Sky high excursion prices!

[BitburgBoy]

We are booked on aOceania cruise to South Pacific on the Regatta. Looking at excursion prices leaves us in Shock! Is this how cruise lines are recouping their losses from 2020? From Australia to Bora Bora all the ship excursions are astronomical. Any one else seeing this on their future cruise or is it just Oceania? 

[Flatbush Flyer]

4 minutes ago, BitburgBoy said:

We are booked on aOceania cruise to South Pacific on the Regatta. Looking at excursion prices leaves us in Shock! Is this how cruise lines are recouping their losses from 2020? From Australia to Bora Bora all the ship excursions are astronomical. Any one else seeing this on their future cruise or is it just Oceania? 

Perhaps you've heard the term "new normal?"

As with planned decreases in passenger loads on ships, you can expect restrictions on the size of excursions. For Oceania, it will probably mean an average of at least half the former number per guide. And then there will be added costs for the tour providers - all associated with Covid and the "new normal."

 

In any case, your best strategy (as I have posted here many times)  is to select the excursions option for O Life and choose the most expensive of the allowable ones (non-OE/OS/etc under $200). This effectively can double the value of the perk compared to what you'd get with the SBC. Then, because those O Life tour selections will be counted in the minimum number required for the YWYW 25% discount, purchase the necessary additional expensive tours (>$199) to meet the minimum set for your cruise. This strategy effectively lowers your overall Oceania tour cost by 35%+\-.

 

BTW, call Oceania and get the PDF for your cruise's tours sincevits much easier to use for planning than is the website (both the PDF and the website will ID the YWYW minimum tours required. 

[susiesan]

Don't book Oceania excursions, do your own research and make your own plans. O excursions have always been overpriced. I have never once taken an O excursion on one of the many cruises I have been on.

[Flatbush Flyer]

7 minutes ago, susiesan said:

Don't book Oceania excursions, do your own research and make your own plans. O excursions have always been overpriced. I have never once taken an O excursion on one of the many cruises I have been on.

In the past, it has been true that, often, the private tour providers are less expensive.

 

However, some folks prefer not having to do the research and any group formation work  to "cherry pick" the best of them (e.g., Patrick's Maohe Nui at Bora Bora, which traditionally books up a year in advance).

 

But, we're already seeing that some cruise lines are dictating "our tours only" to control the passengers' onshore environment.

 

FWIW, we historically have mixed some very desirable tours with our Oceania YWYW strategy described above - particularly in the smaller exotic ports where the ship has a "lock" on the good tour providers.

 

It will be interesting to see how Oceania ends up dealing with the Covid related onshore experience in terms of restrictions/requirements for passengers.

[clo]

38 minutes ago, susiesan said:

Don't book Oceania excursions, do your own research and make your own plans. O excursions have always been overpriced. I have never once taken an O excursion on one of the many cruises I have been on.

'Course we're now waiting to see if that's going to be allowed due to COVID. Perhaps to leave the ship one would have to be on one of the ship's excursions. We would never cruise again in that case.

[pinotlover]

On our recent canceled cruise, O had told our TA “ only ship sponsored shore tours would be allowed “.

 

For that cruise, none of the shore cruises qualifying for O Life were more than 3-3.5 hours in duration. For some this is fine, for us, useless. Therefore, the full day shore tours from their lists we selected were all 2-3X private tour prices. All expensive! O Life tours , as a selection, is only rational if one prefers very brief tours of the port areas.

 

Oceania was already strongly priced. The capacity to price gouge on shore tours makes looking at other lines like Viking more appealing as the pricing delta has increased significantly.

Edited October 8, 2020 by pinotlover

[Tranquility Base]

4 hours ago, BitburgBoy said:

We are booked on aOceania cruise to South Pacific on the Regatta. Looking at excursion prices leaves us in Shock! Is this how cruise lines are recouping their losses from 2020? From Australia to Bora Bora all the ship excursions are astronomical. Any one else seeing this on their future cruise or is it just Oceania? 

I assume this is for 2022 ?

The 2021 sailing won't happen anyway.

 

4 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

..................

It will be interesting to see how Oceania ends up dealing with the Covid related onshore experience in terms of restrictions/requirements for passengers.

As far as the OP's itinerary is concerned I don't think onshore restrictions will be a factor.

If Covid is still such a risk that free range roaming is not permitted in ports, then I have little doubt Australia & NZ simply won't be allowing cruise ships in at all.

 

Just my opinion of course. 

 

[RJB]

4 hours ago, clo said:

'Course we're now waiting to see if that's going to be allowed due to COVID. Perhaps to leave the ship one would have to be on one of the ship's excursions. We would never cruise again in that case.

WE would feel the same way.  For sure. 

[ORV]

6 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

 is to select the excursions option for O Life and choose the most expensive of the allowable ones (non-OE/OS/etc under $200). This effectively can double the value of the perk compared to what you'd get with the SBC. Then, because those O Life tour selections will be counted in the minimum number required for the YWYW 25% discount, purchase the necessary additional expensive tours (>$199) to meet the minimum set for your cruise.

Are we sure that in the future this is going to be an option? Lot's of things are changing and we won't know for sure what is what until the oars are back in the water. 

[njhorseman]

8 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

 

In any case, your best strategy (as I have posted here many times)  is to select the excursions option for O Life and choose the most expensive of the allowable ones (non-OE/OS/etc under $200). This effectively can double the value of the perk compared to what you'd get with the SBC. Then, because those O Life tour selections will be counted in the minimum number required for the YWYW 25% discount, purchase the necessary additional expensive tours (>$199) to meet the minimum set for your cruise. This strategy effectively lowers your overall Oceania tour cost by 35%+\-.

This is exactly what we do.

[Hawaiidan]

On 10/8/2020 at 8:07 AM, BitburgBoy said:

We are booked on aOceania cruise to South Pacific on the Regatta. Looking at excursion prices leaves us in Shock! Is this how cruise lines are recouping their losses from 2020? From Australia to Bora Bora all the ship excursions are astronomical. Any one else seeing this on their future cruise or is it just Oceania? 

Well  on that region there are very very few vendors and it is supply and demand.     Second, you pay top dollar when you want someone to do all your planning.     You need to understand the effect of remote small places that do not see a lot of touristic traffic like others.

  However, as I said,  this region  you do not have many options as O has locked in all the available resources.   It is a unique region... not like the MED or Carribe  with hundreds of option you can do your self.....  

[RJB]

21 minutes ago, Hawaiidan said:

Well  on that region there are very very few vendors and it is supply and demand.     Second, you pay top dollar when you want someone to do all your planning.     You need to understand the effect of remote small places that do not see a lot of touristic traffic like others.

  However, as I said,  this region  you do not have many options as O has locked in all the available resources.   It is a unique region... not like the MED or Carribe  with hundreds of option you can do your self.....  

We had no problems planing our tours in the South pacific including Bora Bora.  Have done it all over the world even Cuba.  The internet is great to do that.  Just takes a little work.  not hard. 

[Shawnino]

41 minutes ago, RJB said:

We had no problems planing our tours in the South pacific including Bora Bora.  Have done it all over the world even Cuba.  The internet is great to do that.  Just takes a little work.  not hard. 

 

+1.

 

Ships won't have enough pax on a Ships' Tours Only model, even if the target is 50% of previous occ.

 

If I wanted my excursions planned out by operator, I'd do a bus tour.

I've never done a bus tour.

[BitburgBoy]

Thank you all very much. Yes, our cruise is for 2022.Sydney to Papette.

[Hawaiidan]

6 hours ago, Shawnino said:

 

+1.

 

Ships won't have enough pax on a Ships' Tours Only model, even if the target is 50% of previous occ.

 

If I wanted my excursions planned out by operator, I'd do a bus tour.

I've never done a bus tour.

Bora is the most touristic port.... there are dozens of freelance guys....everybody with a boat or a van shows up.    AND  everybody goes to just about the same places.    When last there  you needed an advance to get wave runners at $250 per runner not head.    $35 for a round island tour per couple.....     I  Still hold that the best value on Moorea and Bora are the Wave Runner tours.....