Booking excursions through the ship?

[reizan]

Are there any pro's to booking excursions through the ship? There seems to be a BIG $$$ differance between the ship and excursions you can find online. Whats whit the big mark up? I've read that tha'll hold the boat for you if your excursion (that is booked through them) runs late. Is ther any othere benefit? Are they garenteed or of better quality? Any adivce?

[suziehmkr]

There are pros & cons. In Mexico, we booked one thru the ship and two independently. For Hawaii, we are booking one thru the ship for the exact reason that you mention. We are concerned about time and we know the ship will have to wait for us. If you miss a port or are late and you book thru the ship, you get a refund.

 

However, I am a big cheerleader of booking on your own and saving money. Keep your ports in mind and see if they are missed or late arrivals often. And know the cancellation policy of your independent tour guide. Some won't charge you if your ship misses port or is late. Other will charge you anyway. We were going to book a very cool tour in Kauai, but we have decided not to as they will keep our $400 if we are late or miss port.

 

Definitely do lots of research on this board, We planned all of our ports while reading this board and everyone was spot on! And now doing the same for our Hawaii cruise on the Hawaii board. Look for the recommendations and go with a known tour/excursion company or guide. Enjoy!

[Suite 16]

We book many of our excursions privately. One thing we always do is book as early as we can get off the ship to make sure if anything does go wrong - a flat tire, etc. - we will have plenty of time to find a way to return to the ship before it sails. In other words, no afternoon tours! We have found the independent tour operators are very reliable, well aware of the time the ship is leaving. We have had no problems, had some great private tours, and saved a lot of money. You can learn a lot about every port on the boards.