Recent Info on Boarding Time - Miami??

[Cruizinggirl]

I know what the cruise docs say, but I'd like to know current information from recent cruisers regarding the boarding time and boarding experience at Port of Miami. I'll be sailing on the Eclipse next week! :)

[Texed]

I know what the cruise docs say, but I'd like to know current information from recent cruisers regarding the boarding time and boarding experience at Port of Miami. I'll be sailing on the Eclipse next week! :)

 

Me too! ;)

[Kfed]

I wasn't happy with the miami port. we were on the 2/19/11 eclipse. If I remember correctly we didn't board till 11:30-12:00. I noticed a lot of port employees were confused as to where people should go. Also just before boarding someone said we don't need to insert our cards in the machine so we walked past it then 20 feet away someone else made us go back and insert our cards. they were also taking pictures right in the middle of the walkway, so if you didn't want to take a picture you had to wait or just try to sneak by, you couldn't walk around them as there was no room. This was the first time I've seen them seperate the classes Suit, ac, cc etc. not sure if this is new or we just got there early but it seemed to add to the confusion. On another note the ship was beautiful and probably my best cruise to date. P.S. don't forget to go to bistro on 5 it's really good. and tell milton in sunset bar stop singing jingle bells. enjoy your trip.

[Fblack]

We were on the January 15th Eclipse cruise. We flew in the day before and stayed at a hotel in Miami. We took a taxi and got to the pier at 11:00AM. They took our bags outside and we headed to the terminal building. You go up an escalator and they had a line started. About 100 people were ahead of us. There is a large waiting area here and several security machines set up. We waited about 10 minutes and a man came out and re-organized the line by stateroom categories. Suites first, inside last. We told him we were Elites and he seemed to ignore this and never called Elites early in his process. So we just got in line after the suites. They never really checked to see what category we really were.

 

About 11:20AM they opened the security lines and we had our carry-on bags scanned. Then you continue to a very large hall where they had all the check-in stations set up. We went to the Elite line and within 10 minutes we were on board. We just went to the buffet for lunch and waited for the cabins to be ready.

 

It was easy and efficient.

[Pushkin]

We were on the Feb. 12 sailing. We got to the port around 11:30. Had to wait in line outside terminal for a while, then inside first floor of terminal for a while. Then they let people go up escalators in small groups. Then wait in line to go through security checkpoint. Then wait in line to check-in (this part went quickly), then wait in line to get sea pass picture taken, then wait in line to board ship (again letting people go through in small groups).

It was the most "waiting in line" I have every done! It probably took an hour altogether (from drop-off at terminatl to having our first glass of champagne on boarding.

I don't know what the problem was, but it was a very unusual experience for us.

Eclipse was beautiful and everything else about cruise was amazing!