Sicily is wonderful! We booked a last minute excursion through TourMessina. They picked us up right outside the ship, took us in a van to Castelmola for a walking tour and then gave us ~40 minutes free time, then took us to Taormina for a walking tour and then gave us included lunch and ~3 hours free time before our drive back. It was a wonderful day for a fraction of the cost of NCLs similar ...
Although we booked this tour through Princess Cruises the guide spoke very little English and we basically had a silent bus ride to a beach where no one spoke English. We were restricted to a certain area of the beach far from the water and were later charged for the umbrella which was necessary for survival on the hot beach! We were supposed to get a snack as part of the tour which was difficult ...
We took a driving tour to Taormina and Castelmola (another place with small streets that is hard to get to with a large tour bus) but at least our independent tour was able to get close enough to walk up the hill. Both towns were worth a visit. We tried limoncello and heard about the local history as well. Be prepared to see a few things the kids might not understand! ...
