Excursion sold out ! Over 2 months prior to cruise!

[tbtma]

Im mad ! But I guess its my own fault!! Cruising on the gem in late April ( my first cruise on NCL, but not to cruising) I have NEVER had to book an excursion this far in advance! We had planned to book the Escape to Jost Van Dyke excursion on our Tortola stop, I go to book it last night & it not available any longer, Im guessing because it probably sold out. I will call NCL in a bit but Im not holding out much hope. Its just odd to me that this is the "new way of cruising" where you have to book show times, dinner times & excursions months in advance!

[aenglish1609]

Just book through a private vendor.

[KeithJenner]

The excursions seem quite random lately. Some have been going online very late and I have seen entire days which were previously available on some of my upcoming cruises disappear.

 

I don't know the specifics of the excursion you are referring to but, unless it is something with particularly low capacity I'd be surprised if it has actually sold out.

 

If it has actually sold out then I'd take the advice given and book privately. In fact, I'd take that advice anyway.

[Turtles06]

Just book through a private vendor.

 

The Gem is only in Tortola from 7am-1pm, which can make taking a private excursion a little dicey.

 

OP, we just returned from the Gem. I would call NCL and see what they say. We had excursions disappear then reappear on the web site.

 

Hope you can get what you want!

[bluesea777]

Only a certain % of excursions (I think about 30-40%) are sold online and the rest on the ship, so you need to make a beeline to the excursion desk once you board.

[tbtma]

Thanks for the advice guys! Yes I do plan on contacting NCL this morning. We've been to Jost Van Dyke & really wanted to go back, its an extremely small island & can understand if the excursion has been sold out, when we stayed there everyone talked about how crowded the island gets when a cruise ship is in Tortola ( now we are the cruise ship people...lol)

Ive done independent excursions in the past & actually like them better however because of the limited time in Tortola, this was one that I felt better booking directly with NCL, also Ive done a little research & really didn't even find an independent to JVD for the limited time we are in Tortola.

 

Thanks!

Bonnie

[Moby0215]

Im mad ! But I guess its my own fault!! Cruising on the gem in late April ( my first cruise on NCL, but not to cruising) I have NEVER had to book an excursion this far in advance! We had planned to book the Escape to Jost Van Dyke excursion on our Tortola stop, I go to book it last night & it not available any longer, Im guessing because it probably sold out. I will call NCL in a bit but Im not holding out much hope. Its just odd to me that this is the "new way of cruising" where you have to book show times, dinner times & excursions months in advance!

 

 

Better to do it months in advance then to have to check in early and make a beeline for the excursion desk and wait in line and waste time of your cruise. But like others have said, it probably isn't sold out. And if it is, just do it yourself.

 

 

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Edited February 12, 2016 by Moby0215

[peg013]

Only a certain % of excursions (I think about 30-40%) are sold online and the rest on the ship, so you need to make a beeline to the excursion desk once you board.

 

I'm not sure this is true anymore. I tried to book an excursion in Bermuda within minutes of boarding the Breakaway last year (1st Boarding Group since we are Platinum) and was told it had already sold out online and we could only be put on a waiting list. I waited to book because I had a ton of OBC I wanted to use. We ended up booking a replacement but it wasn't our first or second choice. :mad: If we didn't have the OBC we wouldn't have even booked thru NCL in Bermuda. It's so easy to do on your own.

Edited February 12, 2016 by peg013

[david_sobe]

This does happen. The St John excursions sell out fast. If you plan one, definitely book in advance.

[punkincc]

It is true that NCL does not book up these excursions 100% pre cruise. We did this excursion through the ship and it is very popular. They were offering two different time slots, and from something the Captain of our catamoran said, I got the impression that they had perhaps added a third one due to demand.

 

We took the earliest time slot, and the place was near deserted when we arrived. Even when we left, I would not call it crowded.

 

I like to book things independently as well, but I would be very careful about going to JVD on a non ship exc. It is a very long trip over to JVD. If the vendor you hire is not reliable, you could be stuck. I would check them out carefully.

 

Look for info and advice on alternate options on the ports of call board for Tortola here on cruise critic.

[Sotermarler]

We had the same problem on our Nov Escape cruise. I waited too long to book it and it filled up, but 2 weeks before the cruise a second excursion opened so we booked it!

 

I wished we would have booked that right away though because When we got in the ship we were told it was canceled, then the next day it opened up again. We had the later group and the beach was more crowded than I expected (not crazy) as the Escape and the Aida was in port.

I asked the Captain why our excursion was booked and then canceled. She said because Aida pays $10 more per head, and they wanted a second excursion,but since they couldn't fill a second excursion they canceled with them and opened up to NCL again. It all worked out and was so happy it did. Don't give up!

 

 

 

 

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[HowardK]

How far in advance does Joost Van Dyke and the St Thomas excursons show up for the Escape? Nassau is available for my December 17th but not the other two ports!

[Demonyte]

Only a certain % of excursions (I think about 30-40%) are sold online and the rest on the ship, so you need to make a beeline to the excursion desk once you board.

 

 

This is not true, you have been saying this already in the past and you have been corrected then. There definitely are excursions that can sell out completely pre-cruise.

[zqvol]

Im mad ! But I guess its my own fault!! Cruising on the gem in late April ( my first cruise on NCL, but not to cruising) I have NEVER had to book an excursion this far in advance! We had planned to book the Escape to Jost Van Dyke excursion on our Tortola stop, I go to book it last night & it not available any longer, Im guessing because it probably sold out. I will call NCL in a bit but Im not holding out much hope. Its just odd to me that this is the "new way of cruising" where you have to book show times, dinner times & excursions months in advance!

 

 

Don't be so sure that it is sold out. They may not be offering it because you are not in port long enough.

[Demonyte]

How far in advance does Joost Van Dyke and the St Thomas excursons show up for the Escape?

 

 

As KeithJenner implied earlier in the thread, there is no set schedule when excursions become available, so there is no way of telling when your ports' excursions show up.

[zqvol]

This is not true, you have been saying this already in the past and you have been corrected then. There definitely are excursions that can sell out completely pre-cruise.

 

 

You are incorrect. They appear to be sold out on line but they always reserve a few spaces for sale on board the ship do accommodate people who do not have access to computers. You really should not correct people when you don't have accurate information.

[Demonyte]

You are incorrect. They appear to be sold out on line but they always reserve a few spaces for sale on board the ship do accommodate people who do not have access to computers. You really should not correct people when you don't have accurate information.

 

 

Still not true. I've witnessed first hand not being able to book a Cabana on GSC before noon onboard on embarkation day, all cabanas were pre-booked months before the cruise.

[tbtma]

OP here, Called NCL confirmed, SOLD OUT ! 2 plus months in advance!

Maybe I should order my entrée for the first nights dinner now!

[ptuder]

We booked this excursion 5 months before our Escape cruise and at that time we were told it was over 50% booked. It was wonderful and I'll book it again once excursions are posted for our October cruise. They explained that the catamaran holds 50 people and they have 2 times available so only 100 spots available.

 

We got to know the excursion desk manager on our cruise and she said that it is one of the most popular and with the limited availability is always sold out with a wait list.

 

Can you ask to be put on a wait list in case someone cancels? I hope it works out for you, it was a nice but short day trip.

[Tinyturtle22]

You are incorrect. They appear to be sold out on line but they always reserve a few spaces for sale on board the ship do accommodate people who do not have access to computers. You really should not correct people when you don't have accurate information.

 

You are incorrect. Excursions are not in any way held back. If they sell out online it is possible they will add additional spots but that is not always possible on such excursions as JVD or Maya Key in Roatan. Feel free to call the excursion department and ask them.

Edited February 12, 2016 by Tinyturtle22