Price of HAL tours

[slotl]

Does anyone else feel the way I do that the HAL tour prices are getting so high that they are out of the sphere of reality??

[Krazy Kruizers]

Yes -- some of them have gotten very pricey.

 

If it is a new port for us -- we will use HAL. That gives us a clue as to what we will do in that port when we return there. When we return to a port -- we are on our own. The only exception would be if HAL had a tour that really interests us and I don't want to spend time hunting around for an independant operator.

[CtheW0rld]

it is not just HAL. i avoid ship's tours whenever possible, and not just because of the cost. i have more flexibility to see what i want to see and for how long when i do private tours.

[slotl]

Yes -- some of them have gotten very pricey.

 

If it is a new port for us -- we will use HAL. That gives us a clue as to what we will do in that port when we return there. When we return to a port -- we are on our own. The only exception would be if HAL had a tour that really interests us and I don't want to spend time hunting around for an independant operator.

 

The CC board is an excellent way to find private tours in many ports. Also, on the CC roll call you can arrange tours with fellow passengers well in advance of the cruise.

 

So, yes, we do try to book private tours rather than those offered by the ship....but with one caveot (sp.). There are some ports were we prefer the "safety" of a ship's tour. For example, in Belem and Forteleza Brazil the HAL tours were accompanied by ARMED GUARDS. We will be on the Prinsendam visiting Gambia and Senegal. We plan on taking the ship's tours there as well.

[SwissMyst]

The price includes making sure the ship does not leave without you. That is worth something. HAL shore excursions have been uniformly good when compared to another pricier cruise line where they were very shallow and primarily geared to shopping stops.

[canadarocks]

On our next cruise we've only booked HAL excursions at places we have to: ie. Panama Canal and Half Moon Cay. Otherwise I find the different port boards invaluable for independent operator suggestions. Not only are the HAL options expensive, I find for the Southern Caribbean that there are very few choices.

 

We don't cruise until March and I've already lined up private tours in Aruba and Costa Rica! :cool: All thanks to info I've learned from CC members!

[Kween Karen]

I have mostly booked private tours for my next cruise (thanks to the amazing work of some cruise critic roll call members). In most cases the prices are less....but in many cases the prices are similar except that we will be traveling in a small group and not on a huge bus full of people. That is worth something.

[KirkNC]

it is not just HAL. i avoid ship's tours whenever possible, and not just because of the cost. i have more flexibility to see what i want to see and for how long when i do private tours.

 

We are the exact same, we have not used a ships tour in a long time.

 

Kirk

[slotl]

I have mostly booked private tours for my next cruise (thanks to the amazing work of some cruise critic roll call members). In most cases the prices are less....but in many cases the prices are similar except that we will be traveling in a small group and not on a huge bus full of people. That is worth something.

 

Just remember that being on a HAL tour, you only go as fast as the slowest person -- and there is always ONE. :D

[soldham]

They are out of the stratosphere IMO and pander to peoples fear of violence or being left behind.

 

I took a ships shore excursion to Giza and had to practically be restrained to prevent me from killing this self absorbed woman who not only put the entire bus in jeopardy by flitting around with her digital camera snapping shots of nothing at 130mph on crappy roads but who also came back to the bus when she saw fit to do so - so much so that our last stop at the Sphynx ended up being about 15 minutes :mad:

 

Never again.

[photomikey]

Traveling on a cruise ship is the next closest thing to not traveling at all - you're on a floating city of 2,000 other Americans going to artificially foreign places (our next trip is Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas - it's like going to a city-sized Mexican restaurant in Ohio, only transported to Mexico). In order to get even the smallest amount of "flavor" of these countries, you have to get out of the cruse ship zone a bit, and a 60 passenger bus with A/C and satellite television just isn't it. I'd take local indy tours even if they were more expensive -- but, double bonus... they're cheaper!

[esther e]

I'm at the opposite end. I'd much rather have a ship tour and feel more comfortable than do an independent tour. However, maybe because I'm older I feel this way. My sense of adventure left me years ago!

[SwissMyst]

I'm at the opposite end. I'd much rather have a ship tour and feel more comfortable than do an independent tour. However, maybe because I'm older I feel this way. My sense of adventure left me years ago!

 

Our sense of adventure left us too after getting robbed in Urumchi, Antigua and Capetown -- all in just the past two years. And all on public streets, during normal hours. Antigua was two blocks from the ship. Capetown was two blocks from the ship's hotel. Savvy precautions and decades of independent travel experience did not count in any of these three recent disturbing experiences.

 

Yes, we are now older and not willing to take a chance the next robbery might involve physical violence. We were lucky in they only took things, but did not injure us to get them. I have traveled to 102 countries, 90% independently. I never traveled before scared. I do now. And I am very, very sorry there has been this change.

 

Perhaps now being older makes us look like an easier target. If so, we have to accept this reality. And yes, I agree one gets a very sanitized view of things on ship tours -- but c'mon how can anyone get a "real" experience when the whole economy of many ports relies on disgorging thousands of passengers a day.

 

You don't cruise any large cruise line or even take independent shore excursions for "authenticity". You are just as much a transient intruder on an independent day trip as on a ship excursion. It takes independent land travel and going off the beaten path to get a true sense of adventure. Cruise ship ports are the most artificial travel experience out there. This is a given and this is an accepted part of the cruise travel experience. Make it work best for each person's needs.

[airlink diva]

I agree that some of the HAL tours are very high! But I have come across some that are equal and sometimes cheaper than the private tours.

When I travel, 90% of my tours are with local tour guides suggested by the port of call board and friends. With about two exceptions, I found local tours to be very reasonable in cost, very few people (in some cases I was the only person!) and the guides show great pride in their country.

I will use a ship tour if something is really far away and the time is too close for my comfort.

The two HAL ship tours that I've book, were a good value. On the photo tour in Barbados, there was only seven of us with a tour guide and driver. On my snorkeling tour, it was a larger group, but the guides were plenty and esp in ensuring the first timers had extra assistance.

On my upcoming cruise, I booked a tour with HAL in St. Vincent because it sounds like something I would really enjoy. I'm debating on a ship tour in St. Lucia because the private tour is more expensive.

[esther e]

May I ask when you're going to be in St. Vincent? I booked one there, too for an October sailing on a day sail. It would be interesting if we booked the same one.:)

[donaldsc]

The other things that I object to on HAL tours (as opposed to Princess tours) is that -

 

1) they charge you when you book them instead of on the ship

 

2) they say that they have a 10% cancellation fee.

 

We did 35 days on the Maasdam on Voyage of the Vikings and we took only 3 HAL tours.

 

DON

[Kween Karen]

I like being charged when I book them......then I pay for them gradually and BEFORE my trip.. They feel free!

Also.....I have never been charged a cancellation fee if I cancel in a reasonable amount of time.

[LADYLAYLA]

"Just remember that being on a HAL tour, you only go as fast as the slowest person -- and there is always ONE. :D"

 

Any tour you go on - be it HAL or a small independent tour, you can still only go as fast as the slowest person.

 

As normally the slowest people, due to DH's handicap and need to use crutches, we find we go on HAL's tours because we know if we book in advance - we can talk to the Shorex people on the ship and get a better feel for the accessability of the tours.

 

 

We have never been charged a cancellation fee as long as you cancel 48 hours in advance -- if cancel closer than that, then I think you need to be charged something- at least they will refund some of the $

[cruz chic]

The other things that I object to on HAL tours (as opposed to Princess tours) is that -

 

1) they charge you when you book them instead of on the ship

 

2) they say that they have a 10% cancellation fee.

 

We did 35 days on the Maasdam on Voyage of the Vikings and we took only 3 HAL tours.

 

DON

I'm with you on that one. It seems one of my tours always gets cancelled ahead of time for some reason. I'm Cdn. so I get charged different rates and it never seems to be for the good when I get the credit:D. I like to part with my money as late as possible so I'd rather pay once I'm on the ship.

[LVSue]

Basically, I agree with everyone! If time is of the essence, I book with HAL; otherwise I try to book an independent tour. On the other hand, sometimes independent tour operators have contracts with HAL that precludes that. I was able to save a bundle on a Prince William sound tour booked before they had contracted with HAL and we grandfathered in as far as pickup at the ship in Anchorage. Also in Bilbao were forced to go with HAL because the museum was closed on Monday, and only we in the HAL group were allowed in (but I felt privileged).

 

Canadarocks, what have you booked in Aruba? We're going in January and I just haven't had time to research that yet due to upcoming Montreal-FLL repo!

[canadarocks]

Canadarocks, what have you booked in Aruba? We're going in January and I just haven't had time to research that yet due to upcoming Montreal-FLL repo!

 

I've booked a private taxi tour with "Bully". He comes very highly recommended and will customize a tour based upon what you want to see. :)

[LVSue]

Thanks! I don't really know what I want to see, but I'll look for appropriate posts in the Panama Canal section.

[canadarocks]

Thanks! I don't really know what I want to see, but I'll look for appropriate posts in the Panama Canal section.

 

Actually, the posts about Aruba private tours will be on the Aruba board. :)

[Linda&Vern]

For what it's worth --- I can only comment on HAL excursions as we have never done private tours. Four years ago in Belize my DH went cave tubing (HAL excursion) and had a blast and felt the guides were terrific. When he returned to the ship he made many comments to me about the private tours doing the same trip. He felt they were very "unqualified' to be doing this tour. In fact, one of the guides from the HAL tour had to actually save someone in trouble on one of the private tours. My DH felt that if someone had the $$ to "buy" a license anyone could say they were a tour operator and felt HAL did a great job hiring the best. I realize there are many exceptions ... but this was my DH's observation and I thought I would share.

[Hlitner]

Since we generally dislike and avoid cruise ship excursions (we think they feel like cattle calls) the HA excursion prices just provide further incentive for us to avoid those tours. On our recent 42 day HA cruise we managed to not book a single excursion, saved ourselves thousands of dollars, and had a great time in nearly every port. Its amazing what one can do with their feet, rental cars, trains, and local public transit.

 

Hank