Information about shuttle busses in each port

[Alicop21]

Hello. We'll be sailing with Princess for the first time next summer to the Mediterranean. (Sky Princess, August 10)

We've only ever sailed with P&O before so completely aware that cruise lines do things differently but I'm struggling to find out any info about each port of call. Apart from a couple of lines about each stop, there only seems to be info about the (very expensive excursions) and nothing about the local area and info on shuttle busses etc. 

We don't want to do a trip at every port but it would be good to know in advance about if and where shuttle busses drop you off.

Am I missing something or a section of the Princess website?

[david63]

6 minutes ago, Alicop21 said:

Am I missing something

No you are not missing anything.

 

Unfortunately Princess are not as good as P&O with their port information - in fact on our Princess cruise earlier this year at the port talks there was virtually no information other than, as you say, their own expensive excursions.

[cr8tiv1]

As you get closer to your cruise, you will find port/city information on your app.  You will need to click the download to view.  Image is VERY small and not enough quality to enlarge to print.  Princess...USED TO have printed port information in your stateroom or as you left the ship.  Did away will all any printed copies.  Too bad.  

 

As for "free shuttles" there were NONE for the Japan cruise or recent New England cruise provided by Princess.  Can't speak for Mediterranean.

Edited November 19, 2023 by cr8tiv1

[Rick&Jeannie]

Princess just doesn’t seem to want to provide much info for activities that would "take business away" from their own ship excursions. I find it sometimes useful to go over into the specific port of call forum sections here on CC and do a bit of research or just ask specific questions. 

[skynight]

There is no Cruise Critic roll call for your trip. You may wish to start one. A roll call can attract fellow passengers and you can plan trips together. 

[karatemom2]

We did a very similar itinerary on the Sky this past summer so I can offer some insights about most of your ports. We primarily did private excursions as opposed to ship excursions. The one exception was Civitavecchia because we wanted to maximize our day in Rome and with travel time we just felt the ship excursion, although expensive, offered us the best opportunity to see things that were a high priority without worrying about directions, transportation or time constraints. We did a full day tour there through Princess that offered an extensive tour of the Colosseum, Roman Forum, and Vatican along with city highlights. It was well worth the investment. 
 

There are shuttles available in Livorno,  Barcelona and Civitavecchia but I believe there is a small charge. As I recall the one in Barcelona drops you off near the Columbus statue. Livorno and Civitavecchia just drop you in town - both of these places primarily being industrial cities, so not much to see or do there. Most people are visiting these ports as jumping off places for Rome and Florence. Alghero is a tender port and the tender drop off is right at the dock in the old town area which is very walkable so no need to worry about transportation there. We did not stop in your other two ports of Toulon or Valencia, so I’m not much help there. We stopped in Cadiz and Marseilles instead. 
 

I can share what we did do in our common ports. I’ve already outlined our choice for Rome. In Barcelona it was very easy to get a taxi from the port - we went to the Gothic Quarter in the morning and spent time exploring there and had lunch. And then we caught another taxi to Sagrada Familia for our prebooked afternoon tour followed by a taxi back to the ship. In Livorno we booked a tour to Pisa and Florence through Italy Tours EU and they picked us up and retuned us directly to the ship. In Alghero we booked a private boat tour to Neptune’s Grotto in the morning and then just explored the old city by foot. Very easy. 
 

I would encourage you to start a Roll Call as has been suggested to see if you can find some fellow cruisers who may want to share tours or transportation. Also, check out the Ports of Call board for more information on options available in each port. 

[Paula_MacFan]

I would caution you against relying too much on the Port Guides in the app and on the TV staterooms.  On our European cruise last month there was a lot of incorrect information on the Port Guides such as references to the wrong dock area, amenities offered, and available shuttles and excursions.  I echo the other posters' suggestions to do some research on your own in advance and make some plans accordingly.  I've found a simple Google search will typically reveal an official website with schedules for most ports.  Then you can determine exactly where you'll dock and see what options you have outside of ship tours.  In some ports a ship's excursion makes sense, and in others you can easily do plenty of activities on your own.  

 

Good luck in your planning 🙂 

[Hlitner]

Like most cruise lines, Princess is all about selling their overpriced (and profitable) shore excursions, Accordingly, they do very little to promote or even inform folks about port shuttles.  If there are shuttles, they are either provided by the port (sometimes free such as in Civitavecchia) or for a fee (sold by Princess).   Most port lectures onboard are designed to sell the overpriced excursions, and in the past, we have even heard some port lectures that discouraged folks doing their own thing.  My strong suggestion is to do your own pre-cruise homework (the Ports of Call blog here on CC is a good starting place) and know your options.  In some ports you might be able to get free shuttles provided by the port or even walk out of the port.  In other ports you might find that sharing a taxi is the best option.

 

Hank

[PacnGoNow]

Another good source is www.whatsinport.com 

and of course check the cruise critic forum.

 

Once OB, some of the destination specialists will advise about shuttles, while others will not.

[SCX22]

In Livorno, Princess shuttle bus is free and drops you off at Piazza del Municipio.  You cannot walk in the port area because it's an industrial port.

 

In Barcelona, Princess shuttle bus is $10 and drops you off in front World Trade Center.  If you take the Port Bus it's 4 Euros round trip and also drops you off in front of the World Trade Center.  Port bus will stop at every terminal.  Not sure if Princess will be using the new port in Tarragona, but the shuttle will no doubt cost $$$ because its an hour out of Barcelona.

 

In Civitavecchia, the Port Mobility bus is free to Lago della Pace.  From Lago della Pace the Port Mobility bus to the Civtavecchia train station is 6 Euro.

 

In Bilbao, the Princess shuttle bus is free to downtown Bilbao because the port is 20 minutes from town in Getxo.  The shuttle bus drops off in front of the Museum of Fine Arts.

 

In Gibraltar, the public shuttle (vans) 5 Pounds one way and drops you off at City Hall.

 

In La Seyne, Princess shuttle (a ferry) is $35 round trip to Toulon.  The public ferry is 2 Euro one way to Toulon.  Both drop off in the Toulon waterfront within meters of each other.

 

In Piraeus, public bus X80 is 5 Euro for an all day pass, and takes you from Theomosicles Terminal B directly to downtown Athens.  Alternatively you can take public bus 843 to Piraeus Metro Station and take the Metro to Athens and get off at Monastiraki.

 

This is as of November 2023.