Shore Excursions-When Do You Pay?

[cormike1]

We are doing a Med cruise next year and the excursions are ready for booking now. Does HAL charge them to your credit card right away or are they added to your onboard account once you sail and you pay for them at the end of your cruise? Thanks everyone.

[shrimpboat123]

If you book excursions in advance, they are charged to your credit card right away. Excursions booked on board are charged to your ship account.

[kelleherdl]

To complete any excursion reservation online with HAL you must pay 100% of the fee and it will be charged immediately to your credit card.

 

Dennis

Edited October 13, 2015 by kelleherdl

[Cruzin with BQ & CQ]

A few years ago we wanted to go on a particular shorex and knowing we would be charged immediately by booking in advance, we waited because we had OBC. Got on board and went to book and it was sold out. So be careful you don't miss out on something you really want to do.

[cormike1]

Thanks so much for those quick answers Glen and Dennis. I guess it is one less thing you have to pay while onboard. I would think it would be a lot more paperwork though as if you cancel your cruise, then they have to credit you any excursions you might have booked. I would think that would create more hassle than if they just charged your onboard account once onboard. Oh well....there must be a good reason for doing it that way. Thanks again.

[summer slope]

We always book and pay ahead of time. One less expense when the cruise begins.

[cormike1]

A few years ago we wanted to go on a particular shorex and knowing we would be charged immediately by booking in advance, we waited because we had OBC. Got on board and went to book and it was sold out. So be careful you don't miss out on something you really want to do.

 

I hear you....it has happened to friends of ours who did not book a tour we had booked ahead of time. Once onboard, they went to book and it was sold out and also more expensive than if they had booked ahead of time. The roll call for our cruise only has a few people on it and no private tours listed yet so I think I will go ahead and book with HAL just to be on the safe side. I would hate to miss out on an excursion we would like to do because it was full. Thanks for your suggestion!

[Alberta Quilter]

I noticed that you're from Canada, too. One thing to be cautious of is the USD pricing of the shorex. So, if you book and pay now, via a Canadian credit card, you'll be charged based on the rate at the time. Then if you later cancel, your shorex credits will be based on the exchange rate at the time of the cancellation which will be higher or lower than the original exchange rate charged. You may gain or you may lose.

 

If you can, book your shorex with a USD credit card and pay that balance out of a USD bank account. One way or another, you'll have to face an exchange rate but it might as well be a little more under your control, if you can stash away USD in your US account when the currency exchange is a little more favourable.

[catl331]

Oh well....there must be a good reason for doing it that way. Thanks again.

I think it's to discourage people from booking a lot of things they "might" like to take, filling them up, and then cancelling on board leaving excursions half full. Same thing with specialty restaurants etc.

[DaveOKC]

I think it's to discourage people from booking a lot of things they "might" like to take, filling them up, and then cancelling on board leaving excursions half full. Same thing with specialty restaurants etc.

 

I am sure you are correct on this, however I wish we could book early and still use our OBC. On my upcoming cruise I received $800 in OBC to supposedly be used for excursions, but I cannot book before we board - sort of defeats the purpose of the promotion for me.

[kelleherdl]

I am sure you are correct on this, however I wish we could book early and still use our OBC. On my upcoming cruise I received $800 in OBC to supposedly be used for excursions, but I cannot book before we board - sort of defeats the purpose of the promotion for me.

 

Our recent Alaska cruise was also under the Anniversary promotion which gave us a lot of OBC that was supposedly excursion linked. Which of course it really was not..... We left the ship with the smallest amount of final charges ever. :) We had no problem in the end spending the 'excursion OBC.' I certainly would have liked to been able to use the credit in advance as we did book some expensive ones that would have been gone had we waited to book onboard.

 

Dennis

[Krazy Kruizers]

We like to pre-book excursions.

All too often we have seen people mad at the excursion desk when they discovered that certain excursions were already sold out.

[patrick65]

We book our excursions online well before the cruise. We do this as we want assurance that we get to do the excursions we want. Holland America does charge our card at the time of booking. I prefer that over having a big bill at the end of the cruise.

[oceanmom]

We always book excursions online so we get what we want. Yes, you do pay ahead for them but when we had to cancel our cruise in May one week before leaving, our credit card was credited for port fees and all pre-paid excursions and Pinnacle reservations within 24 hours. The insurance for the cruise took a lot longer but we eventually got a check for the full amount.

[take us away]

Thanks so much for those quick answers Glen and Dennis. I guess it is one less thing you have to pay while onboard. I would think it would be a lot more paperwork though as if you cancel your cruise, then they have to credit you any excursions you might have booked. I would think that would create more hassle than if they just charged your onboard account once onboard. Oh well....there must be a good reason for doing it that way. Thanks again.

 

Have had to cancel once with pre-booked excursions and beverage package. All prepaid amounts for tours and beverages were credited back to our card within 2 days of the cancellation. It was easier and faster than the cruise fare refund. HAL handled the excursion and beverage refunds and we did not have to do anything. Feel safe to pre-book the tours you really want to see. Beats losing out on something you have wanted for a long time.

[Fouremco]

I am sure you are correct on this, however I wish we could book early and still use our OBC. On my upcoming cruise I received $800 in OBC to supposedly be used for excursions, but I cannot book before we board - sort of defeats the purpose of the promotion for me.

Might it be possible to pre-book, then once aboard, go to the excursion desk to cancel and rebook using the OBC? I'd want to make sure first that they wouldn't put someone who is wait-listed in your place, but as you are really only changing you payment method, I'd think you'd be ok. Has anyone tried this?

[cormike1]

Thanks everyone for your replies and it is good to know that if we did have to cancel, it wouldn't take very long or a lot of hassle to get our money credited back to our credit card. I am certain we won't be cancelling but you never know what tomorrow brings. Now to choose....it is exciting even though we have 11 months yet. Thanks again.

[take us away]

Now to choose....it is exciting even though we have 11 months yet. Thanks again.

 

In some ways, the planning is the best part after the cruise itself!

I usually check several websites including HAL excursions about tours like tripadvisor, the city's tourist website, etc to decide what I want. You can get an idea of HAL excursions on the website but the actual ones for your cruise may differ a bit or there may be added tours once they are released for booking under your account on HAL's website.

[Randyk47]

Might it be possible to pre-book, then once aboard, go to the excursion desk to cancel and rebook using the OBC? I'd want to make sure first that they wouldn't put someone who is wait-listed in your place, but as you are really only changing you payment method, I'd think you'd be ok. Has anyone tried this?

 

As pointed out the problem is that some tours have waitlists and the computer automatically and immediately assigns your cancellation to the next person/couple/group in line. Maybe a cooperative tour desk person could get you through that without the waitlist grabbing your reservation but be careful computers aren't so understanding. :)

[Gerd]

.

 

Hello all

 

the discussed item is different handled in Europe / Germany.

 

As you can see from my signature, soon I do go on a grand world voyage – with a German (still independent) cruise company.

 

For Phoenix, the shore excursions only appears on the Internet Server around two month ahead of the cruise.

And so was it also for my upcoming cruise / for which I did book the long list of shorex just last week-end.:)

 

But now the difference to your discussion;

 

They send you indeed a confirmation of all your online booking => but they do you charge only once you are on the vessel…..!

Respectively some days ahead of it really will happen –>and logically only to your onboard account.

 

The later-on in due time cancelling, changing, or any adding is simply without any fee !!:)

 

 

 

Happy cruising

 

G E R D