Third Party Excursions

[pilatti1]

Has anyone used a website like VIATOR to book your shore excursions? I see they have similar excursions but at better prices. I know they say the excursions presented by the cruise lines are guaranteed etc. but money talks. Just looking for ideas before I book them for my Alaskan cruise this summer.

 

Thanks

[cruisemom42]

Many cruisers book private tours or do their own sightseeing without a tour. 

 

I tend to avoid Viator as it is a "consolidator" (middle man) and I prefer to deal directly with the vendor. I have found it leads to better communication if questions or issues arise.

 

[Essiesmom]

Since you are doing Alaska, I suggest you do some reading on the Alaska board here, under Ports of Call.  Lots of experienced cruisers there, as well as locals.  EM

[CruiserBruce]

The Alaska board is here:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/33-alaska/

 

Many recommended private vendors there. I also agree with avoiding Viator and the other consolidators. Bad experiences on our part and reported here. Deal direct with recommended vendors.

[Charles4515]

15 hours ago, pilatti1 said:

Has anyone used a website like VIATOR to book your shore excursions? I see they have similar excursions but at better prices. I know they say the excursions presented by the cruise lines are guaranteed etc. but money talks. Just looking for ideas before I book them for my Alaskan cruise this summer.

 

Thanks

I don't use them because they are a middleman. Neither the cruise line or Viator operate the tours they sell so you can find the tour operator online. I book direct with the tour operator. Price can be even better thhat way and the tour operators like that. Often as  shortcut I cut and paste the description from the cruise line or Viator and google and usually find the actual tour operator.

[sanger727]

I've booked through Viator, but I avoid them when I can. I agree that booking directly with a tour operator gets you the best price and best tour. However, some tour operators don't book directly and I've had some decent tours through Viator. I try to avoid cruise line excursions unless the travel time is significant. 

Edited December 20, 2023 by sanger727

[crystalspin]

20 hours ago, pilatti1 said:

Has anyone used a website like VIATOR to book your shore excursions? I see they have similar excursions but at better prices. I know they say the excursions presented by the cruise lines are guaranteed etc. but money talks. Just looking for ideas before I book them for my Alaskan cruise this summer.

We used Viator in Ireland... then I found out that their fee to the attraction/service is all or most of the providers' profit! So especially in cruise ports in Alaska -- there are websites for many independent tour providers. Just Google a little using the port name. Or just look for the company you saw on Viator and find them that way! 

 

I had another Alaska cruise planned in 2020, using all private tours except the Skagway railroad... All of the tour companies refunded with no problem when the cruise was cancelled!

[StollyBolly]

We’ve used them as the booking agent in Iceland and New York City.   Received confirmations we printed and they worked well.  

[John Bull]

Like others, in most circumstances I rate booking direct with a well-reviewed local tour operator as best.

You're dealing direct with the operator - knows the answers to any questions, no middle-man to foul up communications, and if they also deal with intermediaries the operator will naturally give you preference.

 

Intermediaries are easy one-shop shopping for lazy folk. We've only once dealt with an intermediary, Viator. Because that excursion crossed from Hong Kong into China it need a group visa with up-front money and personal information, I couldn't get much detail about the operator, & because they were the other side of the world redress if it went wrong wouldn't be easy. But Viator have a reputation to uphold, they delay payment to the operator until after the event, and your money's (reasonably) safe with them. 

NB Be wary of  timing of excursions which are offered to local vacationers - if they're late back to their hotels it's no big deal , but if you miss your sailing it's a long & cold swim to the next port

Our trip went well, Viator reminded us of the pick-up place & time by text and by phone to our hotel. No complaints.

But when checking out a couple of other excursions their staff knew no more than the limited info on their website.

 

We've bitten the bullet & done a few over-priced ship-arranged excursions.

A safe bet worth consideration when there are tight time or distance or transportation risks - altho cruise lines grossly over-play those risks. Also understandably impersonal and rushed - and often time wasted by being led to commission-earning carpet / jewellery / craft etc shops or workshops etc.

But your excursion money returned if the port is missed - not always true of locals' or intermediaries' excursions.

 

So, pros & cons for all three.

 

JB 🙂.

[Charles4515]

1 hour ago, John Bull said:

 

So, pros & cons for all three

I will always try to book direct but I am not bull headed about it. Sorry 😀 Sometimes it does make sense to do a ship arranged excursion or even something like Viator. A small local operator might not be able to have a booking engine or take credit cards. Usually those request cash but some do use the middleman only. 

[sanger727]

12 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

I will always try to book direct but I am not bull headed about it. Sorry 😀 Sometimes it does make sense to do a ship arranged excursion or even something like Viator. A small local operator might not be able to have a booking engine or take credit cards. Usually those request cash but some do use the middleman only. 

 

Agreed. We have found that some local operators, especially ones that that have contracts with the cruise line, won't sell tours direct. We booked an ATV ride in St Martin one year. There is only one ATV provider in the area, and they only book via third parties. We booked through viator and was extremely happy with the product. We actually started with the cruise line's tour, but at the first stop a new guide picked us up with a handful of other people and we had a much longer small group tour. It was roughly the same price as the cruise line's tour, but we were so happy to be on it. The number of people on the cruise line's tour was so large, they had to stop constantly for inexperienced riders to catch up. 

Edited December 21, 2023 by sanger727

[SPacificbound]

I have never booked through Viator, but I have booked Tours By Locals in many places. We have never had a bad experience. 

 

https://www.toursbylocals.com/shoreexcursion