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Tour qestions for Nafplion, Katakolon, and Amalfi


happy cruzer
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I have searched for details on the Seabourn Excursions and found a some high level info enough to get me started. Now I am trying to decide what to book. Also checked out the Greek ports of call here on CC.

 

 

 

Thinking about booking: Seabourn Excursions in Nafplion and Katakolon to see Mycenae and Epidaros and Olympia respectively. Anyone have experience with these? Do you get a tour guide? How big is the tour?

 

 

For Amalfi, we would like to walk/hike to Ravello if that is possible. Have seen that some do this but not sure where they started from. How far is Ravello from where the ship tenders to?

 

 

All suggestions appreciated.

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Have done both those SB tours in Greece. Both were very good. Small groups (25-30, bus half full). I don’t think you could do any better than the Mycenae tour with SB. Olympia tour was also good, but does mean going through the (excellent) museum in a group, and did include a shopping stop in the village, which was not really needed. If you have a good understanding of Greek archaeology then you could do it yourself with a taxi. But well worth pre-booking, as you could find yourself in Katokolon with some behemoths.

 

I am not sure if hiking up to Ravello is a good idea. Unless you are really fit. It is an almost sheer slope, with hairpin turns all the way if you follow the road. Am sure there is a footpath, but it will be extremely demanding. Once you are there, you need to go into Villa Ruffalo, which is what the SB tour will include, if you want to see the iconic views over the Med. You cannot get that view from the town itself, which just has a few bars and cafes.

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I did a walking food tour with GrecoPaths in Nafplion and it was fantastic. We walked all over the town and I felt like I got a much richer view of the local culture than those who I talked to who did a ship tour. My only complaint was that my tour guide was so overzealous with wanting me to try everything that it ended up being TOO much food!

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We took a tour to Positano and Amalfi last September. Our ship (Encore) was scheduled to dock in Amalfi, but that changed. There was a lot of time on the bus to Amalfi (and we spent time in Positano), but we found Amalfi (even though filled with tourists) to be charming. There is a very unusual cathedral there, great views and wonderful pizza.

 

To clarify, we were supposed to go to Ravello on a tour, but all of that changed with the port change. Why the port change? We were told that the captain was not comfortable with the docking area he was assigned by the port in Amalfi and did not think it was safe for the ship. So--just realize that this kind of thing an happen.

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I did a walking food tour with GrecoPaths in Nafplion and it was fantastic. We walked all over the town and I felt like I got a much richer view of the local culture than those who I talked to who did a ship tour. My only complaint was that my tour guide was so overzealous with wanting me to try everything that it ended up being TOO much food!

 

Napflion is very walkable! We have been there twice. The first time we did the staircase up to the fortress. Hard work but spectacular views. A private tour like the one Jennifer did might be a good idea but I wouldn't do a ship's tour.

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It's true that Napflion is very walkable. Some up and down, but not bad if you don't feel like climbing. So you could feasibly not do a tour at all, but just do your own thing in town. Great shopping too.

 

But, if you like history and ancient ruins, Epidavros and Mycenae are both spectacular. Have no idea how big your tour would be (we had our own car), but both sites are close to town, so the bus trips would be short.

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It’s a lovely walk from amalfi to ravello and there are a number of different routes. However, it’s a hard climb with many steps. I recommend the sunflower guide for detailed information on walks in the area. An alternative is to take the bus up and my recommendation would be to walk down via scala, minuta, Pontone, to amalfi - this is one of the walks in the book

 

 

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We took a tour to Positano and Amalfi last September. Our ship (Encore) was scheduled to dock in Amalfi, but that changed. There was a lot of time on the bus to Amalfi (and we spent time in Positano), but we found Amalfi (even though filled with tourists) to be charming. There is a very unusual cathedral there, great views and wonderful pizza.

 

 

 

To clarify, we were supposed to go to Ravello on a tour, but all of that changed with the port change. Why the port change? We were told that the captain was not comfortable with the docking area he was assigned by the port in Amalfi and did not think it was safe for the ship. So--just realize that this kind of thing an happen.

 

 

 

So where did you tender into/dock if not amalfi?

 

 

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I’ve just seen your question re distance. With the elevation it’s more about time it takes and effort level. The guide has a grid of intersecting walks with times up and down and effort indicators so you can tailor accordingly

 

 

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We docked somewhere close to Positano. I don't remember the name of the port. The drive to Amalfi was about an hour.

 

 

 

Thanks. We have amalfi and Naples on our October cruise. Just wondered if we might end up with two days in Naples.

 

 

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We took a tour to Positano and Amalfi last September. Our ship (Encore) was scheduled to dock in Amalfi, but that changed. There was a lot of time on the bus to Amalfi (and we spent time in Positano), but we found Amalfi (even though filled with tourists) to be charming. There is a very unusual cathedral there, great views and wonderful pizza.

 

To clarify, we were supposed to go to Ravello on a tour, but all of that changed with the port change. Why the port change? We were told that the captain was not comfortable with the docking area he was assigned by the port in Amalfi and did not think it was safe for the ship. So--just realize that this kind of thing an happen.

 

That also happened to us at Amalfi, we moved to Sorrento and tendered there. Because of this, our excursion had to change also.

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Yes! It was Sorrento that was our port as well. I do remember now that you mention it. All the excursions changed--and not for the better. We ended up on a fairly long bus ride--not my favorite thing to do.

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One year we were supposed to dock in Amalfi, but due to the weather docked in Naples. We stayed in town which was quite interesting. Next year, we were able to dock in Amalfi & immediately took the local bus up to/from Ravello. Spent a few hours there & came back to Amalfi with enough time to see the Church, have lunch and do some shopping...it was perfect!

 

 

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We’re on this cruise as well.

I’ve been to the Amalfi coast many times, so I won’t do another long windy road bus trip.

I wish they would dock ( tender ) in Sorrento, there’s so many more options that don’t involve long bus trips.

If we dock in Amalfi, we’re going to get a taxi, car to Positano for lunch.

The next stop is Naples, and we plan on staying in Naples for a change. It’s interesting that there’s never any excursions in Naples itself.

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We’re on this cruise as well.

 

I’ve been to the Amalfi coast many times, so I won’t do another long windy road bus trip.

 

I wish they would dock ( tender ) in Sorrento, there’s so many more options that don’t involve long bus trips.

 

 

I’ve stayed in both sorrento and amalfi many times. Amalfi is so much nicer than sorrento and I commend Seabourn for calling there. Nicer walking and better views. Pompeii and paestum can be done diy if you’re actually staying in amalfi by bus to Salerno then train, rather than trying to go to sorrento. Tour boats run amalfi to Capri in season.

 

 

 

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We’re on this cruise as well.

I’ve been to the Amalfi coast many times, so I won’t do another long windy road bus trip.

I wish they would dock ( tender ) in Sorrento, there’s so many more options that don’t involve long bus trips.

If we dock in Amalfi, we’re going to get a taxi, car to Positano for lunch.

The next stop is Naples, and we plan on staying in Naples for a change. It’s interesting that there’s never any excursions in Naples itself.

 

Be very street smart in Naples. Carry a minimum of valuables and no visible jewelry or nice watches and make sure you don't stray off the beaten path.

 

We were on a Seabourn cruise which stopped there and two guests were mugged and quite badly hurt. Naples has a reputation in Europe for being rough.

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Be very street smart in Naples. Carry a minimum of valuables and no visible jewelry or nice watches and make sure you don't stray off the beaten path.

 

We were on a Seabourn cruise which stopped there and two guests were mugged and quite badly hurt. Naples has a reputation in Europe for being rough.

 

Hi!

Yes , I’ve read a lot about Naples. Thanks

Re: Amalfi, it’s small and crowded, but certainly scenic.

We’ve decided upon further review to have lunch at the Santa Caterina hotel overlooking Amalfi, then take a taxi to nearby Minori and Maiori to walk around

...I’ve never actually been to those towns, just driven by.

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Reading this with interest. We are visiting Amalfi with Encore and have tentatively booked the boat excursion To Positano. Time will Tell! One of the more scenic tours we’re looking forward to.

 

We booked the boat excursion to Positano last year on our Encore cruise but ended up on the bus from Sorrento as we were relocated to Sorrento when they couldn’t tender at Amalfi. Hope you have more success.

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  • 3 weeks later...

We just got back from a Seabourn Adriatic cruise that stopped in Nafplion. Based on our pre-trip research we decided to tour the townon our own, as it sounded like a lovely, historic place, and it was! Very easy to walk around, with lots of placesto eat and shop. We walked past themarina to the Acronafpia fortress. Veryunique in that you walk through a long cave-like entrance to a modern elevatorthat takes you to the top of the hill where a new-ish luxury hotel withbeautiful pool area now stands. Turnright and you can walk through the ruins of the fort, read the info at eachbuilding and imagine what it was like when the Ventitans fortified the town inthe 16th Century. Whilelooking through the remains of a window, we saw the sea and peopleswimming! Turns out at the base of thefortress hill is a lovely beach with facilities and a taverna. You could not see it from the port area and we just lucked upon it! There were several couples from our shipthere so we had a drink and visited for a bit, then walked back into town and had a meal at a taverna on the beautifulsquare next to one of the historic churches. This is an easy port to do on your own for a relaxing half-day.

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We just got back from a Seabourn Adriatic cruise that stopped in Nafplion. Based on our pre-trip research we decided to tour the townon our own, as it sounded like a lovely, historic place, and it was! Very easy to walk around, with lots of placesto eat and shop. We walked past themarina to the Acronafpia fortress. Veryunique in that you walk through a long cave-like entrance to a modern elevatorthat takes you to the top of the hill where a new-ish luxury hotel withbeautiful pool area now stands. Turnright and you can walk through the ruins of the fort, read the info at eachbuilding and imagine what it was like when the Ventitans fortified the town inthe 16th Century. Whilelooking through the remains of a window, we saw the sea and peopleswimming! Turns out at the base of thefortress hill is a lovely beach with facilities and a taverna. You could not see it from the port area and we just lucked upon it! There were several couples from our shipthere so we had a drink and visited for a bit, then walked back into town and had a meal at a taverna on the beautifulsquare next to one of the historic churches. This is an easy port to do on your own for a relaxing half-day.

 

Thanks for this. I visited Nafplion 35 <eek> years ago and fell in love with the place. Not sure why I never went back but good to hear that it's still a taste of the 'real' Greece, still laid back and pretty. Must revisit.

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