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Does arrival appointment time slot matter?


jbcw66
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Ha! I didn’t want them to get confused looking for the word Priority and thinking it didn’t apply to them. You know someone was bound to ask what if they only have the FTTF logo and not Priority. I consider it a preemptive strike [emoji39].

 

You are right! I did check the boarding pass and found small red "FTTF" logo. ;)

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First of all at 10 am the ship will still be debarking guests. I just can not understand why people have to get to the terminal so early. We are Platinum and usually arrive between 12-1. They won't run out of burgers, there will still be plenty of liquor. The later boarding is much more relaxed. What are going to gain by being the first on board? Our last 2 cruises were B2B and the computers were not reset until 11-11:15, so no food or liquor until they clear the previous trip. As Aaron Rogers says R-E-L-A-X

 

You have been cruising a long time. I used to be that guy that always arrived by 10-1030. The excitement was worth the extra wait and stress. NOW, I go later as you say it is much more relaxed and literally no wait time to get on.

 

So I do understand where they are coming from.

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What? Is what OK? Kind of a strange comment at best. If you board at 10:30, which i doubt, nothing will be open, no bars will be open. When we were on the Serenity deck waiting for the bars to open. the bartender said, "when the system resets" and that was at 11.

If they let you board at 10:30 that means the ship is ready for passengers and restaurants/bars although maybe limited will be ready also.

 

I've found it's usually closer to 11:30 but the earlier time is possible.

 

As far as getting to the port early as mentioned on a previous post , people that are staying in a hotel the night before need to checkout. Why not spend it at the Port?

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Just for clarification, the "time" being discussed above is NOT boarding time. It is Check In time. You might be able to board right after Check In or you may have to wait.

???? Thread title includes "port arrival time slot" which is what people are discussing. What needs clarifying?

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We cruise a lot and will say from experience, do not chance Houston traffic. There are too many things that can go wrong on an expected hour long commute. We have seriously considered spending the night in Galveston to avoid any traffic mishaps. For that reason, I plan to arrive a couple of hours prior for most everything that requires getting on a road or freeway in Houston. Yes I would rather sit outside and wait at the port than to be sitting on I 45 on a shut down freeway. We are platinum too but alway get to the port by 10am every time we cruise, it is less stressful that way. My sister lives in south Houston and the last cruise we took, we had to turn around and go back because one of my nieces had forgotten her identification. Hwy 3 was the only way to Galveston that day as most of 45 was closed for construction. That turnaround trip cost us over an hour. I won't chance it.

 

 

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Why do people have to be so condescending? There's plenty of reasons to get on early. We got on super early in San Juan, and were able to get on and off the ship and walk around for a while without all our luggage. We were able to run to the supermarket and get pop and wine for the trip. Twice. We were able to get lunch on board. We had an early slot, which was fast. When we left the ship, we were able to walk right back on with no hassle. That sounds more relaxing to me than waiting until the mob shows up in the afternoon to board.

 

First of all at 10 am the ship will still be debarking guests. I just can not understand why people have to get to the terminal so early. We are Platinum and usually arrive between 12-1. They won't run out of burgers, there will still be plenty of liquor. The later boarding is much more relaxed. What are going to gain by being the first on board? Our last 2 cruises were B2B and the computers were not reset until 11-11:15, so no food or liquor until they clear the previous trip. As Aaron Rogers says R-E-L-A-X
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Once you arrive (at or perhaps shortly before your scheduled time), you go through security, then check in, then you get a loading zone number, unless you are FTTF. So OP can go whenever he wants. Others must wait in line and wait for their time. When I was in Port Canaveral earlier this month, there was a ton of people stuck at the Budget Rental Office. They were waiting to get on one of the big Royal Caribbean ships, but apparently there was so many people there ahead of their scheduled times that the place was swamped and no one could get in. Thus, Budget was using its shuttles to take customers to all of the other ships (including us to the Carnival Liberty) while the Royal customers were being held at the Budget office to prevent the Budget shuttles from getting stuck in the mess. I suppose it cleared up eventually, but the message is clear about the "etiquette." Arriving a little early is fine, though it may not get you on the ship much earlier, but arriving way early compared to your time is bad for everyone.

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If they let you board at 10:30 that means the ship is ready for passengers and restaurants/bars although maybe limited will be ready also.

 

I've found it's usually closer to 11:30 but the earlier time is possible.

 

As far as getting to the port early as mentioned on a previous post , peorple that are staying in a hotel the night before need to checkout. Why not spend it at the Port?

 

How about spending it at the hotel enjoying the available amenities after check-out? A quick work out in the gym, a few laps in the pool before brunch in the restaurant and a massage in the spa.

 

Can’t get that sitting in a crowded terminal with a few thousand others waiting to get on board “as early as possible because that’s when vacation starts and I paid for it”.

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First of all at 10 am the ship will still be debarking guests. I just can not understand why people have to get to the terminal so early. We are Platinum and usually arrive between 12-1. They won't run out of burgers, there will still be plenty of liquor. The later boarding is much more relaxed. What are going to gain by being the first on board? Our last 2 cruises were B2B and the computers were not reset until 11-11:15, so no food or liquor until they clear the previous trip. As Aaron Rogers says R-E-L-A-X

One of my favorite parts of the cruise is getting on early when noone is by the pool. I am not worried about them running out of burgers or booze. I am not sure why you care if I or anyone else wants to be on board early.

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How about spending it at the hotel enjoying the available amenities after check-out? A quick work out in the gym, a few laps in the pool before brunch in the restaurant and a massage in the spa.

 

Can’t get that sitting in a crowded terminal with a few thousand others waiting to get on board “as early as possible because that’s when vacation starts and I paid for it”.

 

LOL a quick workout in the gym or swimming laps aren't a high priority at my age! Matter of fact those things aren't even in my vocabulary!

 

Vacation actually starts when I'm on the ✈️ the day before cruise.

 

What you do works for you, what the early birds do works for us/others.

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