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Getting off the ship at the Ports of Call


MicDay

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We are doing a Mediterranean Cruise booked on the Allure May 10th, 2020

I want to book private excursions to three of the five ports.

Realistically what time would you except to get off the ship to meet your driver?

We are just Gold level and we are not in a suite nor do we have the Key package.  

There will be 6 adults.

From what I've read all dock so no tenders

The Ports are:

Florence/ Pisa  the port times are 8:30am- 8:30pm

Rome (Civitavecchia) the port times are 7am- 8pm

Naples the port times are 7am- 6:30pm

We want to be the off as soon as possible to make the most of our time at these ports.

 

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Europe sailings have some great private companies, these companies are well aware of ships arrival and departure.  each time i have used there was never a problem with a company.   you will receive ample communication from the company with time and all way beforehand plus emails directly from them if any changes and reminders while you are on the ship.  there was always a guide waiting patiently until all guests for private tour arrived from ship.  company knows ship has to be cleared by port authority and passengers will all be eager to disembark so dont worry at all.

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Thanks!

They asked me to put a time down so I choose a half hour after the time listed on the RCCL site for my cruise.

When we cruised last May, I waited a bit so we were not crowed the poor crew and being in the way.

I still don’t want to be a pain but I know I will be super excited to get off ASAP!

 

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4 hours ago, bobroo said:

Nothing against private operators, but most experienced European cruisers will tell you that not taking a ships excursion in Civitavecchia is just plain foolish.

Jus' say'n.

Wow, seriously?

I’ve read so many books and threads, I’ve heard both sides of it.

The problem is RCCL doesn’t have the key things we want to see.  There is so much in Rome, we made a list of our top three.  That is what we are focusing on.

Ok, experience European Cruisers, am I being foolish?

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1 hour ago, MicDay said:

Wow, seriously?

I’ve read so many books and threads, I’ve heard both sides of it.

The problem is RCCL doesn’t have the key things we want to see.  There is so much in Rome, we made a list of our top three.  That is what we are focusing on.

Ok, experience European Cruisers, am I being foolish?

Just remember that all aboard is 30 minutes before scheduled departure, and there can be a line, so you really need to be back an hour early.  And if you are concerned about traffic back from Rome (or anywhere else), you fudge it another hour.  So don't schedule every last minute of your day in Rome.  I would skip dinner in Rome and eat on the ship, for example, as dining can kill your free time.  We used Royal's excursions on our Med cruise, and one port (Livorno) had horrible beach traffic in the summer -- we were nearly late.  We found we were tired after 6 or 7 hours in port.  By 2 or 3 PM we were ready to head back to the ship.  A port-intensive cruise itinerary can wear you down. 

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56 minutes ago, MicDay said:

Thank you.

First time on this site I felt a bit upset.  To say I’m foolish because I did my research and made a decision based off of that research.

 

It's not personal, it's just that the traffic and summer congestion of Rome can be overwhelming. I'm sure your tour operator will be well familiar and adjust accordingly.

 

If you would like to get off any ship as soon as possible there are a couple ways to get ahead of the masses. One, find out ahead of time where to disembark. Get a couple opinions to verify. That morning, get as close to that spot as possible--early!  Another way is to make friends with a person who has stripes and ask them for the favor to escort you out. The C & A person is the person I would start with. 

 

 

 

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when working with private tour companies just verify guarantee back to ship on time and read reviews online from other people who have used that particular company.  as far as Rome, it can be busy at some of the main attractions for one and second you must allow a good hour drive each way back and forth to the port.  if you go with ship excursion there is going to be probably a large number of people so you are going to be on a group agenda which to me isnt always the best if you want to spend more time doing something and go at your own pace.   just weigh all your options before you assume your only option is utilizing a ship excursion.  i have done many excursions thru tour operators in Europe ports that were much more quality, small groups and cheaper than a ship excursion and ending up being much more rewarding with so many memories.

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In 2014 we used a private tour operator for each of these 3 stops and don't regret it one bit. In fact, i would highly recommend it! For the Rome segment, we were picked up somewhere between 7 and 8AM, don't remember exactly and we had a fun and very active day. We saw pretty much all of the main attractions in Rome, Pantheon, Coliseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain (which unfortunately was being renovated at the time) as well as a driving tour of the city. Our guide took us to a local restaurant that we had him recommend for lunch and we ended our day with a 2 hour tour of the Vatican which the tour company set us up with our own personal guide to show us around. We honestly think that these private tours really made that cruise a step above what it would have been had we done the ship's excursions.

And we made it back on time! ?

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5 hours ago, Mturk said:

In 2014 we used a private tour operator for each of these 3 stops and don't regret it one bit. In fact, i would highly recommend it! For the Rome segment, we were picked up somewhere between 7 and 8AM, don't remember exactly and we had a fun and very active day. We saw pretty much all of the main attractions in Rome, Pantheon, Coliseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain (which unfortunately was being renovated at the time) as well as a driving tour of the city. Our guide took us to a local restaurant that we had him recommend for lunch and we ended our day with a 2 hour tour of the Vatican which the tour company set us up with our own personal guide to show us around. We honestly think that these private tours really made that cruise a step above what it would have been had we done the ship's excursions.

And we made it back on time! ?

Thank you!

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  • 4 weeks later...
On 1/28/2020 at 10:32 AM, Mturk said:

In 2014 we used a private tour operator for each of these 3 stops and don't regret it one bit. In fact, i would highly recommend it! For the Rome segment, we were picked up somewhere between 7 and 8AM, don't remember exactly and we had a fun and very active day. We saw pretty much all of the main attractions in Rome, Pantheon, Coliseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain (which unfortunately was being renovated at the time) as well as a driving tour of the city. Our guide took us to a local restaurant that we had him recommend for lunch and we ended our day with a 2 hour tour of the Vatican which the tour company set us up with our own personal guide to show us around. We honestly think that these private tours really made that cruise a step above what it would have been had we done the ship's excursions.

And we made it back on time! ?

Which private tour operator did you use?

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On 1/28/2020 at 4:47 AM, SMOKEY0202 said:

when working with private tour companies just verify guarantee back to ship on time and read reviews online from other people who have used that particular company.  as far as Rome, it can be busy at some of the main attractions for one and second you must allow a good hour drive each way back and forth to the port.  if you go with ship excursion there is going to be probably a large number of people so you are going to be on a group agenda which to me isnt always the best if you want to spend more time doing something and go at your own pace.   just weigh all your options before you assume your only option is utilizing a ship excursion.  i have done many excursions thru tour operators in Europe ports that were much more quality, small groups and cheaper than a ship excursion and ending up being much more rewarding with so many memories.

Which tour operators did you use?

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for Rome i have used Walks of Italy, When in Rome tours, Vinebliss trip, Avventure Bellissime.   research what you want to do and utilize Project Expedition for options available.  you can see who the tour operator will be for that specific option.  if you book directly thru Project Expedition they use reliable reputable tour operators.  even reach out to the tour company directly with any questions or concerns or Project Expedition.  sometimes excursions i did were not only cheaper but much better than what i heard from people who did ship excursions.  I travel to different parts of Europe every year and very rarely use a shore excursion from ship unless its a tender. 

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On 1/27/2020 at 10:48 AM, SMOKEY0202 said:

Europe sailings have some great private companies, these companies are well aware of ships arrival and departure.  each time i have used there was never a problem with a company.   you will receive ample communication from the company with time and all way beforehand plus emails directly from them if any changes and reminders while you are on the ship.  there was always a guide waiting patiently until all guests for private tour arrived from ship.  company knows ship has to be cleared by port authority and passengers will all be eager to disembark so dont worry at all.

 

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We did the Med cruise on Royal a couple of summers ago.  It was Summer, it was hot, it was crowded.   We survived! 

We booked all of our own excursions, none through the ship.

We saw Florence and Pisa the same day.

We saw Vatican City and Rome/Colosseum.

We did Pompeii on our own and a Vespa scooter ride in Naples.

We took a cab from Marseille to Cassis and hung out on the beach all day.

We tendered to Villefranche , took the bus to Nice, and explored on our own.

It was an amazing trip.   The trains were on strike one day, there were accidents on the Italian highway another day, and my son got accosted by a street vendor in Florence.  All part of the fun.  The guides we booked were always waiting for us when we got off the ship and returned us in plenty of time.   Never in danger of getting back too late.  

You can do it too.

 

 

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Civitavecchia is indeed a long drive from Rome, so take that into account. But as said by others, these private companies can't afford not to drop you off on time - it will ruin their business.

As mentioned, request to get back to the ship early (like 2 hrs prior to the all aboard time) and stick to it. Chances are that if you are stuck in traffic - the cruise tour may be as well.

Take a picture of the port authorities info - in case you would be late - at least you can call someone

in the even that you would not make it, travelling to the next port is not the biggest issue, there are plenty of ways of transportation - but this will cost you money

If you can, stay in Rome/Italy a few days prior/after the cruise, so much to see!

 

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