I need tips on great local tour operators who meet cruise ships at the nearest ports (Dover and LaHavre) and get groups of 6 people to town for a tour of the city highlights. We have such a limited time in port and inland trip can be nearly 2 hours, so it is vital to find someone who is always prompt and well-organized. Are there any options that Rick Steves can recommend? Hoping to find something in line with ship shore excursion pkgs but more flexible. Thx
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
Why not do this yourselves?
A same-day return (roundtrip) train ticket for Dover to London and back costs £25.50. Take a hop on, hop off bus tour of London. Le Havre-Paris train tickets cost €28.80 each way. Take a hop on, hop off bus tour of Paris.
Or buy one-day, zone 1-2 off-peak travelcards (£5.60) for London and one-day, zone 1-2 Mobilis passes (€5.80) for Paris and use the subway and bus systems in each city.
Posted by
OP
Colleyville, Tx, USA
5 posts
Thanks. I thought of that as well. Seems like the direct trains do not run all that frequently. So you either burn time at the station waiting for the next direct train or take the first available train and spend the extra 30-40 min in route. Either way you could easily spend 4.5-6 hours of your 10 hour port call just getting there and back. It hardly seems worth it!
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
You're welcome.
Le Havre-Paris departure times aren't as frequent as you might wish: 05:31, 06:31, 07:02, 08:03. An 09:03 departure has one change and takes an extra 30 minutes. (Schedule may be less frequent on Saturdays and Sundays.)
But Dover-London departure times are very good: 05:25, 05:49, 06:15, 06:25, 06:56, 07:05, 07:35, 08:10, 08:17, 08:48, 09:04. Departure times with one change--and nearly as fast for the total travel time--are 07:09 and 07:55.
IMO, the time you might lose waiting for the next train will be made up by not getting caught in heavy traffic as you enter each city.