Cruiser Art

That's great, Jerry and Krista! I think that makes 8 in our van so the tour should be a go. I will email Filipe the first of the week and see if he confirms we are a go. You can email me at artc6114 at gee mail (sorry for the subterfuge but I think you get it) and we can trade cabin numbers so we can touch base on the ship. I think it would be helpful to all meet up beforehand or at least talk to come up with a plan for that morning to eliminate any problems meeting our guy. Look forward to meeting all you guys.

No worries. I'm sure that we will all have a great time in Ponta Delgada. Crossing fingers for some fine weather!

Just letting you know the van has 6 signed up so far, so come along and join us if you can. If you are interested, you book directly with Pure Azores but I would appreciate you letting me know you signed up for it. Should be a great tour!

Sounds great, Karen. Glad to hear you signed up! If you want to keep in touch, my email is artc6114 at gee mail (type it properly, the subterfuge is to just to keep the scammers from harvesting my email too fast). I'd be happy to share my cabin number privately so perhaps we can touch base on board prior to arriving in the Azores.

That's great to hear, Karen. Do let me know what you hear back from them. It should be a wonderful tour and we'd love to do it with friends from our ship!

Just realized I forgot to mention that if you do book your tour with Pure Azores (the fellow I have exchanged emails with was Filipe), please be sure to mention that you are on the Carnival Venezia so that he can put you on the same van as Penny and Art!

Also, we're in NC as well. Charlotte. Where in NC are you guys from?

Yes, JC is correct. My wife and I are signed up for this tour as are he and his wife. The Pure Azores guy said that while the normal tour time is 9am departure, if we have a van of 8 from the cruise ship he will adjust the tour to our ship's arrival and departure. You will need to go to their website and sign up with him and that website is https://pureazores.com/en/ . Our tour is called Sao Miguel West Van Tour with Lunch. You pay them on their website and if we get a van of 8 (there are 4 of us signed up already) then the tour will go; if not, he will cancel and refund all monies a week before we arrive there. My wife and I did a similar tour on our last trip to Ponta Delgada and liked the West End very much. Hoping we get another gorgeous weather day there. Really hope this works out for you to join us so we make this trip a go! Here is a description from the website: Full description Explore the highlights of the western half of São Miguel island on this guided tour by van. Discover the famous crater lakes of Sete Cidades and Lagoa do Fogo, picturesque waterfalls, amazing cliffs, and stunning rock formations around the coast of the island. Start with a visit to Ribeira Grande, one of the most picturesque towns of the Azores, followed by a surprising view of some amazingly beautiful cliffs on the North coast. Then travel to the inner areas of the island to see the gorgeous waterfall of Salto do Cabrito, surrounded by wild vegetation. Drive to the top of Fogo Volcano to enjoy views of the most pristine and magical of the crater lakes of São Miguel. From the top of the mountain, enjoy the stunning views over a large portion of the island. After a tasty meal to restore your energy levels, head to Sete Cidades, to understand why this is considered by the postcard of the Azores. Enjoy views from two completely different perspectives over the famous twin lakes. End the day in Mosteiros, on the western coast of the island, where the lava rocks have formed enchanting small islets and natural pools. See less Includes Hotel pickup and drop-off from Ponta Delgada, Ribeira Grande or Lagoa town Lunch of traditional Azorean food One alcoholic drink of your choice (wine, beer, etc.) Dessert Coffee Not suitable for Wheelchair users

Just to clarify for myself, you guys are talking about requests for traditional dining times, right? Not requests for MTD? Because I always thought the MTD was you express your table preference when you show up and they either can accomodate you or not, just like a land restaurant. Am I understanding it correctly?

Sounds great, John - we're halfway there. I'll get in touch with you. We need another 4 folks looking to join in on our Ponta Delgada tour....Should be a great one!

JC, you will need to contact Pure Azores and reserve your spots with them. I will cross my fingers that you can join us on this excursion. The fellow at Pure Azores is Filipe and he is very nice. You book online (make sure you put in Sunday, June 4 as the tour date) and he will email you the confirmation. Be sure to mention to him that you are onboard the Carnival Venezia so he knows to put you in the van with us from the ship.

Thanks, I realize we are a bit late to the game but hopefully there are a few others still looking for options as well!

Good Afternoon! My wife and I are going on this wonderful Venezia cruise and are finishing up our plans for our port days. I have reserved a tour in Ponta Delgada with Pure Azores. It is a Sao Miguel West Van Tour and here is a link to the tour and a description: https://pureazores.com/en/sao-miguel-west-van-tour/ I have been in touch with them and the tour usually begins at 9am; however, if 6 more people sign up for this tour with them, they will adjust a van to cooperate with our ship's time in port. The van holds 8 people and my wife and I are the first two. You contact them directly and pay; in the event that there are not 8 people by 1 week before we arrive on the ship, they will cancel the tour and refund all money. I am hoping there are 6 other folks on this board who'd like to join in as this seems like a great tour. We did a similar one several years ago on a stop in Pont Delgada and thoroughly enjoyed it. We have toured the east side and I know many like to visit Furnace, etc. but we especially enjoyed the western part of Sao Miguel ourselves.