Has anyone done either of the above tours? We've signed up for these and are thinking of changing the Timeless Pompeii and Flavor of Sorrento to a private tour. These were picked by our 9 year old as they included making your own pasta and learning about making mozzarella cheese? Just wondered if they are actually any good?
Thanks for any help!
I did both tours... For note I am 31 and my father is 61.
Timeless Pompeii and the Flavor of Sorrento
My Rating: 6 out of 10 (may have been a 7 if the weather was better)
We got a front seat as dad was concerned about me and motion sickness. Our diver was amazing. We went to Sorrento first. It was a long drive and we were not at the peak of tourism season, and there was lots of stopping and starting. We finally arrived at the wood inlay factory/coffee/bathroom stop. From there our guide gave us free time to wander through Sorrento. Not sure if it was suppose to be guided or if we were to be on our own. I am sure some wished it was guided and some were glad it was free time. I just wandered the streets and down to the end of town with the view of the sea. I also picked up a bottle of Lemoncello. The skies opened us on us while we were in Sorrento and everyone scattered into stores or under awnings. We met at our meeting point but no bus. We had a different bus than we had from the port to Sorrento. This bus was to take us to lunch at the farm house and back to our original bus. There had been a bus that had broken down and had backed up traffic. Finally a bus arrived and we took it, don’t think it was ours the group behind us was waiting too. Not sure how this is going to work when the high season starts if we had issues already.
At this point we are running late so our guide asked if we could have lunch first and do the mozzarella demonstration after lunch. We arrived and had lunch. This lunch was the one I was least impressed with. We had both red and white wine and water on the table. It was good, but compared to the others it was the least impressive. We started with cured meat and cheese. From there we had Lasagna and something else I think (my memory is failing and sorry I did not write things down like I started to the first few days). Finally, dessert – which I was the only one at my table who got one – I don’t remember what it was but gave ½ to my dad. Again as I said it was the least impressive lunch. From there we got the cheese making demo – don’t use this as a reason to do this excursion as it was no more than 5 minutes. We walked around and used the bathroom and then got on our temporary bus to take us back to our original bus which would take us to Pompeii.
Our dive to Pompeii was littered with showers. Upon arrival it was still spitting out. Our guide gave us what looked like walkie-talkies with an ear piece. He left us to look at the shops as he got our tickets. Most people purchased umbrellas or Italia zip up sweatshirts. Because we were running late, we did not have that much time at Pompeii and it felt rushed. I was shocked at how large it was and only a fraction has been unearthed. He took us to some points of interest as we made our way in the rain. He talked to us describing the sites to us through the walkie-talkie. I was overwhelmed and amazed, so did not always hear him because I wandered off a bit on my own taking pictures at things that interested me. We saw the cast of a body which was neat. There is a preserved mosaic in one house. I thought the walkie-talkie things were great. This allowed you to wander but still hear what he was saying. The walking around is rough on the cobblestones and think it was hard for dad especially due to the rain. We got vouchers for a beverage or gelato at a place at the exit – I opted for some water due to the rain making it to cold for gelato for me.
From here we made a stop at the Cameo factory. We saw a gentleman working on a cameo and saw a quick movie on how they find a shell and make them. Then some free time in the shop and back on the bus to the port. I think we were a little late returning to port - maybe 30 minutes.
In conclusion, Sorrento was nice and the views on the drive were great, but if I was to do this again I would just to Pompeii. Not sure if Disney offers this. Our table mates at dinner did this (mom & dad with 2 children (very mature for their ages of about 12 & 9)). They took the train to and from and they said they offer audio tours.
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I loved Olbia in general. This was one of my favorite ports (Marseille & Villefranche would be the others) We were greeted (not sure if this will happen for every cruise or just because we were first) by dancers and musicians in authentic costumes. They were passing out hats and treats as we got off the ship. They also had a tent set up with local food and wine to taste.
Gnocchetti Sardi & Ravioli
My Rating: 9 out of 10 (if there was less down time it would have been a 10, would have been an 8 if the gentleman was not there to tell us information on the area.)
My grandmother makes Gnocchetti so this is why I chose this. The kids on our excursion seemed to really enjoy themselves. We were at the end of the table and was hard to hear, but they had people coming around to help, but they did not speak much English, but they showed you what you should do. First was the Gnocchetti and second was the Ravioli. Not to worry, this is not the pasta you eat, some was quite sad to see. There was some down time as we had two buses. One group went as another walked around the grounds and then another group went and the first group walked around the grounds. There was a gentleman who was from Alabama and was stationed in Olbia on a military base during the 80's and now lives there as he married a local who walked us around the grounds. He showed us a cork tree and answered questions and was just great to talk with.
The best part was the lunch. It was family style about 10-20 people at tables. We had about 14 at our table and were give 3 plates of everything (1 at each end and 1 in the middle). It started with appetizers - cured meat and cheese, then the pasta (ravioli & gnocchetti) (BTW the filling in the ravioli was sweeter than we are use to - but wonderful), next up was a salad, next was a fried pork cutlet and finally dessert - fruit tart (think was cherry or raspberry). Oh and the best part of every meal – free flowing wine – both white and red.
NOTE: Our excursion ran long – maybe due to the line for the bathroom. We had some people who had booked spa treatments and were going to miss them on our bus and the other bus there were others who were just done for the day. After some quick thinking, I think by us the guests and since we had two buses we decided to see what number of people wanted to do the museum and who wanted to return to the ship. Good thing the numbers worked out and 1 bus went to the museum and the other returned to port. I opted for the continuation and full tour and not to return early. It definitely made for a long day, not sure how this will be for children.
NOTE: We had someone from Disney on each bus. Additionally the photographers and videographer were at our excursion. They took lots of pictures of the kids making pasta. They also chose a family to do a “promo” for the excursion/Mediterranean – at least that is what it seemed like they were doing.
The Ethnographic Museum was interesting. I enjoyed it, but it definitely is not for younger children, there were things that may interest them if they like history. You have to walk through the town to get to the museum from the main road (about 5-10 minutes downhill (which means the return was uphill)) The host speaks in Italian and our tour guide then translated for us. We started with seeing the traditional dances done by young children. From there we went through what houses were like (bedroom, living room, and kitchen) back in the day. From there we saw the different costumes they have for different occasions and then what they use to make wine and how they use cork and finally the handmade rugs. An older woman demonstrated how they use the loom to make the rugs. From there we exited and walked back up to the bus. By the time we got to the costume, wine and cork portion I was about done personally and looking forward to my nap on the bus.
The people in Olbia and particularly at the pasta making and the museum could not have been nicer and I enjoyed our guide.
NOTE: I slept part of the way there and on the way back to the ship. So not sure what the bus ride was really like. I do know our guide did talk most of the way there, but not much on the way back. Just at the end as we came to the top of the hill on our way back to port. The view of the port was unbelievable especially with the Magic sitting there. Again as noted we ran late so the tent they had set up to welcome us was closing and there was not much left for us to sample. I think we got back around 5/5:30.
Hope these are of help for you making decisions. Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions.
