You'll Be Paid $1,000 if You Miss Your Cruise Ship After These Shore Excursions

While there are multiple independent tour operators that offer a huge variety of visits (some as unique as VIP tours of the Vatican), very few are specifically tailored to cruise travelers’ schedule. Cruisers have two major constraints when on land: They can only spend a few hours on site, and they have a strict all-aboard time that they need to keep if they don’t want to miss the ship.

A solution for cruisers who don’t find excursions to their taste or budget via their cruise line, and can’t find an independent tour that fits their tight schedule, is to look at the offerings available via Shore Excursions Group.

Shore Excursions Group offers cruise travelers more than 4,000 tours in 300-plus destinations around the world, from Alaska to the Arabian Gulf, all with the promise of getting back to the ship on time for departure.

“Since 2008, we’ve delivered over 4.6 million excursions with a 99.99 percent reliability rate,” says Paul Kiritsky, CEO of Shore Excursions Group, in an email conversation. And if that wasn’t enough, the company also has a ‘Back to Ship’ guarantee that covers cruisers. “Our team will arrange and pay for accommodations, meals, and transportation to the next port of call and pay each impacted guest $1,000 — ensuring you travel worry-free,” he continues.

And it’s not the only promise that Shore Excursions Group makes to cruisers, it also guarantees the cheapest excursions out there.

“We guarantee that our prices are the lowest you can find. If you find a lower price for a tour we offer, we will match it,” the company’s website says. This guarantee applies to the prices your cruise line offers, of course.

Shore Excursions Group’s website is one that’s incredibly easy to use for cruisers. Enter the details of your upcoming sailing, including the cruise line, the name of the ship, and the dates of the cruise, and all the shore excursion options for all the ports you’ll be visiting during your trip will be displayed in a matter of seconds.

Photo: Morgane Croissant

In the spring, I’ll travel on board Holland America’s Zuiderdam around the Mediterranean. To know what’s available to me via Shore Excursions Group, I entered my details and was provided with all the possible tours, including pre-cruise ones, for all the port days. A quick scan of my options showed me that, among other excursions on offer, there’s a stress-free guided visit of the Colosseum — a tour that’s not even proposed by the cruise line — and it won’t be crowded: Shore Excursions Group only offers small-group tours, with no more than 12 people.

Photo: Morgane Croissant

Photo: Morgane Croissant

To learn more about the Cruise Excursions Group’s offerings, the company’s best-selling tours, and what makes it unique among excursion providers, we talked with the company’s CEO, Paul Kiritsky.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Matador: Does Shore Excursions Group pick up cruisers at the ship just like a traditional shore excursion?

Kiritsky: Yes, our excursions are designed for convenience, with trusted tour operators meeting guests directly at the ship. While we provide the seamless experience expected from traditional excursions, our smaller groups and personalized itineraries add a touch of adventure and quality.

If a cruise ship has to cancel a day on shore at a specific port at the last minute, can the cruisers who booked an excursion with Shore Excursions Group get a refund?

Shore Excursions Group fully refunds canceled excursions, including those affected by last-minute port changes or ship delays. This ensures a smooth travel experience for our guests.

In what cruising region do people use Shore Excursions Group the most?

We use proprietary itinerary technology on our website in collaboration with local tour experts to ensure that our excursions are available for all cruisers, especially along the most popular sailings in regions like the Caribbean, Alaska, and Europe. So, our most popular offerings align with the most frequented cruise destinations, allowing cruisers to enjoy our higher-quality excursions wherever they sail around the world.

What are the top five excursions that cruisers book with Shore Excursions Group?

Our top five most-booked excursions include snorkeling in the Caribbean reefs, trekking glaciers in Alaska, exploring ancient ruins in Italy and Greece, savoring wines in Italy, and unique cultural tours in Japan.

What is the best-rated excursion currently offered by Shore Excursions Group?

Our Alaska whale-watching and glacier tours are guest favorites, consistently praised for breathtaking views and wildlife encounters. From Juneau’s port, you can escape the masses on a boat that holds a maximum of 40 guests with a guarantee of seeing whales AND take a float trip on spectacular, glacier-studded Mendenhall Lake, passing by the world-famous 2.5 mile-wide Mendenhall Glacier. Other highly rated options include historic tours across Europe in destinations like Rome and Mykonos, and the Chacchoben Mayan Ruins in Costa Maya.

Does Shore Excursions Group offer unique excursions that cruise lines cannot offer?

Absolutely. Our team has over 100 years of cruise and travel industry expertise, and they work diligently to curate a unique portfolio of higher-quality and more personalized excursions than the cruise lines. Some of our unique offerings include exclusive tours such as the Best of Rome, Pompeii and Amalfi Coast, Aix En Provence and Marseille, guided culinary tours in Japan, and private excursions offered in many ports, including river cruising destinations. In addition, we offer incredible multi-port packages featuring top-rated and one-of-a-kind excursions in each port, hand-selected by our team.