RomeInLimo questions

[Loonbeam]

Their new tour sharing site makes things even easier as you can just set up the group and point people to it!

 

Hi:

 

 

I am currently in the process of planning/researching with Jany another 2 tours with RIL and your post caught my eye. In my experience RIL has had little difficulty adapting their tours to all types of mobility problems. I'm a solo, older lady cruiser and over several years I have booked 7 different tours with RIL utilizing 7 different driver guides.

 

I rely on the CC Roll Calls to add 5-7 people to my tour to help with cost. Often this has resulted in some folks with mobility issues that have ranged from simply being slower (like me!), to limited walking or difficulty with stairs, to wheelchair bound. RIL's drivers have handled them all seemlessly, made suggestions along the way and everyone has had the fullest possible day. This has meant as little as using the extra step in the van, directing us to the corner elevator in the Colloseum (which BTW we all used & loved), door to door service at some venues, to separately transporting the wheelchair bound passenger to another entrance or once even to a museum so they didn't wait idly by while others of us crawled around the Estrucan necropolis. If I've emailed Jany with add'l specific "how will this be done"-type mobility questions she has always answered promptly with the add'l info I needed to re-assure me.

 

You raise an interesting point about the size of a tour company like RIL. For me, RIL’s personal service from booking thru tour has been consistently excellent over the years. Whether I’m solo or with my less mobile friend, I can tell you that in a large overseas city, far from home.......size matters to me! Though I’ve never encountered a problem, I’m always more comfortable (esp when on a cruise) just knowing there is back-up if the company has a number of cars out at the same time (for both shore trips & business clients). BTW, those other drivers have come in handy for alerting each other re: major traffic jams(London), when the lines are short at a particular site(Rome), etc.

 

Have a wonderful trip.

 

Martha

 

 

　

　

[BigGuy25]

Hi

I'm planning tours for our July cruise and was all set to book Romeinlimo based on the rave reviews and how fantastic Jany is at addressing questions

 

However I'm now having second thoughts as email correspondence has been unsatisfactory.

My husband has walking difficulties and so I asked for recommendations as to which tours would have minimal walking-in return I was sent a standard response with a link to the most popular excursions.Is Romeinlimo getting to big to provide that personal service?

 

In contrast another 2 companies I have contacted have responded with suggestions for how my husband could get the best out of the day and am leaning towards booking with one of them instead

 

Sometimes, when communicating between two continents, and separated by the English language, things are "lost in translation" and what appears to be true really isn't. As you've read in many, many posts RIL (and Jany in particular) are incredibly responsive to the people who use their service. Clearly, RIL is not the only company offering services in Italy! But if you think you'd like to use them, based on what you've read from almost every review here on CC, I'd give them another chance to please you. I don't think you'll be disappointed. We've used them on both of our trips to Italy, and the time spent with them are some of our most memorable cruise experiences. Have a great trip!!

Edited February 10, 2012 by BigGuy25

[wantocruisemore]

Hi

 

yes have had several email communications with both Jany and the other companies.She has always been fast with responses but just not the type of helpful advice I was expecting.I think that was why I was disappointed and wondered whether this was a recent trend

 

as has been said when there are several well reviewed companies you just have to go with your gut instinct as to which is the best for you

 

What you may want to do before your final decision is just explain to Jany just what you explained to us. I remember last year when booking for last summer there was one detail that I thought we weren't quite getting the same point across. I then emailed directly to Jany with very specific questions and what our needs were. She then responded back promptly, understood more clearly, and we had wonderful tours as a result. Every one exceeded our expectationa.

 

I know there are other tour companies out there that provide very good service and if you think they would work better, go for them. But please be aware that sometimes tours do not end up in reality what is promised with other companies because they want the business. Check them out fully. I can see companies agreeing to something just to get the business. RIL is not like that and we have always been more than pleased. Have them booked again for this summer.

[EllaDuChien]

Hi:

 

 

I rely on the CC Roll Calls to add 5-7 people to my tour to help with cost. Often this has resulted in some folks with mobility issues that have ranged from simply being slower (like me!), to limited walking or difficulty with stairs, to wheelchair bound. RIL's drivers have handled them all seemlessly, made suggestions along the way and everyone has had the fullest possible day. This has meant as little as using the extra step in the van, directing us to the corner elevator in the Colloseum (which BTW we all used & loved), door to door service at some venues, to separately transporting the wheelchair bound passenger to another entrance or once even to a museum so they didn't wait idly by while others of us crawled around the Estrucan necropolis. If I've emailed Jany with add'l specific "how will this be done"-type mobility questions she has always answered promptly with the add'l info I needed to re-assure me.

 

Have a wonderful trip.

 

Martha

 

 

Martha,

 

Thank you so much for this information. I am traveling this Fall with my father, who has some mobility issues and I have booked with RIL for all three Italy stops. I am happy to see that they do so well with these issues! Can't wait to get there!

[RottieMeister]

On an October cruise around Italy, I put together two shore excursions with RIL, one to Rome and one to Naples, Pompeii and the Amalfi coast. Jany was very responsive in answering emails and always responded within 24 hours. We got our tickets in advance for the Coliseum and the Vatican and just skipped the lines. We were 4 couples from cruisecritic and requested a 9 passenger van, which happened to be a Mercedes. By booking two excursions, we were given a 50 Euro discount per excursion which made it 550 Euros per excursion or 137 1/2 per couple. It was much lower cost than the ship and we saw much more and had very good guides. I don't think that you need a guide for the Coliseum, but would recommend one for Pompeii and the Vatican. Sara, at the Vatican was great, and got us around the crowds, and was well worth the 100 Euro(I think that's what it was) that she charged. We would have missed so much at Pompeii if we hadn't hired David thru RIL. Our drivers were great and recommended good restaurants to eat at too. It appears that most of the people on this thread are really tight tippers. We gave the drivers 20-25 dollars per couple and considered it reasonable. We also tipped the guides around 10 per couple. Highly recommend RIL.

[samavarcruiser]

Thanks for the reminder about Rick Steves' free audio tours (http://www.ricksteves.com/news/audio-tours.htm). We'll be in Italy in May, and I will be getting a new iPhone soon!

 

Me too, I will be in Italy soon and I got my new Iphone :)

[ukestrummer]

I need to put MY two cents in and it is worth a million. Last year we had 32 of us friends going to 4 ports that RomeIN Limo does, 2 of them for same port- Naples. Booked 3 -8 pass vans in each port, let me tell you ALL of the drivers were GREAT, not hard to understand, rates were MUCH lower than ship but ONE thing that you have to remember that the service is PERSONAL, the driver will go wherever you want, like stopping for photos if you see something that interests you, TRY THAT ON TOUR BUS & VERY knowledgeable, talked the whole time. Don't forget to tip them.

I am using them in both the ports that I am going to in Italy this year, ROME again & Liverno again, look, you cannot see everything first time. I have two 8 pass vans booked & have people on the cruise joining me & my wife . Going to the Vatican AGAIN WITH GUIDE, worth it, I guess you could use a book to read of what you are seeing but why take the time doing that when you could be gazing at the object while a guide tells you what you are looking at, EARPHONES or EAR BUDS. Bottom line is " I WOULD ALWAYS USE Romeinlimo " and tell others of the GREAT service Jany does with details. Jany is booking the SAME guides I used last year. We are on the Navigator of the Seas BTB, TA

Don

perep@aol.com

[hylasgirl]

I need to put MY two cents in and it is worth a million. Last year we had 32 of us friends going to 4 ports that RomeIN Limo does, 2 of them for same port- Naples. Booked 3 -8 pass vans in each port, let me tell you ALL of the drivers were GREAT, not hard to understand, rates were MUCH lower than ship but ONE thing that you have to remember that the service is PERSONAL, the driver will go wherever you want, like stopping for photos if you see something that interests you, TRY THAT ON TOUR BUS & VERY knowledgeable, talked the whole time. Don't forget to tip them.

I am using them in both the ports that I am going to in Italy this year, ROME again & Liverno again, look, you cannot see everything first time. I have two 8 pass vans booked & have people on the cruise joining me & my wife . Going to the Vatican AGAIN WITH GUIDE, worth it, I guess you could use a book to read of what you are seeing but why take the time doing that when you could be gazing at the object while a guide tells you what you are looking at, EARPHONES or EAR BUDS. Bottom line is " I WOULD ALWAYS USE Romeinlimo " and tell others of the GREAT service Jany does with details. Jany is booking the SAME guides I used last year. We are on the Navigator of the Seas BTB, TA

Don

perep@aol.com

 

 

Jany is fixing me up with my guides I had last year also... I just love the way they work things! I cannot wait to see Franco and Raffaele again. 80 days!!!:D

[onebzyldy]

Has anyone used RIL for 2 ppl in a private car? I am wondering how this has worked out. Do u feel that a guide is required in the Vatican for only 2 ppls ?? Any comments,positive or negative would be greatly appreciated :)

Happy Cruising.........

DonnaF :D

[CruiserBruce]

Has anyone used RIL for 2 ppl in a private car? Many people have, including ourselves.I am wondering how this has worked out. Perfectly Will do it again in a heartbeat. Do u feel that a guide is required in the Vatican for only 2 ppls ?? It is a wonderful addition to have the guide for two people. Very good info, personal attention, great service.Any comments,positive or negative would be greatly appreciated :)

Happy Cruising.........

DonnaF :D

 

 

Think I answered your questions.

Edited March 5, 2012 by CruiserBruce

[bobalink]

Has anyone used RIL for 2 ppl in a private car? I am wondering how this has worked out. Do u feel that a guide is required in the Vatican for only 2 ppls ?? Any comments,positive or negative would be greatly appreciated :)

Happy Cruising.........

DonnaF :D

 

On our first visit to Rome, we arrived several days before our cruise, so we used RIL for 3 days, just hubby and me. It was fabulous. We had a wonderful guide, Sarah, for the Vatican.

 

It was expensive, but worth it. We were "newbies" to travel, and were not comfortable attempting to plan our own tours, so we splurged!

 

On our last day in Rome, we shared an excursion with another family that we met on our roll call. RIL picked us up at our separate hotels, then we went on the Etruscan Tour on our way to the port in Civitavecchia. That was great, too.

 

You are in good hands with Romeinlimo. They are prompt in their email replies, professional and knowledgeable.

 

Have fun!

[onebzyldy]

Thank you so much for the responses :) I have read nothing but good things about RIL. Just one more question: Did you have to purchase any admission tickets in advance [ie. online?] or was that done for you by the driver or tour guide ? Want to be clear about *everything* :rolleyes: Also, did u pay in cash or travellers cheques? Not sure we want to be carrying around a lot of cash! Thanx again ! ! !

Happy Cruising......

DonnaF :D

[bobalink]

Thank you so much for the responses :) I have read nothing but good things about RIL. Just one more question: Did you have to purchase any admission tickets in advance [ie. online?] or was that done for you by the driver or tour guide ? Want to be clear about *everything* :rolleyes: Also, did u pay in cash or travellers cheques? Not sure we want to be carrying around a lot of cash! Thanx again ! ! !

Happy Cruising......

DonnaF :D

 

We did purchase our tickets for the Vatican in advance. Jany will give you the information and the time slot you need to accomplish that.

 

On one of our tours, I casually mentioned to our driver that I wished I had reserved a time for the Borghese Gallery. He made a few phone calls while we were visiting another site, and when we got back in the car he said he was able to get tickets for us. It was wonderful. I know that is the exception, because advance reservations are required. (I just didn't think we would be able to squeeze that in, so did not get tickets ahead of time.)

 

We were there in the hot summer and our driver would have a cold bottle of water for us whenever we got back in the car, with the A/C on. A welcome respite from the heat!

 

We paid in cash, both for the tour and tip. Your driver can take you to an ATM or bank if you need euros.

 

Hope that helps!

[onebzyldy]

Everything sounds absolutely perfect! I plan on emailing them this week. Do you have any recommendations of names of drivers or tour ppl that maybe I can request ?

Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH for all your information!

Happy Cruising......

DonnaF :D

[bobalink]

Everything sounds absolutely perfect! I plan on emailing them this week. Do you have any recommendations of names of drivers or tour ppl that maybe I can request ?

Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH for all your information!

Happy Cruising......

DonnaF :D

 

We have used RIL for the past two summers and we did not request a specific driver. We were quite happy with all of the ones we had. Of course, they all have their own unique personalities, and I am sure they all go through extensive training from the owner, Duman, who has very high standards for customer service.

 

I don't think it is necessary to request a driver. They are all fabulous!

[Gracie115]

Has anyone used RIL for 2 ppl in a private car? I am wondering how this has worked out. Do u feel that a guide is required in the Vatican for only 2 ppls ?? Any comments,positive or negative would be greatly appreciated :)

Happy Cruising.........

DonnaF :D

 

 

We used RIL last September in a private car and there were 2 of us. They did a wonderful job. Nikolai was our driver and I highly recommend him. If you've never been to the Vatican before, yes a guide would be very helpful. We had Serena, an art history major and she was great, so much so that we've asked for her again this year when we do their Baroque walking tour. But as others have said you don't have to request a specific person as they all seem to get great reviews. :)

 

Oh and they WILL take Euro Traveller's Checks, not US $$ ones though.

Edited March 5, 2012 by Gracie115

[bhoffman]

I am going to book them for our day in Rome (possibly others too) and I can't decide if I should spend the other 350 euros and hire the tour guide. Or, just hire the guide for the Vatican? Any suggestions? It will be my husband and I and our 3 kids (13,12 and 9). Any help will be greatly appreciated!

[CruiserBruce]

Did you see this thread on Rome in Limo:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=986987

 

Just down the board? Almost 1600 posts? Tons of good info to help you to make your decisions.

 

Personally, we had Sarah for the Vatican. You don't need the guide for the rest of Rome.

Edited March 6, 2012 by CruiserBruce

[Gracie115]

I am going to book them for our day in Rome (possibly others too) and I can't decide if I should spend the other 350 euros and hire the tour guide. Or, just hire the guide for the Vatican? Any suggestions? It will be my husband and I and our 3 kids (13,12 and 9). Any help will be greatly appreciated!

 

 

We didn't hire a separate guide from our driver Nikolai for Rome itself ...the guide for the Vatican though was essential to us....she made such a difference in our visit. All the drivers we encountered were very knowledgeable and helpful. I think your family will be very happy with RIL:)

[bobalink]

Did you see this thread on Rome in Limo:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=986987

 

Just down the board? Almost 1600 posts? Tons of good info to help you to make your decisions.

 

Personally, we had Sarah for the Vatican. You don't need the guide for the rest of Rome.

 

Isn't that link to THIS thread?

[CruiserBruce]

Isn't that link to THIS thread?

 

The mods moved it after I posted. It was originally a separate thread.

[bobalink]

The mods moved it after I posted. It was originally a separate thread.

 

Okay, that makes sense. :)

[samavarcruiser]

I am going to book them for our day in Rome (possibly others too) and I can't decide if I should spend the other 350 euros and hire the tour guide. Or, just hire the guide for the Vatican? Any suggestions? It will be my husband and I and our 3 kids (13,12 and 9). Any help will be greatly appreciated!

 

Are your kids interested in the vatican and its history?

[paddingtonbear]

Has anyone used RIL for 2 ppl in a private car? I am wondering how this has worked out. Do u feel that a guide is required in the Vatican for only 2 ppls ?? Any comments,positive or negative would be greatly appreciated :)

Happy Cruising.........

DonnaF :D

 

We did the Vatican last year with Through Eternity tours. It was a group tour but there were only 5 in the group. They keep the numbers down. It was 44 euro pp. IT was absolutely fantastic. It was supposed to be 5 hrs but went for much longer but the time flew by and there was so much to see. We would have been lost without a guide.

 

If you are Australian you don't have to tip as tipping is not expected in Italy. :)

[paddingtonbear]

double post sorry

Edited March 10, 2012 by paddingtonbear