When we first started cruising, one of the biggest “culture shocks” for us was the shore excursion. Coming from a background of independent travel where we planned our day, the idea of being funneled onto a bus with 40 other people felt, frankly, a bit daunting. We worried we’d lose that spirit of discovery if we followed a paddle-waving guide.
However, after several voyages, we’ve realized that the shore excursion is an art form. You only have a limited window—usually 3 to 6 hours—to experience a destination. If you don’t have a plan, you end up spending half that time just trying to find a bathroom or a decent place to eat near the pier.
We’ve developed a three-tier strategy for making the most of our time off the ship:
- The “Ship-Sponsered” Safety Net: For excursions that involve long travel times (like a two-hour bus ride to an inland ruin), we always book through the cruise line. The peace of mind knowing the ship won’t leave without us if the bus breaks down is worth the premium.
- The Independent Specialist: For things like wine tastings or specific historical walks, we often book find locations through TripAdvisor, other cruisers or travelers, or through our avid consumption of YouTube travel channels. We normally don’t stray too far from the cruise port of these, and often many of these are a short walk from the ship. We have yet to try booking a personal tour guide on any of our cruises, but as these get better this will be a plan for our near future.
- The “Slow Wander”: Sometimes, the best excursion is no excursion. We pick a port, find a local café with good Wi-Fi (refer to our coffee post!), and just walk.
This picture was taken in Cartagena, Spain. That is our cruise ship in the background, and we just got off and wandered around this amazing city. We found a place to grab some lunch, explore some of the cultural interest points around the city, and found a hill with our ship in the background. No plans other than when we had to be back on the ship (“all aboard”). These are the kinds of days we have found provide us with the stories of “that cafe” or “that building” that we fondly reflect on. As an aside, as we mentioned in an earlier post, Cartagena will be a repeat visit at some point in our future.
The key to a successful shore day is knowing when to be a “tourist” and when to be a “traveler.” Don’t feel pressured to see everything. Pick one “anchor” activity, and leave the rest of your hours for the unexpected. After all, the best stories usually come from the things that weren’t on the itinerary.
Do you prefer the security of an organized tour, or are you a “walk-off-the-ship-and-see” kind of traveler?
