Top 10 Cruise Destinations You Will Want to Book a Shore Excursion At
In this list, I take a look at 10 such cruise ports where when you visit, you just simply think that you need to get away and go off to explore another place.
This top 10 cruise destinations you will want to book a shore excursion at breaks down the ports that I have personally visited and found nothing worthy of visiting or ports that I have researched and simply thought there is no point in going there.
Our Top 10 Cruise Destinations You Will Want to Book a Shore Excursion At
Le Verdon
The chances are that you will know all about my thoughts on the port of Le Verdon but if you haven’t read any of the articles relating to it on this site or watch any of my videos on the port, Le Verdon is simply a wasted port.
There is nothing, and I mean nothing there, and even the nearby small village of Soulac-sur-Mer has little on offer, although if you are lucky enough to be on a line offering a free shuttle to it, take it.
On my visit there with Norwegian, we had to pay $20 for the shuttle, so we didn’t bother, so if you want to see this part of south-west France, you really need to book on an excursion.
Trips to Bordeaux, around an hour away and to a number of different vineyards are offered but they do come at a large cost as the lines know there is little to no over options for visitors with no independent tours available and no taxis waiting at the port.
Hambantota
CruiseHols is a politics free safe place, so I won’t get into the reason why the port of Hambantota exists, but it is built in the middle of nowhere and has no infrastructure set up for those visiting there.
There are a few different excursion options for those visiting the south coast of Sri Lanka but my recommendation, and the excursion that I did personally when visiting there, is to head off to one of the majestic national parks nearby.
Me and my wife visited the stunning Yala National Park and took a jeep safari through it that allowed us to see lots of local wildlife including elephants, alligators and if your very lucky leopards and bears.
This was an excursions to remember and made for an incredible day which is a huge contrast to staying onboard your ship at the port, especially as you will likely have a couple of days at sea to get to or from Sri Lanka anyway to take advantage of what your ship has to offer.
Port Klang
Port Klang is an impressive port to arrive at as you sail past many of the worlds biggest container ships but that is part of the problem itself for those visiting there on a cruise.
As one of the biggest commercial ports in the world, visitors are very restricted as to where they can go in the port and depending on where you dock, you may need a long shuttle just to get to the cruise port.
Even those arriving at the main cruise terminal, something I didn’t get to do, you will get to walk from your ship, but it is a couple of hours walk into Klang itself.
You can grab a taxi, but even that isn’t really worth it as Klang has nothing on offer for visitors and even little for those living there as it is a town solely to house those working at the port.
Thankfully, one of the worlds greatest cities is only around 60 minutes away and it is a visit to Kuala Lumpur that the majority of the ship will head off on.
If you simply choose a shuttle excursion, it is one of the cheapest excursions I personally done, so instead of wasting a day doing nothing in port, simply head to KL and enjoy a city full of history, culture and modern attractions.
Mormugao
If you are visiting India on a cruise, there will be a few issues at every port including long winded and pointless immigration procedures, so planning to do anything on your own can be tricky.
At most ports that is something you can do and places such as Kochi have good metro systems but if you want to visit the beaches, or churches, of Goa, the port you arrive at will make it difficult.
The port of Mormugao is a rundown, working port where it is a long walk down a back road to get to anywhere, and even that isn’t worth it.
Most cruisers will either head to the beautiful beaches of Goa, its main city of Panaji or they will head to see some of its beautiful churches including the Basilica of Bom Jesus.
Each of those options will need an excursion and with organised independent adventures all but impossible at the port with the issues of timings getting on and off of your ship and those wanting to make the most of their time in Goa will have to head off on excursion, as I did for my visit there.
Motril
I visited Motril back in 2023 and thankfully I had an excursion to the historic city of Granada booked as there is nothing at the port for those visiting.
The town of Motril itself is a few miles from the port and even that has little to nothing on offer so unless you want a day onboard your ship, you will need to book an excursion when visiting the Spanish port of Motril.
The good news is that Granada is well worth visiting, although it is around 1 hour away, but if you choose a shuttle excursion, it is one of the cheaper excursions to take when cruising around the Med.
Laem Chabang
Laem Chabang will often to be called Bangkok in itineraries, and it is there that the majority of the ship will be looking forward to visit.
Unfortunately, it is around 90 minutes to Krung Thep, or Bangkok if you prefer, and with no trainline or the cities metro heading to the port, the only way between the two is a shuttle excursion or an often-difficult private transfer.
Laem Chabang itself is a busy working port and offers nothing for tourists.
Port Moresby
The capital of Papua New Guinea is growing as a cruise port as lines look to give their guests the chance to explore the incredible rainforests that surround it.
Whilst there are unforgettable experiences on offer for those heading off to explore on an organised tour, there are a few difficulties for those wanting to explore on their own.
The infrastructure of the port, and the city, is limited at best and there are also safety concerns for tourists, so take away all of the worries and simply book through your ship for an adventure to remember.
Puerto Madryn
Known simply as Madryn, the port is a popular one for ships sailing around South America or down to Antarctica from Buenos Aires and whilst that may make you think of an idyllic Patagonian town just waiting to be explored, the truth is far different.
Madryn is a working town with little on offer- well aside from the incredible wildlife found in the waters along the coast from Madryn and the beaches near to it.
Everything from whales, Orca’s, penguin and seals can be seen on an excursion from your ship and it is the main reasons why most ships take their guests there.
Tilbury
If you have booked a cruise calling into London Tilbury you may get a shock if you haven’t done your research before arriving as you won’t be greeted by Tower Bridge, the Shard or the Houses of Parliament.
Instead, you’ll be welcomed by a sewage works, containers and logistical hubs- although there is a small fort at least.
The port is around a 45-minute drive to the Tower of London and an hour from Buckingham Palace but with the London traffic, you could easily be looking at double that.
With nothing but an industrial estate around the port and the town of Tilbury itself having nothing to offer visitors, this is one British port of call where you just have to plump down for the cost of an excursion.
Nynashamn
When you think of calling into Stockholm on a cruise ship, you think of sailing past 100’s of islands before arriving in the city centre and docking within walking distance of many of the Swedish capital’s main sights.
Sadly, many cruise ships visit Nynashamn and still call it Stockholm despite been around 1 hour away.
The entry into the port isn’t too impressive, the port itself is designed for ferries and there is little on offer in the town.
Whilst there is a train station in Nynashamn, trains aren’t that frequent and you will waste most of your day getting to Stockholm and back, so if you want to explore all that is on offer in Stockholm, you will have to book a (probably) expensive excursion, and the chances are that you will just be heading to were many on the ship thought they were going anyway.
