Tenders-Is it true?

[jillmar]

I read somewhere that if you book your shore excursion through the ship you will be taking the first tenders to the port in Belize. If you book through a private tour company you could wait up to 2 hours to get off the ship! I don't have 2 hours to waste!!! Is this true?:confused:

[amandachit]

We dealt with this last week on the Glory. We had a double tour planned (wonderful by the way!) to do cave tubing and the zoo. He told us to get off as early as possible and we were on the first tender out. What we did was go to the pursers office and tell them about our tour and ask to be the first ones off. We were very nice and non threatening to them (some were not) and they gave us a little priority sticker. We went to the designated place and they let us on no problems. There was another couple that just showed up at the non tour tender exit (there was a separate exit for people with carnival tours planned) and they had no stickers or anything and had no problem with getting on. So if you cannot get an early sticker, I would say just go and get on anyway.

 

Good luck

[DonMar]

We did the same as amandachit. We spoke to the purser a few days before Belize and he instructed us to have our private excursion paperwork (reservation) with us. They wanted to see that we did indeed have an early start time.

 

The crew gave us a special tender sticker indicating independent tour. They called a number of other groups first and we had to remind the crew member that we needed to get on an early tender (politely, of course).

[Travel Angel]

I read somewhere that if you book your shore excursion through the ship you will be taking the first tenders to the port in Belize. If you book through a private tour company you could wait up to 2 hours to get off the ship! I don't have 2 hours to waste!!! Is this true?:confused:

 

So untrue some of the myths that are told on this subject......It is a simple matter of going to the pursers desk and advising you have an early tour and need to be on one of the first tenders off the ship. If you have any documentation regarding your tour, bring it with for evidence when speaking with the pursers desk.

 

Also, I have booked tours where I did not have any paperwork as proof and just made sure I got an early tender ticket the night before or morning of and had no problem making my tour.

 

Each cruiseline differs on this subject, and rarely collect those "tender tickets" when debarking the ship to a tender.... I have even seen people just get in line w/out advance warning with ease !

 

Don't worry over this, and get that tour booked independently and have a more personalized tour and at the same time save some $$$ :D

[jillmar]

I really appreciate the advice! This board is great!

 

I am also trying to find out about the ATV tour (booking myself, of course;) ) There doesn't seem to be much information posted on this. I hired a driver and told him I wanted to do this. Does anyone have any insight on this adventure?

[MsRed318]

This might seem like a silly question, but I have to ask...how do you know which ports of call will have tenders? Or do you find out once you've set sail?

 

Thanks.

[jillmar]

I just found out from reading this forum. You could probably call the cruise line and ask them.:)

[Travel Angel]

This might seem like a silly question, but I have to ask...how do you know which ports of call will have tenders? Or do you find out once you've set sail?

 

Thanks.

 

Your Travel Agent should advise you of this or you can call the cruiseline directly. What Ports of Call are you visiting and I will be happy to advise ?

[Travel Angel]

I really appreciate the advice! This board is great!

 

I am also trying to find out about the ATV tour (booking myself, of course;) ) There doesn't seem to be much information posted on this. I hired a driver and told him I wanted to do this. Does anyone have any insight on this adventure?

 

ATV at what Port of Call... Belize ?

[MsRed318]

Curtis, I am going to Cozumel, Ocho Rios, and Grand Cayman On Carnival Victory. This was just booked this past week and I really don't want to call the cruise line again unless I REALLY need to (I've called 3 times in the past 3 days b/c of spelling errors on tickets etc.). Any help you can give would be great. I appreciate it.

 

Veronika

[BiminiGirl]

Belize

Grand Cayman

 

at least on Carnival Legend...Belize took about 20 min on tender as the Legend was too big and had to anchor off shore quite a ways (lots of reefs around Belize that could be damaged)

[Travel Angel]

Curtis, I am going to Cozumel, Ocho Rios, and Grand Cayman On Carnival Victory. This was just booked this past week and I really don't want to call the cruise line again unless I REALLY need to (I've called 3 times in the past 3 days b/c of spelling errors on tickets etc.). Any help you can give would be great. I appreciate it.

 

Veronika

 

1st of all, happy to assist.....secondly, don't hesitate to call the cruiseline to answer all your questions, that is what they are there for but as an FYI, if you call 3 times and ask the same question, you may get 3 different answers ! Many times the cruiseline booking personel are nothing but order takers and never even been on a cruise !

 

For your tendered ports, you will tender into Grand Caymen, and possibly Cozumel (depending on the condition of the pier and how many ships are there when you arrive). Ocho Rios is not a tendered port of call.

 

In closing....many cruise passengers believe that booking direct with the cruiseline saves them $$$ or gives them better control of their booking. This is a controversial issue but I only suggest that you weigh out the value of booking with a cruiseline direct or thru an experienced travel agent in the future.... there is a difference when problems or questions arise such as you are having.

[jillmar]

Thank you all for your answers! Yes, I was interested in taking an ATV tour (booked privately) in Belize. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[ballman]

Thank you all for your answers! Yes, I was interested in taking an ATV tour (booked privately) in Belize. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

As all stated above, they WILL let you get off on some of the first tenders w/ NO problem on a private tour. On the Legend we just waited w/ the Carnival excursion people and they called us up to receive a special sticker. Be careful though, there is no mention of this in the daily newsletter on board,, so just call the pursers desk to see where they are meeting.

 

What ATV tour company are you looking into?

[jillmar]

Thanks for the info. Actually, I hired a private driver who was recommended on this website. I already talked to him and he asked what I wanted to do. So, I don't know where to go for the ATV. I wanted to do that with some other things like the zoo and/or Old Belize.

[MsRed318]

Thanks for the info! I actually did book throught the cruise line directly, but there were issues with language the first time and that's when my problem with the spelling started! But all is well now.

 

I've been doing some research on here (I can't believe the amount of helpful info) and yes I've come to discover that at GC we will be tendered, but it seems that it's a relatively easy process and I checked and on the day that we're in GC there are only 2 other ships in port, so hopefully it won't be too crowded.

 

Veronika

[sheephugs]

How early would you recommend talking to the purser for an early tender ticket?

[Travel Angel]

How early would you recommend talking to the purser for an early tender ticket?

 

I would do so the day before you arrive in port.....If you have some type of evidence of a non cruise shore tour booked, bring it with for proof of reason to get off the ship first.

[driftwood]

As usual, Travel Angel is spot-on!

 

It is natural to assume that a cruiseline will favor its own sponsored tours, AND THEY DO: but it is ALSO TRUE that they want ALL their passengers to be VERY HAPPY, and will do virtually anything on request to keep you VERY HAPPY!

 

Today's independent tour provider may well be tomorrow's cruiseline-sponsored tour provider, so even the cruiseline will try to help every shore excursion provider that they can. The only question for everyone, passenger or operator, is, "Will I make it back in time?" This has seldom been a problem with the cave tubing excursions, and I would book them in confidence and certainly ask for any assistance in getting ashore in a timely manner I felt I needed. Obviously the first passengers off the ship will be the most likely to be the first able to return, so the cruiseline takes a genuine interest in accommodating you.

[sheephugs]

Excellent advice..it's all greatly appreciated! :)

[DonMar]

How early would you recommend talking to the purser for an early tender ticket?

 

I do not know exactly how it works on HAL. We spoke to the Purser's Desk at the beginning of the cruise to confirm that we would be able to get an early tender. They did not provide tickets. We had to go to the meeting place for tendering very early in the AM. This is where they gave out tickets.

[Ga_Crusin]

That's the same thing that happened to us. On HAL, we just showed up early, but it was a really long wait. However, our tour organizer (Major Tom) was NOT surprised. The tour operators know that it takes a while for folks to get off the ship.

[LHP]

Thanks for the info! I actually did book throught the cruise line directly, but there were issues with language the first time and that's when my problem with the spelling started! But all is well now.

 

I've been doing some research on here (I can't believe the amount of helpful info) and yes I've come to discover that at GC we will be tendered, but it seems that it's a relatively easy process and I checked and on the day that we're in GC there are only 2 other ships in port, so hopefully it won't be too crowded.

 

Veronika

 

So glad you found Cruise Critic (and WELCOME). Questions are the reason we exist!! So please feel free to ask.

 

Grand Cayman is a beautiful island. Food and drinks are a little more expensive that at other ports...just to give you a heads up. Lots of people swim with the stingrays there and love it. You can book this through the ship or on an independent excursions. Just look under Grand Cayman for recommendations. If it is just some time on the beach, grab a taxi and go. Very safe.

 

Belize is a port where you either need to take a ship tour or independent tour if you plan to go "outside the fence". Make sure it is a ship tour, if your destination is more than an hour's drive from the port.

 

Jamaica is the only port that I recommend a ship tour only....UNLESS you can get from great recommendations about SPECIFIC tour guides. (again on the Ocho board)

 

Have a great cruise!!