unclegrandpa

54 minutes ago, JWGrayson said:

I was looking for info on the Historical Philipsburg By Bicycle tour from our ship (Norwegian Viva) that will be in St. Martin on April 10, 2024. It appears that you took a similar 3 hour tour. How were the bikes and would you recommend that tour? We have been to the island many times and that is about the only excursion that interests me. 

 

Thanks, John

It is ok for what it is, a 3 hour tour. I personally prefer full day group tours if it's hiking or bicycling. So it depends on what you plan to do for the rest of the day.

It was good for me because it let me rent the bike from them on the spot and go over to the French side. So I toured Phillipsburg with the group for the first half of the day and then did the French side on my own for the rest of the day. I would recommend this tour to people who plan to do it this way or have something else planned. 

The bikes were ok. The helmets were ok as well. They were the cheapest Trek bicycles, hybrid type. They were better bicycles than a bicycle I got on my St Lucia rainforest tour. Over there neither the bicycles nor helmets were ok.

2 hours ago, yarramar said:

A Dandenong Ranges shore excursion with a tour company would be an ideal use of your time while in Melbourne. E.g. https://greatprivatetours.com.au/product/dandenong-ranges-tour/

However if you wish to DIY, for your $17 Myki card, you could catch the 109 tram to Swanston St then walk to Flinders St station (about 25 minutes total) Then catch the train to Belgrave which is about an hour. At Belgrave you can go on Puffing Billy through the rainforest to Gembrook & back but you need to book this (extra cost) as it is very popular.

From Belgrave to the Dandenong Ranges is only a short Uber ride (although there are PTV busses) but what will you do once you get there? It is a lovely area for a drive around the little villages looking at the craft shops and having afternoon tea as well as walking through the lovely gardens and for some breathtaking views. Going by Uber or bus wouldn't be as enjoyable.

 

I need to learn more about that area. I first had an impression that that was like a national park with a trail system. So I was planning to take Uber to a trail head, hike and/or run for a couple hours and then take Uber back to Melbourne. If it's just villages and gardens with no forest that definitely won't be much fun then

Anyone considering Dandenong Ranges? Seems like about 1 hour away and around A$100 each way using Uber. Does not seem horribly far or super expensive.

I will look. This may be too complicated for me. I prefer to use sites that have a straightforward way of canceling everything. NCL started changing our itenarary again today. So this is all up in the air again. 

There is a lot to see. It just all either starts or ends at the wrong time or takes longer than the time the ship is there. Unless you are a museum geek or able to rent and drive a car on your own, choices are not that great. 

6 hours ago, yarramar said:

At a whopping $482 AUD PP, you could catch a taxi there and back and have plenty more for a wonderful lunch. With 2 of you, you can save double!!

If you have your heart set on Sovereign Hill (or any other excursion) Send an email to the tour guide I linked. You will have a much better experience being driven in luxury without worrying about 50 other passengers jostling for attention. All for far less than being scammed by NCL

I don't think so. First it's only one person and not two. Secondly the NCL excursion includes other things besides just a ride to Sovereign Hill. They also take you to Balarat. All fees are probably included. So it would be equivalent to 3 long taxi drives plus all the entry fees.

I get $50 USD off one excursion in each port plus a 10 percent discount. So it would probably be more like $250 USD which is still a lot. But makes more sense than paying for a taxi. 

1 hour ago, possum52 said:

I find it odd that Norwegian Spirit is not offering excursions in Melbourne or are they all booked out? As you are only in Melbourne for nine hours, you may be better sight seeing around the city. Melbourne has a fairly easy to use public transport system of trams, buses and trains. We have museums, art galleries, a fantastic sporting precinct (you will be here while the Australian Tennis Open is on at Melbourne Park), wonderful gardens and parks all in or on the fringe of the central business district (CBD). Melbourne has great cafes, bars and restaurants. The lanes and arcades are interesting to walk through. There is Melbourne Zoo and a bit further afield Healesville Sanctuary where you will see Australian native animals and birds. 

 

Perhaps, if you haven't already, join the roll call for your cruise and see if there are others who would be interested in joining you on an excursion. 

 

They are sold out. Normally they just add more. So I am not sure how all of them are sold out. Their website says they usually do Sovereign Hill and Wildlife Park. https://www.ncl.com/shore-excursions/MEL_01/Sovereign-Hill-Wildlife-Park

I understand it's 113km or about 80 minutes each way. 

I am usually interested in outdoor activities. I would look at the museums there if there is nothing else to do

On 12/31/2023 at 2:26 AM, yarramar said:

You could try these people

They say the tour is 8 hours, but they also have many other tours to offer from Melbourne and Station Pier

Those don't seem to be bookable online. Unless I am missing something. 

I am planning to be in Melbourne with Norwegian Spirit on January 19. They don't offer any shore excursions for that port, and I was wondering if it's possible to book anything online on my own or maybe at the port itself. I looked at viator but pretty much everything is 12-13 hours and doesn't work with the time I am in that port. I would be interested in doing the Sovereign Hill and the Wildlife Park excursion. Or something similar.

Which companies offer shore excursions in Melbourne that you can book yourself online? 

On 12/28/2023 at 8:29 PM, Ja9Clay said:

We rented bikes in two locations on our December 9 Celebrity Edge...Napier and Dunedin. We used Napier Bike and tour and did the Waterways to Winery self tour (rental bike, helmet, map) and they pick you up at the Church Road Winery at a set time. It was across the street from where the bus drop you off from the port and they did a great job. For Dunedin, we used ihirebikedunedin.com or something like that. We met at their office/home in Dunedin or drop it off at the Library in Port Chambers (recommended). We did the loop with the port to port bike ferry and had an awesome day. The bike trails in New Zealand were absolutely beautiful. 

Did you have to make any reservations or did they have bicycles available? 

In my case the NZ ETA app did not scan the passport number correctly. For example it put in BB instead of 88. It does not read the chip like the Australian app does. So be careful and double check everything.

I am planning to rent a bicycle to ride on the off-road trails or go to some hiking trails from the port and just for general sightseeing. The ports of call are Dunedin, Timaru, Wellington, Napier, and Tauranga.

Would I usually need to rent a bicycle in advance or is it possible to do it on the spot? I found some stores in Dunedin and Wellington. But I have not received any response from them yet. I will probably call them on skype or something like that if no one here responds.

Is it ok to leave a bicycle at the hiking trail head or is it uncommon/unsafe?

I understand that the December 23 cruise had more stops originally. I am aware of the places where the ship isn't docked and it's just another day at sea. 

It's strange to me that they don't just add more excursions like they did on all the other cruises I was on. We will see what happens to the January 4 cruise. If they don't have any more port cancellations that would look better. 

7 minutes ago, cruiser2015 said:

I'm on a cruise 4 days before yours.

One excursion I wanted was sold out (was available shortly before I went to book). But they did open it again weeks later.

I saw others disappearing with time.

All - for every port - sounds crazy.

Perhaps you need to quickly check out some outside tours. There may be enough savings to offset the credits NCL offers (off of their usually inflated pricing).

I was not saying all. There were like 11 left total. Some ports have nothing. The ones that are left are mostly just a couple hours.

Of course I don't have to have an excursion in each port and I don't have to buy from them. If you book outside tours and they cancel ports you may not be able to get the excursion money left after a certain time.

It's normal for them to go back on sale because some people cancel.

6 minutes ago, cruiser2015 said:

Wow, that does seem weird.

You called about port changes. Did you call and ask about excursions?

They have a department for that (I've spoken to them).

Also, NCL's site seems to be buggy at times. Could be a temporary glitch.

Call and if trips are available, I believe they can book them for you.

I did call them. They just say they are sold out. In case of other cruises they would just keep adding more excursions, more buses. The local authorities may limit traffic or something. But because I never experienced this before and they cancelled ports for the same cruise on a different date, I am concerned.

Besides if you buy from them you get 50 dollars off on excursions as part of the fare and 10 percent off after a few cruises with them. So you end up losing that benefit if you cannot book anything even if you do end up in that port.

3 minutes ago, cruiser2015 said:

How far off is the departure?

They may not show excursions or show partials if you are more than a few months away.

 

Personally, I doubt they pump up the port list expecting to intentionally drop some later.

January 16.

I just never saw them to not offer anything. That is why it seems weird.

I booked a cruise to Australia/New Zealand with NCL. I chose them because they have fewer days at sea than other cruise lines. I noticed today that some ports offer no shore excursions. I also learned that the December 23 cruise had several ports removed. I started worrying that they offer no excursions because they will be removing some ports. I have never been on a cruise where no excursions were being offered weeks before the cruise.

My question is have they ever stopped in as many ports as they showed when you were buying a cruise to Australia/New Zealand or do they always do it to make people think they have fewer days at sea than other cruise lines?

I talked to their customer service, and they told me they could remove ports without providing any reason and do not have to reimburse anyone.

40 minutes ago, Motorcycle Gma said:

Can you tell me where to look for this car parking pass? Thx

https://www.recreation.gov/ticket/300017/ticket/3020

2 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

Yes.  Hawaii does not have a "sales tax", they have a GET (General Excise Tax), the difference is that GET is charged on services as well as goods.  For the OP, you will find that any purchases made on the ship, while it is within 3 miles of shore will be charged GET as well (shops, drinks, etc).  Each night, when the ship gets outside the 3 mile limit, the bridge notifies the purser, and the POS registers are reset to not charge GET.

Are you saying that if I buy the excursion on the ship I won't get charged the tax as long as the ship is 3 miles away? 

I booked a couple shore excursions for Pride of America. I noticed that they are charging tax on top of the list price. I have not had to pay tax on NCL shore excursions before. Is this something new or is this because it is an American ship so they are required to charge tax? Do they charge it if you book shore excursions on board as well?

If anyone is interested I did rent a bicycle at the pier and rode to Marigot. I went on the road with cars. It's about 11km rather than the 9km route I was originally thinking of. It took me about 40 minutes. It's not too bad. There weren't many bicyclists but I did see a few. There was some traffic on the Dutch side close to the French border. There was also sidewalk in that area that I used to go around the waiting cars. It's not hot yet this time of the year.

Trisports told me most people rent their bicycles at the airport. I was able to rent it at the pier because they were giving a bicycle tour for the cruisers. I first did a tour with them for 3 hours in Phillipsburg that I purchased on the ship. The bicycle rental itself was 20 dollars. They told me to lock the bike to the other bikes and take a picture when I return it

930AM flights are as expensive as 2 pm flights. So that makes no difference. Has anyone been able to leave the ship at around 6-630? Or does it never happen? I think the deadline for me to be out is 630AM.

There are dozens of options for 5-8AM at the fraction of the cost of the after 10AM flights. Cruisers make a huge impact. 

6 minutes ago, Daycare Provider said:

Way too early... you have to go through customs at the pier then the Ag inspection at the aiport.   Don't forget TSA lines.... best option is 11:00 am or later.  We are actually staying an extra night and flying out very early the next morning.  This option was much cheaper than trying to get a mid day flight.

What time was the earliest people started disembarking there? I didn't have to wait to go through customs and immigration last year. It's all automated now. Didn't take long for the TSA either. I have Global Entry so at least I can go to a separate line.

I am more concerned about being able to get off the boat on time. I noticed that time could be unpredictable. 

Next morning isn't cheaper for me because you have to pay for a hotel and lose work hours. 1 AM flights are cheaper. But then you can't really work the next day either. 

Our ship is scheduled to arrive at 6AM. If anyone had this arrival time with RCL, what was the earliest people were able to get off ship?

I am trying find the cheapest possible flight. The only reasonably priced option is 750AM. Probably too early. But I am still hoping it might work.

You have to have a pass from the the forest service in order to be able to park at the main entrance to El Yunque. I have been trying to obtain one. It has not been possible. I was able to get one a year ago but never went. I understand they sell out instantly. You can still enter some parts of El Yunque from another side. However, that is far from the major trails such as El Yunque trail or the Tower Trail.