misseulalie
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 7, 2005
Hi everyone, I can't find the threads about the Med. excursions and the internet is so slow it's eating my minutes, so for those who are interested, heres a few comments about the excursions that I have taken so far
Horse show in Cadiz: This was a big waste of time and money. The show was nice, but not worth the money and the kids were bored. Arabian nights in Orlando provided a better show.
We were supposed to get a box lunch but they surprised us with a Tapas lunch. It consisted of mini ham and cheese sandwiches, slices of more ham and cheese, and a potato frittata. If you cant eat pork like my husband, it really wasnt much of a lunch.
Palermo and the Ballero Market:
The church was beautiful and the tour guide was excellent, but we seemed to circle the city quite a few times to kill time and the walk to the market was interesting. We called it strolling through Ghetto Sicily. The market is quite old and beware that it is a food market and the rest is similar to a flea market. The problem is that we all visited the market in Barcelona (on Las Ramblas) and it was incredible, beautiful stands with everything from nuts, candy, pizza, fish, dairy etc .
So we were expecting something similar. Just be prepared that it is a very local market.
The snack was excellent; it was almost a full lunch. Samples of pizza, traditional chickpea bread, olives, sardines, different cheeses, bread, and wine and soda.
"Timeless Pompeii and the Flavors of Sorrento
Sorrento was great and the stop at the farm to see how they made mozzarella. The food was terrific and the hospitality was wonderful. My big complaints were the not so subtle stops at two stores that were supposedly factories. It was obvious to everyone that we stopped there only because the tour company was getting kickbacks for everything we bought. We basically used the bathrooms and waited outside by the bus.
Pompeii was nice (even in the rain) but in the 2 hours we were there, we spent only the last 10 minutes looking the bodies and other objects. (This is what we all wanted to see) We spent the whole time looking at house after house but we only saw 2 out of 40 bodies.
We could have spent 1 hour (or even 90 minutes) looking at the homes and 30 minutes looking at the bodies and other items.
"Rome on your own":
Great and it only took 70 minutes instead of the 90-minute bus ride. Here is the complaint that may cause some flames: We had to meet the bus in Rome at 5pm. (Though the ship didnt leave until 10pm) We could have had at least 1-2 more hours in Rome, but we had to get back in time for the guests who had main dining. Im sorry, but Im in Rome, the home to some of the best cuisine in the world. I would kill to have a great Roman dinner. But no, we had to rush back so people can eat at their 6pm dining. The food on DCL is good, but I and most other people would gladly skip the dining room in order to eat in Rome.
I spoke to guest services about this and according to a survey they took, most people wanted to get back in time to eat because they paid for it and dont want to spend money on food that they can get for free on the ship. I could see if this happened for all the excursions, but ROME??? Come on, people!! You are in ROME!! Skip the dining room and live a little!!!
Last excursion:
Make your own perfume in Villefranche:
(I actually didnt take it. I had it reserved but changed to another excursion. )
BIG ISSUE WITH THIS EXCURISON!! You do not make your own perfume; you make one per party. So for example, if you go with a group of 4 (mom, dad, 2 kids) you make 1 sample for all 4 people. It is very mis-leading because no -where does it state this. All it says is create your very own scent. Doesnt this imply that each person makes their own???
This is a very expensive excursion to make only 1 sample per party.
Any questions, let me know!!
Only 4 days left
Jennifer
Horse show in Cadiz: This was a big waste of time and money. The show was nice, but not worth the money and the kids were bored. Arabian nights in Orlando provided a better show.
We were supposed to get a box lunch but they surprised us with a Tapas lunch. It consisted of mini ham and cheese sandwiches, slices of more ham and cheese, and a potato frittata. If you cant eat pork like my husband, it really wasnt much of a lunch.
Palermo and the Ballero Market:
The church was beautiful and the tour guide was excellent, but we seemed to circle the city quite a few times to kill time and the walk to the market was interesting. We called it strolling through Ghetto Sicily. The market is quite old and beware that it is a food market and the rest is similar to a flea market. The problem is that we all visited the market in Barcelona (on Las Ramblas) and it was incredible, beautiful stands with everything from nuts, candy, pizza, fish, dairy etc .
So we were expecting something similar. Just be prepared that it is a very local market.
The snack was excellent; it was almost a full lunch. Samples of pizza, traditional chickpea bread, olives, sardines, different cheeses, bread, and wine and soda.
"Timeless Pompeii and the Flavors of Sorrento
Sorrento was great and the stop at the farm to see how they made mozzarella. The food was terrific and the hospitality was wonderful. My big complaints were the not so subtle stops at two stores that were supposedly factories. It was obvious to everyone that we stopped there only because the tour company was getting kickbacks for everything we bought. We basically used the bathrooms and waited outside by the bus.
Pompeii was nice (even in the rain) but in the 2 hours we were there, we spent only the last 10 minutes looking the bodies and other objects. (This is what we all wanted to see) We spent the whole time looking at house after house but we only saw 2 out of 40 bodies.
We could have spent 1 hour (or even 90 minutes) looking at the homes and 30 minutes looking at the bodies and other items.
"Rome on your own":
Great and it only took 70 minutes instead of the 90-minute bus ride. Here is the complaint that may cause some flames: We had to meet the bus in Rome at 5pm. (Though the ship didnt leave until 10pm) We could have had at least 1-2 more hours in Rome, but we had to get back in time for the guests who had main dining. Im sorry, but Im in Rome, the home to some of the best cuisine in the world. I would kill to have a great Roman dinner. But no, we had to rush back so people can eat at their 6pm dining. The food on DCL is good, but I and most other people would gladly skip the dining room in order to eat in Rome.
I spoke to guest services about this and according to a survey they took, most people wanted to get back in time to eat because they paid for it and dont want to spend money on food that they can get for free on the ship. I could see if this happened for all the excursions, but ROME??? Come on, people!! You are in ROME!! Skip the dining room and live a little!!!
Last excursion:
Make your own perfume in Villefranche:
(I actually didnt take it. I had it reserved but changed to another excursion. )
BIG ISSUE WITH THIS EXCURISON!! You do not make your own perfume; you make one per party. So for example, if you go with a group of 4 (mom, dad, 2 kids) you make 1 sample for all 4 people. It is very mis-leading because no -where does it state this. All it says is create your very own scent. Doesnt this imply that each person makes their own???
This is a very expensive excursion to make only 1 sample per party.
Any questions, let me know!!
Only 4 days left
Jennifer
good info
