Transfers

[digby]

Will Oceania sell you a city to ship transfer if you don't buy the whole precruise hotel package? We'll be staying at one of the hotels the ship uses, but made our own arrangements. If possible, I'd like to still use their transfer service.

[gr8aunt]

Oceania was selling transfers on the cruise I just took. The transfer from the ship to either Heathrow or Gatwick airports was $99.99 per person.

[Merriem]

You can get a cab for up to four persons for $120 to London. Try and make some money Oceania. Trust me, the cabs are always available.

[goeurope]

Just out of curiosity, I did a little checking and found a listing for coach hire (Dover-Heathrow or Dover-Gatwick) for 475 pounds sterling, or US $875. I don't know what the minimum acceptable markup would be for a travel operator, but let's say it's 100%, bringing the total cost to US $1750. If you're selling transfers at $99.95 (effectively $100), you need 17.5 passengers per coach to justify offering the service. (And who knows--there may be other taxes or costs that I'm not aware of; I'm not a travel agent, tour operator, or destination-services vendor for a cruise line.)

 

To make matters more complicated, you've got to deal with the fact that some passengers are going to Heathrow and other's are headed for Gatwick. You may also need to stagger departure times not just for the convenience of the passengers, but also to prevent disembarkation snafus and bottlenecks on the pier. So it isn't as simple as just saying "Hmm, we've got 300 people who want to buy transfers, so we'll hire six 52-passenger coaches, fill them nearly to capacity, and have everybody leave for the same airport at 8 a.m."

 

Bottom line: Oceania and other cruise lines obviously do make money on transfers, but it's unlikely that they're becoming obscenely rich from dispatching passengers to airports on buses. If they did, they'd undoubtedly be smart enough to quit the cruise business and run a bus line instead.

 

As for passengers who hate seeing cruise lines earn profits, they can easily hire taxis, book chauffeured cars, or use public transportation (which is readily available from Dover's train station, though it's certainly less convenient than being whisked directly from the cruise terminal to the airport).

[holler]

The price we have booked from Dover to Heathrow later ths month is 120gbp for up to 4 and 150gbp for 5-7. We have a confirmed reservation. It takes about 2 hours.

[Merriem]

It is not only cheaper to take a cab, but much more convenient.

[joan24]

Holler,

Make sure that you give yourself plenty of time to get to Heathrow. Our car service from Dover to London took almost 3 hours. Traffic can be terrible.

Joan

[Brahmama]

We have made reservation for late August.

 

justairports.com will take 4 people with cruise luggage from Heathrow to hotels (Paddington area) for 40 Pounds. (This is the big MPV 8 seater)

 

Another private driver is picking two couples up at two different London hotels and taking us directly to the pier in Dover for 130 Pounds.

 

Of course it will be higher if you don't have someone to share with.

 

Good luck!

[digby]

The transfers I am concerned with will be in Santiago and Buenos Aires.

[digby]

I just got off the phone with Oceania. I asked if one could book the transfer to the ship from downtown without booking the hotel package. The answer was, "NO!"

[Merriem]

Transfers in Buenos Aires and Santiago are so easy.

 

Santiago.(Actually Valpariso) Get off the ship, go through customs, then there is a booth that has a set fare to go to the city of Santiago or the Airport. They are vans and nice taxis, and very reasonable. You pay your money at the booth, get a receipt, and they put you in your taxi or van. Very nice, friendly people, and very organized.

 

Buenos Aires: If you are arriving in BA by Air, you should make a pickup arrangement with your hotel. It was only $20 for us from the Airport (it is about 20 miles) to the city. If you are going the other way, ship to airport, still reasonable and very safe.

 

Do not waste your money on transfers with any cruise line.

[Merriem]

They charge about double the hotel rack rate per night. Make your own reservations at a well known hotel. The concierge at the hotel will get you a cab to the ship.

 

Is is about half of the ships price. Don't give them your money. Just check around on the internet.

[meow!]

Just curious, if you take an ordinary taxi at Heathrow, and have him drive you to Dover, how much will it cost? Can you negotiate with the driver on the spot for a "flat price"? Thank you.

[chazaroo]

We just received our invoice for the 4/27/05 cruise on insignia and they are charging $49. transfer from Athens airport to the ship and $79. transfer from ship to Rome airport. Is that a good deal?

[meow!]

GoEurope:

Perhaps you may know how much the taxis will cost. Thank you.