spending the night off the ship between ports

[geneandmary]

We will be on a cruise this summer with 2 stops in France 2 days in a row about 200 miles apart, so we want to rent a car & drive around between them, meeting the ship on the next day. We mentioned this to our TA and she said HAL requires you to get written authorization from their office beforehand (which she is now doing).

 

Is this new? My impression was you just had to notify the front desk that you'd be meeting them the next day.

 

Has anyone done this lately?

[sail7seas]

You need to have HAL's permission.... they need to know what you plan and to approve it. Every country has cabotage laws and they need to comply. You should get their agreement in writing if they do, indeed, approve your request. When you arrive at the port to rejoin the ship, you could have trouble getting into the port area without something in writing confirming you are expected. Better to be safe than sorry.

 

There's all good reason to think they will approve what you want to do if it is permissable.

 

Let us know. :)

[Krazy Kruizers]

This is not new.

Your TA is doing the right thing by getting hold of HAL now.

Get everything in writing!!

And take extra copies with you.

[cruisinpsudude]

This should be no problem. We did something similar last week on the Veendam when we debarked for 2 nights and stayed in a land based hotel. Obviously the ship was not moving, so that is slightly different, but all we did was call the front desk and let them know not to expect us back until Friday.

[geneandmary]

But apparently it's different when you get off in one port & get back on in another. Not sure why, if it's the same country.

[celle]

We will be on a cruise this summer with 2 stops in France 2 days in a row about 200 miles apart, so we want to rent a car & drive around between them, meeting the ship on the next day. We mentioned this to our TA and she said HAL requires you to get written authorization from their office beforehand (which she is now doing).

 

Is this new? My impression was you just had to notify the front desk that you'd be meeting them the next day.

 

Has anyone done this lately?

 

I have no experience with HAL in this matter, but with Royal Caribbean we had to get written permission in advance, and then also tell the front desk once we got on board.

 

I think HAL's requirements will be similar.

 

We left the ship in Goa (India), took an air and land trip to see the Taj Mahal, and rejoined the ship 3 days later, in Mumbai. You still pay the full price for the cruise and don't get any refund for the days you are not on the ship.

 

Make sure that you programme sufficient time to allow for unexpected delays, so that you don't miss the ship!

[bra1nchild]

We have done this three times, once when the Amsterdam had an overnight in Bangkok and twice last spring on the Grand Med. We left the ship in Alexandria and spent the night in Cairo, rejoining the ship the next night at Port Said. the following day we left the Prinsendam at Ashdod, spent the night in Jerusalem and reboarded in Haifa. All we had to do was notify the front desk [and we alerted our cabin stewards and dining room staff].

[candbgirl]

It seemed that Sondra who blogged during the World Cruise, got on and off the Amsterdam at will . I know she had several land trips planned before she left but I think she added several more while on the ship.

[pdmlynek]

But apparently it's different when you get off in one port & get back on in another. Not sure why, if it's the same country.

 

I agree.

The whole point about cabotage laws is to prevent foreign companies to transport people within their borders. This makes sense, if you accept the premise that cabotage laws are designed to protect the local companies. If OP is traveling within the same country, and is NOT crossing international borders, just exactly under what legal theory would OP’s behavior be against cabotage laws?

In any case, yes, it makes sense for OP to inform HAL what OP will do. And if getting a permission is problematic, some might suggest that OP just get off the ship at the first port, forget to make it on time back on board, and heroically make it back onto the ship in the second port.

[sail7seas]

A good point for all of us to keep in mind is that if you miss the ship in a port either at embarkation or as a port call, you are not automatically permitted to reboard at the next port. Almost all of the time, you will be permitted but before you go to the effort of onward travel and expectation of reboarding, check with headquarters. Contact your cruise line and confirm what they will and will not permit.

 

[Hflors]

A good point for all of us to keep in mind is that if you miss the ship in a port either at embarkation or as a port call, you are not automatically permitted to reboard at the next port. Almost all of the time, you will be permitted but before you go to the effort of onward travel and expectation of reboarding, check with headquarters. Contact your cruise line and confirm what they will and will not permit.

 

 

Sail is correct. Make sure you get a letter from HAL that they approve of what you are going to do. Also realize if for some reason you don't get to re-join the ship it is up to you to get your self home from where ever you are. When we did this in Tahiti last year the first thing the front desk wanted to see was the approval letter from their home office. The day we left the ship we had to meet with the customs officials at Papeete and explain our plan to them. They had to give us a paper to put into our passports which had to be turned in when we re-boarded the ship the following day in Moorea. The letter from Hal took several months to get, but I am glad we did it in advance since it all went smoothly. Good luck

[Cruzin Terri]

But apparently it's different when you get off in one port & get back on in another. Not sure why, if it's the same country.

 

This past April we were on the Veendam in South America and did a three night overland tour to Machu Picchu independent of the ship shore excursion. We had to get written approval from Seattle prior to the cruise and also sign a form on the ship releasing HAL of any responsibility while we were off the ship. We left the ship in Lima, Peru and returned to the ship in Guayaquil, Ecuador. So not only was it another port, but also a different country.

I hope this helps.

Terri

[geneandmary]

I agree.

The whole point about cabotage laws is to prevent foreign companies to transport people within their borders. This makes sense, if you accept the premise that cabotage laws are designed to protect the local companies. If OP is traveling within the same country, and is NOT crossing international borders, just exactly under what legal theory would OP’s behavior be against cabotage laws?

In any case, yes, it makes sense for OP to inform HAL what OP will do. And if getting a permission is problematic, some might suggest that OP just get off the ship at the first port, forget to make it on time back on board, and heroically make it back onto the ship in the second port.

 

We will just try to get HAL's permission. We do not want to be nuisance passengers who just "miss" the ship.

[sail7seas]

It is highly likely you'll get permission.

Please let us know.

I'm always curious how these situations resolve but so often people never come back and let us know. We get left wondering. :D

 

[Cruzin Terri]

We will just try to get HAL's permission. We do not want to be nuisance passengers who just "miss" the ship.

You should not have trouble getting permission. Our TA called HAL and within a few hours the necessary letter was emailed to her and forwarded to me. I took the original and a few copies with me on the cruise. I also had to sign a waiver on the ship that had to be signed by the Captain. I took a copy of that with me also when we did our overland excursion.

Have fun and enjoy.

Terri

[geneandmary]

I can't imagine why we wouldn't get permission, but we will let you know. Thanks to everybody for their input.

[doublebzz]

 

We left the ship in Goa (India), took an air and land trip to see the Taj Mahal, and rejoined the ship 3 days later, in Mumbai. You still pay the full price for the cruise and don't get any refund for the days you are not on the ship.

 

 

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but do you recall what this excursion cost?

[Mary Ellen]

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but do you recall what this excursion cost?

I don't remember our price, but IIRC it was less than what HAL wanted for just one of us (double occupancy). That included private car/drivers, guides, and top rated hotels.

[doublebzz]

I don't remember our price, but IIRC it was less than what HAL wanted for just one of us (double occupancy). That included private car/drivers, guides, and top rated hotels.

 

Mary Ellen

 

Thanks for the quick response. One poster quoted a price of $4,800 for a couple but I haven't been able to verify that. It seems high and almost the cost of the entire cruise. Are you saying you took a private excursion not associated with the cruise line? If so, do you recall the name of the tour company?

[Mary Ellen]

Yes, we booked through a private company. Sorry, I don't remember the name. I found them through the Ports of Call forum and TripAdvisor. This was about six years ago. Given the time since then I don't think our price would be of any merit now. That is why I stated it in relation to what HAL was charging for their group tour. Compared to our cruise the tour was considerably less, but I have no idea what cruise you are considering. The price we've paid for the cruise has no bearing on deciding if a tour is worth the money. We look at the price of an overland tour (such as this) in relation to what it would cost (including time and effort) for us to return and do it as a land vacation.

[doublebzz]

Yes, we booked through a private company. Sorry, I don't remember the name. I found them through the Ports of Call forum and TripAdvisor. This was about six years ago. Given the time since then I don't think our price would be of any merit now. That is why I stated it in relation to what HAL was charging for their group tour. Compared to our cruise the tour was considerably less, but I have no idea what cruise you are considering. The price we've paid for the cruise has no bearing on deciding if a tour is worth the money. We look at the price of an overland tour (such as this) in relation to what it would cost (including time and effort) for us to return and do it as a land vacation.

 

Again, thanks for the info. I'll try searching some more. We are considering the Ryndam Venice to Singapore 28 day cruise in October. It stops in Goa where you disembark for the Taj tour and rejoin the ship 2 days later in the 3rd Indian port. Although we do a majority of our tours with private companies, I would be a little skittish travelling around India without the security of a ship-sponsored tour.

[1of4]

We required a letter from HAL when one member of our party departed a cruise 4 days before the rest of us. We had to pay for them for the full cruise but HAL had to permit it. I took it that it was a written record for the ship so they would not see they had scanned out and not back in.

[Mary Ellen]

Although we do a majority of our tours with private companies, I would be a little skittish travelling around India without the security of a ship-sponsored tour.

We've looked at that cruise. It is an excellent value as the Ryndam is heading to Singapore to be converted for another cruiseline's use. If you take the HAL tour to Agra (assuming they'll offer one) you'll probably pay much more for the shore ex than the cruise. In our situation we planned it to rejoin the ship on day 1 of an overnight stay. We had an extra day as a buffer. Edited February 1, 2015 by Mary Ellen

[Hlitner]

Within the EU there are no cabatage issues that create problems for spending a night off the ship. One should always notify the cruise ship's Guest Relations office a few days in advance and again remind them the day you get off the ship (so they are not concerned when you do not return). Ask for the name and phone number of the ship's agent for the port where you intend to rejoin the ship in case you have kind of problem that would stop you from catching the ship. Overnights off the ship are pretty common in both France and Italy (and even between those two countries). I think the most popular overnight is when folks can spend a night in Florence (this works with Livorno and Civitavecchia).

 

We also sometimes like to disembark our cruise 1 day early. In fact, this past year while on the Ruby Princess we left the ship in LeHavre (the vessel was going to Southampton the following day at the end of the cruise) and there were about forty other passengers that also left the ship one day early. This did require pre-notification to the cruise line who even handled getting our luggage off the ship (they actually had us put out our luggage the night before LeHavre).

 

Hank

Edited February 1, 2015 by Hlitner

[doublebzz]

Again, thanks for the info. I'll try searching some more. We are considering the Ryndam Venice to Singapore 28 day cruise in October. It stops in Goa where you disembark for the Taj tour and rejoin the ship 2 days later in the 3rd Indian port. Although we do a majority of our tours with private companies, I would be a little skittish travelling around India without the security of a ship-sponsored tour.

 

Within the EU there are no cabatage issues that create problems for spending a night off the ship. One should always notify the cruise ship's Guest Relations office a few days in advance and again remind them the day you get off the ship (so they are not concerned when you do not return). Ask for the name and phone number of the ship's agent for the port where you intend to rejoin the ship in case you have kind of problem that would stop you from catching the ship. Overnights off the ship are pretty common in both France and Italy (and even between those two countries). I think the most popular overnight is when folks can spend a night in Florence (this works with Livorno and Civitavecchia).

 

We also sometimes like to disembark our cruise 1 day early. In fact, this past year while on the Ruby Princess we left the ship in LeHavre (the vessel was going to Southampton the following day at the end of the cruise) and there were about forty other passengers that also left the ship one day early. This did require pre-notification to the cruise line who even handled getting our luggage off the ship (they actually had us put out our luggage the night before LeHavre).

 

Hank

 

As an experienced cruiser, would you advise private arrangements for the Taj itinerary I described above? The ship's tour is $4,800 a couple which seems a bit extravagant for a 2 night tour.