No Excursion Cruising

[GUT2407]

We haven't done an excursion in over a decade.

[BigHouseFootball]

This thread is truly eye-opening. While I totally agree that one can enjoy doing as much or as little as he or she chooses on a cruise ship, I'm really surprised to learn how many people prefer not do do tours or activities in port - or even choose to simply stay on the ship.

 

 

Don't flame me...I'm not being judgemental. I'm sincerely just surprised. For me, one of the big benefits to a cruise vacation over a land-based one is getting to visit multiple destinations on the same vacation. I can hike in a rain forest on Monday, snorkel on Tuesday, see a volcano on Wednesday, explore as set of caves on Thursday and visit historic ruins on Friday. I can see black sand beaches and monkeys wearing diapers. I can rejuvenate in natural hot springs and try interesting local cuisine. I can listen to steel drum music and hand-feed iguanas. I'm getting excited just THINKING about it!

 

 

I've been on a dozen cruises - far fewer than many who frequent this site, but I wouldn't consider myself a newbie. I can honestly say the excitement has never wavered.

 

I'm right there with you! When we visit an island my wife and I want to do things we can't do back home. Things that are unique to the island. We usually do one beach day, which is plenty for us, then we are all about finding active activities the rest of the week. We also prefer port intensive itineraries so we get more unique experiences.

[smtcan]

The ship is not the destination for us. We took a few Caribbean cruises some years ago, but since we are not sun worshippers we find the islands repetitious, so recent cruises have been further afield.

 

We enjoy the Mediterranean, Asia and South America. Part of the enjoyment for me is researching the ports and planning what to do. We haven't taken an cruise excursion for many years. Our usual choice is to rent a car, take public transport or join a small group tour.

Sheila

[Rala]

I expect that the more traveled the cruiser, the fewer formal excursions they take. Also age will be a factor for some. We haven't booked an excursion in a few years and many cruises. We do go to favorite beaches, walk around town or port area, perhaps have a lunch somewhere. But much of the time, if we are in the Caribbean which we've done many times, we just enjoy the less crowded ship. If we are in a port we have never been, we will take an excursion.

 

This sounds like us pretty much! We often did excursions in our early days of cruising when it was an island we had never visited before. You can "do it yourself", but I like to get some of the history and lore of a place that is new to me. We spend a lot of time at the beach all summer long, so going to a beach and getting a tan are way down on my list. It just depends what you personally want to get from any port you may visit. Whatever you choose...enjoy!:)

[Havingfun2010]

This thread is truly eye-opening. While I totally agree that one can enjoy doing as much or as little as he or she chooses on a cruise ship, I'm really surprised to learn how many people prefer not do do tours or activities in port - or even choose to simply stay on the ship.

 

 

Don't flame me...I'm not being judgemental. I'm sincerely just surprised. For me, one of the big benefits to a cruise vacation over a land-based one is getting to visit multiple destinations on the same vacation. I can hike in a rain forest on Monday, snorkel on Tuesday, see a volcano on Wednesday, explore as set of caves on Thursday and visit historic ruins on Friday. I can see black sand beaches and monkeys wearing diapers. I can rejuvenate in natural hot springs and try interesting local cuisine. I can listen to steel drum music and hand-feed iguanas. I'm getting excited just THINKING about it!

 

 

I've been on a dozen cruises - far fewer than many who frequent this site, but I wouldn't consider myself a newbie. I can honestly say the excitement has never wavered.

 

On an International Cruise (outside of the Caribbean) we will review the ships excursions, and than review if we can do it on our own. Unlike the Caribbean, most excursions are sightseeing trips with a bus, where you can just take a taxi, and do it on your own for cheaper. Plus you get better flexibility. Sometimes you really need the sight seeing excursion, but I usually find it's not necessary.

 

In the Caribbean, it's different because most of the islands are small, and you really don't have much to do. Excursions are more for entertaining you over seeing historical sights. I love to eat international food, but I find the Caribbean to also be lacking in this area. So I might do an active excursion, but most of the time, we just keep a relaxing day, because it's the Caribbean, and we are just chilling out.

[kateg]

This is so interesting to me. I am the type who believes vacation is for adventure. My husband would really prefer to relax but too bad for him...he married me. The kids have always had to adventure along with us so it's all they know. A cruise is a bit of a compromise for us. They can relax on sea days...but on port days there will be an activity. I don't enjoy cruising enough to back to the same place many times...so we can always find something new and fun to do.

[lbjen]

We're still Caribbean cruisers, if we were in the Med or Hawaii I'd check out every stop, but with young kids, it's really a lot of money for not much return. The only excursion we took on our last cruise was the turtle farm on GC, and that was because it included an island tour and we've always wanted to see Grand Cayman. It's a great opportunity to enjoy the ship, the pools are quiet, you can get a great table at lunch, and we've already paid to be there! Perhaps when we start taking cruises without our kids, we'll do some excursions, but for now it's a quick walk around the port for us.

[breezy270]

On my last three cruises I have not done any excursions or even got off the ship! It is nice to relax by the pool and enjoy the quiet. Our upcoming cruise in September we will get off in St. Thomas for a sunset harbor cruise. I am looking forward to it!

[kalliekae]

If we are going to the Caribbean, we rarely do a ship excursion because we've been cruising since 1995 and have been to the islands many times. We aren't beach people now and just enjoy relaxing on the ship. Hubby loves to golf so he'll find a golf course on at least one island. Cruising to Alaska, the Baltic, and the Mediterranean meant an excursion almost every day. Those cruises are port intensive so we expected to do excursions and enjoyed them all.

[wolfegizmo]

Depends on the itinerary for us also. We recently did an Australian, New Zealand cruise and did an excursion in each of the ports because we had never been there before. We even did an overnight excursion off of the ship and it was fabulous! We have also been to the Caribbean many times so we prefer to just relax and take it easy without excursions at most of those ports.

 

 

 

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[Sancho_proudfoot]

In the early days of our cruising history, we took the ship's excursions. Later, we would either per arrange trips ourselves or grab one of the guys from the quayside - and some of our best trips have been done that way.

 

Nowadays, if we've been to the port before, and nothing really appeals ( we're not snorkellers or shoppers or cookery/ wine class kinds folk), we'll stay on board, and enjoy a quieter ship.

[lowroller]

Count me in as a no excursion type of person. I retired last year and moved from Maryland to Florida. I love sitting on a beach, reading, drinking and people watching. I too have been on many cruises in last 30+ years, most to the Caribbean where there plenty of beautiful beaches. When we cruised Italy, we did make arrangements with private tour companies, money well spent. I wonder if the cruiser's age makes a difference? I'm only 56 and want to enjoy life, for me it is at the beach! Next week our first port is the wonderful city of Nassau that we all love to go. I may get off the Oasis for a few minutes, but since I have never been on the Oasis, I may just take advantage of the lack off passengers on board and spend time exploring the ship.

7 days, just 7 and it's my turn!!!!

[tanyaewa]

We have done about 6 cruises and except for Alaska (which we did 2x) we haven't gone to the same ports. I choose cruises and itinerary based on seeing something new. We usually do an area tour type activity to get a feel for the place and then some fantastic beach time. We live in the mountains so it's a big thrill for us. :) my boys are active explorers so love something physical. We are pretty thrifty though and have been fortunate to do lots of cool adventures so the price point has to be right. We love a good deal.

I wouldn't choose the same itinerary twice - way too many great places to go in the world!!!!

[cookiersmom]

We try to visit different geographies, so we are going to SEE where we go. That being said, nowadays, we rarely use the ship's excursions. We don't like 40 people on a bus type tours, so we will try to arrange smaller groups thru the roll call. These can be customized, and you often see more than on a ship's tour. Because these are "new" places to us, we very rarely would stay on board. Even in the Caribbean, we can always find some new activity to do, such as ATVs or zip lining. One time, on the Pacific Mexican coast my DD and I did go to a resort hotel to chill by their pool and get massages.

[jetta8300]

Just wondering how many people cruise without doing any excursions at all ? We have done some where we only do excursions at some ports, or in places like Bermuda where we have done our own thing, but we normally try and fit in at least one snorkeling excursion per cruise. I ask because we are taking our adult children (19 and 21) and neither of them seem to be all that interested in doing anything "planned" except chilling on the beach.

 

We usually do excursions with All Inclusive resort vacations because we are stuck in the same spot all week. But with a cruise, We usually do 1 excursion per trip, if that. Last cruise to Bermuda we did not do any. We are also not doing any this cruise to Bermuda and Boston.

[Bars7816]

In Alaska the itinerary is the thing, so we did take excursions there. Now after several cruises, the ship is the most important feature. We love the Caribbean for the views, but hate the beach! We skip excursions and just book the best cabin we can afford. Now we're happy to hangout on our balcony and watch the world go by. :cool:

[vacationlover_mn]

We have officially reached the point where we don't feel like we "need" to do an excursion on every island... If there is a place we've already been to, and we don't love the beaches there (like Jamaica), we'll just stay onboard and enjoy the boat's amenities...

[johnjen]

Just wondering how many people cruise without doing any excursions at all ? We have done some where we only do excursions at some ports, or in places like Bermuda where we have done our own thing, but we normally try and fit in at least one snorkeling excursion per cruise. I ask because we are taking our adult children (19 and 21) and neither of them seem to be all that interested in doing anything "planned" except chilling on the beach.

 

With our first med cruise this summer and DW being a history teacher - and we're going to France, Italy, Greece, and Malta....I knew we'd have to book excursions on this one. But on the Caribbean cruises, future ones, I don't seeing us doing much excursions except for the jet skis again.