Cancelling Excursions

[Figsgrandma]

I would liketo know some experiences any of you had cancelling a Royal Caribbean shore excursion. I'm confused about how far in advance of the excursion the cancellation has to be done in order to get a refund.

 

I understand that if I book an excursion on-line before leaving I have until a certain number of days before sailing to cancel on-line. The person I spoke to today on Royal Caribbean's shore excursion phone number told me the cut-off was 4 days before sailing, but I thought I read in the "terms and conditions" on the web site that the cut-off is 10 days. Can someone tell me which is correct?

 

I'm more confused about the deadline for cancelling once on board the ship. Again, I was told on the phone that each excursion has a different cancellation policy, and I had to read the terms and conditions for each excursion to find out what the policy for that excursion is. However, when I read the terms and conditions for the particular cruise it only discusses the cruise line's right to cancel an excursion, not what happens if I cancel. The general cruise line terms and conditions only say that you have to check with the shore excursion desk on board to determine the cancellation deadline for each excursion.

 

If all excursions have a 24 hour cancellation rule, waiting untio boarding to cancel is no problem. However, if a cancellation has to be within, for example, 3 days, it could be a problem.

 

So, I guess my question is, what have others here experienced?

 

Thanks in advancce.

[negc]

I would liketo know some experiences any of you had cancelling a Royal Caribbean shore excursion. I'm confused about how far in advance of the excursion the cancellation has to be done in order to get a refund.

 

I understand that if I book an excursion on-line before leaving I have until a certain number of days before sailing to cancel on-line. The person I spoke to today on Royal Caribbean's shore excursion phone number told me the cut-off was 4 days before sailing, but I thought I read in the "terms and conditions" on the web site that the cut-off is 10 days. Can someone tell me which is correct?

 

I'm more confused about the deadline for cancelling once on board the ship. Again, I was told on the phone that each excursion has a different cancellation policy, and I had to read the terms and conditions for each excursion to find out what the policy for that excursion is. However, when I read the terms and conditions for the particular cruise it only discusses the cruise line's right to cancel an excursion, not what happens if I cancel. The general cruise line terms and conditions only say that you have to check with the shore excursion desk on board to determine the cancellation deadline for each excursion.

 

If all excursions have a 24 hour cancellation rule, waiting untio boarding to cancel is no problem. However, if a cancellation has to be within, for example, 3 days, it could be a problem.

 

So, I guess my question is, what have others here experienced?

 

Thanks in advancce.

 

What you were told about cancelling an excursion while onboard was generally correct because the cancellation policy can vary according to the particular excursion. The information should be provided with the tickets that will be delivered to your stateroom. In our experience it has generally been a minimum requirement of 24 hours prior to the scheduled excursion. The daily cruise compass will also note the date or time when any excursions for a particular port must be cancelled. Pay attention to those announcements but if you have a particular question while on the ship, go to the Explorations Desk and inquire of the staff there. I wouldn't be terribly concerned as the policies are not unnecessarily restrictive or difficult to follow.

[cb at sea]

If you do book in advance, before the cruise, and cancel on the ship, the refund may not go back to the same method you charged it to....say, you booked it on a MC, and your shipboard account is linked to a Visa, if you cancel on the ship, the funds go to your shipboard account...not the MC you charged it on.

That may be where the confusion is coming into play.

[Monarch Maniac]

Also if you miss the cutoff time onboard for the refund, if the excursion in question is sold out and there is a waiting list for it, they will refund, at least that's what they did for me with an 8 hour tour in New Zealand a few years back.

[05mak05]

I've never read the fine print and assumed it was 24 hours prior. We've never had a problem as we've cancelled within that time frame. I will say that from now on we'll pre-book long in advance if there is a ship excursion that we really want to take. Because of the larger ships and depending on the number of ships in port, the more popular excursions are selling out prior to sailing.

[orville99]

I've never read the fine print and assumed it was 24 hours prior. We've never had a problem as we've cancelled within that time frame. I will say that from now on we'll pre-book long in advance if there is a ship excursion that we really want to take. Because of the larger ships and depending on the number of ships in port, the more popular excursions are selling out prior to sailing.

 

We've never cancelled outright once on the ship, but we have exchanged one excursion for another. Never had a problem doing that, as long as it was before we got to that port.

[Boston lab girl]

One other thought if you book prior to the cruise you have to pay for your excursion at the time of the booking. I like to do this so it spreads out the cost and you don't end up with a huge bill from your ship board account. However on this last cruise for various reasons I ended up with $1400 on obc. So I had to wait until I got on the ship to book the excursions and have it charged to my on board account. I also agree the really good excursions go fast so booking in advanced is better if it is something you really want to do.

 

I am sorry that I can't help with the time frame for cancelling.

[luvscruising2007]

All of the excursions we have booked had 24 hour prior cancellation requirement. We did just that on an excursion for Costa Maya. We

received OBC on our account. It didnot go back on our credit card.

[Lorey2007]

We cancelled two excursions once on board Oasis 24 hours before each excursion. It was refunded immediately to our sea pass card.

[vavasmom]

Also if you miss the cutoff time onboard for the refund, if the excursion in question is sold out and there is a waiting list for it, they will refund, at least that's what they did for me with an 8 hour tour in New Zealand a few years back.

I had the same experience last April on Freedom. The shore excursion desk was very clear they would refund (it was less than 24 hours) only if someone on the wait list essentially bought my tickets. I was credited almost immediately. On Grandeur each port had a different last time to cancel - all excursion for that port had the same time. For San Juan, St. Thomas, and Labadee it was noon the day before but Samana was 9:30 am the day before.

 

It also proves that sometimes people on the wait lists do get to experience the excursion.

[Figsgrandma]

My concern was booking a beach excursion, or another excursion that would really be affected by the weather. If the cancellation has to be within 24 hours, I think that's OK, because I think they usually know one day before you get to a port what the weather forecast is for the day you'll arrive. However, if the cancellation has to be done 3 days in advance, there's probably no way to know what the weather is going to be that far in advance.

 

Although our upcoming cruise will be our 4th, this is the first time the excursions we're considering involve the type of activities that could be adversely affected by rain. I'm probably over-worrying the whole thing, but that's a trait I inherited from my mother and there's nothing I can do about it!

[boulders]

I'd be careful with the 24 hour thing. I tried to cancel a shore excursion on Radiance in August '09, just prior to the 24 hour cutoff. There was no one at the shore excursion desk and guest services wouldn't help. When I finally got hold of the shore excursions personnel, they said that the participants had been finalized prior to 9 a.m. the day before the excursion was to take place. In future, I would use 48 hours as my own cutoff. The shore excursion desk is not always staffed, and it is those people who you need to speak to.

[skitterchat]

I'd be careful with the 24 hour thing. I tried to cancel a shore excursion on Radiance in August '09, just prior to the 24 hour cutoff. There was no one at the shore excursion desk and guest services wouldn't help. When I finally got hold of the shore excursions personnel, they said that the participants had been finalized prior to 9 a.m. the day before the excursion was to take place. In future, I would use 48 hours as my own cutoff. The shore excursion desk is not always staffed, and it is those people who you need to speak to.

 

We were on the March 12 Mexican Riviera sailing on the Radiance and had booked 2 shore excursion while onboard. We unfortunately had to cancel both excursions due to illness. The first time one of us went to the shore excursion desk about 24 hours before and we were given a 50% refund to our sea pass account. The second time we called the desk about 12 hours before and were not able to get a refund. So it really depends on the excursion and the timing I think.

[Judi2112]

Four of us cancelled an excursion on the morning it was due to take place with no trouble at all. We were on Serenade.

 

When we got up in the morning it was raining and we were supposed to go snorkelling. We asked at Guest Relations if it was going ahead (there was no-one at the Explorations Desk). The guy made a call, said it was going ahead but said if we didn't want to go because of the rain we could get our money back. It was refunded that evening as OBC.