RomeInLimo questions

[Angiet75]

I'm booking romeinlimo for some of my pre-cruise time in Rome, thanks to the many accolades here on CC. My questions:

1-They are suggesting an 8 hour tour with a driver, and a guide for the Vatican. Do we need a guide for other sites? Or is the driver usually knowledgeable enough to provide info?

2-Have you ever just gotten a guide at the Vatican rather than scheduled one in advance? If so, how did that work out? Did you still have to stand in line for tickets? Can you just visit the "church" on your own without tickets? (I obviously have lots more research to do! I visited Rome years ago, but I was on a tour and they took care of everything.)

3-Do you tip on top of the fee for the driver, or is it included?

 

4- Not a romeinlimo question, but has anyone ever done a day trip from Rome to Pompeii? Is that possible?

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks in advance for answers to my questions!

 

 

We just did 4 tours with romeinlimo last week. We did Messina, livorno, naples and rome . I say they are so worth it. We loved every port. The drivers were so knowledgable and so nice and so much better than a ship excursion ever could have been. We had maurizio as our driverin rome. So wonderful. I highly reccomend Romeinlimo. We were on the carnival legend from venice to Barcelona may 4-16 th

Edited May 23, 2013 by Angiet75

[garyb(uk)]

I have never had any trouble finding people to join any of the private tours I have organized. If anything, I have to turn people away. First, start with your Cruisecritic roll call. Second, even if you don't fill a tour prior to sailing, you should have no trouble finding people once onboard. Be patient because the overwhelming majority of people do not plan their excursions until shortly before sailing or well after sailing. From your day-to-day activities, you will find plenty of fellow passengers who have no idea what they will be doing in any particular port--even within a day or two of arriving at that port! :rolleyes: :p

 

So remember, MOST of the passengers on your sailing are NOT on CruiseCritic, nor do they plan ahead. CruiseCritic participants are far more organized and knowledgeable than the rest of the passengers. For many of these fellow passengers, when presented with a good private tour option, they will jump on it! And they will thank you for the excellent experience and huge cost savings! :)

 

As just an example, I once organized, booked and paid for a 17-person tour in Tunis--even though I only had maybe 10 people confirmed prior to sailing. Once onboard, I easily found another dozen or more people interested in this tour!

Ok just got back from our Med cruise and I can confirm what Terpnut says.

Sadly two of our people had to cancel their cruise just before sailing. By the time I got to my room I received a phone call from one of our Florence group from the Roll Call to say she had already signed up replacements for our excursion. Then during the Meet & Mingle 3 more people came up to me asking if the spaces were still available. I believe my wife also had an inquiry but sadly we had to turn those away.

 

So stay positive - use CC Roll Call to advertise your group and attend the M&M are my suggestions.

Edited May 24, 2013 by garyb(uk)

[laryco]

Good advise Gary...

[greener2]

We have booked this excursion for this August. We want to do Pompeii first to avoid the afternoon heat. We are wondering about the travel time to Positano from there. Will there be plenty of time to drive there, see the town and drive back, and of course hit the winery too! I have heard that the coastal route can get very busy and be slow. I'm sure RIL would not offer it if it wasn't doable but I'm just wondering if anyone out there has done this excursion and can comment on the timings. We sure wouldn't want to miss our ship!

[laryco]

We have booked this excursion for this August. We want to do Pompeii first to avoid the afternoon heat. We are wondering about the travel time to Positano from there. Will there be plenty of time to drive there, see the town and drive back, and of course hit the winery too! I have heard that the coastal route can get very busy and be slow. I'm sure RIL would not offer it if it wasn't doable but I'm just wondering if anyone out there has done this excursion and can comment on the timings. We sure wouldn't want to miss our ship!

 

Not sure on the drive times but They are very conscious of departure times

[Gracie115]

We have booked this excursion for this August. We want to do Pompeii first to avoid the afternoon heat. We are wondering about the travel time to Positano from there. Will there be plenty of time to drive there, see the town and drive back, and of course hit the winery too! I have heard that the coastal route can get very busy and be slow. I'm sure RIL would not offer it if it wasn't doable but I'm just wondering if anyone out there has done this excursion and can comment on the timings. We sure wouldn't want to miss our ship!

 

 

We did this tour with Pompeii first in 2012 with RIL and we were back at the ship well before it left, I believe around 4PM. We were first people into Pompeii because RIL picked us up at 8AM. You will have no problem seeing both in one day.

[barbon2]

Hi,

Used Rominlimo last week in Florence. They were terrific. Elizabeth was our driver. She was absolutely wonderful, we could not have asked for a better guide.

Barbara

[RASHOPPER2]

We had a most wonderful tour with Rome in Limo when we were in Livorno last week. Our guide/driver was Elizabetta, by far the best we have ever had. Her knowledge of the area and her insight into people are remarkable. I say the latter because although we had a winery on our schdule, she sensed that we really wanted to stay in Lucca to shop. She immediately suggested the change in itinerary that made all of us very happy.

I have dealt with Rome In Limo for several years now, and I find them to be a very reliable, responsive company that has excellent drivers and comfortable cars. Jany responds to emails immediately, and tries very hard to grant requests (We had Elizabetta three years ago and asked for her again - day before the tour Jany emailed me to say tht Elizabetta was our guide).

I highly recommend (and have recommended to friends) that you use Rome in Limo for touring in Italy. They are the very best. We have booked with them again for our tour of Orvieto in October.

[greener2]

Thank you!

 

Gracie 115 that is just what I was hoping to hear! I expected as much, but its nice to hear from someone who had done it.

[Gustavius]

I'm booking romeinlimo for some of my pre-cruise time in Rome, thanks to the many accolades here on CC. My questions:

1-They are suggesting an 8 hour tour with a driver, and a guide for the Vatican. Do we need a guide for other sites? Or is the driver usually knowledgeable enough to provide info?

2-Have you ever just gotten a guide at the Vatican rather than scheduled one in advance? If so, how did that work out? Did you still have to stand in line for tickets? Can you just visit the "church" on your own without tickets? (I obviously have lots more research to do! I visited Rome years ago, but I was on a tour and they took care of everything.)

3-Do you tip on top of the fee for the driver, or is it included?

 

4- Not a romeinlimo question, but has anyone ever done a day trip from Rome to Pompeii? Is that possible?

 

Thanks in advance for answers to my questions!

 

I can answer part of your questions. We have used Romeinlimo twice (and will again this summer, though this time it's just for a transfer). and we like them very, very much. We do always tip the driver. We have always done the Vatican on our own, but we have had little kids with us and don't want to have long explanations because they are too small to withstand them. Our experience with Romeinlimo is that they do a great job and are quite knowledgeable. We did other places outside Rome, including Civita di Bagnoreggio and Orvieto with them and did not need any other guide. They did a great job.

[bucketlist#1]

City of Rome & Naples - Sorrento, Positano & Pompeii

 

We used RIL in both of the above cities. The service we received was fantastic. In Naples Liberata (Libby) provided a wonderful commentary of all the sights and found us a terrific little spot for lunch in Sorrento. She also went out of her way to find us a little cafe overlooking the bay to have a drink and enjoy the sights. Our driver "Hugo" was excellent in traversing the winding roads of the Amalfi coast. Their friendly demeanor made the day very enjoyable.

In Rome we had Rolando who managed to keep the conversation going all the way from port to Rome (1 1/2 hours). He had great knowledge of the area and he also found us a "fantastic" little place for lunch. (Great price and lots of wine!!) The companies suggestion to buy our Vatican tickets in advance as well as Coloseum tickets saved us hours of waiting in line.

For both of these tours the groups were small, Naples - 14 and Rome - 8. This allowed us to get up close to many areas that the large coach buses cannot get to and allowed us to see many more sights.

Rome in Limo provided great service and this is the only company we will use when we return to Europe.

[Banana Bread]

Those that did positano, Pompeii and Sorrento where did you eat for lunch and what was the cost roughly pp?

[happy1000]

Those that did positano, Pompeii and Sorrento where did you eat for lunch and what was the cost roughly pp?

iL Leonne Rosse Ristorante Pizzeria was in Sortento & moderately price (approx 10 Euro per menu choice). Excellent food.

[Loonbeam]

Different drivers use different places, but that seems in the right price range. The most expensive lunch I can recall was in Rome and that was because we ordered extra items to taste them all and even then we didn't break 20 euros pp.

 

The place in Florence we went to near the Duomo was worth the cost of RIL alone almost. Amazing food in this little basement trattoria (no English at all, Driver translated menu before going to move the car).

 

BTW, do have cash for meals if you go to smaller places some don't take CC. (Florence did not, rome and livorno did)

 

iL Leonne Rosse Ristorante Pizzeria was in Sortento & moderately price (approx 10 Euro per menu choice). Excellent food.

[Northern Aurora]

Those that did positano, Pompeii and Sorrento where did you eat for lunch and what was the cost roughly pp?

 

We were on a Rome in Limo Pompeii, Positano and Sorrento tour earlier this month, and also ate at il Leone Rosso in Sorrento. At least three Rome in Limo groups were there. I think everyone in our group of eight was pleased with the food, and while I don't remember the price, it wasn't expensive.

[samavarcruiser]

Those that did positano, Pompeii and Sorrento where did you eat for lunch and what was the cost roughly pp?

 

We were not on RIL tour but had a great lunch in "La tagliata" restaurant, amazing food, great view and not expensive at all.

[notentirelynormal]

We were not on RIL tour but had a great lunch in "La tagliata" restaurant, amazing food, great view and not expensive at all.

 

That's where RIL took us for lunch. Great place.

[garyb(uk)]

we just returned from our first ever cruise. we used RIL for both Pisa/Florence (Elisabetta was our guide) and for Rome (Maurizio was our guide plus RIL booked Serena as our Vatican guide [ask for her if you can]).

 

We had two members of our group with walking sticks and found RIL excellent getting to see far more than we dreamed of whilst driving right to where everything was thus restricting walking as much as possible.

 

We booked a couple of ship excursions in Spain and came away feeling that we had wasted our opportunity there. This wasn't the case with RIL. I highly recommend them and certainly would use them again.

[Gracie115]

we just returned from our first ever cruise. we used RIL for both Pisa/Florence (Elisabetta was our guide) and for Rome (Maurizio was our guide plus RIL booked Serena as our Vatican guide [ask for her if you can]). .

 

 

Serena is wonderful....she made our Vatican tour very special!!

Edited May 29, 2013 by Gracie115

[jtagphillycruiser]

I just returned from the 5/17/13 sailing on board the Carnival Sunshine. We utilized 3 RIL tours for Florence/Pisa; Rome Highlights & Pompeii/Sorrento/Positano all under the name of "Raphael". All three of our drivers were excellent. Our handsome driver for Pisa and Florence was wonderful. Vinny was our driver in Rome and took very good care of us. He made sure we saw everything - all the highlights - without being rushed. He made certain that our guide in the Vatican met us & was there with us every step of the way. Our guide in the Vatican (I'm sorry I do not remember her name) was very good & knowledgeable & spoke excellent English. Tony, our guide for Positano was outstanding. So charming, but very intelligent and knowledgeable. He even gave us a wifi hot spot inside his van. The lunch spot in Sorrento was outstanding & the lemincello he gave to us at the end of the meal was a highlight. The private guide for Pompeii (a pleasant lady) was very good, as well. She spoke directly to us and pointed out so many fascinating things. Definitely book with Rome in Limo. You will not be disappointed.

[mynyddisamrs]

we just returned from our first ever cruise. we used RIL for both Pisa/Florence (Elisabetta was our guide) and for Rome (Maurizio was our guide plus RIL booked Serena as our Vatican guide [ask for her if you can]).

 

We were on these tours too and can also say we had a great time with RIL. The mini buses used meant we could drive close to the must see sights and we were able to see some of the lovely countryside in Florence too. Drivers and Vatican guide were excellent. Thanks RIL.

[momandherson]

We recently returned from NCL Spirit's Grand Med, and we used Rome in Limo for two tours: Rome Highlights and Vatican, and Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano from the Naples port.

 

We enjoyed both days with a fun group of eight! Our guides were Nik in Rome and Nicole at the Vatican; Giovanni was our driver in Naples and Costance Cacage was our guide at Pompeii. All were very knowledgeable and we would recommend them all.

[CupKayke]

We returned from our European adventure two weeks ago today. We used Rome in Limo for a full day Amalfi Coast tour... from Naples to Sorrento to Positano to Amalfi to Ravello and back. Tony was our wonderful guide! It was a wonderful, breathtaking day! We had a nice lunch at an outdoor restaurant with a view of the ships and the water - somewhere between Amalfi and Ravello.

 

I wrote a full review of our trip and of our day with Rome in Limo. The link is below in my signature.

[CFamilyWales]

We visited Roma on the 18th May and we booked Rome In Limo from our previous Cruise excursion experience with them in Naples last year.

From the communication in advance with Jany, who was very prompt in feedback to Mike our Driver and Nicole, our Vatican Tour Guide….they did not let us down.

Mike was there early to meet us off our Cruise Ship and for the next hour and a half provided a wealth of information on the day and Roma.

Our comfortable 8 seater luxury mini van allowed us to places where Cruise ship excursions are simply not allowed so we got to within yards of the main areas including the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, The Coliseum and outside The Vatican Museum. Drop off and collection was so simple.

This also allowed us to see other areas of the City with a fantastic insight from Mike together with memorable photographs with views over the City.

A few tips for the day:

Most definitely book tickets in advance, Mike took our tickets and breezed us passed the queues, we were in The Coliseum in no time.

Get information on sites in advance such as Rick Steves podcast of The Coliseum, this will help beat the queues inside.

We strongly suggest a Tour Guide for The Vatican Museum, we were focussed and so better informed with Nicole sharing information as we toured the site rather than walk aimlessly as so many other did.

On the day we visited arrangements had to be changed due to Vatican implemented plans so we were not allowed to visit the Basilica or indeed get into St Peters Square, however Nicole reduced her guide fee and Mike bought Us a Gelati in readiness for the return journey back to the Port…at least we have a reason to visit again.

All in all we had a thrilling day and the 3 other couples who joined us have since confirmed the excursion in Roma with RIL was the highlight of the Cruise, we definitely agree.

Do not hesitate to consider RIL, there are so many benefits over a Cruise Company organised excursion.

 

Anthony, Colesfamilywales.

[TravelingAPor]

jtagphillycruiser: I am thinking of booking RIL for Florence. However, I'm real interested in your Sunshine cruise. How was it, on the Sunshine? Did you write a review? Thanks for any info you have on the Sunshine! I'm hoping it will be finished by July. :)