Celebrity Pompeii Tour 3.5 hr Small Group

[Ironore88]

Greetings,  

 

We are looking at Celebrity shore excursions for Pompeii and considering the 3.5 hr small group tour vs the 4 hr tour.  Just seeking your thoughts, two of the four of us have been to Pompeii.  
 

Many thanks...

[NMTraveller]

I would consider the long tour that also goes to the Amalfi coast.  

[Northern Aurora]

I realize you asked about a Celebrity shore excursion, but have you considered using RomeinLimo for your small group?  We used RomeinLimo several years ago and had them schedule a private guide.  It was excellent.

[WestCoastFlyer]

We also used RomeInLimo for a private Pompeii tour.  It was one of the best experiences we could have had.  No large group, easy to hear our guide, went at our own pace. Highly recommend them.  We used them in Rome too. 

[thepoint]

Do some research on private tours available in each port.  We used Joe Bananas private tours numerous times.  They are fantastic.  Decide what you want to see and how long you want to be there.  Design your tour to fit your needs.   

[4774Papa]

You can walk a short distance from the port, take the train to Pompeii and get a guide there.

[bubbachief]

8 hours ago, 4774Papa said:

You can walk a short distance from the port, take the train to Pompeii and get a guide there.

If you do, be alert for pickpockets. They lurk around the train station looking for tourists.

We had a near miss several years ago.

Edited January 12, 2020 by bubbachief

[cachouonacruise]

We took the train from Rome to Napoli. From the Napoli train station, we had a private transfer planned from Napoli to Positano with a stop in Pompeii.

 

Via the private transfer, we booked a guide for our 3 hours Pompeïi visit.

 

The Pompeïi site is quite large. A thorough detailed visit could easily take up to 2 days.

 

This said, we were very satisfied with our 3 hours tour. It really helped us better understand what really happened in Pompeïi and see the most significant vestiges. However, we skipped the area where there was a big line up to focus on other elements. 

 

In conclusion, a guided tour in my opinion is a must. 3.5 or 4 hours would not make a huge difference for most ordinary tourists. (Some visitors have more in depth interests in history and architecture, and for these visitors, a longer visit would be justified).

[NMTraveller]

3 hours ago, bubbachief said:

If you do, be alert for pickpockets. They lurk around the train station looking for tourists.

We had a near miss several years ago.

We had an attempt on our excursion in Pisa.  It is Italy.  Pickpockets galore and they are very good.  I would skip public transportation.  Our guide in Florence watched our backs while observing the Ponte Vecchio.

Most excursions talk about the issue.

Edited January 13, 2020 by NMTraveller

[4774Papa]

16 hours ago, bubbachief said:

If you do, be alert for pickpockets. They lurk around the train station looking for tourists.

We had a near miss several years ago.

Great advice.  Italy is almost as bad as Barcelona for pickpockets.

I wear a money belt and wife has a pack safe purse.  We usually leave the passports in the cabin safe and only take enough cash  for one day and one credit card.

[Ironore88]

Thank you so much for your response....now to make the decision.  Enjoy your evening!  

[Jokerkimmie]

My friends and I booked RomeinLimo for 2 separate private excursions for both Rome and another for the Amalfi Coast including Pompeii in 2016. They picked us at the ship both times. The guides were excellent! We even had separate guides for both Pompeii and the Vatican. Highly recommend.

[agathasmum]

Look into doing a private tour. You could also do Herculaneum as well as Pompeii and even squeeze in the Stabian villas.

[rachiem]

We used Pompeiisightseeing...now called Capri sightseeing.

Picked you up in port and you could do a number of tours or just a shuttle. We took a shuttle from the port to Herculaneum and then on to Pompei.

A fraction of the price of the organised ships tour and nice small groups.

[mickey89]

On 1/11/2020 at 11:55 PM, Ironore88 said:

 

We are looking at Celebrity shore excursions for Pompeii and considering the 3.5 hr small group tour vs the 4 hr tour.  Just seeking your thoughts, two of the four of us have been to Pompeii.  
 

See if you can organise you own small group via your Roll Call on CC.   I would highlight recommend https://www.aldolimos.com  they are an excellent local tour company.  The average cost is about €500 for a group of 8 or check their website as they do Shared Group tours which you could join, they pick up at the port and return back to the port.  Definitely better than a Ship tour.

Edited January 15, 2020 by mickey89