Free shore excursions

We have 5 free shore excursions for our cruise next year.

Questions:

1) when can you book these excursions? Before the cruise starts or while you are on board?

2) can they be any of the listed $ excursions shown or are they id'd as free. So restricting your choices

Thanks

You must book them pre-cruise.

Note - must be booked latest 14 days pre cruise to be counted as "free".

Any excursion that is not OE or OC is eligible for "free" excursions.

You must book them pre-cruise.

Note - must be booked latest 14 days pre cruise to be counted as "free".

Any excursion that is not OE or OC is eligible for "free" excursions.

Not really "free" They are included. We are paying for them in our cruise fare. There is no free lunch. We pay for everything one way or another. That being said I think they are a pretty good deal. We took a bunch in July and most were good. :):):)

Not really "free" They are included. We are paying for them in our cruise fare. There is no free lunch. We pay for everything one way or another. That being said I think they are a pretty good deal. We took a bunch in July and most were good. :):):)

Indeed, they are not free - hence the " ".

They are a good deal for those that don't mind ship excursions. They usually add up to more than the OBC offered (as another O Life choice).

I called the Excursion department for my January cruise. On that cruise I was told that any excursion under $199 would qualify for the free excursion. If I selected one over that limit, it was my responsibility to pay for that side trip in entirety, I could not pay the difference.

I called the Excursion department for my January cruise. On that cruise I was told that any excursion under $199 would qualify for the free excursion. If I selected one over that limit, it was my responsibility to pay for that side trip in entirety, I could not pay the difference.

That may be new or inaccurate information.

AFAIK, any excursion that is not OE or OC qualifies for the "free" excursions, regardless of price. It just so happens that most (if not all) excursions that are not OE or OC are under $199.

If I am wrong, I am sure others will correct me.

That may be new or inaccurate information.

 

AFAIK, any excursion that is not OE or OC qualifies for the "free" excursions, regardless of price. It just so happens that most (if not all) excursions that are not OE or OC are under $199.

 

If I am wrong, I am sure others will correct me.

You are correct. OP needs to read the fine print.

To really evaluate the value of the free excursions, you would need to consider the cost and relative convenience of a private tour or group tours with a local vendor. Ship prices seem to be about double the independently bookable group tours. Small groups through the roll call can be even better.

My thought is that ship tours may work best when they involve a distance from the ship, a tight time frame, and/or something you really don't want to miss out on.

If you can easily get to that museum from the dock or you just want a scenic tour of the town, it could be easiest to just catch a cab when you get ashore.

Mary

Indeed, they are not free - hence the " ".

They are a good deal for those that don't mind ship excursions. They usually add up to more than the OBC offered (as another O Life choice).

You are totally right. This was the first time we took more than one ships tour and they were pretty good. Not as good as the private tours we are used to taking but looking at the pricing it was more than O.K. Like the difference of driving a Buick or a Cadillac. Sometimes it is good to drive the Buick. I think we got good value for the "free" tours. Would do it again.:)

That may be new or inaccurate information.

AFAIK, any excursion that is not OE or OC qualifies for the "free" excursions, regardless of price. It just so happens that most (if not all) excursions that are not OE or OC are under $199.

If I am wrong, I am sure others will correct me.

We booked our 5 excursions for our cruise on Sirena this January. All tours are free up to $199.00 only. If you choose 6 tours they charge you the one that is the cheapest. We booked this cruise last October 2015. As of last week all category stateroom's have increased in price to $600.00 per cabin with only 4 free excursions.

We booked our 5 excursions for our cruise on Sirena this January. All tours are free up to $199.00 only.

What happens if you book the 5 "free" tours & one is more than $199 do they allow it or charge you the difference ?

I really couldn't tell you, I never asked. All our excursions where under $199.00.

If a excursion is 209. O will NOT let you pay difference. I asked this week about that. A firm no. Your 5 must all be 199.00 or under. If you puck a higher priced one you will be charged full price.

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If a excursion is 209. O will NOT let you pay difference. I asked this week about that. A firm no. Your 5 must all be 199.00 or under. If you puck a higher priced one you will be charged full price.

 

 

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Can anyone please find and quote a shore excursion on their cruise that is not OE or OC and is OVER $199?

If not, this point is moot.

sorry another question

Do the ones with a meal included are they part of the "free" excursion deal ?

sorry another question

 

Do the ones with a meal included are they part of the "free" excursion deal ?

Some are. got to check each one.

We just finished a cruise with five "free" excursions. We greatly prefer private tours or DIY touring but we booked and used the five tours. I chose to use them in less important ports and ports we have been to previously.

There were lots of $169 tours to choose from, I don't remember if any offered a meal. We chose excursions of four hour duration, priced mostly at $119. We didn't worry about the published cost as we don't care for extended days on and off a cruise bus.

As it turned out several tours were fairly good, full of content. We were reasonably satisfied but happy that our next Oceania cruise does not include free excursions. Instead we are getting lots of shipboard credit.

Question, what do you do with that much OBC?

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Question, what do you do with that much OBC?

 

 

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Good question. We will probably book a ship excursion or try to find something in the boutique to give as a gift.

I would rather they deducted the credits from the total cruise price but we know that won't happen.

Question, what do you do with that much OBC?

 

If you do not have PPG it will be used for that

some people buy drinks, shop, spa treatments, excursions, laundry

on the O class ships maybe cooking classes, Privee or La Reserve if space available

Question, what do you do with that much OBC?

 

 

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You can book some of the "better" excursions not available with the OLife free tours. Or wine, beverage package, spa, something from the gift shop.

Mary

sorry another question

 

Do the ones with a meal included are they part of the "free" excursion deal ?

Yes, we had one in June to Santiago De Compostela that included lunch.

Still the Oceania written policy for the excursions states any excursion that is not classified as "OC" or "OE." Price is not mentioned in writing. So far, the included excursions have been under $199, whether by Oceania design or just chance??

Yes, we had one in June to Santiago De Compostela that included lunch.

 

Still the Oceania written policy for the excursions states any excursion that is not classified as "OC" or "OE." Price is not mentioned in writing. So far, the included excursions have been under $199, whether by Oceania design or just chance??

Yes, I agree with your statement above and that is what I said in post # 6

Just out of curiosity, was your tour to S d C w/lunch under $199? I would think that it would have been more.

It was $199.

Yes, we had one in June to Santiago De Compostela that included lunch.

 

Thanks