Excursions

What is the best way to find out about the portside excursions? I have heard that the shipboard arranged ones are more expensive. Can you book "independent" excursions ahead of time?

Check the Ports of call forum for the ports you are going to

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=5

For Caribbean they usually have people you can get a tour with

Europe & other parts of the world you probably should pre book

good guide book up early

also check your Roll call for your cruise there are probably other willing to share private tours

First, the O offered excursions are pricey. However they offer convenience of booking, insured vendors, and are monitored by O. You can surely arrange your own independent excursions and can use google to do this. Also, if you check the roll call for your trip (on cruise critic) you can possibly share excursions with fellow cruisers.

What is the best way to find out about the portside excursions? I have heard that the shipboard arranged ones are more expensive. Can you book "independent" excursions ahead of time?

I was not experienced at booking private excursions, but I used cruise critic to find out about ports and a few "well known" names for tours, also asked my TA for some names. Then I checked a few out on Trip Advisor. All this was done months in advance. After much research, I decided on my tours and then posted these on the roll call looking for my fellow cruisers. Now, six weeks out, we are booked, with deposits paid by all and a mini meet n greet to handle balances and meeting times/locations. Late comers are begging at our door for a seat! Start early, research, make contact with vendors and fellow cruisers. Figure out a payment schedule and keep in communication with everyone involved.

Good luck. It's a lot of work, but in the end, we have very private, custom tours with expert local guides!:D

What is the best way to find out about the portside excursions? I have heard that the shipboard arranged ones are more expensive. Can you book "independent" excursions ahead of time?

Yes O excursions are more expensive. Usually in large buses (40-50 pax)

My experience is: booking private tours is less costly and a far better, more personal experience. The highly recommended companies are booked up to 1yr in advance. It is best to book ASAP. Private cars or small vans of 6 pax are the average group size. You can usually tailor the itinerary to your interests. The companies are accustomed to cruise passengers and know exactly what can be done in the time the ship is in port. I have taken a few O excursions and altho they were relatively pleasant it does not compare to any private excursion I've taken.

-The RollCall for your trip is the best way to join or organize an excursion.

-reading posts of past similar itineraries is a great source of info.

-TripAdvisor has recommended excursion in the 'things to do'

-Google the ports on your itinerary, go to each site and there is usually info about transportation, maps, site to see, tour operators etc..simply type 'tour of ----"

You are fortunate to discover CCritic before taking your cruise....it is a fantastic place to plan your trip.

What is the best way to find out about the portside excursions? I have heard that the shipboard arranged ones are more expensive. Can you book "independent" excursions ahead of time?

Check out Viator on the web.

My friend and I did a Oceania Shore Excursion when in Amalfi in 2012 and it was a waste of money and time. We could have done it for much less than 1/2 the price and had a lot more time exploring the place on our own.

We are going on another Oceania cruise on July 25th on Riveria and have organised a couple of our own Private tours through recommendations on Cruise Critics which is an amazing site. We started off with just the two of us and now have 8 sharing a van after putting this on our Roll Call.

Honestly do your own thing and not the ship excursions as they are over crowded and not worth the money and you really do not have much time exploring and shopping.

Honestly do your own thing and not the ship excursions as they are over crowded and not worth the money and you really do not have much time exploring and shopping.

None of my Oceania excursions was over crowded. You must have been very unlucky or I was lucky. :D

Most O tours we saw are on coach buses or similar. Not uncomfortable but definitely larger(slower) groups. These vehicles park farther out, and can not travel at the same pace as a few couples in a minivan. Private tour operators typically drop you off at the entrances of sites, museums etc. Our private tours got to the sites much in advance of the larger tour groups. We also stopped where and when we wanted. I see no disadvantage booking private tours..

I see no disadvantage booking private tours.

Well, Private Tours do require more work, unless you are willing to depend on the kindness of strangers, incessantly.

Everybody isn't up to the task of organizing a Private Tour, and doing research is anathema to some; which is why the Line has no choice but to offer Excursions.

Check out Viator on the web.

Viator is a middleman, a central booking service for tours provided by other parties. If you read the description of a tour and find it appealing, it's often possible to find the name of the company that is actually doing the work. (One of the clues that you've found the right provider is that the tour descriptions on the Viator web site are taken intact from the text on the provider's web site.) Contact that company directly and you'll get the same experience for a lower price.

Viator provides convenience, but, other than that, nothing beyond what the actual tour provider offers.

What is the best way to find out about the portside excursions? I have heard that the shipboard arranged ones are more expensive. Can you book "independent" excursions ahead of time?

You haven't said where you're cruising. An answer to your question when the destination is somewhere in the Caribbean is completely different from an answer almost any other place in the world.

Pick-up excursions port side in the Caribbean are common and the quality is acceptable. Pick-up excursions portside in other places generally do not exist. If you want to do an independent excursion, you must book it ahead of time.

Our upcoming Med Cruise is a mix. We're doing the Alhambra with a small private group arranged by someone on the roll call. And then we are doing five ship tours including the one to Florence for the Academia and Uffizzi. Doing five ship tours gets you a 25% discount. Worth it for "no hassle" and the risk aversion on the long haul to Florence.

Related to this, we've got a private guide for post-cruise in Rome. Got the suggestion from our hotel concierge (verified by local "expert Italy" TA here in SF).

Do the research and you'll figure out the best arrangements for your situation.

If you live in a large metro area, another great resource for every kind of food or excursion referral is the local "XXXXX Cultural Society" of whatever country you are visiting.

None of my Oceania excursions was over crowded. You must have been very unlucky or I was lucky. :D

One more example of the prejudice against the O tours on this forum.

We took all O excursions on our recent Regatta cruise through the Canal. Admittedly, we probably paid too much. Convenience and dependability were critical factors for us. We have found O tours very dependable in our past cruises in this way.

The buses HOLD 40 - 50 people, but there were NEVER more than maybe 30-35 on a bus. There was room to spread out.

The one advantage we don't like to mention: Twice on our recent cruise the ship was held up to await a returning bus tour. The second time, we were on that last bus. The problems were traffic, a funeral procession, and a number of other issues.

For us, it was a relief to know we wouldn't have to find a way out of Nicaragua on our own, even though I am certain that an expert private local guide could help solve such a problem if necessary.

Folks around this forum like to pretend that delays like this rarely if ever happen. I am here to tell you that they most certainly do! Caveat emptor.

Donna

I'm in the process of arranging my tours for 89 ports in 6 months on the 2016

World Cruise. Right now I have a decent balance of 30 ship's tours, 7 overland tours and events and 20 private tours, none of which I personally organized. I expect to add a few more private tours and perhaps another ship tour or two (I have reached the threshold for the 25% "Your Way" discount, which is 25 to 28 tours for this cruise, depending on where you read the minimum number). I've already substituted 2 private tours instead of ship tours; the prices were similar but the private tours covered more ground with fewer people. I expect the balance to be "on our own", generally just walking about the ports. with some impromptu taxi rides and use of public transportation.

While private tours are desirable, there are some ports where they just aren't feasible, and in many other ports. the private excursions fill up quickly, leaving many folks in the cold.

I'm in the process of arranging my tours for 89 ports in 6 months on the 2016

World Cruise. Right now I have a decent balance of 30 ship's tours, 7 overland tours and events and 20 private tours, none of which I personally organized. I expect to add a few more private tours and perhaps another ship tour or two (I have reached the threshold for the 25% "Your Way" discount, which is 25 to 28 tours for this cruise, depending on where you read the minimum number). I've already substituted 2 private tours instead of ship tours; the prices were similar but the private tours covered more ground with fewer people. I expect the balance to be "on our own", generally just walking about the ports. with some impromptu taxi rides and use of public transportation.

 

While private tours are desirable, there are some ports where they just aren't feasible, and in many other ports. the private excursions fill up quickly, leaving many folks in the cold.

WOW - I am impressed! I can't imagine doing what you are doing - scheduling so many tours, my head would be spinning:eek:! You are truly amazing!!

My first cruise on Oceania was in the Mediterranean and we did not do any ship tours (well, one in Kotor) or private tours. We didn't know about CC at the time and we were traveling with friends who also didn't have a clue. Since then, with each cruise, I have learned and now only book private tours, most of which I arrange because I like doing the research and feeling "in control.":D I do not think there is anything wrong with the ship's excursions - we had to take one in France because our private tour guide didn't show up (this can happen:cool:) so all 8 of us scrambled to get on one of the ship's excursions - luckily, there was space and it turned out well. We actually did everything we were going to do on our own - it just cost a bit more.:p

I wouldn't book a private excursion if you are averse to risk, especially the risk of not getting back in time before the ship sails away. On one cruise, the Oceania bus was very late but they waited for them - that of course would not happen if you were traveling on your own.

One more example of the prejudice against the O tours on this forum.

 

We took all O excursions on our recent Regatta cruise through the Canal. Admittedly, we probably paid too much. Convenience and dependability were critical factors for us. We have found O tours very dependable in our past cruises in this way.

 

The buses HOLD 40 - 50 people, but there were NEVER more than maybe 30-35 on a bus. There was room to spread out.

 

The one advantage we don't like to mention: Twice on our recent cruise the ship was held up to await a returning bus tour. The second time, we were on that last bus. The problems were traffic, a funeral procession, and a number of other issues.

 

For us, it was a relief to know we wouldn't have to find a way out of Nicaragua on our own, even though I am certain that an expert private local guide could help solve such a problem if necessary.

 

Folks around this forum like to pretend that delays like this rarely if ever happen. I am here to tell you that they most certainly do! Caveat emptor.

 

Donna

Donna,

I am someone who prefers private DIY tours but DH likes ship's tours. So we usually do both, but since I don't mind arranging tours (although definitely not at each port of call) we probably do more DIY than ship's tours on any cruise.

However, we definitely have had ship's tours where just about every seat was taken. So you may have been lucky in having unsold seats ... just sayin'!

We too had an experience in Jan '02 on NCL where a ship's tour got us to the last visit but then the bus died. We had to wait about twice the amount of time they said it would take for the new bus to get there. As a consequence, had we been on a DIY tour we'd have been staying in a small Chilean port (population 100), trying to figure out how to get to the next port ... so you are right, caveat emptor!

On that cruise (BA-Valpo) we didn't have time to research private tours -- we booked last minute -- and we were relatively new to cruising so had never tried to set up our own. We could have hired taxis at the ports but when we considered that every port was a two-day sail, we opted for safety and booked ship's tours.

Would we do that today? Maybe not!

But not everyone here says people are fools for using ship's tours. You do what you are comfortable doing. There is no WRONG way.

Mura

Donna,

 

I am someone who prefers private DIY tours but DH likes ship's tours. So we usually do both, but since I don't mind arranging tours (although definitely not at each port of call) we probably do more DIY than ship's tours on any cruise.

 

However, we definitely have had ship's tours where just about every seat was taken. So you may have been lucky in having unsold seats ... just sayin'!

 

We too had an experience in Jan '02 on NCL where a ship's tour got us to the last visit but then the bus died. We had to wait about twice the amount of time they said it would take for the new bus to get there. As a consequence, had we been on a DIY tour we'd have been staying in a small Chilean port (population 100), trying to figure out how to get to the next port ... so you are right, caveat emptor!

 

On that cruise (BA-Valpo) we didn't have time to research private tours -- we booked last minute -- and we were relatively new to cruising so had never tried to set up our own. We could have hired taxis at the ports but when we considered that every port was a two-day sail, we opted for safety and booked ship's tours.

 

Would we do that today? Maybe not!

 

But not everyone here says people are fools for using ship's tours. You do what you are comfortable doing. There is no WRONG way.

 

Mura

Nicely said, Mura.

We have enjoyed some private excursions. Joined one in Trabzon, Turkey, with a nice group of folks -- and an incomprehensible guide! That was really frustrating,

We have taken at least a few ships tours on all our O sailings.... And never had a single packed bus. This last trip, the 3/4 filled bus was the first of 4 or 5 to go on the same excursion that day -- and the tour had been pronounced a sellout!

Thanks for your wisdom - indeed, it is whatever is comfortable for the traveler(s)

Donna

Donna,

You also toured on the Continental Quest with us in a number of private tours. All on time and all well done.

I think the port and possibilities are also a part of the equation. We have been in several ports I would not risk doing a private tour. Many tours I have taken have been at the recommendation of a Travel Agent or someone I know who has used a guide. All but one has been well done. Years ago a guide failed to pick us up at the port and caused us to wait and lose time we could have been exploring. We ended up taking a taxi and it all turned out to be ok. Just not as planned.

We never leave the ship without the contact info for the Port Agent. They are the best people to assist you if there is an issue. We also plan to return early to the ship on any tour. Some tour operators will guarantee your return on time or get you to the next port in case of an issue.