.

 

We've heard other ppl on the ship joining the cruiseline's "on your own" excursion, in which they had lots of complains. The guide picked a bad spot for meeting up in Florence, and he didn't gave out good directions. What ended up happening was that ppl were waiting for the bus at different locations and a very significant amount of time were spent driving around and look for the ppl.

 

We've also heard other ppl had good experience traveling on their own. They managed to get a bargain with a taxi driver at the port, the driver drove them to Pisa then Florence. The cost is 50Euro per person for a group of 7.

[Tammiko]

Thank you all very much!:) I guess I will have to rethink this, again. :rolleyes:

 

We were planning on doing Celebrity's "Florence on Your Own" without the Pisa option as we'd heard before Pisa wasn't as good as Florence and that it just took time away for her.

 

It's the idea of missing a train or the like that makes me a little leary of doing this one on my own. Thank God the train missed was the one on the way there and not one the returning to the ship!

 

500 to 1000 EUROS for a jacket???? :eek: What happened to the wonderful deals in Florence on there awesome leather???? Guess I'll be bringing home gloves. So much for a jacket and purse.

 

I went today to Chapters, and had no luck with the map, but will try next week at other places!

 

Thanks again everyone.

[sallywingate]

We cruised on the Med. this past summer. We bought two great maps of Athens & Istanbul at Barnes & Nobles. These maps were laminated, very durable and easy to read. It was also nice to have them before our trip so that we could map out our tour. Book stores will order the maps for you or you can buy them direct over the Internet. Brand name "Insight - Fleximap." Have fun!

[Lsimon]

...500 to 1000 EUROS for a jacket???? :eek: What happened to the wonderful deals in Florence on there awesome leather???? Guess I'll be bringing home gloves. So much for a jacket and purse...

 

I understand there are many places to buy nice leather there at good prices. There are also a top of vendors selling stuff that is cheap (quality and price) on the street. We had been planning on doing some leather shopping in town, but didn't as that was lower on our list in terms of things to do and we never got around to it!

 

We we disappointed with the leather stop on the tour bus but not totally with our choice of taking the ship's "on your own" transportation. We took the Florence on your own at the advice of friends based on concerns about missing other transportation (including the ship) and the traffic on the long drive to/from Florence. The cost of independent transportation for 4 was similar to the Florence on your own and with the ship's transportation there wasn't the concern about getting back late. Other than the time wasted for the leather stop (really only 20 or 30 minutes wasted as a bathroom stop was needed) the transportation was a good idea. We also were advised to skip Pisa and save our time for Florence.

 

We didn't go into any museums, just went into the Cathedral where lines were short and spent the day wondering around the wonderful city enjoying the architecture, outdoor statues, Ponta Vecchia area, and lunch at wonderful local place on the other side of the bridge. There is so much to see there!

[shadowkitty]

We just returned from 14 days on the Summit. We did Florence and Pisa on your own through Celebrity. We are not adventurous and wanted the security of the ship's tour. We did get a map on the bus and more direction from the tour guide than I thought we would seeing it was 'on your own'. Before we left I calledthe Accademia and made a reservation to see David at 11:30am based on the description of the tour in our cruise info. They gave me a reservation number. I paid no money and figured if it didn't work out I only lost the cost of the phone call, which I haven't seen yet on my bill. Unlike the description, the tour turned out to be Pisa first and Florence in the afternoon so I was afraid we wouldn't get to see David. The tour guide did take us to a leather factory but we just didn't go in and walked briskly over to the Accademia. By this time it was 12:30ish with a very long line for those without reservations. We got in the line for reservations only and the ticket seller asked me for my confirmation number and we were in. We took our time there and then had the rest of the afternoon to see the Duomo, get some lunch, take pictures and walk across the Ponte Vecchio. Of course we only saw a small portion of what there is to see but it worked for us and at a fraction of the price of the guided Pisa and Florence tour the ship offered.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions. I haven't had time to write a review. Still jet lagged.

[Guri]

Hello,

 

We are getting so close to our cruises... really hitting the crunch time here and trying to get the last minute stuff together.

 

We have quite a few tours books privately but there are some ports that we are doing on our own that we need to buy maps for... I'm wondering if the ones that you purchase through Celebrity will provide one before they drop you off the bus?

 

Specifically, if anyone has ever done the 'Florence on Your Own', did they give you a map and/or pamplets?

 

Thank you very much!

 

Florence On Your Own: The bus company will provide you with a map along with a tour guide for the duration of the bus trip. Good time to ask tour guide questions while on the bus. Celebrity always stop at leather factory, other cruise lines just take you directly to Florence. It all depends. Once in Florence, they will drop you off at Lungarno Pecori Giraldi and the group will walk to Piazza Santa Croce. From there, you’re on your own. This is also your meeting place at the end of the day.

Florence is very compact & all tourist attractions are close. Uffizi is closed on Mondays. Great bargains can be found at San Lorenzo market adjacent to Church of San Lorenzo and the Medici Chapel... good leather deals, pashmina scarf, handbags, silk ties...

Hope this helps!!!

[Tammiko]

This is all fantastic information! Thank you very much!

 

Since we are only planning on going to the Accademia, the Duomo & the bridge before we just wander around and find the market Guri wrote about, do you think it is even necessary for me to go out and find a map?

 

I am soooo short on time it isn't even funny! We have Dr. appointments, hair appointments, parent - teacher, packing, my notes to do, Christmas cards and packages to send (not back until the 15th of Dec.), my grandson's birthday, a friend needs an escort to the hospital for a procedure, etc. etc. etc. and leaving in one week. PANIC!

[Peregrina651]

Since we are only planning on going to the Accademia, the Duomo & the bridge before we just wander around and find the market Guri wrote about, do you think it is even necessary for me to go out and find a map?

 

We were able to find a pocket map of Florence at the airport. Also, try googling for a map. Maybe some website has posted a map of the tourist areas that you can print out. At least having it in advance will give you a chance to study it and to decide where you want to go.

[Lsimon]

The company I mentioned in an earlier message, Mapeasy, does map a guide map for Florence

http://www.mapeasy.com/product.cfm?id=15&location=35

 

I used their map for our recent trip to Barcelona. It was just perfect and had all the information I really needed on it. One of the few times I've constantly relied on a guide map. While I haven't looked in detail at their product for anyplace else other than Barcelona, if it is nearly as good as the Barcelona map was you'll love it.

 

We bought our barcelona map at Barnes and Noble, but I imagine it's available at other book & travel stores as well as on line.

[Pandora2im4]

You might also buy a Rick Steves' Florence guidebook (Amazon or on the Rick Steves website). They're about $15, and have self guided tours of many of the sites in Florence including the Uffizi, Medici Chapels, Medici-Riccardi Palace, the Duomo and I think I remember a general walking tour of town.

[Guri]

[cavkc]

We booked 'Florence on your Own' with Celebrity, which is simply a coach ride to and from Florence. You can of course use public transport, however Florence is a good 90 minute drive from the port and the Italians do have a habit of going on strike at no notice!

 

I took the attitude that if we were on a ships excursion which was late back they wouldn't leave without us, so it was worth paying the extra few bucks for peace of mind.

 

 

On route to Florence the coach stopped at a leather factory outlet/manufacturer. Whilst some of the goods were quite nice, I would not recommend buying from there as you will find much better quality at a better price in Florence itself.

 

We were left in Florence and had approximately 5 hours on our own. It is a beautiful town, very easy to navigate and easily done on foot. As it was a public holiday that weekend, and also a Sunday, not all the shops were open, however the vast majority had opened by 12 noon.

 

San Lorenzo market is quite good, with most of the stall holders having shops immediately behind the stall.

 

We ended up buying a leather jacket each and a fur coat for me. Do shop around though if you are interested in leather as quality varies considerably. You can get a leather jacket for 80 Euro, but to get a beautiful soft calves leather jacket expect to pay closer to 300.

Before we left Florence the coach drove around the outskirts of the city where we had some wonderful views and passed some incredible properties.

[Tammiko]

Thank you very much everyone!

 

Guri, that was just what I needed!!! I have printed it off and started to figure out what we can do around the Accademia.

 

I waited until 1:00 am and called the Museum and got a reservation for noon! (Thanks ShadowKitty). I didn't know you could get a reservation without actually buying the ticket.

 

Everyone's advice has been invaluable. I am so grateful for Cruise Critic!