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Booking Alaska Port Tours Over a Year Early?


Lazz
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We are booked on a Princess Cruise tour with the actual cruise setting sail on June 1, 2022.  I just got an e mail inviting us to book Princess shore excursions.  Is this standard practice for a Princess Alaska Cruise?  Over 13 months out seems very early.

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7 minutes ago, stevea20 said:

I got the same email for an Alaska cruise on June 8th.  I understand the statement that this is an early revenue policy but why would anyone book on a cruise we still don't know will take place?

Only if it is a "must do or this trip is a bust" type of excursion(s) as posters have pointed out Alaska excursions sometimes do sell out and prices go up ... and who knows after the 'rona about availability

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Our Alaskan cruise is July 2022 and I got that email too. It does seem early but I hear popular excursions can sell out quickly. In fact one already shows only 6 are still available. 

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OBC posted to your account can be used to book excursions, or at least it was pre 'rona

 

if you have unbalanced OBC, one person has more than another in the same booked cabin, you will need to call Princess, or maybe your TA to be able to book the excursion(s)

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3 hours ago, voljeep said:

OBC posted to your account can be used to book excursions, or at least it was pre 'rona

 

if you have unbalanced OBC, one person has more than another in the same booked cabin, you will need to call Princess, or maybe your TA to be able to book the excursion(s)

FWIW, I booked shore excursions just a few days ago (not Alaska 2022, although I did get this same e-mail for that as well) and was able to pay online despite having unbalanced OBC.  Note: these were onboard credits, not future cruise credits or goodwill credits from cancelled 2020 cruises.

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This does seems a bit early and is probably designed to help generate revenue.  Use OBC if you have it. 
 

Many tours do sell out.  Pre pandemic, we would book some Alaskan tours  (such  as those involving flights) in January.  Others we waited until Spring.  Reasons to book early may include: 

 

The tour may have limited number of spaces or only take a few people.  These would include air tours, glacier landings, things like that. Sadly, some tours operators may not survive and there may be fewer choices in 2022. 

 

You want a certain time of the day.  Maybe you want to book more than one excursion, or have meal reservations. 
 

Although we have often booked privately in the past, it is probably better to use the cruise line now.  
 

Who knows what pinned up demand will bring in 2022?   Hard to say. Many of us got the same email.  

 

 

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Have upcoming (hopefully) May, 2022 Inside Passage cruise -- also received email today that Shore Ex. available to book.  Thought it strange as we have an earlier booking for Nov., 2021 (So. Carib.) and didn't receive similar email for that sailing yet.

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I booked excursions for my September 2022 TA as I wanted small group excursions. 1 is for up to 6 people. I've tried to book those jeep excursions onboard before and been unsuccessful 

 

Thinking about seeing if anyone on the roll call is also interested in a private car

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11 hours ago, Cruzinnana47 said:

Have upcoming (hopefully) May, 2022 Inside Passage cruise -- also received email today that Shore Ex. available to book.  Thought it strange as we have an earlier booking for Nov., 2021 (So. Carib.) and didn't receive similar email for that sailing yet.

yeah, we got the email for a 4/2022 cruise , but like you, not for a 11/21 cruise

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We got the same email about shore excursion availability.  Our cruise is 6/18/2022 to Alaska.  Believe it or not, I had already booked one of our excursions on 1/30/2021 (the same day as I made our cruise reservation.)  The excursion was available at that time and I knew it was a popular one so I went ahead and booked.  Didn't put out much cash as I was using OBC.

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We got the email for March 2022 Caribbean...but ALL of our shore excursions are already booked!  

Our July 9, 2022 Sapphire Alaska cruise, all of our shore excursions are also fully booked.  We are traveling with another couple, booked top tier excursions and want to be certain that we are together. 

After I confimed the March 2022 excursions, Princess sent me a survey asking for the reasons I booked early.  I just like to have everything done.  

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35 minutes ago, Cali Viajera said:

We are booked on the June 25th Majestic cruise. We didn’t get the excursion email. It is our first Princess cruise. Any thoughts?

Have you registered on line with Princess?  If you filled out your My Princess account and gave them your email address you should be getting information about your reservation.  My reservation is on the Majestic the week before yours and I received my email.

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1 hour ago, Cali Viajera said:

We are booked on the June 25th Majestic cruise. We didn’t get the excursion email. It is our first Princess cruise. Any thoughts?

We are booked on the same cruise (June 25th Majestic) and received an email on Wednesday. In looking at some of the offerings some only have 9 seats left, etc. Did notice that the largest group is 20 people unless COVID (had it) has wiped my memory I think before time (before COVID) the numbers we larger on the popular tours (lumber jack show, large whale watch cruises not the small boats, train rides)??? Or is that a tactic to get us to go oh no only 20 tickets we need to book now!!! or there really is only going to be 20 tickets because they are going to limit the number of people to allow social distancing? Heard Disney is already back to 100% on the rides, I know not the same thing just saying.

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I have been unable to access my account 🤣 so will call them first thing in the morning. Hopefully, we will be able to book tours outside the cruise line by the time we go next year! Glad we will be onboard with you KYBOB😊 We begin a week earlier with a cruise tour starting in Fairbanks.

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6 hours ago, KYBOB said:

We are booked on the same cruise (June 25th Majestic) and received an email on Wednesday. In looking at some of the offerings some only have 9 seats left, etc. Did notice that the largest group is 20 people unless COVID (had it) has wiped my memory I think before time (before COVID) the numbers we larger on the popular tours (lumber jack show, large whale watch cruises not the small boats, train rides)??? Or is that a tactic to get us to go oh no only 20 tickets we need to book now!!! or there really is only going to be 20 tickets because they are going to limit the number of people to allow social distancing? Heard Disney is already back to 100% on the rides, I know not the same thing just saying.

 

Nothing new. Princess has always listed 20 as being available no matter how many more slots may actually exist.

 

Only when the actual number remaining is less than 20 will you see a number other than 20.

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10 hours ago, caribill said:

 

Nothing new. Princess has always listed 20 as being available no matter how many more slots may actually exist.

 

Only when the actual number remaining is less than 20 will you see a number other than 20.

Thanks! good to know. 

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