Excursions

[GemmaWeb]

Looking for a bit of advice as we are first time cruisers. Is it just as easy getting of at ports and seen what u fancy doing there and then or is it advisable to book excursions on the boat? Help

 

 

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[GUT2407]

Looking for a bit of advice as we are first time cruisers. Is it just as easy getting of at ports and seen what u fancy doing there and then or is it advisable to book excursions on the boat? Help

 

 

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You really have three choices

 

 

1. Book a shore tour through the ship ( benefit if the tour is late back they will either wait, or get you to the next port)

 

2. Book a private tour, either before you depart, with someone on your roll call, or more often than not when you get off in port (benefit costs less as a rule, can be more personalised usually less people on the tour).

 

3. Do your own thing, wander around a new town, hire a car and explore a bit further afield.

 

Which is best depends on a few things....

 

The port and personal preference mainly.

[GUT2407]

Or of course spend the day on the ship while there are less people on board.

[onespots]

You have not provided your itinerary & time in port. This can influence your decisions about taking an excursion. Personally we choose port intensive itineraries & private tours. Some we book thru the roll call on ship & others privately. The section/forum of ports of call on CC will assist you in making decisions. We also like to follow up about certain vendors on Trip Advisor to get the most current information.

 

Typically private tours are cheaper than excursions thru the ship. Ship excursions are usually large buses with 35-40 of your newest friends travelling together. Private tours for the most part have 4 couples max, & several with one other couple. Private tours are usually more in-depth, leave before the cruise ship tours, & can go places the large buses cannot.

 

Do it yourself tours at the port can be easy. Vendors at the docks offer all kinds tours. ( be careful & know all your costs before hand ) Many negotiate with a taxi drive for a tour. If your first language is English make sure your driver is fluent & all costs are explained up front. Also tell the driver the exact time you want to return to the port. Allow yourself at a minimum one hour before sailing.

 

Finally be adventurous & have fun. You will gain much knowledge & enjoy new experiences.

 

Happy Travels, John

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

It really depends on your itinerary.

Some ports have vendors right where the ships dock while others have nothing.

Please give us your itinerary.

[Flatbush Flyer]

Looking for a bit of advice as we are first time cruisers. Is it just as easy getting of at ports and seen what u fancy doing there and then or is it advisable to book excursions on the boat? Help

 

 

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Really depends on where you're going and what you want to accomplish.

 

For example, in Italy, true guides are licensed (and essential for sites like the Vatican museum if you want depth in the historical back story or even just quicker entry) and the best of them (located through significant research) may be booked many months in advance. Tickets go very fast and should be purchased months in advance as well.

In a tropical place like Bora Bora, the best tours and guides are booked months in advance and late comers are left with what few (if any) spots are available in tours offered by the ship (often crowded and high priced) OR faced with choosing a possibly unqualified and/or unscrupulous "guide" hawking his wares on the pier.

Like anything else that is important to you and costs money, DO THE RESEARCH starting with cross-referencing sources like Trip Advisor, Yelp, travel archives of cosmopolitan newspapers like the NYT, etc, as well as web forums like this one (check "Ports of Call" and your cruise's "Roll Call").

[GemmaWeb]

Thanks everyone! My itinerary is Marseilles- 8am 5pm. Livorno- 7am 7pm. Rome-7am 8pm Naples 7am 7pm Crete 8am 6pm Rhodes 8am 5pm. Izmir 8am 5pm and last stop Athens. I am really looking for to Naples as I have heard the amalfi coast and Capri is a must! Again my patner would love to hire a little boat for the day to do this ourself but with never visiting here before we are not sure what it expect or how easy this would be! Thanks again

 

 

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Edited May 7, 2016 by GemmaWeb

[cb at sea]

A guidebook is VERY helpful if you are going to do things on your own...cheaper, too, in most cases! Read up on your ports, and you'll find out about attractions AND transportation...shopping, food/drink, safety, etc...

[Flatbush Flyer]

Thanks everyone! My itinerary is Marseilles- 8am 5pm. Livorno- 7am 7pm. Rome-7am 8pm Naples 7am 7pm Crete 8am 6pm Rhodes 8am 5pm. Izmir 8am 5pm and last stop Athens. I am really looking for to Naples as I have heard the amalfi coast and Capri is a must! Again my patner would love to hire a little boat for the day to do this ourself but with never visiting here before we are not sure what it expect or how easy this would be! Thanks again

 

 

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Everybody wants to "hire a little boat" at Amalfi/Positano.

 

That said, look at tour providers like "The Roman Guy" (does more than just Rome) where you may be able to score a driver who is also a licensed guide or get one of each. In Italy, guides must be licensed to enter and lecture at antiquities/museums/etc. Many tours you will see are car drivers only!!!

 

Unless you are too far along in the process, you may want to reconsider your itinerary and start or end at Civitavecchia since Rome really requires a few days to even just begin appreciating it. Many good hotels (book direct a year ahead for high season) will connect you with terrific driver/guide pairs.

For Livorno, it takes time to get to Florence. For these kind of great travel distances inland, you may want to consider the ship tour because of "on time return" guarantees.

 

A first step in your planning is to get Rick Steves' Guide to Mediterranean Cruise Ports. A lot of great tips and other info including self guided tours. One word of caution though: "do it yourself" is not as easy as it used to be. Due to terrorism threats, ultra-long security lines for those folks not in guided groups are now the norm at spots like the Colosseum.

 

Finally, once you've done the basic Med cruise, consider a future land trip to Sicily or a circumnavigation of the island on one of the boutique small ships that make that trip. You will not be disappointed!!!

Edited May 7, 2016 by Flatbush Flyer

[OCruisers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

Don't totally dismissed taking an excursion offered by the ship especially if it is your first time in a port. :)

[CowPrincess]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

Don't totally dismissed taking an excursion offered by the ship especially if it is your first time in a port. :)

 

I agree, and I'm generally anti-ship-excursions :)

[CPT Trips]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

Don't totally dismissed taking an excursion offered by the ship especially if it is your first time in a port. :)

 

To me, distance from the port to the place I want to see is a bigger consideration than whether I have been there before.

 

OP definitely should get on the roll call; folks may well be setting up private excursions. Also reputable guide are frequently mentioned over on the ports of call boards.

[Shawninrye]

2. Book a private tour, either before you depart, with someone on your roll call, or more often than not when you get off in port (benefit costs less as a rule, can be more personalised usually less people on the tour).

 

Hi I have a quick piggyback question. Tour with someone on your roll call?

Is that common? Does that mean I would post to the people in my roll call to see if anyone wants to share in expenses nd/or experiences.

I want to do that but didn't know if It was acceptable.

There are very few people in our roll call for a Western Caribbean 2017 January cruise.

I have a private driver booked but expensive lol!

[MCC retired]

For a First Time cruiser with those ports , I would go for the ship excursions unless you have done enough research to attempt to do

any of them on your own . Roll Call may have some experienced cruisers suggestions for independent tours .

Remember , if a ship excursion has a problem returning , they know where you are .

[OCruisers]

Thanks "CowPrincess" and "MCC" for agreeing that taking an excursion offered thru the ship can sometimes be best all considered.

We have been cruising for ages and still sometimes rather take the ship's shore excursions. :)

They pick us up from the ship - take us to have see/have fun - return us to the ship - and never "miss the boat". All with no worries or planning on our part. :D

LuLu

[GemmaWeb]

Thanks for the great advice everyone! As first time cruisers it's been really helpful [emoji4]

 

 

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[Nic6318]

2. Book a private tour, either before you depart, with someone on your roll call, or more often than not when you get off in port (benefit costs less as a rule, can be more personalised usually less people on the tour).

 

Hi I have a quick piggyback question. Tour with someone on your roll call?

Is that common? Does that mean I would post to the people in my roll call to see if anyone wants to share in expenses nd/or experiences.

I want to do that but didn't know if It was acceptable.

There are very few people in our roll call for a Western Caribbean 2017 January cruise.

I have a private driver booked but expensive lol!

 

Hi Shawninrye

 

Yes it is acceptable to do in your roll call. Very often people might get discount depending on the number of people so it can lower the per person cost.

 

There may be more interest in your roll call as the cruise gets closer.

 

The only question for some is if there is an advance payment required. It does happen that people on roll calls will suggest interest but sometimes will not follow through. So if a payment of sort is required in advance more of a commitment will be required with some trust involved. Same would be the case if you are dependent on a certain number of people and they were a no show.

 

hope this helps

 

have a great cruise

 

 

Also for the original OP...GemmaWeb

 

Be sure to check out the "port of calls" threads on this site. I am sure you will find many ideas for each of your stops.

 

have a great cruise

[Shawninrye]

Hi Shawninrye

 

 

The only question for some is if there is an advance payment required. It does happen that people on roll calls will suggest interest but sometimes will not follow through. So if a payment of sort is required in advance more of a commitment will be required with some trust involved. Same would be the case if you are dependent on a certain number of people and they were a no show.

 

hope this helps

 

have a great cruise.

 

have a great cruise

 

Great advice. It would not have occurred to me about people not following through. Lol now that I think about it it occurs in everyday life all the time. Cruise ships will be no different!

I did decide if I go that route that I do a phone "interview". After engaging in Internet dating I learned there can be a wide gap between what is written and what comes out of someone's mouth!

Thanks again.

[Flatbush Flyer]

Great advice. It would not have occurred to me about people not following through. Lol now that I think about it it occurs in everyday life all the time. Cruise ships will be no different!

 

I did decide if I go that route that I do a phone "interview". After engaging in Internet dating I learned there can be a wide gap between what is written and what comes out of someone's mouth!

 

Thanks again.

 

 

There are plenty of good tour outfits that will give you the small group price and let each person(s) deposit with PayPal. BTW, if deposits are required, it is always best to use PayPal as opposed to providing your credit card info to someone who may be a complete stranger.

[lenquixote66]

We always book shore excursions with the ship.On our first cruise we went on our own and nearly missed the ship.We had to hitch hike and that was kind of scary.