Iceland cruises - Quick question

[Turtles06]

Iceland, as others have said, is very expensive.

 

It is also a place where you can book shorex with private tour companies, typically in a 16-20 person (or smaller) minibus.  We did this in Reykjavik, Akureyri, and Isafjordur.  In fact, the all-day South Coast tour we took out of Reykjavik (with a private company) was one of the best tours we've ever had.  

 

I highly recommend heading over to the Iceland and Greenland Ports of Call forum here on CC, where you can find recommendations for private tour operators and ask questions.

 

 https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/2705-iceland-and-greenland/

 

[scrapcreator]

Last summer (August 2023) we chose to do small group tours with some of our Roll Call members but booked directly with the following companies:

 

Akureyri, Iceland Star Travel Lake Myvatn and Godafoss

Isafjordur, Iceland: Artic Shore Dynjandi and the Westfjords

Reykjavik, Iceland: Your Day Tours South Coast Small Group Day Tour

 

We enjoyed each of them and the cost was less than the large Celebrity tours.  We wanted to do the Wake Up Reykjavik Puffin Tour but there was only one seat left. Friends from our Roll Call were able to go and enjoyed it.

 

If anyone's cruise takes them to Iceland, Ireland, and Scotland, I can highly  recommend  Discover Scotland Tours (Loch Lomond, Stirling Castle)

[Turtles06]

4 hours ago, seacruise9 said:

I am planning to spend some time in Reykavik prior to the cruise and then take tours in the other four ports. 

 

I would urge you to take one or both tours out of Reykjavik: the South Coast Tour and the Golden Circle Tour.   The South Coast is spectacular from start to finish. 

 

3 hours ago, bigbenboys said:

We have 11 hours in Akureyri so I've put a reservation on a tour to Lake, Myvatn, Hot Springs & Godafoss falls (apparently a "do not miss" for this port of call).  It's similar to the Reykjavik tour in that we see the much of the countryside, but takes in the volcanic landscapes and the lava fields (old ones not the current ones).  This is another 6 hour trip and picks up from the port.  We should have 3 hours left at the end to look around the town.

 

Definitely do that tour; it's beautiful.  And, frankly, there's not a whole lot to see in Akureyri itself, you really want to get out of town.  To me, Iceland is not about the towns, it's about getting out of them and seeing the natural beauty that is Iceland. 

[seacruise9]

Hi, 

 

Thanks for the information. I generally book a cruise line's shore excursions even though they are more expensive because I like the guarantee of the ship not sailing without me. However, this is probably less of an issue in Iceland because the towns are small and all of the ports are in Iceland. In the unlikely event of missing the ship, it may not be too difficult to rejoin the ship in a subsequent port.

 

Chuck

[Charles4515]

24 minutes ago, seacruise9 said:

Hi, 

 

Thanks for the information. I generally book a cruise line's shore excursions even though they are more expensive because I like the guarantee of the ship not sailing without me. However, this is probably less of an issue in Iceland because the towns are small and all of the ports are in Iceland. In the unlikely event of missing the ship, it may not be too difficult to rejoin the ship in a subsequent port.

 

Chuck

All they are guaranteeing is that they will be responsible for getting you to the next possible port. It is a common misunderstanding that they want you to believe that the ship will not sail without you to sell their more expensive excursions. Cruise lines have left behind passengers on excursions booked with the cruise line. 

Edited August 12 by Charles4515

[the penguins]

4 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

If you rent a car you don't get a guide. All the minibus tours I did came with a guide who told us all kinds of great info. 

True. However he car rental option worked better for us because it gave us the flexibility to travel at our own pace and to adapt our day to meet the challenges we knew we would face due to the limitations of one of our group. In addition several of the sites had locals to explain things. Choice is good

[seacruise9]

2 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

All they are guaranteeing is that they will be responsible for getting you to the next possible port. It is a common misunderstanding that they want you to believe that the ship will not sail without you to sell their more expensive excursions. Cruise lines have left behind passengers on excursions booked with the cruise line. 

Hi, 

 

I have no doubt that people have been left behind, but years ago I took a cruise line shore excursion from Warnemunde, Germany to Berlin by train. There were several hundred of us on the shore excursion and the train experienced a significant delay. We arrived back at the ship two hours after the scheduled departure time. The ship (Emerald Princess) waited for us and sailed as soon as the last person from the shore excursion boarded the ship. 

[Charles4515]

16 minutes ago, seacruise9 said:

Hi, 

 

I have no doubt that people have been left behind, but years ago I took a cruise line shore excursion from Warnemunde, Germany to Berlin by train. There were several hundred of us on the shore excursion and the train experienced a significant delay. We arrived back at the ship two hours after the scheduled departure time. The ship (Emerald Princess) waited for us and sailed as soon as the last person from the shore excursion boarded the ship. 

You were lucky. They will wait if they can but not always. I took and independent tour by bus from Warnemude to Berlin and skipped the train option because I am aware that trains can be disrupted. The independent tour was a lot less expensive than the cruise line train excursion. I could have done the train myself but I prefered the bus option with a guide in Berlin. Did you have a guide in Berlin or did they just drop you off?

Edited August 12 by Charles4515

[MMMCruiser]

I generally book private shore excursions because we just want to see what we want to see, when we want to see it, and we like being able to go at our own pace.  I've booked tours, both walking and driving, in a lot of different places in Europe, and Iceland was the place that gave me true sticker shock.  Things are really expensive there.  

[seacruise9]

1 hour ago, Charles4515 said:

You were lucky. They will wait if they can but not always. I took and independent tour by bus from Warnemude to Berlin and skipped the train option because I am aware that trains can be disrupted. The independent tour was a lot less expensive than the cruise line train excursion. I could have done the train myself but I prefered the bus option with a guide in Berlin. Did you have a guide in Berlin or did they just drop you off?

Hi,

 

We had a guide in Berlin and the tour included lunch at a nice hotel. 

[seacruise9]

1 hour ago, MMMCruiser said:

I generally book private shore excursions because we just want to see what we want to see, when we want to see it, and we like being able to go at our own pace.  I've booked tours, both walking and driving, in a lot of different places in Europe, and Iceland was the place that gave me true sticker shock.  Things are really expensive there.  

Hi,

 

I was really surprised by the price of the tours in Iceland. I have done multiple cruises in Europe, as well as cruises to Tahiti, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Australia. These are by far the most expensive shore excursions that I have ever seen. However, the initial price of the cruise is very reasonable. The overall cost of the cruise isn't too bad even with the expensive tours.  

Edited August 13 by seacruise9

[Charles4515]

24 minutes ago, seacruise9 said:

Hi,

 

We had a guide in Berlin and the tour included lunch at a nice hotel. 

That is good. We had an included very good lunch at a restaurant. 

[Torfamm]

23 hours ago, jelayne said:

We used Taxi 17 for Akrureyri  for 4 of us.  Excellent!

We had a great experience with them in 2019. Glad they are still around 

[MamaFej]

We've recently returned from our third trip to Iceland, including our second Ring Road self-driving tour.

 

The photos and recommendations in this thread brouht back some wonderful memories (and the Viggur Island ones made me hungry for Happy Wedding Cake).

 

In addition to the above posts, for while in Reykjavik, I can highly recommend the foodie walking tour by Funky Iceland. We had a blast, and learned more about Icelandic history and culture. 

 

The Lava Show is in both Reykjavik and Vik and is pretty cool if you have at least a passing interest in geology. My son is studying geology in college, so Iceland was pretty much the best place on earth to take him, and he loved it. Nearby is Flyover Iceland. If you've enjoyed Flyover in other countries, you'll likely enjoy this one. For those who haven't been to any, it's like the Soarin' ride at Disney's California Adventure and in one of the Florida Disney parks  on steroids, with cool pre-show stuff. 

 

The National history museum is good, my sons loved the art museum. The Phallologic museum is interesting from a scientific and cultural perspective, and the gift shop is a hoot. Try the waffles, they're terrific.

 

If you go to to fabulous Perlan museum, you'll get a QR code for discounts at lots of places. One is a restaurant called Brass, and it's very good. 

 

[the penguins]

17 hours ago, seacruise9 said:

Hi, 

 

I have no doubt that people have been left behind, but years ago I took a cruise line shore excursion from Warnemunde, Germany to Berlin by train. There were several hundred of us on the shore excursion and the train experienced a significant delay. We arrived back at the ship two hours after the scheduled departure time. The ship (Emerald Princess) waited for us and sailed as soon as the last person from the shore excursion boarded the ship. 

how long a ship will wait depends on numerous factors including:

the number of passengers involved 

the cost of getting passengers to the next port compared to the cost of waiting

how long the port will allow the ship to wait - it  may need the pier for an incoming vessel

the distance to the next port of call especially if the next day isn't a sea day.

 

We usually book our private tours through Toursbylocals who will meet the cost of getting us to the next should we miss the ship.