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MESSINA TO TAORMINA need help

ALBOB330

By ALBOB330,
in Italy Ports

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mzharmuny

mzharmuny

Posted
Posted

We were looking to do several "on our own' trips into town for our upcoming May 30th cruise. Does anyone have current info on taxis at the Messina and Iraklion ports? are they readily available? cost? Any info would be appreciated.

thanks!

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navigator0709

navigator0709

Posted
Posted

Thanks Becky. We will be in Port on RCL's Navigator from 10 AM till 6 or 7PM. Since this is our first stop after taking off from Rome, I don't want to overdo it... I want to save the "big" tour days for Ephisus and Athens, which we'll do later in the week. I'm thinking we'll get picked up around 10:30 AM, and get back to the ship by 3:30 PM.

 

"Taormina On Your Own" from RCL is $45 per adult and $39 per child. We are a group of 6 (with 2 children), so hopefully Mario can do a little better than that price. The RCL tour is basically a ride to the village and back, so the private tour sounds much better.

 

I'm also looking forward to Catharina's review... hopefully she'll come back to this thread!

 

Sally

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beckntom

beckntom

Posted
Posted
well we leave tomorrow and next thursday is our sicily stop. we have hired a guy named mario astone, came recommended via this board. I'll post here what our experiences are when we get back

 

he will take us to Castelmola for the views, then to Taormina for some free time, then back to messina for the big Duomo and a see around

35 euros per person (7 adults, kids free)

when we were only 4 , he quoted us 45

 

it is not very cheap, but at least we have our private, costume made tour

 

 

Hi, Catharina. I was hoping you'd be back to tell us about your tour with Mario. How did it go? We're booked with him in September, so are eager to hear about your experience.

 

Thanks!

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euro cruiser

euro cruiser

Posted
Posted

Becky,

 

Catharina has been posting about her cruise over on the MSC board here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1176270&page=2

 

I've copied a couple of her posts on Messina for you:

 

In messina we did a private tour with mario astone

if you want, I can give you his email address

it was a nice tour, we went first to see the views from Castelomola, then we had free time in Taormina, per my request, then we had some look out point and some sights in Messina

 

He is very knowledgable and friendly. I kind of feel like I have a friend in Sicily now

 

my email is vanoverveld at hotmail if you like to know more

 

MESSINA

For this day, I had arranged a private tour beforehand with Mario Astone on recommendation of somebody on this board. Mario quoted us 45 euros pp first for a trip to Taormina and some sightseeing, but if we could get more poeple price would be 35. He ended up mailing me that some american family also was on our ship and asking for his services, so we got in touch with each other and decided to share the ride. (35 per person, the 3 kids of the family for free)

 

We got out the ship at 8 am, and Mario was waiting for us. I had brought him butter from Holland on his request , and got a big hug for it immediately.

After a short while, the american familiy joined us: 4 adults and 3 kids. It was gonna be tight in his van! We all managed to get in the van and he drove us to the other side of the island, commenting on what we saw. What a difference with the other Mario!

He took us first to Castelmola, a place the ship's excursion does not because the busses do not reach there. It was BEAUTIFUL! I must say, the whole Sicily day was for us (and the americans, I heard later) the highlight of our cruise, due to the weather, good trip and guidance of Mario

 

From Castelmola we had stunning views on Taormina, the coastline and on mount Etna. The village was so picturesque, you would not believe it. And we were the only tourists there.

After this, Mario dropped us in Taormina where we had 2 hours of free time, as per my request. I just wanted time to do our own pace and own thing in Taormina. My dad had been there 30 years ago and wanted to go back, that is why I organised the whole tour. More meant as a transfer originally, although the day turned out like an excursion.

In Taormina, the american family went their way and we went ours. What a beautoful village once again, so unique and pretty. We wandered through the streets and ended up on what must be the BEST terrace with view in southern europe. We sat next to a view on Etna on one side and the coastline on the other side.

All this in a lovely 20 degree sunny weather!

We enjoyed an (expensive) cappuccino there and just sat there enjoying the whole atmosphere. We really could feel, smell, hear and see Sicily at it's best at that place. It is one of my fondest memories of this cruise, sitting there enjoying everything, and especially seeing my dad enjoy!

 

After our time in Taormina, Mario took us to a lookout point where the ship's bus does not go and we enjoyed yet another splendid view. After that it was back to Messina, where we saw a church and also a viewpoint from which to see the ship, and take pictures of it. He took us to the Big Duomo (e special church with astronomical clock) where I had like 5 minutes to get some souvernirs VERY fast; we needed to get back to the ship!

We said our goodbyes like old friends, paid Mario (with a good tip for this unforgettable day) and then scurried on to the ship. We entered it 2 minutes too late, and our american friends left something behind, so they were REALLy too late; I think the doors of the ship hit their butts on the way in! wink.gif

 

(funny fact: this almost-missing-the-ship experience made Erik as well as Shane (the american father) so nervous that the next day in Rome they were both, independently, nervous wrecks about getting back on time!)

 

Well, just a GREAT day!

 

 

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Calpoke

Calpoke

Posted
Posted
Hi, Sally. Our ship, the Noordam, is only in port from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Mario says he will pick us up at 7:30; we'll arrive in Castelmola around 8 or 8:15, and stay there for 30-45 minutes before heading down to Taormina where we'll visit for a couple of hours. There, he says, he can either give us a map or walk around with us giving detailed explanations, whichever we prefer. Then we'll leave in time to maybe have a quick drive around Messina, ending at the astronomical clock for its noon display. That's about twelve minutes long, and he says we'll then be a three-minute walk from the ship.

 

So all in all, a little more than a 4-1/2 hour stint with Mario. I'm sure he would use your time any way you would like. He drives a 2007 Mercedes Vito van, 9 passenger (including the driver). When I asked him about our being left stranded up in Taormina (I told you I grilled him pretty good), his reaction was, "What?? Just abbandon (sic) you?" Then he said not only would he be "mean" to do that but also stupid since he doesn't get paid until the end of the tour.

 

We are also taking the Noordam cruise in September. Your tour with Mario sounds good. Do you have room for four more in his taxi or did you fill it up?

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beckntom

beckntom

Posted
Posted
We are also taking the Noordam cruise in September. Your tour with Mario sounds good. Do you have room for four more in his taxi or did you fill it up?

 

 

I'm sorry, but our tour is full. Are you on the September 8th sailing? If so, please come join the Roll Call. We'd love to get to know you there and meet you onboard. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1078556&page=13

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maureenk

maureenk

Posted
Posted

Just thought I'd let you know that Mario's brother offers the same tour for the same price. Mario is booked the day we are going and he suggested his brother. We hooked up with another family and are doing that late August off the Noordam.

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otogocruisin

otogocruisin

Posted
Posted

Thanks for the info:). We are sailing on the Queen Victoria and will be in Messina on October 15. we have been in contact with Mario and have reserved the day with him. We are looking for people who still haven't joined the roll call to join us.

Pam

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ONCRUISEMODE

ONCRUISEMODE

Posted
Posted

Gonesalsa,

Yes, my husband and I have joined the roll call. Are you on the same ship?

 

We are leaving the US on the 15th and arriving in Rome on the 16th....

What are your plans?

 

I am trying to get the train schedule in Messina to Taormina since I can't understand their website.

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raynvic

raynvic

Posted
Posted

Just an FYI, we just returned from the new Carnival Magic inaugeral cruise. We had a reservation with Mario in Taorimina booked. When we got into the port we were met by Mario's friend Chris who said he would be our guide. We all walked to the van and got inside, but before we could take off, Chris was asked to step outside by the police. There were many discussions and verbal exchanges between our tour guide, the police and what appeared to be the local taxi Union along with possibly the mafia. We spent a good hour while the parties negotiated. at one point we told the taxi union that we would only speak to the police. Finally Chris came to the van and apologized but told us we would have to leave the van an find another tour. We finally ended up with a taxi tour for the same amount with the same itinerary. At one point we opted to go with an offer from one of the taxi drivers but evidently it took us to long to decide so that taxi drive told us we should find another driver which we did, but what a joke. all in all it ended well but no exactly as planned. so I recommend a plan B. we did find out late that Mario had 2 other tours and ours happened to be the sacrificial lamb to the taxi drivers union and mafia. The other 2 tours did take off with a couple of glitches. So Mario is an honest business man, but there are some things he cannot fix with his country so a plan B is necessary.

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trishs

trishs

Posted
Posted

Hi,

We just got back from a cruise on the Oceania Insignia. I had booked with Mario and he was great at getting back quick with emails. Very friendly.

 

We had his brother and he was wonderful. Wow ton's of history and a great driver. They were very accommodating even when our ship made a last min change of plans:

 

Our ship changed ports at the last min. because of winds. Mario's brother was waiting at the port I had told him. When we got off the ship we talked to a taxi driver and told him that we were trying to meet up with Mario. There was a taxi driver that could speak English said he had Mario's number. He was helpful and called Mario. Mario then called his brother to let him know we were at a different port. Mario came to meet us an hung with us till his brother arrived. They didn't even complain about our mix up or charge us more.

 

I would highly recommend both of them.

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gonesalsa

gonesalsa

Posted
Posted

lallenrd

Yes,we're on the same cruise. We're arriving on the 12th in Rome or Florence.

I'm also looking at doing the Messina port on our own. I'm looking at doing Mt Etna and Taormina, but I don't know, if there will be enough time.

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astrocat

astrocat

Posted
Posted
Hi,

We just got back from a cruise on the Oceania Insignia. I had booked with Mario and he was great at getting back quick with emails. Very friendly.

 

We had his brother and he was wonderful. Wow ton's of history and a great driver. They were very accommodating even when our ship made a last min change of plans:

 

Our ship changed ports at the last min. because of winds. Mario's brother was waiting at the port I had told him. When we got off the ship we talked to a taxi driver and told him that we were trying to meet up with Mario. There was a taxi driver that could speak English said he had Mario's number. He was helpful and called Mario. Mario then called his brother to let him know we were at a different port. Mario came to meet us an hung with us till his brother arrived. They didn't even complain about our mix up or charge us more.

 

I would highly recommend both of them.

 

I would second that, we had a fantastic trip with them to Taormina last year .

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