wordsmith

We are taking a cruise and have 1 day to spend in this area. How do we spend it?

There is a tour of Amalfi, Positano, Sorrento and Ravello for the day....for 2 it is 450 euros. Is this a worthwhile way to spend our $$$ or any other ideas? Do we need to see all these cities and drive through the heights and see the views? If you feel it is a magnificent experience we will do it....????

nytraveler

Frankly I think the best views of the villages are from the water - and you'll get that from the cruise ship. I would spend you one day at Pompeii - about 10 times more fascinating than the seaside villages - which are cute and relaxing - but don't have a lot of real "sights".

bobthenavigator

I would hire Renato Cuomo to meet us--and 2 of our friends from the ship---and spend 6 hours with him for less than 300E. Google his name for his site.

wordsmith

Is Pompeii far from where we want to be---also, which villages should we see on our own?

wordsmith

For Bobthenavigator:

Have you used this Renato Cuomo or know someone who has? I will check him out

ekscrunchy

I booked with Renato Cuomo last May. He picked us up at our Amalfi hotel, drove us to Pompeii, waited while we toured the site, and then drove us to our hotel in Naples. He speaks English well and we enjoyed spending time with him.

We had also booked him for a day trip from Amalfi to Paestum and a mozzarella producer. But we cancelled when we found someone else who would do that trip for more than 100 Euros less than Mr. Cuomo was asking.

ira

Hi Word,

We were pleased with Limousine Service Sorrento (Renato Cuomo)
www.cuomonet.it

Also consider Francesco. http://www.francescomarrapese.com/

Where does your ship dock?

bobthenavigator

I have had clients use him--he is well known. In 6 hours or so I would see Positano and Ravello---Amalfi is an automatic since it is below Ravello. But, where do you dock?

ekscrunchy

To answer your question: You certainly do not need a guide to see Amalfi, Positano, Ravello, etc. The only advantage of hiring a driver is the convenience of getting from place to place in a relatively short amount of time.

450Euro is an outrageous amount of money for the tour offered by the cruise company!

Depending on where the ship docks, you might consider using public transport to see a couple of the coastal towns and/or Ravello. OR, to visit Pompei.

sherhatfield

How much time do you have in port? Like others have mentioned, it depends on where the ship docks but you can easily plan the day without a guide.

Keep in mind that weather can be a factor though. I was staying in Positano this past September and had a day planned to see Amalfi and Ravello. It ended up being a rainy, grey day and the ferries weren't running. We took a bus to Amalfi but skipped Ravello since the cloud cover was so thick. I was really bummed out since I had been looking forward to going there. My point is, you may want to have some back up plans or have indoor plans just in case.

You probably don't want to just stop in a town to say you've "seen" it, and that may be all you'd have time for on the ship's excursion. If you decide to hire a guide, we used Tour of Italy (for a transfer from Rome to Positano) and were really happy with the service. If we had needed a guide for a day, I wouldn't have hesitated to use them.

wordsmith

Renato quoted us 280 euros for the day visitng the 4 towns. What do you think?

basingstoke2

For 450 euro they should carry you about in a sedan chair feeding you peeled grapes.

ekscrunchy

First of all, I wonder if you are reading the replies that your original post has generated, because over and over people have asked you where the ship is docking and you have not responded.

As to whether or not you should spend $400 US to visit these 4 towns, only you can really decide. Obviously you can do this for a lot less if you so choose. There are public transport options and there are other drivers, as I commented in one of my posts above.

abram

We used Giovanni from www.tourofitaly.com and had a wonderful day. There were six of us in a van, and in 2004, it cost $100 per couple. We found one couple at the Roll Call section of the boards at www.cruisecritic.com and the other couple on the ship.

bobthenavigator

Sounds fair to me. Less may be more--I would see Ravello, Positano, Amalfi

wordsmith

I am aware of questions regarding the port but could not get the information until now. We arrive at the Amalfi port, Guardia Costiera Lungomare

ekscrunchy

If you are arriving at Amalfi you certainly do not need to pay $400 for a tour. It will be a snap to explore Amalfi, Positano and Ravello on your own by bus, ferry and taxi or a combination of all three. There is even a hop on/hop off bus..

ekscrunchy

...although what you have written is something like "Coast Guard on the seafront promenade." Are you certain that this means that you dock in Amalfi?

wordsmith

I am quoting the exact location told to me by the cruise line---the mian thing is that the port is in Amalfi. Are the cities close enough that we can get a taxi to take us to all 3?
Does traveling between them also include driving in hills and seeing sights, or are these just as nice from the ship? I don't know that I would need a guide for anything special and I may cancel unless someone here can tell me what a guide for 280 euro would offer that I would need different from ferry or taxi??

kybourbon

I suggest you repost with the name of your cruiseline on the cruise forum so you can determine exactly which port (someone on the cruise board will know which port is used). Most cruise ships only use Naples or Sorrento (by tender).