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keenercam

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Posts posted by keenercam

    Palermo - Hotel Day Passes?

    in Italy Ports

    Posted

    Palermo has just been added to my cruise itinerary.  Is anyone here aware of any hotels that have day passes in Palermo? I enjoyed doing that in Mykonos to spend the day at a nice hotel, use the pool and beach there, and have a nice lunch in one of its restaurants.

    Rome In Limo - Continuation of Previous Thread, Community Guidelines Apply

    in Italy Ports

    Posted

    I wanted to share this review I did on another site many years ago.  We loved RomeinLimo so much that I have booked them again for a private tour during our Disney Cruise next May (even though we are doing Adventures by Disney for the whole cruise - yes, we are skipping ABD that day to tour with RomeinLimo instead).

     

    We recently used RomeinLimo for 3 ports on our Mediterranean cruise.  [NOTE: This review is from 2011]

    Naples - Our driver, Rafaelle, was fabulous! He was waiting for us when we disembarked the ship in Naples and took very good care of us from the very first moment. He was personable, knowledgeable, and fluent in English. He was an excellent driver such that I did not get carsick on the drive along the Amalfi Coast as I really thought I would. He made several stops for us to take photos and to explore Sorrento and Positano. He pointed out areas of interest as we travelled and he stopped at an overlook where we were able to buy some things at a roadside produce stand. He bought us some cherries that were absolutely delicious and it was small, thoughtful gestures like that which really impressed us about RomeinLimo. Rafaelle engaged the younger members of our party (17 and 18 and 23 years old) and had all of us singing "That's Amore!" at the top of our lungs in the car. He was wonderful! His recommendation for a lunch location was spot-on and we enjoyed a delicious lunch in a beautiful restaurant with excellent service.
    RomeinLimo also arranged our tour guide for Pompeii. Lucia was beyond wonderful! She was entertaining, considerate and so engaging with all the members of our party. She was so respectful of the younger members of our party, as well, giving them kudos for tidbits of history they remembered learning and enjoying and engaging their input, rather than just giving a lecture. She was bright and energetic and made the city of Pompeii come to life for us!

    When we return to Naples, can we request Rafaelle and Lucia?

    Rome
    Our driver in Rome was Maurizio and he was also prompt, wonderfully engaging and knowledgeable. He took us to Circus Maximus and showed us sites around the city before taking us to the Colisseum. When we were uncertain of how to get through the queque to use our pre-purchased tickets, he left the vehicle and walked us all the way into the building to the correct queque, obviously being very considerate of our comfort level in a strange place. Lunch was delicious at the restaurant he recommended where he also told us they made wonderful desserts, and my son says the dessert he had there "changed his life". LOL! We also loved our quick visit to the Trevi Fountain. When we arrived at Vatican City, he delivered us into the care of Sarah, a wonderful tourguide who packed more information into our time with her in the Vatican Museums than we ever could have imagined. It was such a rich experience, though having only 6 minutes in the Sistine Chapel and 10 minutes in St. Peter's Basilica just means we have to return to Rome.

    LaSpezia

    Our driver in LaSpezia who took us to Pisa and Florence was also named Maurizio and he was absolutely wonderful! So much so that my husband and I will return to the Tuscan region in the future and we will specifically seek him out as a driver for our visit. Maurizio was so smart and so fun to be with. He brought the area to life for us. We learned so much about everything we saw. There wasn't a question we asked that he couldn't answer. I almost wish he had been our tourguide in the Accademie and Uffizi Gallery because the kids were spellbound with the information he shared and the way he interacted with us. Which brings me to our only less-than-absolutely-fantastic component of the three days with RomeinLimo. Our tourguide for those two museums was a bit more of a lecturer than we'd encountered with our two previous tourguides (Lucia and Sarah). It may have been the long waits to get into the museum, the less than 30 minutes we had for lunch or just her style/presentation of the information, but for some reason we just were not as enthralled. The statues, paintings and tapestries we saw were fantastic but we might have enjoyed it a bit more with an audio tour.

    So, there it is. RomeinLimo literally MADE our visits to these three Italian regions the most fabulous, fun, edifying experience that they could have been. I will not ever think of our days in Italy without thinking fondly of these people who didn't just drive us or give us a tour, but brought the experience to life for us in the most wonderful way. We were so appreciative to arrive in a strange place, see the smiling face of a person holding a placard with our party's name on it, and to be whisked away to see the wonder and beauty of Italy.

    Date of experience: July 2011

    Sagrada Familia Towers

    in Spain and Portugal Ports

    Posted

    I think part of it will depend on when you're going. I was on the website the other day and it says

     

    "Due to works underway to improve the facilities, the lift for the tower on the Passion façade will be closed until further notice. Any tickets already purchased to visit the tower on the Passion façade will still be valid, but for the tower on the Nativity façade."

     

    Thanks, Laurie! We aren't going until September, so hopefully there will be options then.

    Santorini Private Tours (company name)

    in Greece Ports

    Posted

    Private Santorini Tours has been very well reviewed both on this forum and Trip Advisor. I wanted to put together a group from our Roll Call and contacted Nick, but despite several reminders he never got back. The group tour didn't work out since we couldn't figure out how to get everyone off the ship at the same time, so I also dropped the idea and decided to rent a car for the four of us. Don't know what the problem with the tour operator was though, he replied a couple of times saying he'd send me a quote but never did - maybe it was just the once as almost everyone else has had a good experience.

     

    BTW, you can still use the search option right at the top of the page where it says "search cruise critic":)

     

    Thank you for responding! I thought this company, Santorini Private Tours, was run by Anna. Maybe Private Santorini Tours is another company? Thanks for the clue on how to search the website!

    Santorini Private Tours (company name)

    in Greece Ports

    Posted · Edited by keenercam

    Since the search function is down, I wanted to ask if anyone has used this company and if so, what you thought of it? It may also be known as Pixel Tours. What was your tour like? Where did you go? What did you like and what would you have skipped if you were doing it over?

    Venice Itinerary Feedback Please?

    in Italy Ports

    Posted

    If you have never been to Venice before, I would edit these out of your plan.

     

    Too much time and effort for little reward, compared to all that can be seen within the main part of the city.

     

    This is very good to know. May I ask a further question? I'd really like to purchase a piece of Murano glass, but have heard that there is a lot of "fake" glass in Venice that is actually imported from China and that to be certain to have authentic Murano glass we should buy it on Murano. Do you agree with that opinion?

    Venice Pre-Cruise Hotel

    in Italy Ports

    Posted

    You might find it more convenient to stay in the Piazzale Roma area ... it's the last point of land travel in Venice so its where taxis and buses must drop their passengers. And it's where you catch the People Mover (monorail) to the pier for 1E, 3 minutes, or take a cab if you can't manage your luggage.

     

    If you can't manage your luggage, there are 2 hotels at Piazzale Roma which require no bridge crossings ... Ca Doge and Santa Chiara. There are 3-4 more that require one small bridge crossing. And many more if you can walk a few blocks and manage 2 bridges.

     

    If you can easily manage your luggage, you can stay anywhere in Venice. Use this guide, with Piazzale Roma as your location:

    http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/bridges/

     

    We are staying in the Piazzale Roma area, specifically for these reasons -- easy transport from airport to this train station and then a seemingly short walk to Hotel Antiche Figure and then easy walk to the people mover for transport to the port.

    St. John's in Mykonos

    in Greece Ports

    Posted

    I just wanted to mention that I sent an inquiry via their webpage and heard back within 24 hours with the information regarding the day pass options and the menus. The nice thing is that we only have to submit our reservation to them at least 3 days in advance, so it gives us plenty of time to hear about others' experiences with the resort this year once they open for the season.

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