Thread: med cruise in fall

Hello we will arrice in Venice Sept 29th 2008 with an overnight on board ship( Zuiderdam) ( anyone out there on this cruise??) Our first time on Med cruise ..I am a little overwhelmed as to what shore excurasions(is it wise to set up tours that are not from the ship??) to pick...esp for Rome, Naples and Florence. Also, what are the best choices for Venice excursions : we will be there overnight. So many questions!! We arrive in Barcelona with an overnight with next day departure Oct 11.. I see no tour options..What is the best way to see things here..Hoping to find some guidance and Thanks in advance !!

Hi there. First off, welcome to CLF. Sorry it took so long, but I just found your post. I'm not sure many have seen it here. I went to the roll call section for the dates you posted and I think this link may be helpful.


http://www.cruiselinefans.com/zuider...11-2008-a.html

Have a wonderful cruise. I hope you have checked out some of the other info here at CLF. I've never been to the Med. so can't help you, YET. I have my first trip to Rome planned for Nov. with a Transatlantic cruise to FL. I KNOW how slow time goes when we are waiting, so talking about it helps. There are so many friendly people here, I hope someone with some experience can answer some of your questions. Anyway, the link to a roll call for someone else on the same ship and dates, at least part of them, you posted. I hope it helps. Cindy

Originally Posted by cherie59

Hello we will arrice in Venice Sept 29th 2008 with an overnight on board ship( Zuiderdam) ( anyone out there on this cruise??) Our first time on Med cruise ..I am a little overwhelmed as to what shore excurasions(is it wise to set up tours that are not from the ship??) to pick...esp for Rome, Naples and Florence. Also, what are the best choices for Venice excursions : we will be there overnight. So many questions!! We arrive in Barcelona with an overnight with next day departure Oct 11.. I see no tour options..What is the best way to see things here..Hoping to find some guidance and Thanks in advance !!

I didnt see this post either.

First of all. taking a private tour is safe and if you manage to get 6-8 people together it will work out cheaper then the ships tours! A privat tour is also the best option if you want a more personal experience, a more informative and in depth tour. I prefer to either do a "on your own" tour from the ship or hire a private driver-guide.
Remeber that cruises in Europe are more port intensive then, lets say the Caribbean, so it requires more planning as to what you want to see. One thing for sure is that you can not manage to see and do it all. Unless you want to wear yourself out totaly..
Read as much as possible about each port, get hold of a map and plot in what you want to see and do in each port.

In our "Cruise Places" thread and "Mediterranean Ports" you will find lots of information.
Threads to looks out for is "Venice port information", "Chivitavecchia to Rome", "Amalfi coast-Capri"
Those threads have a wealth of information.

In Naples I would do a private tour of Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast. If you want to do Capri I would suggest to do it with the ships tour.
Florence, The distance between sights are easily walkable so you could do a "Florence on your own" tour from the ship.
In Rome you also could do a "Rome on your own" tour. You could either walk or take a taxi between the sights.
In Barcelona you can walk and-or take a taxi between sights. You can also do one of those jump on jump off tourist buses. They are a good option too.
Dont miss the Sagrada Famillia but there is not need to climp the stairs up to the towers. Dont miss the food market "La Boqueria", its on the Rambla.Go in the morning and just walk around and take in the sights and sounds of all types of food. Have something to eat at the Pinotxo bar, just on the right as you enter. The restaurant has the freshest local food!!!!

Hope this has been of some help.
If you have more questions please feel free to ask.
It would be interesting to hear what you have decided to do

lars

Originally Posted by lmyren

....snip....
If you need any recommendation for privat tour companies I have some I can email you.
Hope this has been of some help.
If you have more questions please feel free to ask.

It would be interesting to hear what you have decided to do

lars

Lars, it's OK to post the company links here for all our folks to see When a member does it to help another member who has asked, it is not considered spam.

"edited 03.30 @11.00 pm"

Ok, here are some link to touring companies.

Naples

sorrento car service Francesco Marrapese Sorrento private driver

www.aptours.it

Limousine service in Sorrento Naples Positano Amalfi Ravello

sorrento limousines | limousines car service in sorrento and the amalfi coast

Rome


ROME'S AWARD WINNING ENGLISH-SPEAKING ROME LIMO, ROME AIRPORT TRANSFER, ROME CIVITAVECCHIA PORT LIMOUSINES, FIUMICINO da VINCI AIRPORT, & ROME TOURING SERVICES

Limousine service Rome, Limousines Roma

Limousine service Rome - Rome in Limo



Florence-Livorno

Florence is so compact that a map and a good pair of shoes is enough.

Driving Guide Tours - Home Page Coming Soon

Livorno Florence Naples cruise ship services shore excursion taxi tour–Papillon Service


Barcelona

Barcelona Tour Guides: Your private tour guide in Barcelona

here is the link to the Barcelona tourst buses (jump on jump off)
I find them a good and funny tour option.
TMB: Barcelona Bus Turístic

if someone has used other companies i would love to hear their comments

Here is another site I usually check out before travelling.
It can make your trip just that much more rewarding

World Events Guide | World Events Guide

Thanks Lars!

Yes, thank you very much, Lars. I'll check out some of the links later. I'm not into research at the moment, thinking about getting ready for work and which drug I can take to get rid of this oncoming cold. I'll check out the links soon. Thanks again.

Originally Posted by CruisinCindy55

Yes, thank you very much, Lars. I'll check out some of the links later. I'm not into research at the moment, thinking about getting ready for work and which drug I can take to get rid of this oncoming cold. I'll check out the links soon. Thanks again.

Have you tried Echinacea to fight off your cold???
The herb is really good. Take 15-20 pills the first day you feel a cold comming on. Then the second day aprox 15 pills, third day 10 pills...Take them until you feel 100 prosent again!!
It works!!

Echinacea.....
......"Echinacea is a "preventative" herb. Not used in any modern commercial drugs today but Echinacea is heralded by many herbalists as one of the very best blood purifiers and an effective antibiotic. Its contains a natural antibiotic that makes it an effective, broad-based infection fighter. It is considered an immune system stimulant which increases production of infection fighting T cells. It is believed to strengthen the body's tissues and protect from attacks of invasive germs.
Echinacea is generally a very safe herb with side effects being very rare even when taken in large doses"