Third Party Cruise Excursion to Save Money

[GlamorousGirl]

I found what appears to be the exact same excursion the cruise line is offering for $99 on another (reputable) site for $16. I really want to take it, but am nervous that the excursion time is "estimated" at 5 hours, and if they returned us right on schedule it would only give us a one hour "buffer" to make the time to board deadline. I have always booked excursions through the cruise ship in the past because I"m nervous about missing the ship, but this has turned into a really expensive cruise (21 days Rome to Dubai) and I need to save every penny I can.

 

To those who've taken third party tours (not through the cruise line), in your experience is a one-hour buffer for the tour to get back late enough? Or is it risky and we should cancel? The port is at Safaga, Egypt. Thanks for your help!

[trummy]

On 10/16/2019 at 5:55 PM, GlamorousGirl said:

I found what appears to be the exact same excursion the cruise line is offering for $99 on another (reputable) site for $16. I really want to take it, but am nervous that the excursion time is "estimated" at 5 hours, and if they returned us right on schedule it would only give us a one hour "buffer" to make the time to board deadline. I have always booked excursions through the cruise ship in the past because I"m nervous about missing the ship, but this has turned into a really expensive cruise (21 days Rome to Dubai) and I need to save every penny I can.

 

To those who've taken third party tours (not through the cruise line), in your experience is a one-hour buffer for the tour to get back late enough? Or is it risky and we should cancel? The port is at Safaga, Egypt. Thanks for your help!

We will be leaving for out 9th cruise in 20 days. All of our excursions are booked by us instead of Carnival. We have always taken excursions, but have never taken a Carnival excursion. From what I read, Carnival excursions are overpriced and over crowded.

 

Every excursion we have taken, the operator has been very careful about getting us back on time. Doing otherwise would ruin their reputation.

[tandc2019]

Is there a lot of driving for this excursion?  If so, see if Google Maps provides traffic data for that area and look at the traffic at that time of day.  I would say that would be the biggest threat.  Also, if they're taking lots of ship passengers, they should know when you need to be back but you should also have a conversation with them before you leave.  I'd take the $16 gamble! 

[pambam]

I've never taken ship excursions. I like supporting the locals and find it's less crowded and more laid back. I've not been with a company yet at the ship's ports where excursion operators were unaware of the ship schedules. They seem to know them well as that is their livelyhood on a daily basis. I've never been late getting back to a ship and have done numerous excursions. If you're uncomfortable, contact the tour agency you're going with for some reasurances.

 

[pacruise804]

On 10/16/2019 at 6:55 PM, GlamorousGirl said:

I found what appears to be the exact same excursion the cruise line is offering for $99 on another (reputable) site for $16. I really want to take it, but am nervous that the excursion time is "estimated" at 5 hours, and if they returned us right on schedule it would only give us a one hour "buffer" to make the time to board deadline. I have always booked excursions through the cruise ship in the past because I"m nervous about missing the ship, but this has turned into a really expensive cruise (21 days Rome to Dubai) and I need to save every penny I can.

 

To those who've taken third party tours (not through the cruise line), in your experience is a one-hour buffer for the tour to get back late enough? Or is it risky and we should cancel? The port is at Safaga, Egypt. Thanks for your help!

 

I hesitated replying because I'm not familiar with excursions in this part of the world.  The advice you received so far is very good for a Caribbean/Bahamas/Bermuda cruise, but may or may not be for Northern Africa.  I advise checking the ports of call forum, your roll call, or your cruise line thread rather than the saving on your cruise thread for your more unique situation.

[SimplyMarvie]

I think the poster above me has great advice. 

 

Generally, I am 100% all for independent excursions -- they're usually cheaper, easier and don't involve giant tour buses or shopping trips to places you don't want to go. We rarely take cruise ship excursions and only in situations that involve dodgy travel times. 

 

With that said, this might be one of those times. I've never been to Safaga, but I've spent a bunch of time in Egypt and roads and timeliness are not it's primary attractions and while there are fantastic tour guides and companies that are amazingly reliable, there are also complete amateurs and scam artists.  If it's a 5-6 hour excursion, I'm assuming you're either boating or going to Luxor, which takes you far enough from your cruise port that a couple of blown tires, bad traffic or a nasty holdup for baksheesh could mean missing your boat. Getting on to your next stop from Safaga is going to be a nasty mess, probably involving bus/flight to Cairo and then flying to your next destination. 

 

I miiiiiiight risk it if I had a lot of credit on my cards and good trip interruption insurance. But if your main reason for doing it is to save $85, that's probably not where you're at. I'd probably pay up and play it safe... or maybe split the difference and see if I could find a reputable private touring company that could do a day excursion where you're calling the shots as to the timing?

[shel003]

Check with the tour operator, sometimes they have a guarantee to get you back to your ship on time.  I have taken independent tours through local operators and have never had a problem.  I'm planning several independent tours for my next cruise, some being several hours away from port.  It was not an ideal choice but since I use a wheelchair, excursions through the ship are limited and fill up quickly.  Most operators know the ship schedule and may even monitor traffic patterns while you're on your excursion to make sure they can get you back in time.  Check any online reviews for the operator to get a sense of whether this has been a problem in the past for others. 

[SargassoPirate]

Check the big box warehouse club travel department's website - if you are a member.  They offer tours with a return-to-the-ship guarantee.  The prices are better than the cruise lines.

 

 

[Lin77]

On 10/16/2019 at 6:55 PM, GlamorousGirl said:

I found what appears to be the exact same excursion the cruise line is offering for $99 on another (reputable) site for $16. I really want to take it, but am nervous that the excursion time is "estimated" at 5 hours, and if they returned us right on schedule it would only give us a one hour "buffer" to make the time to board deadline. I have always booked excursions through the cruise ship in the past because I"m nervous about missing the ship, but this has turned into a really expensive cruise (21 days Rome to Dubai) and I need to save every penny I can.

 

To those who've taken third party tours (not through the cruise line), in your experience is a one-hour buffer for the tour to get back late enough? Or is it risky and we should cancel? The port is at Safaga, Egypt. Thanks for your help!

On our last transatlantic, for the first time EVER we booked private tours (not from cruise line) with other cruisers on here and saved hundreds of dollars and had a great time at 5 different ports! Those “other” companies were great, but if in doubt look up reviews on google or trip advisor and that should give you an indication of how reputable they are.

[Sue Do-Over]

We always book independent excursions, some in advance and some at the pier.  Our best advice for a newbie is to check out the port-specific boards (where fellow critics offer candid reviews) -- they often even recommend a specific tour guide who was entertaining, helpful or spoke their language well.

 

As for getting back on time... any of them advertising cruise pick-up/return know the ships schedule and it's a good idea to agree to your return time before loading up.  That is, if you need 90 minutes grace, or 30 minutes grace, or you are OK being a pier runner... let the guide know up front so that they adjust your time at each stop accordingly.

 

Remembering that they rely on good reviews, we have always found ourselves delivered back to the ship in plenty of time.

[SRF]

1)  If you book the ship tours, you are still supporting the locals, as the tours are provided by the local companies, not the cruise line (in most cases).

 

2)  If the third party operator one who caters to the cruise passengers?  If so, they understand you need to be back.  If it just any old tour operator, they may not understand that you MUST be back by a certain time, unlike people staying in a hotel.

 

3)  Think about it, $16 for a 5 to 6 hour tour???  Is that reasonable from a reputable company?  It may be in some parts of the world, but it would make me think twice.  I have seen this in Vietnam.  The same exact tour was $100 from the hotel, but booked online, directly with the tour company was $12.  And I have also seen the same excursion, with the same company, that booking directly was actually more expensive that booking through the cruise line (the difference was not very large though).

 

There is no one right answer for all situations.  You need to look and evaluate and make your decision.

 

The safest plan it to book through the cruise line.  And if you don't, DO take your passport and some credit cards with you on the excursion.