Category Archives: Shore Excursions

Snorkeling in Saint Thomas

Browsing the shore excursions pre-cruise, I found a snorkel excursion from St. Thomas that went to nearby Saint John. Having been to Saint Thomas previously, but never to Saint John this one sounded promising, especially since I have heard good … Continue reading

Posted in Caribbean, Ports of Call, Royal Caribbean, Shore Excursions, Symphony of the Seas | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

SeaCow Snorkel in Bonaire

Bonaire is rumored to have some of the best snorkeling in the Caribbean. On our cruise on Celebrity Constellation, we booked what they billed as a Double Dip Snorkel excursion. Our original booking was for 8:30am, which would give us … Continue reading

Posted in Caribbean, Celebrity, Constellation, Ports of Call, Shore Excursions | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Kayaking in Costa Maya

On most cruises we venture forth on our own at most ports, with an excursion booked here and there. The first time we went to Costa Maya we found a taxi tour to the Chacchoben Mayan ruins. On our cruise … Continue reading

Posted in Caribbean, Celebrity, Constellation, Mexico, Ports of Call, Shore Excursions | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dhow Boat Ride in Khasab, Oman

Our cruise from Italy to Dubai on the MSC Lirica had several port stops in Oman, one of them at Khasab. Due to pre-cruise research where everybody on all the websites I could find about cruising to Oman said there … Continue reading

Posted in Lirica, Middle East, MSC, Ports of Call, Shore Excursions | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Salalah, Oman 4×4 Tour

MSC Lirica glided into Salalah, Oman as the desert view gave way to giant cranes at the container port where the ship docked.  The ship’s thrusters thundered, moving it slowly sideways as the ship neared the dock – aided as … Continue reading

Posted in Lirica, Middle East, MSC, Ports of Call, Shore Excursions | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Petra

Many people who have never heard of Petra have actually seen a glimpse of this wondrous archeological site. The façade of the temple known as the treasury was featured in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Yes that building carved … Continue reading

Posted in Lirica, Middle East, MSC, Ports of Call, Shore Excursions | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Great Wall of China

Considering the distance from Tianjin port to Beijing, we booked a ship’s excursion to see the Great Wall. This all-day excursion started with a visit to the Summer Palace with a lunch stop at a jade factory between there and … Continue reading

Posted in China, Holland America, Shore Excursions, Westerdam | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Summer Palace in Beijing

Excursion information from Holland America gives this history of the Summer Palace: Built during the Qing Dynasty and surrounded by grounds laid out by Emperor Qianlong as a place of retirement for his mother, this summer residence took on special … Continue reading

Posted in China, Holland America, Shore Excursions, Westerdam | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The $6.95 Shore Excursion

Shortly after booking our 28-day cruise from Vancouver BC, Canada to Shanghai, China on Holland America Westerdam I browsed through the shore excursions offered for the journey to get some sort of an idea about what we’d find in the … Continue reading

Posted in China, Holland America, Shore Excursions, Westerdam | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Snorkeling in Belize

It’s a long tender ride from ship to shore in Belize. Tenders are used when there is no cruise ship dock and the ship waits offshore while smaller boats bring passengers to land. These are sometimes the taller lifeboats off … Continue reading

Posted in Caribbean, Holland America, Ports of Call, Shore Excursions, South and Central America, Veendam | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment