Oceania Tour Packages

[nyfeds]

I've been looking at some of the tour options for our May 2015 cruise, Coasts and Cultures. I see that there are tour packages - Unlimited Passport Collection and Your World Collection. I'd appreciate insight into these tour packages and whether or not it's worth it to do one or the other, or simply purchase any tours we're interested in individually. Our preference is to take private tours, which I am going to try and put together on my own. However, I'd appreciate input from those who have taken Oceania's tours. This is our first Oceania cruise and I'd welcome hearing from seasoned Oceania cruisers. Thanks!

 

Happy New Year!

[Offroad911]

I've been looking at some of the tour options for our May 2015 cruise, Coasts and Cultures. I see that there are tour packages - Unlimited Passport Collection and Your World Collection. I'd appreciate insight into these tour packages and whether or not it's worth it to do one or the other, or simply purchase any tours we're interested in individually. Our preference is to take private tours, which I am going to try and put together on my own. However, I'd appreciate input from those who have taken Oceania's tours. This is our first Oceania cruise and I'd welcome hearing from seasoned Oceania cruisers. Thanks!

 

Happy New Year!

 

I am confident you will hear from other Oceania regulars that will agree, the Oceania excursions and tours are grossly over priced, significantly higher that comparable cruise line offerings. Your best value is private tours.

[LHT28]

To do the packages you have to weight out the cost VS private tours & your comfort level.

if you take several tours with O the prices drop on one of the packages .. the other one you pay 1 price & can take a specific number of tours

 

We have not taken an O cruise since the packages were instituted but we haved prefered private tours

That said we have done a few O tours & they have been very good but the prices have risen dramatically in the past yr or so

 

If you are more independant traveller I would DIY ..if you like the comfort of knowing you will be on a tour provided by the cruise line carefully look at the packages

Read the fine print

Maybe look at the tours offered on the similar cruise this year

 

JMO

 

Lyn

[Noxequifans]

We have taken quite a number of O excursions and were satisfied with the quality. The benefits of these excursions are they are easy to book, the operators have proper insurance, and they can be cancelled easily on the ship if necessary (perhaps up to a day or so before as we once found necessary).

 

On price, I am sure many cruisers generally find private tours less costly. But this is not true in all cases ... depending on the vendor, number of people, type of vehicle, and length of excursion. Also, is the driver the guide or is there an additional guide. In short, no scientific answer.

[nyfeds]

Thanks for the responses to my inquiry. We will weigh all options.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Another issue is that because Oceania charges so much for their tours, they don't get a good take-up rate -- and then they cancel the tours for lack of interest. If you have just booked individual tours, you can scramble for an alternative way to do the same shore itinerary -- but if you have booked one of these packages, you're pretty much locked in.

 

This is one area that I don't think either Oceania or Regent handles well: Oceania overprices and therefore doesn't have enough excursion passengers; Regent makes them "free" and therefore has too many.

[rallydave]

Another issue is that because Oceania charges so much for their tours, they don't get a good take-up rate -- and then they cancel the tours for lack of interest. If you have just booked individual tours, you can scramble for an alternative way to do the same shore itinerary -- but if you have booked one of these packages, you're pretty much locked in.

 

This is one area that I don't think either Oceania or Regent handles well: Oceania overprices and therefore doesn't have enough excursion passengers; Regent makes them "free" and therefore has too many.

 

Don't forget, excursions are a huge profit center for both Oceania and Regent. O as they charge for all of them and R as they up the cruise fare to more than cover the free ones and charge excessively for the extra cost excursions. Also, the son of the man in charge is VP of the excursions dept and appears he can do no wrong from the companies POV and is considered by many to be inept and uncaring by many of the customers.

 

Seems PCH has their bases covered whether excursions are included or not.