Shore Excursion Bookings

[travel09]

New to Oceania, the process of booking the Shore excursions seems rather complicated.

First where do you enter the type of package you require, eg. Unlimited or Your World Collections.?

If you have a certain number of "Included Excursions",do they have to be of certain value or type.?

If you are booking excursions, when you enter your chosen ones, are they recorded as a nil balance in "The Cart', until you have used your quota of "Free "inclusions ".?

I always enjoy this process, but this seems to be anything but straightforward.

Appreciate clear instructions if anyone can assist, Thank You.

[LHT28]

The "free" excursions are the ones without any letters after the description Like OC or OE

from what I have read here

You choose the excursions you want up to the limit put in the cartafter you go to check out put your credit card info in & it should come up nil balance

 

canno help on the other question pn the packages ..perhaps call Oceania or your TA can help

[sammiedawg]

We had five free excursions on Sirena and I booked them on line. It was a very easy process. I spent some time reading the descriptions before I selected anything. I don't remember the exact verbiage but there was no charge levied. I booked four, got an email confirmation than booked the fifth one.

Once on board the tickets were in our cabin. You could go to the excursion desk if you wanted to change to something else. Someone we met canceled one and received $100 OBC pp, non refundable.

I've read you must book before you board and you can call O for help.

 

We are not ship tour people but we enjoyed each one to varying degrees. One tour was excellent due to the brilliance of the guide. Three tours were pretty good and one was decent.

 

We have lots of OBC for our next cruise and we will have to book a couple tours to use the money. In this situation the bookings will be done on board to avoid charges to our credit card. I have read some people prebook on line, their CC is charged to hold their spots on the desired tour. Then once on board they cancel and rebook using their OBC.

[sammiedawg]

Forgot to say the O life booking process is similiar to booking specialty restaurants. It was easy and quick.

[Paulchili]

Forgot to say the O life booking process is similiar to booking specialty restaurants. It was easy and quick.

 

Just to add - O Life excursions must be booked at least 14 days prior to cruising (cannot be booked once onboard).

[pinotlover]

For your consideration.

 

I believe that one must be "paid in full" before they can credit any cruises toward their O Life free cruises. For any particular cruise, O may offer bookable tours, before the payment due date. If you so book, you will then have to charge those tours on your credit card. I do not know if O will then credit you back later if any of those tours could be included in your package. Ask your TA.

 

On some cruises, O actually offers some tours that are very popular, and either completely sell out, or sell out at desirable time slots. So it becomes a crap shot as to whether to wait until after payment due date to book the tours, or go ahead and pay ahead of time. Due to a lack of local infrastructure or capacity, I have seen certain popular O tours and land packages sell out far before the cruise payment due date.

[arima22]

For your consideration.

 

I believe that one must be "paid in full" before they can credit any cruises toward their O Life free cruises. For any particular cruise, O may offer bookable tours, before the payment due date. If you so book, you will then have to charge those tours on your credit card. I do not know if O will then credit you back later if any of those tours could be included in your package. Ask your TA.

 

On some cruises, O actually offers some tours that are very popular, and either completely sell out, or sell out at desirable time slots. So it becomes a crap shot as to whether to wait until after payment due date to book the tours, or go ahead and pay ahead of time. Due to a lack of local infrastructure or capacity, I have seen certain popular O tours and land packages sell out far before the cruise payment due date.

 

NOT TRUE...You may book your free O'life tours as soon as they are available under the cruise listing. We booked well ahead of our final payment date.

[Queen of DaNile]

NOT TRUE...You may book your free O'life tours as soon as they are available under the cruise listing. We booked well ahead of our final payment date.

You are correct. We had booked our four excursions and then Cuba was added the week before final was due. Two of them have been cancelled due to port changes. Just waiting to see what will be offered in Havana so we can re-book.

[travel09]

Thank you for the help, still a few questions, Paid in Full, so wont be a concern there, but it is a very different process from the 3 other lines we have travelled with. Will soon get the hang of it.. no doubt..

[pinotlover]

I apologize for the wrong info. I had to go back and recheck the recent trip I booked O tours for. None of them are covered under O Life tour program. In fact, currently only a couple of the tours they have listed for some of the ports are covered under the O Life program! Perhaps those tours will be listed later! Sorry again for missing that point!

[LHT28]

Thank you for the help, still a few questions, Paid in Full, so wont be a concern there, but it is a very different process from the 3 other lines we have travelled with. Will soon get the hang of it.. no doubt..

Just be sure to book your "free tours " at least 14 days from sailing or you will have to pay for them

 

If you used a TA you can always get them to book them for you

[Rumpymuffin]

We have lots of OBC for our next cruise and we will have to book a couple tours to use the money. In this situation the bookings will be done on board to avoid charges to our credit card. I have read some people prebook on line, their CC is charged to hold their spots on the desired tour. Then once on board they cancel and rebook using their OBC.

 

We, too, have lots of OBC for our next cruise (to the eastern Caribbean on Riviera), and it's so frustrating not to be able to use some of it to book shore excursions online in advance. All the most popular tours and times will be sold out.

 

I wonder if O allows the prebook/rebook strategy sammiedawg mentions. Seems a bit sneaky.

[LHT28]

I wonder if O allows the prebook/rebook strategy sammiedawg mentions. Seems a bit sneaky.

I seem to recall someone trying that with free excursions & were billed for them in the end

All free excursions have to be pre booked 14 days prior

 

Maybe it would work for those excursions you are paying for :confused:

 

I cannot imagine Caribbean tours being fully booked unless they included flights to the ruins etc...

[jr8934]

We, too, are interested in finding out what excursions are available in Cuba. With no access to the cuc it would be easier to book with O. Money problem solved! Joyce

[ORV]

We, too, have lots of OBC for our next cruise (to the eastern Caribbean on Riviera), and it's so frustrating not to be able to use some of it to book shore excursions online in advance. All the most popular tours and times will be sold out.

 

I wonder if O allows the prebook/rebook strategy sammiedawg mentions. Seems a bit sneaky.

 

There is a reason they call it On Board Credit.