Phuket

Port Victoria

Mauritius

Reunion Island

Durban

Cape Town

I would recommend a visit to the Pamplemousses botanical gardens in Mauritius, which are interesting even to non-gardeners. I don't know how far this would be from the cruise ship berth though.

Romig

Cruised: Sovereign of the Seas (Bahamas) 1997, Superstar Gemini (Straits of Melacca) 1999, Oceana (Norwegian Fjords) 2009.

To Cruise: Arcadia (Baltic) 2010.

Romig

Cruised: Sovereign of the Seas (Bahamas) 1997, Superstar Gemini (Straits of Melacca) 1999, Oceana (Norwegian Fjords) 2009.

To Cruise: Arcadia (Baltic) 2010.

I note you are first timers and when we go to a place for the first time we go with P & O. They are not the cheapest and you have to read between the lines with their descriptions.

We have found the all day ones, particularly on World Cruises are the best value because, unlike a Caribbean cruise where you are off every day, on W.C's you have days to recover between trips and you clearly enjoy a better overview

In respect of Durban I wouldn't even consider going off on our own, those 7ft electric fences outside peoples houses are not there for show !!!!!

We are on this cruise S/hton to S/hton and have booked 30 plus trips and have been on previous W.C's so P & O's trips cannot be that bad

Have a good time.

MIKE

Hi Seatown

I have not looked at P&Os excursions but I do have knowledge of;

Cape Town

This city and its Centre are beautiful and quite safe by South African standards but it is not without risk, especially if you go into the wrong areas. Hiring a car is not a good plan for a first timer (imo) as there are three carriageways across this city plus two major motorways and a number of no go areas in between.

For you my advice is to take the tours for out of city destinations, including;

*   The Garden Route

*   Winelands if the trip includes Stallenbosch

*   Coastal trip to Hermarnus via Bettys Bay

Within the city - walkable / a short taxi ride;

*  The port Marina itself is an absolute delight

*  The City Centre, Parliament Building and Desmond TooToo's Cathedral

*  Signal Hill plus cable car up Table Mountain ( and a Malay Curry )

*  Kirchenboshe Gardens and the Houte Bay scenic drive.

There are some fantastic restaurants for sea food platters in the Cape Province and there are also quality Pinotage / Chemin Blanc (Stein) wines for you to try. 

Kindly note that I did not have the time to correct my spelling mistakes !!

At this point I suggest that you buy a Thomas Cook CitySpots book on Cape Town and to then check out their thoughts. ( e-Bay is the cheapest option ) .

I could go on and on, some would say that I generally do ...... if you find a tour and wish me to comment on it then please feel free so to do.

.

Phuket; Elected to stay on Ship because of 'Tender Problems' and a change to the location of our anchorage.

Mauritius;  Took Shuttle Bus to Harbour Area Shopping Mall shich was smart and mnodern;  Passengers  we knew, who took the scenic trips enjoyed them;  Book early for this Port we could not get on the trip we wanted.

Reunion;  We did not go far from the Ship.  

Durban;  World Football Cup may improve Security?   Be very Wary;  We did a P&O City Tour which included visits to a Park and Indoor Indian Market;  advice from our Tour Guide was not to go outside from the Market Area;  one of our Tour Buses was stoned.   The Bus came back through some residential areas and Sea front Apartments land Houses;  all had substantial protective fencing and some had their own Security Guards.

Cape Town;  Rated this as one of our best Ports;   Excellent Shuttle Bus Service to a very impressive Harbour Complex [V & A].    Very cheap Shopping because of the good rate of exchange in our favour.   We did a P&O trip up Table Mountain followed by a tour of the City and Beaches [excellent trip];   Passengers  who did trips which  involved  'Wine' seemed to have enjoyed themselves.   There is an Open Top Bus Tour which starts from the V&A Complex and includes Table Mountain if you prefer to do it yourself

Carlos

There is the opportunity for the "been there" photo, but little else, as the island is small. The "beach" area where you can view the famous pinnacle is tiny.

However, the surrounding kaarst scenery, of which the island is an example is stunning, with clear waters, caves and limestone cliffs in abundance.

It is possible that the trip includes lunch at a floating Sea-gypsy village (on stilts) which will be fresh seafood, and worthwhile.

I'm not sure if the tour is bookable locally at a better price, but imagine that the trip will involve a coach journey around Phang Nga Bay (unless they offer a speedboat option), and there is always the worry about returning in time.

All-in-all, I would recommend a visit, as the scenery of emerald-green water, precipitous limestone cliffs and caves and lagoons is wonderful.

ps I'm not sponsored by the Thai Tourism Board really!

Romig

Cruised: Sovereign of the Seas (Bahamas) 1997, Superstar Gemini (Straits of Melacca) 1999, Oceana (Norwegian Fjords) 2009.

To Cruise: Arcadia (Baltic) 2010.

I am on the Sydney to Cape Town leg and all the tours look lovely. I have booked them up because I didn't want to miss out on any.

As I am travelling alone I have opted mostly for P&O tours in the ports. As previous posts have said P&O tours are quite expensive but if you are unused to a country or 1st time cruisers it may be wise to take their tours as they do look after you. However do your homework and read up on the destinations.

I'm getting very excited about this holiday already!!!

Gill