Karen

We are sailing on the Millenium on Oct 13t to the Mediterranean. We have been looking at the shore excursions. They look great but they really add up and leave quite early. We do prefer all day tours to take advantage of the day. Should we just sign up,pay the price and join the masses? Are there alternatives such as private tours when we arrive at ports? Are some excursions not worth it? We are thinking of signing up for all of them: Barcelona, Palma, Toulon, Monaco, Malta, Naples, Florence, and Rome. Any opinions out there?

Thanks...

Tom

I have been to the same cities that you are going to. I would recommend a tour in Rome (you may need several to see everything) and probably Barcelona. I think the other cities are fairly easy to see on your own. Florence will require a train ride (or if you do the tour it will probably be on a bus). We took the train on our own to Florence and had no problem at all. In Palma, we hired a taxi (private tour) for a couple of hours who spoke perfect English. He showed us everything. In Barcelona you'll want some time to yourself to just walk up and down Las Ramblas.

Kris

You can easily explore on your own a couple of the ports you listed. I have to disagree with Tom, I think Barcelona is best explored on your own, you will dock close to the heart of the city. I would recommend taking a taxi to Las Ramblas which is great for people watching, visit the cathedral, visit the Picasso museum (only if you're a fan), find a tapas place for lunch. Barcelona also has a very good subway system, my favorite spot in Barcelona is Parc Guell, Gaudi's attempt at a housing project that turned into a fabulous park.

Malta can also be explored on your own. The town of Valletta is not far from where the boats dock, we were able to walk from the dock. You can also take one of the very inexpensive 1940's style buses to Mdina or anywhere else the ship excursions go.

You can also visit Monaco via train. Our ship docked at Villefranche and we took a train from there. Rome can also be visited via train, about an hour from Civitavecchia where we docked. However, if you've not visited Rome before, you might be better off with a tour. Try to sign up for one that includes a visit to the Sistene chapel and St. Peter's, not just drivebys. The passengers on our ship complained that the tour they were on never stopped anywhere.

Try to go visit Pompeii while in Naples, we visited on our own, not while on a cruise, and bought a guide book once we were there to help us.

Personally, we only take tours when we feel that there is real value to them, where they take you to a sight and give you some explanation of what it is that you're seeing, not just driving by the sites and pointing them out. Or if the time in port is short, we want to be sure that we don't miss the boat and don't want to waste time trying to figure out how to get somewhere.

Ann

Will be doing the same cruise on Sept. 22 but I have been to many of the cities before via land. Monte Carlo, Nice are easily and quickly accessible by train-go to eurorail.com for timetables- as is Bandol out of Toulon.

As for Naples, we are doing the all day to Pompeii, Sorrento, and Capri as I love Capri but have never been to the 2 others.

I agree with others about Rome, so much to see, so little time! Enjoy!!

Paula

Hi Karen: I will be on the same cruise (Oct.13 sailing) and I feel as if I'm doing a research paper in choosing some of the shore excursions. Before I continue, I want you to know that the itinerary posted in the tour book is not the correct sequence. The first day is the port of Villefranche, not a day at sea. This puts a bit of pressure on the passengers since most people will be recovering from jet lag and do not want to walk up the first morning of the cruise @ 6A.M. I spoke to someone in the shore excursion dept.named Melly,but she offered no real help. I plan to call the tourist bureaus in Manhattan on Monday for some advice. You are right.The tours add up,but there might be a risk taking an all day independent tour.What if for some reason your cab has a problem and you don't make it back to the ship. Please respond.Happy to talk toyou. Paula

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John

Karen my wife & I sailed Century last year.I stongly sugest you look
up scalareale.org they are a private agency in Rome.We booked them and they were great. They pick you up at dock in a private Mercedes and English speaking driver and take you all over Rome you
will not be sorry if you contact them

Peggy

Just returned from Noordam Med tour which included some of your stops. Here are a few suggestions:
Barcelona: Suggest you walk it. I've heard the metro will get you to the Cathedral quickly, then walk back via Las Ramblas/old quarter. Rome: We took the train from port (easy), but if it's your first time - take a tour. Malta - Incredible! Rent a taxi to tour countryside in the morning. Suggest: SW to Marsaxlokk fishing village, then to Blue Grotto (boat ride?), next to Hagar Qim Temple and then Mdina, and maybe Mosta. Tiny country & this is probably a 2-hr drive without stops. Then tour the sites in Valletta. Take care-many sites/museums in Valletta closed Sat afternoon! Taxi rates are gov't regulated. Everyone speaks English, but always quiz a driver to make sure. The boat package tours spend way too much time at the required (remote) shopping stops in the countryside and only drive by the photo-worthy locations without stopping.

Peggy

Oops - That's southeast toward Marsaxlokk fishing village, not SW. Be sure you have your own map and plan to help the driver. Have fun.

Paul

I tried scalareala and they wanted 600$ for a one day tour for 2. A little expensive if you ask me. I told them I didn't want to buy the car I just needed a tour.

Arlene

Hi
My daughter and I took a cruise 2 years ago, and stayed for 4 days in Barcelona.
Take a taxi downtown, then catch the tour bus that goes around the city. You pay once then you can stop and go as you want!
Do not miss Florence of Pompeii, definately the best. Watch out for the gypsies in Florence. They are really proficient at picking pockets, we seen one lady swarmed while we were there. If our tour guide hadn't seen them and yelled they would have stolen the ladies purse. All part of the culture.
The thing about going on your own is that sometimes you can miss some of the highlights.
Have fun!

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