Tortola port time change -- will they cut our excursion short?

[goin'toalaska]

I think they changed our departure time for Tortola from 4 to 3. We booked an excursion through NCL that runs from 10 to 3 -- are they likely to shave time off our excursion in order to get us back to the ship before 3? It's already a short excursion, so I'm going to be a little irked if they are cutting it short. Has anyone had an excursion end time that = the departure time?

[Demonyte]

All aboard time for passengers is 30 minutes before the departure time so 10am to 3pm excursion for 3pm departure is not happening like that.

[luvtovaca]

We are just of the Getaway with a stop in Tortola. Our original port time was also changed from 8-4 to 7-3. We originally had an 8 am excursion to the Baths. I had called the shore excursions up until a day before we left for the trip. They kept saying time was not changed. When we boarded and got to our room the tickets had a meeting time of 7:10 and we were on a ferry that departed at 7:30. So, considering our original excursion was not until 8, they obviously changed the times. We were not cut short at all. I would presume yours will also get an earlier start. Either call them or, depending when your cruise is or if your tickets don't reflect a different time, go to the shore excursions desk once on board. Especially if it's an NCL tour, you will not miss the ship. Although sounds like you are less worried about that and more worried about getting jipped on your excursion, which I totally get!

[huskerc]

I don't know which cruise you are on, but my upcoming Getaway sailing had both its arrival and departure time adjusted back by an hour. I have a private excursion booked, so I don't know what might have happened to ship's excursions, but I would expect those times to be updated.

[HarpHarp]

We are just of the Getaway with a stop in Tortola. Our original port time was also changed from 8-4 to 7-3. We originally had an 8 am excursion to the Baths. I had called the shore excursions up until a day before we left for the trip. They kept saying time was not changed. When we boarded and got to our room the tickets had a meeting time of 7:10 and we were on a ferry that departed at 7:30. So, considering our original excursion was not until 8, they obviously changed the times. We were not cut short at all. I would presume yours will also get an earlier start. Either call them or, depending when your cruise is or if your tickets don't reflect a different time, go to the shore excursions desk once on board. Especially if it's an NCL tour, you will not miss the ship. Although sounds like you are less worried about that and more worried about getting jipped on your excursion, which I totally get!

 

I just called the shore Ex dept. & was still told 8:10 for our Escape cruise. I've got to say the communication between depts. at NCL stinks.

[cb at sea]

A ship's excursion will not cause you to miss the ship...They routinely overstate your time ashore...if it's something you want to do, go and do it!

[HarpHarp]

A ship's excursion will not cause you to miss the ship...They routinely overstate your time ashore...if it's something you want to do, go and do it!

 

It's not a matter of missing the ship. Speedy's & Smiths offer regular ferry service as well as handle the cruise ship excursions. at 7:10 I've barely finished my first cup of coffee, especially when I'm on vacation :D

 

Not having the correct time makes it difficult to make alternative plans. The 7:45 ferry would be great, IF it didn't get there 15 min after the SHore ex & the 12:45 return ferry would give us a little more time on Virgin Gorda, as well as time to stop at Pussers for a painkiller :D

[aquarianne11]

We are just of the Getaway with a stop in Tortola. Our original port time was also changed from 8-4 to 7-3. We originally had an 8 am excursion to the Baths. I had called the shore excursions up until a day before we left for the trip. They kept saying time was not changed. When we boarded and got to our room the tickets had a meeting time of 7:10 and we were on a ferry that departed at 7:30.

 

Thanks for the info. We are booked on an 8AM excursion to the Baths for our Escape cruise and it is good to know that they are not going to shorten the excursion due to the time change.

[darwinsrule]

We are on the August 29th Getaway cruise. We had an 8:15 am excursion booked to the Baths. Logged jn over the weekend and the excursion now shows 7:30. Haven't had any kind of notification from NCL but communication isn't really a strength of theirs is it?

[punkincc]

We are just of the Getaway with a stop in Tortola. Our original port time was also changed from 8-4 to 7-3. We originally had an 8 am excursion to the Baths. I had called the shore excursions up until a day before we left for the trip. They kept saying time was not changed. When we boarded and got to our room the tickets had a meeting time of 7:10 and we were on a ferry that departed at 7:30. So, considering our original excursion was not until 8, they obviously changed the times. We were not cut short at all. I would presume yours will also get an earlier start. Either call them or, depending when your cruise is or if your tickets don't reflect a different time, go to the shore excursions desk once on board. Especially if it's an NCL tour, you will not miss the ship. Although sounds like you are less worried about that and more worried about getting jipped on your excursion, which I totally get!

 

We are trying to decide whether to do the Baths independently to gain a little more time there or just go with the ships excursion.

 

Can you confirm which ferry had the 7:30, Smiths or Speedys, and what time did you catch the ferry back? I assume it was a regular run with other passengers and not a private excursion only ferry.

[Nola26]

We are on the August 29th Getaway cruise. We had an 8:15 am excursion booked to the Baths. Logged jn over the weekend and the excursion now shows 7:30. Haven't had any kind of notification from NCL but communication isn't really a strength of theirs is it?

 

This is what the OP should do, log into your ncl.com account and check your excursion schedule, the boards can't really answer that for you.

[Mr and Mrs C]

We are just of the Getaway with a stop in Tortola. Our original port time was also changed from 8-4 to 7-3. We originally had an 8 am excursion to the Baths. I had called the shore excursions up until a day before we left for the trip. They kept saying time was not changed. When we boarded and got to our room the tickets had a meeting time of 7:10 and we were on a ferry that departed at 7:30. So, considering our original excursion was not until 8, they obviously changed the times. We were not cut short at all. I would presume yours will also get an earlier start. Either call them or, depending when your cruise is or if your tickets don't reflect a different time, go to the shore excursions desk once on board. Especially if it's an NCL tour, you will not miss the ship. Although sounds like you are less worried about that and more worried about getting jipped on your excursion, which I totally get!

 

 

How was the excursion? Thinking of booking it through NCL, we are in Tortola from 7-1.

[HarpHarp]

We are trying to decide whether to do the Baths independently to gain a little more time there or just go with the ships excursion.

 

Can you confirm which ferry had the 7:30, Smiths or Speedys, and what time did you catch the ferry back? I assume it was a regular run with other passengers and not a private excursion only ferry.

 

I believe it is one of Speedy's boats chartered by NCL. They also have buses on Virgin Gorda to take people to the baths.

 

No ferry leaves at 7:30

SPEEDY'S

Tel: (284) 495-5240 / (284) 495-5235 /

(284) 495-5779

email: speedysbvi@surfbvi.com

http://www.speedysbvi.com Round trip: $30/adult, $20/senior, $20/child (5-11)

One way: $20/adult, $10/senior, $15/child (5-11)

Mon 07:45

09:00

 

10:30

 

12:00

 

13:30

 

16:30

 

18:00

 

 

 

TORTOLA to VIRGIN GORDA

Road Town to Spanish Town • BVI Ferry Info & FAQs • BVI Ferry Route Map

SMITH'S FERRY SERVICES

Tel: (284) 494-4454 / (284) 495-4495 (Tortola)

(340) 775-7292 (St Thomas)

email: magicplace@hotmail.com

http://www.bviferryservices.com Round trip: $30/adult, $20/senior, $20/child (3-11)

One way: $20/adult, $10/senior, $15/child (3-11)

Mon-Fri

07:00

 

10:00

 

12:30

 

15:15

 

17:15

 

 

http://www.bestofbvi.com/info/bviferry_tortola_vg.htm

 

Weather they would or can sell tickets if there are spaces, I don't know. It looks like 7:45 with a 12:40 return, both through Speedy's would be your best bet.

[luvtovaca]

I just called the shore Ex dept. & was still told 8:10 for our Escape cruise. I've got to say the communication between depts. at NCL stinks.

 

Keep checking and/or logging in. Since it appears from your signature that your cruise isn't until November, they could change the port times again. A poster sailing in August reported theirs was updated, so maybe they are going month by month...

[luvtovaca]

Thanks for the info. We are booked on an 8AM excursion to the Baths for our Escape cruise and it is good to know that they are not going to shorten the excursion due to the time change.

 

You're welcome. You will enjoy the Baths! All I can do is report our experience, so if they should shorten your time, please don't blame me!:eek:

[luvtovaca]

We are trying to decide whether to do the Baths independently to gain a little more time there or just go with the ships excursion.

 

Can you confirm which ferry had the 7:30, Smiths or Speedys, and what time did you catch the ferry back? I assume it was a regular run with other passengers and not a private excursion only ferry.

 

It was definitely Speedy's ferries and taxis as well. It appeared to be chartered ferries for only the people on the NCL Getaway excursion. They handed out bracelets once underway to identify us to them on our return.

 

I just checked the time stamps on my phone for photos I took that day. We were underway by 7:35 on the ferry to Virgin Gorda and at the dock to catch the return ferry around 11:35 according to the pics I took during those times.

 

As for being a regular ferry, at the return there was one line for us and another line for people boarding a separate ferry, which I assume was the private one not excursions. They made sure we stayed to the right and a lot of the people boarding the ferry on the left had rolling suitcases and other luggage as if they had either just finished spending time on VG or heading to spend time on Tortola. They were definitely not part of our excursion group.

 

Hope this helps!

[luvtovaca]

How was the excursion? Thinking of booking it through NCL, we are in Tortola from 7-1.

 

We definitely enjoyed it a lot! The Baths are very unique and such a beautiful place. I would definitely recommend you do it through the ship based on your port time being even shorter than ours was, though. If you are only there until 1, your on board time will be 12:30 which will be very tight, even with the ships excursion. Also, one thing I will note is that this is NOT a "guided or escorted" tour. We didn't need or want that for ourselves, but just an FYI . Once off the ferry we went right to the taxis and once off those, the "guide" gave us a brief description of where to go and when to be back. She also told us the water was not more than ankle deep (it was thigh and higher in some spots). In addition a little girl was stung by a jellyfish at one of the beaches. Someone asked the guide if that was possible and she said "no, there are not really jellyfish". We then saw proceeded to see at least one. They are clear so hard to spot, but fairly large. We headed up to the taxis before the group, but she also told us she would start shouting at 11 am that it was time to head back up so no one would miss the taxis. So, again, if you want or need someone to take you through the Baths, this is not the excursion for you.

 

Sorry if this is too much info, tried to include the things I thought you might want to know in advance. There is at least one detailed review on here of the actual tour of the Baths if you do a search. That is where I gained most of my knowledge in advance.

 

Enjoy!

[HarpHarp]

Keep checking and/or logging in. Since it appears from your signature that your cruise isn't until November, they could change the port times again. A poster sailing in August reported theirs was updated, so maybe they are going month by month...

 

Yeah they managed to change the price, but not the time.:rolleyes: I lived in St Thomas many years ago, so I am familiar with the ins & outs of the ferry. As a matter of fact, when they put the 7-3 port time in the St Thomas slot a few weeks ago, I told one of the NCL reps I was either going with Celebrity or take the late ferry from St Thomas to Tortola & meet the ship in the am:D

[Mr and Mrs C]

We definitely enjoyed it a lot! The Baths are very unique and such a beautiful place. I would definitely recommend you do it through the ship based on your port time being even shorter than ours was, though. If you are only there until 1, your on board time will be 12:30 which will be very tight, even with the ships excursion. Also, one thing I will note is that this is NOT a "guided or escorted" tour. We didn't need or want that for ourselves, but just an FYI . Once off the ferry we went right to the taxis and once off those, the "guide" gave us a brief description of where to go and when to be back. She also told us the water was not more than ankle deep (it was thigh and higher in some spots). In addition a little girl was stung by a jellyfish at one of the beaches. Someone asked the guide if that was possible and she said "no, there are not really jellyfish". We then saw proceeded to see at least one. They are clear so hard to spot, but fairly large. We headed up to the taxis before the group, but she also told us she would start shouting at 11 am that it was time to head back up so no one would miss the taxis. So, again, if you want or need someone to take you through the Baths, this is not the excursion for you.

 

 

 

Sorry if this is too much info, tried to include the things I thought you might want to know in advance. There is at least one detailed review on here of the actual tour of the Baths if you do a search. That is where I gained most of my knowledge in advance.

 

 

 

Enjoy!

 

 

So I am assuming the taxis are included in the excursion price?

 

Was there many people in your group from NCL? Just trying to get a feel how many excursions are available. There is only one time choice for our day there, so I'm thinking it could sell out fast. I have a group of 18 going so I'm trying to convince everyone to book sooner rather then later!

 

Thank you so much for all the info, I appreciate it!

[HarpHarp]

We definitely enjoyed it a lot! The Baths are very unique and such a beautiful place. I would definitely recommend you do it through the ship based on your port time being even shorter than ours was, though. If you are only there until 1, your on board time will be 12:30 which will be very tight, even with the ships excursion. Also, one thing I will note is that this is NOT a "guided or escorted" tour. We didn't need or want that for ourselves, but just an FYI . Once off the ferry we went right to the taxis and once off those, the "guide" gave us a brief description of where to go and when to be back. She also told us the water was not more than ankle deep (it was thigh and higher in some spots). In addition a little girl was stung by a jellyfish at one of the beaches. Someone asked the guide if that was possible and she said "no, there are not really jellyfish". We then saw proceeded to see at least one. They are clear so hard to spot, but fairly large. We headed up to the taxis before the group, but she also told us she would start shouting at 11 am that it was time to head back up so no one would miss the taxis. So, again, if you want or need someone to take you through the Baths, this is not the excursion for you.

 

Sorry if this is too much info, tried to include the things I thought you might want to know in advance. There is at least one detailed review on here of the actual tour of the Baths if you do a search. That is where I gained most of my knowledge in advance.

 

Enjoy!

 

Thank you for the detailed info. We probably will take the ship tour also. It is as you say a unique & beautiful place. I've only sailed in on trips there when I lived in St T. I do want to show my DH what it is all about.

[punkincc]

So I am assuming the taxis are included in the excursion price?

 

Was there many people in your group from NCL? Just trying to get a feel how many excursions are available. There is only one time choice for our day there, so I'm thinking it could sell out fast. I have a group of 18 going so I'm trying to convince everyone to book sooner rather then later!

 

Thank you so much for all the info, I appreciate it!

 

Yes, the taxis are included in the excursion price, but it sounds like a taxi from the harbor in Virgin Gorda to the Baths is about $4.

 

I would be very surprised if this excursion ever "sells out". Those ferrys can carry a lot of people, and so do those open air taxis which take you over to the baths. They can usually expand the needed transportation to fit the number interested.

 

But, when something is a 'must do', it's always a good idea to book well in advance just in case.