Excursions in the Med recommendations

[ctnurse]

We know that we are going to use non DCL excursions in the Med this summer. There are 1000's of companies to choose from. What companies have you used? Any can't be missed tours?

 

[benzmum]

We know that we are going to use non DCL excursions in the Med this summer. There are 1000's of companies to choose from. What companies have you used? Any can't be missed tours?

We used Rome in Limo for 3 ports! All were excellent and would rate them at 10. Ask for Jany. Look to do the tour sharing! We shared all tours with 1 other family and it was wonderful. Skipped the lines in Rome and Florence.

 

[crafty91]

As a DIS Veteran you already know this but to be redundant, head over to the Trip Reports Forum and there is a lot of good info I used over there. For us it was your very question that pushed me to do the Adventures by Disney add-on so I didn't have to worry about tours and tour companies and shore excursions etc. It is VERY pricey but I have to say worth every penny for our family of 4. I had never been to the region so I had no idea where to start.

I will say if you haven't been before just do the "tourist" sites they really are a must do, ie Vatican, Coliseum, etc, then if you have time do one thing off the beaten path a bit. It was the off the beaten path stuff that made our trip so special (though admittedly I wouldn't have do them without the Adventures team we had!) My only other piece of advice is 'time'. It seems that the Europeans have a slightly difference sense of time that Americans and it is a very "laid back" sense of time! LOL! Just reconfirm everything as much as you can and then take the idea of punctuality down a few notches and you will have a great time!

 

[rhinodadz]

We used share a shore excursion in 4 cities. Had a great experience with them.

 

[DISGRL13]

We used Easy Italy Tours and loved them!! We had an amazing day with our guide Lucca. We would highly recommend them. We saw so much and got closer to places than a big tour bus would be able to do.

 

[crafty91]

Just as a follow up to my earlier post you should also know that some of the ports are a good distance from the places you will want to visit so plan your return to the ship accordingly if you aren't using DCL tours.

 

[redsonja76]

what are your stops?

 

[ctnurse]

As a DIS Veteran you already know this but to be redundant, head over to the Trip Reports Forum and there is a lot of good info I used over there. For us it was your very question that pushed me to do the Adventures by Disney add-on so I didn't have to worry about tours and tour companies and shore excursions etc. It is VERY pricey but I have to say worth every penny for our family of 4. I had never been to the region so I had no idea where to start.

I will say if you haven't been before just do the "tourist" sites they really are a must do, ie Vatican, Coliseum, etc, then if you have time do one thing off the beaten path a bit. It was the off the beaten path stuff that made our trip so special (though admittedly I wouldn't have do them without the Adventures team we had!) My only other piece of advice is 'time'. It seems that the Europeans have a slightly difference sense of time that Americans and it is a very "laid back" sense of time! LOL! Just reconfirm everything as much as you can and then take the idea of punctuality down a few notches and you will have a great time!

Thanks I will check out the trip resorts and look for recommendations.

ABD is too pricey for us and DD will only be 3 and I believe you must for 4 for any ABD.

We actually live in Europe so we understand and LOVE European time. We have such a problem when we are in the US whenever we go out to dinner. They try to rush us through the meal, drop the check trying to get us out the door. This is despite asking for a nice slow paced meal.

Just as a follow up to my earlier post you should also know that some of the ports are a good distance from the places you will want to visit so plan your return to the ship accordingly if you aren't using DCL tours.

Thanks, but we will only use a company that will guarantee us to be back at the ship.

what are your stops?

We are on the 12 Night Med cruise. Here is the itinerary, at least for now.

1 Barcelona, Spain - 4:30 PM
2 At Sea - -
3 Olbia (Sardinia), Italy 8:00 AM 5:45 PM
4 Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy 7:15 AM 6:45 PM
5 Naples (Pompeii), Italy 7:30 AM 6:00 PM
6 Palermo (Sicily), Italy 8:15 AM 5:45 PM
7 At Sea - -
8 Livorno (Florence, Pisa), Italy 7:15 AM 6:45 PM
9 Villefranche (Monte Carlo, Cannes, Nice), France* 8:00 AM 6:45 PM
10 Cannes, France 7:00 AM 5:45 PM
11 At Sea - -
12 Palma (Majorca), Spain 8:00 AM 4:45 PM
13 Barcelona, Spain 7:00 AM -

 

[Ana~n~Joseph]

We used Rome in Limo for 3 ports! All were excellent and would rate them at 10. Ask for Jany. Look to do the tour sharing! We shared all tours with 1 other family and it was wonderful. Skipped the lines in Rome and Florence.

Another vote for Rome in Limo - loved them and plan to use them again next year. Jany is awesome and we had Vincenzo as our driver and he was amazing.

 

[sunmoon620]

Rome in Limo was Excellent! It was the best tour. Our guide was a local from Rome and he gave us a great insiders tour along with all of the sites we wanted to see. His name was Stephano. He even took me to an Italian grocery store on the way home to pick me up cheap bottles of his wine recommendations! Best day of our whole cruise!

 

[jacknsally19]

I'd also check out the cruise critic website. when we did our Mediterranean cruise, I found lots of great recommendations there. I wish I remembered who I booked with but we did a fabulous trip down the amalfi coast ending the day at Pompeii. It was definitely my favorite excursion!

 

[NancyIL]

We also used Rome In Limo (http://www.romeinlimo.com/ - arranged by someone on our Cruise Critic roll call) - and they were excellent. Of the ports you are going to - we used them in Naples for a tour to Pompeii, Sorrento, and Positano; and in Civitavecchia for a tour to Orvieto and Civita Bagnoregio. You will probably want to go to Rome from Civitavecchia. Our cruise departed from Venice, so we spent 3 nights in Rome and 2 nights in Florence before we boarded our ship.

 

[AussieNSW]

Rome in limo was a hit with us to. We used them for 3 excisions and loved every minute of it. We did private tours with my husband and I and 2 teenagers. We did not feel like tourists but like someone was showing off their home town to us. We zipped down side streets and went to little restaurants that were well priced and the food was fantastic.

 

[MeeskaMooska13]

We used Viator but I wasn't impressed.

 

[ctnurse]

We also used Rome In Limo (http://www.romeinlimo.com/ - arranged by someone on our Cruise Critic roll call) - and they were excellent. Of the ports you are going to - we used them in Naples for a tour to Pompeii, Sorrento, and Positano; and in Civitavecchia for a tour to Orvieto and Civita Bagnoregio. You will probably want to go to Rome from Civitavecchia. Our cruise departed from Venice, so we spent 3 nights in Rome and 2 nights in Florence before we boarded our ship.

We actually aren't going into Rome, since we were just there less than a year ago. I am hoping to find something relaxing and low key near Civitavecchia for the day. I looked at Rome In Limo and tried to figure out what we should do. We are really looking for something fun like a cooking class near the port.

We used Viator but I wasn't impressed.

Thanks for the tip. I know that I don't want to use Viator because you don't know what company you are getting.

 

[aggiedog]

Cruisecritic has a section just for ports. You will find much, much good information there. Then hit trip advisor for more detailed information. We did that for our Baltic cruise and had some great private excursions.