Excursion splurges

[Gwendy]

We didn't splurge, but should have. Trip to Tierra del Fuega, we did it privately, radiator in van booked, driver poured cold water into it!!! We eventually limped back to port, but stress levels were high. At one stage I was contemplating standing on the highway and flagging down the ship's tour busses by waving my Celebrity boarding pass. Lol

[OldBoot]

We didn't splurge, but should have. Trip to Tierra del Fuega, we did it privately, radiator in van booked, driver poured cold water into it!!! We eventually limped back to port, but stress levels were high. At one stage I was contemplating standing on the highway and flagging down the ship's tour busses by waving my Celebrity boarding pass. Lol

You won't ever forget that excursion! Thanks for sharing. ^_^

 

Sent from my K00L using Tapatalk

[Hlitner]

I'm considering an excursion splurge on an upcoming cruise. I'm wondering if other cruisers would be willing to share a story about a time when you chose to splurge big on an excursion? Was it amazing or did you regret it?

 

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

DW and I have spent more then 1200 days on many cruises.....visited 6 Continents (while on cruises) and have only taken 3 or 4 cruise line excursions in hundreds of ports over more then thirty-five years. However, there was one excursion we took (many years ago) while on a Crystal cruise to Alaska....that cost $495 per person (the cost today would be significantly higher). It was an excursion from Juneau that included transportation to a helicopter facility, a lengthy flight over several glaciers which ended in us being landed on a glacier where there was a summer camp to train Iditerod Sled dogs. We were then permitted to drive a dog sled and also ride in one of the sleds...as we moved around the glacier. We got very lucky with the weather and had a gorgeous day with a bright blue sky...and pretty hot sun. We had our doubts when we booked that excursion...but afterwards thought it was worth every penny.

 

To this day our philosophy is to only consider a cruise line excursion that does something that we cannot possibly do on our own...or with a private tour. This particular excursion fit those criteria.

 

Hank

[Floridiana]

I'm considering an excursion splurge on an upcoming cruise. I'm wondering if other cruisers would be willing to share a story about a time when you chose to splurge big on an excursion? Was it amazing or did you regret it?

 

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

It was amazing and I don't regret it.

Big Splurge:

Excursion with flight to Tikal Mayan ruins in Guatemala. Booked via the cruise line, everything taken care of including 12 passenger charter planes.

St. Petersburg:

Private tour for our 4 family members. More expensive than joining a larger group. I didn't actually compare the price to the tours offered by the cruise line, but we could have saved money by joining another family group. We met them on a short boat ride through the canals and were glad we had opted for our own tour guide and itinerary.

 

On both cruises, we offset the cost by doing our own thing in 2 other ports without a tour at all - walking around, public transportation. You need to select carefully what is really important to you. Somebody else might not have thought the Mayan ruins important at all. For us, they were the focus of the cruise and we wanted to avoid a long land trip to get there.

[Floridiana]

I should have mentioned, we also book pre and post cruise city hotels and tours on our own. If you are flying overseas, it is worthwhile to visit the places where the cruise starts and ends: Sydney, Auckland, Hong Kong, Hamburg, Buenos Aires, Papeete ... After all, the flights are long. We have also added a land tour to a cruise, different companies, but the timing worked out.

[DCLCrazy]

I'm considering an excursion splurge on an upcoming cruise. I'm wondering if other cruisers would be willing to share a story about a time when you chose to splurge big on an excursion? Was it amazing or did you regret it?

 

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

 

 

We splurged on a helicopter ride over a volcano in Hawaii. AMAZING experience. Don't regret it a bit!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[DCLCrazy]

So glad you shared. I am loving everyone's stories. What great experiences; no regrets.

 

 

 

You only regret the things you don't do. :)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Sea Hag]

I doubt this counts as a splurge, since it really wasn't all that costly, but it's the one I'll remember mostly fondly for the rest of my life. Doors-off helicopter over the volcano on the Big Island! Small helicopter, with seating for two in the back. Hubby and I each got our own door-less door for a really spectacular flight.

[OldBoot]

You only regret the things you don't do. :)

 

Most of the time! ;p

 

Doors-off helicopter over the volcano on the Big Island! Small helicopter, with seating for two in the back. Hubby and I each got our own door-less door for a really spectacular flight.

 

Whee! What a feeling! Sounds great. :cool:(y)

[OldBoot]

It was amazing and I don't regret it.

Big Splurge:

Excursion with flight to Tikal Mayan ruins in Guatemala. Booked via the cruise line, everything taken care of including 12 passenger charter planes.

St. Petersburg:

Private tour for our 4 family members. More expensive than joining a larger group. I didn't actually compare the price to the tours offered by the cruise line, but we could have saved money by joining another family group. We met them on a short boat ride through the canals and were glad we had opted for our own tour guide and itinerary.

 

On both cruises, we offset the cost by doing our own thing in 2 other ports without a tour at all - walking around, public transportation. You need to select carefully what is really important to you. Somebody else might not have thought the Mayan ruins important at all. For us, they were the focus of the cruise and we wanted to avoid a long land trip to get there.

 

The "everything-taken-care-of" by the cruise line is a BIG selling feature--especially when there are 12 charter flights! Both these excursions sound well worthwhile.

 

I should have mentioned, we also book pre and post cruise city hotels and tours on our own. If you are flying overseas, it is worthwhile to visit the places where the cruise starts and ends: Sydney, Auckland, Hong Kong, Hamburg, Buenos Aires, Papeete ... After all, the flights are long. We have also added a land tour to a cruise, different companies, but the timing worked out.

 

So true. We did that once, so far, when we spent time in Alaska prior to embarkation. Love to do that again sometime. (y)

[OldBoot]

It was an excursion from Juneau that included transportation to a helicopter facility, a lengthy flight over several glaciers which ended in us being landed on a glacier where there was a summer camp to train Iditerod Sled dogs. We were then permitted to drive a dog sled and also ride in one of the sleds...as we moved around the glacier. We got very lucky with the weather and had a gorgeous day with a bright blue sky...and pretty hot sun. We had our doubts when we booked that excursion...but afterwards thought it was worth every penny.

 

To this day our philosophy is to only consider a cruise line excursion that does something that we cannot possibly do on our own...or with a private tour. This particular excursion fit those criteria.

 

Hank

 

You have the cruising experience to definitely know what you are talking about Hank! I think your philosophy is right on target. And it sure steered you in the right direction for a glorious day on the glaciers! :cool:

 

We splurged on a helicopter ride over a volcano in Hawaii. AMAZING experience. Don't regret it a bit!

 

Cheers to that DCLCrazy! What a rush and a forever memory for sure. :D

[no1racefan1]

Our best splurge was a helicopter ride to the top of a glacier in Juneau, where the dog sledding camp was. Not only did we get a sightseeing flight over the glaciers, we landed at the dog sled camp and got to ride the sleds and pet the dogs. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. This was a ship-sponsored excursion from Princess and there were only about six people on the tour.

 

While you should definitely research all of your options, don't write off ship excursions right away. I know here on CC ship excursions are not popular, but we have not had a single excursion that was not absolutely fantastic. We usually try to pick unusual, less popular excursions, so we have never, ever had a crammed bus full of people or any of the other horror stories you read about.

 

Other memorable ship excursions have been: a hike through the rainforest in Hawaii that visited several waterfalls and over a stream, giving us time to swim and take lots of pictures of all the different flowers. There were about 8 of us on this excursion--it was a moderately strenuous hike. The guide was amazing.

Another Hawaii excursion was a hike across a volcanic crater. This was a pretty strenuous hike, but again our guide was amazing. It was a group of about 8 as well. She drove us in a comfortable van and took us to a black sand beach that was not on the official tour agenda just so we could say we saw it. She was just awesome!

 

In Key West, we did a ship's excursion that was a kayaking tour through the mangrove forests. So fun, the guides were superb, and it was very relaxing. In Cozumel, we booked a ship's excursion to a private beach house--it wasn't nearly as expensive as the Alaska helicopter but it was a splurge compared to the other excursions offered. Our time there was amazing and all of the guides made us feel like family! Neither of these excursions were crowded or unpleasant in any way.

 

We've also done some ports of call on our own--booked a helicopter tour in Kauai, rented a car and drove around Maui, etc. I'd have to say that my most memorable experiences from our 3 cruises come back to the ship excursions we have booked. Not a single bad experience so far. Don't automatically write them off based on what you read here!

[OldBoot]

Our best splurge was a helicopter ride to the top of a glacier in Juneau, where the dog sledding camp was. Not only did we get a sightseeing flight over the glaciers, we landed at the dog sled camp and got to ride the sleds and pet the dogs. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. This was a ship-sponsored excursion from Princess and there were only about six people on the tour.

 

While you should definitely research all of your options, don't write off ship excursions right away. I know here on CC ship excursions are not popular, but we have not had a single excursion that was not absolutely fantastic. We usually try to pick unusual, less popular excursions, so we have never, ever had a crammed bus full of people or any of the other horror stories you read about.

 

Other memorable ship excursions have been: a hike through the rainforest in Hawaii that visited several waterfalls and over a stream, giving us time to swim and take lots of pictures of all the different flowers. There were about 8 of us on this excursion--it was a moderately strenuous hike. The guide was amazing.

Another Hawaii excursion was a hike across a volcanic crater. This was a pretty strenuous hike, but again our guide was amazing. It was a group of about 8 as well. She drove us in a comfortable van and took us to a black sand beach that was not on the official tour agenda just so we could say we saw it. She was just awesome!

 

In Key West, we did a ship's excursion that was a kayaking tour through the mangrove forests. So fun, the guides were superb, and it was very relaxing. In Cozumel, we booked a ship's excursion to a private beach house--it wasn't nearly as expensive as the Alaska helicopter but it was a splurge compared to the other excursions offered. Our time there was amazing and all of the guides made us feel like family! Neither of these excursions were crowded or unpleasant in any way.

 

We've also done some ports of call on our own--booked a helicopter tour in Kauai, rented a car and drove around Maui, etc. I'd have to say that my most memorable experiences from our 3 cruises come back to the ship excursions we have booked. Not a single bad experience so far. Don't automatically write them off based on what you read here!

I love all excursions that make memories! So glad to hear you've had such wonderful experiences. I'd love to try that kayaking trip although I've never been in a kayak. ^_^ It just sounds so serene.

 

Sent from my K00L using Tapatalk

[Suzieanna]

Ship sponsored excursions get a hard rap because the sellers frighten people into thinking all sorts! eg.. a private tour might not get you back in time, or if you go wandering on your own you might get mugged!

 

Yes, these things are true, but if you go with a reputable firm you will get back on time. I can't recall any "private" tours I have been on being back late, but I have seen plenty of ship sponsored tours limping in late because the 40 minute potty stop took 55 minutes, or somebody got lost in a gift shop.

 

BUT, - I think these ship tours are good for some people. If I was for example older, on my own, less mobile - then they are perfect.

 

Now as for splurges - you could spend $1000 on something and it not be a splurge, because you might have had a lot of return on that spend...

 

I feel my biggest splurge recently was highlighted on my bank statement received the other day £100 for 2 sandwiches, a burger/fries, a schnapps and a couple of beers. but it was canalside Nyhavn - and will be something I will remember forever. I don't feel the £500 spent for a wonderful 3 person 2day tours with TJ travel as an extravagant splurge in the same way that sandwich was!!!

[OldBoot]

I feel my biggest splurge recently was highlighted on my bank statement received the other day £100 for 2 sandwiches, a burger/fries, a schnapps and a couple of beers. but it was canalside Nyhavn - and will be something I will remember forever. I don't feel the £500 spent for a wonderful 3 person 2day tours with TJ travel as an extravagant splurge in the same way that sandwich was!!!

 

I had to google Nyhavn. But I'm glad I did. Looks terrific. You are right. The splurge is not always about the dollar amount. The perfect moment is priceless! ^_^

Ship sponsored excursions get a hard rap because the sellers frighten people into thinking all sorts! eg.. a private tour might not get you back in time, or if you go wandering on your own you might get mugged!

 

Yes, these things are true, but if you go with a reputable firm you will get back on time. I can't recall any "private" tours I have been on being back late, but I have seen plenty of ship sponsored tours limping in late because the 40 minute potty stop took 55 minutes, or somebody got lost in a gift shop.

 

BUT, - I think these ship tours are good for some people. If I was for example older, on my own, less mobile - then they are perfect.

 

Now as for splurges - you could spend $1000 on something and it not be a splurge, because you might have had a lot of return on that spend...

 

I feel my biggest splurge recently was highlighted on my bank statement received the other day £100 for 2 sandwiches, a burger/fries, a schnapps and a couple of beers. but it was canalside Nyhavn - and will be something I will remember forever. I don't feel the £500 spent for a wonderful 3 person 2day tours with TJ travel as an extravagant splurge in the same way that sandwich was!!!

 

 

Sent from my K00L using Tapatalk