anyone just off the Liberty or Victory . . .

[anjoliza]

what was customs like in Miami? was debarkation delayed at all?

[pe4all]

We were off the Breeze in Miami 2 weeks ago. We flew thru customs - literally walked up, the guy glanced at our docs, and off we went. BUT before that it took 1/2 hour for our luggage to come around on the conveyer belt. We debarked around 20 minutes after our zone was called, so the luggage should have definitely been there. We were zone 1, but changed the night before to zone 15, as we were in no rush to get to the airport at 8 a.m.! (12 pm flite)

[dalsti]

We were just off Victory last week. No problems and no long lines. We were Zone 1 so not sure if it got worse later. I think they had 6 or 7 lines going thru customs.

[anjoliza]

Oh good, thanks for the info. I was hearing all these stories about custom agents in Miami working to rule as a protest to cutbacks, etc. and that there was delays in debarkation and at the airport.

I'm flying out of FLL at 1:30 so am not too worried but I have friends flying out of MIA at 10:30 and if there were delays, they could possibly be in trouble

[mnsawyer]

We sailed the Victory and returned on Monday, April 1. Self-assist was called extremely early and even with group 14 debarkation, we were off the ship by 8:30 which was about an hour earlier than the prior evening documents listed- very quick through customs - got our luggage and getting into a taxi around 9

[jcornell]

We got off the Liberty yesterday and were through customs early without incident. We heard a rumor that there was a delay for folks getting off on March 30th though.

[boa toting mama]

We got off the Liberty yesterday and were through customs early without incident. We heard a rumor that there was a delay for folks getting off on March 30th though.

 

Not a rumor, it was true. We were delayed getting off the Liberty 3/30 due to customs delays. Debarkation zones had long delays between groups. Also, there was a coast guard inspection going on a the time time. Not sure what the delay was, but announcements were coming over the ship PA to stay on board if possible till the end and to just wait and be patient while zones were being called. It was a bit after 11 by the time the last zones were called.

 

We had a 2:45 flight so stayed on till they last group was called. Then we ended up in the line with a customs agent who was scrutinizing *everything* for what seemed like everyone. And we ended up getting our suitcases searched (which only had the under $100 of souvenirs we declared). We made our flight with an hour to spare.

 

However people with early zone numbers apparently made it through quickly. We had no interest in getting to the airport early as we had a late flight. We stayed up on Lido and visited with people and had coffee, etc.

[beachbum53]

Something else to keep in mind, if you have an afternoon flight out of Miami, like some time after 1:00 p.m., and are among the last to debark, the lines through customs will be a lot longer than for those with an early debarkation. That's what happened to us last year. We had a mid afternoon flight out, so we stayed on the ship on the Lido deck as long as possible, and were among the last to leave. We were in line for about 1/2 hour to 45 minutes waiting to get through customs. It wasn't because the customs agents were slow. I think it's because there must have been a lot of people like us that were in no hurry to debark. Love embarkation day. That means the vacation is starting! Yay!:D Hate debarkation day. That means the vacation is over. Boo-hoo!:(

[NCteacherlovescruising]

We got off the Liberty yesterday and were through customs early without incident. We heard a rumor that there was a delay for folks getting off on March 30th though.

 

We were in the VIP lounge waiting to get on the Liberty on the 30th and it was delayed until around noon I think. We were told it was because of an inspection.

 

We all debarked the Liberty yesterday. We were zone 1, scheduled to debark at 7:30 but they were running late. They were only on the 2nd or 3rd level of self assist when they finally came and told zone 1 we could leave. I don't recall what time it was, but at least 8 or 8:30 I would guess because we didn't get to our car until 9:00. We had 6 checked bags though and had difficulty finding the last one, which was small. The line through customs went fast.

[anjoliza]

Thank-you all for your replies!! I appreciate them!! :)