Private Excursions and Worried Passengers

[kazu]

Private tours in the Caribbean may be a bit different than what I've experienced in Europe. There, private tour operators seem to be well organized and very time conscious. I have never felt as if I were in danger of missing the ship (and I've taken some quite lengthy tours, including in Israel and Sicily, that involve traveling a long distance from the ship).

 

I've done a few private tours in the Caribbean and many in Europe and my general experience has been that the European private operators are more professional overall and definitely more time conscious. We've taken some long ones in Europe too and I have never had cause for concern. In the Caribbean I had to tell one operator - NO, we don't have time to stop for coffee. Back to the ship please.

[Hlitner]

The OP raises an interesting issue. DW and I are very independent travelers and have spent lots of time (both here and when on cruises) helping folks who want to do things on their own in ports around the world. Years ago we would try to convince some...that doing your own thing or taking a private tour were much better options then the cattle calls known as Cruise Line Excursions. But then we realized that everyone has their own "comfort level" and "spirit of adventure" and some folks have issues even walking off a ship without a guide. So now, we still try to help folks. But when they ask a question such as "what if we do not get back to the ship on time" or "is it safe" our quick response is to smile and suggest they just book a cruise line excursion.

 

Hank

Edited January 21, 2017 by Hlitner

[Copper10-8]

Here's the big difference between private and ship-organized excursions re: coming back late to the ship for whatever reason:

 

Ship-organized excursions; there is always (cell phone) contact between the bus driver and/or bus tour guide and the ship (via the tour operator). The ship will know where the bus is as well as a pretty close ETA as to when it will return

 

Private excursions - 99% of the time, there is no contact between the driver and the ship and consequently, no one knows when that car/van/hooptie will return to the ship

[kazu]

Here's the big difference between private and ship-organized excursions re: coming back late to the ship for whatever reason:

 

Ship-organized excursions; there is always (cell phone) contact between the bus driver and/or bus tour guide and the ship (via the tour operator). The ship will know where the bus is as well as a pretty close ETA as to when it will return

 

Private excursions - 99% of the time, there is no contact between the driver and the ship and consequently, no one knows when that car/van/hooptie will return to the ship

 

I always take the Port information with me when we are on shore (whether we are DIY, on a private excursion or a HAL excursion). If we are on our own or a private tour I take my cell phone (although all our guides have had cell phones). We have never had to call, but we are always prepared in case.

 

I would think if one were to contact the number that the ship provides for each port, they would contact the ship?

[Copper10-8]

I always take the Port information with me when we are on shore (whether we are DIY, on a private excursion or a HAL excursion). If we are on our own or a private tour I take my cell phone (although all our guides have had cell phones). We have never had to call, but we are always prepared in case.

 

I would think if one were to contact the number that the ship provides for each port, they would contact the ship?

 

The ship's number is a satellite number; my suggestion is to take the local port agent's info with you and to call that agent's office phone number when your excursion is getting back beyond the All Aboard time. That's proving your provider has service in the foreign countries you'll be visiting. For a lot of pax, that's not the case; their driver would have to make that phone call

[kazu]

The ship's number is a satellite number; my suggestion is to take the local port agent's info with you and to call that agent's office phone number when your excursion is getting back beyond the All Aboard time. That's proving your provider has service in the foreign countries you'll be visiting. For a lot of pax, that's not the case; their driver would have to make that phone call

 

Sorry, I wasn't clear. That is what we take with us. It's in our port book and I always take that page. My cell phone has service in foreign countries. It's the only reason I got this cell phone ;)

 

thanks for confirming :)

[Copper10-8]

Sorry, I wasn't clear. That is what we take with us. It's in our port book and I always take that page. My cell phone has service in foreign countries. It's the only reason I got this cell phone ;)

 

thanks for confirming :)

 

It pays to be prepared ;)

[LocoLoco1]

The OP raises an interesting issue. DW and I are very independent travelers and have spent lots of time (both here and when on cruises) helping folks who want to do things on their own in ports around the world. Years ago we would try to convince some...that doing your own thing or taking a private tour were much better options then the cattle calls known as Cruise Line Excursions. But then we realized that everyone has their own "comfort level" and "spirit of adventure" and some folks have issues even walking off a ship without a guide. So now, we still try to help folks. But when they ask a question such as "what if we do not get back to the ship on time" or "is it safe" our quick response is to smile and suggest they just book a cruise line excursion.

 

Hank

Bingo!! LocoLoco1

[RDC1]

One advantage to the ship excursion is tht you know where it is going and is not likely to get diverted by some obnoxious passengers. The worst excursion I have ever been on was a CC small group where two couples took over the schedule and harassed the driver into making changes to see what they wanted to see and ignored the views of the other passengers. If you book a small group make sure you are compatable with the other folks. While small groups have their advantages (flexibility being one of them) they can also have some of their own problems.

[Appalachian Mountain Mama]

I can't say positively because HAL doesn't post the names of their tour operators but going by pictures posted on HAL's excursion page and the fact that the private tours often run at exactly the same times I'd be willing to bet they are the same tour companies. That being said if your private tour runs late then the HAL tour will also be late. Either way I make sure I'm covered for transport to the next port if we miss ship's movement.

 

 

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[kazu]

I can't say positively because HAL doesn't post the names of their tour operators but going by pictures posted on HAL's excursion page and the fact that the private tours often run at exactly the same times I'd be willing to bet they are the same tour companies. That being said if your private tour runs late then the HAL tour will also be late. Either way I make sure I'm covered for transport to the next port if we miss ship's movement.

 

 

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Actually some of the companies that HAL uses will not do private tours and vice versa - some of the private companies do not want to deal with the cruise ships ;)

 

While some tours may be similar itinerary wise, the depth is usually better IMO.

 

On our upcoming cruise some of the private tours we are doing are not offered by HAL. We have gone "outside the box" and we are looking forward to it :)

 

Sounds like you have your contingency plans for your private tours well covered :)

[thinfool]

The Falkland Islands are very small, population wise. We wanted to do a penguin excursion. Several were listed on the tourism page for the Falklands.

 

I wrote to one and the reply clearly stated that they were the coordinating firm for cruise line excursions. They did not take bookings from individuals. HAL's price for their excursion was about US$350.00

 

So I tried a different company. This one had no problem booking private groups. So we booked and had a fabulous time! Their price was about US$150. Same, exact tour...no...wait...we didn't get the little green sticker on our jackets that the HAL folks had.

 

We left the port area before the HAL tours and returned before the HAL tours, so there was no question about missing the ship.

[Cindy]

We are somewhat curious, inquisitive travelers who like to see a few famous sights but are far more interested in the people, life in a location, and getting off the beaten path. We book almost all independent tours, and the things we choose reflect those interests. Fortunately, I've been able to find like minded people through roll calls, and shared some fantastic times in the Baltics, Cartagena, and even Belize and Cozumel! Those were all longer cruises with fairly well-travelled people who seemed to share our interests. I've opened up the tours I booked for my upcoming Med cruise, and think I again have found some people we'll very much enjoy sharing our time and tours with. However...

 

It's really key that people going on private tours know what they are getting into.

 

I learned the hard way that when offering to share I need to be VERY specific about the details. On a 7-night Princess cruise, I opened up our unique plans for Roatan to the roll call, and had a family and 2 independent passengers who were eager to take the tour with us. The tour was to be a visit to the remote Garifuna villages, a canoe ride through the Mangrove Tunnels/Swamp, and lunch at a local restaurant recommended by our driver. Do you see "long shopping stop," "diversion to the drug store," or "trip to the local Mormon Temple" on the list? No, because they definitely weren't there until we got going in our van and they were added by our roll call friends!:mad: We were pretty angry, especially my husband, but since we were already underway we just let it slide as opposed to having an awkward day. It didn't ruin our tour, but it certainly wasn't what we expected when we left the ship that morning. It taught me to be very specific, and make sure people know exactly what a tour is going to be before they sign up.

[cruisemom42]

 

 

I learned the hard way that when offering to share I need to be VERY specific about the details. On a 7-night Princess cruise, I opened up our unique plans for Roatan to the roll call, and had a family and 2 independent passengers who were eager to take the tour with us. The tour was to be a visit to the remote Garifuna villages, a canoe ride through the Mangrove Tunnels/Swamp, and lunch at a local restaurant recommended by our driver. Do you see "long shopping stop," "diversion to the drug store," or "trip to the local Mormon Temple" on the list? No, because they definitely weren't there until we got going in our van and they were added by our roll call friends!:mad: We were pretty angry, especially my husband, but since we were already underway we just let it slide as opposed to having an awkward day. It didn't ruin our tour, but it certainly wasn't what we expected when we left the ship that morning. It taught me to be very specific, and make sure people know exactly what a tour is going to be before they sign up.

 

I've had similar experiences in Europe. Even when I thought I had made it abundantly clear that there were no planned shopping stops on my tours, people would talk to the guide on their own and next thing I knew we were making a "brief stop" at the ceramics store. Ugh!

[mountaindog]

I did lot of private tours and never had those problems but I did private and also semiprivate small groups.

One time I had a problem that was with a passenger that didn´t follow the rithm of the guide so the problem are not the independent tour guides or private tour , the problem many times are ourselves that we are on vacations and relax without any respect to the leader of the group. My opinion....

[Marigold252]

We do both ship and private tours, but plenty of research goes into the decision. We did a private boat snorkel excursion on Roatan three weeks ago and so glad we did! We had 8 passengers and I learned later the HAL excursion had 50.

 

For our Baltic excursions we used a highly rated Russian company for 5 ports. In St. Petersburg there were only 16 passengers, 7 from the Eurodam and 9 English passengers from a P&O ship. On the second day there were high winds and our planned hydrofoil ride from Peterhof turned into a slow bus ride through heavy traffic. Our guide wanted us to be able to see the Church of the Spilled Blood, but the English passengers wanted to return directly to the ship. The HAL passengers were more trusting of the guide and we got to see the church. He was in constant contact with his office who was in contact with the ships. The traffic was nearly at a standstill and the English passengers started shouting. Our guide assured us he'd never had a ship leave his people behind. As we got to the dock, he was nearly attacked- he had the driver pass the P&O ship to deliver us first since he knew that a P&O excursion hadn't arrived yet, but didn't know if any HAL excursions were late. As it turned out, we were two hours late leaving port since someone had left their passport in a restaurant on shore and the ship waited while it was retrieved. This is just one of the memories we have of that fabulous cruise.

 

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[sapper1]

I've had similar experiences in Europe. Even when I thought I had made it abundantly clear that there were no planned shopping stops on my tours, people would talk to the guide on their own and next thing I knew we were making a "brief stop" at the ceramics store. Ugh!

 

We had an issue like that which fortunately came up on the roll call prior to our cruise. One participant wasn't going to buy Euros before leaving home and just planned to have our private tour guide stop at a bank on the way out of town at our first port of call.

Our roll call tour organizer put a stop to those plans in a hurry. The group was not going to have to donate some of the tour time they were paying for to someone who couldn't be bothered to arrange to have the needed currency prior to taking the tour.

[TheCalicoCat]

When anyone asks about private tours, I tell them that it depends on their level of comfort. The tour operators are trying to make a living. They aren't going to be able to do that if they are not safe & don't get you back to the ship on time.

 

I've made several private tours for my upcoming cruise. In two instances, I have asked to have a shorter excursion so that I can bet back to the ship 1 hr. prior to the sail away (my comfort zone).

 

I have not solicited, nor do I intend to, on my roll call to have anyone join us. (If there are other people on the tours, that is ok, but not based on my offering/salesmanship.)

 

With that said, I have joined an CC tour in Aruba & it was GREAT!

[summersigh]

My DH has some mobility issues so we don't go on adventure tours any more :) That being said - our rule of thumb is we like private tours if we'll be somewhere we can get to a taxi if there's a snafu.

If we're going on a sightseeing tour out into the country and/or to remote areas we go with a ship tour for the peace of mind.

It works for us.

 

We did this in Belize with a rain forest and Incan Ruins tour and it paid off because the ship was scheduled to sail at 5pm but at 5pm our tour bus was trapped in a traffic jam in downtown Belize. It was a joy when the guide said she'd been in contact with the ship and they had a tender and a cruise line representative waiting on the dock :D

[albingirl]

We've been to the Caribbean many times, just about every island, so we feel comfortable with grabbing a cab. However, when we are in unfamiliar places, like Europe, we feel best with the HAL tours. Some of them have been absolutely fabulous and I know I have peace of mind. We are revisiting some of the same places this year, but will book through the ship.

[mnasf]

I've read all of your comments with interest. On other cruises, I've booked private tours and never really worried about it. This is my first HAL cruise this summer. I assumed if I planned to be back one hour before the ship takes off that is good. Am I making a mistake? Is this too close? Thank you!

[Lovely other]

We have always done our own thing until St Petersburg last year ... We went with a group from the roll call and I hated every minute of it! I hate being shepherded around like a school kid and walking at a snails pace whilst being told I couldn't go in the hermitage gift shop in case I got lost! I have lived and travelled all over the world and can read a map of a museum perfectly well but this obnoxious woman kept talking down to me until I told her I paid her and we would meet her outside when we'd seen what we wanted to see ... After warning me she would leave without me if I wasn't at the meeting point on time she and the rest of the group were then 30 mins late !

 

I have learnt from that one ...never again !! :rolleyes:

[kazu]

I've read all of your comments with interest. On other cruises, I've booked private tours and never really worried about it. This is my first HAL cruise this summer. I assumed if I planned to be back one hour before the ship takes off that is good. Am I making a mistake? Is this too close? Thank you!

 

I plan for an hour before at the latest. I think that is fine. On some tours I aim for earlier to explore the town/whatever on my own and know I am close to the ship.

 

If your tour starts at the furthest point and heads back (which usually is the best strategy) you should be fine.

 

Ironically, because we get going before the ship's tours, we skip a lot of the rush and have been back long before the ship's tours and watched them come in from our verandah (they were often late ;) ).

[Appalachian Mountain Mama]

This is the issue I am facing. I want to do a helo landing on a glacier and whale watching in Juneau. Looking at the single time offered by the ship for those 2 excursions it doesn't appear possible to do them both. The ship is quoting travel times of 25-30 minutes each way for both so the return to ship from helo is after whale watching departure from the ship. Looking at maps of the area I discovered the helos are actually pretty close to the whale watching so my solution is to eliminate the travel between the excursions by going directly to the whale watching from the helo instead of returning to the ship only to drive back out to the same area. I'm not sure the ship tour would be OK with me only taking their arranged transport in one direction and while I'm also not sure I can do that by booking privately I think it's more likely I'll be able to do it privately. So if my plan works I will get to participate in both excursions and save in the vicinity of $250 off the combined cost of booking thru the ship. $250 will buy me a decent amount of smoked salmon and Alaskan Amber! Lol. And both the private bookings I am looking at will pay all expenses of getting me to the next port should they cause me to miss ship's movement and as I think there is likely less traffic congestion in Alaska then some of the other areas people are mentioning I'm not worried about that.

 

 

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[kazu]

This is the issue I am facing. I want to do a helo landing on a glacier and whale watching in Juneau. Looking at the single time offered by the ship for those 2 excursions it doesn't appear possible to do them both. The ship is quoting travel times of 25-30 minutes each way for both so the return to ship from helo is after whale watching departure from the ship. Looking at maps of the area I discovered the helos are actually pretty close to the whale watching so my solution is to eliminate the travel between the excursions by going directly to the whale watching from the helo instead of returning to the ship only to drive back out to the same area. I'm not sure the ship tour would be OK with me only taking their arranged transport in one direction and while I'm also not sure I can do that by booking privately I think it's more likely I'll be able to do it privately. So if my plan works I will get to participate in both excursions and save in the vicinity of $250 off the combined cost of booking thru the ship. $250 will buy me a decent amount of smoked salmon and Alaskan Amber! Lol. And both the private bookings I am looking at will pay all expenses of getting me to the next port should they cause me to miss ship's movement and as I think there is likely less traffic congestion in Alaska then some of the other areas people are mentioning I'm not worried about that.

 

 

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And that is why some of us opt for private tours.

 

HAL tours can be a good option and, on the other hand, they can force you to choose when, if you do it privately you can do everything you want to do since you select, discuss with the guide and choose.

 

At least, that has been my experience. Alaska has not been on my bucket list so I can't help with your personal tour choice, but, part of the reason I have done private tours is to do the itineraries we want to do and not be restricted ;)