As Roger says... get as much info as you can from the ships staff...they usually do 'port talks' with loads of info on how to do it yourself...
We have done Rome from Civitavecchia by train it was 9 euros return each which also covered the metro and buses (although we didn't use buses) it is easy to do...catch port shuttle to port entrance and then walk to the right along the sea front for about five minutes and the station is on the left...validate your ticket in the yellow machine on the wall before you go onto the platform...if you don't do this you may have to pay a fine..there will be lots of others off the ship also catching the train....you can get off at St Pietro (St Peters) and do that area (we felt it would be too much to do the lot in one day so saved it for next time) or go to the end of the line Terminii and do the centre of Rome .... we then got the metro (only two lines) to the Colosseum and walked from there past the forum to the Trevi fountain and then to Spanish Steps where we caught the Metro back to the Terminii station....there are signposts pointing the way to go and we found it really easy stopping now and again for coffee, cakes and icecream!!!!! the train takes an hour and a half-ish and we left Rome around 3.00 ish to make sure we were back to sail at 6.00 ish....
The train timetables are on the trenitalia website...and you can get the metro maps as well if you google it.

We did a ships trip to Pompeii which we found interesting and not too pricey. Can't help with others unless there is a trip to Taormina from Trapani (not sure how far it is from there) ...Taormina is a lovely town in the side of the cliff with views of Mount Etna if the weather is good.

Hope this helps !!

We have only done one ship's excursion in 12 cruises and that was to Pompeii. I would recommend it as the guide was extremely informative and we would have missed out on so much if we had done it on our own.

Rome is very easy and cheap to do DIY. We caught the train as has been mentioned already and got off at Terminii station. Check the trains times on http://www.trenitalia.com We bought a map from one of the many stalls and managed to see all the main attractions including the Colosseum, forum, Spanish Steps, Trevi fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navonna, etc. We even went inside the Colosseum which a lot of the tours don't have time to do as about 2 hours is spent having lunch. We took a bus to the Vatican, but didn't have time to go inside the Sistine Chapel on our first visit so we made sure we went there first on our next visit.

For Mahon, make sure you are up on deck early for the sail in as it is quite spectacular.

luci

Thank you Roger,Judy and Luci....very informative information...I was intending to do Pompeii on an organised trip as I feel a proper guide would be needed for information to appreciate it more.
I was told for Rome you can pick up the services of a guide when you get there if you feel you need it

Hi.

We're taking our first ever cruise (and stay) holiday in January 2012, "Red Sea Magic" on Thomson Celebration.

The ports of call are Aquaba, Port Sokhna, Safaga. I've looked through this thread and can't find any reference to any of these places (admittedly I may have missed any relevant posts!) so any information anyone can offer about possible DIY excursions etc. would be most gratefully received.

TIA.

Jeff

We have a topic on the Red Sea Magic HERE which may have some information. If you post in that topic it may attract the attention of any members who have subscribed to it.

luci

We have done the Red Sea itinerary twice but never done independent trips.....in our experience the only place where you might perhaps get a taxi is Aqaba....the best place to go from there is the Rose Red city of Petra and Thomson do a good excursion with a guide and Lunch...it will seem expensive but is worth every penny in my opinion for a 'once in a lifetime' experience...they also do excursions to the Dead Sea and Wadi Rum.....we have also caught the shuttle into town and had a wander around there without being hassled (unusual for middle eastern countries!!)
Port Sokhna you will need to do an excursion as there is nothing else....the trips to Cairo go from here....it is an industrial port with no access for foot passengers...so you cannot just wander ashore...I think Thomson do a half day trip to a beach resort but we actually had a nice day on board a near empty ship sunbathing and watching the crew do their lifeboat drills...as we had been to Cairo twice before.

Safaga again is an industrial port with nothing much else to offer.....the trips to Luxor go from here which are long days....we have been to Hurghada from here...once for a half day shopping trip and once to a resort hotel with private beach which was very nice...I think there may be other short trips from here but its not a place where you can just jump in a taxi and go off somewhere.....It is always best in Egypt to go on organised trips so you know you are safe and will get back to the ship in time.

Hope this helps a bit and if you have any more questions just ask.

Make sure you have Worldwide Travel Insurance for the Red Sea cruise as Jordan is not covered on a European policy.
Some companies dont include Egypt any longer on a European policy.
The travel agents will not tell you this when you book but still sell you the Cruise.

Many thanks to luci (for the link to the thread I hadn't seen!), judy morris (for your advice re DIY excursions etc. I did find another post eventually which mentioned about taking a Taxi to Petra - have copied and saved its contents) and Jay Trip (yes our insurance is Worldwide. My wife had a very mild heart attack in April 2010. As a result of that I have to "negotiate" special insurance cover for every holiday abroad we take)!



Jeff

Hi emmrecs
Just off subject for a point, we had a similar problem with insurance which we solved in, we think, a most economical way, that was by taking out banks ‘account payment' obviously you still have to declare all existing illnesses, and receive confirmation but it is far cheaper than paying the excess on a standard policy and you do get other banking privileges.
Also if you do Petra, and I strongly recommend it, it is very hard work, the first half is ok its down hill at the start of the day (coolest) but uphill on the way back and very hot take lots of water. You can take a horse ride back but it is a bit dangerous and we did see a couple of accidents.
Have a great time
Roger

I would agree with the comments regarding Petra.....wear comfortable walking boots or trainers as it is a bit uneven and just take a steady walk back up....we did sit a while I remember so there are seats on the way!!

We had a problem with our travel insurance via our M & S card (AXA)....it won't allow any pre existing illnesses/conditions not on their list....so my partner could not get insurance because of his coronary stents fitted six years ago even though he is probably at less risk than me who has not had them fitted !!!!! they will cover me but not him....so we have had to take out another policy just for him.

Thanks again for these replies.

Rogerdodger, just as with judy morris's post, I looked into changing my bank account to one which included Travel Insurance. But they were not prepared to cover my wife because of the heart attack; hence, I did not pursue the option to change!

Jeff

We had free Travel Insurance with our bank but the excess for our pre-existing conditions was more than paying for a policy that included them.
We did try and book the Red Sea cruise and stay last Christmas but needed Worldwide insurance which I was not prepared to pay for as it was going to cost almost as much as the holiday.

Hi peeps

Please try to keep on topic re DIY excursions so that anyone looking can find the info easily.

Check out Page 1 of the Travel Insurance sticky at the top of the General Holiday Enquiries forum for suggestions of companies to try. One company I've discovered recently is http://www.eta.co.uk who will cover pre-existing conditions as long as there has been no changes in condition or medication in the past 12 months.

luci

OOps sorry Luci.....thanks for the insurance recommendation.....

One other point regarding visiting Petra is that the entrance fee has increased quite sharply within the last year so its worth checking out... as that will have a bearing on what the taxi will charge....I remember people were complaining about Thomson increasing the cost of their excursion and it was only when someone pointed out the increase that the reason became clear.