How Do I get around booked excursions.

[myguyandme]

My husband and I are going on a Princess Cruise in Nov to  Southhampton, England One of the Ports is  Cherbourg, France. We really wanted to book Normandy Landing. It said it was ALL BOOKED. Can we book at the cruise port.???   Thanks, Kat Gulick

[Mum2Mercury]

Are you saying the cruise line's excursion is full?  If so, I wouldn't try to get a spot -- who wants to be in an overcrowded excursion?  

 

I'd look for the same experience through a private excursion.  The same activities are usually available, and you're likely to have a superior experience -- smaller groups, tour guides who are more motivated.  

[CruiserBruce]

You won't be able to book at the pier.

 

Just your Roll Call, located here:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/63-princess-roll-calls/

 

Perhaps someone has a private tour you can join.

 

Check the France board, here:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/462-france-ports/

 

Look at some of the recommended tour providers. You might be able to join one in that manner.

 

Good luck. You are a bit late to the process at this point.

[jsn55]

Just be aware of time ... don't get yourself into a place where you miss the ship's boarding call.

[ldubs]

We do a lot of DIY excursions, but this is one I would likely pre-book.  IMO the guide's relating the history would be an important part of the visit.   As already said, I would not rely on being able to book at the cruise pier and your Roll Call might yield some options.   I'm imagine if  you  google Normandy D-Day day tours from Cherbourg, you will get a lot of hits.  

[navybankerteacher]

8 minutes ago, ldubs said:

We do a lot of DIY excursions, but this is one I would likely pre-book.  IMO the guide's relating the history would be an important part of the visit.   As already said, I would not rely on being able to book at the cruise pier and your Roll Call might yield some options.   I'm imagine if  you  google Normandy D-Day day tours from Cherbourg, you will get a lot of hits.  

Good advice.

 

And, because getting back to the ship on time is crucial, you want to book something with a known or recommended provider

[Markanddonna]

We booked a last minute TA cruise that sailed in May and all the WWII excursions were booked far in advance. There are no tours at the port like in the Caribbean. Even the private companies were fully booked.

[John Bull]

Hi, and welcome to Cruise Critic,

 

This isn't like ports in the Caribbean, south-east Asia etc. You won't pick up a tour at the port, the best you'd manage at the port is a taxi, which would be expensive for a tour and pot-luck whether the driver has decent English and some knowledge of the sights.

 

As per Bruce's suggestion your best bet is to check your cruise RollCall to see if anyone is seeking sharers for a private tour. Being new to Cruise Critic, if you can't find your RollCall, post your ship's name and sailing date and some kind soul here will provide a link

 

The popular tour organisers like https://www.overlordtour.com/ do book out early.

But you could ask them, they might have had a cancellation.

I don't think they offer "seat in van" from Cherbourg, you'd need to book the entire van (€995 for 8am to 6pm, capacity 8 passengers ie €125 per person for a full van). You would probably have no difficulty in filling the van even at this late hour, but that would be at your risk.

They offer seat-in-van for their tours from Bayeux, but that means train to & from Bayeux and I seriously doubt that'd fit in with your ship's hours in port 

 

Depending whether your ship is in port for a day or just a half-day (and whether its a sunday, which can be difficult), consider pre-booking a rental car. The driving is easy - light traffic, a mix of divided highway and coastal lanes, no city driving, tolerably simple navigation and easy parking at the sights. Good English spoken and plenty of informative pamphlets & signs at the sights.

The nearest sight, the village of Ste Mere-Eglise (Airborne museum, and a dummy of the parachutist hanging from the church roof - he survived) is just 23 miles / 35 minutes from Cherbourg.

Utah beach & museum are then  just 9 miles / 18 minutes from Ste Mere Eglise on a lane to the coast.

Or Omaha beach & the American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer are 30 miles / 40 minutes further on from Ste Mere Eglise, and there are sights closer than Omaha, such as Pointe du Hoc.

I and others can suggest an itinerary  if you want to consider renting, and if you quote your date and hours in port. 

We've driven these sights & roads many times - if it's easy for this guy who normally drives on the left it should be a doddle for you. Do take a phone map app or rent a GPS with the car, and if you need one with automatic transmission be sure to book that - otherwise they come with shift-stick.

 

But if self-drive doesn't appeal, consider getting quotes from Cherbourg taxi operators who can provide you with a suitable driver. Not a "guided tour" but a driver who knows the sights & hopefully a bit of detail, and can converse. No personal knowledge - just google "Cherbourg taxi". You'll likely need to hit the google translate button, top right each time. E-mail them in English - if they don't respond or respond in French or pigeon-English they probably won't be suitable anyway 😏

 

With either a rented car or taxi + driver you can then halve your costs by using your RollCall to find a couple to share.

 

Good luck

 

JB 🙂

 

[CruiseCrazy502]

19 hours ago, myguyandme said:

My husband and I are going on a Princess Cruise in Nov to  Southhampton, England One of the Ports is  Cherbourg, France. We really wanted to book Normandy Landing. It said it was ALL BOOKED. Can we book at the cruise port.???   Thanks, Kat Gulick

HI!  My group is on the Sky Princess.    We  booked a private tour of Normandy and associated stops (Omaha/Utah sector) if you would like to join us.  There are four of us-all adults & non-smokers and we have room for four people for $200pp .  Pick up is Oct. 30 8:00am at the dock and they will drop us back at 4:30-5:00pm.  Price is for the tour only, it does not include lunch, tip, museum entrance fees.   Non-smokers only, please. 

[CruiseCrazy502]

19 hours ago, myguyandme said:

My husband and I are going on a Princess Cruise in Nov to  Southhampton, England One of the Ports is  Cherbourg, France. We really wanted to book Normandy Landing. It said it was ALL BOOKED. Can we book at the cruise port.???   Thanks, Kat Gulick

I need to clarify:  we are not going to Southampton.  We are not on the same cruise.  We are leave Oct. 29 from Southampton.  Sorry