You mean - kind of like you scaring people into thinking that if they book a non-
DCL excursion, they will miss the boat?
**To add to my comment above - no one said you WILL miss the boat if you fly to port on the day of embarkation. However, IF there is a flight cancellation or delay that day, one COULD miss the boat. I was the one who said Madeira was the first port with an airport, and we don't get there until day 11. If people can get to
Castaway Cay by boating from somewhere in Nassau - more power to them. It's not a risk I am willing to take.
One more thing: I certainly HAVE read of people who missed their
Disney cruise because of a flight delay or cancellation on the day of departure.
Yes, I understand ... some people likely HAVE missed the ship. ONE MORE TIME ... do you know them? Compare that number against how many were successful. Then, compare those figures to people who fly 1-2 days prior to embarkation. If you are flying during inclement weather, have layovers, or are flying internationally, you have more chances of hiccups, or bumps in the road ... flying multiple legs increases the chance of an issue ... nothing more ... nothing less. If you are flying the night before debarkation ... you can STILL miss the ship if there are delays or cancellations with your flight ... what's your point?
With regard to a non-DCL excursion, I do not recall me EVER suggesting anyone booking a non-DCL cruise will miss the ship. Contrary, if you are familiar with the destination, and are okay on the travel time, cost and location ... it is often better to handle an excursion on your own. On the other hand, if you are not familiar with these ... or ... if the planned excursion fills up the majority of the allotted time at port, it is often better to opt for a DCL excursion (again, for the security provided by DCL, in that they will not leave you behind ... similar to that of booking DCL airfare).
While in Grand Cayman (repeat excursion to Rum Point), I opted for a DCL excursion, because it is a full day excursion. If I opted to travel to Rum Point on my own, I would not have been provided with priority debarkation. I would have to catch a cab to the airport, pick up a rental car, then drive to Rum Point. By the time I did that, the DCL excursion would already have arrived at Rum Point, and would have already been provided with their reserved lounge chairs. If I to traveled to Rum Point on my own, I would have had to leave early ... in order to return the car to the airport, and get a taxi back to the port.
While recently in Cozumel, I opted for a Beach Day. While I have been to Cozumel several times, I opted for a DCL excursion, as I had not been to this particular beach previously. On previous excursions (DCL and otherwise), one can sometimes experience a less-than-stellar experience. With DCL, you have more of a chance in obtaining a refund or credit, if a problem arises with an excursion. Since I am now comfortable with this specific private beach park, and since I now know how long it takes to get there, I now have no problem booking this on my own (if desired). The difference in price was only $25, but the DCL excursion included a $15 lunch ... so the cost was minimal. Since it included a nice motorcoach, I would have no problem using DCL (for this excursion) next time ... but would not be obligated to do so.
While on a first time excursion to Jost Van Dyke Island, our tour operator did not provide the water activities for the day ... which was to have been included in the cost. We approached the operator, who said it was beyond their control, and that no other provisions would be made available. Within 30 minutes of returning to the ship (after completion of the excursion), DCL had made arrangements for a partial credit to our shipboard account. Clearly, those who made private arrangements for the excursion did NOT receive a stateroom credit. You see, while opting for cruise line excursions is almost always more expensive, it is not always a bad idea.
While sailing to Tortola, we opted for a Dolphin encounter via DCL. Having never been to Tortola, it was my safest bet. Having now been to Tortola many times, we no longer book any excursions through any cruise line, since we are very familiar with the lay of the land. This would be the same for other ports, including Nassau, Ketchikan, St. Thomas, Gibraltar and Skagway, to name a few.
While in Madeira on a previous T/A cruise, we were on an all day excursion. The tour operator returned us to the pier more than ONE HOUR late (lots of travel time, and several travel delays) ... but the ship did not leave without us. Clearly, had we booked the excursion on our own, we would have had to make our own arrangements, if we had missed the ship.
As I had been saying previously, if you are NOT familiar with the local port ... if you are not familiar with the port of call in general ... if the excursion is a full day excursion ... if the port calls for a tender, it is often best to consider utilizing a cruise-ship based excursion. Having been to Madeira and Gibraltar previously, we are not opting for cruise line based excursions on this cruise. I have seen people taking about private excursions on Madeira. Some may not realize the distance involved with an excursion to the west or north end of Madeira. Do they realize they may be in for 100+ minutes of travel time (each way)? The same can be said for excursions in the Mediterranean. The interesting excursions are not "placed" at a port of call. Rather, in the Caribbean, the islands are smaller ... hence, more convenient. To the contrary, if we were to call upon Cadiz, we would more than likely opt for a cruise-ship based excursion.
We sailed HAL with a short call to San Juan (4 hours). Many people opted for a private excursion ... we opted to stay close to the port, and walk around town. While HAL did indeed offer tours, we declined ... as we did not have interest. It should be no surprise, there were many people who booked excursions or tours on their own, and missed the ship. In this case, clearly, booking a private excursion would have risks ... why placed yourself in jeopardy?
I do not scare anyone into anything ... I point out the advantages and disadvantages of each. Trying to tell someone they'd "NEVER DO 'x'" because they can miss 11 nights of a 14 night cruise is ludicrous is just wrong ... especially when they can pick up the ship within 48 hours. In this case ... the information provided to the others was flat out wrong!
Off the top of my head, I am not familiar with ANY port which doubles as an airport ... meaning ... no matter which port is involved, if you are flying to meet up with a ship, you will likely have to use some sort of transportation to get from the airport, to the cruise port. Even with Gibraltar, you have to land at the airport, and obtain ground transportation to the cruise port (similar to landing at Bimini / Castaway Cay). Why someone would tell anyone else they have to fly to Madeira is beyond me. I do not mean to be rude ... but there is a difference between trying to scare someone (persuading them to change plans) with incorrect information, versus providing pros and cons to the questions they ask.
Steven
We've already have made the decision to change to late seating and linking with others. Thanks, though I'm sure your post may help others.
