Can we skip tour & go right to hotel?

[Jemima]

Our docs just arrived!!!!!, but leave us with questions????
We have a pre and post hotel and know that includes the transfers to and from airport. However, our docs include a city tour each time. Hotel to ship on embarkation day and hotel to airport for our flight home. Nice, but we don't want that. On embarkation day we only want to go from the hotel to the ship. When we disembark, we want daylight time to explore. When we added the post-hotel, I was told that, yes, we'd be able to go right to the hotel after disembarking. Our plan was to drop off the luggage and then do Vancouver on our own. That is one reason we are staying over in addition to not wanting to fly home the same day.

[sail7seas]

It is highly likely your transfers are on a bus. You either go on the bus with everyone else and go where the bus takes you or you do not do HAL transfers. You have the choice to get a taxi or transfer by any other method of your choosing.

[Mike2131]

It is highly likely your transfers are on a bus. You either go on the bus with everyone else and go where the bus takes you or you do not do HAL transfers. You have the choice to get a taxi or transfer by any other method of your choosing.


I think if you don't want the tours you will have to make your own transfer arrangements. Even with the transfers, we have seldom found the cruise line pre and post-hotel packages a bargain - especially in a city like Vancouver where there are a lot of options.

[Jemima]

I think if you don't want the tours you will have to make your own transfer arrangements. Even with the transfers, we have seldom found the cruise line pre and post-hotel packages a bargain - especially in a city like Vancouver where there are a lot of options.

We know it is much cheaper to book these on your own, but I'm much more comfortable with the convenience. Anyway we are already booked, fully paid and have docs. The information I was given at booking time differed. I had asked specifically as we've never done a post-hotel and I didn't want this type of thing. We have done pre-hotels and in the past were always taken right to the ship.
Hotel to ship isn't a huge problem. We can make our own arrangements for that, if desired. The problem is that after disembarking we can't get into the hotel before mid afternoon. This not only isn't what we planned and paid for, but I'm diabetic and don't do well skipping lunch.
Also the ending tour is exactly the same tour as the beginning tour. Once might be ok, but twice in 14 days is not.

[grannynurse]

In Seattle, we sent our bags from the hotel to the ship via the shuttle bus but we took the 5 minute ride to the pier by cab. It was a much better idea and worked well for us. Of course we informed the HAL rep at the hotel what we were doing and he even gave us specific info about which entrance to use at the pier.
GN

[Sailorgirlseattle]

You should be able to taxi yourselves and your luggage straight to the hotel, and check your bags with the bell desk. Then you go and get lunch on your own preferred schedule and see a bit of the city too before you actually check into the hotel.

Which hotel, by the way? Somewhere downtown?

[dakrewser]

It's always like that when you disembark, because the hotel isn't ready for you at 9 in the morning. But do take the tour, Vancouver is not a very walkable city...

[Sailor Gal]

After reading this, I was wondering if the "transfers" are the same as "post cruise tours" .

[Mike2131]

We know it is much cheaper to book these on your own, but I'm much more comfortable with the convenience. Anyway we are already booked, fully paid and have docs. The information I was given at booking time differed. I had asked specifically as we've never done a post-hotel and I didn't want this type of thing. We have done pre-hotels and in the past were always taken right to the ship.
Hotel to ship isn't a huge problem. We can make our own arrangements for that, if desired. The problem is that after disembarking we can't get into the hotel before mid afternoon. This not only isn't what we planned and paid for, but I'm diabetic and don't do well skipping lunch.
Also the ending tour is exactly the same tour as the beginning tour. Once might be ok, but twice in 14 days is not.
We just like making our own arrangements in ports like Vancouver - but I also understand your motivation for things to be a little more seemless than independent arrangements would allow.

That being said, I do agree that they should take into account the fact that you are staying both pre and post-cruise. Two orientation tours of Vancouver in 14 days is indeed over the top.

Maybe your experience will be a cautionary tale for others. Good luck.

[dakrewser]

I do agree that they should take into account the fact that you are staying both pre and post-cruise. Two orientation tours of Vancouver in 14 days is indeed over the top.

If you think the transfer prices are high now, just imagine if they had to accommodate "pre- and post-" people, those who wanted to see Chinatown and those who didn't, those with a 12:00 flight, 5:00 flight, next day flight, etc.?

It's really not that difficult to claim your luggage and get a taxi, especially for someone who prefers to tour "on their own." Especially in an English-speaking port such as Vancouver.

[Mike2131]

If you think the transfer prices are high now, just imagine if they had to accommodate "pre- and post-" people, those who wanted to see Chinatown and those who didn't, those with a 12:00 flight, 5:00 flight, next day flight, etc.?

It's really not that difficult to claim your luggage and get a taxi, especially for someone who prefers to tour "on their own." Especially in an English-speaking port such as Vancouver.
That way passengers like the OP could select what they wanted to do. Oh well, in a perfect world...

On the cruisetour last summer, we were in the Fairmont and the transfer to Canada Place (across the street) was at the end of a city tour. We just relaxed and let the joy of a surprise upgrade to a Penthouse Suite wash over over us!