VentureMan_2000

Check-in and boarding are two separate events. Even if you check in early, you still have to take a seat and wait to board until US Customs clears and your group is called: First to board is Weddings, then the Wheelchair crowd, Diamonds, Plats, FTTF, Gold, Red, Blue. I'm not convinced that FTTF is that beneficial, given how many Plats/Diamonds there are.

Well, that's the thing... for those that follow the check-in rules, it could work out to their benefit. Check-in in San Francisco was very efficient. They had 6 lanes (roped off lanes) each representing a check-in time - eg. 9:30-10:00, 10:00-10:30, etc. The first two lanes were clearly full of Plat/Diam passengers as the check-in time was 9:30, if I recall. Our lane was 11:00-11:30. We arrived at the port at 9:45... dropped off our luggage with the porter and were in line before 10:00. Well, they had already started releasing lanes to enter the terminal before we arrived at our lane... went very fast. They released our lane at maybe 10:05... and as stated, the "priority" line inside the terminal was extremely long due to the number of Plat/Diam cruisers. There was no line to speak of in the "non-Priority" line... we buzzed right through to the Check-in counter and were seated for boarding by 10:15.

Crap-shoot. Could be an obstructed balcony, could be a nice room. I selected this once as the price was way lower than a regular balcony. I lucked out and got a regular balcony, actually in a nice location. If it saves you a bundle and you are prepared for an obstructed balcony stuck way at the front of the ship, over the theater or some other loud venue, then I say go for it. As many people have said, they don't spend that much time in the staterooms.

In years past, they used to have a live band and encourage folks to come up and do some ballroom dancing on the stage. So... what happened with that ? I didn't see it on my last 10-day cruise in June.

Totally worked to our benefit with the Plat/Diam's arriving early before check-in time in San Francisco. Their line was easily 4 times longer than those non-plat/diam's than ours - we are gold with normal check-in line. The Plat/Diam's seem to be totally screwing themselves with their self-serving attitude. Not enough that they get 2 extra days for online check-in selection. 🤣

Lots of off topic chatter... but why the delay ?

I would think that you should be able to drop off bags with the porters by 8:30am or 9:00am. We arrived at 9:45am and dropped off our luggage. The porters were busy... busy... busy.

Perhaps 9:30am (a guess). At 10:15 when we sat down, we noticed the wheelchair crowd were being taken aboard by Carnival staff. So, I'm assuming the Wedding folks boarded at least 30-45 minutes before them. This wheelchair boarding went on for maybe 15 minutes. At 10:30, they started boarding the rest of the list by priority.

If I recall, pre-pandemic, they actually closed off the hallways to guests on embark day until those rooms were ready. Is my memory serving me right ?

A whole lot of angst and whining going on...

or for $1 a bag... check them in with a Porter before boarding.

Yes, Carnival. I believe the only other cruise line that embarks in San Francisco is Princess, which is another Carnival Corp cruise line.

Sounds reasonable. If you have a desire to arrive early, then you need to do your on-line check-in during that first 48 hours prior to everyone who is not Platinum/Diamond and select an early time that fits your needs. On my last cruise, the Platinum/Diamond port check-in line was 3 to 4 times longer than my line... I'm sure this is the reason -- too many Platinum/Diamond people showing up early and creating long lines, like in the old days before they implemented selecting a check-in time. I was checked in before that huge priority line... 😂

It's really not a big deal to manage your carry-on luggage for a couple hours. We just find a seat or table and park our luggage there. We each take turns staying with the luggage while another goes to get some lunch to bring back, or use the restroom, etc. As mentioned, trying to drop off any luggage before 1:30 is only a hinderance to the room steward. Of course, he's going to be polite to you, but I'm sure he's wishing that you were not there getting in his way and taking his time... time that he really does not have to give on turn-around day.

I think this is true of all vacations... perhaps the exception are weekend-warrior vacations. We even get this feeling in the middle of a vacation... when family meets up with us for a couple days during the middle of our vacation, when they leave, we feel a bit down for a day.

I'm able to check in at 9:00pm the day before and head to bed at a reasonable time since I'm on the West Coast... 😁

We found Embarkation in San Francisco to be very easy. There are two parts to getting on the ship: First is your Check-In where they take your photo and check you in. There are about 6 Lanes you stand in outside with the check-in times clearly marked for each lane. Check-in is based on your arrival time... not necessarily your "priority" status. They do have lanes for Diamond and Platinum. Funny note here: there were so many "Priority" check-ins that their line was 2 to 3 times longer than the normal check-in line. We were done checking in well before the folks who got into the "priority" line the same we got in the check-in line. Our Check-in time was 11:00am. We were checked in by 10:15am. Second, Check-in is a separate event from boarding. After you check-in, you take a seat in the terminal with all the other passengers that have checked in (there is lots of comfortable seating - you sit where you want as there is no special seating sections) and wait for them to call the different groups to board based on priority. They do not allow anyone to board until all previous passengers are off and U.S. Customs gives the go-ahead. That being said, here is the Priority order to board the ship that I observed: Wedding Party Passengers with Disabilities Diamond Platinum FTTF ( well, I didn't observe this since they didn't have FTTF, but I believe they are next ) Gold Red Blue The 'Red" (my group) was released to board the ship at 11:00am, so we sat for 45 minutes after checking in - watching others board based on their priority order being called.

Now I'm glad I just ignore those emails for up-sell offers, and don't go into my booking. Sorry for your mess.

My first thought is, when is the cruise ? If it's a few months out, then I would opt to get a passport. Send in all those documents to the passport office once, and get a passport that is good for 10 years. Would make travel a whole lot easier.

Forgot about that... This was the midnight display of all the deserts and such, correct ? Folks would wait in line just to take photos.

Our very first cruise was in 1985 on the Carnival Jubilee. Cruising has changed a lot since then. I recall filling out a questionnaire about yourself -- your work and things you like. Carnival would use that information to try to match you up to seat you with other guests in the MDR, I'm assuming so that you would something in common to talk about. I recall hitting golf balls off the aft, and shooting skeet off the aft. The decks had shuffleboard and a pool... no hot tubs at that time that I recall. While they were just beginning to introduce the Sail & Sign cards at that time, most people including myself, still used cash at the bars to pay for drinks. Our cruise was in the Bahamas. I recall looking down at the tiny cruise ship tied up next to us... the Jubilee was ginormous compared to that other cruise ship, towering over it by many stories. The photo below really puts into perspective how much cruising has changed. I also recall that Carnival did not always have a cruise each week. When we disembarked after our 7 day cruise, there were not any passengers waiting to get on. Anyone else sail on Jubilee... and if so, what do you recall ?

I start every morning of the cruise with an Irish Mocha -- Irish whiskey, Baileys added to my mocha coffee. Yes, counts towards your 15 drink limit.

I'm just plain old Gold. FTTF was not offered at the time. There are two parts to getting on the ship: First is your Check-In where they take your photo and check you in. Check-in is based on your arrival time... not necessarily your "priority" status. Funny note here: there were so many "Priority" check-ins that their line was 2 to 3 times longer than the normal check-in line. We were done checking in well before the folks who got into the "priority" line the same we got in the check-in line. Our Check-in time was 11:00am. We were checked in by 10:15am. Second, Check-in is a separate event from boarding. After you check-in, you take a seat in the terminal with all the other passengers that have checked in (there is lots of comfortable seating - you sit where you want as there is no special seating sections) and wait for them to call the different groups to board based on priority. They do not allow anyone to board until all previous passengers are off and U.S. Customs gives the go-ahead. That being said, here is the Priority order to board the ship that I observed: Wedding Party Passengers with Disabilities Diamond Platinum FTTF ( well, I didn't observe this since they didn't have FTTF, but I believe they are next ) Gold Red Blue The 'Red" (my group) was released to board the ship at 11:00am, so we sat for 45 minutes after checking in - watching others board based on their priority order being called.

San Francisco was one of two ports that Carnival did not offer FTTF. However, I see that it's offered right now as an excursion for $69.95, so I suppose they have changed it. However, as you can see in this topic, that you get right on board at SF. And there were A LOT of Diamond and Platinum cruisers leaving from this port -- I believe they board before FTTF.

We had the same experience with our June Alaska cruise out of SF. We were on board nearly an hour early.