I just want to confirm . .

[racepoint]

Should I feel "safe" with booking an excursion through the ship when it is due to end within an hour of the ship leaving port? In other words, I have read here that all ship-based excursions will make sure their participants are back on ship in time for sailing v. booking something on your own with no guarantee. Does anyone here have a tale to tell about missing the ship while on a ship-sanctioned excursion?

[ggcruiser]

They won't be doing business with NCL for long if they don't get passengers back to the ship in time. I think you'll be just fine.

[Starry Eyes]

You will be fine with a ship sponsored excursion...They will take care to get you back on time.

 

On another line, we were docked inRotterdam And many people took excursions into Amsterdam. Traffic was very bad and the buses were delayed...the ship waited until all the ship excursion were back. I watched from my balcony as one busload after the next straggled back. The local sail away band played on and off longer, but than planned.

[garycarla]

And, for those that book on their own, and worried about traffic and arriving late.

 

Chances are, the ship sponsored tours are stuck in the same traffic. Not 100%, but it stands to reason.

[penguinscott]

You'll be fine booking a ship-sponsored excursion with an hour to spare. Have fun.

[jakesnana]

Just wanted to share with you our experience on a Panama Canal excursion. I had a large group on the sailing and had arranged a private excursion through the Panama Canal with My Friend Mario. I saw the times were cutting it close, but he assured me that we would get back in time. We had 80 people on this excursion, and I was hoping that even if we were late, they wouldn't leave 80 people behind.

 

There was congestions getting through the canal. At one point, we went through one of the locks at the same time as the ships sponsored trip. The ship's excursion were on a ferry type boat, were packed like sardines and the boat was listing to one side. 80 of us were on a 120 ft. private yacht, with open bar, grilled chicken, sausage and corn with fruit and pastries. Our excursion paid $20.00 less per person than the ships excursion.

 

When we got back to docking point at the same time as the ships sponsored excursion, the dock workers let our boat disembark first for several reasons. First, it was one of their own running the excursion and they wanted to make sure he got his people back to the ship on time and second, there were only 80 of us comared to 300 on the ship's boat.

 

One time on a private tour in St. Thomas, a policeman stopped traffic for our tour bus to get through traffic, so that we could get back to the ship.

 

Moral of the story - you will always be fine doing a ship's sponsored excursion, but you will also be fine doing a private excursion. In the end, everyone at the destination will bend over backwards to make sure you get back to the ship on time. After all, it's their livelihood on the line.

[gra2172]

Should I feel "safe" with booking an excursion through the ship when it is due to end within an hour of the ship leaving port? In other words, I have read here that all ship-based excursions will make sure their participants are back on ship in time for sailing v. booking something on your own with no guarantee. Does anyone here have a tale to tell about missing the ship while on a ship-sanctioned excursion?

 

 

They have a contract with the Cruise line. In Hawaii someone asked the guide if they ever deliver people late and they said they get charged 1200$ an hour to delay the ship. He said they were late once and will never do that again! :p

 

 

So the short answer is yes. Even if you are late, the ship will be there as long as its an NCL sponsored excursion. You assume the risk if you do a tour on your own from one of the vendors at the port. And the ship wont wait.

 

Personally I prefer the peace of mind booking an NCL one. Its worth the extra cost.

[auntierobin]

When in June are you sailing? We have a roll call started for June 16th, come on over and visit if you are sailing then.

[gooch47]

We use ship sponsored tours just about 100% of the time. I consider the extra money you pay as insurance that the cruiseline will do everything in their power to make sure you get back in time.

 

That said, on a recent Princess cruise, we were 1.5 hours late getting back. I've actually been the very last person to get on the ship after arriving late after an Alaskan tour.

 

But could you be left behind on a ship sponsored tour? Yes. There was a thread a while back about a Princess Alaskan tour that had to be left behind because the ship had to leave the dock because of a storm and there was no way to get the passengers back aboard. Princess put them up in a hotel, flew them to the next port (which MAY have been after a sea day ... don't remember for sure) and generally treated them like royalty. I didn't read anyone posting about it, but it wouldn't surprise me to hear that other non-ship's tours didn't make it back either.

[gra2172]

We use ship sponsored tours just about 100% of the time. I consider the extra money you pay as insurance that the cruiseline will do everything in their power to make sure you get back in time.

 

That said, on a recent Princess cruise, we were 1.5 hours late getting back. I've actually been the very last person to get on the ship after arriving late after an Alaskan tour.

 

But could you be left behind on a ship sponsored tour? Yes. There was a thread a while back about a Princess Alaskan tour that had to be left behind because the ship had to leave the dock because of a storm and there was no way to get the passengers back aboard. Princess put them up in a hotel, flew them to the next port (which MAY have been after a sea day ... don't remember for sure) and generally treated them like royalty. I didn't read anyone posting about it, but it wouldn't surprise me to hear that other non-ship's tours didn't make it back either.

 

 

When the tsunami struck Japan, the Pride had to pull out of the dock in Hawaii for safety, leaving people behind. NCL did the same thing as Princess and made sure the stranded passengers were taken care of until they could collect them.

[greeneggbert]

On one of our excursions in Barbados (snorkling), it was an excrusion booked through RCL. They radioed ahead to the ship letting them know that we were running 15 mintues behind, and the ship waited for us. I have never gone through secruity so fast getting back on the ship before.

 

If it is booked through the ship, the company must get you back in time for the ship to depart.

[vicbomb5]

I would feel safe, plus if you book it through NCL then it is their responsibility to get you back on the ship, even if it means flying you to the next port to catch the boat.

 

I would assume NCL would hold up their ship if an entire group's excursion was running that late.

[JOANN226]

You will be fine, we were on a cruise last year and the excursion had alot of people booked, my son and his friend were on it, they weren't back at the time the ship was suppose to sail, I got nervous went down to the desk and they confirmed that he was on a tender bringing them back and said we will wait, if booked through the ship we will wait for everyone to return, as soon as they were back, they began with departure. So don't worry about it.

[jints07]

Before starting let me just say that in general, I think you should feel safe in booking with a ship sponsored excursion. That said, the nature of the excursion may matter. Lots of folks here are giving examples where, for example, a bus driver has a very concise understanding of exactly who is on their bus or a tour operator that took 15 people somewhere can radio to the ship, but let me give you an example where this isn't so clear cut....

 

I sailed on the Gem back in Feb and we did the Dolphin interaction at Atlantis. To get there you are basically given a wristband directly off the ship, escorted to a bus, and delivered to Atlantis. Upon arrival, an Atlantis guide repeats over and over and over again that the last bus back to the ship is 5pm. Now mind you, hundreds and hundreds of passengers from the boat go to Atlantis for all kinds of different excursions and each bus holds perhaps 30 passengers. Now keep in mind that the Dolphin Interaction area is a pretty busy operation that caters to ALL visitors to Atlantis, not just those that happen to be there with a cruise ship. Further, keep in mind that Atlantis makes no attempt to keep cruise line passengers segregated from other guests. I.e. each group in the water is a mix of guests from wherever....hotel, cruise, day trippers from other hotels, etc.

 

Well by the "un" luck of the draw we had a fairly late "appointment" for the Dolphin Interaction. And of course we were the only ones (the four of us) from the Gem in our interaction group of 12. Well, the dolphins were being somewhat difficult so they had to keep getting "new" ones and our session ran about 20 minutes late.

 

As a result, we had to RUN back to the bus stop in our bathing suits and water shoes (Atlantis is HUUUUUGE and it is a good walk, especially with a 6 year old, to get between the bus stop and the Dolphin Interaction center). We made it with about 5 minutes to spare and actually found a line so we knew we were ok, but the point is that there was no one checking "who we were" as we boarded the bus, it was just a free for all back to the port. Had we arrived 15 minutes later there would be no more buses and no bus driver would have been any the wiser that we were not on board their bus so it's not like we could have relied on that.

 

Perhaps if we missed the bus and had to find alternative means to get back to the dock, the boat would have waited, I'm not sure, but I don't know how they would know that we weren't just irresponsibly laying by the beach at Atlantis. You hear all the time how the boat doesn't wait so how would they have known to wait for 4 people when there is zero chance someone could have "radioed" ahead on our behalf?

 

My point in recounting this is simply to say that while you should certainly enjoy your vacation and be relaxed as possible, a healthy amount of vigilance and awareness should remain. Don't for one second hesitate to ask questions both of the ship staff as you leave the boat for your excursions and of the tour operator as your begin.

[Tralynn]

Should I feel "safe" with booking an excursion through the ship when it is due to end within an hour of the ship leaving port? In other words, I have read here that all ship-based excursions will make sure their participants are back on ship in time for sailing v. booking something on your own with no guarantee. Does anyone here have a tale to tell about missing the ship while on a ship-sanctioned excursion?

I can tell you that I have been on a cruise where our departure time out of a port was pushed back due to waiting for a ship-sanctioned tour, so yes you will be fine booking through the ship.