Outside shore excursion tours

[villages cruiser]

Has anyone used Shore Excursions Group over in Europe (Sicily) for an excursion instead of the cruise ship -  We are going on the Beyond in September and were just checking other excursions that included more sites!

Thank you

[LHT28]

they are  a 3rd party  company  they do not run the tours

You would be better to check for local guides  IMO

[jsn55]

I think travellers need to be super-cautious booking independent tours for the next few years.  The internet has spawned many slick websites that may or may not be valid.  I avoid third-party sites always.  If I can't book directly with the provider, I move on.  The virus hysteria has not been kind to travel providers.  I do wish that we had a 'clearing house' to post our personal experiences for others to use as a guide.  I recently took a whole-day tour of the West Side of Oahu through Islandcruzin which was very enjoyable.  I was able to set it up so I'd have some fallback options 'just in case' and wouldn't be stuck somewhere awaiting a pickup that never arrives.

[CruiserBruce]

This is discussed extensively on the Ports boards. Shore Excursions Group is a broker, not a tour provider. That means they usually get you good prices, but then they take your money and contract with a low bid local provider.

 

Many tours will go off without a hitch, but when there is a problem, then there is frequently compounded problems communicating with any one. Viator is another frequently mentioned tour broker.

 

The strong recommendation from many of us who travel in Europe a fair amount is deal direct with a recommended local provider, not a tour broker.

[donaldsc]

Your best bet would be to use the tour details from the broker site to try to figure out who is actually doing the tour.  Then book directly with the tour company.  They then don't have to split their fee with the broker site and also if there is an issue you will be dealing directly w the tour company.  Broker site can be useful if they are good but they can also be horrible.

 

DON

[klfrodo]

Rather than a 3rd party, and since previous posts indicate Italy, why not check out ItalyTours.EU 

I've had great success with them as have many others