Plans at port, or wing it?

[Reenwad]

What's you experience:

Do you have a better time at port when you have an activity planned?

OR

Do you have a better time at port when you just walk off the ship and explore on your own?

[CruiserBruce]

Pretty broad question. We have had great ship's excursions, great private excursions and some fun times when were doing by ourselves. I will say when we DIY, our plans are usually lowkey and not too complex.

[LHT28]

Both

It really depends on the port

some are more conducive to wandering on your own

[Keith1010]

It does depend on the port. Some ports we go out on our own and others we go on an excursion.

 

Keith

[preschool teacher]

i agree, it depends on the port...but when we do wing it i still do alot of research........

[chipmaster]

Ports in the tropic which are beach themed I'd say winging it isn't a big deal.

 

Go to say Europe and winging it would be a terrrible mistake.

 

What's you experience:

 

Do you have a better time at port when you have an activity planned?

 

OR

 

Do you have a better time at port when you just walk off the ship and explore on your own?

[paul929207]

It depends on the port. We almost never take a ship tour. I guess about half the time we take a private tour.

[aohkay]

While we do some DIY, we never "wing" it. Have always done research prior and have some idea of what we'd like to see and do.

[cb at sea]

We like beaches, so we get a guidebook on our ports, and find out where the beaches are, and what each offers. No need for an excursion, if you do your research!

 

However, if you know nothing about where you're going, just "walking around" isn't going to be a great day....you MUST have some info!

 

You don't need excursions to have a good time, but you have to do your homework!

[tip]

Unless the port and/or country in question is in a very unsafe area, we choose not to take the overpriced ship sponsored tours which are like cattle herds. We always book our tours and begin our excursions early in the day and plan on being back at the port a minimum of 1 1/2 to 2 hours before the "all aboard" time to avoid the last minute gangway dashes.

 

Part of the fun of anticipating a cruise for us is the planning phase. We spend quite a bit of time on the ports of call threads on these boards looking for ideas and for recommendations.

 

An example would be our upcoming southern Caribbean cruise on the Noordam in January. We shall be doing St. Thomas and St. Marteen on our own as we have been to those ports several times. We have booked private tours for St. Lucia and Barbodos, two new stops for us. We are still investigating Martinique and Dominica.

 

To those who have never done the research on their own, give it a try. It is not rocket science and that's a good thing because I am not a rocket scientist!!;)

[ldubs]

If we can we go on our own. Like to stroll, hang out, and soak it all in. As others say, can't always do that because of the port location. Wouldn't say we "wing it" as we usually do some research. I wonder if anyone has every compiled a list of the easy "walkers" (like Venice, Liverpool, San Diego, SF, etc).

[Hlitner]

We seldom take any kind of excursion anywhere in the world (there are some exceptions). In most ports of the Caribbean, Mexico, Europe and even Asia we usually just do our own thing. Even in Europe we will often not have any specific plan for the day (that is the advantage of DIY) but we will do our "homework" and know many different options. There have been times in Europe where we rented a car at a port, got in the car, and then said "so where shall we go today." Our plans will often hinge on the weather and just the way we feel at the time. DW likes to remind me of one day when we were in Rome and had lots of "plans." We stopped at the Piazza Navona (one of our favorite spots in Rome) for a cup of coffee and did not leave that outdoor cafe until the middle of the afternoon (almost 6 hours at one table) because we were enjoying the beautiful day and people watching. Last spring we were in Le Havre and had planned to take the train to Paris...but when we got to the train station we changed our mind (as we were buying tickets) and went to Rouen. Its all part of the fun.

 

Hank

[Reenwad]

I realize it depends on the port, I was asking for your experience.

It just seems like some of the best days on some of our cruises were the ones where we walked off the ship, knowing it was a "safe" port, and explored with friends we've met, had lunch or dinner, done some shopping, and had lotsa laughs and fun!

Sometimes it just seems the tours/excursions, private or cruise purchased, are too organized and repetitive. Shopping, wildlife, dolphins, waterfalls, etc.

Of course I had had some great excursions, but 'winging it' always seems more fun, especially if it's been a port you've been to before. Just wondered if anyone else thought the same. :o

[Happy ks]

I think it's totally up to the individual. We like to have some sort of plan, as just walking around shopping seems like a waste of a vacation day to me, I can shop at home and I don't care for souvenirs. Others live for shopping on vacation...so we're all different.

 

If I'm in a foreign country I've never seen or even a city that I know, I like to go somewhere and see the sights.

 

Then there are the ports where all we want to do is stay onboard, that only happens if we've been there before and don't care for the port. Contrary to my first paragraph, sitting and reading a book all day is definitely not a waste of a vacation day.

[Karysa]

I don't think that you will find many people here on cruise critic that totally wing it at a new destination. Most of us really enjoy the planning stages of a cruise.

[Colorado Kat]

I don't always book excursions, but I do my research first. I look through the Port of Call threads for the area I will be visiting. I read thru, and if I find a post that interests me, I highlight it, copy, and paste into a word processing document. Keep researching till I get bored with it, and then consolidate the info in my word document.

 

Then I can print, or copy to a laptop, etc for reference.

[Keith1010]

Whatever you do I always recommend having a plan for each port of call. That could be an excursion or seeing it on your own.

 

Keith

[debshomespun]

It is much easier to "wing it" at a port you have been to before, and know a little about the area. When we visit a new port, I will do lots of research, and sometimes we don't make plans until we get to the port, to see what the weather will be like, to determine if we should do a beach day, or a shopping/sightseeing day. I wouldn't call that winging it though, as we had done research before we got there.

 

Depends on the port, and if you have been there before or not.

[printingchick]

While we do some DIY, we never "wing" it. Have always done research prior and have some idea of what we'd like to see and do.

 

I am 100% in agreement. This is how I do it as well. How can you be sure not to miss something you would REALLY enjoy doing or seeing if you totally wing it?

[PeaPod1946]

I realize it depends on the port, I was asking for your experience.

 

It just seems like some of the best days on some of our cruises were the ones where we walked off the ship, knowing it was a "safe" port, and explored with friends we've met, had lunch or dinner, done some shopping, and had lotsa laughs and fun!

 

Sometimes it just seems the tours/excursions, private or cruise purchased, are too organized and repetitive. Shopping, wildlife, dolphins, waterfalls, etc.

 

Of course I had had some great excursions, but 'winging it' always seems more fun, especially if it's been a port you've been to before. Just wondered if anyone else thought the same. :o

Yes, I agree with this! Sure, I do a little research and maybe have some things in mind to see and determine if the port is "walkable" and if it is, I feel it's often more enjoyable to get off the ship at your leisure vs. waking up at an ungodly dark hour to hurry for breakfast so you can make the first tender so you can make the excursion etc.

 

I've done many tours & excursions and wouldn't trade the things I've experienced, but sometimes it seems more like a vacation to "wing it" than have a time structure, which I already have 5 days a week at work!