Tendering

[calvin81]

We are on Riveria (in less than 2 months :)) and have several ports where we will be tendering ashore. This is our first time on an O class ship and I am wondering if someone can give me an idea of the time it takes to get a tender? Our last cruise docked in every port so I can't recall how long it took on an R class, not that it would compare. We have booked a private tour at 9:00 in one port and the schedule says we arrive at 8:00. Do we need to get to the lounge at 8:00? Do they have larger tenders or run more on the bigger ships? Does it depend on what time Oceania excursions start?

[hypercafe]

We were on the Rivera last month. The way it worked was if you were on a ship tour your ticket said what time to go to the show lounge. When you got there your ticket was changed for a number. If you were on your owne you got a color. The numbers were called for the start time of the tours but if there was room the colors were mixed in. The Rivera has 4 tenders however in one port we used tenders from the port that took a lot more people at a time. If you want to get off fast on you owne I would get to the lounge very early, it will give times in the newspaper the night before.

[LHT28]

Works the same way it does on the R-ships

They did have more tenders running on the Marina cruise we were on

I seem to recall they had 2 platforms also but I could be mistaken as it was in 2011 & I am old

;)

[Paulchili]

It also depends on which port and sea conditions. Some ports (like Easter Island) they could run only 2 tenders and it took for ever. This, however, was the exception rather than the rule. In heavier seas the loading of tenders is slower.

In any case, your best bet is to be there early to be sure you get off early.

[pacheco18]

We had a bad experience on Marina where they would not let those with private tours on the tenders until ALL the folks on the ship sponsored tours had left the ship. If we had waited, we would have lost hours of valuable shore time and we had a distance to travel. The day would have been ruined.

 

A few of us complained and were told this is NOT Oceania's policy. Nevertheless, that's what the shore excursions staff was doing. We had to "fight" to get off the ship so that we could meet out tour guide early as planned.

 

Fair warning: don't let them pull that nonsense.

[calvin81]

Thanks for all the advice. I can't help but wish there were a better system for getting off than going to the lounge and waiting -- a reservation for a time? I looked at the ship's excursions and the start time isn't listed, only half or whole day. I suspect we will have a longer wait if their tours start the same time as ours. We have been fortunate in our past cruises with not many tendering ports, even docking in ports where we expected to tender.

[hypercafe]

We had two half day morning tours. One was 9, the other 9:30 meet time. The lounge was never crowded or a zoo so the system must of worked well. Because of the price the Oceania tours were not overcrowd. The people you see at the destinations desk are the ones doing all the tender passes. Go and ask them the night before the best time to arrive to get off quick as they seemed to have it all worked out.

[YoHoHo]

Thanks for all the advice. I can't help but wish there were a better system for getting off than going to the lounge and waiting -- a reservation for a time? I looked at the ship's excursions and the start time isn't listed, only half or whole day. I suspect we will have a longer wait if their tours start the same time as ours. We have been fortunate in our past cruises with not many tendering ports, even docking in ports where we expected to tender.

The excursions listed on their website under "Explore ashore' is general tour information and has length of time but not for a particular sailing.

If you log in and go to 'already booked' you will see the actual times for each excursion offered on your cruise. You can then assess whether you might need to work around these a bit when arranging your tour at a tender port.

 

If I am arranging a private tour and it is a tender port I plan on starting a little later (who knows what the sea will be like) especially if there are several of us. I would not want to fight to get my group of six ahead of others or have four waiting around for the other two who are stuck in the queue. not worth the stress & aggravation for everyone, including those in my party who are back in the line and not fighters, not the way I like to spend a vacation. I'll always hope I'll be back and see what I missed this trip.

 

It is a problem of course if the tendering is late or slow due to arrival time or rough water. Or the destination of choice is a long distance from the port. Then there is definitely a rush out and less patience and more anxiety can be seen.

 

That said, i too would not want to be told that I cannot get a ticket to ride until after all the ships excursions have left when it is not a stated policy.

[calvin81]

And the beauty of a private tour is being able to adjust as needed. We plan to drive to Positano and Ravello, but will adjust our time in each town if necessary. We may have to anyway if traffic is bad, but early in June is supposed to be better than later in the summer. Good advice not to get stressed out over the timing. And a good idea to check and see how booked their excursions are, so we can guess how many people will want to get off at what time. Based on the excursion prices compared to ours I can't imagine they're full!

[YoHoHo]

And the beauty of a private tour is being able to adjust as needed. We plan to drive to Positano and Ravello, but will adjust our time in each town if necessary. We may have to anyway if traffic is bad, but early in June is supposed to be better than later in the summer. Good advice not to get stressed out over the timing. And a good idea to check and see how booked their excursions are, so we can guess how many people will want to get off at what time. Based on the excursion prices compared to ours I can't imagine they're full!

Hope you have a nice clear day and stunning views from Ravello.

 

yes, traffic can be bad. it is a narrow winding road. Some places so narrow that in the summer they have 'officials' at key points to do things such as fold back the mirrors on buses and trucks so they can crawl past each other on some of the tight curves.

 

At one point an oncoming full size tourist bus approached our 'public' bus. He was on the outside. I suspect it was that drivers first time on the Amalfi coast. Good thing his passengers could not see how wide his eyes and mouth opened as we passed each other. It was almost like Munch's 'The Scream' but he kept his hands on the wheel. At least his reaction was not to close his eyes!

 

Off topic - sorry

[calvin81]

And that is why we're taking a private tour in a minvan :). Great visual of The Scream painting. The Amalfi coast is on my bucket list, along with Cinque Terre. Oceania has such wonderful itineraries!

[roothy123]

Hope you have a nice clear day and stunning views from Ravello.

 

yes, traffic can be bad. it is a narrow winding road. Some places so narrow that in the summer they have 'officials' at key points to do things such as fold back the mirrors on buses and trucks so they can crawl past each other on some of the tight curves.

 

At one point an oncoming full size tourist bus approached our 'public' bus. He was on the outside. I suspect it was that drivers first time on the Amalfi coast. Good thing his passengers could not see how wide his eyes and mouth opened as we passed each other. It was almost like Munch's 'The Scream' but he kept his hands on the wheel. At least his reaction was not to close his eyes!

 

Off topic - sorry

This made me laugh, as we had the exact same experience when traveling on a public bus from Amalfi to Positano. Our driver, however, didn't seem too concerned!

[Sambrielle]

what a visual!!! hahaha :D

[roothy123]

what a visual!!! hahaha :D

 

Glad you like it; hope it brings back amusing memories for YoHoHo too!

 

I meant to add that when it comes to tendering, I've almost always gotten on the first tender of the day (Marina as well as Regatta), even if it had shore excursion people on it. Of course, often there's just one of me, which makes it easy to squeeze me on! Yes, I've always gone to the lounge early, but I've never had to sit there for very long...When you go to get tickets, however, make sure you're ready to go, with all your stuff at your side, including your travel mates, since you may be called really quickly!