How far in advance do you book private tours?

[SF]

I'm wondering how far in advance people book their private tours to places like Rome, Naples, Athens, Amalfi Coast, Florence........etc

[davejohn]

I just booked private tours in Rome and Naples for our May 12th cruise. I didn't have a problem, but it may be busier in the summer months.

 

Dave

[Susan-M]

We booked 6 months in advance for DriveAmalfi - but knowing how popular some of these drivers are, I wouldn't hesitate to contact them earlier than that.

[ama22]

I booked Paul in Athens and Drive Amalfi's Salvatore in Amalfi in February for our Sept cruise. From what I've read on CC, the most popular driver/guides book up quickly.

 

Mary Lou

[MVPinBoynton]

We contact guides shortly after booking a cruise and doing research. Since we normally book a year in advance, they put our name down for the reservation and we get in touch with them to confirm later on. You can't be too early with some of the better guides.

[Nanatravel]

I booked private tours as soon as I had the total number of people committed to share the tour and cost. I got info on several companies, narrowed it down, and choose the agent/tour company. Some just want a credit card number to hold the reservation, others want $$ or a credit card deposit that they will process.

Bon Voyage

Nanatravel

[Bsan1221]

I try to book my tours right after I book my cruise

[mahdnc]

We booked our upcoming Med cruise 14 months in advance and some of our private drivers 12 months in advance.

[NAS-KARR]

Like many other op's, we booked out private driver/guides anywhere from 8 to 14 months in advance, all depended upon when we finalized each destination's plans, THERE IS NO SET RULE AS TO "WHEN".

 

CIAO,

[longislandfamily]

While many people mentioned that they booked 12 months in advance, do not despair if you have less time. We didn't find Cruise Critic until March 2006 for our end of July 2006 cruise, at the height of the summer vacation season. Somehow, it worked out that we booked private guides in each city and got some of the best, booking just 3-4 months in advance.

[ILoveScotland]

I booked Paul in Athens and Drive Amalfi's Salvatore in Amalfi in February for our Sept cruise. From what I've read on CC, the most popular driver/guides book up quickly.

 

Mary Lou

 

What can you tell me about Paul in Athens and where to find more information? Thanks.

[Mama1194]

How did you find a private driver?

[mahdnc]

Mama1194,

 

The best way I found was to scour Cruise Critic (especially this Mediterranean forum) for the names of the (good) private drivers. Using the search function (such as entering in "private driver Rome") for example is an easy way to find the many threads that discuss drivers. Inevitably someone in the posts within the thread the driver's email address by request and you can contact them directly to find out price and availability. I found Athens to have the fewest drivers (good English and non-smoking) available by far so that was where I started first.

 

For our upcoming June Mediterranean cruise aboard Millennium, we are using Paul (Athens), Guido (Pisa/Florence), Stefano (Rome), Nello (Pompeii/Amalfi), and Michel (Villefranche). If you are interested in their email addresses or more information about them, email me at mahdnc at yahoo dot com.

 

David