FYI Celebrity small group excursion not small

[AbbyCruiser45]

I’m not currently sailing, but my parents are and they wanted me to share this. They’re in Reykjavik today and had the Golden Circle with Geothermal Bakery — Small Group booked. I helped them plan and we went back and forth on the excursion for this day. We decided on the small group for Covid concerns and also because small groups are easier because you have fewer people getting on and off the bus at each stop, so it tends to move faster. They chose this over the Golden Circle with Lunch. This “regular group” excursion was 2 hours longer and $80/person cheaper. However, the small group option was still more appealing due to the reasons listed. 
 

Today, they follow the group off the ship to board a standard size Greyhound with all but 8 or so seats empty. Meaning there were likely 50 people in the group. The guide said themselves that they would have less time in each spot because of the time it takes to unload and reload all passengers. It’s really unfortunate because the advertising is either misleading or Celebrity is messing something up with the contractor. I just wanted to post here so people can make more informed decisions. 

[phoenix_dream]

I would advise them to complain to the shore excursions desk. You pay more for small excursions and should get what you pay for. 

[AbbyCruiser45]

2 minutes ago, phoenix_dream said:

I would advise them to complain to the shore excursions desk. You pay more for small excursions and should get what you pay for. 

They did talk with the shore excursion desk. They were calm but firm that it was not the experience they were expecting. There was not a resolution at the desk (though they were apologetic), but knowing Celebrity I assume they’ll likely receive a note in the stateroom tomorrow. 

[mahdnc]

Did the small group shorex description indicate the max group size limit?

[AbbyCruiser45]

7 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

Did the small group shorex description indicate the max group size limit?

No, it was not listed for the specific excursion. However, Celebrity’s Small Group Tours section of the website says that they limit group sizes to 24 guests per tour. 

[quicklabs]

We are booked on this, hoping for the same small group to prevent overcrowding on tge bus.  This is very disappointing to hear.

[AbbyCruiser45]

2 minutes ago, quicklabs said:

We are booked on this, hoping for the same small group to prevent overcrowding on tge bus.  This is very disappointing to hear.

If you’re comfortable with it, I would book an independent excursion. There are tons of options on Viator (and similar sites) for small group Golden Circle. My parents just had a good bit of OBC that they wanted to use. 

[dawnvip]

Just returned from an Alaska cruise on the Eclipse. Had a small group tour booked in Juneau: there were 18 of us split between two guides on one bus. Once we reached the destination, 8 people went with one guide and 10 of us with the other. I also prefer the smaller group for the same reasons OP mentions above and would have been very disappointed if there were 50 people, even split into smaller groups, as the time delays would have changed the day considerably.

Tour operator (and Celebrity excursion listing) mentioned maximum size was 24 people total (12 per guide).

[AbbyCruiser45]

As an update, my parents saw the crew member from the shore excursion desk that they spoke to yesterday while checking in for an excursion this morning. He remembered them and confirmed they would be getting a full refund. Celebrity did come through, it’s just unfortunate that the excursion was wrong in the first place. 

[mahdnc]

Good to hear they got a full refund. I presume that they are only refunding the people that complained. I wonder how many will. 

[Arizona Wildcat]

1 hour ago, AbbyCruiser45 said:

As an update, my parents saw the crew member from the shore excursion desk that they spoke to yesterday while checking in for an excursion this morning. He remembered them and confirmed they would be getting a full refund. Celebrity did come through, it’s just unfortunate that the excursion was wrong in the first place. 

I suspect the problem was not Celebrity but the tour operator who combined the groups to save some $$.  Glad you got a refund.

[hcat]

1 hour ago, AbbyCruiser45 said:

As an update, my parents saw the crew member from the shore excursion desk that they spoke to yesterday while checking in for an excursion this morning. He remembered them and confirmed they would be getting a full refund. Celebrity did come through, it’s just unfortunate that the excursion was wrong in the first place. 

Glad X came through with a refund,  but sorry it was not the experience your parents expected.  Communucations  issue with Tour operator who was at fault... by substituting a large group tour,...

[TeeRick]

It is a COVID risk to book Celebrity ship excursions.  I understand the reasons for a small excursion.  Probably better to book private tours if at all possible.

[Barwick Cruiser]

17 hours ago, dawnvip said:

Just returned from an Alaska cruise on the Eclipse. Had a small group tour booked in Juneau: there were 18 of us split between two guides on one bus. Once we reached the destination, 8 people went with one guide and 10 of us with the other. I also prefer the smaller group for the same reasons OP mentions above and would have been very disappointed if there were 50 people, even split into smaller groups, as the time delays would have changed the day considerably.

Tour operator (and Celebrity excursion listing) mentioned maximum size was 24 people total (12 per guide).

How was your cruise? Which tour in Juneau did you take and would you recommend it? We are sailing eclipse in September. Thank you

[Silkroad]

Thanks very much to both you and your parents for confirming what I suspected. We have a b2b Norway/Iceland & Ireland booked next year and I won’t trust Celebrity’s small group tours. We prefer to arrange private tours or explore on our own, but I have considered Celebrity tours if no other options were allowed.

[AbbyCruiser45]

2 hours ago, TeeRick said:

It is a COVID risk to book Celebrity ship excursions.  I understand the reasons for a small excursion.  Probably better to book private tours if at all possible.

Agree 100%. Unfortunately, Golden Circle private tours were around $1,000+. For the other ports, they have private booked. That's usually what they like to do regardless, if they can't comfortably tour on their own.

[the penguins]

8 minutes ago, AbbyCruiser45 said:

Agree 100%. Unfortunately, Golden Circle private tours were around $1,000+. For the other ports, they have private booked. That's usually what they like to do regardless, if they can't comfortably tour on their own.

If you are there overnight book a 1 day car rental and drive it yourself. To quote the helpful lady at the rental office who also put all the sites into the satnav in order ",  the clue is in the title. Whenever you have a choice of direction turn right it's a circle so turning left is wrong". Picked up the car at 10 am, dropped it off at around 6.0 pm (keys through letterbox) and taxi back to ship. Great day, easy driving and no problems. 

[AbbyCruiser45]

4 minutes ago, the penguins said:

If you are there overnight book a 1 day car rental and drive it yourself. To quote the helpful lady at the rental office who also put all the sites into the satnav in order ",  the clue is in the title. Whenever you have a choice of direction turn right it's a circle so turning left is wrong". Picked up the car at 10 am, dropped it off at around 6.0 pm (keys through letterbox) and taxi back to ship. Great day, easy driving and no problems. 

If it was me, that is what I would have chosen 🙂 My parents feel a little uneasy driving in a different country. I almost had my mom convinced! I even took her on a google map street view tour to show that the roads were easy. 

[dawnvip]

On 6/13/2022 at 8:13 AM, Barwick Cruiser said:

How was your cruise? Which tour in Juneau did you take and would you recommend it? We are sailing eclipse in September. Thank you

Cruise was awesome! Better weather in Alaska than Vancouver 🤣

I'll be posting my Cruise review soon, but will say we took the "Whales tails and Glacier trails" small group tour with Gastineau. Very professional and organized company with comfortable bus and well equipped purpose-built boat that was perfect for viewing whales.

From cruiseship, it was about 15 min drive to bus parking lot in the state park. We split into groups and headed out. The "hike" was more like a stroll through the woods to reach Mendenhall glacier lake with a view of the glacier and Nugget falls. Not strenuous at all, but informative guide gave lots of opportunities to take pictures and ask questions about the flora.

Once back to the bus, another 15 min drive to the dock, quick pee break and away we all went to find some whales. We had at least 12 whale sightings while on the water over about 2 hrs! 

Return bus to cruiseship was about 10 min, so about 4.5 hrs total for the tour. I do recommend!!

 

[DingoMom]

So glad your parents got a full refund! We recently booked a ‘small tour’ on purpose in Spain, and it ended up being a big ol’ bus that was full with one guide. Before we even got back to the room, Guest Services had called us and said everyone on the tour would get a 50% refund as OBC because of the mistake. Am glad they handled it…but we booked this tour for social distancing reasons and because we are ‘older’. Seems like Celebrity needs to iron this out with their local ‘excursion’ contracts. 

 

 

 

[D. B.]

For our first 10 years of Cruising we were put off from using Shore Excursions NOT offered by the cruise line due to their Scare Tactics.

then at the suggestion of our TA we tried Shorexcursiongroup.com

Same guarantee as the cruise line to get you back before the ship sails Or get you to the Next port to rejoin the ship!

they have a lot of Small Group Tours that really are Small Group like 12 or less.

   Many are by the same local tour companies that the cruise line uses but because SEG operates at a lower cost per guest the prices can and often are cheaper.

   Their website is easy to use. Just enter your cruise line. Sailing Date and ship name and all the tours come up by date and port.

they have Phone operators that can answer any questions and you can book with them or on their website.

they have good communication and we like the smaller group size .

[the penguins]

3 hours ago, D. B. said:

For our first 10 years of Cruising we were put off from using Shore Excursions NOT offered by the cruise line due to their Scare Tactics.

then at the suggestion of our TA we tried Shorexcursiongroup.com

Same guarantee as the cruise line to get you back before the ship sails Or get you to the Next port to rejoin the ship!

they have a lot of Small Group Tours that really are Small Group like 12 or less.

   Many are by the same local tour companies that the cruise line uses but because SEG operates at a lower cost per guest the prices can and often are cheaper.

   Their website is easy to use. Just enter your cruise line. Sailing Date and ship name and all the tours come up by date and port.

they have Phone operators that can answer any questions and you can book with them or on their website.

they have good communication and we like the smaller group size .

Choice is always good: X in a big bus, various Small Group operators - for us both have the same disadvantages in that we have no control over the itinerary, pace or stops. Or, our choice, ToursbyLocals. We deal direct with the guide, personalise the route, stop for coffee and cakes, split the cost with one other couple (sometimes 2 other couples) from the Roll Call, pay via the "lovely ladies" in Canada and get a full refund if the ship fails to dock. We have used TBL in Japan, China, South America, USA, Europe and never had a bad guide.

[Mark_T]

6 hours ago, D. B. said:

For our first 10 years of Cruising we were put off from using Shore Excursions NOT offered by the cruise line due to their Scare Tactics.

then at the suggestion of our TA we tried Shorexcursiongroup.com

Missed an 's' - https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/

[Barwick Cruiser]

@dawnvipwas this a Celebrity excursion?

 

Never mind, just checked and it is. 

Edited June 15, 2022 by Barwick Cruiser

[Purplsmurf]

One never knows what they will get with a Celebrity excursion. We booked Easy Pompeii last month on our sailing only because 4 1/2 hours was plenty. There was nothing easy about it. I didn’t think some in our group were going to make it. I felt so bad for them. We have also booked a strenuous excursion that was by no means strenuous, so who knows what it will actually be 🤷🏻‍♀️