Shore Excursions-Using Outside Companies

[djett]

Has anyone used any of the following companies to book shore excursions and if so, what was your experience.

cruise compete.com

shoretrips.com

Shore Excursions Group

[kazu]

Has anyone used any of the following companies to book shore excursions and if so, what was your experience.

cruise compete.com

shoretrips.com

Shore Excursions Group

 

Sorry, no. I'm fussy and research the companies and book directly with the companies. I have read some reviews though and some of them were not good.

 

Hit tripadvisor,send some emails and do a bit of research and you can have a personalized tour with a smaller group and a better price. (Post on your roll call when you find someone). JMO.

 

rather than be teamed up with a larger group, I will do a HAL small group excursion. Private tours for us are 6-8 people preferably. JMO

[Herfnerd]

Ditto Kazu - I research the bejeezus out of non-cruise tour companies before booking with them

 

And I had the same experience - just doing a brief check, they were iffy at best.....

[CruiserBruce]

As discussed frequently on the Ports boards, there are brokers. Brokers take your money, and contract with local vendors. Yes, their prices are pretty good, but when something goes wrong, it is very difficult to contact anyone to resolve the issues. As a result of such a problem with probably the largest tour broker around, we exclusively deal just with the vendors, directly.

[marti2282]

I was really excited when I read the promotional material on Shore Excursions Group. Their guarantee looked REALLY good. However, after doing research and reading reviews, not a chance I would use them.

[Fouremco]

Shore Excursions Group is a preferred partner of Expedia CruiseShipCenters, a relationship I'm sure Expedia wouldn't maintain if they were a dodgy organization. While we've only used them a couple of times, I found them to be easy to work with and had no issues. We usually deal directly with providers, but SEG occasionally offers prices slightly lower than the provider's and definitely lower than HAL's.

[Tinknock50]

Shore Excursions Group is a preferred partner of Expedia CruiseShipCenters, a relationship I'm sure Expedia wouldn't maintain if they were a dodgy organization. While we've only used them a couple of times, I found them to be easy to work with and had no issues. We usually deal directly with providers, but SEG occasionally offers prices slightly lower than the provider's and definitely lower than HAL's.

 

I used them too and no problems.

[marymac11]

We just returned from Alaska on the Amsterdam. Had a wonderful cruise! We used Shore Excursions Group for two ports of call excursions and had no issues. Easy to book, less expensive than HAL (in fact honored a lower price match found online). Both excursions were advertised on HAL with the same providers.:)

[iancal]

We have been very successful in booking third party tours-both individual and group. We do our research and never pay in advance.

 

Private tours tend to have fewer people and be more personal. No waiting for Ethel to finish buying her fridge magnets at some shop down the street either. Plus, our money sys with the locals...it does no sail away with the ship.

[OlsSalt]

..... No waiting for Ethel to finish buying her fridge magnets at some shop down the street either. Plus, our money sys with the locals...it does no sail away with the ship.

 

I hear what you are saying, but in our many, many HAL shore excursions taken all over the world we never had such a stereotypical tour group malingerer.

 

Just the opposite, we are always impressed how courteous other HAL shore excursion passengers are, and how responsive they are to the expectations of the entire group. We never once had to wait for a tardy tour member. And when we are forced to wait due to some other back-up or delay, how good natured everyone is. No loud or pushy demands ever.

 

In fact there was one time when a guide tried to add an additional shopping stop that was not part of the plan and the group clearly voted him down.

 

There are occasional "shopping" extension offers made at the end or tour, but for the most part, the tour discloses up front if there will be a "shopping experience' so that is a choice made by each passenger up front. And sometimes when the group agrees they want a "shopping" time, the guide can accommodate this request.

 

We remain impressed with HAL shore excursions, knowing full well one can often beat the prices, but never the convenience and security of what HAL offers.

[dakrewser]

In fact there was one time when a guide tried to add an additional shopping stop that was not part of the plan and the group clearly voted him down.

 

This happened to us, too! We were in Minorca and were on an excursion to the "Dragon's Cave" (a good place to visit). It was a drizzly, cool day and the excited guide said we'd go to a "special" usually not visited shopping "mall" (like 4 shops all owned by relatives of the guide) - everyone on the bus yelled "No! Take us back to the ship!!" And he did.

[Fouremco]

I hear what you are saying, but in our many, many HAL shore excursions taken all over the world we never had such a stereotypical tour group malingerer.

 

We remain impressed with HAL shore excursions, knowing full well one can often beat the prices, but never the convenience and security of what HAL offers.

We very seldom take ships' shore excursions for a variety of reasons, but we certainly have experienced malingerers on the few we've taken. Our latest HAL excursion was to the ruins at Tulum, and we waited on the bus for a good ten minutes beyond the scheduled departure time from Tulum, waiting for a couple who sauntered back from the shops, totally oblivious of the time. I guess you've been particularly lucky! :)

 

We'll just have to agree to disagree on whether HAL's excursions provide any more convenience or security. That can be true in some cases, thus the few we've taken, but by no means does that apply across the board, IMO.

[Taylor D]

On our cruise to Europe last month I booked 8 excursions, 4 from Celebrity and 4 from Viator. The all day excursions were all from Celebrity because I was freaked out we may miss the boat and all four were really good but we did pay more for sure. The other 4 from Viator, 3 were really good and a way better price but one we did in Montenegro was very unorganized and a mess but I chocked it up to lesson learned so I figure we went 7 for 8 and we had the best cruise ever.

[kazu]

We very seldom take ships' shore excursions for a variety of reasons, but we certainly have experienced malingerers on the few we've taken. Our latest HAL excursion was to the ruins at Tulum, and we waited on the bus for a good ten minutes beyond the scheduled departure time from Tulum, waiting for a couple who sauntered back from the shops, totally oblivious of the time. I guess you've been particularly lucky! :)

 

We'll just have to agree to disagree on whether HAL's excursions provide any more convenience or security. That can be true in some cases, thus the few we've taken, but by no means does that apply across the board, IMO.

 

I'm glad someone else has had the experience as us.

 

Totally agree that it does not apply across the board :)

[cruisemom42]

We very seldom take ships' shore excursions for a variety of reasons, but we certainly have experienced malingerers on the few we've taken. Our latest HAL excursion was to the ruins at Tulum, and we waited on the bus for a good ten minutes beyond the scheduled departure time from Tulum, waiting for a couple who sauntered back from the shops, totally oblivious of the time. I guess you've been particularly lucky! :)

 

We'll just have to agree to disagree on whether HAL's excursions provide any more convenience or security. That can be true in some cases, thus the few we've taken, but by no means does that apply across the board, IMO.

 

+1 on this.

 

In addition, I have experienced a couple of pretty crappy guides on HAL tours (and, to be fair, on other cruise lines' tours). My criteria for private tours varies, but if I am wanting to hire a true guided tour, I research the heck out of guides and hire the best I can find, regardless of the cost.

 

Also, it doesn't matter to me if 90% of the bus votes for a shopping stop. If I don't want to stop then it's a waste of my time and it should not be permitted if it is not in the tour description.

[Fouremco]

Also, it doesn't matter to me if 90% of the bus votes for a shopping stop. If I don't want to stop then it's a waste of my time and it should not be permitted if it is not in the tour description.

I couldn't agree more. One of the private excursion companies in St. Kitts has the right idea. You know when booking that at the end of the island tour, you have the option of being dropped off for a few hours on a lovely beach or being taken back to the port for shopping, walking around town or reboarding the ship. We opted for the beach and were picked up right on schedule to return to the port later in the afternoon.

[OlsSalt]

+1 on this.

 

In addition, I have experienced a couple of pretty crappy guides on HAL tours (and, to be fair, on other cruise lines' tours). My criteria for private tours varies, but if I am wanting to hire a true guided tour, I research the heck out of guides and hire the best I can find, regardless of the cost.

 

Also, it doesn't matter to me if 90% of the bus votes for a shopping stop. If I don't want to stop then it's a waste of my time and it should not be permitted if it is not in the tour description.

 

Your 10% opposition would have been honored. It it was was not in the description of the tour, and one voice alone objecting - without any feeling embarrassment or pressure - it would be enough to not add any unplanned extras.

 

Like I reported, we have found HAL tour members to be a very gracious, reasonable and courteous bunch. And they are very respectful towards the one lone voice who does say no. I have been that sole person myself on occasion when this would cut into our promised time.

 

And on another time, we just left the tour - and therefore no tip for the guide - who stopped close to the ship at the end of the tour, at his "uncle's special price shop". (Arn't they all?) So things happen, but had it not been convenient I would have objected that time too.

 

Go with the 80% formula. It is a vacation. So if booking through HAL offers a quality experience ...80% of the time ..... with 80% less effort doing all the individual research .... HAL makes sense.

 

However I am in 100% agreement when you are willing to do your own home work and you have specific desires to fulfill not met by a group tour, then by all means individual tours are the best option. No problem.

 

I just did not want to see our virtually 100% positive experience with HAL tours get maligned as a bad movie script with a few stock characters making it miserable for everyone else.

 

HAL fellow tour members deserve a shout out for playing by the rules and knowing this is a group experience; not a prima donna adventure for one. That's all. Good work HAL passengers - you hang in there.

Edited September 10, 2016 by OlsSalt

[57redbird]

We were very fortunate because someone on our Roll Call had done mostly the same cruise the prior year & was pleased with the private companies she had used...she set up several excursions, or gave us the link for the ones we needed to pre-pay, & all were wonderful!

 

Check out your Roll Call, if you haven't already.

[blizzardboy]

Has anyone used any of the following companies to book shore excursions and if so, what was your experience.

cruise compete.com

shoretrips.com

Shore Excursions Group

 

I'd check reviews at tripadvisor.com

[3rdGenCunarder]

Your 10% opposition would have been honored. It it was was not in the description of the tour, and one voice alone objecting - without any feeling embarrassment or pressure - it would be enough to not add any unplanned extras.

 

Like I reported, we have found HAL tour members to be a very gracious, reasonable and courteous bunch. And they are very respectful towards the one lone voice who does say no. I have been that sole person myself on occasion when this would cut into our promised time.

 

And on another time, we just left the tour - and therefore no tip for the guide - who stopped close to the ship at the end of the tour, at his "uncle's special price shop". (Arn't they all?) So things happen, but had it not been convenient I would have objected that time too.

 

Go with the 80% formula. It is a vacation. So if booking through HAL offers a quality experience ...80% of the time ..... with 80% less effort doing all the individual research .... HAL makes sense.

 

However I am in 100% agreement when you are willing to do your own home work and you have specific desires to fulfill not met by a group tour, then by all means individual tours are the best option. No problem.

 

I just did not want to see our virtually 100% positive experience with HAL tours get maligned as a bad movie script with a few stock characters making it miserable for everyone else.

 

HAL fellow tour members deserve a shout out for playing by the rules and knowing this is a group experience; not a prima donna adventure for one. That's all. Good work HAL passengers - you hang in there.

 

You aren't alone. We've had good luck with cruise line tours. We rarely book a private tour. We either go with something from the ship, or we go on our own if the sights we want to see are in or near the port town.

 

In all of our cruises, I can remember just a handful of unsatisfactory tours, and they were bad guides giving too much personal information and not enough information about the site (did we really need to hear about the guide's divorce, or that the nuns in school hated her????). But we've had many excellent guides and good experiences. And, like you, we value the security of a ship's tour and knowing that they'll wait a reasonable amount of time if we're late. I'm on vacation and happy to pay to leave the organizing/worrying to someone else.

 

It's been a long time since I've been given the chance to shop at "my uncle's shop" or had an unscheduled shopping stop.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

We have used them in the past

 

Sent from my SM-G930T using Forums mobile app

[cruisemom42]

Your 10% opposition would have been honored. It it was was not in the description of the tour, and one voice alone objecting - without any feeling embarrassment or pressure - it would be enough to not add any unplanned extras.

 

Like I reported, we have found HAL tour members to be a very gracious, reasonable and courteous bunch. And they are very respectful towards the one lone voice who does say no. I have been that sole person myself on occasion when this would cut into our promised time.

 

And on another time, we just left the tour - and therefore no tip for the guide - who stopped close to the ship at the end of the tour, at his "uncle's special price shop". (Arn't they all?) So things happen, but had it not been convenient I would have objected that time too.

 

Go with the 80% formula. It is a vacation. So if booking through HAL offers a quality experience ...80% of the time ..... with 80% less effort doing all the individual research .... HAL makes sense.

 

However I am in 100% agreement when you are willing to do your own home work and you have specific desires to fulfill not met by a group tour, then by all means individual tours are the best option. No problem.

 

I just did not want to see our virtually 100% positive experience with HAL tours get maligned as a bad movie script with a few stock characters making it miserable for everyone else.

 

HAL fellow tour members deserve a shout out for playing by the rules and knowing this is a group experience; not a prima donna adventure for one. That's all. Good work HAL passengers - you hang in there.

 

Your experience regarding the honoring of no shopping requests has not been the same as mine, apparently. I'm not willing to risk that it may or may not happen.

 

Regarding private tour guides vs. ship tour guides, my experiences have been more along the lines of this: given that the cruise line and a good, well-reviewed private guide offer the same tour, the well-reviewed private guide is generally what I'd consider an "A" performer, while the cruise tour guide is more likely to be a "C" performer. Heck, a good percentage of the time, I know more about where and what we are visiting/touring/seeing than the ship tour guide imparts. And a good number of them are so scripted that if you ask a question (other than when they explicitly ask for them), you just get a regurgitation of what they already said.

 

I'm not willing to trade off the "security" of a ship's tour for an "average" tour performance. I want tours that reflect more of a college-level learning experience, not a high school level intro course.

 

"Security" is a much ballyhooed thing that ship tours supposedly offer. I don't doubt that the ship is going to wait for the ship tour participants probably in excess of 99% of the time. But I'm just as sure that good, reliable private tour companies also get you back to the ship 99% of the time -- because they have to. Their business depends on it.

 

For comparison -- I did two private tours with the same guide when I was on a HAL cruise that visited Israel. I had a licensed guide who was also an archaeologist and an expert on Roman-era Israel who had just finished supervising an archaeological dig of a huge site, one of the ten cities of the Decapolis (Hippus). On Day One it was just the guide and myself. On Day Two, there was another couple with us. The guide was one of the most excellent I've ever had. And all of this was less than the cost of the HAL 2-day tour that basically took in the same sites.

 

We arrived back at the ship two hours before sailaway at the end of Day 2. The HAL 2-day tour buses were quite late -- delaying the departure for Egypt. And yet, when I talked to folks on that tour, they actually spent LESS time in places than we did. There were complaints about how rushed their time was in Jerusalem (the last stop) because they were already so behind schedule.

 

Why were we able to see more? Fewer long meal breaks, fewer bathroom stops, fewer shopping stops, and ability to move/walk quickly from place to place. In the crowds of Jerusalem it must have been slow going trying to keep a group of 40 together. One woman told me a couple on their bus kept stopping in various stores along the Via Dolorosa looking at souvenirs despite being asked by the guide to stay together. The guide had to stop the group and double back to retrieve the couple several times. I would have been fuming.

 

Sorry to go on at such length; clearly this is something that's very important to me, and I understand that it may be less important to others. Just as I don't really give a fig about my cabin size or location onboard ship, while others will book more than a year in advance to get the precise cabin that they want. Different strokes....

 

However, I think it's better to be honest in assessing the drawbacks of ship tours rather than to imagine that HAL cruisers are so universally polite and well-bred that they would never delay a tour or request additional shopping stops that are not universally agreed-upon!

[OlsSalt]

Your experience regarding the honoring of no shopping requests has not been the same as mine, apparently. I'm not willing to risk that it may or may not happen.

 

Regarding private tour guides vs. ship tour guides, my experiences have been more along the lines of this: given that the cruise line and a good, well-reviewed private guide offer the same tour, the well-reviewed private guide is generally what I'd consider an "A" performer, while the cruise tour guide is more likely to be a "C" performer. Heck, a good percentage of the time, I know more about where and what we are visiting/touring/seeing than the ship tour guide imparts. And a good number of them are so scripted that if you ask a question (other than when they explicitly ask for them), you just get a regurgitation of what they already said.

 

I'm not willing to trade off the "security" of a ship's tour for an "average" tour performance. I want tours that reflect more of a college-level learning experience, not a high school level intro course.

 

"Security" is a much ballyhooed thing that ship tours supposedly offer. I don't doubt that the ship is going to wait for the ship tour participants probably in excess of 99% of the time. But I'm just as sure that good, reliable private tour companies also get you back to the ship 99% of the time -- because they have to. Their business depends on it.

 

For comparison -- I did two private tours with the same guide when I was on a HAL cruise that visited Israel. I had a licensed guide who was also an archaeologist and an expert on Roman-era Israel who had just finished supervising an archaeological dig of a huge site, one of the ten cities of the Decapolis (Hippus). On Day One it was just the guide and myself. On Day Two, there was another couple with us. The guide was one of the most excellent I've ever had. And all of this was less than the cost of the HAL 2-day tour that basically took in the same sites.

 

We arrived back at the ship two hours before sailaway at the end of Day 2. The HAL 2-day tour buses were quite late -- delaying the departure for Egypt. And yet, when I talked to folks on that tour, they actually spent LESS time in places than we did. There were complaints about how rushed their time was in Jerusalem (the last stop) because they were already so behind schedule.

 

Why were we able to see more? Fewer long meal breaks, fewer bathroom stops, fewer shopping stops, and ability to move/walk quickly from place to place. In the crowds of Jerusalem it must have been slow going trying to keep a group of 40 together. One woman told me a couple on their bus kept stopping in various stores along the Via Dolorosa looking at souvenirs despite being asked by the guide to stay together. The guide had to stop the group and double back to retrieve the couple several times. I would have been fuming.

 

Sorry to go on at such length; clearly this is something that's very important to me, and I understand that it may be less important to others. Just as I don't really give a fig about my cabin size or location onboard ship, while others will book more than a year in advance to get the precise cabin that they want. Different strokes....

 

However, I think it's better to be honest in assessing the drawbacks of ship tours rather than to imagine that HAL cruisers are so universally polite and well-bred that they would never delay a tour or request additional shopping stops that are not universally agreed-upon!

 

Honesty is the best policy.

[kazu]

Your experience regarding the honoring of no shopping requests has not been the same as mine, apparently. I'm not willing to risk that it may or may not happen.

 

Regarding private tour guides vs. ship tour guides, my experiences have been more along the lines of this: given that the cruise line and a good, well-reviewed private guide offer the same tour, the well-reviewed private guide is generally what I'd consider an "A" performer, while the cruise tour guide is more likely to be a "C" performer. Heck, a good percentage of the time, I know more about where and what we are visiting/touring/seeing than the ship tour guide imparts. And a good number of them are so scripted that if you ask a question (other than when they explicitly ask for them), you just get a regurgitation of what they already said.

 

I'm not willing to trade off the "security" of a ship's tour for an "average" tour performance. I want tours that reflect more of a college-level learning experience, not a high school level intro course.

 

"Security" is a much ballyhooed thing that ship tours supposedly offer. I don't doubt that the ship is going to wait for the ship tour participants probably in excess of 99% of the time. But I'm just as sure that good, reliable private tour companies also get you back to the ship 99% of the time -- because they have to. Their business depends on it.

 

For comparison -- I did two private tours with the same guide when I was on a HAL cruise that visited Israel. I had a licensed guide who was also an archaeologist and an expert on Roman-era Israel who had just finished supervising an archaeological dig of a huge site, one of the ten cities of the Decapolis (Hippus). On Day One it was just the guide and myself. On Day Two, there was another couple with us. The guide was one of the most excellent I've ever had. And all of this was less than the cost of the HAL 2-day tour that basically took in the same sites.

 

We arrived back at the ship two hours before sailaway at the end of Day 2. The HAL 2-day tour buses were quite late -- delaying the departure for Egypt. And yet, when I talked to folks on that tour, they actually spent LESS time in places than we did. There were complaints about how rushed their time was in Jerusalem (the last stop) because they were already so behind schedule.

 

Why were we able to see more? Fewer long meal breaks, fewer bathroom stops, fewer shopping stops, and ability to move/walk quickly from place to place. In the crowds of Jerusalem it must have been slow going trying to keep a group of 40 together. One woman told me a couple on their bus kept stopping in various stores along the Via Dolorosa looking at souvenirs despite being asked by the guide to stay together. The guide had to stop the group and double back to retrieve the couple several times. I would have been fuming.

 

Sorry to go on at such length; clearly this is something that's very important to me, and I understand that it may be less important to others. Just as I don't really give a fig about my cabin size or location onboard ship, while others will book more than a year in advance to get the precise cabin that they want. Different strokes....

 

However, I think it's better to be honest in assessing the drawbacks of ship tours rather than to imagine that HAL cruisers are so universally polite and well-bred that they would never delay a tour or request additional shopping stops that are not universally agreed-upon!

 

Well said :) Much better than I could have.

 

Agree 100%. Thank you for an excellent post.

[iancal]

An expat private tour operator in the Caribbean gave us a description of the lengths that the Carnival Co's, Princess, Hal, Carnival, will do to squeeze the locals down to the last dime and to eliminate completion wherever possible. His description was not flattering. I agree with the A vs C rating and after listening to him I can well understand the reason for it.