Mediterranean DCL Excursion Questions

[cforsythe]

For all of those that are back from the Mediterranean cruise, did any of you all take DCL excursions?

Currently we have booked all of ours through DCL because we are foreign language challenged and we are afraid to venture out on our own.

These are what we have booked:
Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze
Florence and Pisa
The Best of Rome
Pompeii, Sorrento and Capri

If anyone has any information about these excursions (Good or Bad), could you give me information?

THANKS!!

 

[DisneyOHFan]

We did the Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze tour through DCL. We would not do it again. It wasn't horrible, but we spent waaaayy to much time sitting around and waiting for people. Also there were quite a few DCL busses on this tour and we all followed the same path, so when we got there, it was packed.

We did Rome in Limo for the Italian ports and would definitely do that again. No more DCL tours for us. We move at a fast pace and large excursions are not for us (we discovered).

 

[cforsythe]

Thanks for the info it really makes me think. We do not like standing around and waiting on other people...

 

[Cruisefan2]

We did the Florence and Pisa one and thought it was good. You had time after the tour of Florence and the fantastic lunch to explore Florence . Then you went to Pisa where they guided you to the tower and you had a 40 minute time where you could explore around before you had to report back to the meeting spot. It was a good tour over all and would recommend it. We did private tours for Rome with a private tour of the Vatican. We also did a private tour for Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano. That was a great one.

 

[gotomu212]

We did all of those except the Rome one. Given how much distance we wanted to cover, I'm really glad we did DCL. In Naples we were the very first person off the ship..VERY FIRST and we were some of the last back on. In Naples the ship was held about an hour for our group so in that instance very glad we were with DCL.

There will be crowds, anywhere in Europe will be crowded right now but we thought our tours did a pretty good job of keeping us moving and getting into the sites.

Monte Carlo with kids is difficult since there isn't much to do if you aren't going into the casino (and kids can't). Most families switched off with my person staying with the kids while the other person ran in and then trading. It was pouring on us though so standing in the rain wasn't my idea of a good time.

As a PP said a lot of the buses and tours move through the same away so word of warning to those on adult only excursions- your bus will be adult only and your tour leader will be, but DCL does not shut down the entire country and so there will most likely be children in the vicinity. In Naples you ride a large boat to Capri and there are 10 or more tours on it so there will be kids, there will also be kids on the funacular in Capri, and probably will be kids on streets and in restaurants. We heard A LOT of complaining from people that they wanted a kid free day and I'm not sure how they thought they could avoid kids while touring tourists traps..in Italy...in June.

 

[cforsythe]

We did all of those except the Rome one. Given how much distance we wanted to cover, I'm really glad we did DCL. In Naples we were the very first person off the ship..VERY FIRST and we were some of the last back on. In Naples the ship was held about an hour for our group so in that instance very glad we were with DCL.

There will be crowds, anywhere in Europe will be crowded right now but we thought our tours did a pretty good job of keeping us moving and getting into the sites.

Monte Carlo with kids is difficult since there isn't much to do if you aren't going into the casino (and kids can't). Most families switched off with my person staying with the kids while the other person ran in and then trading. It was pouring on us though so standing in the rain wasn't my idea of a good time.

As a PP said a lot of the buses and tours move through the same away so word of warning to those on adult only excursions- your bus will be adult only and your tour leader will be, but DCL does not shut down the entire country and so there will most likely be children in the vicinity. In Naples you ride a large boat to Capri and there are 10 or more tours on it so there will be kids, there will also be kids on the funacular in Capri, and probably will be kids on streets and in restaurants. We heard A LOT of complaining from people that they wanted a kid free day and I'm not sure how they thought they could avoid kids while touring tourists traps..in Italy...in June.

We do not have kids going with us and we are mostly doing the Adult only ones. Only because we did NOT want to take up slots for families on the other ones.

What did you all do in Rome? That is the port we really want to do the most and we really want to see the most popular sites. (Of course)

THANKS for your information!!

 

[lilpooh108]

We did the Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze tour through DCL. We would not do it again. It wasn't horrible, but we spent waaaayy to much time sitting around and waiting for people. Also there were quite a few DCL busses on this tour and we all followed the same path, so when we got there, it was packed.

We did Rome in Limo for the Italian ports and would definitely do that again. No more DCL tours for us. We move at a fast pace and large excursions are not for us (we discovered).

Curious to know---which group number were you for Monaco, Monte Carlo/Eze?

 

[DisneyOHFan]

Curious to know---which group number were you for Monaco, Monte Carlo/Eze?

We were group 22 on the 6/8 cruise.

 

[lilpooh108]

We do not have kids going with us and we are mostly doing the Adult only ones. Only because we did NOT want to take up slots for families on the other ones.

What did you all do in Rome? That is the port we really want to do the most and we really want to see the most popular sites. (Of course)

THANKS for your information!!

In Rome we were glad we didn't go with Disney. We covered way more on our own (we got RT transfers, and booked tours throughout the day) and when we drove out at 8am only 2 DCL buses had left at this point. I think we passed about 40 coaches on the way out, since there were at least 5 ships in port.

When we left St Peter's at 4:45pm or so, DCL groups were still milling around, meeting up. We got back to the ship at 5:50 pm and were having snacks by the pool by 6:00pm.

If you can, at least try to do Rome separately. You really need a headstart on everyone else. When we go to the Forum at 9:30am there were only a few tour groups. When we got to the Colosseum from the Forum at 11:15am, the entire area was packed.

As to language--I don't speak a lick of Italian we were just fine.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

For all of those that are back from the Mediterranean cruise, did any of you all take DCL excursions?

Currently we have booked all of ours through DCL because we are foreign language challenged and we are afraid to venture out on our own.

These are what we have booked:
Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze
Florence and Pisa
The Best of Rome
Pompeii, Sorrento and Capri

If anyone has any information about these excursions (Good or Bad), could you give me information?

THANKS!!

We did the DCL Med cruise in 2010. We did the Monaco, Monte Carlo, & Eze tour and enjoyed it. It has a lot of walking, but the weather was beautiful and not many people were there that day.

In La Spezia we went to Florence & Pisa. Mostly because I've always wanted to see the Leaning Tower. We were late back to the ship due to some people who felt they didn't have to keep up with the group and traffic.

Civitavecchia - Taste of Rome. We saw Trevi Fountain, walked over to the Forum and through it, Coliseum, and then to Vatican City. There we were given gelato tickets (one each) and had 2 or 3 hours free time (I forget how much). We ate lunch, and went to St Peters (including the catacombs). It's at least a 1 hour bus ride from/to the ship to Rome, so this was a long day.

Naples - Timeless Pompeii & the Flavor or Sorrento. JMO, adding Capri to this would make a very full day, with the feeling that you really didn't see anything. Most reports I've read say that Capri should be a trip unto itself, as the time involved in getting there (and back) is quite long. That's what we plan to do the next time, just go to Capri.

 

[jennorthernireland]

We did the DCL Med cruise in 2010. We did the Monaco, Monte Carlo, & Eze tour and enjoyed it. It has a lot of walking, but the weather was beautiful and not many people were there that day.

In La Spezia we went to Florence & Pisa. Mostly because I've always wanted to see the Leaning Tower. We were late back to the ship due to some people who felt they didn't have to keep up with the group and traffic.

Civitavecchia - Taste of Rome. We saw Trevi Fountain, walked over to the Forum and through it, Coliseum, and then to Vatican City. There we were given gelato tickets (one each) and had 2 or 3 hours free time (I forget how much). We ate lunch, and went to St Peters (including the catacombs). It's at least a 1 hour bus ride from/to the ship to Rome, so this was a long day.

Naples - Timeless Pompeii & the Flavor or Sorrento. JMO, adding Capri to this would make a very full day, with the feeling that you really didn't see anything. Most reports I've read say that Capri should be a trip unto itself, as the time involved in getting there (and back) is quite long. That's what we plan to do the next time, just go to Capri.

Hi Princess Shmoo

I would be grateful if you could give a little more information on the Taste of Rome excursion you took part in. I have booked this specific excursion for my family (including 2 teenagers) for August and I'm hoping I have made a good choice. Having never been to Rome before, I liked the idea of having the security of a guide for part of the time and still having a couple of hours to just take in the atmosphere by ourselves.

Although it was a long day, would you still say the experience was worthwhile? One thing I wasn't clear about was the Colosseum. Does this excursion stay outside or do participants get the opportunity to visit the interior? The info on the website was a little vague IMHO.

Any thoughts much appreciated, thank you!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Hi Princess Shmoo

I would be grateful if you could give a little more information on the Taste of Rome excursion you took part in. I have booked this specific excursion for my family (including 2 teenagers) for August and I'm hoping I have made a good choice. Having never been to Rome before, I liked the idea of having the security of a guide for part of the time and still having a couple of hours to just take in the atmosphere by ourselves.

Although it was a long day, would you still say the experience was worthwhile? One thing I wasn't clear about was the Colosseum. Does this excursion stay outside or do participants get the opportunity to visit the interior? The info on the website was a little vague IMHO.

Any thoughts much appreciated, thank you!

I enjoyed the tour, I would recommend it. If they are doing it the same way, here's what we did:

From the ship we took a bus to Rome (a little over an hour, and we had a potty stop enroute). We were let off near the Trevi Fountain and walked over there (as a group). After a brief talk about the fountain, we had a few minutes free time (we used this to use the toilet and buy a coke). They stop the fountain flowing a couple times a week for cleaning, and we were there when the water was turned back on:

Then we walked from there over to the Forum. We went by the Victor Immanueal Monument (the forum is behind it).

A short talk at the top (looking into the Forum)

then we went down a small ramp/hill into the forum area.

We made (I think) 3-5 stops in the forum for explanations as to what we were looking at. Then we walked over to the Coliseum.

A couple of stops outside and inside as a group there and then some free time to explore (and use toilets, if you wish). Then we all went to the bus (met us at the Coliseum) to go to Vatican City.

At Vatican City, we received a gelato (ice cream) ticket each. Off the bus, we picked up one of our gelatos,

We walked to St Peter's.

We stood in line for about 15-20 minutes to enter. Once inside, we walked around for quite a while taking pictures.

Sorry, I'm not too clear on this part, we also visited the catacombs where the popes are buried, but I don't remember if we entered from inside St. Peter's or if we had to go out and back in at another point.

Then we walked to a small side street to the right (as you face St Peter's) and found a place for lunch. Lots of food!

Then we walked back to where the bus dropped us off, picked up our other gelato, and waited for the bus. Leaving Rome back to the ship it was commute time, so LOTS of traffic.

 

[Realbetis]

On the June 8th Mediterranean cruise we took 4 Disney excursions:

(1) Saint Paul de Vence (Villefranche)
(2) Cinque Terre Scenic Boat Tour (La Spezia)
(3) Bracciano and Wine Tasting (Civitavecchia)
(4) Half-day Pompeii (Naples)

All of the tours were well run with good guides, nice buses, etc.. I would highly recommend (Bracciano with minor reservations). We use the DCL tours for convenience because we were travelling with children. The two tendering ports make planning independent tours trickier, but not impossible. The tender on Villefranche was pretty quick, La Spezia seemed like a longer ride.

I happy to provide any info on the excursions we chose.

 

[jennorthernireland]

PrincessShmoo, thank you so much for your help! I love your photographs and they, along with your comments, reassure me that we will enjoy this excursion. We are in Rome on a Wednesday and the Pope is due to be in residence, so I am expecting it be extremely busy. We may not spend much time around the Vatican for that reason. My next task will be to investigate what other things we might get up to when we have free time in the afternoon. It might just be the case that we have a very long, leisurely lunch!

 

[MichelleVW]

On the June 8th Mediterranean cruise we took 4 Disney excursions:

(1) Saint Paul de Vence (Villefranche)
(2) Cinque Terre Scenic Boat Tour (La Spezia)
(3) Bracciano and Wine Tasting (Civitavecchia)
(4) Half-day Pompeii (Naples)

All of the tours were well run with good guides, nice buses, etc.. I would highly recommend (Bracciano with minor reservations). We use the DCL tours for convenience because we were travelling with children. The two tendering ports make planning independent tours trickier, but not impossible. The tender on Villefranche was pretty quick, La Spezia seemed like a longer ride.

I happy to provide any info on the excursions we chose.

I've been thinking about your 1,2 and 4 excursions. I'm trying to keep it low key and not stress DH out with too much touring or I will have one cranky man.

 

[1travelgirl]

On the June 8th Mediterranean cruise we took 4 Disney excursions:

(1) Saint Paul de Vence (Villefranche)
(2) Cinque Terre Scenic Boat Tour (La Spezia)
(3) Bracciano and Wine Tasting (Civitavecchia)
(4) Half-day Pompeii (Naples)

All of the tours were well run with good guides, nice buses, etc.. I would highly recommend (Bracciano with minor reservations). We use the DCL tours for convenience because we were travelling with children. The two tendering ports make planning independent tours trickier, but not impossible. The tender on Villefranche was pretty quick, La Spezia seemed like a longer ride.

I happy to provide any info on the excursions we chose.

I'd like to hear what you thought of the St. Paul de Vence excursion (which I'm doing solo) and the Bracciano excursion (which I'm doing with my husband).

 

[DisneyHelen]

We were on June 8 med cruise and did DCL excursions
Eze, Nice and French Wines
Pisa climb the Tower
Jumping Back into Eternal Rome Adult only
Pompeii,Sorrento and Capri Adult only
We liked all our excursions. The adult only tours kept a good pace. We liked going to Rome on the train very comfortable. We really enjoyed Capri went there first before it was busy then went to Sorrento for lunch and Pompeii last when it was cooler.

 

[Realbetis]

I've been thinking about your 1,2 and 4 excursions. I'm trying to keep it low key and not stress DH out with too much touring or I will have one cranky man.

I travelled with DW, DS (11) and DS (9). We toured Spain for a week before the cruise, so our plan was not to over do it on the excursions. We chose 1/2 day excursions for this purpose.

1) Saint Paul de Vence was beautiful and had nice shopping. Our guide was very interesting as well. You travel through Nice on the way, with a couple photo stops. There was plenty of time to check out Villefranche once you return.

2) Cinque Terre was a GREAT excursion. The boat picks you up at the ship. The scenery is great and we enjoyed the time that we spent in Vernazza and Monterroso (gelato in both). DW and I had been to Pisa and Florence, but even if you have not been to Florence I would recommend Cinque Terre.

4) Half-day Pompeii was a great tour with young kids. Pompeii gets hot, so our boys were ready by the end of our tour. You could easily spend an entire day in Pompeii, but prepare for the heat.

 

[thefigueroas]

I thought I would respond to this not because I have cruised but because we are a Navy family currently living in Naples, Italy. For any person interested in Capri there is no way to really enjoy it and go to Pompeii. They are no where near each other and it is a bit of a journey to get to Capri. You will need to either take a bus, rent a car, or take the train down to one of a few ports off the Amalfi coast and then Hydroboat or ferry across. It is well worth the trip but trying to jam both into one day will leave you harried with no feeling of really gotten to know either. My suggestion is to pick one and absorb that one. Also, if you decide to go off the beaten path, Herculaneum here in Naples has ruins just as inspiring as Pompeii. It is not as large or famous so it is a bit better kept. Just a few words of advice from an American living in Italy.

 

[thefigueroas]

Double Post-Sorry!