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If you are looking for alternative tour ideas Air B and B has had "experiences" for a few years now. They have some really unique experiences that are often very tailored to what you want to see and do. I was interested in a Huon Valley trip which they have on their website . The price is very similar to the private quote I got.
Good Times to Tour Independently or Book Shore Excursions on Your Own
BEST Passau Shore Excursions: Things to Do, Cruise Day Tour & Reviews (2024) - Cruise Critic
BEST Passau Shore Excursions: Things to Do, Cruise Day Tour & Reviews ( .
Posted: Fri, 09 Dec 2016 11:37:46 GMT [source]
The only thing that remedy did was ruin another vacation day a year later in Punta Cana! On March 23rd, 2017, we again used Viator's catamaran/snorkel vendor, El Gringo Excursions. Again we had multiple communications between Viator's, the vendor and us about the exact time and meeting place for our pick up. They had prior commitments with another cruise ship passengers and didn't know how to reach us, even though we communicated at least 3 times the last few weeks via the same email address.
Snorkeling, Sailing and Scuba are the Order of the Day
30 BEST Ketchikan, AK Shore Excursions: Things to Do, Cruise Day Tour & Reviews (2024) - Cruise Critic
30 BEST Ketchikan, AK Shore Excursions: Things to Do, Cruise Day Tour & Reviews ( .
Posted: Tue, 06 Dec 2016 18:34:09 GMT [source]
Really convenient way to find tours and good customer service. Again, as everyone said, Viator is a broker not a tour operator. I think it will last even though Viator is a sister company of Cruise Critic. The tour vendors have to be more flexible in these uncertain times.
rome2009
We are going going to zip line in St. Lucia and the ships excursion does not go to the Treetop Adventure Park. They have also put together custom tours for us in Spain and Italy. I was also going to recommend filing a claim with the credit card company, but you beat me to it. To the OP, just make sure you have everything documented, and then let Viator fight it out with the credit card company.
In addition to all of these benefits for clients, there are also benefits for the travel advisors. Whereas many advisors are unable to earn commission on shore excursions (even if they book directly with the cruise line!), all shore excursions booked on Viator will yield commission at your current commission rate. There are a multitude of benefits to booking shore excursions with a travel advisor as opposed to through the cruise line or directly with the tour operator. Listed below are some reasons to consider booking shore excursions through a travel advisor. Many cruisers start looking at shore excursions onboard without using their travel advisor.
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Over the course of two hours, see the Tiberio Baths, Faraglioni Rocks, and more. Ability to have access to trusted reviews is very helpful. Only people that have gone on the tour can submit a review on Viator. See my comment above (#19) for my two experiences using them in Rome. Really interested on this Viator thing, so how does it work, buy the excursion then meet up with an agent onshore or go straight to the where it's gonna take place? We thought about this but as a group of 6 we will mostly likely need 2 taxis so a tour may end up being around the same price.
Top-Booked Shore Excursions
Many cruise lines mark activity levels in shore excursion descriptions, but it's up to travelers to understand the definitions and to be realistic about their own abilities. If you know you have mobility issues, look for the best tours for your needs. For example, Witsoe says, if you're looking at castle tours across several ports and one has an elevator to the top and the others don't, prioritize that tour. Sometimes it's nice to escape the large group tours for more intimate explorations with a smaller number of participants or perhaps even just your travel party. Plus, a private guide can give you more in-depth information about the place you're seeing, answer your questions and cater to your interests. This time I asked Viators for not only a refund, but they could forget their worthless coupons and to come up with a way to reimburse us at least $200 in cash for the 2 wasted days we counted on them.
This applies particularly in Europe, where some of the most important destinations -- i.e., Paris, Rome, Florence and London -- are one to three hours away, depending on traffic, from where cruise ships dock. Independent-minded folks who want the ease of being transported without concern about missing the ship can book cruise line-provided transportation with freedom to explore as they choose in port. Travelers who want a more guided experience can book a variety of city tours and activities. Exploring a port of call on a one-day visit to a foreign place is surprisingly different from spending a week in a hotel. We used Viator in New Zealand when none of the ship tours appealed to us. If you go to their site you can click on "shore excursions" and then put in your port (I think that's the order it was).
I have used them several times for transfers/tours last time in HK and just booked a tour from LA to Las Vegas/Grand Canyon pre cruise on Island Princess. Just that if you had say a change in pick up hotel you need to contact their transport provider, in my case Lux Bus America, which I did yesterday as I changed hotels from Holiday Inn LAX to Embassy Suites, Anaheim. Consider booking cruise line shore excursions in smaller, more offbeat ports on itineraries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and South America. Is it better to book shore excursions through your cruise ship, or should you arrange port activities on your own, independently of your cruise line? That question is one of the most commonly asked by cruise travelers, and it doesn't have an easy answer. It all depends -- not just on circumstances but also on the ports of call and the travelers' own penchant (or lack thereof) for independent travel.
This advice won't help you pick a good excursion -- but your feedback can help future cruisers have a better onshore experience. For example, Witsoe says that when passengers aren't happy with an excursion, it's usually because of the guide. She encourages passengers to report back, good or bad, to help cruise lines fine tune their tour offerings and to request only the best guides. Knowing which are small-group or large-group tours can help cruisers be smart about advance tour bookings. For example, Windstar's typical group size is 20 people, but some tours can take up to 100 people by splitting cruisers into multiple buses with separate tour guides. Tours that sell out are usually more niche tours with upper limits, for example, a cooking class with limited space or a water-based tour with only so many seats in the boat.
Shore excursions are one of the most important aspects of a cruise experience. Previously, travelers only had access to tours sold onboard through the cruise line. With the internet, passengers can easily go online and find the same tour for a much lower price than what the ship would charge. This leads many to either book direct or through their travel advisor. "The biggest mistake cruisers make when booking tours is incorrectly assessing activity level -- everyone in their head thinks strenuous means different things," says Witsoe.
I do research using TripAdvisor or other means to get tour ratings. Then, I seek out the actual provider and select one and book with them. Most we pay in full on day of tour (very nice of them), or give a deposit up-front and pay balance on tour.
Just as Windstar does not offer just one type of tour in each port, Witsoe suggests that cruisers diversify their tours across ports. "In Japan, you could see a castle in every port of call," she says, but that would get old after the third or fourth day. You'll be more satisfied with your trip if you book a mix of tour types and change up days of full-day tours with half-day outings and even a few days to wander around on your own. We are going on a cruise to the Southern Caribbean and would normally book the the cruise line for excursions. It appears the prices have doubled since our last experience and found a booking company thru TripAdvisor's reviews called Viator and hoping someone might have experience if they are reliable to book excursions. I've used them with great success across Europe and the states.
I responded back to cancel it, as it was still before the deadline to cancel. Later, I found out my card was charged anyway, and only when I disputed it with my credit card company did I learn the booking was through Viator. They then sent a 24 page response to the cc company insisting we had been offered another tour and just never showed up. My statement that no such email ever arrived had no effect, and the charge went through. Worse, when I wrote up a bad review about the place, the company contacted me, validated my version of what happened and said they would get the money back to me.
Just check out operators to find one with a good reputation; start with tourist boards, dive clubs and Cruise Critic's message boards go from there. As has already been mentioned, ViaTour is a tour wholesaler, just like the cruise line, booking tours from local companies. I have done many viatour brokered excursions with no incident.
Tour with 50% ports, we booked a Princess tour twice. It made sense due to circumstances and worked out fine. My wife and grand daughter who were on Diamond Princess to NZ in January booked a couple of tours with Viator, no problems, used reputable tour operators/transport providers. Explore some of the prettiest parts of Santorini and take in fantastic views of the off-shore caldera with this semi-private shore excursion designed exclusively for cruise ship passengers.
