Shore Excursion through ship or on your own??

[rjrice1]

We are cruising on Caribbean Princess for a Panama cruise. We always do private shore excursions, but wondering in we should do it with Princess for some of them.

Which one's would you do only with "Princess?"

[Blue and Green]

I look at Princess excursions if there is a concern about timing. On our upcoming British Isles cruise we are using Princess for an excursion to Paris that involves a long drive from port to city and back. I felt there were too many variables that could make a tour "late" in this case and decided to go with Princess for the security of knowing we will get back to the ship on time.

Another reason might be if there were concerns about safety/security in the port. In that case, I would definitely stay with the ship's excursion.

That said, when using a private excursion I would want to be certain that we don't have to pay for an excursion if for some reason the ship does not make it into port (weather-related or other change of itinerary). Using CC and Trip Advisor should give you a sense of the company's reputation.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

I look at Princess excursions if there is a concern about timing. On our upcoming British Isles cruise we are using Princess for an excursion to Paris that involves a long drive from port to city and back. I felt there were too many variables that could make a tour "late" in this case and decided to go with Princess for the security of knowing we will get back to the ship on time.

Another reason might be if there were concerns about safety/security in the port. In that case, I would definitely stay with the ship's excursion.

That said, when using a private excursion I would want to be certain that we don't have to pay for an excursion if for some reason the ship does not make it into port (weather-related or other change of itinerary). Using CC and Trip Advisor should give you a sense of the company's reputation.

 

Pretty much my thinking. The further from the port the more likely I am to use the ship-based excursions (regardless of line). Or if I do Alaska again and want to do one that involves float planes or helicopters because of fog/weather possibilities - only ship-based.

 

If I use an outside company I check their reviews and get IN WRITING from them confirmation that IF they are delayed and I miss the ship they WILL handle the expenses of getting me to the next port. If all they want to give is "We will make sure you are to your ship on time" I book elsewhere. Because things CAN happen.

[BillB48]

At Panama, your only choice is a ship's excursion. When the ship reaches Gatun Lake you must be on a ship's excursion to go ashore. Any of the other stops you are free to tour on your own.

[Loonbeam]

Similar to above here as well...

 

If the port visit is very short (like Aruba) or the distance is long, I will consider ship tours. The other reason (like an upcoming short cruise to Bermuda) is that I simply don't want to spend the time researching vendors and arranging shares, etc.

 

Absent those two I will always go private, they tend to be cheaper and better.

 

(Oh and as noted, for excursions departing when in the Canal, Princess is your only option (typically offered - boat trip to other side of locks (partial transit only), embera indians, panama city...

[ggprincess2004]

We use Princess shore excursions when they do a tour we want, and also limit ourselves to the choices Princess offers in the last port before the disembarkation port, or any port call followed by quite a few sea days, as we want a guarantee of returning to the ship. In addition, if a port is known for traffic issues which could cause a problem, Princess tour only. Wilderness excursions - Princess only, as we want to get back to the ship before it sails or make any failure to do so their problem, not ours.

 

People assume that the Princess tours are more expensive, this is not always the case. When we use a private tour vendor we do a whole lot of research and check their reputation carefully. If they are offering exactly what we want, great. In addition, for private tours, we like to make sure we are in a small group of fellow passengers from the same ship. And, we make sure that if the ship doesn't make port for any reason, we are refunded any deposit and not charged for the excursion. (We know that leaves the operator without income that day potentially, but it also leaves us without the tour. Not all private operators will agree to these terms, so double check that with them.)

 

And I will do all the homework and make the effort to find a reputable private tour operator when there is something in or near a port that I am highly interested in, and want the best possible experience, longest time possible, more in-depth opportunity - as in, if it is one of leading reasons for choosing that itinerary.

 

That being said, Princess usually has good to excellent tours, and we have had some great experiences on Princess tours. We also are able to relax completely when on tour, since we are not responsible for the business transaction, and don't have to watch the clock in terms of getting back to the ship - the tour guides worry about that and we respect the time we are to be back to the tour vehicle to go to the next stop or back to the ship.

[NavyVeteran]

I am a veteran and a shareholder in Carnival Corporation, and I always book with a Future Cruise Deposits. On some cruises, I have enough onboard credit to book several Princess excursions.:) I haven't yet found a private tour operator who would let me pay with onboard credit.:(

[Tucker in Texas]

At Panama, your only choice is a ship's excursion. When the ship reaches Gatun Lake you must be on a ship's excursion to go ashore. Any of the other stops you are free to tour on your own.

 

We did that tour because it was the only game in town but with another line. It was a disaster. We were late getting to the lake and once there had to take a launch to shore. We then boarded a bus to take us to a museum near a lock we had just passed. The guide could barely speak English. We were given about an hour which wasn't enough to see the movie and view the museum and told to be back at the bus--no guide. Next we were put on a bus to go back to the ship which had moved on to Colon, the port. Only by now, it was dark so the tour of Panama City was a waste as you couldn't see anything.

 

So my advice is that if the ship's excursion is going to start in the afternoon, pass it up. You can't help if the bus is delayed getting to Gatun Lake and, if it is, the domino effect kicks in.

[easyboy]

Good points ggprincess2004! Thanks.

 

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[Colo Cruiser]

We did that tour because it was the only game in town but with another line. It was a disaster. We were late getting to the lake and once there had to take a launch to shore. We then boarded a bus to take us to a museum near a lock we had just passed. The guide could barely speak English. We were given about an hour which wasn't enough to see the movie and view the museum and told to be back at the bus--no guide. Next we were put on a bus to go back to the ship which had moved on to Colon, the port. Only by now, it was dark so the tour of Panama City was a waste as you couldn't see anything.

 

So my advice is that if the ship's excursion is going to start in the afternoon, pass it up. You can't help if the bus is delayed getting to Gatun Lake and, if it is, the domino effect kicks in.

 

 

There is a tour of Panama City on the Gatun Lake excursion?

We did not have that on ours. :confused:

[BillB48]

 

So my advice is that if the ship's excursion is going to start in the afternoon, pass it up. You can't help if the bus is delayed getting to Gatun Lake and, if it is, the domino effect kicks in.

 

T in TX... sounds like you got the short straw, doesn't sound like one of the better tours! I think for the most part the majority of the shore excursions on the partial transits are a reasonably good value and because of the peculiarities of the Canal stop ship's tours it is the only option.

 

Normally the ship will reach the disembarking point (Gatun Lake Anchorage) somewhere between 9 and 10AM, providing enough time for an 8 hour excursion. However the Caribbean Princess will be using the new locks and that might provide a little unknown in regards to the start time of the excursions, since this will somewhat a slightly different procedure.

[Loonbeam]

There was one option on our Partial years ago (Highlights of Panama or something like that). It had a short boat ride on Gatun lake, then you went to the visitors center for the locks and something in the city. We didn't do it, so can't speak to specifics, but it did exist.

 

There is a tour of Panama City on the Gatun Lake excursion?

We did not have that on ours. :confused:

[wishfulone]

We are cruising on Caribbean Princess for a Panama cruise. We always do private shore excursions, but wondering in we should do it with Princess for some of them.

Which one's would you do only with "Princess?"

We like to explore on our own where we can and enjoy the freedom of Hop on Hop Off buses if available. If there are long distances or time constraints then we choose a ship's excursion. They're not always wonderful but they do give you a degree of security.

 

You haven't said what ports you'll be visiting but if you're stopping at San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua the ship offers an all day excursion to Granada and Masaya volcano. It's one of the best ship's excursions we've ever done and worth every penny. We also did a very thorough and enjoyable ship's tour in Cartegena, Colombia. Have a great cruise.

 

Added: I think the Gatun Lake tour is only available on a partial transit. It wasn't offered on our full transit.

Edited May 13, 2017 by wishfulone

[LeeW]

Taking a tour from Cozumel to the mainland independently can be risky. This has 40 minute ferry rides in an often rough area and an hour or more by bus once you get there.

 

As others have said, if you are doing a partial Canal transit you can only book through Princess. We enjoyed the rest of the transit on a smaller boat (ask the pilot about the dent in the Miraflores Lock) but it is a long day. While you are out the ship goes back down through Gatun Locks and docks in Colon. As others have pointed out the transit can be delayed and you end up waiting for the ship (although we never have).

 

Aruba stops these days are short but you can easily take a local tour - lots of locals inside or outside the gate. We've been there many times so we just take a city bus to the beach. They run every 20 minutes ($2.40 US). Vans do the same route for $2 and run about every 5 minutes.

[OCruisers]

At Panama, your only choice is a ship's excursion. When the ship reaches Gatun Lake you must be on a ship's excursion to go ashore. Any of the other stops you are free to tour on your own.

 

Per above ....

This will be true on your CB 10 day partial.

Do consider taking an excursion offered by the ship in Panama so you have something to do. It gets boring being on the ship in Gatun Lake. ;)

[Tucker in Texas]

 

Normally the ship will reach the disembarking point (Gatun Lake Anchorage) somewhere between 9 and 10AM, providing enough time for an 8 hour excursion. However the Caribbean Princess will be using the new locks and that might provide a little unknown in regards to the start time of the excursions, since this will somewhat a slightly different procedure.

 

We are going to do a Princess PC cruise November 2018 and their itinerary has you "cruising" the canal 6 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and then arrive in Colon at 5:00 p.m. so it may be you won't be disembarking for a tour as late as we did and run into the same problem.

 

But wait, there's more. Once at the museum and given our "generous" one-hour to spend, we asked if we had time to watch the movie which was ending about the time we needed to get back to the bus. The worthless tour guide said we had time. So we watched the movie. We come out and the bus was gone! It was a few minutes before she had told us to be back on the bus, too. Fortunately, there was another bus going to the ship and he kindly took us as he had room. The host on that bus was an ex-pat who loved Panama City and he was so disheartened that we couldn't see all the wonderful things that he loved about the city and wanted to show us. We did get a good verbal commentary, though.

 

DH had left his cap on the first bus--a very special one from the Rose Bowl the University of Texas had participated in. We call it his "$1,000 hat" because that is what it cost him to go to the game. Once in port, he found the original bus and the guide still there and she had the hat. She handed it to him along with her hand out for a tip. She left with an empty hand (lol).

 

If any of you are interested in the November 2018 PC cruise, in early June, Princess has a three day sale for that cruise and several others with all kinds of perks.. Free grats, free drink package for a balcony or higher along with a $100 deposit pp refundable before final payment. The ship (Caribbean Princess) does a partial on the ship into the Lake and through the new Panamax canal. You might want to contact your TA if you are seeing that or another Princess cruise in the next year or so.

[Susanwhopper]

Good to know!!

 

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