Blue Grotto tour review: the fees are already paid
My verdict: the Capri day for people who would rather not spend the day handing over cash. The grotto entrance and the island landing tax are inside the price, which is exactly the pair of charges the cheaper listings leave waiting for you on the water. And one of its reviewers, Stephanie from the United States, wrote the single most useful sentence in my entire pool: “The time on the boat was better than the time on the island.” A paying customer saying the water beat the destination is worth more than anything I could write about it.
What is inside the price, and why that is the point
Two charges follow you around Capri. The grotto entrance is roughly €18, paid at the cave. The landing tax is roughly €10, paid when you step ashore. On this listing both are already settled, along with a swim stop, free time on the island and a limoncello tasting. On the cheaper full day at $172 neither is, and there is a disembarkation fee to hand over as well.
That is why I will not describe $238 as the expensive option without qualifying it. On the stickers this is about a third again the cheaper day. Once the euro payments on that day are counted, the two land far closer than the listing pages imply, and what you are really choosing between is a single price now or a smaller price plus cash in a rowing boat later. Some people want the second. I book the first when I am travelling with anyone who would find the second stressful. The fees are collected in one place at what it all costs.
Stephanie’s sentence, and the argument inside it
“The time on the boat was better than the time on the island.” I have been saying a version of that for years and nobody believes me, because I grew up here and am assumed to be talking the local line. Stephanie paid to go to Capri and came back saying the crossing beat the destination. In high summer the island’s single funicular and its two squares hold more people than they were built for, while the water around it is empty and the coves on the far side are reachable only by boat. Emily, also from the United States, made the same point from the other end: “You definitely can’t see all of these things without a boat tour.”
What that should change about your booking: stop treating the free time ashore as the prize and the sailing as the commute. If the island itself is what you want, the scheduled ferry does that job for a fraction of any price here and I have written the honest version at tour or ferry. If the water is what you want, this is the product, and Stephanie has already made the argument better than the listing does.
The cave is never a promise
Paying for the grotto in advance does not buy entry, and anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something. You go in from a small rowing boat that takes four at a time, through an opening barely bigger than the boat, and the whole operation shuts whenever the swell is up. In July and August the queue at the mouth can run past an hour before you get near it. What this listing removes is the cash and the queueing decision, not the sea. Both sides of whether the cave is worth it in the first place are argued at the Blue Grotto explained.
The other reviewers
The pool is small at 219 but consistent, and it is almost entirely about the people running the boat. Margaret, from the United States: “The guides were amazing — the boat captain was very impressive.” Shawn, from the United States, named them: “Salvatore and Antonio were great guides.” Linda, from the United States, described the thing that decides whether eight hours on a shared boat works: “The hosts were very inclusive of everyone on board and very attentive!” On a day this long with strangers aboard, that is not a small compliment.
Usually included
- The Blue Grotto entrance fee
- The Capri landing tax
- A swim stop and free time on the island
- A limoncello tasting and drinks aboard
- Commentary in English, Spanish or Italian
Not included
- Any guarantee that the grotto will be open on your date
- Lunch
- Suitability for wheelchair users, which the operator excludes
- The queue at the cave mouth, which nobody can pay their way out of
What works
- The grotto entrance and the landing tax are both inside the price
- 4.8 from 245 reviews, with no pattern of complaint in the pool
- Runs in three languages, which none of the other Capri days here do
- Stephanie’s review is the most honest thing written about any of these tours
- A swim stop and free time ashore in the same eight hours
Worth knowing
- The highest sticker of the three Capri days on this site
- 245 reviews is a smaller base than the cheaper full day’s 617
- Prepaying the grotto does not buy entry — the swell still decides
- Not suitable for wheelchair users
- Lunch is not included
Ask the crew about the grotto early rather than at the cave. Skippers read the morning forecast and know by the time you board whether the swell is going to allow it, and being told at nine o’clock lets you spend the day looking forward to the swim stop instead of at a closed cave.
Who it is for
Anyone who wants the grotto attempted with the money already dealt with, anyone travelling with people who would rather not be asked for cash twice in a day, and Spanish speakers, who are not served by the other two island tours here. If you would rather pay less now and settle the rest yourself, take the cheaper full day. If the walk down to the pier is the problem, the day trip with hotel pickup collects you. All three are compared at the Capri boat tours.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Blue Grotto entrance really included?
Yes — the entrance fee and the Capri landing tax are both inside the price on this listing, which is unusual and is the main reason to choose it. What is not included is entry itself, because the cave closes whenever the sea is up and no operator can promise otherwise. How the visit works is at the Blue Grotto.
Is it worth paying more than the cheaper Capri day?
It depends on how you would rather pay. This one settles the grotto and the landing tax in advance; the cheaper full day leaves both to cash on the water and adds a disembarkation fee. After that cash is counted the two are much closer than the stickers suggest, so choose on convenience rather than arithmetic.
How much time do you actually get on Capri?
There is free time ashore and a swim stop within the eight hours, and the balance between them shifts with the sea. One reviewer on this tour thought the boat was the better half of the day, which is a fair warning against planning the island down to the minute. What fits into a day there is at Capri in a day.
Is this tour suitable for wheelchair users?
No. The operator states it is not, and the grotto leg in particular involves transferring into a small rowing boat in open water. If mobility is a concern, the day trip with hotel pickup at least removes the staircase down to the beach, though it does not change the transfer.