Pre-booked Excursions

We are on the Boudicca next month, first time with FO. Do we have to pre-book our excursions beforehand? We have sailed with P&O many times and they offer the facility to book on board as well as beforehand. They provide talks and films, on board, on the trips available in the following few days. At some ports where the pier is not within walking distance of the port/resort they provide free shuttle buses, every 15 to 20 minutes, that run all day. Does FO offer this service?

We are on the Boudicca next month, first time with FO. Do we have to pre-book our excursions beforehand? We have sailed with P&O many times and they offer the facility to book on board as well as beforehand. They provide talks and films, on board, on the trips available in the following few days. At some ports where the pier is not within walking distance of the port/resort they provide free shuttle buses, every 15 to 20 minutes, that run all day. Does FO offer this service?

we have been twice with fred, once on black prince and once on boudicca ,we pre booked couple of excursions as it said they only took a limited number.

there is a excursions desk on boudicca where you can book what you want, as i said we only pre booked to make sure as it said limited numbers.yes there is excursion talks on board.

as for shuttle buses unless supplied by port we had to pay, i'm not sure but it was £4 or £5 pounds each for suttle. hope this helps.

anyway enjoy your cruise ,hope you have a great time.

Can someone explain what you mean by shuttle buses ? Are you on about buses into town ?

We are on the Boudicca next month, first time with FO. Do we have to pre-book our excursions beforehand? We have sailed with P&O many times and they offer the facility to book on board as well as beforehand. They provide talks and films, on board, on the trips available in the following few days. At some ports where the pier is not within walking distance of the port/resort they provide free shuttle buses, every 15 to 20 minutes, that run all day. Does FO offer this service?

we recently came back of Boudicca. if it was a tour we really wanted to do-we booked in advance--you pay in advance as well by the way. If we were not sure we booked on board. If shuttles were not provided free by the port you were charged £5 per person,but that covered numverous trips. If you are in a suite you get them free.

Shuttle buses take you from the ship into the port/town and back again.

We have done two FO cruises. The excursions are very expensive, so I always do my home work beforehand and either book local tours or hire a car.

There is so much info on the internet these days that it is simple to organise.

We are on Braemare to Cape Verde and West Africa. I already have a local tour booked in Banjul. My guess is that is a third less than the FO price will be.

I don,t think Freds., tours are any more expensive than other cruise lines or travel companies. Of course its mostly cheaper to "do it yourself".:)

In response we do have a designated line for pre booking tours if you wish to book or discuss any in particular please call one of our Tours Sales Consultant 01473 292394.

Regards

FOCL

We have found P&O tours are much cheaper than FO (usually by around 25% - we compared Norway in a Nutshell where both excursions are the same - FO much more expensive). However we went with HAL to Alaska recently and the tours there were very very expensive.

However we still usually book tours prior to sailing to make sure we get the ones we want. The problem with booking yourself is if there is a problem and the ship gets delayed. Or even worse if you are on a self booked tour and they get delayed and you arrive back to see the stern disappearing over the horizon. At least if you are on an official FO tour they will wait for you. But it would save quite a chunk of dosh if you are prepared to take the risk.

We are on a FO Caribbean cruise and it is very easy to arrange private pre booked tours. In many ports of call the ship doesn't depart until 23.00, so on a small island it would be very bad luck to miss the ship.

All Caribbean islands have mini buses and taxis at the port areas, so not really necessary to pre book. I have done a lot of research and the tours offered are the same as those offered by the cruise lines but at a fraction of the price.

We visited Gambia 2 years ago and booked with tillys tours, run by a British lady so no problem getting back to the Ship on time. She has loads of local information so well worth contacting. Ship excursions are great for the company of larger groups, seeing things off the beaten track or having a tour personalized for you and your interests is a different matter. Who ever you go with, enjoy your visit.