Did the shore excursions shown up in your "personalizer" when expected

[hpeabody]

We are now at 115 days to embarkation day and there is no sign of the remainder of the ships shore excursions. Shore excursions for some ports were actually rolled out very early. I always thought it was at 120 days out. Has there been a change to when they roll out the shore excursions that I missed?

 

What has been your experience, Did your shore excursions show up later than you expected?

 

FYI: Crown Princess, Oct 18, 2014

 

Just curious

[Astro Flyer]

We are now at 115 days to embarkation day and there is no sign of the remainder of the ships shore excursions. Shore excursions for some ports were actually rolled out very early. I always thought it was at 120 days out. Has there been a change to when they roll out the shore excursions that I missed?

 

What has been your experience, Did your shore excursions show up later than you expected?

 

FYI: Crown Princess, Oct 18, 2014

 

Just curious

Generally the range is between 90-120 days before sailing.

[canadarocks]

My cruise's shore excursions came out about a week ago, and we are at 247 days away today! So there's no hard and fast rule obviously.

[Astro Flyer]

My cruise's shore excursions came out about a week ago, and we are at 247 days away today! So there's no hard and fast rule obviously.

 

I had them available 330 days before a Med/TA cruise but it's definitely not normal.

[skynight]

Excursions show up once Princess has finalized the contracts with the providers usually not later than 90 days, but it can be sooner, much sooner. Keep watching. In some ports, where they visit all the time, they show up early. Some show up later, especially those at the beginning of a new season. For our Hawaii trip next February the excursions are there now.

[sassyredhat]

We are just over 80 days out and no excursions for us yet.:(

Pat

[beg3yrs]

If the itinerary is one less traveled it may take longer for some of them to show up. As a previous poster said, they certainly won't show up until the contracts with the tour operators are finalized.

 

In my experience they can show up piecemeal with new tours showing up after many have already been posted on-line for the same port. It helps to keep checking for updates.

 

Our last cruise was a single logical booking (one booking number) which was in reality two segments of 31 and 30 days B2B. One tour for the first segment showed up on the personalizer two days before we departed for the embarkation port. Tours for a port on the second segment did not show up until after we had embarked on the first segment and because of the single booking number, we could not book anything for that second segment port because our personalizer had closed. We had to wait until the first day of the second segment to book on-board at the excursion office.

[Pam in CA]

Excursions show up once Princess has finalized the contracts with the providers usually not later than 90 days, but it can be sooner, much sooner. Keep watching. In some ports, where they visit all the time, they show up early. Some show up later, especially those at the beginning of a new season. For our Hawaii trip next February the excursions are there now.

Right. The excursions can show up at any time. The 90-120 days is just an estimate, not a guarantee. It all depends on when the contracts with the tour operators are signed. Like this poster, my February 2015 HI cruise excursions were available a couple of months ago. Other times, excursions at some ports were available close to sailing or even after boarding.

 

If you are taking a cruise that's repeated annually and often, excursions are usually available early. If the cruise has a port or ports that the line doesn't go to very often, it can take a lot longer and they won't be available until closer to your sailing.

[Emma Chisit]

Our last cruise was a single logical booking (one booking number) which was in reality two segments of 31 and 30 days B2B. One tour for the first segment showed up on the personalizer two days before we departed for the embarkation port. Tours for a port on the second segment did not show up until after we had embarked on the first segment and because of the single booking number, we could not book anything for that second segment port because our personalizer had closed. We had to wait until the first day of the second segment to book on-board at the excursion office.

 

Was that the West Africa cruise? We are on the Singapore to Dover cruise in 2015, booked as one 62 day cruise. (Many of us on that cruise have been monitoring this year's cruise.) I noticed that the overnight safari excursion from East London was not posted until much later than the other excursions. We would like to do something like that - and would probably do the Princess offering - but not if it is offered very late in the piece. Also, if we are blocked from booking Princess shorex for the Capetown to Dover segment because we booked the cruise as one entity Singapore to Dover, we will not wait till we are already on the cruise to book shorex but will simply book private tours instead.

 

Why does Princess do this?

[satxdiver]

As already stated it is when they get all the excrusions finalized. We have two cruises one in 141 days and one in 248 days and both have excursions available and have had for some time. We have another one booked to leave in 205 days and we are still waiting. Of course booking with private tour agencies is available and we have already started booking for the cruise in 205 days.

[beg3yrs]

Was that the West Africa cruise? We are on the Singapore to Dover cruise in 2015, booked as one 62 day cruise. (Many of us on that cruise have been monitoring this year's cruise.) I noticed that the overnight safari excursion from East London was not posted until much later than the other excursions. We would like to do something like that - and would probably do the Princess offering - but not if it is offered very late in the piece. Also, if we are blocked from booking Princess shorex for the Capetown to Dover segment because we booked the cruise as one entity Singapore to Dover, we will not wait till we are already on the cruise to book shorex but will simply book private tours instead.

 

Why does Princess do this?

 

Yes, it was on the West Africa cruise. I'd strongly recommend you book privately if you want to do the overnight excursions. Reports we got from both types were so much better from the private folk. Mind you, this is now second-hand information so beware this is through my personal "lens".

 

Two major excursions didn't show up until very late. The overland Taj Mahal was posted very late but we weren't going to do that one anyway. After-action reports indicated that this tour was severely time impacted and was rush-rush-rush to get it all in. This included one of the nights in a five-star hotel only being for a few hours as they had to leave at 2:30AM to get to the airport!

 

Personally we had been very interested in a three-night Princess excursion starting with the Durban port at a highly rated game reserve (Phinda). Of course it showed up as an "example" excursion on the web-pages enticing you to book for about $2,000 per person. That covered all transport from Durban to Phinda and then to meet the ship in Cape Town. Once booked on the cruise, nothing showed in the Personalizer for Phinda until about a week before embarkation and then it was just one night at Phinda for $1699 per person. Yuck. We opted for game drives in Durban and then East London. We felt that was probably a better deal than the Princess overnight and we very much enjoyed them. Well worth the money.

 

We spoke to others who privately booked Phinda as well as other private reserves for the three nights and had a great time. Several got to see the "Big Five" as well as live kills. They were tired when they got back to Cape Town but thought it was well worth it.

 

Ceuta (Spanish Morocco) was the port which had NOTHING posted until shortly after we were on the first segment. The excursion office on-board would not entertain any booking until the start of the second segment. This precluded anyone booked as a single cruise to reserve until Cape Town while all others (those on separate B2B bookings or those embarking in Cape Town) could still book on-line. After all was said and done though, we still got the excursions we wanted although we may have missed a small difference in excursion fare.

 

Why does Princess do this? I suppose some of it is that a B2B consisting of two long individual segments in places less-traveled doesn't happen all that often, their software just can't handle it and they don't bother to fix it. But hey, how do they handle a World Cruise?

[Emma Chisit]

As already stated it is when they get all the excrusions finalized.

 

Hi satxdiver. I realize I wasn't clear......The response from beg3yrs below clarifies what I was trying to say. I do understand that Princess has difficulty in getting some excursions finalised in exotic places, so they will show up very late on the personalizer. Especially in West Africa, I imagine - have spent some time there - so I know how things work (or don't...:D)....

However, apparently the excursions were already available in advance for most of the Capetown to Dover portion of the cruise this year. They just could not be booked by anyone who booked the cruise as a single cruise from Singapore to Dover as beg3yrs discovered. Whereas those with B2B bookings or on the Capetown - Dover cruise could book these excursions. This seems to be due to shortcomings in the software used by Princess.

 

 

 

The excursion office on-board would not entertain any booking until the start of the second segment. This precluded anyone booked as a single cruise to reserve until Cape Town while all others (those on separate B2B bookings or those embarking in Cape Town) could still book on-line. After all was said and done though, we still got the excursions we wanted although we may have missed a small difference in excursion fare.

 

Why does Princess do this? I suppose some of it is that a B2B consisting of two long individual segments in places less-traveled doesn't happen all that often, their software just can't handle it and they don't bother to fix it. But hey, how do they handle a World Cruise?

 

Thanks so much beg3yrs for all the info in your post, which is extremely useful in helping us decide how to organise excursions for our cruise....

When I commented "Why does Princess do this?" I meant that I did not understand why they prevent those people who booked a single cruise Singapore - Dover from booking excursions for the post Capetown ports. Whereas B2B bookings and post-Capetown cruisers can book the excursions. I agree it must be a software issue, but it seems unfair. And, as you say, how do they handle World Cruises?

 

I had read something about this situation on your Roll Call for this year .....But anyway, I am encouraged to hear that you got to go on all the Princess excursions you wanted...Hope you complained on board when you could not book till Capetown, so they can maybe sort out their software issues by next year...

[cherylandtk]

I just wanted to second what was said earlier about excursions tending to be added after the bulk are posted....keep checking because you never know what new or interesting adventure might be added at a later date.

[beg3yrs]

I just wanted to second what was said earlier about excursions tending to be added after the bulk are posted....keep checking because you never know what new or interesting adventure might be added at a later date.

 

Yes, even check once you are on board as there may yet be another update. I've seen things added half-way through a cruise.