various Princess excursions Canada / New England

[Kitty Ellas Mom]

These are the things I'm most interested in doing on my trip and I'm wondering if anyone has advice.  All Princess excursions from Caribbean Princess, in late Sept:  in Newport RI, The Breakers and Marble House tour;  in Charlottetown, the 2 Anne of Green Gables places, museum and house;  and in St. Johns for the Bay of Fundy, the Hopewell Rocks.  I know that last one means 2 hrs each way on a bus and I won't get to see all of the tide changing.  I have considered a less strenuous tour that sees some natural outdoors things and a few other sights of the area instead of going all the way to the Hopewell Rocks.  But I reserved the Hopwell Rocks b/c it looked like that one might sell out.  Re: Newport, on Princess' website it says that you can't take photos but when I read about them on tripadvisor it seems like you can.  Are you prohibited from taking photos on a guided tour from Princess?  That wouldn't stop me from wanting to go but it would be a bummer.  I haven't been to any of these locations before (or most of them from the cruise, I've only been to Boston) so it will all be new to me.  I love any sort of arts and culture.  

[lissie]

I've occasionally come across either photos inside prohibited or (more common) flash prohibited.  Outside you can't prohibit photography from a public road 

[shipgeeks]

At Saint John, NB (not St. Johns) there is a HOHO bus which I believe includes some views of Bay of Fundy, as well as sights around the city and beyond.  If not available through the cruiseline, you can purchase tickets right at the cruise terminal. They have a website (Saint John, NB, Pink Bus?) which might give you an idea of where they go.

[princeton123211]

15 hours ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

Re: Newport, on Princess' website it says that you can't take photos but when I read about them on tripadvisor it seems like you can.  Are you prohibited from taking photos on a guided tour from Princess?  That wouldn't stop me from wanting to go but it would be a bummer.

Inside The Breakers, Marble House, and most other mansions operated by the Newport Preservation Society you can take pictures without flash and exterior pictures however you want. They do not allow pictures in Hunter House but that's not usually on the agenda for most folks that are touring. 

 

Another very interesting option is to tour Doris Duke's Rough Point mansion, which is located further down from Marble House. It is run separately from most of the other mansions but it was lived in by her as recently as 1993, so provides a different more "modern" perspective than the other mansions which were stuffed and mounted in the 1950s and early 60s. 

[Nitemare]

Can confirm that non-flash photos are ok in the mansions.  In the daytime they are full of light anyway, so a flash isn't needed

[Cali Viajera]

In Newport you can take the local trolley $6 that goes to the mansions. You can buy a Duo pass for about $48 that gets you into two mansions. You choose which two. Much less than Princess tour.

[princeton123211]

Just now, Cali Viajera said:

You can buy a Duo pass for about $48 that gets you into two mansions. You choose which two. Much less than Princess tour.

I would agree here-- there is zero reason to purchase an expensive ship tour in Newport unless you have some onboard credit you are trying to burn. 

[Kitty Ellas Mom]

I started really looking at excursions and see what you are all saying about the Newport one that goes to The Breakers and Marble House.  Admission is a lot less than the Princess excursion costs. I only have 2 qualms about not buying the Princess excursion there:  1) it's my first ever port and first ever excursion and I don't want to be overly stressed out and 2) it's a tender situation, so I wonder about how that works.  Actually from the reviews it seems like it would be less stressful to be on my own to see the mansions b/c I read about it taking an hour to get the tender to land, and that messing up the schedule for the mansions.  If I go on my own, and it's taking an hour to tender, do I need to be back to the tenders a whole hour before I want to be back on the ship?  I'm worried about getting left behind, although the amount of time in port seems pretty generous.

[princeton123211]

7 hours ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

1) it's my first ever port and first ever excursion and I don't want to be overly stressed out

Newport could not be an easier port of call to do on your own. It's relatively small, transportation is good, and most of it is walkable. I would have zero hesitation doing this on my own. Visiting the mansions on your own is easy and as you said, will cost less than doing it via the cruise line (who take a big commission). 

 

7 hours ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

) it's a tender situation, so I wonder about how that works.

Those on organized tours and those with elite status with the cruise line or staying in suites will most likely have priority to the first few tenders. After that it's a matter of lining up. The tender into Newport should be fairly quick-- the ships generally anchor not too far off. 

 

7 hours ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

If I go on my own, and it's taking an hour to tender, do I need to be back to the tenders a whole hour before I want to be back on the ship? 

As you leave the ship there will be a sign with the all aboard time-- meaning the very latest time that you would need to be back at the tender embarkation in Newport to make the ship. Generally we try and be back at least 45 min before this so we aren't on the last tender back. 

[Kitty Ellas Mom]

Does Newport's port tend to have a lot of taxis readily available?  I have not had great experiences ordering a rideshare and prefer to just hail a taxi.

[princeton123211]

11 hours ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

Does Newport's port tend to have a lot of taxis readily available?  I have not had great experiences ordering a rideshare and prefer to just hail a taxi.

Newport is not a huge city and there aren't a ton of taxis readily available. If you need a car Uber/Lyft is most likely your best bet. That being said, Newport is extremely walkable. 

[tring]

On 5/26/2023 at 8:18 AM, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

I started really looking at excursions and see what you are all saying about the Newport one that goes to The Breakers and Marble House.  Admission is a lot less than the Princess excursion costs. I only have 2 qualms about not buying the Princess excursion there:  1) it's my first ever port and first ever excursion and I don't want to be overly stressed out and 2) it's a tender situation, so I wonder about how that works.  Actually from the reviews it seems like it would be less stressful to be on my own to see the mansions b/c I read about it taking an hour to get the tender to land, and that messing up the schedule for the mansions.  If I go on my own, and it's taking an hour to tender, do I need to be back to the tenders a whole hour before I want to be back on the ship?  I'm worried about getting left behind, although the amount of time in port seems pretty generous.

 

Interesting you have provided the independent price for visiting those  mansions, thank you. 

 

We have just booked an excursion visiting those two Mansions with another Carnival Corp brand cruise line, UK based P&O cruises for our mid September cruise call.  It is listed as 3.25hrs and has cost us £62.20pp (because of our loyalty level we have a 10% discount from £69).  That currently works out at $81.27pp.  Considering it is a tender port, we will have priority for the tender and a relatively early start time (we chose 9.45am the other options being 10.45am and 11.45am), along with not having to bother with finding the trolley and the individual mansions.  Hence we feel that $27.27pp is an extra amount very worth spending.  We will also be ashore and free to explore the rest of Newport by 1pm, which is a great plus for us as we are highly  unlikely to return to Newport. 

 

We are feeling very reassured that we have done the right thing for us by booking that excursion with the cruise line, though admittedly whether the extra cost is worth it to other people is very much a matter of the individual's situation.  For someone who lives much nearer and does not have to sail two directions over the Atlantic (or take a long haul flights, had we chosen that option), then perhaps cost is a more important part of that decision.  The excursion description refers to the possibility of having to queue as the Mansions are popular, which will also likely be another advantage for us as I would hope the Mansions may be a bit less busy earlier in the day, though we may be wrong with that.

 

Interesting comparison.

 

 

Edited July 13, 2023 by tring

[Cali Viajera]

I don’t have any status with Princess but enjoy the flexibility of choosing when and where to do our excursions. The trolley meets you at the pier and with the Duo ticket you choose which mansions to visit, not prescribed ones. For our cruise in October, we are in Newport from 7-5. Plenty of time to see the mansions at our own pace, walk the cliff walk and enjoy the town. One should choose what he/she is most comfortable with. 

[tring]

3 hours ago, Cali Viajera said:

I don’t have any status with Princess but enjoy the flexibility of choosing when and where to do our excursions. The trolley meets you at the pier and with the Duo ticket you choose which mansions to visit, not prescribed ones. For our cruise in October, we are in Newport from 7-5. Plenty of time to see the mansions at our own pace, walk the cliff walk and enjoy the town. One should choose what he/she is most comfortable with. 

 

Quite, as I said I am sure everyone will have their own preferences and our choice is mainly because we will be travelling so far and not likely to return.  If in Europe, we would probably prefer to do that sort of thing independently, though the added advantage of knowing we will be able to get a tender from the ship early morning is a big plus for us as well.

 

I was just putting another point of view with reasons for our decision.  Also, I know excursions are usually much more expensive on Princess and Holland America.