So, you have booked your cruise and are now on countdown but wondering what sights to see. Do you opt for the Cruise lines excursions or do you go it alone?

Having done several cruises myself over the years I do often wonder how many people actually rely on the Cruise lines excursions entirely to see the delights their trip has to offer.

Not that long ago Cruise Lines pushed a hard sales pitch at their guests to ONLY book the excursions through the ship as this was the only way to guarantee yourselves back onto the ship. Whilst this still maybe the case about the ship only waiting for its organised trips to return, many guests are now finding out that could actually save themselves a whole heap of money my going alone. Have you tried this?

As an independent Cruise Specialist, it it not only my job to match the cruise to the guests requirements but I do also like to go the extra mile by giving my customers that bit of extra advise.

Not everyone will take me up on the advise but if they have a choice, then they can usually see for themselves which suits their needs.

Excursion- I get asked lots about what is the best way to book them. Apart from the Cruise lines own trips, there are now companies out there offering very similar trips for half the cost.

My reason for writing this today is to give you an insight that there are other options out there so choose wisely, but also the return of a good customer of mine from a trip over Christmas and New Year and his experience of booking trips with the Ship.

He was due to spend New Years Eve in Dubai. It had been announce on the ship that there wouldn’t be any fireworks but they were offering a chance to see an amazing Laser Show at the Iconic Burj Khalifa. The price of £475pp included food and drinks for the evening too but still a hefty amount for an evening out. A it was such a special evening my customer thought it was worth it to see the show as the were berthed a little far away from the centre so didn’t think he would get such a good view from his Balcony or on the deck of the ship.

Well, the food and drink was amazing he said but the Laser show was not what he expected at all and has actually sent a letter of complaint in as he felt it wasn’t what had been sold to him and said he could have seen better from his Balcony! What a costly night eh?

Here is a video of what the night should have been like….

Here is a picture of what the actually saw of the evening. Not a patch on a video I watched of the evening I must say!

Have you had a similar experience? I would love to hear about it.

These companies give their assurances of  giving the best choice and getting their guests back to the ship in plenty of time so what is holding you back?

I have taken a few of these independent trips and can confirm them to be a complete success. Not for all guests may I add as we did actually leave 2 guests in Sorrento!

The trips themselves are usually bookable and paid for before departure and vouchers are issued as guarantee.

The trip at each port are offered on various mobility capabilities giving all guests the best possible choice.

Normally on arrival into ports, only the Cruise Lines Coaches are allowed at the side of the ship. Don’t let this bother you though as I have jumped on the free shuttle bus to the edge of the port where I was advised to meet the Excursion rep.

We had a local guy leading the trip- One to Sorrento and Pompeii and the other to Florence and Pisa. He was born and bred in Italy and had a vast Knowledge of the interesting facts on our trip. My trips were very informative and half the Price I would have paid on board. I mentioned earlier about leaving 2 guests. This is why they can give the assurance that they return you on time as these particular guests were late back to the meeting point so the coach left without them. There really isn’t any excuses for not getting back to the meeting places as we all were given the mobile numbers of the Reps