Shore Excursions

[DanielleNY]

I just looked at some Shore Excursions for the Caribbean and they are seriously lacking.

only 1 or 2 options through RC website??

 

[DanielleNY]

I guess it differs per ship... I was looking at 2017 Oasis of the Seas departing on 2/19/17.... each of the shore excursions - there is only 1/2 options....

 

[sam_gordon]

I guess it differs per ship... I was looking at 2017 Oasis of the Seas departing on 2/19/17.... each of the shore excursions - there is only 1/2 options....

I'm guessing that far out they just haven't been established yet. There could be contract negotiations, etc. Can you search shore excursions based on location instead of ship for a better idea?

 

[HopperFan]

Just got off Oasis and there were lots of options. Maybe you are just too far out for them to have solidified contracts. I would look at Feb '16 to get an idea what they offer that time of year.

 

[MickeySP]

I think you are just too far out. We are doing April 2016 and were told some excursions haven't been firmed up. You can always just do it through the tour company if you know what you want to do.

 

[Dug720]

I'd definitely expect things to get firmed up much closer to time - you're over a year away. I'm doing a Med/Venice cruise in July and they're still firming up some of those - I'd already signed up for one at Livorno (Florence) that they ended up NOT doing, so they put me on the other one to the same general area and refunded the difference (I'm deciding if I want to keep it as I'm not thrilled with "time at a local shopping mall" - I mean, REALLY? When I go to Italy the last place I want to go is a stupid mall - BUT I've already been to Florence for a week, so the tours to the city don't interest me. I would love to go to Volterra, which one tour does, but we're there on a Sunday when the town is pretty much closed, UGH! So right now my choices are the Coastal Cirque Terre including the mall, a beach day (I love the beach, but...) including Pisa which I've already done, or staying on the ship. Unless they add something else in. And no, a private tour is not an option as the only ones I'm finding are absurdly expensive for one (if they even offer it for one), and to me sharing negates the DIY aspect of a private tour as one would clearly be outvoted by the majority in a share.)

You can get an idea of what might be offered by looking at excursions for a similar itinerary to see what you might be interested in.

 

[LemonNeko]

We booked on board and there were tours available that we hadn't seen on the website.

 

[eskimoinparadise]

I guess it differs per ship... I was looking at 2017 Oasis of the Seas departing on 2/19/17.... each of the shore excursions - there is only 1/2 options....

That is an Eastern Caribbean with port stops in Nassau (currently 31 different excursions offered by RCL); St. Thomas (currently 42 different excursions), and St. Maartan (currently 39 different excursions). 2017 won't populate for a while yet, but if you go to RCL's website and look under "The Experience - Shore Excursions" you can get a pretty solid idea of what will be available once they populate the 2017 data.

 

[MrsPete]

Forget about ship's excursions and look into private excursions. You can find them online by googling "shore excursions jamaica" (or whatever island you're visiting). You can read on Cruise Critics to see that the tour company is legitimate. You'll find plenty of options, and your group will be smaller in number, which will make the activity more enjoyable. The fact that they're also cheaper is just a bonus.

Second, you don't actually need to book a shore excursion. You can simply disembark and walk to the beach or window shop in many ports -- do some reading ahead of time to find out.