Searching for shore excursion advice

[bromelake]

Hello to you all

My wife and will be doing 4 Holland cruises starting with Rome to FLL on Nov21,then on the Prinsendam Dec18,FLL to FLL,then the same ship for the Grand South America voyage.And we finish with Mar 13 FLL to FLL.

I have been looking on the internet for companies that are local and won't break the bank with some success.Can you suggest some that you have used?Has anybody used Viator?

Thanks

[Vict0riann]

We do like Tours by Locals. You have to pay ahead of time by credit card or Pay Pal, but I don't mind using a cc as they're in Vancouver (and they offer insurance). That said, you should check out the Ports of Call forums on Cruise Critic, and also your roll calls for the different segments of your cruises. There may be shore excursions organized by others that you would like to join.

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

Edited August 5, 2014 by Vict0riann

[cle1]

We use Trip Advisor a lot..Carol:)

[kazu]

I use CC ports boards and tripadvisor to feel out a few companies along with my own research. How you are responded to by email is often a good indicator as to how good they will be - at least most times :)

 

I am leery of Viator. I used them once and it was a very poor tour. They are in essence a middle man so you can have a good one or a not so good one.

 

I prefer to book directly with the private operator. More flexibility and control on numbers.

[Cruzin Terri]

Hello to you all

My wife and will be doing 4 Holland cruises starting with Rome to FLL on Nov21,then on the Prinsendam Dec18,FLL to FLL,then the same ship for the Grand South America voyage.And we finish with Mar 13 FLL to FLL.

I have been looking on the internet for companies that are local and won't break the bank with some success.Can you suggest some that you have used?Has anybody used Viator?

Thanks

 

Come on over to the roll call for the Prinsendam Grand South America. There are many tours still open there that the participants have set up. We'll be happy to have you join us.

 

Here's the link: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1940297

 

Looking forward to seeing you over there.

Terri

[Cruzin Terri]

I am using Viator for two tours in Rome prior to my Mediterranean Cruise in two weeks. I have never used them before and hope they are good. One is for the Borghese Gallery and the other is for the Papal Audience to get good seats.

They are not inexpensive but felt they were worth for what we wanted.

Terri

[RMLincoln]

I have been happy with viator. We'll be with you on Maasdam Rome to fll... check out the roll call. m--

[Cruzin Terri]

I have been happy with viator. We'll be with you on Maasdam Rome to fll... check out the roll call. m--

 

I'm glad to hear that you were happy with Viator. This is the first time we are using them. While most of the reviews are good, I was still a bit apprehensive.

Glad to see another good review.

Terri

[take us away]

We like Trip Advisor the best as you can also link thru that site to the specific tour web site and book directly with the tour group. Also like the customer review section. We used this approach for some tours when we did the Gr So America then stayed on for the Gr Med on the Prinsedam last year; t worked well in every port we used this system and did not break the bank. We preferred to not prepay the tour which was okay with many - but it did necessitate bringing more cash. Also a big fan of the Hop On Hop Off buses and used them whenever we were in a port new to us that had these. The recorded information provided on board was as good if not better than a tour based on comparisons with table mates, the cost was much less, and we could hop off whenever we felt the need, etc

[fla742]

Hello to you all

My wife and will be doing 4 Holland cruises starting with Rome to FLL on Nov21,then on the Prinsendam Dec18,FLL to FLL,then the same ship for the Grand South America voyage.And we finish with Mar 13 FLL to FLL.

I have been looking on the internet for companies that are local and won't break the bank with some success.Can you suggest some that you have used?Has anybody used Viator?

Thanks

 

We have used Viator for several tours and have been extremely happy with them. The one tour that was a problem they promptly gave us a refund. I've also found that is some cases they are cheaper than booking directly with the tour company or venue