Shore Excursions cannot be booked online

[KathyPet]

We sail next Sunday 6/21 on the Veendam from Seward. I just went on the HAL web site to Booked guests and clicked shore excursions. I entered my reservation # and name and received the following message: Shore excursions for this sailing can no longer be booked on line. Please contact us directly.
The web site clearly states that shore excursions can be booked on line no later than 5 days prior to sailing. We are 8 days out. What gives here?
I should add that we are doing a cruise tour to Denali that starts on the 18th prior to sailing on the 21st but the web site says "shore excursions can be booked on line up to 5 days prior to SAILING". It doesn't say 5 days prior to the beginning of your trip.

[Mary Ellen]

So, give them a call.

[KathyPet]

When you click on "Book excursions" and you go to the page where you enter your reservation # you get a paragraph that says "you may book online excursions until 5 days prior to SAILING" " If your departure date is less than 5 days away pls call Shore Excursions directly at ---- to book directly. I want to cancel some excursions I booked that will take place while on board the ship and they state that there is a 10% cancellation penalty if you cancel less than 5 days out. I assumed that I had 5 days prior to SAILING to add or delete shore excursions that would ocur while on board. I am not paying a 10% penalty as this wording is very mis-leading.

[Jemima]

Call HAL. You can call shore excursions even if you booked the cruise with a TA.

[KathyPet]

Had to wait 30 minutes on hold for HAL shore excursions but I did get the changes that I wanted made. No penalty fee for cancelling the excursions that were to occur on board since we are more than 5 days out

[slotl]

So many days prior to sailing the ship must give the tour agency "counts" of pre-reserved bookings. Some "additional" tickets are sold on the ship. There is a capacity control based on the number of passengers fitting into busses, how many busses are needed and for more unique tours, how many rafts, size of exhibit halls, etc are factors.

This way the passengers have a better opportunity for a more "organized" tour.