Viking Ocean Excursion Question

[LP987]

We are new to Viking and plan to cruise in Feb 2022 to West Indies in Caribbean. The excursions for our cruise opened for me and several excursions I was planning to book are already sold out. Will Viking add additional slots/options for these excursions. I was really looking forward to the Escape to Jost Van Dyke in Tortola. Anyone know of a reputable local tour group that does this same type catamaran sail?  Thank you!

[millybess]

You might try Foxy Charters.   Although we didn't use them when we were on Tortola, we talked to people on the cruise who did and they enjoyed the tour very much.  We really liked the Viking West Indies cruise in 2020 and Tortola was our favourite  island.

 

If you're looking for a private tour on St. Kitts, we would highly recommend Kenroy Johnson.

[duquephart]

16 minutes ago, millybess said:

You might try Foxy Charters.   Although we didn't use them when we were on Tortola, we talked to people on the cruise who did and they enjoyed the tour very much.  We really liked the Viking West Indies cruise in 2020 and Tortola was our favourite  island.

 

If you're looking for a private tour on St. Kitts, we would highly recommend Kenroy Johnson.

 

Private tours are typically better and cheaper than those offerd by Viking. Don't fall for Viking's "But will they get you back to the boat on time?" disclaimer.

[Heidi13]

17 hours ago, duquephart said:

 

Private tours are typically better and cheaper than those offerd by Viking. Don't fall for Viking's "But will they get you back to the boat on time?" disclaimer.

 

Fact - the Master will endeavour to delay the departure for late returning ship's tours. If private tours return late, the Master will most likely not delay departure. 

[Heidi13]

19 hours ago, LP987 said:

We are new to Viking and plan to cruise in Feb 2022 to West Indies in Caribbean. The excursions for our cruise opened for me and several excursions I was planning to book are already sold out. Will Viking add additional slots/options for these excursions. I was really looking forward to the Escape to Jost Van Dyke in Tortola. Anyone know of a reputable local tour group that does this same type catamaran sail?  Thank you!

 

On board the ship you can check with the Purser's Office/Shore-ex staff, for cancellations, or the ability to add additional tours.

[duquephart]

35 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Fact - the Master will endeavour to delay the departure for late returning ship's tours. If private tours return late, the Master will most likely not delay departure. 

 

Is it not true that tour operators (St. Petersburg for example) are well aware of the ships and schedules and are very good at getting customers back to the ships in plenty of time? Were it not so wouldn't there be a great deal of info about "bad" operators? Realistically, need one worry about being left behind when booking a well known and reliable service?

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, duquephart said:

 

Is it not true that tour operators (St. Petersburg for example) are well aware of the ships and schedules and are very good at getting customers back to the ships in plenty of time? Were it not so wouldn't there be a great deal of info about "bad" operators? Realistically, need one worry about being left behind when booking a well known and reliable service?

 

All tour operators should know the departure time. However, the fact remains, if circumstances outwith control of the private tour operator have the tour returning late, the Master has zero obligation to delay departure.

 

However, the instances of private tour operators returning late are fairly low.

[money007penny]

Jost Van Dyke sold out on ours really quickly as well (Dec 23 departure) but they have since added spots and it's still available today, so I wouldn't worry about not getting on that one. 

[CurlerRob]

19 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

 

All tour operators should know the departure time. However, the fact remains, if circumstances outwith control of the private tour operator have the tour returning late, the Master has zero obligation to delay departure.

 

However, the instances of private tour operators returning late are fairly low.

 

Andy is, of course, quite correct regarding the master's obligations, although I have seen cases where he/she will wait for missing pax regardless of who ran the tour. (On a separate note - we experienced a delayed return flight that was part of a ship's tour, but we also had the master's wife with us auditing the tour - never doubted that the ship would wait 😈)

 

We have never had a poor experience with a private tour regarding return time, but we also have chosen to stay with ship tours when the penalty for missing departure is high - such as the start of a multi-day passage or having to arrange our own travel in a part of the world where we might not be comfortable doing so.

 

Part of the overall consideration is also an individual's risk tolerance.  🍺🥌

 

[Jim Avery]

Hope this link to the Tortola/Jost van Dyke ferry works.  There are also several water taxi services in Tortola that can customize JVD/Tortola day trips.  Jost is our favorite island in all the Caribbean.  😎

 

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjIrMqN4MX0AhVKmWoFHSURC7cQFnoECAQQAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bvivacation.com%2Ftransportation%2FBVI-Ferry-JOST-VAN-DYKE-schedule-west-end-tortola-great-harbour-.php&usg=AOvVaw3kdLkL89Z2lkqZl5wJRHjF

[duquephart]

1 hour ago, Heidi13 said:

 

All tour operators should know the departure time. However, the fact remains, if circumstances outwith control of the private tour operator have the tour returning late, the Master has zero obligation to delay departure.

 

However, the instances of private tour operators returning late are fairly low.

 

Please define "fairly low." Are you able to cite an example?

[Jim Avery]

2 minutes ago, duquephart said:

 

Please define "fairly low." Are you able to cite an example?

Here's the deal.  "Fairly low" is when it happens to someone else.  "Horrifyingly often" is when it happens to you....🍸

[hersheyhughes]

Jim, love your perspective.

in 2016 on a private tour of St Petersburg, we got caught in a traffic jam.  We thought we were going to have to get out and run the last mile. We sure did not want  to see if the ship was going to wait for us or get left in Russia figuring out how to catch up with the ship.

It was pretty scary at the time.  

Kimberly

[philw1776]

In St Petersburg our next stop was Finland. Took private 2 day tour as tour company said the backup/failure plan was a personal escort on the always running fast ferry to Finland. We could arrive sooner than Viking.

[Mrs Miggins]

Alla was fantastic in St Petersburg and of course we had 2 overnights.  Look on the port of call boards for other recommendations for the locations you will be cruising in.

[bottomfeeder]

54 minutes ago, Mrs Miggins said:

Alla was fantastic in St Petersburg and of course we had 2 overnights.  Look on the port of call boards for other recommendations for the locations you will be cruising in.

I agree!  I used Alla for a 2 day St. Petersburg tour (group tour with others on my roll call on another cruise line) and it was wonderful.  We asked her to get us back an hour earlier than the tour called for, just to be safe, and she did so without us missing any of our tour stops.

[formernuke]

Back to the initial question: you should check mvj daily as there are often cancellations that show up after previously showing ‘sold out’

[Peregrina651]

8 hours ago, formernuke said:

Back to the initial question: you should check mvj daily as there are often cancellations that show up after previously showing ‘sold out’

 

Agreed. People change their minds. People cancel last minute. Viking adds capacity to tours without ever announcing it.

 

Viking does not  have a waitlist system, so they can't really judge demand. I suggest that if a tour you really want sells out quickly that you e-mail Viking at tellus@vikingcruises.com, tell them how disappointed you are that XYZ shorex is sold out and ask if they will be adding more capacity. In the meantime, continue to check daily to see if space has opened up.

 

Even if only one space opens up, book it the moment you see it.  It is easier to get a second seat on the bus if you already have one in hand.  With one in hand, you can try calling the call center  or e-mailing tellus@vikingcruises.com again (the latter is higher up the ladder) and see what they can do to get you a seat. If they can't work it out before boarding, you can wait until you board and try to work it out with the Shorex staff on board.

 

Just remember two things.

• Shorex have a cancellation deadline of 36 hours prior to the tour.
• Shorex advanced sales close 7 days prior to sailing. If you want to make any changes to what you have chosen, it must by done 7 days or more prior to day one of the sailing or you must wait until you board the ship. In other words, if you want to make chances to any shorex on Day 1, 2 and probably Day 3, it must be done 7 days or more prior to Day 1.

 

 

Edited December 6, 2021 by Peregrina651