June 27, 2013 - Magic in the Med (Venice)

[Kouris_Family]

Anyone interested in sharing a car and driver with our family of 4?
We hired a driver to take us along the coast, Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi & Ravello. We are using AP Tours which we used in 2007 and they did a fabulous job. We can fit 8 in our car and would split the price of 450 Euro. Maybe we can fit in time for a pizza?
Me: Kay, DH: Mark, DS (14) Christian, DD (10) Hannah
Our kids are really good travelers and respectful, let me know if you are interested.

 

[seaulater]

Just got our stateroom assignment. We are in 6550. For the June 15th cruise we are in 6067 so at least we won't have very far to move for this one. Will love having the verandah for the overnight in Venice. Hopefully, we will be on the city side and get some great pictures.

 

[Yensidfan]

Just got our stateroom assignment. We are in 6550. For the June 15th cruise we are in 6067 so at least we won't have very far to move for this one. Will love having the verandah for the overnight in Venice. Hopefully, we will be on the city side and get some great pictures.

Hi neighbor ... We just got our room assignment for this cruise. We are next door in stateroom 6548. Man, we are going to be sick of each other after these 28 days. LOL

Pete & Faith

 

[nzdisneymom]

Just got our stateroom assignment. We are in 6550. For the June 15th cruise we are in 6067 so at least we won't have very far to move for this one. Will love having the verandah for the overnight in Venice. Hopefully, we will be on the city side and get some great pictures.

Hi neighbor ... We just got our room assignment for this cruise. We are next door in stateroom 6548. Man, we are going to be sick of each other after these 28 days. LOL

Pete & Faith

Yay for cabin assignments - that makes things seem even closer, doesn't it? i'll update you on the FE list in just a minute, so FE participants, be sure to note the updates.

We are having to move next door from 6114 to 6116. We definitely have to hang out together on "moving day"

 

[klar]

Hi Kouris Family,

What time is your tour in Naples? All day?

 

[Kouris_Family]

Hi Kouris Family,

What time is your tour in Naples? All day?

8 am to 4:30, all aboard is 5:30 so a good 8 1/2 hours
last time the driver was right there waiting for us when we got off the ship.

 

[klar]

8 am to 4:30, all aboard is 5:30 so a good 8 1/2 hours
last time the driver was right there waiting for us when we got off the ship.

Do you have any interest in going to Pompeii?

 

[Kouris_Family]

Do you have any interest in going to Pompeii?

No, we've been there and it is awesome, if you haven't been there you should if you like ruins. Our kids would be bored out of their minds.

 

[nzdisneymom]

No, we've been there and it is awesome, if you haven't been there you should if you like ruins. Our kids would be bored out of their minds.

We did Pompeii as part of the Capri, Sorrento, and Pompeii for families in 2007. Pompeii was the end of the excursion so it was hot and the kids were tired. They were ages 11 and 9 1/2 at the time. This year they have taken Latin I in high school (they have the class together even though they are in different grades) and the setting for their lessons has been Pompeii. They have learned a lot about Pompeii in class. They specifically asked to go to Pompeii this time but ONLY if that was all we did - so since DCL has a half-day Pompeii excursion, we've signed up. I'm glad they are interested and now they have more context for it - they will be 17 and 15 1/2 when we visit.

 

[Kouris_Family]

We did Pompeii as part of the Capri, Sorrento, and Pompeii for families in 2007. Pompeii was the end of the excursion so it was hot and the kids were tired. They were ages 11 and 9 1/2 at the time. This year they have taken Latin I in high school (they have the class together even though they are in different grades) and the setting for their lessons has been Pompeii. They have learned a lot about Pompeii in class. They specifically asked to go to Pompeii this time but ONLY if that was all we did - so since DCL has a half-day Pompeii excursion, we've signed up. I'm glad they are interested and now they have more context for it - they will be 17 and 15 1/2 when we visit.

For sure if your kids are learning or have learned about it you need to go. Mine are 14 & 10 definitely not something they would want to do. Pompeii is super cool and probably even better if you know the history. I want to hang out at the beach , drink lemoncello and eat gelato, shop a little. Pizza, need to get pizza this time from Naples, one of those "I wish I would have's"

 

[poohmomof5]

We did Pompeii as part of the Capri, Sorrento, and Pompeii for families in 2007. Pompeii was the end of the excursion so it was hot and the kids were tired. They were ages 11 and 9 1/2 at the time. This year they have taken Latin I in high school (they have the class together even though they are in different grades) and the setting for their lessons has been Pompeii. They have learned a lot about Pompeii in class. They specifically asked to go to Pompeii this time but ONLY if that was all we did - so since DCL has a half-day Pompeii excursion, we've signed up. I'm glad they are interested and now they have more context for it - they will be 17 and 15 1/2 when we visit.

We were booked on the Capri, Sorrento and Pompeii excursion. It looked really interesting to me, but when I talked to a local guide, we said they would NOT offer that trip to us as it would be too much for the short time we have their. They said we woudn't really get to enjoy much of each place. So we decided to cancel it. But I am still kind of wondering about it. What were your thoughts of the excursion?

 

[carpenta]

We were booked on the Capri, Sorrento and Pompeii excursion. It looked really interesting to me, but when I talked to a local guide, we said they would NOT offer that trip to us as it would be too much for the short time we have their. They said we woudn't really get to enjoy much of each place. So we decided to cancel it. But I am still kind of wondering about it. What were your thoughts of the excursion?

I agree with the local guide. The ferry to/ from Capri as well as the bus ride to Sorrento/Pompeii will take up most of your day. I would chose Sorrento/Pompeii and leave Capri for your next visit. To us Capri was nice but unless you are rich and famous it has the same appeal to us as Monaco. Loved Sorrento just for the relaxed feel coupled with the scenic beauty. "La dolce vita" is true and you will have it after your tour of that historical coastal tour.

 

[nzdisneymom]

For sure if your kids are learning or have learned about it you need to go. Mine are 14 & 10 definitely not something they would want to do. Pompeii is super cool and probably even better if you know the history. I want to hang out at the beach , drink lemoncello and eat gelato, shop a little. Pizza, need to get pizza this time from Naples, one of those "I wish I would have's"

We are planning to go get pizza after we get back from Pompeii. Our excursion time says it ends at 1:30. Gydell and her grandson are on the same excursion and as it turns out, she was planning to go to the same pizzeria we picked out, so we're going to head up there together. Seems like there are a couple of other DISers also thinking about joining us. That was the one thing I "wished I would have" after our visit to the area last time.

We were booked on the Capri, Sorrento and Pompeii excursion. It looked really interesting to me, but when I talked to a local guide, we said they would NOT offer that trip to us as it would be too much for the short time we have their. They said we woudn't really get to enjoy much of each place. So we decided to cancel it. But I am still kind of wondering about it. What were your thoughts of the excursion?

We really enjoyed the excursion, but it was a lot for the children. We did the hydrofoil to Capri in the morning and then over to Sorrento for lunch, then a bus ride to Pompeii, about 2 hours in Pompeii, and the bus ride back. We got back in time for all aboard but not by much - definitely a full day. The heat in the afternoon was difficult for the kids. The lunch in Sorrento was our favorite lunch that cruise, and we loved seeing so much of the countryside. The olive groves were fascinating to see with the netting underneath the branches to catch the olives and keep them from bruising on the ground. In Capri, we did a boat tour as part of the excursion that took us around to look as some of the rock formations and coral, but then we didn't have much time on the island - not enough to take the funicular to the top, but we did a little bit of shopping right in the port area.

The port area in Capri:


The rock formation in Capri:


My favorite shop in all of Italy (Cindy - LOL):

I agree with the local guide. The ferry to/ from Capri as well as the bus ride to Sorrento/Pompeii will take up most of your day. I would chose Sorrento/Pompeii and leave Capri for your next visit. To us Capri was nice but unless you are rich and famous it has the same appeal to us as Monaco. Loved Sorrento just for the relaxed feel coupled with the scenic beauty. "La dolce vita" is true and you will have it after your tour of that historical coastal tour.

I would have rather had more time in Sorrento as we only really had time to eat lunch and then go to the shop where they make inlay boxes and such. It was cool but since it was our first cruise in Europe, I didn't feel comfortable breaking off from the main group during "free time" at the shop to go see what else we might see in another shop in the area.

Here's where we had lunch in Sorrento:


Oh my - he was so young:

 

[poohmomof5]

Cindy, thanks for that!

What we have booked right now with a private guide is a tour of Pompeii, hike up Mt. Vesuvius and then lunch and tour/free time in Sorrento. So, I think that will be perfect for us!

Then we take the hydrofoil back to Naples.

 

[nzdisneymom]

Cindy, thanks for that!

What we have booked right now with a private guide is a tour of Pompeii, hike up Mt. Vesuvius and then lunch and tour/free time in Sorrento. So, I think that will be perfect for us!

Then we take the hydrofoil back to Naples.

That sounds fun - one thing I would mention though is to have a back-up plan for transportation back to Naples in case the seas are such that the hydrofoil won't go - that happens from time to time. The nice thing about the hydrofoil is that it is just steps away from the ship

 

[poohmomof5]

That sounds fun - one thing I would mention though is to have a back-up plan for transportation back to Naples in case the seas are such that the hydrofoil won't go - that happens from time to time. The nice thing about the hydrofoil is that it is just steps away from the ship

The driver will wait with us until we have tickets. They said the same thing!

IF they don't go, we just stay with our driver until we are back to the ship.

 

[nzdisneymom]

The driver will wait with us until we have tickets. They said the same thing!

IF they don't go, we just stay with our driver until we are back to the ship.

Awesome - I'm glad they arranged that.

So here's a picture for you of the hydrofoil

 

[poohmomof5]

Awesome - I'm glad they arranged that.

So here's a picture for you of the hydrofoil

So excited! Now that our flights are booked and hotel rooms paid for (save over $200 by doing that), I am feeling SUPER excited!

 

[nzdisneymom]

So excited! Now that our flights are booked and hotel rooms paid for (save over $200 by doing that), I am feeling SUPER excited!

I'm working on details for the ports where we are not doing a ship-sponsored excursion nor a private guide. For the ports that we stop at twice, we're doing one offical excursion and then one on our own sort of day. So for Villefranche, we're doing one of the Monaco excursions and then when we are there again, we'll just hang out in the town, maybe go to the beach. In La Spezia, we're going to Cinque Terre on our own because it will be a Monday the first time through so the excursion to Florence we want to do isn't available, but it is with this itinerary. We're hiring a driver and guide for our first stop in Valletta but will use that opportunity to plan an "on our own" day when we go back. For Civitavecchia, we're doing Rome in Limo the first time (on a Tuesday) and DH and I are doing the Bracciano Lake excursion on this itinerary and then planning to hang out in town and get some gelato or something the rest of the afternoon. We figured Rome on a Sunday - the LAST Sunday of the month - would be crazy. Here's something we noticed though - for this itinerary, our all aboard is an hour later than the previous one. We figure we can get some laundry done that day while the rest of you are in Rome

 

[jel0511]

We figure we can get some laundry done that day while the rest of you are in Rome

Can you do my laundry too???????