In addition to enjoying the activities and facilities on board a cruise ship, the fun of cruising also include exploring new & exciting destinations each day. The cruise ships sail mostly over night and every day guests wake up in new destinations with a different view.
Mostly the ship will be at each port for around 8 to 9 hours and the guests will be excited to see so much in so little time. Hence, for the guests to get the most out of their days at port, they need to plan their shore excursions in advance.
There are plenty of options at different port ranging from sightseeing city tours, exploring the ancient historical cities, hiking on glaciers, snorkeling through coral reefs to shopping at local markets. The cruise lines offer varieties of organized shore excursions for each port of call for an additional charge - some are activity based trips & some are sightseeing bus tours; some are full day tours & some are just for few hours; some are guided tours while some bring the guests to the destination and give them free time to explore until it’s time to go back to the ship; some focus on the highlights of many activities while some focus on one activity in depth.
The guests can either book their shore excursions through the cruise line or arrange the tours through private operators. Alternatively the guests can also choose to explore the port city on their own. The ship sponsored tours can be either booked on board at the Shore Excursions desk or can be booked on line before cruising. By booking the ship-sponsored tours, you can avoid the hassle of arranging your own tours at each port and can also avoid worrying about reaching the ship in time as the ship will not depart until all of its tour buses have returned. If guests are exploring the destination on their own, they need to make sure that they return before the time the ship is scheduled to leave the port. The ship will not wait for any one as there will be plenty of other guests waiting to proceed to their next destination.
It’s fun to explore the various exciting ports around the world – so plan well & enjoy!