P&O Monaco excursion question.

Hi all. First of all first post here so be gentle with me! We thoroughly enjoyed our first cruise last year on the Oceana and got a bargain deal to go on her again on the 28th of October. We stop at Cannes on this cruise and interested on going on a P&O organised excursion titled "The Principality of Monaco". It's not cheap at £72 each but there is lunch provided at a restaurant included in the price. The blurb states "Enjoy a taste of French cuisine, during lunch at a restaurant in Monaco". Has anyone been on this excursion and what restaurant did you go to and what was the food like? We are not too fussed and not foodies and mainly want to see as much of Monaco as we can with a guide but if the food was great at this restaurant it may tip the balance and my be worth paying £144 for both of us.

While i'm here, what is Livorno like? Anything to do in this port?

Thank you in advance.

Hi and welcome to our little community here. Glad you "took the plunge".

We've been to Monte Carlo a few times now and I love it. Sorry, not done the excursion, and it sounds pretty expensive to me. You may find that you spend so long in the restaurant that you don't get that much time to "see the sights" (happened to us in another port excursion but not here). We generally just walk around and soak up the sights and atmosphere. I love to see the boats in the harbour and the casino with the swanky cars outside. Just people watching is a great pastime and an interesting way to get a feel for the place.

Unfortunately, when we were there in June/July, they were doing some work and so the gardens opposite the casino were not as accessible as they had previously been, which was a disappointment for me. However I just loved to explore. We could even see the tyre marks on the road from the Grand Prix!

As for Livorno, this (IMHO) was pretty dire. Some shops but not a particularly pretty place or one I'd choose to go around again.

Hope you enjoy contributing to the many threads on here, and happy cruising.

We went to Livorno a couple of years ago. We did the red hop on hop off bus. It takes you all around the town then to the outskirts. The driver encourages you to get off at stop No.5 (I think). You then have a free ticket to take a little train up a very steep hill. At the top are a few shops and bars and a beautiful church, that the Pope visited a few years ago. The views are spectacular.

I haven't been on our P&O cruise yet, however, I have visited Monaco twice in the past and the last time we went for the day by bus from Nice and had a lovely lunch at a very reasonable price at a little restaurant on a small street by the port and it was perfect.

Looking at the cost of the excursion I would think that £72 each is expensive.

Personally I would just take the transport to Monaco and have a wander round and take in the sights on your own then you can grab lunch anywhere you fancy.

I have just had a look at the tours offered in my personaliser (we on a Western Med cruise with Ventura on the 30th August) and see that Monaco and Monte Carlo On Your Own is priced at £44 each which, if I hadn't visited before, is the one I would go on.

Have a wonderful trip :)

I would agree that Monaco is easy to explore and lunch on your own so just arrange transport there either by public transport or ships trip.

Last time we were in Livorno we took shuttle into town went to tourist information close by and got tickets for a boat trip with commentary around the canals....it was very good. There is also a huge market here....fruit and veg and shoes, clothes etc.

You can get a frequent train from Cannes to Monte Carlo. Its a good 15 minutes walk to the train station in Cannes plus allow for your tendering time from the ship. I agree that Monte Carlo is very easy to DIY.

As an alternative if you havnt been to Cannes its very nice with an old town and castle at the top with great views. Good if expensive shopping and great restaurants. There is also a beach close to where the tender docks..

If you are not going to Florence from Livorno how about getting the train to Pisa if youve not been there or Lucca by train which is lovely.

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Use the force!!:D:D

Seriously though....you can do Monaco on your own without an expensive trip. The one you were looking at is VERY expensive, plus the trouble with having a lunch as part of an excursion is that the meal can take up a good long while, because you can only go as fast as the slowest person. Everyone has to wait for the snail!!!

Im going to Monaco beginning of October and have done a bit of homework.

Get to Monaco......have a look at the ports of call section of cruise critic and there will be someone who can give you the best options to get there.

When in Monaco use the hop on hop off bus. We are going to do a complete circuit first to have a tour and then will hop off the next time around. This is about 20 euros each.

It will take you through a lot of the grand prix circuit and you can go to see the Prince's car collection for only 6 euros.

"Toms Port Guides" are useful and cover quite a lot of the european ports.

Livorno : main options are Florence, Pisa and Lucca....all extensively discussed in "ports of call"

Good luck......"in my experience, there is no such thing as luck"

Wow what a great response, thanks to all of you for your help. Think we'll do Monaco on our own excursion with P&O. Both of us are inexperienced travelers so going by public transport abroad seems daunting, what if the trains are delayed etc? Haven't decided weather to see Pisa or have a look around Livorno. Cannes is a tender port i believe, i've no experience of this so my question is are passengers with excursions with P&O given the opportunity to board the tender boat before anyone else? Do the tender boat/boats operate all day? I have visions of a flimsy rope bridge connected from the ship to the tender boat! I'm sure it will be more modern than that! How big are these boats? Thanks.

Wow what a great response, thanks to all of you for your help. Think we'll do Monaco on our own excursion with P&O. Both of us are inexperienced travelers so going by public transport abroad seems daunting, what if the trains are delayed etc? Haven't decided weather to see Pisa or have a look around Livorno. Cannes is a tender port i believe, i've no experience of this so my question is are passengers with excursions with P&O given the opportunity to board the tender boat before anyone else? Do the tender boat/boats operate all day? I have visions of a flimsy rope bridge connected from the ship to the tender boat! I'm sure it will be more modern than that! How big are these boats? Thanks.

First of all do not worry about the tenders! They carry about 100 people, you won't be on it for long, they can be a bit bouncy but most people think they are fun! You will be helped on and off - however able you are - and it is quite a sturdy platform. They operate all day, and you will be given the time of the last tender back to the ship.....do NOT miss it!

If you are on an excursion with P & O (particularly a morning one) you will normally be all kept together and taken to the tenders by a member of staff. You will have a meeting point somewhere on the ship, and given a sticker. With one or two exceptions, they will often not allow others on to the tenders until all the excursions have gone. If however you are on an afternoon excursion you will probably be expected to make your way ashore in time to meet up on the quayside. If this is the case, do allow plenty of time - your daily programme will advise you.

You will have a great time I am sure.

Hi all. First of all first post here so be gentle with me! We thoroughly enjoyed our first cruise last year on the Oceana and got a bargain deal to go on her again on the 28th of October. We stop at Cannes on this cruise and interested on going on a P&O organised excursion titled "The Principality of Monaco". It's not cheap at £72 each but there is lunch provided at a restaurant included in the price. The blurb states "Enjoy a taste of French cuisine, during lunch at a restaurant in Monaco". Has anyone been on this excursion and what restaurant did you go to and what was the food like? We are not too fussed and not foodies and mainly want to see as much of Monaco as we can with a guide but if the food was great at this restaurant it may tip the balance and my be worth paying £144 for both of us.

While i'm here, what is Livorno like? Anything to do in this port?

Thank you in advance.

Hi, There is a roll call up and running for your cruise. It`s dated for the 14th Oct. It takes in the 3 cruises all three cruises are mentioned on the roll call. We join Oceana on the 21st Oct for the Venice to Genoa leg but decided to extend our time on her till Southampton so added on the section you are doing. Come over to the roll call and make yourself known. Some of the information on the roll call might be helpful to you.

Regard to all

W&P

Hi all. First of all first post here so be gentle with me! We thoroughly enjoyed our first cruise last year on the Oceana and got a bargain deal to go on her again on the 28th of October. We stop at Cannes on this cruise and interested on going on a P&O organised excursion titled "The Principality of Monaco". It's not cheap at £72 each but there is lunch provided at a restaurant included in the price. The blurb states "Enjoy a taste of French cuisine, during lunch at a restaurant in Monaco". Has anyone been on this excursion and what restaurant did you go to and what was the food like? We are not too fussed and not foodies and mainly want to see as much of Monaco as we can with a guide but if the food was great at this restaurant it may tip the balance and my be worth paying £144 for both of us.

While i'm here, what is Livorno like? Anything to do in this port?

Thank you in advance.

Have been to monaco several times do not waste your money a very easy port to see everything on your own.

Hi all. First of all first post here so be gentle with me! We thoroughly enjoyed our first cruise last year on the Oceana and got a bargain deal to go on her again on the 28th of October. We stop at Cannes on this cruise and interested on going on a P&O organised excursion titled "The Principality of Monaco". It's not cheap at £72 each but there is lunch provided at a restaurant included in the price. The blurb states "Enjoy a taste of French cuisine, during lunch at a restaurant in Monaco". Has anyone been on this excursion and what restaurant did you go to and what was the food like? We are not too fussed and not foodies and mainly want to see as much of Monaco as we can with a guide but if the food was great at this restaurant it may tip the balance and my be worth paying £144 for both of us.

While i'm here, what is Livorno like? Anything to do in this port?

Thank you in advance.

Good afternoon Obi.

Firstly let me say that when I have taken P&O excursions that included lunch they have been great 'whole' days and I've always thought good value. (Ive just paid more than that for a Viking Ocean excursion that also included lunch).

Monaco is a great visit and you should bear in mind that the hour + journey along

the Riviera coast is also included.

I don't know if you will have any free time in Monaco. If so you may wish to glean some ideas from a review I recently wrote following a visit on Britannia...

http://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2015/05/24/monaco-one-way-to-do/

Whatever you choose, have great day. It's only money.

Hi all. First of all first post here so be gentle with me! We thoroughly enjoyed our first cruise last year on the Oceana and got a bargain deal to go on her again on the 28th of October. We stop at Cannes on this cruise and interested on going on a P&O organised excursion titled "The Principality of Monaco". It's not cheap at £72 each but there is lunch provided at a restaurant included in the price. The blurb states "Enjoy a taste of French cuisine, during lunch at a restaurant in Monaco". Has anyone been on this excursion and what restaurant did you go to and what was the food like? We are not too fussed and not foodies and mainly want to see as much of Monaco as we can with a guide but if the food was great at this restaurant it may tip the balance and my be worth paying £144 for both of us.

While i'm here, what is Livorno like? Anything to do in this port?

Thank you in advance.

Hi again Obi, its me back to answer your Livorno question.

What better way to spend your money and beat the crowds than to follow the route my wife and I took when calling into Livorno.

We hired a private tour which was simply outstanding.

Again, I wrote a review and you can read it here...

http://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2013/10/29/one-way-to-do-florence-and-pisa/

See, no crowds.

Have been to monaco several times do not waste your money a very easy port to see everything on your own.

Fair comment and I would agree if your cruise ship is calling at Monaco but Obi is on Oceana and calling at Cannes.

Now that is just over an hour by road assuming you have a car on call.

Not so easy though I accept there is public transport of sorts.

Fair comment and I would agree if your cruise ship is calling at Monaco but Obi is on Oceana and calling at Cannes.

 

Now that is just over an hour by road assuming you have a car on call.

 

Not so easy though I accept there is public transport of sorts.

I would take the train, it's a good frequent service along the coast to Monte Carlo and cheaper than the on your own tour.

We have taken the train to Monte Carlo from both Nice and Villefranche easily but haven't been from Cannes, but it is on the on the same line.

While i'm here, what is Livorno like? Anything to do in this port?

Thank you in advance.

It might also be worth your while to pop over to the Italy forums to ask about Livorno... http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=595

M.