Elation Specific B2B ?

[cascole]

For those who have done a B2B on Elation in San Diego... I have a few questions in anticipation of my upcomming cruises I hope you can help me with.

 

It seems the question of weather or not you have to get off the ship depends on the specific ship. Did you have to disembark from Elation to clear customs?

 

I will have to move from one room to the room immediately next door and am hoping I can go to nap in my new room while waiting for friends who will be boarding for the second leg. Will my new room be accessible to me as soon as the steward is done turning it? I plan to discuss it with my steward on the first leg, but would love to know your experiences.

 

I am reading mixed comments from different ships on alcohol now not being delivered at the end of the first leg for B2Bers but held until the end ofthe second. Does anyone have experience with this on Elation?

 

Thanks!!!

[firefly333]

I havent been on the Elation ... but the room steward usually hasnt really had a chance to start cleaning the rooms hardly by the time you are going thru customs around 10 am. ..since it will be someone else's unmade bed, I would think it would be a imposition to expect him to go clean that cabin first. They have until 1:30 before they expect people to have access to their cabins and the beds made. I put my stuff in my suitcases and got out of there and let him clean the cabins on his own schedule.

 

Maybe if you tip him nicely he would clean that cabin first and you can find a unlocked door like I did to sneak back to the cabin. The elevator bringing up the luggage is where I managed to get up the stairs to my cabin on my B2B.

 

They dont let you to your cabin to 1:30 pm remember.

 

You were way down on page 2, and probably the post was going to get buried, so I thought Id post some comments ... sorry if you didnt want me to post since I havent been on Elation.

[cascole]

I havent been on the Elation ... but the room steward usually hasnt really had a chance to start cleaning the rooms hardly by the time you are going thru customs around 10 am. ..since it will be someone else's unmade bed, I would think it would be a imposition to expect him to go clean that cabin first. They have until 1:30 before they expect people to have access to their cabins and the beds made. I put my stuff in my suitcases and got out of there and let him clean the cabins on his own schedule.

 

Maybe if you tip him nicely he would clean that cabin first and you can find a unlocked door like I did to sneak back to the cabin. The elevator bringing up the luggage is where I managed to get up the stairs to my cabin on my B2B.

 

They dont let you to your cabin to 1:30 pm remember.

 

You were way down on page 2, and probably the post was going to get buried, so I thought Id post some comments ... sorry if you didnt want me to post since I havent been on Elation.

 

Thanks for sharing your experiences! I do know how to get in to the cabins on Elation prior to 1:30, I guess I just assumed that B2B guests wouldn't be held to that rule. I do tip well, and hopefully by the end of cruise 1, I will have made good friends with my stewards.

 

So - the question is... where did you go? Maybe a nap on deck until my friends board is in order instead... I'm guessing they don't open the bars again until new guests are boarding.

[firefly333]

I think the bars were open. We had about 12 Crazies and some others on the B2B so a larger than average group. They took our VISA cards while we sat in the atrium, they walked over and did them at the purser's desk but didnt get the new cards for everyone done. A few didnt get them until we got back from customs.

 

All 3 of us who changed cabins were in the same cabin steward's area, so maybe Lambie told him not to bother we would move ourselves?? I asked him 3 times about getting a cart to move my stuff and he kinda put me off saying things like dont worry about it... so Id ask him again and never got a real answer .. never got any help moving either. (even though I always read they will help you change cabins and give you a cart).

 

I went back to the cabin and unpacked as soon as the cabin was cleaned up and then I went up to the Lido where folks were sitting around drinking. I waited until they started letting folks onto the ship and then I got off to run to the drug store (someone gave me a chest cold I started coming down with the last night of the cruise). Since I already had my ship card, I didnt have to wait in any lines to board, just cut back thru the lines and got back to the Lido pool deck where the others were sitting.

 

Im not positive they bought the drinks at the bar .. most of them had smuggled on enough booze to float a tank and we got everything we bought back the last night of the first leg. We had lots of booze in our cabins ... so folks might have been drinking that.

[cascole]

I think the bars were open. We had about 12 Crazies and some others on the B2B so a larger than average group. They took our VISA cards while we sat in the atrium, they walked over and did them at the purser's desk but didnt get the new cards for everyone done. A few didnt get them until we got back from customs.

 

All 3 of us who changed cabins were in the same cabin steward's area, so maybe Lambie told him not to bother we would move ourselves?? I asked him 3 times about getting a cart to move my stuff and he kinda put me off saying things like dont worry about it... so Id ask him again and never got a real answer .. never got any help moving either. (even though I always read they will help you change cabins and give you a cart).

 

I went back to the cabin and unpacked as soon as the cabin was cleaned up and then I went up to the Lido where folks were sitting around drinking. I waited until they started letting folks onto the ship and then I got off to run to the drug store (someone gave me a chest cold I started coming down with the last night of the cruise). Since I already had my ship card, I didnt have to wait in any lines to board, just cut back thru the lines and got back to the Lido pool deck where the others were sitting.

 

That's good to know also... my other option was to run home for a few hours, but I dreaded having to wait in lines and all. (and if they don't clear B2Bers until 10, that doesn't leave too much time to go that route.) I suppose I will just have to play it by ear. I just don't want to be too tired when my friends come to party since it's NYE! LOL!

[firefly333]

Id be too excited to sleep. I know we picked at stuff from the grill that opened by the pool and got french fries and chicken nuggets while we waited for folks to board.

[Upandadam]

We did a b2b on the Elation from San Diego to Cabo a couple years ago or so. We also had a room change so it sounds like you're doing pretty much the exact same thing.

 

As for customs, no, we did not have to get off the ship at all. We did however, have to hang by the purser's desk and wait for them to get set up in order to give us new sign and sail cards.

 

With the room change, the staff had the new room ready right away and even moved our bags for us. We were napping in our new room before the other passengers even got on board.

[wrf2e]

I just go off the Elation on 10/29 from a b2b. I didn't buy any alcahol this time so don't know for sure but on previous b2bs they did deliver it between cruises.

 

As far as the process between cruises....I was not forced off the ship. I was told I would be recieving info from my steward on the last day but I didn't get anythiung. I went to the purser's desk the last night and they told me to meet in the aft show loung to clear customs (this is where they do the immigration for the non U.S. citizens) at 730am on debarkation day. They gave me my S&S there and told me if I wanted to get off I would have to wait until boarding began to get back on. My room was in the hallway on deck 4 where everyone was lined up to get off the ship so I was pretty much stuck in there until everyone was off. I got off and had lunch at Anthony's Fish Grotto and by that time is was about time to reboard.

 

San Diego's terminal was very hectic that day because the Spirit was also in port but I was told just to use the VIP line and get back on. once in the line for security a gaurd came over and escorted me through the checkpoint and to the crew entrance for the ship. I got my new pic for my card and that was that.

[Upandadam]

I missed your part about the alcohol delivery question. They delivered it to our room the last night of the first leg, so we had it available to us for the second part.

[cascole]

How funny, wrf2e, I was getting on Elation for the 10/29 cruise!

 

Excellent - thanks so much for your responses! I hadn't even thought about having to get a new pic taken for the second leg. I assume if you don't get off in SD they will do that on the ship? I shouldn't have issues with lines being where my rooms are located, so that's a positive, too.