All in one place: Please Post info from your DCL Med excursions HERE

[MrsG]

Thanks Gloria,

We are taking the Monoco, Monte Carlo and Eze tour. I've only heard great things about it. Something to look forward to!!!

Maryann

 

[Ltl Mermaid]

Vegs1: We did not have time to go to the Oceanographic Museum, we only saw it from the outside. it did look very cool but wasn't part of our scheduled excursion. our guide pretty much stuck to the schedule. We did not see the inside of the Prince's Palace either, but we did get to see the isnide of the Catherdral. It was the location where Princess Grace got married.

The only fish at lunch was tuna in the salad...I am sure they could bring you one without tuna on it. The lunch was Chicken Marsala, which I didn't eat. I am a vegetarian so they gave me a pasta with creamy marinara. My sister loved the regular lunch and I thought the pasta was great also.

Unfortunately, there was no free time in Eze. Probably the only small downside to this great excursion. In my opinion, I am still very happy we did this tour as we did have a good amount of free time in Nice, which was stunning!

 

[momma4v3]

Has anyone done Rome and/or Florence on your own? Either through Disney or truely on your own. We reserved Florence on your own but are thinking about doing it completely on our own either through a private guide or completly by ourselves. We have been to both cities before and are comfortable by ourselves in Italy eventhough we do not speak Italian.
I have emailed a few tour companies in Rome and Florence to compare but would appreciate some first hand experience.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Linda

 

[jokicha]

Med cruise on our own with 3 kids

We traveled to the med with 4 adults and 3 children ages 5, 8 and 13. We did all of the ports on our own, all with the kids. It took a lot of research and reading message boards but worth it. Check out portreviews.com, cruise-chat.com, cruisecritic.com. I bought Rick Steves Italy 2007 book and had with me at all times.

Because we were traveling with the children, I was selective on where I wanted to spend most of my time, money and energy. I wanted it to be meaningful for them and also educational. We were not interested in doing the high end shopping. We did buy a few things but the focus of the trip was sightseeing. There are a few ports that I didn’t spend a lot of time on such as Olbia and Palermo. In Palermo, we bought the tourist bus ticket at the port but then spent a couple of hours trying to get on one. The buses were always full so we kept walking to the next stop and sightseeing in the meantime. After two hours we decided to go back to the ship and got a refund on our ticket. In Olbia, we had a beautiful reception with lots of treats, great souvenirs for those at home. Again, we walked around the town for while, bought some souvenirs and ice cream (of course!) then headed back to the ship. Because we live in Florida, trips to spend the day at the beach were not of our interested. I also wanted to make sure that the kids had some down time at the kids club to relax and have fun. Here are a few highlights from our trip that I hope you find useful.

La Spezia is very far from Florence. We got up very early, had breakfast and got first in line for the tender ticket. We took the first tender at 7:30 but still missed the 8:00 train to Florence. We took the 9:06 train and got into Florence around 11:45. I had made a reservation (just by calling ahead) for 1:00 so we were able to walk passed everybody in line and walk right in to the Accademia to see the David. We pretty much so the sculpture and walked around a little and headed out. You pay an extra 3 euros for the reservation but well worth it. It just happened that they day we went; it was free because of an Italian holiday so we only paid the 3 Euros. We walked to the cathedral, Duomo and Ponte Vecchio. Lots of places to shop, they expect you to haggle the price. After that, we took a taxi to the train station and headed back. Since the train has to stop in Pisa, we were hoping to get off, see Pisa – take a quick picture and continue to La Spezia. Well, the train was delayed and I didn’t feel that I had enough time to do it. You will be rushed that day so rest well the night before.

Rome --- again, we were off the ship as soon as they let us, walked to the train station and took the 8 am train into Rome (about an hour). We got off at S. Pietro and started our day at the Vatican. We had a reservation at Vatican Museum for 10:30 and were able to skip the line that went around the block a few times. You do pay extra for the reservation (about 10-12 E more) but well worth it. Send a fax to the Vatican, check out their website at Vatican.va. We hadn’t received our conf code when we left the US but we emailed home and got the number. The tour lasted about two hours and you do get to go into the Sistine chapel. After the tour, we had a nice lunch and took a bus to the Colosseum where we also had a reservation. Again, we skipped the line and were able to just walk in. We chose to see it on our own to save time and not follow the guide. We then took the metro to the Spanish Steps and walked to Trevi Fountain and Pantheon. After shopping and walking around, we took the train at the termini station back to the port.

Marseilles---take the free shuttle into town. We paid 8 Euros for adults and 5 for children to take their little sightseeing train. We took the panoramic view (there are two to choose from) and it took us to the top of the mountain to the Notre Dame of the Gard (spelling?). Breathtaking views and church, a must see. We got back to the town and shopped around. The prices at the port by the ship were better than in town.

Villefranche – one of my favorite ports. We took our time in the morning and didn’t rush out of the ship. The view is spectacular from the ship. We took the train to Monte Carlo and then the bus to the palace. We shopped around, had lunch, went by the casino and headed back. The train back was very crowded, to where we had to force our way into it. There was an option of taking a bus right outside the port. I think the price was about the same and it took a little longer but I think it would have been better. Enjoy the port and take lots of pictures of the flowers around the doorways. We decided not to go to Nice and head back to the ship.

Naples---We had planned to the train on our own. However, on the way to the train as we were walking, a taxi offered us a great rate to Pompeii and back. Once in the cab, we talked about a rate for the day to go to Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast. We ended up paying 255euros for 7 people for about 9-10 hours of having our own driver… a great deal considering what DCL was charging per person. Make sure you take Dramamine if you get motion sickness. He drove us to Pompeii and waited for us outside. We then drove the coast to Sorrento, the Amalfi Coast view is spectacular-which we would’ve missed if we had done the train. We stopped at an artisan’s shop were wooden musical boxes were made, ate lunch by the sea in a really nice restaurant, stopped at fruit stands and little souvenir shops on the way. We didn’t spend a lot of time in Sorrento because we wanted to continue to the Amalfi coast. It was one of the best sightseeing days of the cruise. Our driver Antonio was not only funny, spoke four languages, played Italian music and sang along the way. What a treat! I do have his contact information if anyone is interested.

General info: I bought individually packed snacks for the kids. A trip to Target saved me a ton of money. I kept the bags in our cabin and packed a few things every day. Also, the cereal boxes from breakfast, great hit too. For the long plane ride, new coloring books (they didn’t get them until we were at the airport), magna doodle travel size and a couple of books. The little ones had their own bag with their stuff. My teenager had his bag with his Ipod, etc. I purchased new card games (go fish, crazy 8, etc) at the dollar store and new books for the return flight. I kept them in my suitcase until we were ready to come back.

The kid club is wonderful. We took our children with us always; however, as time permitted, as soon as we got back on the ship, we ate a snack, took them to the kids’ club and then the adults got to rest for a little bit. We had late seating which was great. We got ready by 6 pm, saw the show at 6:30, dinner at 8:30 and off to whatever activities were going on. We did try to rest on the night before the ports that were really busy such as Rome, la Spezia and Naples.

Trenitalia.com is the place to get familiar with the trains and their schedule. Print out the schedule for the different days and take it with you. It may change but it was a lot of help. In most places, you can get a ticket for the day that will include subway, train and buses. Once at the station ask several people if you are at the right track (binario). You will not always get the right information.

Do invest in a tour book such as the Rick Steves. Learn enough key words in Italian to know how to ask. People were very friendly and willing to help. Use the waist wallet that goes under your clothes and don’t carry any valuables in your backpack. Always keep an eye out when on the train and crowded areas and use a lot of common sense.

Enjoy all the ice cream that you are going to see!

I hope this helps. We had a wonderful time and I wouldn’t have wanted my children to miss this opportunity. Take lots of pictures and get postcards. I also bought guides at each important place so that I can review with the kids afterwards. They especially enjoyed the books with the clear overlays in Rome and Pompeii.

Time will go by fast...enjoy every minute of it.

 

[michellebriana]

What time did you line up in order to get on the first tender in La Spezia?

 

[scottishwee35]

Jokicha

I would like to saying many thanks for your trip report and your feedback.

As find that it is very helpful.

Scottishwee35

 

[lzj21428]

I've seen alot of conflicting info on weather or not to carry your passport w/ you while off the ship. I'm wondering what more people have done. Did DCL give any advice on this topic?

Just curious what the consensus on this might be. Thanks

 

[jokicha]

First they announced that the tickets would be handed out at 7:00. I was there with everybody by 6:45. However, nobody showed up until 7:20 and they gave out the tickets at 7:30. Not all excursions get off at the same time. You will need to have your whole party with you.

 

[jokicha]

I've seen alot of conflicting info on weather or not to carry your passport w/ you while off the ship. I'm wondering what more people have done. Did DCL give any advice on this topic?

Just curious what the consensus on this might be. Thanks

You will need your passport for large purchases. At first, we carried everybody's including the children. Then only the adults carried their own. You will need to have picture ID with you to get off and on and to use your CC at most places. Make photocopies, leave a copy with someone at home and keep a copy in your cabin's safe. Also, keep copies of all CC at home and in the room's safe. Call your CC companies to let them know that you will be using your card internationally. Otherwise, they may freeze it for suspicious use.

 

[vegs1]

Hi Jokicha -Thanks for the great info!

I would really like to get the contact info for the driver in Naples. That was a great rate to drive you around all day - and for that many people too! Was it a van? Also...what does the driver do when you want to stop and eat or just stop somewhere you see to shop? Does he wait in the car?

 

[TDC Nala]

I'm doing the Michaelangelo excursion in Florence - we get to see Big Dave. He was on my list so that should be good.

If anybody did the Monaco Evening Casino excursion (I am reading around to see if I can find anybody who did it) will they allow you to keep your passport with you in the casino? I need to know if I have to stow it in my underwear.

 

[seema]

Med cruise on our own with 3 kids

We traveled to the med with 4 adults and 3 children ages 5, 8 and 13. We did all of the ports on our own, all with the kids. It took a lot of research and reading message boards but worth it. Check out portreviews.com, cruise-chat.com, cruisecritic.com. I bought Rick Steves Italy 2007 book and had with me at all times.

Because we were traveling with the children, I was selective on where I wanted to spend most of my time, money and energy. I wanted it to be meaningful for them and also educational. We were not interested in doing the high end shopping. We did buy a few things but the focus of the trip was sightseeing. There are a few ports that I didn’t spend a lot of time on such as Olbia and Palermo. In Palermo, we bought the tourist bus ticket at the port but then spent a couple of hours trying to get on one. The buses were always full so we kept walking to the next stop and sightseeing in the meantime. After two hours we decided to go back to the ship and got a refund on our ticket. In Olbia, we had a beautiful reception with lots of treats, great souvenirs for those at home. Again, we walked around the town for while, bought some souvenirs and ice cream (of course!) then headed back to the ship. Because we live in Florida, trips to spend the day at the beach were not of our interested. I also wanted to make sure that the kids had some down time at the kids club to relax and have fun. Here are a few highlights from our trip that I hope you find useful.

La Spezia is very far from Florence. We got up very early, had breakfast and got first in line for the tender ticket. We took the first tender at 7:30 but still missed the 8:00 train to Florence. We took the 9:06 train and got into Florence around 11:45. I had made a reservation (just by calling ahead) for 1:00 so we were able to walk passed everybody in line and walk right in to the Accademia to see the David. We pretty much so the sculpture and walked around a little and headed out. You pay an extra 3 euros for the reservation but well worth it. It just happened that they day we went; it was free because of an Italian holiday so we only paid the 3 Euros. We walked to the cathedral, Duomo and Ponte Vecchio. Lots of places to shop, they expect you to haggle the price. After that, we took a taxi to the train station and headed back. Since the train has to stop in Pisa, we were hoping to get off, see Pisa – take a quick picture and continue to La Spezia. Well, the train was delayed and I didn’t feel that I had enough time to do it. You will be rushed that day so rest well the night before.

Rome --- again, we were off the ship as soon as they let us, walked to the train station and took the 8 am train into Rome (about an hour). We got off at S. Pietro and started our day at the Vatican. We had a reservation at Vatican Museum for 10:30 and were able to skip the line that went around the block a few times. You do pay extra for the reservation (about 10-12 E more) but well worth it. Send a fax to the Vatican, check out their website at Vatican.va. We hadn’t received our conf code when we left the US but we emailed home and got the number. The tour lasted about two hours and you do get to go into the Sistine chapel. After the tour, we had a nice lunch and took a bus to the Colosseum where we also had a reservation. Again, we skipped the line and were able to just walk in. We chose to see it on our own to save time and not follow the guide. We then took the metro to the Spanish Steps and walked to Trevi Fountain and Pantheon. After shopping and walking around, we took the train at the termini station back to the port.

Marseilles---take the free shuttle into town. We paid 8 Euros for adults and 5 for children to take their little sightseeing train. We took the panoramic view (there are two to choose from) and it took us to the top of the mountain to the Notre Dame of the Gard (spelling?). Breathtaking views and church, a must see. We got back to the town and shopped around. The prices at the port by the ship were better than in town.

Villefranche – one of my favorite ports. We took our time in the morning and didn’t rush out of the ship. The view is spectacular from the ship. We took the train to Monte Carlo and then the bus to the palace. We shopped around, had lunch, went by the casino and headed back. The train back was very crowded, to where we had to force our way into it. There was an option of taking a bus right outside the port. I think the price was about the same and it took a little longer but I think it would have been better. Enjoy the port and take lots of pictures of the flowers around the doorways. We decided not to go to Nice and head back to the ship.

Naples---We had planned to the train on our own. However, on the way to the train as we were walking, a taxi offered us a great rate to Pompeii and back. Once in the cab, we talked about a rate for the day to go to Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast. We ended up paying 255euros for 7 people for about 9-10 hours of having our own driver… a great deal considering what DCL was charging per person. Make sure you take Dramamine if you get motion sickness. He drove us to Pompeii and waited for us outside. We then drove the coast to Sorrento, the Amalfi Coast view is spectacular-which we would’ve missed if we had done the train. We stopped at an artisan’s shop were wooden musical boxes were made, ate lunch by the sea in a really nice restaurant, stopped at fruit stands and little souvenir shops on the way. We didn’t spend a lot of time in Sorrento because we wanted to continue to the Amalfi coast. It was one of the best sightseeing days of the cruise. Our driver Antonio was not only funny, spoke four languages, played Italian music and sang along the way. What a treat! I do have his contact information if anyone is interested.

General info: I bought individually packed snacks for the kids. A trip to Target saved me a ton of money. I kept the bags in our cabin and packed a few things every day. Also, the cereal boxes from breakfast, great hit too. For the long plane ride, new coloring books (they didn’t get them until we were at the airport), magna doodle travel size and a couple of books. The little ones had their own bag with their stuff. My teenager had his bag with his Ipod, etc. I purchased new card games (go fish, crazy 8, etc) at the dollar store and new books for the return flight. I kept them in my suitcase until we were ready to come back.

The kid club is wonderful. We took our children with us always; however, as time permitted, as soon as we got back on the ship, we ate a snack, took them to the kids’ club and then the adults got to rest for a little bit. We had late seating which was great. We got ready by 6 pm, saw the show at 6:30, dinner at 8:30 and off to whatever activities were going on. We did try to rest on the night before the ports that were really busy such as Rome, la Spezia and Naples.

Trenitalia.com is the place to get familiar with the trains and their schedule. Print out the schedule for the different days and take it with you. It may change but it was a lot of help. In most places, you can get a ticket for the day that will include subway, train and buses. Once at the station ask several people if you are at the right track (binario). You will not always get the right information.

Do invest in a tour book such as the Rick Steves. Learn enough key words in Italian to know how to ask. People were very friendly and willing to help. Use the waist wallet that goes under your clothes and don’t carry any valuables in your backpack. Always keep an eye out when on the train and crowded areas and use a lot of common sense.

Enjoy all the ice cream that you are going to see!

I hope this helps. We had a wonderful time and I wouldn’t have wanted my children to miss this opportunity. Take lots of pictures and get postcards. I also bought guides at each important place so that I can review with the kids afterwards. They especially enjoyed the books with the clear overlays in Rome and Pompeii.

Time will go by fast...enjoy every minute of it.

Can you give me more information on the free shuttle in Marseilles. Where does it leave (ie next to the cruise ship?), and where does it go to? Can you give me more information on the sighseeing train? Is it a train, bus, tram? Where does one get the tickets? How long does the tour last? Can one go on and off, repeatedly?

 

[jlawall]

Thx to all for their detailed tour posts..........us future sailors really appreciate it.............

 

[Hygiene99]

We did the DCL Pompeii & Mount Vesuvius tour, the hike to the top is not for the faint of heart. overall worth the money!
Lunch was great!
Guide was Good!!!!


Yes it was a little rainy.

That is all the photos we took on the trip!
Camera malfunction, not to worry we Had a photographer for the rest of the trip.. She takes great photo's Winotracy..

See the photo's Here http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2091131556

The Lanyard MAN

 

[figment52]

We did the DCL Pompeii & Mount Vesuvius tour, the hike to the top is not for the faint of heart. overall worth the money!
Lunch was great!
Guide was Good!!!!


Yes it was a little rainy.

That is all the photos we took on the trip!
Camera malfunction, not to worry we Had a photographer for the rest of the trip.. She takes great photo's Winotracy..

See the photo's Here http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2091131556

Peter -

Congrats to getting your pictures posted already - I can't find my car keys or office keys yet let alone sort thru all my photos. Peter - I did find that you were in a couple of my shore photos in Santa Margharita (after the rain stopped)

 

[padalyn]

We just got home from Barcelona - what a long day...a word of warning to those when traveling home. be prepared for LONG airport walks!!! At BCN it was easily a mile and almost that far at Madrid - the excursions were easier!!

Ok - on to answers and comments:

Padalyn - Thanks for the great info. We are booked to do the Marseille Soap Tour also. Would you kindly answer a couple of more questions on that for me?
First off - I was in Marseille last year and bought wonderfully scented soaps at the market for I think it was 10 bars for 12 Euros. Was the cost about the same? Also...what was the rest of the tour like? We have a 9 year old with us and were wondering if she'd be bored with it. Thanks for the help!!!

you are very welcome - I am hoping my soap appears when my lost luggage appears. I found that the cost is similar to what you list - I found the soaps at the factory were a bit less than at the market (1.5 Euro for a large bar - a pack of 6 mini soaps was 3 Euro at the factory and 8 Euro at the market). There is also a small market set up at the ship - be careful those prices are high! I found the same table cloth in 3 places - at the old port market it was 15 Euro (I bought it there!) at the ship market it was 40 Euro and in Nice it was 35 Euro. Same material and pattern...go figure...

The "tour" I use the term in quotes because the factory is a small place and the owner opened on a Sunday to show us around. He has 7 workers that make 1200 bars of soap a day. He showed each step and allowed the kids to play with the soap a bit as well. I found him charming, informative, and generally very nice. The rest of the tour was a driving trip around the city. Amazingly enough we saw things that were not on our toup (The large water fountain whose name escapes me) and the tour that was supposed to see it never got there due to traffic.

The driving part was only about 2 hours total - we were off the bus in the factory for over an hour. Split in 2 groups to allow easy viewing and shopping for the other half - worked very well.

Then an hour at the market -great for a kid since there are mimes, and the waterfront is an eyefull of interesting and exciting stuff! old ships, restaurants and vendors, fish mongers and others...no un-kid like things that I noticed. I will put a disclaimer that I am NOT a parent and tend to miss those things...but no obvious things.

Anyone have any comments about the Mysterious Palermo tour?? Thanks.

Loved it, loved it, loved it!!! I was wowed by the fact that we saw actual catacombs that are still in use!!! Yes, there were bodies - be warned if that is upsetting to you.

The rest of the tour covered a palace where we weren't allowed pictures, and a really neat old church that is been build and destroyed numerous times.

Has anybody heard about the Olbia Jeep Safari....

I did the full day tour of Mt Teide with 2 other stops (weak brain after 18 hours up and the flight home). Some of my table mates did the jeep tour and were VERY disappointed with it. The drive to the top is about 2 hours - they made no more stops than the bus did - they did not drive themselves, and only had 30 minutes more than we did on teh bus at the top. They said they wished they had done our tour, since we saw the botanica and some of the town. we had a great lunch at a private resort in downtown. The pool was amazing - easily 1000 people could swim at once...

I forgot to ask -

If I want to do a different excursion - don't I have to cancel first? We have two cabins, five people. How will I know first if there are spots available in a different excursion?

Has anyone done this?

Not sure if I should keep it and hope for improvements. Has anyone done the VIP Pisa one?

Thank you all so much.

you are given a cancel by date at the top of the navigator each day - you have 48 hours before teh excursion to decided go or change. I would wait until on board - this way you can ask excursion desk your questions specifically.

For the Pisa trip...you climbed the tour. How did that go? We are wondering what the difficulty would be as we have one person quite out of shape and also a 9 year old that we thought it may be too difficult for if you must keep up to a guide. Any thoughts?

Be ready - the wait is hours I heard. The line was really long. I had only 30 minutes in Pisa total - took me 15 just to get to the tower.

Ltl Mermaid - Just a couple of questions on your Nice and Monaco excursion. Did you actually go to the Oceanographic Museum and if so, what is it and is it worth it? Also...where did you eat in Eze and was there a varied menu to choose from (I can't eat fish). Was there free time in Eze to look around?

We're trying to decide whether to do the excursion or just take the train from Villefranche to these places. Seems easy enough but I've never been there so don't know. Thanks for the help.

I did Nice & Monaco - we stopped for lunch in Eze we did NOT see the church or go up the mountain. We had time in Nice. My girlfriend and her mom did the Monaco tour and were much happier with theirs than I was with mine. The lunch was good as someone else noted. I wish I had known the alternate food choice - I hate chicken, but ate it since that is what I was given.

I have booked tours for the 3 mainland Italian stops - Naples/Pompeii, Rome, and Florence/Pisa.

For the moment, I am holding off booking for the French Riviera, Marseilles, Sicily, and Sardinia. I am wondering if the ports of call are within easy walking distance of the main cities (Monte Carlo for the French Riviera). Can these areas be walked easily and/or can one take a taxi (perhaps to take one around on a timed basis, for a few hours?) to see the sights. For the French Riviera, I am thinking of taking a taxi to go from Monte Carlo to Nice and Cannes, and then back. For Marseilles, I am interested in taking the free half-hourly shuttle from the ship to the harbour.

Do any of the 7 cities have a on-off tourist type bus (I believe that Barcelona has that type of bus).

whew -
Palermo - walking distance from the ship didn't try it myself tho
Sardinia - most of the bigger towns are a drive away - I did Magdellena and loved it!!! never saw Olbia itself.
Rome - do the Train into town if you are picking a DCL excrusion - the busses were hell according to others. The port city (can't spell that one!!) is a nice town, and a short taxi ride away. Don't try to walk it -it was over a mile of industrial shipping port.
Naples: don't recall
La Specia: I again didn't get into town because of the distance to Florence
Marsielle: bus to the old port - very easy and frequent.
Villefranche: tender ran often, but we had other cruise ships in port with us - so the delays were caused by the tenders switching between the ships. When leaving the tender area - there is a short very steep paved hill to climb to the bus.

Vegs1: We did not have time to go to the Oceanographic Museum, we only saw it from the outside. it did look very cool but wasn't part of our scheduled excursion. our guide pretty much stuck to the schedule. We did not see the inside of the Prince's Palace either, but we did get to see the isnide of the Catherdral. It was the location where Princess Grace got married.

QUOTE] and her tomb is there as well.. I agree with these comments. I preferred this part of the tour.

I've seen alot of conflicting info on weather or not to carry your passport w/ you while off the ship. I'm wondering what more people have done. Did DCL give any advice on this topic?

Just curious what the consensus on this might be. Thanks

get a waist money belt. You will need photo id for most credit card purchases (over 10 Euro I found it sped the process up). Carry a canceled drivers license if you have one - I did and that was fine. I did carry my passport with me in hopes of getting it stamped -seems most countries don't stamp them any longer - the electronice age is really here. blip and you are in, blip and you are out.


Genreal comments:
I climbed Mt Veseuvius on that same day -I was ready for the weather with a gortex coat and I was fine. I do suggest that you be ready for crowds - Pompeii is a very busy set of ruins - I had words with another tour operator - she cut us off from our guide and then yelled at me for breaking her line - I hip checked her <not very nice - but I didn't want to loose our guide>

Be ready to walk - the guides walk fast and furious.

take small Euro bills -I had trouble breaking 50s on occosion and that is what the ATM's spit out at me.

Carry a change purse - 5 Euro is the smallest bill, 2 Euro is a coin as is 1 Euro.

On & Off busses - I read of a couple -but Barcelona is set up for it. However, the loops take over 2 hours for 2 of them and the busses only run one way (counter clockwise around their circut) if you need to be one stop before where you are - you have to ride the whole loop or walk back!

Cayla

 

[Shercara]

Thank you to all who have shared their reviews so far - and for the pics too!

I would like to know what time you need to be back on the ship in Rome ( Civitavecchia)? We are planning on meeting our friends from the US who are traveling in Rome at the same time, and want to finalize our schedules as to what time to meet for a late lunch/early dinner?

I am told their is a nice restaurunt in te Piazza Novana, next to the Toy Shop - but do not know the name - Anyone out there have any idea?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Sherri

 

[MrsG]

Thanks so much for your reviews. It really helps relieve the anxiety and allows me to be excited about the upcoming trip of a lifetime!

Maryann

 

[padalyn]

Thank you to all who have shared their reviews so far - and for the pics too!

I would like to know what time you need to be back on the ship in Rome ( Civitavecchia)? We are planning on meeting our friends from the US who are traveling in Rome at the same time, and want to finalize our schedules as to what time to meet for a late lunch/early dinner?

I am told their is a nice restaurunt in te Piazza Novana, next to the Toy Shop - but do not know the name - Anyone out there have any idea?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Sherri

on board was around 9pm I think...once my luggage appears (I am hoping tomorrow - it got an extra day in Madrd that I didn't get )
I will get out my navigators and give all the times from my trip.

 

[kidcoos3]

Med cruise on our own with 3 kids

We traveled to the med with 4 adults and 3 children ages 5, 8 and 13. We did all of the ports on our own, all with the kids. It took a lot of research and reading message boards but worth it. Check out portreviews.com, cruise-chat.com, cruisecritic.com. I bought Rick Steves Italy 2007 book and had with me at all times.


Trenitalia.com is the place to get familiar with the trains and their schedule. Print out the schedule for the different days and take it with you. It may change but it was a lot of help. In most places, you can get a ticket for the day that will include subway, train and buses. Once at the station ask several people if you are at the right track (binario). You will not always get the right information.

Great info - thanks. What did you do in Olbia? This is the one port that we are unsure of.

Thank you.