SHORE EXCURSIONS are still a point of irritation for many of you when we ask how your trip went. There is some variation, but this is a problem across just about ALL the cruise lines, and in many different regions around the world.

First, the reasons why:

Professional tour guides are highly skilled people. They are almost always university educated, and speak several languages. You can’t hire “just anyone”!
After not getting paid for two years during the pandemic, many of these capable, skilled people left the industry and haven’t come back.
The cruise lines contract their shore excursions out to local providers… so the same providers are servicing all the cruise lines.
About 2.2 MILLION more people got on cruise ships in 2023, than in 2019 (the last “normal” year). Those extra millions are booking shore excursions with fewer providers.

So this is both a supply and a demand problem!

What YOU can do about it:

Book Early – Don’t wait until the last minute to consider your shore excursions.
Book Independent Excursions — You don’t have to buy your excursions from the cruise line, and it’s a myth that if you stick with cruise line shore excursions, they’ll hold the ship for you if you come back late. Certainly, some ships HAVE delayed departure because of late comers. However, more often, the captain of the ship does NOT have the discretion to delay departure. Tides, commercial traffic, and the Harbor Master’s instructions trump the skipper’s ability to delay departure.
Book a Car & Driver — if you have 4 people or more, then it will probably be cheaper, and you’ll have a far better experience than on a motorcoach with 50 others. The photo is of me, Bob, and our friends Julie & Jesse, when we hired a car and driver in Malta, instead of taking a shore excursion with 40 others on a motor coach. It was WAY better.
Pay for Privileged Access – Some excursions allow you to pay more to skip the line, or go before/after hours. For example, both Tauck and Uniworld have some privileged access options.
Independent Exploration – you DON’T have to take an excursion. In the old days, I would buy a guide book, and do self-directed tours of places I was visiting. Today there are APPs you can download for a specific location that will provide an audio tour, and a map with the highlights. You can use public transit, taxis or Uber to get around.
Take a Foodie Tour – this a great way to get oriented, there’s usually fewer people, and you get to experience the connection between a people, their culture and their food.
Look at the Big Picture – If you don’t think you’re going to get back to a place, and you have a specific interest, it may very well be worth paying for an upgraded excursion.
Ask How Many People will be on your Excursion — and consider whether you’d be better off paying more. The “death-shuffle” with 40 others is not a good experience.
Do some Homework – In ports like Rome (that is over an hour from the port), you’ll want to have organized excursions to help you bridge that distance. In ports like Vancouver, the ship docks downtown, so you can walk right off the ship and into the city. These are just two examples, but knowing what you want to do in a particular port of call, and how logistically easy it will be to do that, will help you immensely.

This is a problem that will probably self-correct, but it’s unclear as to when that will happen. Until then, it’s worth getting in front of your shore excursions.

Today’s Travel Opportunities

TAUCK RIVER

PORTUGAL & SPAIN on the Douro River for one-week:

Visit Porto, Douro valley, Peso da Regua, Pinhao, Vega de Terron, Mateus Palace, Guimaraes.
See the vineyards and estate wineries, traverse the locks, take in spectacular scenery, visit castle ruins, see paleolithic art, and enjoy architectural treasures.
Optional extensions to Madrid and/or Lisbon.
Family departures available if you want to take your grandkids on a river cruise.
Departures April through November 2025 from $5890.

PRAGUE to PARIS for 14-days

Visit Paris for 2-nights, then board your ship in Luxembourg, and stop at Trier, Koblenz, Rudesheim, Frankfurt, Bayreuth, Bamberg, and Nuremberg. Then transfer to Prague for 2-nights.
Departures April through October from $9790

OKTOBERFEST: Amsterdam to Munich for 10-days in September

Visit Amsterdam, Dusseldorf, Heidelberg, Strasbourg, Lucerne, Munich
Reserved space in traditional brewery tent for Oktoberfest
Departures in September from $8190.

OCEANIA

There a few days left to take advantage of Oceania’s sale that will get you an upgrade, and some other goodies. Here’s a link to the included sailings: https://www.oceaniacruises.com/special-offers/black-friday?insider=mmjy-sue-bob-bradley-the-pampered-cruiser

ALASKA: Seattle round-trip departing August 8, for 10-days

Visit Ketchikan, Sitka, Haines, Juneau, Wrangell, Tracy Arm, Victoria
Veranda fares from $4299 including beverage package and $400 per person OBC.
See our ship tour video: https://youtu.be/KvgJJ2bE1OU

HAWAII & TAHITI: Honolulu to Papeete departing September 30, for 15-days

Visit Kauai, Maui, Kona, Hilo, and then on to 5 ports in French Polynesia including an overnight in Bora Bora before finishing in Papeete.
Fares from $3899 including beverage package and $500 per person OBC

ICELAND, GREENLAND & CANADA: Reykjavik to Montreal departing July 11, for 16-days

Visit 3 ports in Iceland, 3 ports in Greenland, 2 ports in Newfoundland, 2 ports in the Quebec Eastern townships, Quebec City, and Montreal (overnight).
Fares from $6649 including beverage package and $500 per person OBC.

CARIBBEAN: Miami round-trip departing March 27 for 12-days

Visit Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, Puerto Rico, Bahamas
Veranda fares from $4899. Includes Beverage Package, $400 per person on board credit.
See our VISTA ship tour video: https://youtu.be/nN5lyXCEy_g

SPAIN & PORTUGAL: Lisbon to Barcelona departing April 12 for 12-nights

Visit Lisbon, Seville (for 2 nights!), Gibraltar, Malaga, Cartagena, Majorca, Barcelona
Golf excursions available on this trip!
Veranda fares from $3819. Includes beverage package and $200 OBC.

OCEANIA CULINARY. We get lots of inquiries about Oceania’s food and wine program, so we put together this Video: https://youtu.be/O0Que9codHo

LAND CRUISES WITH INTREPID TRAVEL

COSTA RICA: San Jose to Tamarindo for 12-days

Costa Rica is both exotic, but nearby (under 4 hours from Houston, Atlanta, or Miami).
Visit BOTH Caribbean and Pacific Coasts, see a turtle sanctuary, enjoy coffee where it is harvested, slide into the hot springs at Arenal Volcano, see the abundant wildlife in the rainforest, and take a surfing lesson in Tamarindo (or maybe just watch it!).
Departures November through February from $4947

MOROCCO: Casablanca to Marrakech for 15-days

If you’re in Southern Europe, then this North African country is close by, and in many ways is more comparable to travelling in Europe, than Africa.
Visit the Museum of Judaism, and Mosque of Hassan II in Casablanca. Walk the Medinas and Souks in Meknes, get a home-cooked dinner in Fes, visit the desert oasis town of Erfoud, go for a camel ride during your stay at a Sahara Desert Camp, stop in at Ait Benhaddou (where Lawrence of Arabia, Game of Thrones, and many other movies have been filmed), stay overnight in a village in the High Atlas Mountains, and finish in Marrakech, where you’ll experience the crossroads of cultures that makes up the place.
Weekly departures year-round from $4520

JAPAN: Tokyo to Kyoto for 12-days

Visit the thriving metropolis of Tokyo for 3-nights, and then travel by rail through Hakone, Takayama, Shirakawa, to Hiroshima for 2-nights, and then on to Kyoto for 3-nights.
Several departures per month (year-round) from $7322

In Case You Missed It:

INSIDE LOOK AT THE PAMPERED CRUISER: If you’ve ever wondered what we do, what we don’t do, and how we differentiate ourselves…

https://pamperedcruiser.com/insiders-look-at-the-pampered-cruiser/

CANADA & NEW ENGLAND Destination Focus: The cruise ship season on the St. Lawrence is just ending, so here’s some information if you’re looking for next fall:

https://pamperedcruiser.com/canada-new-england/

Latest YOUTUBE Post:

Viking Pre-Trip Mail-out Package. If you’re taking a cruise with Viking, when will you get your luggage tags, and what else can you expect from them pre-trip? We made this quick video to answer those questions:

https://youtu.be/62QlltkT7xo

Do You Have an Upcoming Viking Cruise?

Earlier this year, Viking replaced its Book on Board program with the BON VOYAGE incentive. This allows you to book your next Viking cruise in the 2 weeks BEFORE you board, and get some extra goodies for doing so: