Rome in a Limo tours

[FinelyRetired]

My 2009 RCCL Barcelona to East Med cruise unexpectedly replaced the port at Tunis with Palermo last week. This change affects some of their 2008, maybe most of RCCL's 2009 cruises.

 

I was pleased to see that http://www.romeinlimo.com also covers Sicily for shore excursions! It only took an email to Jany to make this new booking. As always, she got back to me in about 12hrs.

 

Martha

[trickey]

Rome in Limo certainly gets outstanding reviews on CC. We have booked a day precruise with them...because of what has been posted.

 

I'm wondering...has anyone booked the Highlights of Rome Tour and skipped the Vatican (we want to tour the Vatican after our cruise)? If so, what did you replace it with and why. Would you please give me a brief run down of your day. What about Appian Way and Aqueduct Park, too far, too much traffic? Were you taken to any sites you didn't request but were pleasantly surprised with and would recommend?

 

Our cruise is in Nov.

[Memphis Belle]

Princess cancelled our Med cruise after be boarded the ship in Southampton.

davejohn,

are you saying that everyone traveled to Southampton, boarded the ship, and THEN the cruise was cancelled? What did you do at that point? Did everyone just go home or did you have a new itinerary?

Thanks!

[davejohn]

davejohn,

are you saying that everyone traveled to Southampton, boarded the ship, and THEN the cruise was cancelled? What did you do at that point? Did everyone just go home or did you have a new itinerary?

Thanks!

 

That's exactly what happened. The ship (Sea Princess) arrived at Southampton 3 hours late, and after boarding the captain announced we would not be leaving on time due to engine problems but they would work through the night to fix it and we would leave as soon as possible. The next morning we were awakened by an announcement that the engines couldn't be fixed, and the cruise was cancelled. We were allowed to stay on board another night while they scrambled to arrange airfare for people to return home.

 

We opted to go to London and spent 3 days there sightseeing then flew home. It was a big disappointment. :(

 

It could have been worse. There were several couples that had scheduled weddings at sea during the cruise. They were really bummed!

 

Luckily I was able to email Rome In Limo from the ship and cancel our tours. We rescheduled for October and had a great time......but on NCL instead of Princess.

[kit9172]

We were in Rome on May 1st of this year, a holdiay with alot of things closed. Rome in Limo customized our tour to include things we wanted to see, for example we went to the catacombs. It was creepy but it is something I would have regretted not doing if I stayed above ground. They bought our tickets for us so we had no wait on lines, they also managed to get us around Rome with all the conjestion that the holiday brought. It was like being in New York City on New Year's Eve, so many people. If we had taken a ships tour and been part of a big bus tour we would not have seen half the things we did. I only wished there was a Rome in Limo in every port.

[Memphis Belle]

That's exactly what happened. The ship (Sea Princess) arrived at Southampton 3 hours late, and after boarding the captain announced we would not be leaving on time due to engine problems but they would work through the night to fix it and we would leave as soon as possible. The next morning we were awakened by an announcement that the engines couldn't be fixed, and the cruise was cancelled. We were allowed to stay on board another night while they scrambled to arrange airfare for people to return home.

 

We opted to go to London and spent 3 days there sightseeing then flew home. It was a big disappointment. :(

 

davejohn,

Thank you for the response. That is an absolutely horrible story. It never occurred to me that something like that could happen. I'm sorry it happened to you. I hope it doesn't happen to me... LOL.

 

jane

[bunnyscoot]

I have reservations with them and will report when I return Sept 1

Any guidelines on gratuities???

 

Thanks

[blambition]

Kit9172,

We are using Romeinlimo also for our tour of Rome and they have suggested taking a tour of the catacombs since we are doing the Vatican on another day. My question is just how small is it down in the catacombs? I have had a few bouts of claustrophobia and my friend pointed that out to me. Can you get out easily if you need to or are you sort of stuck down there once you enter? I would love to go.

Thanks, I am having problems judging from pictures online.

[bellagirl]

Hi-Well, I always said it would happen again and it has! We've booked another cruise to the Med. and the first thing I did(literally) was to e-mail Jany to book the tours. We will be covering Rome, Sorrento and Florence(Pisa) with Romeinlimo.

I got the nicest e-mail from Duman welcoming me back to Italy and suggesting the itinerary for the days. Now, all I have to do is sit back and enjoy!!! Can you tell I'm excited:D Shelly

[Nora4sure]

We had someone with claustrophobia in our group of four. She let the guide know that she may have a problem and the gentleman was really accomodating...letting her be his "helper". She walked along with him in front of everyone(we were in an english speaking tour of about 20 people). While a couple of the pathways are a bit more narrow than others, the width of each tunnel was about the width of two people. The ceilings are high and there is indirect light from sky lights. It is also cool down below as well. Im sure you could get out if you needed to.

Hope this helps....Nora

[newbie2468]

Where are the catacombs ? Are they the same as the "Scavi tour?" Did Rome inLimo arrange it for you?

[trickey]

Thanks for all the suggestions! Sounds like we need to make our mind up about what we "must" see, then sit back and relax and let Romeinlimo take care of everything to make our visit AMAZING.

[jhryb]

I have reservations with them and will report when I return Sept 1

Any guidelines on gratuities???

 

Thanks

I am also interested in this question.

I would also like to know about the lunch stop - are the lunches expensive?

I read about several people booking private tour guides (i.e. at the Vatican), does this mean that the driver does not join us at our stops?

[surreymum]

We have just returned from a cruise on RCI Brilliance of the Seas with our 3 children (15, 13 and 8) and used Romeinlimo in Rome and for a tour of the Amalfi coast from Naples. Both drivers were excellent but Vincenzo in Rome was just outstanding and that day was everyones favourite. On both trips we discussed what sort of place we wanted to go for lunch and the places we were taken to were fantastic. We asked for traditional Italian and not too expensive. We paid between 60 and 75 euros for 5 people (pizza,salad and drinks in Rome and the most incredible "mamas kitchen" homemade pasta, salad and drinks in Ravello). At both places we were in and out in under an hour and the drivers had lunch with other drivers. If you want more gourmet food and outstanding views just ask but be prepared to pay alot more and it take alot longer. If you end up going to their recommended place in Ravello have the "house selection" which is a small amount of 7 different types of their pastas each with different sauces. Mama was concerned that our youngest hadn't eaten his chicken that had come from her garden so offered him pastas and when this was turned down put a large plate of different desserts in front of him.

We worked on 8-10% gratuity for the drivers as it was already costing an arm and a leg.

We went to the Vatican Museum in the afternoon following Vincenzos suggestion and had only a tiny queue in front of us. We didn't use a guide as we prefer to do Museums at the pace of the least interested to prevent them becoming a pain. Vincenzo gave us a spare mobile phone with his number and detailed instruction about which door to come out through (the one marked tours only). We got straight out in the square, rang him and he appeared within 2 minutes.

Both days were incredibly smooth , you just need to let them know what you want to do.

Would heartily recommend romeinlimo: expensive but fabulous.

[slomotion]

I am also interested in this question.

I would also like to know about the lunch stop - are the lunches expensive?

I read about several people booking private tour guides (i.e. at the Vatican), does this mean that the driver does not join us at our stops?

 

Duman (romeinlimo) was our driver in Rome. He asked what we wanted to do for lunch and we asked for a small "joint" that would have salads and/or sandwiches. He took us to a spot near the Vatican, dropped us off and showed us where he'd be parked. There were three of us, we each had a panini and a soft dring and I think thre were a couple of bags of chips as wells Lunch came to $32.87 total (after the euro conversion) Lunch took about 45 minutes.

 

We also had RomeinLimo arrange for a guide for us for the Vatican. When we got there Julia was waiting for us, tickets in hand. She is adorable! 26 yrs old, speaks English very well with a cute Italian accent. (No, the drivers do not go into the Vatican.) She is very savvy!

 

When we were done she called Duman (cell phones are everywhere!) and he met us within a couple of minutes.

 

a

[kit9172]

Blambition,

I too am a bit claustrophobic and in the begining as we were descending I started to worry but I thought, it was a once in a lifetime experience, there were alot of people around me I was not by myself that's how I managed. Our group was quite large, again it was May 1st very crowded. In the end I was glad I did it.

We did not plan to go there but when we saw how crowded Rome was and how much was closed on this day we asked our driver to incorporate it in our tour, that is how flexible rome in limo is.

Anything else?

[petroglyph]

good private tour experience

We used Romeinlimo at the ports in Naples and for Rome.

Very good experience all around. Efficient, friendly.

In Naples, ask for Alex Russo. Good driving, good conversation, pleasant personality and helpfull.

Romeinlimo is quite pricey, but so is everything in Europe. It helps to know that they apparently have to pay hefty port charges just to come in and pick up people at the port. This is still certainly a better value in our view than crazy-priced excursions through the cruise line. But, if simple transport is all you want in some ports you may find less expensive than this- problem is, it's hard to know before you get there and you are taking a chance.

So, I comfortably recomend Romeinlimo.

Two bits of advice:

First- start early trying to find other passengers on your ship who might want to share a land tour. We did that using this site, but you need a good amount of lead time. Don't wait 'till the last minute. And, when you find someone to share with, make sure you have worked out with them what everyone wants to see. One member of our party was not happy with a choice the rest of us felt we needed to make, and this was an unfortunate surprise. You don't want to waste your tour time working this out or engender any ill-will with your traveling partners, or put the driver in the middle of this.

Second- do not be shy about telling the drivers exactly where and what you want to do with the very limited time that all cruise passengers have in such interesting places like the Amalphi Coast and Rome, etc. Better to discuss with the driver at the start. They will expect to take you on an itinerary that most passengers want, but you can customize this.

And, be sure you have cash as they do not take credit cards.

RG

[splbush]

:) My family(ages 8-67) used Rome in Limo for 2 days of our cruise on the Norwegian Gem in July. They met us in Naples and took us on a wonderful drive to Positano and Sorrento. The scenery is beautiful and it was great to hear about the history of the area as we drove. We then were taken to Pompeii for an amazing afternoon. Our guide was an expert on the ruins and added so much to the tour. It would not have been the same with a large tour group or if we tried to do it on our own.

 

Duman met us at the port in Rome and we had a phenomenal day with him. He showed us all the main sites and parked very close to everything so that our walking was limited. I think this is the key to seeing so much in one day. We wanted pizza and Duman took us to a fabulous little restaurant. We then spent a very entertaining and informative afternoon at the Vatican. Again, our guide was truly an expert and she added a lot of humor to the tour. We ended our time in Rome with the best gelato we had in our month in Europe.

 

Additionally, Jany is a great asset. Very efficient and very helpful. The tours were well worth the price. Very professional staff and personal service that cannot be beat.

[cigloo]

Hello all.

 

I can't wait to use Rome In Limo for our group of 10 in May of 2009. My question to you all is what is there to do on Sunday's to utilize a full day there in Rome?

 

We will have a Saturday and Sunday to do sightseeing, but I know some things are closed on the weekends. Part of my group definetly wants to go to Mass at the Vatican on Sunday, but what else?

 

Thanks,

Jennifer

[blambition]

We have transfers and a tour booked with Rome in Limo for Oct. should I request Duman for the tour? I have no idea if he would be available to drive, but should I ask anyway or does it not really matter?

 

Anyone other than myself wonder if Jany is really more than one person? She gets back to my emails so quickly no matter what time of day I write to her. That or she never sleeps. LOL.

[davejohn]

We have transfers and a tour booked with Rome in Limo for Oct. should I request Duman for the tour? I have no idea if he would be available to drive, but should I ask anyway or does it not really matter?

 

Anyone other than myself wonder if Jany is really more than one person? She gets back to my emails so quickly no matter what time of day I write to her. That or she never sleeps. LOL.

 

You can ask. When I did I was told they schedule drivers the week before the tour. We had Duman in Rome and Carlos in Naples, both were excellent.

 

Jany is really an IBM mainframe computer. :)

[kit9172]

davejohn---- Why do you say Jany is a mainframe computer?

[WestKYCruiser]

I have begun to research information for our upcoming cruise in May. I have seen many people recommend limoinrome.com and I've seen romeinlimo.com mentioned as well. I am assuming, since each is a valid website that these are two separate companies. Is one company better or more recommeded than the other?

[davejohn]

Yes, they are 2 separate tour companies. We used RomeInLimo in Naples and Rome and had excellent experiences on both tours.

[bellagirl]

We also used rome in limo and were pleased. Their website is romeinlimo.com. I can't speak for the other company. Shelly