Maple30

5 hours ago, spartacheer said:

No, sorry. We are not on the same cruise. We are in Djupivogur on Monday 10 June. I misread your post. I am interested in the Artistica Tour though. I've emailed them two times, and haven't heard anything back. -)

That's strange re emailing them. They take about 2 days to get back to me, probably because of the time difference. If you do go, let me know how it was please. The communication I've had with them has been pretty good.

8 hours ago, spartacheer said:

We are a party of 5 and are still looking for something in Djupivogur. Do you think that there would be room for us? 

Are you on the same cruise? We're in Djipivogur on Monday 29th July. This is not the official roll call for our cruise, leaving Amsterdam on the 20th July.

I had just put up this forum question regarding the 2 ports I was still looking for tours from.

I'm not sure how big our minibus is. Artistica advertise groups of up to 8. I'll ask them how many seats the bus has.

On 4/17/2024 at 8:17 AM, Maple30 said:

Yes it is, I've been in contact with them direct numerous times. The company has been operating land based tours since 1995 and have just started offering cruise ship tours. They've got 4 guides and cars and can accommodate 41 passengers across their vehicles. They also have access to a larger bus for groups up to 40.

 

At present they are in the process of finalising their website where you can book direct for a cheaper price. It should be up and running by the end of the month. They require a deposit of 50 euro, and you can pay the deposit on the day by cash or credit card.

 

I've got 1 couple joining us and are getting the full day tour for 230 euro each. Still looking for another couple or two which can drop the price to 225, then 220 pp. At present you can book on TA, Get you Guide etc, but it's dearer.

 

I was very wary considering the lack of reviews, but they told me they're new to shore excursions and the couple of tours that the guide Adriana gave had excellent reviews, so we're going with them. Anything's better than the overinflated ships tours which are in USD, so add 50% for Australians. A similiar ships tours would cost us $524 AUD PP for a 5 hour tour with no lunch!

 

 

I made an typo error. You pay the deposit at the end of this month when their website is finalised. You can pay the BALANCE on the day

8 hours ago, blackfly said:

Maple30.  How did you book Artistica Tours?  Their website is very vague.

Yes it is, I've been in contact with them direct numerous times. The company has been operating land based tours since 1995 and have just started offering cruise ship tours. They've got 4 guides and cars and can accommodate 41 passengers across their vehicles. They also have access to a larger bus for groups up to 40.

At present they are in the process of finalising their website where you can book direct for a cheaper price. It should be up and running by the end of the month. They require a deposit of 50 euro, and you can pay the deposit on the day by cash or credit card.

I've got 1 couple joining us and are getting the full day tour for 230 euro each. Still looking for another couple or two which can drop the price to 225, then 220 pp. At present you can book on TA, Get you Guide etc, but it's dearer.

I was very wary considering the lack of reviews, but they told me they're new to shore excursions and the couple of tours that the guide Adriana gave had excellent reviews, so we're going with them. Anything's better than the overinflated ships tours which are in USD, so add 50% for Australians. A similiar ships tours would cost us $524 AUD PP for a 5 hour tour with no lunch!

Just an update and a thankyou for the information given. I have booked Artistica Tours for Djupivogur and have another couple joining us and hoping more will join. At present there's 30 guests from the ship doing their tour in small groups.

In Heimaey I've booked a 2 hour tour with Eyjatour.

8 hours ago, Nitemare said:

Heimey has some great RIB boat excursions you should be able to book directly.  They cancel them in bad weather -- we had wind on our day there a few years back and all tours were canceled (as was our ferry back to the mainland), but we were there in September and it gets windy in Iceland around that time.   We had a car and explored the island, loved it, but the RIB boat would have been a blast

Thanks for all the information. Do you think we'd be able to book one of the RIB tours once we're there and the port? We wouldn't go on anything if it's windy, so prefer not to prebook that type of tour. We're not into wild activities 😆

We'll be on a HAL cruise in July, and looking for independent tours at these 2 ports. Any suggestions, and can you generally pick up a tour at these ports?

I've found a Djupivogur private tour (don't need private, but no cheaper for more guests) going to the glacial lagoon, Stokksnes and Hofn, but at $418AUD pp, it's very expensive. Has anyone done this tour? It's on Viator and provided by Artistica Tours which have very few reviews.

Also a bit of a concern is that it's the last port, and hoping it gets back in time.

I'm struggling to find anything for Heimaey.

Any suggestions greatly appreciated.

We'll be on the Diamond Princess and docking at 9am, departing 5pm on the 3rd March. I've enquired about snorkelling and a tour company said the tours will depart before we'll get off the tender. Anyone had any success picking up a snorkelling tour at the pier? I'll be going solo, can swim and snorkel but am in my late 60's so don't want any 'adventurous' tours. Any help very much appreciated. Or, alternatives for another land based tour including my husband.

Getting back to the ship advice regarding taking a local tour company from the cruise port in Bangkok for a full day tour to Wat Trimitr, Wat Prakeo, Grand Palace and a Chao Phraya river cruise. The Princess 10.5 hour tour will cost us $500AUD, so pretty pricey for Australians. Has anyone used a local and recommended company that guarantees that you get back in time? We're in port from 7am-7pm. Or any other tour suggestions? Thanks in advance😁

On 11/9/2023 at 9:48 AM, aussielozzie18 said:

Ok.  Noted.  The sensor  light In wardrobe “room” next to the bathroom is the one that keeps me awake - I am used to going to the bathroom in the middle of the night in darkness, so I can fall straight back to sleep but that sensor light is so bright - I end up being wide wake.  I guess that one is needed for access to the life jackets?

Read my reply re taping it over

On 11/9/2023 at 8:04 AM, aussielozzie18 said:

Random question.  Can the sensor lights in the cabin be turned off?  

Yes. 

 We just got WiFi for 24 hours, so just reading this now.

 Ask your cabin steward to organise for the sensor to be taped over.  It won't come on during the night, but when you turn the switch on it'll come on for 30 seconds or so before going off.

We'll be on the Majestic on Tuesday and have a few questions please.

Do they have Australian power points or do we need to bring adapters?

Is the inside temperature cool? I'm just starting to pack today and not sure what to pack. We've found HAL's ship's dining rooms to be on the cool side.

Someone's who been on a longer cruise may know this. Does Princess still have designated formal/dressy nights?

Thanks for any information and enjoy your cruise😃

On 6/10/2019 at 9:41 PM, Joy_K said:

@Maple30 I'm on the same cruise with you, different tour provider and our guide is doing a picnic lunch for us.  Try asking your tour provider if they will be able to do the same for you.  

Hi Joy,

What a great idea! I'll email them.

Thanks toeloop, for that advise:)

55 minutes ago, Coral said:

 

This info is less than a year old (date posted). I doubt locals are up on agricultural laws and bringing food from vessels off the ship. They probably don't cruise to Norway often.

 

 

Thanks, Habood, Just the information I was after 🙂

1 hour ago, waltd said:

I don't think I would want to be the one that holds up the tour to ask the tour guide to find a place to purchase something to eat and I know I wouldn't be happy having to stop.  The tours are short enough as it is. 

Ours is a full day independent tour, picking us all up from the cruise ship at 8am and getting back at 4pm. Everyone will be in the same situation, so it won't be just me asking to stop to buy some lunch. I'm sure they'll take that into account.

4 hours ago, Coral said:

I did the 14 night cruise to Norway last year and just brought up a patter and it says:

 

Important Quarantine Notice

"No meat, poultry (including meat and poultry sandwiches), fruit, foodstuff, or any other agriculture items maybe taken away from this vessel in Norway".

 

I brought some granola bars with me from the US. There was no one checking once you got off the ship that I recall but I would not chance it.

 

Alesund is large enough, I wonder if they can stop some where before your tour starts. It is a beautiful city.

Thanks for the advice Coral. We'll just ask the tour operator to stop somewhere before we leave the city and pick up something for our lunch

We're on a Princess ship and have booked an independent shore excursion to the Troll Road in Alesund in October. The tour company says that there won't be any restaurants open in the Troll area since it's not high season, but said to bring our own lunch pack. Are we able to bring some food from the breakfast buffet ashore? (bread and fruit etc).

 I know some countries are very strict with their regulations, but other countries don't seem to worry.

Any advice in regards to Norway very much appreciated.

1 hour ago, Kiwi Kruzer said:

Out of curiosity I had a look at that page and google translated it for me.

Found a new ship i had not heard of before ....

Spectrum of the seeds...  

Thanks but when I did a google translate, it just said Yokohama and not the exact pier.

I'll ring RC again, and contact the guide as well.

I saw Spectrum of the Seeds as well, obviously a new ship hahaha

We're doing the Royal Caribbean Quantum of the Seas 7 night Best of Japan cruise, departing from Shanghai. I've booked an independent guide from Yokohama to take us into Tokyo.

I keep on getting different answers as to which pier we dock at, even from Royal Caribbean.

I've been told it's Osanbashi, or Shinko (which I don't believe is even open yet) and now I've heard through CC that we dock at the cargo pier as the ship is too big to pass the Bay Bridge.

Help! We leave in 16 days.

Has anyone snorkelled at Rabe Beach in Alotau Papua New Guinea? If so, did you enjoy it and were there plenty of fish and coral?

Thanks in advance:)

What sights? (seriously)

 

We booked a ship's tour with a visit with a Chinese family, excellent! As to the rest of Dalian ...

Thanks for your reply, I'll look into that tour. Have you been to Dalian before?

If you speak Mandarin, you will have no trouble on your own in Dalian.

If you do not - big problem.

Haha, no we don't. Thanks for the information.

Hi,

Is it possible to see the sights of Dalian in China on our own using public transport? Any idea how far away the city is from the port?

Thanks in advance.

Maple30