We are a different kind of cruise passenger. We know what things cost. We plan. We explore properly. And we never get left behind.
Every year, cruise passengers collectively pay billions of euros for ship excursions — tours that take you to the same places, in the same groups, for 3–15× what you'd pay independently.
This isn't an accident. Excursions are one of the highest-margin products on the ship. The cruise line depends on passengers not knowing the alternatives.
We know the alternatives.
Not because we're cheap. Because we value the same money spent differently — on a real local lunch instead of a buffet on wheels, on a morning at the Acropolis before the tour groups arrive, on a return trip to the port that isn't running for your life at 4:58pm.
€800+
average overpayment per 7-port cruise via ship excursions
4,281
cruiser validations in the PortTrip intelligence network
€1.2M+
total excursion savings identified across all ports
<5 min
to build a complete ship-safe port day plan
The six principles
We do the maths.
The ship charges €164 to take you to Pompeii. The local train costs €3.50. We know this — and we act on it.
We plan, not guess.
We know the exact bus, the exact pier, the exact latest return time. We are never the person running for the gangway.
We eat where locals eat.
Not the restaurant with the English menu 50 metres from the tender dock. The place 10 minutes further that costs half the price.
We validate our intelligence.
We don't trust one person's opinion. We collect data from thousands of real journeys.
We share what we learn.
Every validated route, every confirmed bus time, every scam we spotted — goes back into the system.
We respect the ship time.
Going independent doesn't mean reckless. A missed ship ruins the cruise for everyone. We build real buffers.
The cruise line has a structural interest in your confusion. Confusing ports. Intimidating transport systems. Warnings about "dangers" that are statistically no different from any European city.
The excursion brochure plays to this confusion brilliantly: "Safe, guaranteed return. No worries."
That guarantee costs you, on average, €143 per port day.
For a 7-port Mediterranean cruise: €1,000 per person.
For a couple: €2,000 — paid in exchange for not having to think too hard.
We think. And we share our thinking. That's what PortTrip is.
Start planning independently
You can't get left behind if you know exactly when to leave.
PortTrip is free to start. The intelligence is yours.
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