Western Med planning help

[jmkoilers]

My wife and I are on the May 10th, Legend Idyllic Rivieras cruise and would love to hear from anyone with suggestions for the ports of call. Here are the ports (and highlighted sites - I think).

Portoferraio, Italy (Elba countryside)

Portofino, Italy (Castello Brown)

Cannes, France (St. Paul de Vence)

Sanary sur-Mer, France (Aix en Provence)

Barcelona, Spain (Montserrate and Sagradafamilia)

Mahon, Spain (La Mola Fortress and gin distillery)

Port Vendres, France (Collioure)

Ile De Porquerollies, France (Beach)

This is our 1st trip to these Med ports and am so looking forward to our first Seabourn cruise. We will be in Rome for 2 nights pre-cruise and staying in Nice for 1 night after to savor the moments. Thanks

[JaneBP]

I have done this itinerary several times, but haven't disembarked for excursions in several years. However, I end my Pride cruise in October in Barcelona and have been arranging some day excursions with the following firm which comes recommended from others. I have been impresssed with their responses and attention to plans. I have found many of the the Seabourn excursions way overpriced, especially a private car hire.

 

 

Jacobus Fourie

Phone: 0034 644 512 661

Email: info@magicdayadventures.com

Email: magicdayadventures@gmail.com

Web: http://www.magicdayadventures.com <http://www.magicdayadventures.com> <http://www.magicdayadventures.com>

[Roxburgh]

My wife and I are on the May 10th, Legend Idyllic Rivieras cruise and would love to hear from anyone with suggestions for the ports of call. Here are the ports (and highlighted sites - I think).

Portoferraio, Italy (Elba countryside)

Portofino, Italy (Castello Brown)

Cannes, France (St. Paul de Vence)

Sanary sur-Mer, France (Aix en Provence)

Barcelona, Spain (Montserrate and Sagradafamilia)

Mahon, Spain (La Mola Fortress and gin distillery)

Port Vendres, France (Collioure)

Ile De Porquerollies, France (Beach)

This is our 1st trip to these Med ports and am so looking forward to our first Seabourn cruise. We will be in Rome for 2 nights pre-cruise and staying in Nice for 1 night after to savor the moments. Thanks

 

We have been to a few of these ....

 

Portofino ... lovely little town and very walkable. There is a nice little church, a nice walk up to the castle and it is very picturesque. We spent a half a day wandering around and then headed back to the ship for a light lunch and other 'refreshments'. However, if you plan to go shopping do not forget to take out a second mortgage. It is expensive.

 

Cannes ..... also very walkable. Three main attractions ... La Croisette along the beach, the main shopping area and the old town where there is a castle. Shopping is good and varied.

 

Barcelona .... this is a city so you need to be focused on what you want to see. If you have not been there before, a tour which shows you the Gaudi architecture is well worth it. Be very 'street smart' in the touristy areas along the Ramblas and in the old town. There are plenty of pickpockets.

 

Mahon .... lovely little town and also very walkable. You do not need a tour to visit the distillery. There is also a nice little market and shopping streets.

[1straveler]

We have taken a Seabourn offered excursion in almost every port you mentioned. I would not recommend any of them. I do however, highly recommend the open air bus tour in Barcelona. You can purchase tickets for a nominal charge. The other ports are worth walking around to see the local sights, although in Porquerollies you can see the entire village in 15 minutes.

[margbem]

My wife and I are on the May 10th, Legend Idyllic Rivieras cruise and would love to hear from anyone with suggestions for the ports of call. Here are the ports (and highlighted sites - I think).

Portoferraio, Italy (Elba countryside)

Portofino, Italy (Castello Brown)

Cannes, France (St. Paul de Vence)

Sanary sur-Mer, France (Aix en Provence)

Barcelona, Spain (Montserrate and Sagradafamilia)

Mahon, Spain (La Mola Fortress and gin distillery)

Port Vendres, France (Collioure)

Ile De Porquerollies, France (Beach)

This is our 1st trip to these Med ports and am so looking forward to our first Seabourn cruise. We will be in Rome for 2 nights pre-cruise and staying in Nice for 1 night after to savor the moments. Thanks

 

Definitely visit the castello in Portofino - it's a long walk uphill but worth it!

 

The fort in Mahon is brilliant. Allow a couple of hours minimum to see it properly. We weren't impressed with the gin ditillery but it's not far from the ship so you can easily walk there. The mercado in Mahon is worth seeing also.

 

In Barcelona you must not miss the Sagrada Familia. Maybe you can reserve tickets in advance - I don't know, but worth researching.

 

You'll love the whole thing!

[jmkoilers]

Thank you for your insights - hopefully I will received some more as this is how we all learn about the world. I am one that likes to pre-plan alot of our itineraries and have about finished our days in Rome, now to work on the rest.

 

We will be in Barcelona for 2 days, and I will definitely be looking at pre-booking tickets and tours for the Gaudi insprired basilica and a day tour with a trip to Montserrat. We love just walking around and soaking in the atmosphere, history, view and especially enjoying the people.

 

1straveler - you mention not recommending any of the Seabourn excursions - besides the price (that is always a given for a cruise sponsored trip) is there any other reason to avoid them? I've seen the prices for the private car hires and since I'm not looking to buy the car, those are not even up for consideration.

 

I see that frenchrivieraguides.net is also mentioned favorably for Nice - any comments?

[wripro]

In Portofino do yourself a favor and book lunch on the terrace of the Hotel Splendido. It is a superb location with great views, excellent food and will provide wonderful memories. Also the walk out to the little church is great.

 

Barcelona is a city which really requires a few days to do it justice. But if you're only there for the day I'd suggest the hop on/hop off bus which will take you to all the major sights. (Forget about Monserrat during a port call.) The most important things to see are Gaudi related, especially the Sagrada Familia and Parc Guell. Also the two Gaudi houses on the Passieg de Gracia in the Eixemple. And if you like food be sure and stop in to the Boquerria, the famous market on La Rambla.

 

In Cannes, if you want to go into the hill towns I'd suggest Mougins. If you hire a car and guide (Dream Tours is one of the best in that area) you can also get to St. Paul. Stop for lunch on one of the little restaurants. Allow some time to stroll La Croisette.

 

In Portoferraio, there is Napoleon's place of exile which is interesting to visit for an hour or so.

 

Mahon is a sweet little town which you can walk around but there really is not much there to see. To get into the countryside you might want to check into a ship's tour.

 

It's a great itinerary. Enjoy.

[1straveler]

Yes, price is not the issue. Riding a bus for more than an hour each way to go to a vineyard with average wine, which we did on two occasions was a waste of time. Very few of our fellow cruisers purchased the wine and the consensus of others I spoke with was average as well. We also attended a "Dancing Horses" exhibition that to me, a former horse owner for years, was a demonstration on animal abuse more than anything else. We have found that in most, not all, situations we have experienced greater success going though our travel agent, a local tour guide or setting out on our own. On one cruise we must have spent 20 hours on buses. I realize some of that is necessary and can be even enjoyable but I did not think the proper balance was in place.

[ibnoland]

Dear jmkoilers,

I read that you like to "pre-plan" your itineraries. I strongly recommend that you try post-planning next time. 100% success is almost guaranteed.

[Roxburgh]

We have taken a Seabourn offered excursion in almost every port you mentioned. I would not recommend any of them. I do however, highly recommend the open air bus tour in Barcelona. You can purchase tickets for a nominal charge. The other ports are worth walking around to see the local sights, although in Porquerollies you can see the entire village in 15 minutes.

 

In the Med, we tend to only do tours where the guide is going to add a lot of value (e.g. Ephesus, Pompeii, the Vatican, etc.). For most destinations, you can pre-plan using the internet and walk or use local transport and/or taxis. For example, in Malta, a number of people hired taxis for the morning and were very satisfied with the price and the experience. Having been to Malta before, we just got the local bus for 47 cents :D Other people we met would hire a car and just drive around. Obviously it depends on the port and what you want to do but, in my view, Seabourn tours are just one option and not the only option.