Why reserving my cruise shore excursions in Europe with the cruise line was the most effective determination

Planning your cruise trip typically contains the age-old debate of whether or not or not it is best to guide excursions via the cruise line.

When you arrive to a cruise port, you typically have three decisions for learn how to spend your day:

1. Explore the port by yourself
2. Book a tour via the cruise line
3. Choose a third-party tour firm

When it involves cruising, I firmly consider there’s a time and place for every of those choices. Depending in your funds and size of time within the port, it may be very cost-effective to guide a third-party vendor.

There’s additionally been instances on European cruises the place I wish to go to someplace that isn’t on the tour checklist. Sometimes, it’s manner too costly to guide excursions via the cruise line once I can get the identical expertise for a lot much less with an impartial tour firm. 

I additionally respect exploring ports by foot at any time when attainable. Some ports are inherently simpler to discover by yourself; for instance, some ports permit cruise ships to dock proper within the metropolis middle the place you’ll be able to simply stroll round or take a taxi.

In common, I’ve discovered that European cruise ports are very pedestrian-friendly so we regularly select to do our personal factor at any time when attainable. This permits you to have flexibility to spend your day precisely the way you need and I really like exploring a metropolis by foot.

However, on a current 12-night European cruise to Israel onboard Odyssey of the Seas, we booked 4 excursions via the cruise line – and it was the very best determination we may have made.

Here’s why I haven’t got any regrets about reserving Royal Caribbean sponsored excursions on our Holy Land crusing. 

Immigration Preference

First (and possibly most significantly), the most important benefit of getting a shore tour via the cruise line was having precedence immigration after we arrived in Israel.

Although not frequent for European ports, Israel requires face-to-face immigration for all maritime vacationers. With almost 4,000 passengers onboard, each single individual was required to undergo this in-person immigration even when they weren’t planning to go ashore.

Originally, we had booked a third-party tour via Viator as a result of we had an in a single day in Ashdod and we weren’t frightened about returning to the port at a sure time.

However, I made a decision to do a little analysis about immigration in Israel only a few months earlier than we sailed. I found that Royal Caribbean excursions would obtain immigration precedence and everybody on an impartial tour would wish to attend for all cruise line excursions to undergo immigration first.

Those that weren’t on a sponsored tour needed to get an immigration quantity previous to arrival; these got on a first-come, first-serve foundation.

Also, giant impartial excursions that comprised of 30-50 cruisers onboard needed to coordinate getting comparable immigration numbers so everybody may undergo at comparable instances.

I watched on-line as many scrambled to alter their tour plans and coordinate with their impartial guides once they came upon in regards to the immigration delay.

For bigger cruise ships, immigration in Israel can take 4 to 5 hours! We determined to cancel our third-party tour, watch the cruise portal, and guide a Royal Caribbean tour as quickly as a full-day tour opened up.

This was the most effective determination we made, as we had been in a position to undergo immigration promptly at 8:00am. As anticipated, those that didn’t have a Royal Caribbean tour needed to wait till 12pm-1pm to get off the ship.

Most of the websites in Israel shut close to 4pm-5pm, so this actually doesn’t permit for a lot time to see all the things town has to supply.

For us, Israel was the principle spotlight of the itinerary and we needed to optimize our 3 days there with full-day excursions. Losing half of a day ready for immigration would have been not solely irritating, but additionally disappointing.

We heard tales of people that didn’t get via immigration fast sufficient and their impartial excursions cancelled on them – or they had been left behind fully to fend for themselves. We met others who tried to discover the port on their very own after getting left behind, however discovered difficulties attempting to do issues with no tour information.

Late Return Guarantee

In addition to precedence immigration, one other main perk of reserving an tour although the cruise line was having the assure that the ship wouldn’t depart us behind.

After pondering via our excursions, we realized that we had quite a lot of driving between the entire websites we needed to see. For instance, visiting the Dead Sea and Masada was greater than 2 hours away from the Ashdod cruise port.

Since we needed to see locations that weren’t near the cruise port, it made sense to guide our excursions via the cruise line. We additionally discovered there to be quite a lot of visitors jams in Israel; our tour guides talked about that Israeli folks love having the luxurious autos, which congests the highway.

On our second day in Israel visiting Masada and the Dead Sea, we discovered ourselves greater than an hour delayed. There had been tons of tour buses visiting Masada on the identical time and just one individual was working the 2 cable vehicles that take folks as much as the mountain high and again to the customer middle.

We waited in line for an hour with folks pushing and shoving their manner via the gang. Most had been possible terrified of being separated from their excursions and being caught 2 hours away from the cruise port.

With our Masada delay, we visited the Dead Sea nearly two hours later than anticipated on the schedule. Instead of stressing about getting again to the ship on time, we had a way of ease understanding the ship wouldn’t depart us as a result of we had been on a Royal Caribbean sponsored tour.

We loved our time floating within the Dead Sea as an alternative of skipping it fully as a result of we had been harassed about getting again to the ship on time. 

There had been tons of excursions that returned late to the ship that night, so Odyssey of the Seas left three hours later than scheduled.

The identical factor occurred on our third day when the ship was docked in Haifa. As we had been shuffled from web site to web site, we had been about an hour delayed. This had us operating late after which we hit visitors on the best way again to the cruise port.

Again, the ship departed Israel later than anticipated as a result of there have been different excursions additionally delayed.

I can solely think about the panic that will have overwhelmed us if we had been on an impartial tour throughout this time. Our tour information mentioned he had by no means seen the quantity of individuals we noticed when visiting Masada. You simply by no means know when issues may go amiss in these conditions. 

We had been very grateful that we had been on Royal Caribbean sponsored excursions and didn’t must stress about getting left behind out of the country.

Priority Tendering

Although Israel was the principle draw for us with this 12-night itinerary, we additionally had port stops in Greece and Cyprus.

Santorini is among the hottest ports in Greece, together with being a well-liked vacation spot for vacationers everywhere in the world. Its beautiful volcanic, mountain panorama makes it a bucket-list vacation spot, but additionally a logistically difficult port for cruise ships.

During our go to to Santorini, there have been 5 different ships docked throughout the identical time, so it was very busy. Santorini additionally requires tenders for these eager to go ashore to the island.

Those who select to independently get off the ship are tendered from a one finish of the ship whereas excursions via the cruise line launch from the opposite finish. Those independently exploring are dropped at Skala, which is a small tender port close to Fira.

Since the city of Fira is situated up the mountain, you need to both journey a cable automotive, stroll the steps or journey a donkey (sure, actually!).

If you’re on a cruise line tour, you might be possible dropped at the Athinios port as an alternative the place you’ll be able to take busses all through the island.

I’ve been to Santorini twice earlier than. My first go to was on a land-visit throughout my examine overseas semester, so I knew the lay of the land. The second time I visited Santorini was on my honeymoon with my husband, through which we selected to independently tackle the island with a ferry to Oia and bus journey to Fira.

As young-20-something newlyweds, we didn’t thoughts the joys of operating down the steps alongside the donkeys to get again to the tenders! If something, it was a enjoyable reminiscence for us after a beautiful day on our personal time.

However, I knew my dad and mom (of their early 60s) wouldn’t respect the stress of driving a donkey, the bodily pressure of doing all of the steps, or the frustration of being crowded in a line ready for cable vehicles.

After weighing the choices, we selected to guide an tour via the cruise line for Santorini. We got precedence tendering to get off the ship and didn’t must battle any crowds onboard.

The tender introduced us to the Athinios port and we had been bussed throughout the island to the Village of Oia, along with a cease at a vineyard and go to to Fira.

Not having to fret in regards to the tendering scenario, together with the stress of how we might get again to the tender port from the mountaintop of Fira was an enormous reduction.

We had a beautiful day exploring the island by bus and I used to be grateful that we didn’t expertise any logistical challengers, particularly contemplating what number of ships had been docked on the port on the identical time.

Overall Safety

While Israel is mostly thought-about to be very protected, we did see just a few headlines earlier than our cruise that gave us pause with the rising rigidity in that space of the world.

Speaking broadly, cruise traces don’t wish to take any main, identified dangers with their excursions; more often than not, these firms are vetted completely for security.

When cruise traces market and promote excursions, they’re inherently accepting some sense of legal responsibility when one thing goes unsuitable.

Of course, issues can occur once you journey whether or not you’re on a cruise line tour, exploring a port by yourself or touring with an impartial tour firm. There will proceed to be dangers with touring that you just settle for once you select to pack your luggage and head out to see the world.

For this itinerary, we felt reserving excursions via the cruise line was the most effective determination we may make for our security. Since we had not traveled to this space of the world earlier than and we weren’t accustomed to the port or the nation, it felt like probably the most knowledgeable determination we may make.

We knew we had been paying a premium for reserving excursions via the cruise line; but, it felt like the cash was price it to have peace of thoughts for our time in Israel.

General Convenience

One of the most important attracts of reserving a cruise quick tour with the cruise line is the overall comfort you’ll have, particularly relating to logistics.

It’s so good to simply get up, have breakfast and meet at a chosen spot onboard. There’s little or no planning, coordinating and stress concerned with sponsored shore excursions.

We additionally appreciated the pliability of reserving excursions via the cruise line. In this occasion, my mother wasn’t fully certain which days in Israel she needed to take excursions. She thought-about staying on the ship as a result of she didn’t understand how comfy she felt getting off the ship.

Having our excursions booked with the cruise line gave us cancellation flexibility if she ended up altering her thoughts final minute and never wanting to affix us on excursions; you merely stroll to the shore tour desk and the crew members show you how to from there.

There’s no coordinating with a tour firm on this occasion, which could be troublesome onboard in case you have web troubles or don’t wish to buy an web package deal.

At the top of the day, we knew had been had been additionally paying a premium for the comfort supplied; on this occasion, it was completely price it for us.

I would not change something in regards to the shore excursions we booked via the cruise line throughout this European cruise to Israel – it was actually the most effective determination we may make for our household.