Carnival vs Private Excursions

[Sabalon]

Albeit limited experience, but on our first cruise, in Nassau we did our own thing and did a private excursion in Freeport - guess we jumped in with both feet there!

 

Second one we did our own thing in Nassau, got bored and hung out on the empty waterworks onboard. We did a Carnival excursion at Half-Moon Cay - no choice.

 

Last trip we did our own thing in Cozumel, did Carnival ones in Belize and Roatan, and was supposed to do a Carnival one in Grand Cayman, but had the time wrong, missed it so we did the same one ourselves with a local operator.

 

From the little research I've done, the Carnival ones look to be about 10% higher than if you booked them yourselves. This last cruise, right after we booked, we had a Carnival offer to save 10%. One was a 7 hour one - too risky to do privately. One only booked through the cruise lines (mostly), so in the end it made sense, plus the "buy within the next 72hours for 10%" helped equalize the costs.

 

I agree with what others said - these operators know very well about Cruise Critic, Trip Advisor, etc. They are not gonna shoot themselves in the foot. They know local traffic patterns, tender times, etc and know how to get you back.

 

So you have a choice of going with Carnival, going with a third party operator/excursion, or doing your own thing. The doing your own thing obviously puts a little more on you. Most of the locations have their economy based on tourism, so you're not gonna have too much trouble, but the "here's $30 - take me around the island" taxi tours worry me. I know people have seen some neat stuff, but I'd be worried you'd get half way around and hit up for more.

 

Do tons of research!!!

[stressedmomof3]

The following link is to the Carnival Shore excursions FAQs to help you decide to book independently or through the ship:

 

https://help.carnival.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/2866/~/shore-excursion-faqs

 

It tells you they will hold the ship, how to book, how to cancel, Carnival will not be held responsible if you get hurt, etc...

 

HTH...

[CarolR]

I would consider booking a short half day tour privately but a full day only through the ship. On our Hawaii cruise in May we booked a full day tour in Kauai through Carnival and our van blew a tire on the way back to the ship. We were late and the ship waited for us. I would rather pay a few more dollars and not worry.

[dacsmom]

It all depends on the port and how far I am planning to travel. I stick to the Cruise lines excursions if there is a long distance involved, like the ruins in Cozumel. I frequently sail solo and really do my research on Trip Advisor and CC boards. The good thing is that most lines will price match if you find the same excursion offered privately. As many others have said, the reputable companies depend on good reviews and get passengers back to the ports on time. It would help to know what ports you are considering.

[coevan]

example: in Grand Turk we did a private scuba dive. We had 5 people and a dive master. I large boat was going to the same dive site with about 40 ppl. I asked the dive master, he said that was the Carnival tour with 3 dive masters. He told us the rules require one DM per 8 people, oops, not as safe as our trip.

[LaFrimaire]

Have done both and no issues with either. However when touring independently, prefer to use a private operator that works with cruise passengers so they know cruise schedules and get you back in time.

[smurfm69]

My advice would be to do your research here on Cruise Critic on the port of call boards. You will see reviews, pictures, and recommendations for certain independent tour operators. These operators rely on positive, word of mouth reviews to keep them in business;Therefore, they will make sure to give you great service and get you back to your ship on time.

[rjrpar]

We do private excursions all the time. They are cheaper and better. Never a worry about missing the ship, these people do it for a living and are careful to get back on time.

[OCruisers]

Sometimes, it's just easier to book thru the ship if something is offered at a time you want to do it. :D

[idil]

Sometimes, it's just easier to book thru the ship if something is offered at a time you want to do it. :D

 

To be honest, I thought the same thing when we were on board ... it's so convenient if you want to book anything for any of the ports...

 

As this was our first cruise, we didn't know much ... and we just went with what we researched. For the next time, to get to certain landmarks, I'd book a tour to be honest.

 

However, the taxi we booked in St. Kitts (with Rose) was really a good choice as she was basically our tour guide. It was well beyond our expectations. I'd give her a -two thumbs up- :)