Meditteranean Day Trips - advice wanted

[campbrad]

We will be on the Millennium at the beginning of October travelling from Barcelona to Venice and are having trouble deciding which land tours to purchase, if any. We are tempted to just spend the days travelling on our own near the ports, i.e. pass on the long trips to Rome, Florence, as we have already been to those cities. Any comments on whether this would be a good or bad idea or suggestions of land tours or independent outings that you enjoyed.

thanks! (first time cruisers)

[Cruise Junky]

What date are you travelling? if your on the Oct. 13th sailing come on over to our Roll Call section. We have a really good group going.

[usavvy2]

here's an idea of what folks on the 9/19 Millie have decided to do:

 

Villefranche (Nice), France (FORMAL NIGHT? Or is it Livorno?)

- Private tour for 8 w/Alain of Dream Tours (Tim arranging): Tim & Lorna; Dan & Carla; Sara & Bill; Troy & Noel

- Private tour w/Dream Tours (Ann arranging): Ann & John, Connie & Jerry, Carol & Burt, Tammy & Doug

- Private tour w/Revelation Tours: Monica & Jack (& 22?)

- Private tour of Monaco & Monte-Carlo, Eze, Nice, & St. Paul de Vence: Lynne & Peter + 4 – SPACE AVAILABLE FOR 2 MORE

- Public transp.: Susan & Rick; Carol & Burt; Linda & Tom, Cecilia, Bob & Mary Lou (Eze & maybe Monte Carlo)

- Public bus to Eze: Kerry & Rob

- X tour: Tony & Cheri; Nancy & Colin

- on own: Stephanie & Michael

- TBD: Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Joy & David, Sue & David

 

Livorno(Florence/Pisa), Italy (FORMAL NIGHT? Or is it Villefranche?)

- Private Tuscany tour (Noel arranging): Kerry & Rob; Troy & Noel; Dan & Carla; Tim & Lorna

- Private Pisa/Tuscany (San Giam, Volterra, Siena) tour w/Benvenuto (Sara arranging): Sara & Bill, Ann & John; Tammy & Doug; SPACE AVAILABLE FOR 2 MORE

- Private Tuscany/Chianti tour w/Benvenuto - Linda & Tom, Cecilia, Bob & Mary Lou

- Private Florence/Chianti tour with Driving Guide Tours: Monica & Jack (+ 22?)

- Private Pisa and Florence tour – Lynne & Peter + 4 + SPACE AVAILABLE FOR 2 MORE

- Rent car: Susan & Rick

- Train or X “On Own” Florence tour?: Stephanie & Michael, Connie & Jerry

- X tour: Tony & Cheri; Nancy & Colin

- TBD: Carol & Burt; Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Joy & David; Sue & David

 

Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy

- Private tour (inc. private tour of Vatican) w/Benvenuto Tours (Kerry arranging): Kerry & Rob; Tim & Lorna; Troy & Noel; Carol and Burt

- Private tour for 2 w/Benvenuto Tours: Tammy & Doug

- Private tour w/Benvenuto Tours: Monica & Jack (& 22?)

- Private tour of Rome highlights – Joy & David; SPACE AVAILABLE FOR MORE

- Train: Susan & Rick?; Dan & Carla; Stephanie & Michael; Connie & Jerry

- X – Rome on Own Tour: Sara & Bill; Linda & Tom, Cecilia, Bob & Mary Lou (walking on own; others welcome); Ann & John; Tony & Cheri?; Susan & Rick?

- X – Nancy & Colin

- TBD: Tony & Cheri; Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Sue & David, Lynne & Peter

 

Naples, Italy

- Private tour with Drive Amalfi (Susan): Susan & Rick; Tim & Lorna; Troy & Noel; Dan & Carla

- Private tour with Benvenuto (Kerry arranging): Kerry & Rob; Sara & Bill; Carol and Burt; Ann & John

- Private tour for 2 with Benvenuto: Tammy & Doug

- Private tour with Chris Miller Limo: Monica & Jack (& 22 others?)

- Private tour with Modulo Contatti Sorrento Limo: Linda & Tom, Cecilia, Bob & Mary Lou

- Private tour (Capri, boat tour, but may try to include a short stop in Pompeii): Joy & David; SPACE AVAILABLE FOR MORE

- X tour: Tony & Cheri; Nancy & Colin

- on own: Stephanie & Michael

- TBD: Dan & Carla; Connie & Jerry; Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Joy & David; Sue & David; Lynne & Peter

 

Mykonos, Greece

- X tour: Tony & Cheri; Nancy & Colin

- Public transp: Susan & Rick; Kerry & Rob; Sara & Bill; Carol & Burt; Linda & Tom, Cecilia, Bob & Mary Lou

- on own: Stephanie & Michael; Connie & Jerry;

- TBD: Tim & Lorna; Troy & Noel; Dan & Carla; Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Ann & John; Joy & David; Sue & David, Tammy & Doug; Lynne & Peter

 

Santorini, Greece

- Rent a car(s): Stephanie & Michael; Connie & Jerry; Tim & Lorna; Troy & Noel; Susan & Rick; Kerry & Rob; Tammy & Doug

- X tour: Tony & Cheri; Nancy & Colin

- Public transp: Carol & Burt; Sara & Bill; Linda & Tom; Cecilia; Bob & Mary Lou

- TBD: Dan & Carla; Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Ann & John; Joy & David; Sue & David; Lynne & Peter

 

Piraeus (Athens), Greece

 

- private taxi with Spiros (Athens Taxi): Tim & Lorna; Troy & Noel

- private taxi with Athens Taxi: Ann & John; Sara & Bill

- private taxi with Athens Taxi: Tammy & Doug

- X tour: Tony & Cheri; Nancy & Colin ?

- train: Susan & Rick; Kerry & Rob; Carol & Burt

- public transp.: Linda & Tom, Cecilia, Bob & Mary Lou

- on own: Stephanie & Michael

- TBD: Dan & Carla; Connie & Jerry; Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Joy & David; Sue & David; Lynne & Peter

 

Dubrovnik, Croatia (FORMAL NIGHT #3)

- free Celebrity bus into town/then on foot: Tim & Lorna; Sara & Bill; Linda & Tom, Cecilia, Bob & Mary Lou

- X tour: Tony & Cheri; Nancy & Colin

- Public transp: Susan & Rick; Kerry & Rob; Carol & Burt

- on own: Stephanie & Michael, Tammy & Doug

- TBD: Troy & Noel; Dan & Carla; Connie & Jerry; Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Ann & John; Joy & David; Sue & David; Lynne & Peter

 

Venice, Italy

- Private tour: Doge’s Secret Tour @ 11:35 am on 10/1: Sara & Bill; Susan & Rick; Kerry & Rob

- X tour: Tony & Cheri; Nancy & Colin

- X Secret Walking Tour: Tammy & Doug

- 12-Hr Canal Tix (Burano/Murano?/VCE).: Linda & Tom, Cecilia, Bob & Mary Lou

- on own: Stephanie & Michael

- TBD: Tim & Lorna; Troy & Noel; Dan & Carla; Connie & Jerry; Carol & Burt; Don & Kathy; Jack & Janet; Ann & John; Joy & David; Sue & David; Lynne & Peter

 

 

Check out our thread for specifics about the private tours - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=125990

[campbrad]

Should have mentioned - we're on the October 1 sailing.

I am so impressed by all the organization others have done to prepare - feeling a bit overwhelmed right now! I have a lot to organize in the next few weeks but know that it will all turn out to be great fun.

Thanks for all the info

[Bruin Steve]

We did the Millie cruise in '03...

We had been to most of the ports before...but, still, we took an excursion in each port...sometimes to see something we'd missed before...sometimes to revisit old favorites...

 

You can read my review here:

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=1775

 

I go in-depth into all of the shore excursions we took...

 

Having visited a lot of these places multiple times, I had no trouble taking the ship's excursions...I didn't feel a need to squeeze as much into the day as possible and enjoyed the leisure pace and the idea of seeing something and seeing enough...

 

Personally, I would NOT hang around in the port cities or port areas...There really isn't a lot worth visiting in Civitavecchia or Livorno...

 

Rome is actually NOT that long a trip...Our excursion had only 11 passengers so they used a "minibus" and were able to drive on the restricted roads and made it into Rome in under an hour...Obviously, uou can't count on that with a ship's excursion, but perhaps a private tour or a taxi could insure that quicker ride...

 

We didn't feel a need to return to Florence, so we took a tour to the slightly closer San Gimignano and Volterra...If you've seen Florence, I highly recommend you visit these smaller Tuscan towns...Our excursion (through Celebrity) was flat-out exceptional...and, again, a private van could bring you to these as well...Also, Pisa and Lucca are worth visiting--and are closer to Livorno than Florence...

 

Good luck...

[golfergal]

While I'm not or haven't done this cruise, I have been to a bunch of the places on previous trips.

 

Villefranche - We just got back from a Windstar cruise that started in Nice and stopped in Monaco. We spent 2 days in Nice and I loved it, especially the old town and the market. Monaco was great too. We toured the palace, the catherdal, and casino. We also took the silly train, which was a nice way to get an overview. You could make a day of it with adding in some shopping, the aquarium, and some other sites. But you can get a good overview in a half day too.

 

Livorno - We took the train to Florence which was easy, but if you want to do something different than Florence there are many nice towns. My parents went to Lucca and loved it. Our second day we just stayed on board and relaxed; definitely nothing near the port of major interest. But a good day to relax if you need one.

 

Civitavecchia - We disembarked there, so we didn't spend much time there, but didn't seem to be a lot around. When I was researching the area to see if it was worth an extra day, there didn't seem to be much.

 

Naples - We spent a week in that area and love Positano, Sorrento, Pompeii, and even Capri. Plenty of things to do depending on your interest.

 

Venice - Oh, so much to see. Easy to do on your own too. San Marco, Doge Palace, just walking around.

 

Have a great trip!