On the spot shared tours at Mediteranean ports in Europe

Dear experts,

Are there any travel agents/tour operators/taxis available at the Med ports of Dubrovnik, Venice, Split, Corfu, Koper, Katakolon, Valletta, Kotor, Sarande, Piraeus, Genoa, Marseille, Mahon, Cagliari or Messina?

Is it possible to do an "on the spot" shared minivan/minibus tour at any Med port?

If so, what would be the price range in Euros?

Thanks in anticipation!

Piraeus you can contact PKTravelGreece, they offer shared tours if you don’t want private. Dubrovnik there are taxis to take you to the gates of walled city; kotor you don’t need any taxi unless you want to go out of the city; Venice no taxis — it’s easy to pick up a gondola or water taxi tour; Corfu had taxis waiting

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Thanks so much

Split, you don’t need a tour at Split, very easy to walk around - get a map & do a bit of research beforehand, same with Venice ( get Pop-up maps from Amazon).

In Dubrovnik if your ship anchors, rather than docks, your tender should take you into the harbour on the old city. If so you won’t need a taxi.

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"On the spot" organized tours are often a very bad idea unless you will be satisfied just hiring a taxi/driver and hoping that you get a driver that speaks some of your language and is willing to serve as somewhat of a guide. Professional tour guides (who sometimes must be licensed by their government) are generally booked well in advance. And I would add that in some European ports you might find yourself stranded at a port with absolutely no taxis.

If you want to arrange or join private tours we think its best to get active on your CC Roll Call board (which is specific to your cruise) where you can join with others in sharing private tours...pre arranged by one of the group

.

Hank

Thanks Hank, but on my roll call there are only 3 others

There may be ‘lurkers’ who are on your cruise but haven’t posted. If you do a bit of research about potential tours and post asking if others want to join you, you may tempt some of them to post!

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There may be ‘lurkers’ who are on your cruise but haven’t posted. If you do a bit of research about potential tours and post asking if others want to join you, you may tempt some of them to post!

 

 

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Ah, that explains it.

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With MSC and Costa, its very difficult to find any English speakers

Ah, that explains it.

 

 

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With MSC and Costa, its very difficult to find any English speakers.

1) You have to research the established & highly rated tour companies in each port, much in advance.

2) Then email them for quotes for various tours, based on different group sizes.

3) Then decide which tour is best suited for your group, based on the arrival and departure time (of the ship), and number of hours available.

4) Then organize your own group (on your CC forums roll call) and give your roll call members all the options.

5) Make an advance deposit or even full payment in some ports (like Malta).

So, if your ship misses the port, you will lose your advance payment.

There are NO on the spot shared minivan tours in all Mediterranean ports.

1) You have to research the established & highly rated tour companies in each port, much in advance.

2) Then email them for quotes for various tours, based on different group sizes.

3) Then decide which tour is best suited for your group, based on the arrival and departure time (of the ship), and number of hours available.

4) Then organize your own group (on your CC forums roll call) and give your roll call members all the options.

5) Make an advance deposit or even full payment in some ports (like Malta).

So, if your ship misses the port, you will lose your advance payment.

This is a good idea. And here is a recommendation and my personal experience of Kotor port and day excursion. I had a similar doubt but after a research decide to book tour proposal by Mont Travelers tour agency from Kotor. I can say they are highly recommended by travelers on CC and TA and Lonely Planet too. I was surprised but positively of course. By the way, I checked the price with taxi drivers outside and after a few moments of conversation on very bad English, I knew I made a good decision. Private tour with English speaking driver/guide is much cheaper than a tour by taxi drivers without walking and almost with any English. Hope this will give you some new ideas and help you make your day in Kotor wonderful.

There are NO on the spot shared minivan tours in all Mediterranean ports.

In the absoluteness (...NO... all...) this is wrong, of course...

One example where there are several on the spot options is Katakolon. Just walk off the ship and there are several operators who offer tours to Olympia starting for just 10€ (two years ago). In Olympia we were given the option to enter the museum and/or the excavation site on our own or to take part in a guided tour outside.

I also saw people offering tours in Kotor and Sarande but did not use them.

Yet, in general public transportation and just walking are perfect options in Europe.

In the absoluteness (...NO... all...) this is wrong, of course...

 

One example where there are several on the spot options is Katakolon. Just walk off the ship and there are several operators who offer tours to Olympia starting for just 10€ (two years ago). In Olympia we were given the option to enter the museum and/or the excavation site on our own or to take part in a guided tour outside.

 

I also saw people offering tours in Kotor and Sarande but did not use them.

 

Yet, in general public transportation and just walking are perfect options in Europe.