Excursion truly sold out?

We are sailing June 10 on the Dream. We booked a stingray/starfish excursion in Grand Cayman back in February. Our friends (rookie cruisers) have waited until now to think about excursions, even though we all decided together what to book. And I even sent explicit directions on how to book. Well, Carnival says that excursion is sold out. Do they ever hold back some to sell onboard, or is it really and truly sold out?

Not likely, selling excursions, as you are aware, is 1st come, 1st serve.

You could both look at booking the same excursion with an independent tour host (in many cases it will be the same vendor Carnival uses)

Carnival vendors usually have to agree not to book independent cruise passengers as part of their contract with the cruiseline. If Carnival allowed this, their excursion guarantee would be a cash drain.

There will be independent excursion vendors offering similar tours, but not those with Carnival contracts.

Now whether an excursion truly sells out, is taken off the list for lack of guests signing up, or still has tickets available is sort of Carnival's secret. All we can do here is speculate. There are some excursions that are capacity controlled, like a submarine exploration, but others like a beach or shopping tour can add on another time or bus transport if demand warrants.

There were also tours set as not available after events like a hurricane. All that I can be certain of is that I hear the CD still shilling tours the night before and the morning of a port call. And that is despite the CD's earlier urgings to book them asap since they usually sell out. Just a sales pitch, IMO.

Not likely, selling excursions, as you are aware, is 1st come, 1st serve.

 

You could both look at booking the same excursion with an independent tour host (in many cases it will be the same vendor Carnival uses)

This, at the pier in GC several tour operators had kiosks right there where the tours meet and will gladly sell you one.

I used this web site for snorkel and sting ray city in Grand Cayman.

They were so good that when the ship sent the tenders to a different spot than usual (because of weather) they were there waiting for us.

Highly recommend this company!

https://www.captainmarvins.com/

For the stingray excursion we prefer to book on our own with a private vendor; sometimes even at the dock. We like the smaller boats with fewer people to deal with. The cruise ship excursions are usually packed and you don't get as much individual attention.

Yes they are sold out. But if before final payment someone might cancel. If after keep checking and when you get on board go to the shore excursion desk and ask to be put on the list, you might luck out. I book with Carnival when the timing is close or when its a tender port. Takes all the stress away. But I have also booked many independent excursions too. Have a wonderful cruise.

People cancel excursions all the time, up until the deadline (which I believe is the day before sailing, but I could be misremembering here; it might be 48 hours or so).

So, keep checking between now and then. I would not count on being able to book it while on board (though, it is possible someone will cancel the day before, or even the morning of, and forfeit the penalty for doing so).

If the other family is not able to go, would your family still go? You have until the deadline for online cancelations to figure it out (1-3 days before sailing, it says what it is in the T&C for purchasing excursions).

We exchanged our excursions on board the Valor this past February. Carnival had a presentation on excursions the first sail day.

I used this web site for snorkel and sting ray city in Grand Cayman.

They were so good that when the ship sent the tenders to a different spot than usual (because of weather) they were there waiting for us.

Highly recommend this company!

https://www.captainmarvins.com/

We too went with Captain Marvin from recommendations from this board. There were probably no more than fifteen people on his boat. Before we ever got in the water, the Captain and his helper explained how to walk around them, feed them, what to do and what not to do. Then they got in the water with us and interacted with us. We were the only ones in the area for probably fifteen minutes. The Captain knew some of the rays by name and even held one and gave back rubs with her. They feel like a huge piece of rubber and rub up against you like a dog or cat would. It's an experience I'll never forget.

Then the Carnival excursion showed up. It was a huge double decker boat that probably held 100 passengers. They all jumped in the water and had no idea of what to do.

After the stingrays, they took us to another area for snorkeling. When you were done and got back in the boat, they hosed us down with warm water to wash off the salt water.

The good thing about booking with them is that a credit card will hold the excursion but doesn't get charged until you show up. If the ship doesn't anchor there because of the wind, you won't be charged.

this is why we always book privately