trips organised by ship or do you own

[groovy gran]

do you think it is better to go on the ships organised trips

or do your own.

we are going on empress in march and on other cruises we have taken a taxi or minibus from outside cruise terminal

which is better value :confused:

[bplazo]

I always try to do my own excursions because the ships are usually overcrowded and more expensive. Last cruise we had no choice but to do the excursion by RCCL because of the hurricanes we were re-routed and had to find something last minute.

 

The snorkeling trip we took, the boat was packed. Not alot of fun. This time we have booked with a company that only takes 12 people compared to the 50 people on the last trip. (same size boat)

[Host Kewlguy]

We rent a car everywhere but Bermuda. There we take the bus.

[groovy gran]

thanks guys

i think we will stick to doing our own trips

happy cruising:D

[tiedye602]

I have only been on one cruise, but my sister has done several. She told me to always do the excursions from the ship because if there is a problem and the tour doesn't get back to the ship on time, the ship will wait for you. When you are on your own and there is a problem you get left. Has anyone had this problem before?

[Host Kewlguy]

thanks guys

i think we will stick to doing our own trips

happy cruising:D

 

Good decision. You'll save a lot of money too.

[hstrybuf]

We like to mix them up. When we first started cruising, we were only comfortable doing excursions through the cruiseline. Now, we take the recommendations of other cruisers for independent tours as well as booking through the ship if something looks good. We never take off alone in a car in foreign ports.

[Host Kewlguy]

If you are careful about setting your watch properly and have any ability with time management you'll be fine. We made it back to the ship with a half hour to spare twice. You can't beat the freedom of doing things on your own. If you're unsure head back to the ship with plenty of time to spare. Life is too short not to be a little adventurous.

[mbisson]

I have only been on one cruise, but my sister has done several. She told me to always do the excursions from the ship because if there is a problem and the tour doesn't get back to the ship on time, the ship will wait for you. When you are on your own and there is a problem you get left. Has anyone had this problem before?

 

This comes up quite a lot, but I've yet to see any first hand statements from anyone on these boards saying they were left behind when the ship left because their tour was late. Maybe they have come up and I've missed them.

 

That said, the "My friends barber, uses this meat cutter, who knows a guy, whose cousin (that he hasn't seen in 6 years) has a girlfriend who missed her cruise because her excursion was late" type of comment has come up. I just can't validate how accurate they are.

 

-Monte

[Host Kewlguy]

This comes up quite a lot, but I've yet to see any first hand statements from anyone on these boards saying they were left behind when the ship left because their tour was late. Maybe they have come up and I've missed them.

 

That said, the "My friends barber, uses this meat cutter, who knows a guy, whose cousin (that he hasn't seen in 6 years) has a girlfriend who missed her cruise because her excursion was late" type of comment has come up. I just can't validate how accurate they are.

 

-Monte

 

Monte, actually there was one young couple who were left behind who posted on these boards but the story was she forgot to set her watch to the correct time during the time change. It was quite an entertaining post. I should try to locate it and bring it back to the top. Bottom line she wanted to be compensated by the cruise line for leaving her behind. She took a lot of heat from the Cruise Critic members as it was clearly her own fault for not being properly prepared.