Cruise ship excursions have to start leaving late comers behind.

[OlsSalt]

Travel writer Rick Steves book on "Mediterranean Cruise Ports" includes at the end of every chapter alternate instructions how to get to a following (typical routes) cruise port.  

 

Acceptance up front, someone may in fact miss the boat. Comforting to know reasonable re-connections can be made. Plan ahead, if you are going out on your own. Including carrying at all times, any possible border crossing documents you might need.

[Blackduck59]

While I agree with the concept of "leave them behind" it runs into a slippery slope with ship sold excursions which assure you that you will make it back to the ship or they will make sure you get to the next port. We have never even come close to missing the ship. We have only taken ship's excursions when they are "included in the fare" and fortunately we haven't had any "special" folks working on a different clock.

 

How does the cruise line sanction the chronically tardy? Well a good keel hauling may get everyone's attention, but may not work in today's social climate. I think about the only way is to make the result of selfish time keeping to have real consequences. Late once a warning (I know that wouldn't have helped @Haljo1935 unless the same people were late more than once), late twice all future excursions are cancelled for that guest. These late incidents should also be noted on a guest's "Mariner" file resulting in loss of points. Oh oops you were rude by being late no points for you or maybe a suspension of your status perks  the remainder of this cruise and also the next.

 

I saw a series of you tube videos a while back where the same couple failed to make all aboard 3 ports in a row. On the 3rd time their cabin was cleared and their gear was left with the port agent. People have no idea how much it cost for a ship to miss their sail away time, especially when tides are involved.

[Gunther1]

“I saw a series of you tube videos a while back where the same couple failed to make all aboard 3 ports in a row. On the 3rd time their cabin was cleared and their gear was left with the port agent.”

 

 

I would love to watch that….can you give us the link…or key words to find it ?  It would be fun to watch .

 

Thank you in advance !!

[kazu]

6 minutes ago, Gunther1 said:

“I saw a series of you tube videos a while back where the same couple failed to make all aboard 3 ports in a row. On the 3rd time their cabin was cleared and their gear was left with the port agent.”

 

 

I would love to watch that….can you give us the link…or key words to find it ?  It would be fun to watch .

 

Thank you in advance !!

 

Just type in “passengers running to catch cruise ship” or “pier runners” or something like that and there are a number of videos.

[trivia addict]

On 1/10/2024 at 9:37 AM, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

Well, bless her heart. 😉

We had one exactly like that last summer on one of our HAL excursions in Alaska.

wonder if she was the same person?🙄

[3rdGenCunarder]

Just now, trivia addict said:

We had one exactly like that last summer on one of our HAL excursions in Alaska.

wonder if she was the same person?🙄

 Probably not. Sad to say, there are a lot of them out there. 

 

I think some guides turn a blind eye to the shopping lateness, especially in the Caribbean where the shop you're taken to is "recommended" because his uncle/brother/cousin/etc works there.

[AKJonesy]

Most of the time when I make an assumption about some situation, I find that there is a reasonable explanation.  Saying that, I'm not siding with the "pier runners".  I agree with another poster on booking private excursions because too many times we've had "those people" that think they bought the whole bus and are on "their time" vs. "our time" and constantly hold everyone up.  Deep down, I do enjoy watching and laughing at pier runners.  It seems to be more common on Carnival. 

[cruisemom42]

18 hours ago, OlsSalt said:

 

Never had this happen on any HAL tour and we have been on many of them. They do a good job. And HAL passengers do tend to "follow the rules". 

 

Based on other reports on this thread and other ones, I wouldn't say that's a universal experience.

[Tigerlily75]

11 hours ago, IAcruising said:

 

Never.

 

Once someone leaves the ship and goes out on their own, they are assuming complete control of their situation. If something happens to them that is "out of their control", that's the chance they chose to take. The ship and it's 1000's of other passengers have no responsibility to wait because of their bad decision. And we shouldn't wait.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I can't figure out what the "bad decision" was if whatever happened to them was outside of their control. I wouldn't expect the ship to wait for me, but I also wouldn't consider getting off the ship on my own a "bad decision". Since I am a grown adult and not a toddler. I don't know if that's what you meant! 

[IAcruising]

1 hour ago, Tigerlily75 said:

 

I can't figure out what the "bad decision" was if whatever happened to them was outside of their control. I wouldn't expect the ship to wait for me, but I also wouldn't consider getting off the ship on my own a "bad decision". Since I am a grown adult and not a toddler. I don't know if that's what you meant! 

 

The bad decision was choosing to go out on their own and risking something happening "out of their control" and expecting that the ship will wait for them. That was the choice they made, and in that scenario, it was a bad decision.

 

We're talking about an unusual situation when something bad happens, not the 99.9% of the time you go out on your own and it's just fine.

 

We go out on own all the time, but I wouldn't even consider that the ship will wait for us if something happens that's "out of our control". We'll join them at the next port. Our mistake, our problem.

 

[OlsSalt]

3 hours ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 Probably not. Sad to say, there are a lot of them out there. 

 

I think some guides turn a blind eye to the shopping lateness, especially in the Caribbean where the shop you're taken to is "recommended" because his uncle/brother/cousin/etc works there.

 

South East Asia too........ we as a bus group did protest and stopped the guide from doing this. Other times, everyone on the bus agreed up front to add the extra stop on our way back to the ship.  

 

Passengers can speak up, and will be surprised at the agreement when given the choice. Part of blame  chronic lateness can land back on the suffering but silent passengers too. Not easy to do, but usually 100% effective.

[Tigerlily75]

1 hour ago, IAcruising said:

 

The bad decision was choosing to go out on their own and risking something happening "out of their control" and expecting that the ship will wait for them. That was the choice they made, and in that scenario, it was a bad decision.

 

We're talking about an unusual situation when something bad happens, not the 99.9% of the time you go out on your own and it's just fine.

 

We go out on own all the time, but I wouldn't even consider that the ship will wait for us if something happens that's "out of our control". We'll join them at the next port. Our mistake, our problem.

 

Ok that makes more sense, and yes I agree, I’d just get myself to the next port.

[Petronillus]

2 hours ago, IAcruising said:

We go out on own all the time, but I wouldn't even consider that the ship will wait for us if something happens that's "out of our control". We'll join them at the next port. Our mistake, our problem.

I am sympathetic and join in the resentment toward those who blithely take their own sweet time in rejoining the group at the end of a break. I think that was the original thrust of this thread. Shouldn't those folks be made to suffer some consequence.

But I also have enough sympathy to feel bad for those who return late for no fault of their own, the dreaded unforeseen event. If such delay has held up the rest of the tour bus, I believe that an apology and some explanation -- some disclosure of the circumstance that caused the unforeseen delay -- are in order.

It strikes me as harsh to characterize the latecomers' plight as a mistake; if, for instance, a private tour gets stuck in a traffic jam. the passengers in the bus are not at fault. They have run a risk, have experienced a setback, and have to deal with a consequence. 

That's one of the reasons why the worrywarts among us (DW is one) are willing to pay a premium for booking a HAL excursion. They manage the risk by buying a sort of insurance, in the form of HAL's assurance that it will hold the ship to accommodate its own excursion customers.

[Gunther1]

I am one cruise away from becoming a 4 star (YAY !!!!!), so have been on a few cruises.

 

Can’t count the number of non-HAL sponsored excursions I’ve taken , but it’s a lot.  I’ve probably taken less than 3 HAL-sponsored ones.

 

Common sense, which unfortunately is not common, has always told me to be sure to leave a very large cushion for returning to the ship.  I never NEVER get back with less than an hour from ship departure time.  

 

Not once have I cut it close :).

[Iamthesea]

Found this on Youtube. MISSING PASSENGERS ANNOUNCEMENT ON CARNIVAL BREEZE

Edited January 17 by Iamthesea

[Blackduck59]

@Iamthesea that looks like one of the series, the next one says they left without the offending parties. I just watched it but it doesn't say their gear was offloaded (I guess I just assumed it was). Even better, they are stuck in Venice with no gear probably no passports (we don't leave the ship without ours) as many choose to leave them in the safe for fear they will be stolen. These videos are from 9 years ago, I wonder if public shaming over the PA system would be forbidden now.

[cruisemom42]

3 hours ago, Gunther1 said:

I am one cruise away from becoming a 4 star (YAY !!!!!), so have been on a few cruises.

 

Can’t count the number of non-HAL sponsored excursions I’ve taken , but it’s a lot.  I’ve probably taken less than 3 HAL-sponsored ones.

 

Common sense, which unfortunately is not common, has always told me to be sure to leave a very large cushion for returning to the ship.  I never NEVER get back with less than an hour from ship departure time.  

 

Not once have I cut it close :).

 

I've been cruising for 50 years; same story. Have rarely taken a ship excursion in the last 15 years (unless I have to use or lose credits, as with HIA). I have never come close to missing the ship. And if I did, I certainly wouldn't expect it to wait for me.

 

[kazu]

55 minutes ago, Blackduck59 said:

@Iamthesea that looks like one of the series, the next one says they left without the offending parties. I just watched it but it doesn't say their gear was offloaded (I guess I just assumed it was). Even better, they are stuck in Venice with no gear probably no passports (we don't leave the ship without ours) as many choose to leave them in the safe for fear they will be stolen. These videos are from 9 years ago, I wonder if public shaming over the PA system would be forbidden now.

 

It is my understanding that if it apparent that the passenger is not going to be on the ship, their safe is opened and passport delivered to the port person there.  

 

I know when I was medically disembarked in 2023 and got taken to my cabin that there was someone there for my safe.  I had to turn over my passport to the port agent in the ambulance.  He cleared me with the authorities while I was in the hospital.

[3rdGenCunarder]

2 hours ago, Iamthesea said:

Found this on Youtube. MISSING PASSENGERS ANNOUNCEMENT ON CARNIVAL BREEZE

 

I liked the threat to lock them in their cabin. 

 

Whenever I hear names read close to the time we should sail, I go out on deck and watch for the dock runners. In Costa Rica one time, three young men sauntered out of the souvenir market that was the way in and out of the port. When they saw that NOBODY was around, they started to run. Then they slowed down, so the captain blew the horn. THAT got them running again. There were catcalls and applause, and one man yelled, "Run, Forrest, run!" 

[Bill B]

20 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

Well a good keel hauling may get everyone's attention, but may not work in today's social climate.

 

Keel hauling is too drastic. Bring back the 'cat' -

 

By USS Constitution Museum 

Edited January 18 by Bill B
Had to attribute source.

[sandiego1]

10 hours ago, Petronillus said:

 

That's one of the reasons why the worrywarts among us (DW is one) are willing to pay a premium for booking a HAL excursion. They manage the risk by buying a sort of insurance, in the form of HAL's assurance that it will hold the ship to accommodate its own excursion customers.

Not true. HAL doesn’t guarantee that they will hold the ship for you. There are times when the ship must leave due to tides, weather, or other factors regardless of missing tour passengers. However, in those cases HAL will organize transportation to the next port. I know of 2 recent cases where people missed the ship and had to travel to the next port. They were not happy as there was a day at sea in between the ports. They also complained that they were without their medications and change of clothing. They were also not happy with the accommodations that HAL provided for the 2 nights. So it does happen occasionally.

[cruisemom42]

11 hours ago, Bill B said:

 

Keel hauling is too drastic. Bring back the 'cat' -

 

By USS Constitution Museum 

 

Put 'em in the scupper with a hosepipe on them.... 

 

(From the old classic What Shall We Do with a Drunken Sailor?)

[Boatdrill]

On 1/16/2024 at 6:50 PM, IAcruising said:

 

Like what?

 

Like the couple who were visiting friends in Haifa on October 7.

 

[Bill B]

On 1/18/2024 at 10:13 PM, cruisemom42 said:

Put 'em in the scupper with a hosepipe on them.... 

 

I know a few sea shanties -

 

In the year of '39, assembled here the volunteers
In the days when lands were few
Here the ship sailed out into the blue and sunny morn
The sweetest sight ever seen

 

And the night followed day
And the story tellers say
That the score brave souls inside
For many a lonely day sailed across the milky seas
Ne'er looked back, never feared, never cried

 

Don't you hear my call though you're many years away
Don't you hear me calling you
Write your letters in the sand
For the day I take your hand
In the land that our grandchildren knew

 

In the year of '39 came a ship in from the blue
The volunteers came home that day
And they bring good news of a world so newly born
Though their hearts so heavily weigh

For the Earth is old and grey, little darling, we'll away
But my love, this cannot be
Oh, so many years have gone though I'm older but a year
Your mother's eyes, from your eyes, cry to me...

Brian May

 

(Can't talk about the good ship Venus though).

 

[cruisemom42]

14 minutes ago, Bill B said:

 

I know a few sea shanties -

 

In the year of '39, assembled here the volunteers
In the days when lands were few
Here the ship sailed out into the blue and sunny morn
The sweetest sight ever seen

 

And the night followed day
And the story tellers say
That the score brave souls inside
For many a lonely day sailed across the milky seas
Ne'er looked back, never feared, never cried

 

Don't you hear my call though you're many years away
Don't you hear me calling you
Write your letters in the sand
For the day I take your hand
In the land that our grandchildren knew

 

In the year of '39 came a ship in from the blue
The volunteers came home that day
And they bring good news of a world so newly born
Though their hearts so heavily weigh

For the Earth is old and grey, little darling, we'll away
But my love, this cannot be
Oh, so many years have gone though I'm older but a year
Your mother's eyes, from your eyes, cry to me...

Brian May

 

(Can't talk about the good ship Venus though).

 

 

Love some Queen -- song above is from one of the first albums I ever purchased.