New to Oceania -- Booking Shore Excursions

[Just2guys]

We have been on many cruises but never Oceania.  We are very much looking forward to a sailing next June on the Riviera which is very port intensive with lots of interesting shore excursions.

 

We are taking the shore excursions option for OLife and have done the math regarding which excursions qualify, taking the most expensive (up to the allotted dollar amount) for the OLife benefit, with 25% off for the rest of the excursions--- which have some OS excursions in the mix as well.

 

My question is  how best to book these excursions.  Should we just call Oceania and have them do it to ensure the costs are computed correctly or book them online under our cruise reservation account?  If doing it online, will it automatically compute the savings with the correct total cost as well?

 

Thanks for any assistance anyone could provide.

[LHT28]

7 minutes ago, Just2guys said:

My question is  how best to book these excursions.  Should we just call Oceania and have them do it to ensure the costs are computed correctly or book them online under our cruise reservation account?  If doing it online, will it automatically compute the savings with the correct total cost as well?

 

Thanks for any assistance anyone could provide.

I would call  O & have them work out the best deal 

 

[Maine Cruisers]

1 hour ago, Just2guys said:

We have been on many cruises but never Oceania.  We are very much looking forward to a sailing next June on the Riviera which is very port intensive with lots of interesting shore excursions.

 

We are taking the shore excursions option for OLife and have done the math regarding which excursions qualify, taking the most expensive (up to the allotted dollar amount) for the OLife benefit, with 25% off for the rest of the excursions--- which have some OS excursions in the mix as well.

 

My question is  how best to book these excursions.  Should we just call Oceania and have them do it to ensure the costs are computed correctly or book them online under our cruise reservation account?  If doing it online, will it automatically compute the savings with the correct total cost as well?

 

Thanks for any assistance anyone could provide.

[Maine Cruisers]

We have done it all ways on our last 12 cruises.  If the excursion is very important to us we have logged on to the website at midnight of the first day available and signed up. The website is pretty good at sorting out the best deal. If there is any difficulty you can always call up and have an Oceania rep sort it out later.  If you can wait call the, and they will do it for you. 

[Flatbush Flyer]

1 hour ago, Just2guys said:

We have been on many cruises but never Oceania.  We are very much looking forward to a sailing next June on the Riviera which is very port intensive with lots of interesting shore excursions.

 

We are taking the shore excursions option for OLife and have done the math regarding which excursions qualify, taking the most expensive (up to the allotted dollar amount) for the OLife benefit, with 25% off for the rest of the excursions--- which have some OS excursions in the mix as well.

 

My question is  how best to book these excursions.  Should we just call Oceania and have them do it to ensure the costs are computed correctly or book them online under our cruise reservation account?  If doing it online, will it automatically compute the savings with the correct total cost as well?

 

Thanks for any assistance anyone could provide.

Yes -call O and have the phone rep do the booking (you could also use your TA to do it. But, not all TAs fully understand the idiosyncrasies of O’s excursions booking).

Beyond confirming/correcting your math (note that the CART has some glitches but the bottom line of what you want, combining O Life and paid YWYW tours, is usually correct in the Cart), you may find that the O rep sees tours that may be in the newest Shore Excursions PDF but are not yet loaded into the O website. In addition, if you want a day tour and an evening tour on the same day, the website will show a conflict - even if there’s a several hour break between them. Th O rep can override that. BTW, you also need to call O (or have your TA do it) to cancel tours.

 

Perhaps most importantly: once you’ve done the tour buy with the O rep (in fact, even before you make the purchase), make sure the O rep sends you the “pre-purchase excursions and optional items” PDF (not the exact name and not to be confused with another PDF that just lists your excursions). The “pre-purchased” PDF shows all the math including which are O Life, how much SBC is being applied to the purchase, etc.

Trust me: That “pre-purchased excursions” PDF will be extremely helpful if there is a snafu once onboard should tours be cancelled, etc. Note that some neophyte O Reps erroneously think they can’t send that PDF to you if you have a TA. Not True!  So, check it out before buying and call back to the next agent who will send you that pdf (saves you the extra step of contacting your TA for it). 

FYI, I’m attaching an excerpt of one of those PDFs. 

Finally: As good as your TA may be, I highly recommend connecting with a long-serving knowledgeable O rep (incl O Club Ambassadors on the ship for “book onboard” perks) and having their contact info as an ally/backup/et al.
 

We have a trusted O Rep who can very quickly grab a favorite cabin when bookings open, get permission to wave FCC “cruise by” deadlines and get other reasonable policy mods while you’re one the phone. Plus they can do what needs to be done with your pre-Cruise tour reservations immediately. and, once you get the booking done correctly with that initial invoice sent to you, you can transfer your booking to a preferred TA within the 30 day “transfer window.”

[basenji56]

Once excursions are in your Cart, is there a deadline to pay for them?

 

[LHT28]

1 minute ago, basenji56 said:

Once excursions are in your Cart, is there a deadline to pay for them?

 

 yes  ..before  they get booked up & you are left with out one 😉

 

 If O Life  choices  then they must be booked 14 days prior to sailing 

See the sine print in the t & C

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/legal/promotion-terms/

[1985rz1]

1 hour ago, basenji56 said:

Once excursions are in your Cart, is there a deadline to pay for them?

 

Yes.  Once in your cart, you need to confirm the bookings by paying.  Otherwise, they are only "intentions," not booked and not reserved.

Edited August 29, 2022 by 1985rz1