cost of excursions

[trevor gaffney]

we have just booked our first cruise with P+O on the Azura for a med cruise next year, can anyone tell us of the approx costs associated to their excursions and how good they are. there are 4 of us in our party

[bazzaw]

Trevor

 

I think you have posted into the incorrect sub-Forum - this is the P&O Australia one - you will more likely get some more info on the P&O UK forum.

 

Having said that - we recently spent 12 weeks on Oriana and Arcadia - the shore tours we took (all over the World) averaged out at around 35 UKP for a half day tour and 65 UKP for a full day tour including lunch.

 

 

Barry

[kevinyork]

we have just booked our first cruise with P+O on the Azura for a med cruise next year, can anyone tell us of the approx costs associated to their excursions and how good they are. there are 4 of us in our party

 

Hard to give a specific price as they vary dependant on the port. As an example a half day trip from Gibraltar is around £30 whereas a full day Rome tour from around £78. Their trips are fairly reasonable compared to American lines. Usually they are well organised and as good as the actual destination itself. There are some med ports where you can go it alone quiet easily especially with four of you sharing a taxi and others where it is easier and safer to take a trip. Check out the ports of call section for each destination for loads of info.

[cruiser1955]

Trevor

 

These are the excursions I did this year on Arcadia:

 

Highlights of Barcelona - £34.00 02APR 0945A - 0145P

Castellet and Wine Tasting £44.00 03APR 0130P - 0530P

Introduction to Genoa £34.00 04APR 0900A - 0400P

Essence of Rome £98.00 05APR 0730A - 0630P

Pompeii and Archaeological Museum - £66.00 06APR 0900A -0500P

Alicante, City of Moors £34.00 08APR 0930A - 0200P

 

Generally, the tours were good value but a lot can depend on the tour guide. I was disappointed with the one on the Genoa trip. The Rome and Pompeii trips included lunch with wine and both meals - and the wine - were much better than I expected. The enforced rest on both of these trips was most welcome.

 

You can do some of these "on your own" but the Rome trip showed the advantage of being on a P&O trip. There was an extra guide who went and got tickets while we were being showed around other sites. This saved a lot of time as we were able to use pre-booked entrances. Rome is a very full day as the coach takes around 1½-2 hours to get there.

 

If you are looking at doing an excursion to Grenada and the Alhambra you need to be aware that visitors are now limited. I went on an excursion with Cunard this April and the site was full. This meant that two passengers who had joined the excursion at the last minute were unable to get in until the Cunard escorts gave up their tickets.

[Invincible]

I agree with a previous comment that P&O prices are not as outrageous as some American lines but unless there's something specific that you don't want to miss it can be more fun doing your own thing. When in Livorno last year we got the train to Pisa (could have gone on to Florence) and the inclusive price for 2 of us was about 14 euros from memory which included the bus from Livorno town to the station and the train, likewise when in Villefranche we took the bus to Monaco for 1 euro each (each way), this year we were in naples and got the train to Pompeii, this time with the cost of a guide it didn't work out a lot cheaper than the ship tour but we could do things at our own pace and stayed for some food and drink before returning to the ship. Generally in our experience which I admit is very limited buses are very good in France and trains very good, cheap and reliable in Italy.