meditteranian shore excursions
Apr 23rd, 2009, 10:41 AM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 90
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
meditteranian shore excursions
going on celebrity summit classical in june. don't want to go on 'arranged' shore excurtions.
do any of our ports of call have a 'city sightseeing' bus tour at the pier.
vallefranche, livorno,civitavecchia,naples,santorini,piraeus,dub rovnik,venice.
ta george
do any of our ports of call have a 'city sightseeing' bus tour at the pier.
vallefranche, livorno,civitavecchia,naples,santorini,piraeus,dub rovnik,venice.
ta george
Apr 23rd, 2009, 04:46 PM
#2
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 1,390
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Not at Santorini, Dubrovnik or Venice. Can't answer for the other ports. For Santorini, you can either: (a) arrange a private guide; (b) negotiate with taxis, or rent a car. We opted for the private guide and spent the day touring the entire island. Dubrovnik - just take a taxi to the old part of town. Do the wall route around the city. Easy to do on your own. Venice - also easy to do on your own. You can catch the vaporatta (sp?) from the rail station (a lot of cruise ships have a shuttle that goes there) that takes you right down to San Marco Square. You might might to look at the ports info section of www.cruisecritic.com
Apr 24th, 2009, 06:36 AM
#3
For Naples,Livorno and Civitavecchia and Athens, ...there will be many taxi drivers waiting for you to hire.
I had private tour guides at each port BUT there were many other drivers waiting for a fare.
In Naples , my driver was about 12 minutes late....so I struck up a conversation with a few other drivers...they were so nice and friendly ,that I told them, "If my driver does not show up in another 8-10 minutes ,then you and I are off" !!!
Taxi drivers are not tour guides ( by law in Italy) but they know a lot about the area and the places you want to see, perhaps not in the depth of details that tour guides do .
It is 53 miles from the port of civitavechia to Rome !!!
I had private tour guides at each port BUT there were many other drivers waiting for a fare.
In Naples , my driver was about 12 minutes late....so I struck up a conversation with a few other drivers...they were so nice and friendly ,that I told them, "If my driver does not show up in another 8-10 minutes ,then you and I are off" !!!
Taxi drivers are not tour guides ( by law in Italy) but they know a lot about the area and the places you want to see, perhaps not in the depth of details that tour guides do .
It is 53 miles from the port of civitavechia to Rome !!!
Apr 24th, 2009, 12:00 PM
#4
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 351
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Santorini: you will probably tender into the miniscule port at the edge of the caldera, near the cable car or the donkey ride. Take the cable car. The line is long, but moves fast. Once on top, there is plenty to do on your own - shop, eat, sight see.
Pireaus is tough. We took a ships excursion - Acropolis and Plaka - which was quite unsatisfactory. It was a different cruise line, but when it comes to cruise lines, I don't think that there is much difference. If you can locate a good private guide, it would be worth while. I wouldn't do it on my own.
Venice: like the man said, you can walk or shuttle to Piaza Roma[sp?] and take the vaporetto anywhere - just check a good guide book or route map. Or you can even walk from the Piazzeta. There are signs at most turns that keep you from gettting impossibly lost. And everything in Venice is wonderful. If you're there foe an extra day, go to Murano - it is like a quieter Venice.
I don't about the rest, but do prefer to do things on my own if possible. I probably over prepare, but it helps make decisions.
Pireaus is tough. We took a ships excursion - Acropolis and Plaka - which was quite unsatisfactory. It was a different cruise line, but when it comes to cruise lines, I don't think that there is much difference. If you can locate a good private guide, it would be worth while. I wouldn't do it on my own.
Venice: like the man said, you can walk or shuttle to Piaza Roma[sp?] and take the vaporetto anywhere - just check a good guide book or route map. Or you can even walk from the Piazzeta. There are signs at most turns that keep you from gettting impossibly lost. And everything in Venice is wonderful. If you're there foe an extra day, go to Murano - it is like a quieter Venice.
I don't about the rest, but do prefer to do things on my own if possible. I probably over prepare, but it helps make decisions.
Apr 24th, 2009, 09:05 PM
#5
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 26
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
as patandhank said "it is 53 miles from the port of civitavechia to rome!!!"
you can take the train from civitavechia to rome, the trip is over an hour. we did it twice and visited rome on our own. get a map and do your homework. you can easily walk around the city on your own. you will see many travelers taking the train, hook up with some of them. enjoy.
you can take the train from civitavechia to rome, the trip is over an hour. we did it twice and visited rome on our own. get a map and do your homework. you can easily walk around the city on your own. you will see many travelers taking the train, hook up with some of them. enjoy.
Apr 29th, 2009, 04:40 AM
#6
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 10,563
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Our first cruise was the wesetrn Med and we did all the shore excursions on our own. As for the 1st 4 stops I don't recall seeing tour buses at the port. However as Percy said there will be plenty of cabs and taking one will be alot less $$ than doing a ships tour. So do your homework-it won't take long, to see the highlights of each stop, pick what you prefer to see and go. It'll be better because you'll be on your own time and its private. Ask the cabbie to go to places where the locals go, have a nice luch at a sidewalk cafe and enjoy. Cheers, Larry 
Apr 29th, 2009, 06:13 AM
#7
Good advice jacketwatch
Apr 30th, 2009, 06:03 PM
#10
Hi jacketwatch
Unfortunately the brevity of my reply does reflect the condition of my hand.
I continue to have Carpal Tunnel and the Dupuytren's hand surgery is sloooowly coming.!!!!
My finger tips are numb...soI get little shocks when I have to tap on the keyboard
I still cannot make a fist,first thing in the morning, after I remove the night splint ( Grrr !!!)
Good Luck on your cruise in June georgec.
Unfortunately the brevity of my reply does reflect the condition of my hand.
I continue to have Carpal Tunnel and the Dupuytren's hand surgery is sloooowly coming.!!!!
My finger tips are numb...soI get little shocks when I have to tap on the keyboard
I still cannot make a fist,first thing in the morning, after I remove the night splint ( Grrr !!!)
Good Luck on your cruise in June georgec.
May 1st, 2009, 06:21 PM
#12
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 1,390
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
georgec - Vaporetto is a water taxi in Venice. Take a look at this http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/...tto_routes.htm
