I agree!!! We are wait listed on four.

We were wait listed on 4 excursions but have already cleared 3 of them. Hopefully, the last excursion wait listed will clear in the near future.

I was wait listed for six excursions when I signed up and all of them have cleared. I hope all of yours do too.

None of our wait lists have cleared.

First day in Cape Town tours are available now.

First day in Cape Town tours are available now.

NO, I don't stutter - just inapt!

I don't see them as available for booking.

I checked my booking and there were several tours available when I clicked on first day in Cape Town

I don't see them either.

Go to your itinerary and click on Cape Town, Dec. 20, there were several tours, mostly free. I went to DXB to CPT on Ngaire's escorted trips for 2014 and followed that itinerary.

I'm in concerige, that might be the problem (for you) ! Certain suite classes get earlier crack at tours. That's odious!

GOOD LUCK!

Yep, that's the difference. We are at the bottom of the barrel room.

I don't see them either and we are Platinum so get to see them as soon as Concierge.

It looks like Regent is going to get quite an earful from me tomorrow if some have access to Cape Town excursions while Platinums cannot even see what is being offered.

That's what I thought but no excursions. Still wait listed on 5

I'm just lowly old Silver in a bargain basement room. I'm surprised my excursions cleared!

Still have four excursions that are on wait list. Still no excursions for our arrival day in Cape Town. If any of the wait lists still haven't cleared, and Cape Town excursions aren't available, by 24 June, we will cancel.

Can't put up with this when there are other options available.

I wouldn't worry about waitlisted excursions, Marc, they almost always clear -- if not before the cruise, then during the cruise.
As for tours in Capetown, remember we don't even dock until 4:00 p.m., so the tour options after that would probably be pretty limited. Who wants to start a 4 or 8 hour tour at 4:30 in the afternoon? At least, not me. In the past we docked right at the V&A Waterfront which has gazillions of shops and restaurants--a perfect place to spend an evening--much better than a tour bus.

There is a hop on / hop off bus too that looks ok. I'm not to worried about shore excursions for Cape Town.

The hop on hop off is good. There are two routes and it goes everywhere and leaves from the Waterfront. The restaurants and shops in the Waterfront are great too. King Klip and langostino here I come! I love the food in South Africa.

We have two full days in Cape Town; hop on hop off sounds good. Is one of the stops the departure for boats to Robben Island?

Peggy, I know we arrive at 4pm; unlikely we would take a tour but the Cape Town by Lights looks like a possibility. Just no reason that Regent can't post the tours for that day.

Marc the Robben Island tour leaves from the waterfront. Cannot remember exactly where (it was about 11 years ago now) but we walked there from the Cape Grace. The boat normally docks right in the waterfront near the Table Bay Hotel (close to Baia restaurant). So all of that is close.

Marc, I do not think they WILL offer any tours that day at all. The message reads as follows:

As shore excursions to be offered in this port are not yet confirmed, below is a list of those offered previously. We make every effort to have excursions finalized at least 240 days in advance of sailing, and often sooner, so please check back regularly.

We are past 240 days and I really think this is just a standard message to the website if it is a port day and no tours have been posted yet. A self populating message in their system. They should change it to say NO TOURS it is very unusual to have a port day with no tours but also unusual to arrive at 4.00 pm.

You note they do not have any "examples" of tours either. The actual tours are all there for the next day. I think all the tours for this trip are posted and
nothing else will be coming.

Ngaire, thanks for the info on Robben Island.

I am not that much concerned about lack of excursions in Cape Town (probably wouldn't take one) as I am about the lack of FREE excursions in other ports and that we are wait listed on four excursions. The Regent site says up to 73 FREE Shore Excursions. I did a simple check of the website and found that there are a total of only 49 FREE excursions in all the ports combined. How do they calculate the up to number? They need more FREE excursions in Male and Maputo; both with very limited options (actually none as there are two free excursions in Male over two days and one in Maputo).

Sorry to harp on this but this is a pretty bad situation.

Marc

edited to add: Ngaire, my real concern with having only one option is that most passengers will be on that; many that aren't interested in staying out for a long time or even as long as is posted; mutinies occur. Regent needs to follow your lead and having a "do everything" Ken group and a "bit easier" Ngaire group. Nothing worse than having your one day in Maputo or Farajah or Male or wherever impacted by those that complain and want to end the tour quickly (I know, I have been in the group rooting for a quick return ).

Marc

You should write to Regent about these issues if it is worrying you so much. Sometimes there are reasons for fewer tours in a port of call, limited facilities in the port or simply not enough attractions to add much variety.

However, in these cases your idea of a regular and shorter tour is actually a very good one. In most cases the "do it all people" select the 5 - 8 hour tours. The "want to get back" people select the 2 -4 hour tours. So that really sorts itself out for the most part. But with just one tour or two tours offered in a port an adjustment to the time frame would keep the "do it all group" and the "I want to get back" group separated. Those that want a speedy return can select the same itinerary just shorter time periods at the various stops.

If I was able to run things that is what I would do. I can tell you who would be in the "do it all group" and who would be in the "I want to get back" group on most of my escorted trips! As the old saying goes - it is hard to please all the people all the time.

The number of free excursions they advertise SHOULD BE accurate.

If you want to write I will get you who to send this to and it has far more impact coming from a passenger than a travel agent.

I do think your excursions will clear they come in EVERY DAY tons of them. Not sure how it works but I think they wait until they have enough for another departure and then they open up a new tour and clear the waitlists. To date I have been able to get on every tour I have wanted. Things open up on the ship and I have gone "standby" on several tours I requested at the last minute and always managed to get on the tour.

Like Ngaire, I've never missed being cleared from a wait list for excursions I really wanted. Lol, Ngaire, the one I really want on this cruise and wait listed for in Cochin is the Tranquil Backwaters, and it is one of those long ones I almost never take, but remember your trip to India a few years ago when I think you did this as a part of a land trip, and loved it so much. The other one is I think in Male, the G fishing village one (can't remember the village, but it starts with a G. I REALLY wanted both of those, as I am taking basic intro bus tours for others as so many ports are new to me, and I won't likely be back to this part of the world.

I haven't even decided on several ports. Too many of them to do in one sitting without further research! I'm one who needs to be enticed in some way to spend more than 4 hours on an excursion from the ship.

I bet the backwaters clears. Bus to the boats and then to the boats. Plenty of buses and TONS of boats. I bet when the waitlist gets large enough for another departure you will clear.

Do not remember the fishing village either.

Two places in the world I shop for clothes - China and India. I really HATE shopping but not in these two countries! So that will probably be my focus on this trip. The mall in Mangalore is calling me!

Olivia, is it Gulhi Island fishing village? Was other one Cerf Island?


I like boats better than buses.

Not sure if we'll have time for any of these but found a great article about Things to do in Cape Town for Under R200 .

Yes, Ted, Gulhi Island, that's the other waitlisted one in addition to the Backwaters in Kerala (Cochin). I don't recall seeing anything about Cerf Island

Just a suggestion - you may want to organize some people to take a private Backwaters tour. When Ngaire went to India she posted those fabulous photos of her and Linda lounging on a lovely small houseboat during their tour, so that is what we were all looking forward to!

The Regent excursion, however, involves touring the backwaters on big, uncharming boats - you will be sitting on plastic deck chairs lined up on an open sided deck, not lounging like pashas on a small boat, although you will see those go by and gaze longingly at them.. On TAJ all of the LCT people on the excursion pooled our our tickets and got on the same boat, which I believe held 24 people; 22 of us and one other couple.

I think you can book a private tour for around $100 pp, including lunch - I know you want to have the "free" excursions, but this is definitely a place where a private tour on smaller boats would be the way to go.

Here's my blog description of the day, which we all enjoyed, but could have been so much better:

http://expect-to-fly.blogspot.com/2013/04/kerala-backwaters.html

Sounds GOOD to me!

omg, Leslie, you have burst my bubble completely. I'm also remembering Ngaire's pics that are on smugmug. looking back, I think they stayed on that boat. oh, I hope we can do better if you think that is a good price to do so!

Like Ted, I would love an alternate, I did some basic searches last night, just not trusting what I see, I guess.

Sorry, Olivia - I wish we had known ahead of time, but it was a fun and interesting day nonetheless, just not in the style we are all accustomed to.

Check viator.com - we took a tour booked through them in Normandy and the operator and guide were really good. Also, check on cruise critic and TripAdvisor to see if anyone's talking about it and recommends any tour operators.

Keep in mind it was a pretty long drive from where the ship docked so that will be a cost factor. But if you figure the ballpark included Regent excursion is "valued" at $149 to us, then their cost is probably about half of that, so $100 pp probably isn't an unreasonable expectation.

I've sent off an inquiry to a tour operator in Cochin to see what he can do.

Andrea, I am not on this trip with you but I am going to be in Cochin in November with Azamara and would appreciate any info on the operator you choose.
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Helen

Regent realized they were advertising too many excursions for Spice; now, instead of saying "up to 73 excursions" it now says "up to 59 excursions." They have also lowered the prices $1000 (still higher than Ngaire's great Spice fare). I am off to find the ten excursions they must have added; i counted only 49 excursions last month.

Shenanigans with the shore excursions continue. The excursion to the fishing village in the Maldives that I was confirmed on has disappeared. They've added a beach excursion to Kuda Bandos (which is free) and which sounds almost identical to the other beach excursion to Dhonveli which costs $179.
I am confused.

I had booked fishing village also so I just switched to free island excursion Dec 2 in afternoon I think?

Lauri, thanks for the alert, I would've missed it.

I am so disappointed that the Guhli island tour was yanked. I was still on the wait list and hoped to clear. The description of the beach stops says there are no lounge chairs, and no mention of whether refreshments are available, or whether there is shade. I would hope for both.

Olivia, you can take an umbrella from the ship and towels to spread out along with bottles of water.

I'm curious as to why one of the beach excursions is free while the other is $179 when the descriptions are nearly identical.