Excursions...lots of cancellations...anyone else getting emails?

[mouse84]

We got an email last week that our Eco Hike in St Thomas was cancelled as well. They did refund the amount. We went ahead and booked something else. Hopefully our other excursion is "safe".

[deedeetoo]

Reading this makes me think that you can't trust booking an excursion with the ship. Not only are they more expensive, but they may cancel on you without notice or explanation. I think on our next cruise I will not plan on any ship excursions.

[Maryscooking]

Maybe the cruise lines gets a discount per passenger and jack up the price thus increasing their profit margin even more.

 

Now that I can actually believe.

[traceyleigh15]

The rep told me that the tour operator was the one who canceled my excursion. I believe that to be a big fat lie. However, I do not blame the rep, who I'm sure was given incorrect information. He did try to suggest booking another excursion, and like others here, I politely declined. At this point, I may just get off the ship in Falmouth, wander around the port area for 10 minutes and get back on the ship :rolleyes: Nothing else really appeals to me in the excursion choices.

 

That's exactly how I am feeling unless someone can't advise me of an exciting adventure I may miss in Falmouth (I really don't want to spend an hour on the bus)

[joyride21]

We hadn't booked that one yet, but my daughter was really looking forward to it -- she adores carousels. I'm hoping it gets put back. If anyone sees a reputable private tour that offers that one, please let me know.

 

I found one company that offers it, but only on Thursdays, and we will be there on a Monday. We will likely just get a cab and do it on our own.

[petesweet]

I did share my experience with RCL on the first page.

 

I did call....THREE times. The first time, the man I spoke to barely spoke english. He had no idea what I was trying to tell him and he just kept repeating the cancelled excursion number. I thanked him, told him he didn't answer any of my questions and hung up.

 

The second and third time I called (same day), the reps had no idea why the excursions were cancelled and just tried to get me to purchase another to take its place, which I politely declined.

 

I was very frustrated because I wasted 40 minutes of my time and learned absolutely nothing more than what was written in the email, which was basically the runaround with no helpful information.

 

But did you go to CORPORATE for an explanation? I'm not defending Royal, because I always take private excursions. It just seems logical to do that.

Happy sails.

Kathy

[Jem2014]

2 of our excursions got cancelled as well, very disappointing, they need to keep on top of what they offer, now i'm not sure what if anything, to book.....

[Ocean Boy]

The hotel I stayed at fired the janitor and replaced him with someone else. They didn't

notify me? Why I should I have to call to find out why?!?

 

That was sarcasm for the sarcasm impaired.

 

The "bean counters" determined that Excursion X did not bring in enough income, brought in too many complaints, or simply didn't fill enough seats to make it worthwhile to keep promoting it. Plain and simple.

 

If the made the profit, they'd still be listed.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

I didn't say that anyone had to call anyone. My reply was to someone commenting on all the speculation. What does anyone expect to happen when countless excursions are cancelled with no explanation? But I am glad to see that you have the inside scoop as to RCI's reasons for cancelling. ;) You actually believe that RCI has been loosing money on all of these cancelled excursions?

 

And I do hope you realize how senseless your janitor example was. And I intended no sarcasm there.

Edited October 1, 2013 by Ocean Boy

[hubb2000]

When I called, they explained that many of the combined tours are being discontinued. Wonder if its a timing issue as well? I know our combined trip last year came back an hour and a half later than scheduled, and I still felt like we were being rushed back.

 

Sounds very reasonable that it's contract time agian and it didn't go well. Will be interesting to see if they are renegotiated prior to our Feb sailing and add some more excursions back on.

 

Anyone know if these tours are being canceled on other lines as well??

[Sunny AZ Girl]

There is an excursion I am planning to book in a while on our May cruise. I have been keeping my eye on it since all of this started. It's still there. I haven't gone back to take a real careful look at all the cancellations but right now they seem to be more of the "adventure" type - ziplines, etc. The one I'm looking at is a cuisine tour. Is there a pattern here?

[mouse84]

And our 2nd one just got canceled too. It was the Historic Philipsburg by Bicycle in St. Marteen. Guess we'll try to find something else.

[andreloop]

I tried to contact a tour vendor for some insight as to what happened. and here is the reply I got in an email.

Thank you for contacting CHUKKA, where it's always time to play.

We suggest to all cruise guests to directly contact the cruise lines to book, as they have available spaces at specific times.

They are our trusted partners and will ensure that you have the best customer experience on or off the ship.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if there are any questions about a CHUKKA experience, or if you need help choosing the right tour.

Regards,

Of course, this is like getting no answer at all!

[Pebbles468]

But did you go to CORPORATE for an explanation? I'm not defending Royal, because I always take private excursions. It just seems logical to do that.

Happy sails.

Kathy

 

 

I don't think it's logical to contact RCCL CORPORATE offices right off the bat. It was cancelled through her booking, therefore, the first point of contact should be to customer service regarding her booking. In any case, no matter who was contacted, she took appropriate measures to find out more information regarding her cancelled excursion.

 

It's unfortunate they cannot provide more detailed information to all the people who have had excursions cancelled.

[Ocean Boy]

There is an excursion I am planning to book in a while on our May cruise. I have been keeping my eye on it since all of this started. It's still there. I haven't gone back to take a real careful look at all the cancellations but right now they seem to be more of the "adventure" type - ziplines, etc. The one I'm looking at is a cuisine tour. Is there a pattern here?

 

One person mentioned that their excursion on Grand Cayman to the Turtle Farm was cancelled. There is nothing "adventure type" about that excursion.

[kteachcruiser52]

Our tour was not a combined tour as we were only going river tubing. The place we were going was about a 20 minute ride from the port. So both the explanation of a combined tour and the time factor could not be the reason for our cancellation. I feel it has something to do with their (RCL) bottom line.

[murcor]

I didnt see this thread earlier when I called RCL about my excursion that wasnt listed on my reservation anymore.

 

I was told it was a mass cancellation and an email went out Sept 26th at 4:03pm. Reason unknown

 

Very disappointed :(

 

Isla Pasion by Twister Jan 9th, 2014

(currently not offered privately only by cruise lines)

 

** I then went online to look at the excursions and noticed new ones added and old ones gone

Edited October 2, 2013 by murcor
additional information added

[pe4all]

Our tour was not a combined tour as we were only going river tubing. The place we were going was about a 20 minute ride from the port. So both the explanation of a combined tour and the time factor could not be the reason for our cancellation. I feel it has something to do with their (RCL) bottom line.

After reading this thread this morning I went onto my booking, only to discover my tubing excursion was no longer there. I had received no email. I called RCCL to double check if it was indeed cancelled, and it was. I told them I had received no email, and they said that MANY excursions were being cancelled, but gave no reason why. They said I would be getting a refund to my credit card within a week. This afternoon I went to my banking website, and the refund was already there. If I hadn't seen this thread I would never had thought to check my reservation. I have no desire to travel to Ochos Rios for a tubing excursion, and will have to start searching for a replacement. :(

[motherof]

I found one company that offers it, but only on Thursdays, and we will be there on a Monday. We will likely just get a cab and do it on our own.

(Carousal tour on St Marteen) Please post your experience. Our cruise isn't until February, and I'd love to know how long the ride is, and if it is worth it. Thanks!

[reney313]

Many of the excursion operators are either owned by the same company or they utilize a common "negotiator". I wonder if that company or those few companies represent these operators. If I had to guess, I would agree it is a renegotiation and Royal wanted them to lower their price (and royal would continue charging the same, therefore making more $$) OR the operators wanted to raise their prices to match what they charge independents (which Royal could not raise enough to make it worth it). Of course, there could be some one offs that they did not want to continue with on the contract because of complaints, etc. I don't think the latter is the case for all of these cancellations though.

 

Now I'm going off to look at my January excursions!

[Snooksi]

But did you go to CORPORATE for an explanation? I'm not defending Royal, because I always take private excursions. It just seems logical to do that.

 

Happy sails.

 

Kathy

 

Actually, I called the phone number that was listed in the email. The email stated, "If you have any further questions regarding this cancellation, call 800-000-0000". The number I dialed even went so far as to say, "For Excursions press 2". It certainly didn't say "If our Rep couldn't speak English or any other Reps gave you worthless information, please press 6 for our Corporate Offices". So no, I didn't think to call Corporate and don't even know where to find that number.

 

I just wanted the excursion I signed up and paid for. They cancelled and I was curious as to why. I didn't want to go with a private company if the itinerary had changed or the time we arrived/left port had changed. Those reasons were listed in the email as potential reasons for the cancellation. That's it. That's all I wanted to know but you can't even get the simplest of answers or information from RCL.

 

It doesn't matter. I booked the same excursion with a private company and we will have a great time. We'll just buy our own lunch, since it is no longer included with the private excursion. I just hope we are offered an opportunity to eat as that wasn't listed with the new tour company.

 

I just won't book excursions via RCL anymore since they have proven to be unreliable in whether the excursions they list as available will even exist at the time of sailing and RCL's lack of ability to inform their customers of pertinent information.

Edited October 2, 2013 by Snooksi

[traceyleigh15]

Our tour was not a combined tour as we were only going river tubing. The place we were going was about a 20 minute ride from the port. So both the explanation of a combined tour and the time factor could not be the reason for our cancellation. I feel it has something to do with their (RCL) bottom line.

 

Same with us mad I still haven't received an email it has just been removed from my booking :(

[Beachcampin]

We've had similar experiences from many on this board. Our excursion, the turtle farm was canceled. however, I looked on the excursion page for our cruise and its still available, however for $15 more per person.

 

So, I think that Royal lied to me in their email when they said that the cruise operator canceled the cruise.

 

I called Royal and after some escalations, was told that the tour operator raised the price and that is their right and so Royal was forced to cancel the cruise.

 

I'm sorry but I call BS. Royal has significant market power to force tour operators to honor the pricing for people who have already purchased and paid for an excursion, (if they cared about customer service that is). Given that this has happened over multiple islands with multiple different types of excursions, I can draw no other conclusion than Royal has raised their cut, or commission, or whatever you want to call it forcing the tour operators to raise their price.

 

Since the tour operators are forced by Royal to raise the price, then Royal can claim white hands and say that it's not their fault the excursions are being canceled, it's all the tour operators fault. Your full of it RCI. I'm not buying it and you shouldn't be selling it. I'll spend my money elsewhere on private tours and reduce your cut as much as possible then.

[andreloop]

I totally agree with your bottom line that this is due to Royal's greed, but IMO, it's even a bit worse; that the tour operators had nothing to do with it, just a case of Corporate greed.

Remember, the cruiseline is booking and billing the excursions, not coming from the operators. I find credence in this theory in that the tour operator I spoke with wouldn't answer whether or not I could do their excursion on my own, only repeating to contact the cruise offices.

I'll be looking to see if they put my cancelation back on the offering at a higher price!:mad:

[Maybaybie10]

Leaving Sunday on Western AOS and my brother got an email that Deep Sea Fishing was canceled. My Mom and I never got anything. Today he called me to say he got an Email that our dolphin excursion was also canceled and my Mom and I also didn't get an email (booked separately). These were both in Cozumel. I wonder what the heck is going on...

[dawnaroodoo]

Going on the Oasis Thanksgiving week. We had two excursions booked for Cozumel (Snuba and Deep Sea Fishing); both canceled. Our friends received an email from RCI but we didn't :(