How to get on the Cruise at the last second???

[ffmack]

I live in North Carolina and was told that you can show up at the port on the day of a cruise and pick up a room for almost nothing. Charleston and Jacksonville are the 2 closest Ports. Where would I go when I get there to buy my cruise? Is there an office inside the terminal or outside? Do I just call Carnivals 800 number that morning? Who do I give my money too?:D

 

I need to feed my cruising addiction!!!!!!!

[Letmelivehereplease]

You have to call carnival from the dock. They will not take money at the port for the cruise. Only sail and sign

[Boozebabe]

I'm not sure they do last minute like that any more since 9-11. I think the authorities need names of passengers like 24 hours in advance. I may be wrong but I heard something like that.

 

I would call Carnival or any other cruise line and ask what the proceedure is. Many ships are sold out.

[Essiesmom]

You can book in the morning and sail in the afternoon, but you have to call Carnival, you can't just show up. And it might not be a bargain. The manifest has to be submitted 60 minutes before sailing. EM

[yogimax]

Plain and Simple.... Stupid idea!

[Colorado Kat]

So if you're within 4 hours of the cruise port, you can call from home, and if they have good deals, book & get driving? Lucky people.

[kaseykahnefan]

I think it's a great idea if it can be done :)

[snowskier]

Absolutely can be done -- I've done it. We were booked on a cruise out of California. Went a couple days early to visit some friends who decided the morning of the cruise to join us if they could.

 

A call to Carnival in the morning and they were on the cruise with us that afternoon.

 

Sorry yogimas -- it really wasn't a "stupid idea" as we all had a great time.

[bobsfamily]

Can be done... BUT as was stated earlier - it can be expensive...

[sweetcurves]

So if you're within 4 hours of the cruise port, you can call from home, and if they have good deals, book & get driving? Lucky people.

 

This is my dream. I swear I'd rather buy a cheap condo in Florida than own real estate at home and spend as much time as possible down there and take all the cruises I want (after I retire, of course).

[dodgetrucksrule]

This can be done as the manifest doesn’t get submitted until about 1 hour before sailing.

Carnival tries to fill all their ships, often by lowering the price a few days before sailing, so it’s not always an option to book the day of. But if cabins are available you can book by calling Carnival. ONLY Carnival can book you the day of sailing. If you have a PVP that you use, let them know that you would be interested in last minute bookings. They will put you on their list of passengers to call.

I am retired and live in south Florida, my PVP calls all the time with last minute deals, including calling today to see if I would be interested in sailing this weekend. Guess they are expecting a lot of no shows with the storm up north. They couldn’t give me a price – just wanted to know if I would be interested.

I have also discovered – if I call them the price is higher than if they call me.

A few weeks ago when the Destiny was having trouble and the ports got changed. I called to see what price I could get – it wasn’t any lower than normal.

When Sandy hit up North – I got a call and was able to sail for not much more than taxes/fees.

[Tapi]

We did it in 2005 when we lived in Miami! :)

 

I was running errands when I got a call from my PVP around 10:00am asking if I'd be interested in sailing that afternoon for $99. I made a quick call to my wife. Had her get a backpack (literally) ready, picked her up and off we went to the port of Miami for a weekend cruise to the Bahamas! :D For that price, we got cabin E10 (porthole cabin on the Empress deck).

 

Yes, it can be done, but as others have said, you can't just show up at the port. They will not sell you a cruise on the spot. Also, don't hold your breath for a special deal. Chances are that you will not even get a cabin since most sailings are booked full, and if you do, it will be expensive.

 

The only reason why we got that phone call and that deal was because it was the day after hurricane Katrina hit South Florida so many passengers had cancelled their cruise plans because they couldn't get down to Miami, so Carnival scrambled that morning to fill the ship up with locals.

[gelo7]

I think that it's a great idea.

[Carnival_Brides]

We haven't booked at the port, but we've definitely booked close to a sailing (about 18-20 hours or so) and we PAID for it. I think it was $700 pp (x3) for a regular Balcony on Upper. It's high compared to what we normally pay, but we wanted out of the snow.

[PAPERBKWRITER]

I read on these board a while back that some of the reps. checking pax in bring a suitcase just in case and snatch up the last minute bargains. Maybe someone can verify or discredit this.

[AdGuyMG]

I live in North Carolina and was told that you can show up at the port on the day of a cruise and pick up a room for almost nothing. Charleston and Jacksonville are the 2 closest Ports. Where would I go when I get there to buy my cruise? Is there an office inside the terminal or outside? Do I just call Carnivals 800 number that morning? Who do I give my money too?:D

 

I need to feed my cruising addiction!!!!!!!

What you were told about showing up at the port and picking a cabin is a total MYTH. Without a boarding pass or your name on a passenger manifest you won't even be allowed inside the cruise terminal building.

 

If what you were proposing was true, why doesn't everyone do it?

[pjtulsa]

What you were told about showing up at the port and picking a cabin is a total MYTH. Without a boarding pass or your name on a passenger manifest you won't even be allowed inside the cruise terminal building.

 

If what you were proposing was true, why doesn't everyone do it?

 

A couple of years ago our plans changed last minute and we ended up in San Diego, I called HAL from the airport, booked the last cabin and went directly to the port. We had no boarding pass or any kind of documents and were Not on any of their lists because we had just booked 1hr before and didnt have access to a printer so we were escorted thru security to the check in counter where they said it happens "All the Time"

 

We didnt get a killer deal, in fact it was the same deal I almost took a few weeks earlier.

[Tapi]

I read on these board a while back that some of the reps. checking pax in bring a suitcase just in case and snatch up the last minute bargains. Maybe someone can verify or discredit this.

 

Carnival employees are allowed to sail on a standby basis. This is a perk for any Carnival employee, whether they work at the port, headquarters, or anywhere else.

 

After regular passenger check-in is complete, employees (who have listed on the standby list) wait with luggage in hand at the cruise terminal to see if cabins become available. If one does become available, the employee is confirmed on the spot and all they pay are taxes and port charges. The employee is entitled to bring as many guests as the cabin available will hold.

 

There's a drawback though. If for some reason the guest who missed the ship (and whose cabin the employee took) chooses to meet the ship at the next port of call, then the employee must disembark and return to the US on their own and out of their own pocket!

 

Standby programs for employees are common in the travel industry. I work for an airline and we also have the chance to fly on a standby basis. Many times, confirmation and a boarding pass are issued just 10 minutes before the flight departs. A bit nerve wrecking sometimes, but it's free! :)

[bguppies]

I read on these board a while back that some of the reps. checking pax in bring a suitcase just in case and snatch up the last minute bargains. Maybe someone can verify or discredit this.

 

I had multiple Carnival employees at Port Canaveral, at the check in desk tell me that.

Once saw one of the employees walk behind the counter to grab something and the other counter ladies told her to have a great time.

Then the lady checking us in, told us that she had just done the last minute go for the weekend on the Sensation.

 

So yeah it does happen.

 

A cabbie in Port Canaveral also told us that he is on a list for Carnival, RCCL and Disney, that they will call him the night before a cruise with offers for barely taxes and fees.

The cruiselines would rather have a body in that room that is at least going to buy some drinks or gamble a little.

 

Bill