APTours - Have You Used Them? Thoughts?

[lawtyger]

Researching private tours in Naples and came across APTours to add to my list of options (which includes Romeinlimo and Rome Cabs - plenty of info on these guys including a ridiculously long thread for Romeinlimo). Did a search on the forum for APTours and only came up with a minimal number of hits which i read - nothing negative - so I wanted to get more, perhaps updated info from anyone who has used APTours.

 

APTours seems to have some good tour options in Naples, is a bit more reasonable $$$ wise than the other two outfits I mentioned above, and while there are not a ton of reviews, the reviews it has are high on Trip Advisor.

 

Any information or thoughts anyone has on APTours would be greatly appreciated, particularly if you have used them in the past.

 

Thanks, Chris

[bobalink]

Here is the link to one thread about AP Tours. We used them, and they were excellent.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1520022

[lawtyger]

Thank you. I'm using an iPad/iPhone app called Tapatalk which Cruise Critic's forum utilizes but I think the search function may not be as thorough. I may need to search via the old' desktop computer next time.

[texancruzer]

Yep, we've used em....a couple of times !!!!!

 

Most recently last November. Our first tour with them was in November 2009 and it was so good we used them again.

 

You can't go wrong with this company. They will respond to emails promptly and answer any and all questions you may have.... they will help you customize your day and make sure it goes smoothly and get you back to the ship with time to spare.

 

To elaborate: our first tour went perfect...... enjoyed every minute. Our last visit was going just as smooth when we came to Positano...... on the other side of the village on the coast road we saw a large plume of smoke. Our driver was on his cell immediately and found out there was a grass fire and the road was closed !!!!! Our plan had been to spend 45 minutes or so in Positano (after Pompeii, Ravello and Amalfi) and then go to Sorrento to catch the ferry back to Naples....... But since the road was closed we had to head back and take the mountain road (longer version) back...... But Alberto got us back to the ship in plenty of time.

 

And..... as you saw - their prices are somewhat lower than some of the other companies in the area. First rate tour and save $$ to boot. :D

 

As a side note: we always use Romecabs in Rome for all our transfers. Stefano also has a first rate company but his prices in Naples are higher.

[lawtyger]

Unfortunately, it seems there site has been down for the last 24 hours. Anyone else having trouble pulling up their site? I was ready to contact them after all the positive info - anyone have an email address for them?

[sotiris]

Unfortunately, it seems there site has been down for the last 24 hours. Anyone else having trouble pulling up their site? I was ready to contact them after all the positive info - anyone have an email address for them?

 

I received a message from them yesterday (Sunday) afternoon but I have also been having trouble accessing their site since.

Their e-mail is info@aptours.it Sarah has been very quick at answering my questions.

Good luck.

[lawtyger]

^ thanks.

[zelker]

http://www.aptours.it/

 

I just tried it and it came up just fine. You might want to try now.

[Randyk47]

Just have to add my endorsement of AP Tours. We used them in Naples and while not inexpensive we thought it was well worth it.

[Mammoth Cruiser]

We used AP Tours for a full tour of the Amalfi Coast in May. They were excellent. Tony, our driver was knowledgeable and extremely helpful. He was waiting for us when we exited the ship. We arrived at Ravello, well ahead of the tour buses. We visited, Ravello, Amalfi Coast, Positano and Sorrento, and was able to spend time in each place and we never felt rushed. When our lunch plans fell through, Tony was able to recommend a great pizza place.

We were given a choice to either take the ferry from Sorrento back to Naples or have Tony drive us back to Naples. We opted to spend more time in Sorrento and take the ferry back. Tony helped us buy the tickets and waited with us until the ferry departed. Approx 30 minutes later the ferry arrived very close to where our ship was docked. We were very happy with their services and highly recommend them.

[banditoo]

We just used them today for a tour from Naples to Pompeii, Ravello, and Positano. Paulo was our driver. Very professional and personable. A very safe and responsible driver on these crazy winding roads. He was waiting for us when we disembarked from the Silhouette, loaded us in his van and we were off for the day. As we didn't have specific lunch plans, he arranged for lunch in a restaurant in Positano overlooking the bay. We opted to take the ferry to Naples from Sorrento as the previous poster mentioned. AP also arranged for us to have a guide for the 2 hours at Pompeii. Pina was great. I would definitely recommend AP for quality service.

[texancruzer]

We had Pina as our guide last November......again !!!! She was our guide when we visited our first trip to Europe in 2007 !!!!! She was great and showed us almost a completely different tour than our first (even tho we were with friends who hadn't been) and it was great ! She truly made the place come alive for us - both times :D

[Nebr.cruiser]

We used AP Tours for a full tour of the Amalfi Coast in May. They were excellent. Tony, our driver was knowledgeable and extremely helpful. He was waiting for us when we exited the ship. We arrived at Ravello, well ahead of the tour buses. We visited, Ravello, Amalfi Coast, Positano and Sorrento, and was able to spend time in each place and we never felt rushed. When our lunch plans fell through, Tony was able to recommend a great pizza place.

We were given a choice to either take the ferry from Sorrento back to Naples or have Tony drive us back to Naples. We opted to spend more time in Sorrento and take the ferry back. Tony helped us buy the tickets and waited with us until the ferry departed. Approx 30 minutes later the ferry arrived very close to where our ship was docked. We were very happy with their services and highly recommend them.

 

We used them in May too and were very pleased with our driver and our day. We went to Pompeii as well, which made for a full day. We, too, went back to the ship on the ferry which saved us a little more time along the coast.

 

We joined a group of eight on our roll call.

[jarand]

We are putting together a tour of Pompeii, Positano, and Ravello. After a lot of research, we got it down to 3 companies, based on great reviews and price. For 8 people:

 

APTours: €450

Joe Banana: €450

Rome in Limo: €600

[desertminky]

Another happy client of APTours. We got a guide from them for a tour of Pompeii, then took a wonderful drive down the coast. There were 8 in our group and we had a wonderful time, fantastic car - I believe a Mercedes! Quite comfortable and air conditioned.

[LauraS]

We used AP Tours on our Fall '11 Med cruise. We took the "Gastronomic Tour" with the self-proclaimed King of Amalfi, Alberto! Our ship, Marina, was late (very late) getting into port yet Alberto was still there waiting for us. We really enjoyed this foodie type tour. We visited a winemaker, olive oil factory (where they had the most deelish tasting set up), a cheesemaker (another excellent tasting of dried sausage, mozzarella, tomato, etc), and a great gelato stop -- where we helped make (and taste) some lemon gelato. We also had a wonderful lunch. Can't remember the name, but we had to switch vehicles (the Mercedes was too wide!) to fit through the roadway/arches leading to the restaurant. Very enjoyable day, made really great by Alberto. What a personable tour guide!

 

Had to add that Sorrento was one of our top three favorite ports (out of 13) on our Med cruise. We just loved it! (Other two faves were Venice and Monte Carlo)

 

Laura

 

Edited to add: Just remembered the name of the restaurant: Donna Sofia.

[texancruzer]

Hee Hee - he's not bad on the eyes either :D

[Mercury]

Thanks so much everyone for your posts about AP tours.

 

We've booked them in September and are very excited!

[bobalink]

Hee Hee - he's not bad on the eyes either :D

 

Oh, I totally agree with texancruzer :). Alberto is one handsome Italian!

 

The owner of Trattoria La Tagliata - Positano with our tour guide by BobalinkToo, on Flickr

[LauraS]

Oh, I totally agree with texancruzer :). Alberto is one handsome Italian!

 

The owner of Trattoria La Tagliata - Positano with our tour guide by BobalinkToo, on Flickr

 

Agreed!!!

[happier]

Researching private tours in Naples and came across APTours to add to my list of options (which includes Romeinlimo and Rome Cabs - plenty of info on these guys including a ridiculously long thread for Romeinlimo). Did a search on the forum for APTours and only came up with a minimal number of hits which i read - nothing negative - so I wanted to get more, perhaps updated info from anyone who has used APTours.

 

APTours seems to have some good tour options in Naples, is a bit more reasonable $$$ wise than the other two outfits I mentioned above, and while there are not a ton of reviews, the reviews it has are high on Trip Advisor.

 

Any information or thoughts anyone has on APTours would be greatly appreciated, particularly if you have used them in the past.

 

Thanks, Chris

we used aptours last November in Naples-went to Pompeii and on to Sorrento and Positano in a very comfortable van.

Aptours was very professional and reasonably priced. The guide and driver were attentive to all the passengers(about 25 of us, I think).

Our guide was wonderful and took us throughout Pompeii -she had so much information to give us about the volcano(which you drive by on your way as it looms over the water) and the lives of the people who lived during those times.

I would definitely use them again as we are going back to Naples in September.

She left us in Sorrento where we had a delicious pizza lunch From there the driver was our guide as we rode to Positano. There we could shop or walk through the lovely, quaint shopping area down(waaay down) the sloping sidewalk to the beach. It was worth the walk! the water was warm enough to wade in-not enough time for a swim, tho)

We got back to port in plenty of time to board the ship - a good way to spend a day in Naples.

[lawtyger]

Hi all, just wanted to finally provide an update on our APTours excursion in Naples.

 

Everything was great on the tour - definitely met and exceed our expectations. Alberto was our guide and we found him courteous, friendly, informative and funny at times.

 

We also did a Romeinlimo tour in Rome and Florence. When booking the tours, we just couldn't come to grips with paying Romeinlimo over 100 Euro more for the same tour in Naples than what APTours charged. We made the right decision by choosing APTours and saving the extra Euro for sure. Our Romeinlimo tours were wonderful too, but APTours was absolutely equal in terms of service, vehicle, professionalism of the driver, etc.

 

Really, we had 3 great tours in Rome, Florence and Naples. With APTours, as others had said, Alberto literally buys the ticket for you to take the hydrafoil back to Naples and walks you 10 feet from the gang-plank that you set on the boat on. He new everyone that worked the area and when the dock the hydrafoil normally leaves from had changed, he knew immediately and we walked over to the other dock.

 

I guess to sum up, I wish APTours did tours in Rome and Florence because it was nice saving the extra 100+ Euro and getting the same quality excursion. I'd recommend both Romeinlimo and APTours, but would strongly suggest that when in Naples don't pay more for the same quality tour and chose APTours.

[bobalink]

lawtyger,

 

Thanks for reporting back. I agree with you completely.

 

We have used both APTours and RIL, and would use them again and highly recommend both companies.

 

So glad you had a great tour!

[texancruzer]

I guess to sum up, I wish APTours did tours in Rome and Florence because it was nice saving the extra 100+ Euro and getting the same quality excursion. I'd recommend both Romeinlimo and APTours, but would strongly suggest that when in Naples don't pay more for the same quality tour and chose APTours.

 

That's what I've been sayin' ------ :D

[ksc37]

We used APTours when we docked in Naples on Thursday with our group of 2 couples and our children. We booked a tour that included 2 hours at Pompeii (we probably could have used more time there, but we wanted to do a lot that day), a hike up to the crater of Mt Vesuvius, then lunch and free time in Sorrento and the ferry back to Naples. It was one of the best days of our trip.

 

Paolo was our driver and he was waiting for us a little before our scheduled time of 8:00. He was funny, informative and extremely helpful in getting us settled at each stop and telling us where to go. The restaurant he set us up at in Sorrento was fantastic. The Mercedes van was clean and comfortable.

 

At the end of the day Paolo purchased our ferry tickets for us, and then escorted us down to the dock and waited to ensure we got on okay.

 

This tour was 430 euros for 8 people - but we did need to pay for our ferry tickets (12 euros per adult). They did have an option to be driven back to the port for 450 euros, but we enjoyed taking the boat ride across the bay.