Port excursion dilemma
 

We are cruising in the Mediterranean in early May. I am having the most difficult time choosing the best sights to see with our limited port time. For example, we will probably miss most of Naples because I really want to see Pompei. I am choosing the Tower of Pisa over seeing Florence. In Athens, we are choosing Delphi over Athens itself. It is our first visit to these cities and I would like some advice from people who have been there.

lizwj232323 If you properly plan your time at disposal, you will just miss very few things...Pompeii is interesting to visit and you can limit your time there at 2 hours. By train or private car you can go then to Sorrento and still have time to go back towards Naples and walk a little bit around the port to see the Royal Palace and the main street. Limit your time in Pisa just to walk 30 minutes in the "Leaning Tower" square and then go to Florence for the rest of the day.
Delphi seems to be more interesting than Athens, very heavy traffic there!

When we got off in Livorno we got a cab and went to Pisa and Florence on our own. You can do this and not miss either one assuming you have enough time in port which you usually do there.

Delphi is quite a distanc away from the port, if you have not been to Athens, maybe the Acropolis and a city tour is a better choice.

Here's my opinion - been to Naples and we did Pompeii. Agreed that 2 hr. tour of Pompeii is doable and still time to see Naples. You can easily find a private tour guide that would pick u up at the port, drop you off at Pompeii, and then take you on a tour to see the other sights. I can give you some names if you like. Check out your ship's offerings to see what they are offering.

Hands down, Florence would be my choice over going to Pisa. The Leaning Tower can actually be seen from the highway. Again, take the bus to Florence and get dropped off and do some walking. Can easily see the sights in the time frame you have. Or hire a private guide and arrange an itinerary to do both. There is so much to see in Florence that you probably would not miss Pisa. You may be able to do a quick stop in Pisa and then continue onto Florence.

Athens would be your best bet. Been to Athens twice and love it there. You can easily take transportation from the port to Athens and see the Acropolis, do some walking, shopping, lunch etc and have plenty of time.

You should also check out the Cruise Critic Boards and find the Roll Call for your ship and date of cruise. You would probably find others looking to share private tours to all these places. Much cheaper and the ship's offerings. You will find that trying to plan your itinerary around the time you have in port can be daunting when there is so much to see but you can't have it all w/ one day in port. Pick and choose what you really want to do and see.