8 Night Disney Magic Mediterranean Cruise - Day 2 Pompeii and The Amalfi Coast

We woke up on the 2nd day of the cruise to a slightly overcast sky as the ship glided past towering cliffs topped with lush greenery. Our first glimpse of the Amalfi Coast! We got ready for the day and made our way up to Cabanas for breakfast just as the Magic got into the port of Salerno at 7 AM.

For Salerno (and one other port on this cruise) we booked a full day excursion through Disney Cruise Line. One of the benefits of booking an excursion through Disney instead of a third party company is that if there is any delay on your Disney excursion, the ship won’t leave without you! I don’t know how likely that scenario is, but we didn’t want to take any chances.

Our excursion was “Amalfi Coast by Boat & Pompeii (SO42)”. Here is the description from the Disney website:

Board a private motor launch and enjoy spectacular views during a 45-minute cruise along the stunning Amalfi Coast. Note: This ride can be bumpy. Guests who suffer from motion sickness are advised to take precautions.
View charming historic sites on a walking tour and take 60 minutes of free time at the white villages of Amalfi.
Reboard the motor launch for the cruise back to Salemo, where you’ll transfer to a motorcoach for a 30-minute ride to Pompeii.
Lunch at a local restaurant is included in the tour. Enjoy fresh tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, ham, pizza, vegetables, salad, french fries, pasta with tomato sauce, cannelloni with ricotta cheese and spinach. Dessert and a bottle of water or soft drink is also included.
Upon arrival to Pompeii, walk to the entrance gate, approximately 15-minutes where your tour begins.
Next, continue to the uncovered ruins of the Roman city, Pompeii, for a 90-minute guided walking tour.
Enjoy some free time before you reboard the motor coach for the 30-minute return ride back to Naples and the pier.

We chose this excursion because we really wanted to see both the Amalfi coast and Pompeii, and this was the only excursion that allowed you to visit both in one day. So we were pumped for a full day of sightseeing!

Your excursion tickets are in an envelope in your stateroom and have details about the date, time, and meeting location for the excursion. Our meeting location was in the Walt Disney Theater and from there we got a more detailed run-down of the tour and some cool stickers to wear (so we wouldn’t get lost!).

Before I dive into what we did on the excursion, let me tell you what we brought with! To avoid having to lug around a large bag, we brought a drawstring bag but a small backpack would also work to bring along your necessities. Here is what we packed:

Passports
Key To The World cards (to get back on the ship!)
Phone/Camera
Wallets (Cash & Cards)
Water (!!!) – It was extremely hot and humid in Italy while we were there, so I would definitely encourage anyone to bring a reusable water bottle and fill it up before you leave the ship in the morning. There are several public water fountains around as well (there was one in Amalfi!) so you can refill throughout the day.
Sunscreen – Because no one wants to get burned on vacation!
Towels (optional) – This one is not a necessity, but we were so happy we brought towels with us going ashore! I love hopping in the ocean at any time, so it was really helpful to have something to dry off with. We also made sure to bring the towels back on board at the end of the day.
Headphones – The excursion included a guided tour of Pompeii and unless you are okay with using the generic earbuds that come with the listening devices they provide, I would highly recommend bringing your own headphones.

So we grabbed our bag and headed off the ship! Where we then got in a line to get on a smaller boat that would take us up the Amalfi Coast. The boat probably sat about 200 people on two levels, and the upper level offered the best view of the cliffs as we made our way to the town of Amalfi. It was a gorgeous day viewing an even more gorgeous landscape!

The boat pulled into the dock at Amalfi right on schedule after a slow cruise along the coast. After our all ashore, we had time to walk through the town and explore on our own! Justin and I spent a little time winding our way through the tiny streets of Amalfi.

The Cattedrale di Sant’Andrea Apostolo (Cathedral of St. Andrew) is the centerpiece of the Piazza del Duomo in Amalfi.

It was stunning! The beautiful pattern on the outside really stood out against the sky and the surrounding buildings.

After exploring the town, we decided to trek up a nearby hill for some sky-high views.

On the way back down, we saw the Hotel Luna! I had to snap a photo since it shares a name with our sweet puppy back in the States.

We really enjoyed walking around in Amalfi and even had some time to pop down to the beach! Like I said, it doesn’t take too much encouragement for me to get in the water.

Amalfi was simply stunning.

At 11:00 it was time to head back to the small boat to take us back to the port of Salerno. The boat definitely traveled a lot faster taking us back to the port than when we were headed towards Amalfi, but thankfully the water was calm and the trip was still enjoyable.

Back at the port, we boarded a really nice motorcoach and headed towards Pompeii! Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and made sure to point out Mount Vesuvius (of Pompeii infamy!) as we drove along.

When we got to Pompeii, we stopped at a restaurant nearby for a multi-course lunch. This was included in the cost of the excursion and started out with a drink (water, wine, or Italian soda) and antipasti. Then the main course was served which included pizza, french fries, pasta with tomato sauce, and cannelloni with ricotta cheese and spinach. At the end of the meal, there was a sweet limoncello cake for dessert. I really enjoyed the meal (except for the dessert, which was a bit too sweet for me) and it was nice to sit down with other

Finally, it was time for Pompeii! After one stop in a cameo store (in case anyone wanted to buy the engraved coins), we proceeded into the ruins!

Pompeii is enormous. Our guide did a great job giving us information about the ruins, but we only had an hour to walk through Pompeii. My one complaint about this excursion was that I really wished we had been given more time to explore Pompeii. It felt very short compared to the time we spent in Amalfi.

Some of the highlights of Pompeii were the baths and the extensive grid of cobblestone streets. I won’t give anything away, but it was truly amazing to see the preservation of this ancient city and how advanced the people of Pompeii were.

Any guesses for what I’m standing on?

I strongly suggest reading up on the history of Pompeii before you go! It is absolutely fascinating and makes the experience that much more meaningful.

After a very long and hot day, we climbed back into the motorcoach and made our way back to the ship. I definitely took a nap during the drive and it felt amazing!

We were so happy to get back to the Disney Magic. The amazing cruise staff hand out water and cold towels as you board, which we were extremely thankful for. It was time for showers and then dinner at Rapunzel’s Royal Table!