RedSox68
Retired 2021 -- All the Time to Travel Now!
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2009
- Messages
- 8,258
It would be awesome if DCL could do Disney-run excursions. They'd probably be of higher quality. We did a DCL-booked Tortola excursion on the Eastern in December & it was bad from the moment we were handed off from DCL to the excursion guides. The guides actually took everyone (3 buses) on the wrong tour until it finally got straightened out. And the experience, even when rectified, wasn't great.
Some people assume that DCL-booked excursions must be better in some way, but they're not. They're contracted with outside vendors, who in our case were quite lackluster.
I would be happy to pay more to get a completely DCL-run experience. In the end it's about customer service. DCL always wants you to have a good experience, whereas the contractors we had didn't seem to care.
I don't think any of the main stream cruise lines (RCCL, HAL, Princess, DCL, Carnival, NCL) have their own privately-arranged excursions. Every cruise we have taken has been with outside vendors through the ship. However, any problems we have experienced (excursion being cut short, tour guide not including all the stops listed, etc.) have been properly handled and partial or full refunds given. However, over the past several cruises we have started booking our own excursions through reputable vendors we have found on line and through Cruise Critic. Our biggest reason being that there is never enough time at the places and with large groups, you are always delayed by waiting for the stragglers who decided to go shopping instead of returning to the bus at the designated time. It may be a few dollars more, but it's so much more relaxing to be either on a private tour or with a smaller group
