Norweigan epic excursions v do it yourself

[hayleyfever]

Please help

We are going on the epic on the 27th july.

Please can somebody advise which tours to do

 

Naples we want to visit Pompeii ( which is the best option for 2 adults and 2 children age 11 and 9)

 

Rome ( because we dont have long in rome what is the best option?)_

 

Florence and Pisa

 

Cannes

 

If somebody could help we would be grateful is it best to do the ship excursions or through a private company (any recommendations) or do it ourselves

 

Thanks

 

Hayley

[REDSONJAMN]

When I would travel with my son when he was their ages I would mix it up. My son happened to love HISTORY so he was okay with MUSEUMS but I would always try and mix in some fun or a break.

 

The Rome TOURS are so expensive from the ship I would try on your roll call to get together with other families to make your own tour especially for ROME so you can customize to suit your needs.

 

NAPLES you might want to consider a ships tour for ease and comfort for POMPEII and some other sites.

 

I have always had the best luck using the roll calls to help find tours with others. I am going ont he EPIC in SEPT and have all my tours booked with other people and doing one or 2 SHIPS tours that worked for me--

 

You know your kids better than anyone and you know how much they can take before they need a break for some GELATO or LUNCH or to get out of the car/bus etc.-----trust your instincts---

 

BEST Of LUCK----

[Sauer-kraut]

Are you on your ROLL CALL? There are probably people doing private tours that need to fill vans and such.

 

Have you been to the PORTS OF CALL boards for EUROPE?? You can find all kinds of recommendations on tours and maps for DIY. Have you thought about Herculaneum instead of Pompeii because it will be less crowded, more shady and the villas there are beautiful. It was an upscale town vs. Pompeii.

 

Rome is a train ride from the port, you will really need to have a game plan on what is important to you to see.

 

Good luck planning!

[Fishbait17]

Depending on how much energy your kids have (and you!) there are some ports that are extremely easy to do on your own, without any organized tour. Pompeii is one of those. It's very easy to walk to the train station in Naples, and take a train to Pompeii Scavi station and walk off to the ruins. I would advise that you hire a PRIVATE walking guide at the gate (tell them you will pay for the whole tour with no more people) and then you can tour at your leisure and visit areas and hear stories that will interest your kids - we did this a few times when my daughters were little and they LOVED it..

 

Rome is very easy to train into as well, but I would limit what you see, as it's a big city with a lot of mid-summer lines (crowds) and can wear kids out quickly.

 

For Florence, we hired a private driver and guide, as we had so much on our "to do" list that we wanted to skip the lines and get around quickly.

 

We used Cannes as a beach day, as the other days were just too exhausting.

 

Your other option is to hook up with another family or two, with kids, from your Roll Call - that way you can arrange private tours that can be tailored to be a bit more kid oriented in each city.

 

The Ports of Call boards can give you lots of great information..

 

Keep in mind that it will likely be HOT HOT HOT in the cities, so leave plenty of time for breaks for gelato, a drink, etc.. And plan plenty of down time in the evenings - it's truly exhausting! Good luck!

 

Robin

[HokiePoq]

Are you on your ROLL CALL? There are probably people doing private tours that need to fill vans and such.

 

Have you been to the PORTS OF CALL boards for EUROPE?? You can find all kinds of recommendations on tours and maps for DIY. Have you thought about Herculaneum instead of Pompeii because it will be less crowded, more shady and the villas there are beautiful. It was an upscale town vs. Pompeii.

 

Rome is a train ride from the port, you will really need to have a game plan on what is important to you to see.

 

Good luck planning!

 

We did two half day ship's tours so we could see both of them. Herculaneum is much less crowded and better preserved.

For Rome, it depends on where the ship is docking. If it's in town, it's a short walk to the train station where you can easily get into Rome for very cheap price. You do need a plan of what you want to see and allow plenty of time to get back to the main station and the train back to the port. If the ship is docking where the Jade did, this would not work out so easily.

Do they use different docks for one day calls and embarkations or all stops now out of town? Perhaps someone can answer this.

The time we were on a one day stop, the Epic was right in town. This April the Jade left from a place out of the town and not in walking distance of the train station. In that case I'd take a ship's tour or private tour that would pick up you there.

As others have said, check your roll call.

[KeithJenner]

For Rome, it depends on where the ship is docking. If it's in town, it's a short walk to the train station where you can easily get into Rome for very cheap price. You do need a plan of what you want to see and allow plenty of time to get back to the main station and the train back to the port. If the ship is docking where the Jade did, this would not work out so easily.

Do they use different docks for one day calls and embarkations or all stops now out of town? Perhaps someone can answer this.

The time we were on a one day stop, the Epic was right in town. This April the Jade left from a place out of the town and not in walking distance of the train station. In that case I'd take a ship's tour or private tour that would pick up you there.

As others have said, check your roll call.

 

I'm a bit confused by this.

 

Are you talking about where the port shuttle bus drops you off? This has changed this year for all cruises due to construction works at the old port entrance. The new drop off point is further away from the train station, but is still an easy walk (about a mile).

 

I'm not aware of a separate out of town place where the ships dock. I'm pretty sure that they all dock in the main port and the shuttle bus takes everyone to the same place.

[tampafish]

For Livorno - do you want to see Florence, Pisa or Lucca or combination? I would recommend researching in the Europe forum how to get to the train station and see if that is something you can handle. Also, Rome In Limo does a tour from port to Pisa and Florence and with the 4 of you it's probably cheaper than taking a ship sponsored tour. They take up to 8 so if you find someone else on your roll call to go with you it could be very inexpensive. I just think I'd be upfront about the fact you have kids and their ages (no offense, I love traveling with my kids, but if I spent a lot of money to go to Europe I might not want a day in the car with someone else's kids).

 

For Naples Rome In Limo also has tours that go to Pompeii or to Herculeaum plus other stops. I've read that they will customize to what works for you and what you want to do. So if your kids have a particular interest then you could discuss with them via e-mail (like going to the volcano, or eating pizza).

 

For Rome - unless you feel like you could navigate the trains in to the city and then the walking in the city I would also recommend booking a tour that goes to the sites that interest you the most.

 

It's not too hard to find others on your roll call that might want to tag along helping you make your trip more affordable. Plus the ship excursions are going to be 50 people all on a bus and well, my kids never did good with that and I think they are pretty good travelers.

 

I've also done research on Trip Advisor for each city to get an idea of what is offered. Most cities have a list of things to do with kids on Trip Advisor or you can just ask in the forums over there as well. Good luck with your planning!

[Kingfisherhill]

Hi We sailed on the Epic last October with 2 teenagers.

I can't recommend Rome in Limo highly enough. We used them for the Naples and Rome ports and wish we had used them for Florence and Pisa too.

 

If you go to their website and look at the Tour Sharing Banner, you can get to see tours with availability for your dates.

 

They use 8 seater mini buses which can get into streets that the large NCL coaches can't get to and there are loads of them in Italy!

 

We were the first people into Pompeii and our guide was fabulous. None of my photos have anyone else in them as we were around it before the crowds.

 

In Rome, they were amazing, I can't believe how much we saw in just one day, I will always remember it. Our drivers and guides couldn't do enough for us and we were very well taken care of. Im not sure how much of this city you would be able to see on your own or even if you would know what you were looking at without a guide.

 

We went to the Collossseum, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, Vatican Museum and St Peters Brasilica.

 

We hired a car for Florence and Pisa which was about 90 euros and was delivered to the side of the ship, all very easy and in fact you can hire them on the day as they have a pop up shop in the port. We hired a sat nab for an extra 10 euros and this directed us straight to a car park in Florence. It was all very easy and we wandered around on our own. The only thing was we didn't have a guide and weren't sure exactly where to walk so we probably missed loads but it was a relaxing day.

 

Sorry we didn't dock in Cannes

 

Enjoy your cruise, it will be amazing.

[hayleyfever]

Hi We sailed on the Epic last October with 2 teenagers.

I can't recommend Rome in Limo highly enough. We used them for the Naples and Rome ports and wish we had used them for Florence and Pisa too.

 

If you go to their website and look at the Tour Sharing Banner, you can get to see tours with availability for your dates.

 

They use 8 seater mini buses which can get into streets that the large NCL coaches can't get to and there are loads of them in Italy!

 

We were the first people into Pompeii and our guide was fabulous. None of my photos have anyone else in them as we were around it before the crowds.

 

In Rome, they were amazing, I can't believe how much we saw in just one day, I will always remember it. Our drivers and guides couldn't do enough for us and we were very well taken care of. Im not sure how much of this city you would be able to see on your own or even if you would know what you were looking at without a guide.

 

We went to the Collossseum, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, Vatican Museum and St Peters Brasilica.

 

We hired a car for Florence and Pisa which was about 90 euros and was delivered to the side of the ship, all very easy and in fact you can hire them on the day as they have a pop up shop in the port. We hired a sat nab for an extra 10 euros and this directed us straight to a car park in Florence. It was all very easy and we wandered around on our own. The only thing was we didn't have a guide and weren't sure exactly where to walk so we probably missed loads but it was a relaxing day.

 

Sorry we didn't dock in Cannes

 

Enjoy your cruise, it will be amazing.

 

 

Thank you so much kingfisherhill for your info. Its a great help.

How much did the tour of rome cost you roughly for the 4 of you?

Did you buy any of the drinks packages on board at all. they seem quite expensive?

If you cruised from barcelona, how did you get from the airport to the port?

 

Thanks for answering these questions

 

Im getting excited now

 

Cheers Hayley

[Kingfisherhill]

The tours with Rome in Limo are 75 euros each but they give a discount if you book more than one tour. We also paid for a guide to get us around the Vatican which was about another 10 euros, I can't remember exactly. I know that all starts to sound expensive for a family of four but it really was worth it. The Vatican is mad busy and the queues just to get a ticket to get in would take hours. Our guide had our tickets and headsets (so we could hear what she was saying) waiting at the entrance and we were away. She knew exactly how to get round the vatican and see all the best bits. It is truly amazing.

 

We bought the soda drinks package for the kids only. That is great and they can get drinks as much as they like. I didn't get the alcohol package, you are off the ship such a lot on this cruise, there is no way you would get value for money. I did buy a couple of bottles of wine in Sorrento and paid the charge to bring them on board.

 

We got a taxi from the airport to the ship. Loads of them waiting outside the airport terminal, very friendly driver, took us straight to the ship, cost about 30 euros.

 

If you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask

[Daisyduke70]

Please help

We are going on the epic on the 27th july.

Please can somebody advise which tours to do

 

Naples we want to visit Pompeii ( which is the best option for 2 adults and 2 children age 11 and 9)

 

Rome ( because we dont have long in rome what is the best option?)_

 

Florence and Pisa

 

Cannes

 

If somebody could help we would be grateful is it best to do the ship excursions or through a private company (any recommendations) or do it ourselves

 

Thanks

 

Hayley

 

We did this exact itinery on the Epic last month - we did not book a single ship excursion managed just fine doing it on public transport:

 

We started in Rome so can't comment on that as we spent our last two days there - we caught the train to termini in Rome which took about 1.5 hours.

 

Livorno: Took the NCL shuttle ($12 each return trip) to the train station (it was some distance away) and then took the train to Pisa - 15 mins away - the same train goes through to Florence too - we only wanted to do the tower. Booked our tickets to climb the tower online before we left online - saved time when we were there. The tower is about a 20 minute walk from the train station.

 

Cannes: By tender - the tender boat takes you straight into town, a plesant town with not alot to see - we were there during the film festival - it was a bit crazy!

 

Palma - didn't get off the boat.....had a lovely day around the near empty pool.

 

Barcelona - took the city shuttle bus (3EUR round trip) - takes you to the bottom of Las Ramblas. Buses every 10 mins from right ourside the ship - they are blue - can't miss them!

 

Naples: We decided to go to Herculaneum, we walked to the train station and again caught the train - 20 minutes away. We were not keen on Naples, thought it was a very dirty, busy city - Rome was very much nicer in our opinion.

 

The train system in Italy is very impressive and very cheap, you must, must, must remember to validate your ticket on the platform in the yellow machines. We remembered all times (and never encountered a ticket inspector) apart from when we were rushing with our suitcases to the train for Rome, I rememebred just as the train was pulling out of the station - low and behold a ticket inspector got on and fined everyone - luckily for us we pulled into the station just as he was getting to us - I have never moved off a train so quickly in my life!!

 

Don't be afraid to use the ticket machines at the stations to avoid the ticket lines - you can choose your language and they are pretty easy to follow.

 

Enjoy your trip - we certainly did!

[suron]

Please help

We are going on the epic on the 27th july.

Please can somebody advise which tours to do

 

Naples we want to visit Pompeii ( which is the best option for 2 adults and 2 children age 11 and 9)

 

Rome ( because we dont have long in rome what is the best option?)_

 

Florence and Pisa

 

Cannes

 

If somebody could help we would be grateful is it best to do the ship excursions or through a private company (any recommendations) or do it ourselves

 

Thanks

 

Hayley

 

Have just returned from Epic out of Barcelona (8th-15th June). People on our roll call kindly arranged private shore excursions at all ports of call. If you would like to e-mail me at su-ron@talktalk.net I would be happy to give you details. Opted for private excursions which worked out so much cheaper than NCL and the added bonus was I travelled in small groups rather than being herded on a coach with 50+ others. Coaches cannot get close up to the attractions whereas private cars/taxis can - less walking!

 

Hope you enjoy your cruise.

 

Suron