Private Rome tours

[princess76021]

i am all for allarounditaly.net, they pick you up and drop you off right by the ship. the speak english very well and know the intimate places to take you, along with the most visited places. we had them in rome and in pisa/livorno/florence. excellent people!!!! high recommend them.

 

however, DO NOT, repeat, DO NOT, chose easitalytours.com they never showed!!!! we booked many months ahead, confirmed our reservation 2 weeks before and were stranded in the port of genoa!!!! 1/2 hour of our pecious port time was waiting for them before we got into a taxi cab manned by stefano, he took us to everywhere easitalytours.com was scheduled to take us plus the town of rafalo and charged us 110 euro less per couple (we were 3 couples)

 

any questions? i'm here!!!!

[chipmaster]

Ouch :eek: That would have been my worst nightmare. You should start a seperate thread and share your "bad" experience if they are still in business. One of the biggest values of this place is the recommendations and what to avoid from previous customers. Keeps the ones that give service going and for those that are bad from duping others.

 

i am all for allarounditaly.net, they pick you up and drop you off right by the ship. the speak english very well and know the intimate places to take you, along with the most visited places. we had them in rome and in pisa/livorno/florence. excellent people!!!! high recommend them.

 

however, DO NOT, repeat, DO NOT, chose easitalytours.com they never showed!!!! we booked many months ahead, confirmed our reservation 2 weeks before and were stranded in the port of genoa!!!! 1/2 hour of our pecious port time was waiting for them before we got into a taxi cab manned by stefano, he took us to everywhere easitalytours.com was scheduled to take us plus the town of rafalo and charged us 110 euro less per couple (we were 3 couples)

 

any questions? i'm here!!!!

[samavarcruiser]

Private tours/drivers in Italy

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1065405&highlight=rome+tour

[FritzG]

We used Fabrizio and allarounditaly.com in Rome on May 1 and Florence on May 2 based on reviews from CC members. I would recommend Fabrizio very highly. Our two private tours were the highlights of our TA Ruby Princess cruise. Our guide in Rome was Aldo, and he was the absolute best. He dressed professionally, spoke English very well, and provided us with a day in Rome that we will never forget. We saw more in one day with Aldo than we've seen in a couple of day-long ship's tours. He gave us plenty of opportunities to see what we wanted, and he planned the day well to avoid the massive crowds on May 1st's holiday.

Our guide in Pisa/Florence was Marco, and we had another great day. Even thought it poured rain all day we had a very good day and saw a lot. We heard people from the ship's tour complaining that they had to walk a great distance from the bus to the tower--Marco parked right in front of the tower. We visited the Pitti Palace--which should not be missed--and again, he drove us right up to the entrance. We were able to go into the church of Santa Croce which we missed on last year's ship's tour due to the lines, and again we drove right up to the entrance.

For both tours, the cars were immaculate, and the drivers were very safe drivers. Being able to drive right up to the sights instead of long walks was an additional bonus. We booked a 7 passenger van for our party of 4 which made for very comfortable traveling.

[mydreamvacation]

We have used Stefano for several years now and although I have heard good things about the other companies for us Rome cabs is a perfect click. They focus so much on personal service, quick emails, friendly suggestions, true enthusiasm and pride for their city etc. Stefano also has a tour company http://www.stefanorometours.com and I am excited to try the new angels and demons tour this summer! They really go out of their way to make you happy and comfortable. I have fibromailgia and can tire easy and become very sore standing in lines. At the colleseaum Mauritzio got use right yo the front of the line and had ice cold waters waiting for us when we came out. I honestly feel like I have family in Rome and can't wait to see them again. Their English is perfect, always professional atire, Mercedes vehicles they will always be our first pick. You can reach stefano at romecabs@yahoo.com

[Ms Understood]

Princess, I am stunned to hear of your bad experience with easitalytours. We have used them 4 times w/o ever a problem. My sister just used them in Feb and a good friend is set up with them for Sept. Did you ever get any explanation?

------------------

Helen

[Host Caroline]

Just a reminder that if you are on a particular cruise and looking for some folks to join you on a tour, that you need to post that on the roll call for your upcoming cruise and not here on the "ports of call" message boards!

If you have any questions about this, please review the guidelines at the top of this message board or contact one of the hosts or staff!

Thank you!

[princess76021]

Princess, I am stunned to hear of your bad experience with easitalytours. We have used them 4 times w/o ever a problem. My sister just used them in Feb and a good friend is set up with them for Sept. Did you ever get any explanation?

------------------

Helen

 

 

 

no explanation, no show, 1/2 hour precious shore time wasted, best thing that happened was the taxicab driver!!!

[salboz]

We are going in May and would appreciate any recommendations as to private guide companies:). There will be 12 of us and we can be broken into several groupings. Many are new to Rome and want to see the highlights and St Peters. We can pass on the Vatican Museum as it takes several hours that could be better spent on other sights.

 

 

I am a cruise specialist and am always looking for local guides to suggest to my clients. I just came back from the Med last week. This time I booked the 3 ports in Italy with all around Italy. I don't know how you could find anyone better. Fabrizio, the owner of the company is a young, energetic and very entertaining man. He is purposely keeping his company small and his guides the best. We had Pepe in Rome. He is an older gentleman who was selected to be the guide for the visiting president and vp from the Smithsonian due to his total knowledge of the city. He will give you as little or as much history as you want. some people want it all, some just the highlights and don't want the constant info which is easy to do in Rome as every few yards, there is something new and/or historic to learn about.

 

Fabrizio lets you determine what you want to see and works a schedule around your desires. He will make suggestions for you to consider, but it is up to you. Very good and comfortable vehicles. For 6 people, the whole day tour runs under $100. each plus admission tickets.

 

As for the Vatican, unless you are going to spend a lot of time looking at all the art work, you really don't need a guide. You get tickets online and you get them for a specific time (time suggested by your chosen guide to keep on the established schedule of events). Then you can walk right in with no wait. Still will take nearly 2 hours to get through to the Sistine Chapel and out of the Vatican. If you do go there, a nice souvenier is to buy postage stamps at the Vatican. They have there own that you can't get anywhere else i the world. Do the same for the Colleseum tickets if you plan to go in there.

[drcdrc]

It looks like there are a lot of good tour companies for Rome. Here is our situation:

 

Parents with 2 teenagers. We arrive Civitavecchia on the MSC Splendida on June 11, 2010. I have read many threads with great reviews of several companies. I have emailed 4 of them and all 4 are available and provide what looks like essentially the same tour. Here are my choices with prices for a private car for 4:

 

Romeinlimo: 500E

 

Romecabs: 500E

 

AllaroundItaly: 480E

 

YourtourinItaly: 520E

 

Thoughts? Recommendations? I am pretty sure we are going to pick one.

[mydreamvacation]

I am sure you will get many responses each "voting" for their favorite of the four companies. All have a loyal following. From my personal perspective there is no finer company than Rome Cabs. Perfect English, walking history book, friendly and considerate just all around true gentlemen. You will leave Rome feeling like you are departing an old friend. It has been years since we first used Rome Cabs for the first time and again many times since then and consistantly the service has exceeded my expectations. You can not go wrong with Stefano!

[Single Cruiser]

Hi,

 

I've been looking at booking a tour of Rome as well from the port. However my concern is that nearly all of the companies mentioned appear to simply require an email with your credit card or romeinlimo to enter your card number on a total unsecured website!

 

Is there any Italian tour company that has a proper secure web booking service?

[Grandpaul]

Hi,

 

I've been looking at booking a tour of Rome as well from the port. However my concern is that nearly all of the companies mentioned appear to simply require an email with your credit card or romeinlimo to enter your card number on a total unsecured website!

 

Is there any Italian tour company that has a proper secure web booking service?

We used RomeInLimo and we called with our credit card number. I believe you can fax them as well. We're going back in 6 months for a couple more tours with them. Can't wait.

[Single Cruiser]

We used RomeInLimo and we called with our credit card number. I believe you can fax them as well. We're going back in 6 months for a couple more tours with them. Can't wait.

 

Thanks for that. I reckon that's safer.. :)

 

Their online reservation isn't even a secured webpage..

[salboz]

It looks like there are a lot of good tour companies for Rome. Here is our situation:

 

Parents with 2 teenagers. We arrive Civitavecchia on the MSC Splendida on June 11, 2010. I have read many threads with great reviews of several companies. I have emailed 4 of them and all 4 are available and provide what looks like essentially the same tour. Here are my choices with prices for a private car for 4:

 

Romeinlimo: 500E

 

Romecabs: 500E

 

AllaroundItaly: 480E

 

YourtourinItaly: 520E

 

Thoughts? Recommendations? I am pretty sure we are going to pick one.

All are good reliable companies, so why pay more. You cannot beat Allarounditaly for a guide that is knowlegable if you get Peppe. You will have the knowledge and a very entertaining guide if you get Fabrizio. I am a cruise agent and have personally travelled with two of these companies and had clients on others. Based upon personal experience, client feedback and price, I would strongly say go with Allarounditaly.

[marie12]

It looks like there are a lot of good tour companies for Rome. Here is our situation:

 

Parents with 2 teenagers. We arrive Civitavecchia on the MSC Splendida on June 11, 2010. I have read many threads with great reviews of several companies. I have emailed 4 of them and all 4 are available and provide what looks like essentially the same tour. Here are my choices with prices for a private car for 4:

 

Romeinlimo: 500E

 

Romecabs: 500E

 

AllaroundItaly: 480E

 

YourtourinItaly: 520E

 

Thoughts? Recommendations? I am pretty sure we are going to pick one.

We will also be in Rome on the Splendida on the 11th, also with 2 teenagers. We chose Romecabs because of their great reviews on several different sites. We did not have to give a credit card number. They were very prompt in responding to our questions and reserving our tour.

[drcdrc]

Thanks to all for the great feedback.

 

Marie: you should check in on the roll call for our ship. Only a few on there, but hopefully we can get a little more traffic.

 

Have you made your plans for Messina?

[3girlsandaboy]

Rome in Limo was wonderful. We used them for three tours while visiting Italy with the Disney Cruise. We had wonderful tours in Naples, Rome and Florence. In Naples we hiked Mt. Vesuvius, went to Sorrento, and then toured Pompeii. Our driver was able to arrange a tour guide for us for Pompeii ( def. worth the extra money) at the last minute. Fabulous Day! The next day we were in Rome. We were picked up and went to the Coloseum, the Pantheon and the Vatican. Again they were able to arrange a private guide for us and when the lines to get into the Vatican were long, were able to get us prearranged tickets to skip the lines and head straight in, all again at the last minute. That alone was worth the price of the tour. In Florence, we went to Pisa, where again they arranged for us to have tickets to climb and were able to skip the lines, then we drove to Florence. We had prearranged tickets to get into the Accademia but there was a line even for that. Our driver dropped us off for lunch, went and stood in line FOR US, and then when we were done with lunch we walked right in. I can't say enough good things about this company. We were travelling with three young (9,9 and 6) children and the drivers were so flexible. I must admit that we probably drove our drivers a little crazy as things didn't always move as fast as a typical tour without small children might have but they were excellent about arranging our day around any glitches we through their way. Again, I can't say enough how wonderful this company was. I would reccomend them and their drivers to anyone with out hesitation.

[3girlsandaboy]

Here's my vote for romeinlimo. We used them for three ports lst week and they were excellent. I can not say enough good things for them. When we got to the Vatican and typically there is not a line at the time we would go, they arranged tickets on the spot. In Florence we had pretickets for the Accademia and again there was a line. Our driver dropped us off for lunch and went and stood in line in the rain FOR US. When we were done with lunch we alked right to the front of the line and in. They were truly awesome and worth every penny!:)

[BigGuy25]

And, your experience wasn't a fluke. That's exactly the way we were treated by RIL last year and it's why we've booked them again for our return to Rome this summer!!

[Loubyloo]

Hi, I'll be visiting Rome twice this summer and I'm interested in booking this private tour. Can you tell me how you contacted them and if you don't mind, how much did you pay?

 

Thanks for your help!

[cruisemom42]

I'm glad you enjoyed your tour, but please take note of the notice at the top of these boards which states:

 

"Please post your review or recommendation ONLY in response to request...do not start a new thread. Thanks!"

[princess76021]

Hi, I'll be visiting Rome twice this summer and I'm interested in booking this private tour. Can you tell me how you contacted them and if you don't mind, how much did you pay?

 

Thanks for your help!

 

 

www.allarounditaly.net they are wonderful, do not require a credit card and are around 500 euro for 6, they pick you up in a nice meredes van and they speak english very well!

[drcdrc]

Hi, I'll be visiting Rome twice this summer and I'm interested in booking this private tour. Can you tell me how you contacted them and if you don't mind, how much did you pay?

 

Thanks for your help!

 

I think I may have missed a post that was deleted or moved, but in case you are interested, see my post a few up that lists current prices for four different tour companies for 4 people pick up in Citiavecchia and full day tour in Rome. Not cheap, but it is the splurge stop for us.

 

Google will get you to the websites for all 4 and they are all 4 well reviewed here and elsewhere.

 

Thanks to all who responded to me. We decided to book RIL. It really looks like all 4 are good choices, but I just found more reviews for RIL and they are overwhelmingly positive. Seems like the safer choice.

[u242708]

I highly recommend Rome Cabs. They picked us up at the airport, took us on a tour of Rome, took us to our hotel and took us to the airport. Stephano promptly responded to my emails and Albert (our driver) was absolutely fantastic. He made sure that we saw all the major sights and was very kind and knowledgable.