Med Cruise tour costs?

[LarryF]

Hello everyone,

 

DW and I are thinking about a 12 night med cruise on the Century this September. I know this is not an easy question as everyone is different, but can some of you that have experienced this type of trip give me a ball park idea of what we might spend on tours? We would only book independent tours and in some ports try to our own thing... Ports are Barcelona, Naples, Split Croatia, Venice, Dubrovnik, Rome, Florence and Provence (Toulon).

 

Thanks,

 

Larry

[mildavis]

We did a walking tour with Jose in Barcelona and loved him about a year and a half ago. I thought he was reasonable and he taught us how to use the subway. He can tailor it to your needs. We did a 3-4 hour tour as this was our port in and out and we were spending a few days there but i found him on the internet and he came highly recommended and we loved him!

 

In Rome, we went through our travel agent and had a private tour with a wonderful lady named Maria. She made the trip so memorable. The private tours end up not costing any more than the group tours but you don't have to get on the big buses full of people. Also, the big buses can't get in the small towns so there is more walking than with the private cars you take that take you right into town. They are so worth it. I don't remember the cost now, but it was a almost 2 years ago. Very comparable to the cruise ship prices. We also booked some on our own (private tours) in other ports and were not disappointed. We did this all ahead of time. When you start looking on the internet and doing research you will see some of the same names keep popping up (company names) and then you can research those names on these forums and easily figure out who was good and who wasn't. Then start booking!

 

I don't have all my info with me right now but if you have any more questions, just ask. I will try to be more specific. Good Luck!

[ORCRUISER]

I did a Med cruise this last summer and we used Romeinlimo for our three Italy stops and really loved them. I think the costs are similar to the shop's tours but you are with only 5 to 7 people. We had a private guide at the Vatican...extra but arranged by Romeinlimo and they also got our tickets for the Academia in Florence...again we paid for the tickets but they did all the work. I met up with our traveling partners here on Cruisecritic.com and it worked out wonderfully. Also did a private tour at one stop in France. In Barcelona we did the HopOn HopOff bus. The Park Gual and other Gaudi structures are fantastic.

It was all a little expensive but SO worth it.

[anniversay/grad trip]

Hello everyone,

 

DW and I are thinking about a 12 night med cruise on the Century this September. I know this is not an easy question as everyone is different, but can some of you that have experienced this type of trip give me a ball park idea of what we might spend on tours? We would only book independent tours and in some ports try to our own thing... Ports are Barcelona, Naples, Split Croatia, Venice, Dubrovnik, Rome, Florence and Provence (Toulon).

 

Thanks,

 

Larry

 

I can tell u what we paid but this is subjective depending on what you are looking for:

 

Barcelona easy DIY port we did not use a tour

Naples we used Tourofitaly wonderful 350euros for a full day tour

Rome We used a tour company but the name has escaped me they were ok 450euros

Venice very easy DIY

Dubrovnik very easy DIY

Florence we rented a car c/w GPS

 

Sorry the remainder I have not been to. I would reccomend searching each port in the search field and see what comes up. On the ports we had private tours (I prefer to ships tours) I budgeted for between 350e -500e DIY ports were less expensive.

[hylasgirl]

I have done three Med cruises and would HIGHLY recommend Romeinlimo.com for Naples, Livorno, and Rome. They are very much recommended on the Europe boards as well. There is just so much to see and they take away every single bit of stress about getting to the sites... seeing what you want to see... and by the end of the day you truly feel like you have had the best experience possible.

 

Barcelona... we have done our own thing here each time. It's a great city. Highly recommend a few days before and/or after your cruise.

 

Venice... VERY easy to do on your own. Highly recommend the Secret Itinerary Tour. Easy to book online and pay for the day of the tour. VERY interesting.

 

Dubrovnik... easy to do on your own as well. We took a taxi from the port to the city centre. The wall is great to walk!

 

And the Century is an awesome ship!

[Pat.bz]

In Rome we did the Hop On Hop Off for 2 days. From Itunes you can download free Rick Steves tours of the following: St. Peters, Sistine, Forum, Colisseum. These tours are 45 mins each, and have photos as well as commentary--can't recommend highly enough. The Borghese was the only thing we booked in advance and it was so worth it.

[Bababooey Land]

Hi. We did a Med Cruise a couple years ago and had private tours in most ports. all prices are from summer 2007 and are for up to 3-4 people (sedan). Here are my thoughts:

 

Barcelona - is easy to do yourself. unless you want to take a tour outside the city

Naples - We used DriveSorrento..would NOT recommend. it was 350 Euros for a full day tour. highly recommend doing a private tour in Naples.

Venice - very easy to tour yourself. we did take a private boat shuttle from airport to hotel/ship, very expensive.

Dubrovnik - take the ships shuttle to the town. again, very easy to do yourself. walking city.

Rome - We used RomeCabs..Marco was our driver. excellent tour. 450 euros for day. highly recommend doing a private tour in Rome.

Florence - we used unforgettabletuscany. owner is extremely nice. excellent tour. 400 euros for 2 people, full day. you could do Florence on your own. but having a private tour was nice.

Provence - we used Provencesightseeing.com. Eva was our driver..very nice..excellent tour. highly recommend doing a private tour..you will be able to hit alot of the sights this way. $395 euros.

 

hope this helped. have a great cruise!

[WineDown17]

We did this itinerary last May and did all private tours- made the trip so much more enjoyable and we saw so much more. There were 6 of us.

 

Here are the prices we paid:

Euros W/Tip

Nice600720Florence680816Rome650780Naples540648Santorini300360Athens300360Dubrovnik 0Venice 0

 

 

In Florence we did a wine tasting tour of Tuscany with Guido Bandinelli- AMAZING. Michel of Revelation tours in Nice was also top notch. We used RomeinLimo in Naples and Rome- very good. Private tour guides for the Vatican and Pompeii were a must.

 

If you would like any more info, please let me know.

[WineDown17]

Sorry- it did not post as it looked on screen.

 

The 1st number after each port was the base cost in Euros, the second number is the total cost with tip. So

Nice was 600E, and 720E with tip.

 

 

In some instances the price included lunch, others did not...

[LarryF]

Were these the total prices for your group or were they per person prices?

 

Thanks

[WineDown17]

That was total in Euros for us.

 

Ours was a bit more than some others as we needed a larger van to accomodate the 6 of us....

 

But for example in Nice- We did Old town Nice, St Paul de Vence, Eze, Monaco and Antibes (billionaire's dock).. it was a long day- but you would pay almost the smae price for one Ship tour and only see one of those places... So well worth it.

[frogfuzz]

We got a very active roll call and shared tours in most ports, we did some of the ports you are doing . Get a roll call and share share share.

 

Naples-DriveAlmalfi, Roberto, they were fantastic, drove the coast with various stops, arranged a very nice lunch, guided tour of Pompeii. 8 people 984 Euro

 

Florence-Pisa, Florence, Accedemia 8 people 680 Euro

 

Dubrovnik-on our own, ship transportation 10 krona to walk wall

 

Venice-on our own. Easy.

 

Barcelona-We did the hopon hop off bus. Wish we would have seen the sky tram in time to do that.

 

Rome we spent 3 days there and did most stuff on our own.

[momtravelslots]

Am considering booking a wine tour with Guido in port of Livorno. I e-mailed him for a quote and he responded quite fast. Could you tell me what you did on your tour? He has suggested Chianti area, but have read also about Super Tuscans in Bolgheri. We just didn't want to be stuck in car for half the tour, so if possible to choose somewhere not several hours from ship. Thanks.

[WineDown17]

Am considering booking a wine tour with Guido in port of Livorno. I e-mailed him for a quote and he responded quite fast. Could you tell me what you did on your tour? He has suggested Chianti area, but have read also about Super Tuscans in Bolgheri. We just didn't want to be stuck in car for half the tour, so if possible to choose somewhere not several hours from ship. Thanks.

 

 

He is AMAZING.. and will customize your tour...

 

We stopped in a gorgeous walled town where Amerigo Vespucci was born.. 20 mins to walk around... an amazing sight....

 

Then we stopped at Greve en Chianti.. a charming small town with quaint shops.. including a meat and cheese shop where we picked up some great items to enjoy on board the remainder of the trip...

 

Then we went to a vineyard called Fattoria de Montecchio- where we had a tour, sampled several chiantis, as well as the most amazing olive oil.. we bought several bottles of each to take home (And ordered another case of Olive Oil since our return...it was THAT good!)

 

We then went to another vineyard..forget the name.. where we had another tour, and sampled 3 wines and ate in a small private DR...We had Wild Boar Ragu- the best meal of our lives-seriously. Also ate delicious salamis and cheeses and dessert.. It was a magical experience. Small, private place..and the vistas during the ride were unrivaled. With all of the stops, you are never in the car for a long time- annd the drive is so scenic it is quite enjoyable.

 

Tell Guido what you like and dislike and I know he will arrange something amazing. He is incredibly knowledgeable about wines as well... gives quite an education while driving....

 

I will try to attach a few shots below.. I am happy to answer any questions... it was one of the most special days of that trip (and our lives..) we had THAT much fun.