Excursion HELP!!

[beachlover225]

I am very hestitant when using outside companies for our excursions since there is the chance of being left and also not getting the most out of it!! But with that said I know we can get the same excursions for half the cost through outside companies and many are very reputable and I have heard a lot of the time you get more bang for your buck...

So, please give me advice on excurions and companies for the following ports of call we will be vising in January - thanks a million in advance

Grand Cayman

Cozumel

Belize

Roatan

[cruiserking]

I am very hestitant when using outside companies for our excursions since there is the chance of being left and also not getting the most out of it!! But with that said I know we can get the same excursions for half the cost through outside companies and many are very reputable and I have heard a lot of the time you get more bang for your buck...

So, please give me advice on excurions and companies for the following ports of call we will be vising in January - thanks a million in advance

Grand Cayman

Cozumel

Belize

Roatan

 

 

You have quite a while until your cruise in January. Have you looked at the Port of Call Boards here at Cruise Critic:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=587

 

There is a ton of useful information for outside excursion vendors. You can do a search above for information as well. We always use the ship's excursion, for me it's worth the extra couple of bucks to know the bus company is reliable and the ship will wait for us.

 

Our ship sponsored tour arrived late back to St. Thomas a few years back and the Noordam specially waited for us and sent a senior officer in to collect us at the pier.

 

You will probably be doing mostly beach excursions anyway and they are really not that expensive.

 

Jonathan

[PattyG12]

In Grand Cayman we used Native Way and did their Stingray, Starfish and Rum Point excursion. It was a little over half of what the cruise line offered. We had 14 people on our little excursion and got lots of extra time with the stingrays. The excursion from the ship showed up and their little boat was PACKED. Looked like over 100 people.

 

In Cozumel we took a cab over to Mr. Sanchos. I think the all inclusive was $45. You got a table, beach chairs and ALL you could eat and drink. I drank lots of tequila :o

 

Can't help with the other 2

[Traveler353]

OP: You will also be able to finds lots of good information over on the port of calls boards for each port.

[bbwex]

As suggested, I would go to the boards for the relevant part of the world and ask for private companies and get lots of feedback.

 

While it is true that people do miss the ship, every instance I have actually heard about was about people who were off on their own and either had their watches set wrong, did too much drinking, or simply did not keep track of the time. There are ample videos on You Tube, but they are all individuals, not people who were on tours.

 

While the ship will not wait for a private tour, bear in mind that established tour companies a) know the ships' schedules as well as the ships' crews, b) would not survive if their customers did not get back to their ships on time every single time, and c) are very professional. Again, make sure that you are working with someone established for more than a couple of weeks.

 

Also, you are usually not so far away that if something unforeseen happened that they could not get you back. Last summer, we took a private tour from Rostock to Berlin -- 2-1/2 hours by van (3 hours by ship's tour bus). No problems at all.

 

Some real advantages of private tours: no large buses full of people, no unchangeable itinerary, small group that can move around quickly and get much more done, you can add things not on the tour (we added a museum in Berlin almost by accident that might have been the most impressive thing we saw, and we added subway stations in St. Petersburg which are very ornate and interesting), you can set up a group for multiple cities and make some lifelong friends, and they are cheaper if you have a few couples together.

 

Some reputable tour companies (not all, and not everywhere) will guarantee their timely return or will pay for your trip to the next port. Again not all do this, but they are that confident.

 

Having done both, and we had a couple of decent ship's tours, I would always prefer a private tour except in a city that requires perhaps only a half-day tour or something short. The private tour was much more personal, much more flexible, and we saw lots more than the ship's tours.

[April-in-NC]

If you do your homework you can do independent excursions with peace of mind.

 

My personal rule of thumb is that I try to do excursions in the morning so I can do my shopping/exploring in the port area in the afternoon before reboarding. Being in the port area early lessens the worry.

 

There are a few times when I would do the ship's excursion over independent, mainly when the destination is far away from the port (Mayan Ruins for example) or the excursion takes up almost the entire stay in port. Under those circumstances I would consider doing the trip through the ship (but I wouldn't rule out independent tours).

[clackey]

There are a few ports where I would recommend using the ship tours. Belize is one for the simple reason of distance. Don't get me wrong. We have not booked thru the ship in Belize, but the potential is there for a major screwup. Many of the tours there involve a lot of travel.

 

Research, research, and research each port. Once you decide on a tour, find everything that you can about the companies offering the tour, then use your instincts. If you feel uneasy about doing that particular tour thru an independent guide, go with the ship tour.

 

Other ports, such as Cozumel, can be had on your own via taxi.