How quick to get off boat to meet a non-WS tour?

We were looking at some non-WS tours in the Caribbean and I was wondering if we have a reasonable chance of meeting their start times.

In one case for Grenada the boat is scheduled to dock at 8 am and pickup would be 9 am at the pier. That sounds doable to me but I guess I should check on what happens if we are late (do they refund, wait or neither?)

In the other case, the boat is scheduled to anchor in Anse Mitan at 1 and we'd be trying to meet at the cruise port in Fort de France by 1:30-- anyone have a sense of whether that is too ambitious under the best of circumstances (and how likely the best of circumstances are?)

Thanks

We were looking at some non-WS tours in the Caribbean and I was wondering if we have a reasonable chance of meeting their start times.

 

In one case for Grenada the boat is scheduled to dock at 8 am and pickup would be 9 am at the pier. That sounds doable to me but I guess I should check on what happens if we are late (do they refund, wait or neither?)

 

In the other case, the boat is scheduled to anchor in Anse Mitan at 1 and we'd be trying to meet at the cruise port in Fort de France by 1:30-- anyone have a sense of whether that is too ambitious under the best of circumstances (and how likely the best of circumstances are?)

 

Thanks

The 9am pickup after a 8am docking seems very doable. And tours that book cruise ship pax generally know that they may need to wait a little bit - it would help to have their number handy so you can call or text is things are running a little late.

The 30 minutes after an anchorage gives me concern. WS generally offloads the people on THEIR early tours first, and it could be quite a wait - or you could get lucky and they have room on the first tender.

Agree with above. We were in a similar situation; all WS tour guests were being tendered before us. They took us to shore in a zodiac so we’d make our private tour.

Let them know in advance if you book this tour, so they can try and get you off on time.

We were looking at some non-WS tours in the Caribbean and I was wondering if we have a reasonable chance of meeting their start times.

 

In one case for Grenada the boat is scheduled to dock at 8 am and pickup would be 9 am at the pier. That sounds doable to me but I guess I should check on what happens if we are late (do they refund, wait or neither?)

 

In the other case, the boat is scheduled to anchor in Anse Mitan at 1 and we'd be trying to meet at the cruise port in Fort de France by 1:30-- anyone have a sense of whether that is too ambitious under the best of circumstances (and how likely the best of circumstances are?)

 

Thanks

WS tenders into Anse Mitan which is across the bay from Fort de France. You would need to catch the ferry from Anse Mitan to Fort de France. No way could you be there by 1:30

Surmy

Currently on Star Pride and our stop in Anse Mitan was cancelled due to strong swells and they moved across the bay. to the pier in Fort de France instead. We took the ferry the other way to Anse Mitan an it took 30 minutes to get there and 20 coming back so definitely impossible to meet your tour. According to crew, this cruise has been one of the worst in terms of sea conditions with swells of 12 to 15 ft with plates and glasses crashing regularly. Several people stayed in their cabin most of the day due to seasickness. Things are a little better now but still windy. Despite this nobody is complaining and all are having a good time.

I meant to include two things in my earlier post:

First, reputable tour agencies keep track of when and where a ship will actually appear and adjust accordingly. So, when they say "at the dock" they'll show up where you're getting off the tender unless they were very specific. One operator showed me an app on his phone that gave the arrival, docking, and departure information and updates for all the expected ships.

The second is agreement that Windstar can work with you with you work with them. We had need to get off the ship ASAP at the end of one cruise. We let them know and they first gave us specific instructions - essentially keep your luggage with you instead of leaving it outside the cabin door and "be at this specific spot by this specific time" and collect your passports at reception after xxxpm the night before arrival - a crew member then met us at the appointed time at the appointed spot and made sure we were the first off as soon as the ship was cleared.

Surmy

 

Currently on Star Pride and our stop in Anse Mitan was cancelled due to strong swells and they moved across the bay. to the pier in Fort de France instead.

Thank you for this. We have a private tour booked in Anse Mitan, so I will definitely have a contingency plan for getting there from FdF. Thank you for the information!

Thanks. Will definitely see if alternate plans can be made for Martinique.

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Thank you for this. We have a private tour booked in Anse Mitan, so I will definitely have a contingency plan for getting there from FdF. Thank you for the information!

We will be at Anse Mitan twice on our b2b in Feb. Would you let me know with whom you booked your private tour and what you plan to do? Thanks.

Hi Riverroad,

I previously replied to you here:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2570245&page=2

Page 1 of that thread has contact info for two private tour guides who were most accommodating.

I did see that. Thank you again for the info.