which excursion

[madmarti]

Royal Caribbean is posting the ship's excursions for our June 13 cruise, Italy and Croatia. I can't decide on one for Naples. I'm torn between Capri, which is all day, 8 hrs. 15 mins. or The Amalfi coast and Pompei, 9 1/2 hrs. Any input is welcomed. Thanks madmarti

[carlmm]

Both choices are nice, thus just a few thougths:

 

Capri is probably the more relaxing alternative. You need to go by boat to the Island and will probably have more private time to see something you choose or just to sit down and enjoy the view. It is a nice Island and beloved by many (which also implies that is overcrowded on summer days.)

More sightseeing highlights are covered on the other tour. The views from the Amalfiana are spectacular and Pompeii is of course one of the must-sees if you are interested in history. On the other hand this will be a very busy day spending a lot of time in the bus. If there was the option you should spend one day each in Pompeii and the Amalfi coast...

 

Enjoy!

[Keith1010]

The length of the Pompeii tour is a lot longer than is normally the case on a cruise excursion of this area. Does the tour include more than Pompeii.

 

If you like history I would recommend Pompeii. You will learn a good deal not only about what happened to this city but what life was back then. It is amazing the thought that was put into the contsruction of this city.

 

The Amalfi coast will give you beautiful scenery.

 

And the Island of Capri will be fun as well.

 

It really comes down to what you enjoy and what you are doing in the other places.

 

Keith

[madmarti]

Thanks for the input. Unfortunately, we will be in Naples for only one day. Keep the recommendations coming, thanks madmarti

[seapenarth]

We have spent some time in the area including a weeks holiday in Ravello which is a fascinating town with wonderful views. It has to be Pompeii and Amalfi. I find Capri very overated and the port area a real hassle.

[CathyCruises]

Totally agree with above poster.

[andynapril]

Royal Caribbean is posting the ship's excursions for our June 13 cruise, Italy and Croatia. I can't decide on one for Naples. I'm torn between Capri, which is all day, 8 hrs. 15 mins. or The Amalfi coast and Pompei, 9 1/2 hrs. Any input is welcomed. Thanks madmarti

 

 

I would choose Amalfi coast/Pompei. Our day there was the highlight of our entire cruise. We had friends that went just before we did & they went to Capri, but regretted that they hadn't went to Amalfi. Just my opinion. :)

[CintiPam]

The length of the Pompeii tour is a lot longer than is normally the case on a cruise excursion of this area. Does the tour include more than Pompeii.

 

If you like history I would recommend Pompeii. You will learn a good deal not only about what happened to this city but what life was back then. It is amazing the thought that was put into the contsruction of this city.

 

The Amalfi coast will give you beautiful scenery.

 

And the Island of Capri will be fun as well.

 

It really comes down to what you enjoy and what you are doing in the other places.

 

Keith

 

I actually agree with Keith on this one (versus shorts and US dollars). Well put.

[Keith1010]

I actually agree with Keith on this one (versus shorts and US dollars). Well put.

 

If it was baseball, 1 for 3 would be batting 333. Pretty good. :)

 

Keith

[sammiedawg]

If you can, book a private driver tour of Amalfi coast, I would not recommend the ship bus tours to Amalfi. Our private driver told us they cannot navigate all the roads and are not allowed in some towns.

He stopped for 2 hours at Pompeii and hooked us up with a guide there. Pompeii is worth seeing once, i would not go a second time.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed Capri because it was unscheduled, we did this on another cruise over there and it was wonderful to be on our own. We had a great time over there, we went all the way up to the chair lift in the second town, had great bus rides and views over there as well.

[sammiedawg]

PS, if money is a factor, you can do Capri on your own for not a fortune, the cost of the hydrofoil, a couple bus rides and chair lifts on Capri. Buy Rick Steves type guidebook. Anything you eat or buy will be pricey on Capri.

[Susan-M]

If this is your first visit to that area, I would recommend Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast, and would also recommend trying to join up with 4 or 6 others on your roll call to do a private tour...you'll have more flexibility, better views, and likely more fun with a small group, and you'll be able to drive in to the town of Positano (which the larger buses cannot do.)

[GoneCruzn]

I'm having a hard time deciding on these excursions too. Which one is better for somebody who's afraid of heights and not a bit adventurous and who doesn't consider it fun to be hanging over a cliff or having to visit a city via a high wire -- which one is tame and relaxing, but still offers good sights and a nice day.

[Hlitner]

If you decide to go to Capri for the day, there is no reason to spend your money on a tour. Its a short walk from your ship to the jetboat/hydrofoil docks where you can simply buy a ticket on the same boats used by the tours. Exploring Capri on your own is quite easy to do and its a fun place for shopping, riding the chair lift from Anacapri up to the top of Mt Solara (not generally done on tours) and perhaps going to the very very touristy Blue Grotto.

 

Hank

[Susan-M]

Which one is better for somebody who's afraid of heights and not a bit adventurous and who doesn't consider it fun to be hanging over a cliff or having to visit a city via a high wire -- which one is tame and relaxing, but still offers good sights and a nice day.

 

The Amalfi Coast (there are fences at the viewpoints), including stops at a couple of small towns along the coast (they are at sea level, so no worries about cliffs) and Pompeii.... via a private tour with a few other couples from your cruise. Fun, very interesting, but not overly adventurous. Enjoy!:)

[Hlitner]

I should correct my previous post about Capri. I mentioned the chair lift from Anacapri (probably the best secret on the island) but if you are afraid of heights do not even consider this option :). But for others, I would recommend the chair lift as a much better option than the Blue Grotto, and its a lot cheaper (only 8 Euros round trip from Anacapri).

 

Hank

[madmarti]

very disappointed, not much feedback from my meet and mingle. I think we are sailing on an empty ship. Pobably going with a day in capri and hoping for the best. madmarti

[Susan-M]

very disappointed, not much feedback from my meet and mingle. I think we are sailing on an empty ship. Pobably going with a day in capri and hoping for the best. madmarti

 

Why not post some exact info on your roll call about the tour that you are thinking of taking and see if anyone is interested? Although you may not have a lot of participation now on your roll call, that will probably change over the next month or so.

 

Check first to be sure that the driver you want is available, and get specifics of the tour that he normally does for Amalfi/Pompeii, and cost based on 6 or 8 people. If he is available, tell him that you are trying to put together a group and will confirm a.s.a.p. Then give exact details on the roll call to see if anyone else is interested.

 

People on a roll call will often respond if they know what the exact details of the tour are ... but not if there is just a vague comment about a tour you are thinking of doing.

[madmarti]

;) I have some specifics of a private tour to Pompeii/Amalfi coast if any one wants to share. Pick up at port visit town of Positano, explore ruins at Pompeii, visit Sorrento where we have lunch, back to port. Up to 6 people, AC Mercedes mini van, 550 euros. This is with romeinlimo which comes highly recommended on CC. We have 2 other private tours booked with them in Rome and Florence. Madmarti

[Susan-M]

Hi,

Just a heads-up re postings on tour sharing...here's a link to a 'sticky' on the forum page: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=508315

:)

[madmarti]

thanks susan, I should have realized this. thanks, madmarti:o

[Susan-M]

Hi madmarti,

 

Not a problem... I didn't notice the stickies either until after I had been posting for quite some time.

 

Just another thought....will the tour operator deal with each couple? On our Amalfi Coast tour, the driver asked me to have each party email him so that he could deal directly with them. It saved me from having to be responsible for payment ... and in the unlikely event of a no-show of one of the couples, responsibility would not have fallen entirely on me. When someone on the roll call expressed an interest, I passed along the driver's email address for them to communicate directly.

 

Hope you get a group together!

[packed&ready!]

Last year we had a lovely BUS tour to the "Amalfi Coast!" We were on the Celebrity Millenium. We had lunch up on the cliffs. Spectacular view. We stopped in Sorrento, Positano and Amalfi. It was the best tour besides France on our cruise. If you can't go by private car, do the bus trip. The buses are not that big. Next May we are going private to Pompeii and then the Amalfi tour with lunch.

 

Bon Voyage

[Travel Buddies]

Hank,

 

I am so glad you mentioned this! My finace and I will be taking our first cruise this summer as our honeymoon, and we heard that we should definitely go to Capri. We were stunned when we saw how expensive the excursion was through the ship, and the thought hadn't occurred to me to go on our own until I read your post. Can you please provide any more information about going to the island? Do you happen to remember how much the roundrip boat ticket is and how often it departs and returns? Thanks so much!

 

Kim

[chipmaster]

;) I have some specifics of a private tour to Pompeii/Amalfi coast if any one wants to share. Pick up at port visit town of Positano, explore ruins at Pompeii, visit Sorrento where we have lunch, back to port. Up to 6 people, AC Mercedes mini van, 550 euros. This is with romeinlimo which comes highly recommended on CC. We have 2 other private tours booked with them in Rome and Florence. Madmarti

 

You are going to really enjoy these 3 cities with the vendor you picked. We did these same ports and really really had a great time.

 

Do consider hiring a private guide at Pompeii as the place is huge and you'll need the guide to help you navigate and take you to the best sites in the couple hours you are there.