Q – (3.3.25) – We are huge fans of the Traveltruth Media Group but there is one question I have been waiting for others to ask. My husband and I are thinking about Crystal versus Seabourn for a cruise in Europe out of Venice next summer. We’ve sailed Seabourn twice before, once on an unforgetable journey to Antarctica, and were thoroughly impressed. They deserve your high rankings. But, among our 18 past cruises, are three on the “former” Crystal Cruises we absolutely loved! We have avoided them since the bankruptcy and the new Abercrombie & Kent purchase but we are now seriously thinking about them.
We get Crystal mailings and they kept sort of hinting that on January 1st there would be a major change and the operation of shore excursions would now be handled by A&K local offices. They would, we were led to believe, be better than the shore excursions offered by anyone else in Europe because of A&K’s operation planning and access to the best places with the best guides. Despite the Crystal inferences, I have seen nothing in the press or on your sites to indicate that the big change expected on January 1st has taken place. So a simple question – did the improvement and takeover by A&K in terms of shore excursion quality actually take place? Can I be certain that the quality of Crystal shore excursions will, on the whole, be better than its five-star competitors?
A – The short answer is “No – not exactly”. It has not happened as some Crystal optimists had hoped it would. Instead, Crystal has announced that three years after their acquisition of Crystal, actual “A&K Experiences” will be available to guests.
In reviewing A&K’s announcement carefully, it appears that the company is no longer making aby claims about immediate changes in day-by-day shore excursions. Instead, A&K is taking a different path, announcing a series of longer pre/post cruise A&K branded experiences, most requiring several overnights.
In 2025, the A&K branded pre/post programs will primarily be offered on cruises operating within Asia and Africa as well as a number of special land programs in India.
The company admits it is “planting seeds” and will be expanding its programs in 2026 to include Alaska, Iceland, Italy, and France sailings.
Every year will bring additional A&K Cruise tour offerings but it will likely be several years before A&K attempts the impossible task of operating all shore excursions under the company umbrella.
For now, what we can say with some accuracy, is that on a number of exotic sailings, A&K is offering longer pre and post programs to their guests of substantial quality – and cost. In the very near future, A&K will offer pre and post options unmatched by any competitor. We think that is a fair statement. But vast improvements in the overall quality of European shore excursions is a long way away and presents numerous operational hurdles.
What is often missing from the press coverage related to shore excursions is the fact that in most European ports, aside from the majors, there are only one or two shoreside companies with the financial stability, bus inventory, and contracted guides to handle several cruise ships arriving on the same day. Every cruise line must work with the firm that has the buses and the guides – they have little choice but to go with their programs. A&K has offices throughout the world. In the long run, that could become a serious competitive advantage. But, we think, that is years away.
