Embarking after a cruise has started

[rafinmd]

Does anyone have a feel for how easy/difficult it is to get permission to embark on a cruise after the initial port? I am specifically looking at the Summit 11/14 San Juan southern Caribbean and embarking in Barbados. I am booked on a Wind Star transatlantic which ends in Barbados and I'd prefer to return home in style.

 

Roy

[Gonzo70]

That might be possible as it does not violate any cabotage laws. However advance permission from the cruise line needs to be procured; only the cruise line knows if they can make the necessary arrangements for you to be cleared by local authorities in Barbados to board. Also there is always a chance a ship will not make a port call (i.e. mechanical problem, time spent searching for person overboard or diverting because of medical emergency, weather conditions, strikes at the port etc.) - so you need to factor this in. If approved you almost certainly would have to pay for the full cruise. Nobody on this forum can answer your question with any certainty beyond "maybe" - so you really need to contact the cruise line for this issue. If you receive approval on the phone, make sure to secure something in writing as well for documentation.

[grandgeezer]

We were booked on the Solstice cruise from Ensenada to Seattle last month. The first stop was San Diego. We would have rather given up the day and gotten on in San Diego. I called Celebrity and was told absolutely not. You might get a different answer if you talk to them. They aren't very consistant with answers to different questions.

[AlanAllyn]

We were booked on the Solstice cruise from Ensenada to Seattle last month. The first stop was San Diego. We would have rather given up the day and gotten on in San Diego. I called Celebrity and was told absolutely not. You might get a different answer if you talk to them. They aren't very consistant with answers to different questions.

Your situation was very different, because it would have meant transporting you from one US port to another. That would be a violation of the PVSA and result in fines.

[cruisestitch]

Joining a cruise "downline" might be possible if:

 

1. there is room on the cruise

2. you are willing to pay for the entire cruise, there are no discounts for joining downline

3. it doesn't violate the PVSA (often erroneously called the Jones Act)

4. it can be arranged with the authorities in Barbados

 

Here is the information from the Celebrity website FAQ, including the number to call to discuss it.

 

"Can I Join My Cruise After It Starts Or Disembark Before It Ends?

 

It depends on the specific itinerary of your cruise, your nationality, and various United States and foreign laws. Joining the cruise at one of its ports of call, or leaving the cruise prior to its scheduled termination point, may be prohibited by law. If you need to join late or leave early, or both, submit your request in advance and we will tell you whether your proposed changes will be permitted.

 

For more information, call 800-256-6649. There is a cut-off date for submitting this information, so make your request early. Please note that no refunds, prorated or otherwise, are granted to customers who join their cruise late or leave their cruise early. Certain governments impose fines or other charges when a guest permanently disembarks from a cruise before its final port of call. The guest will be responsible for those charges."

[rafinmd]

Thanks, all. I'm encouraged by the experience of grandgeezer that somebody at Celebrity is actually checking and where warrented giving out a definitive answer. Whatever I do it will be with a lot of advance planning, although it's a bit premature since Windstar has been known to cancel their revenue transatlantics and use the time for remodeling the ship. I expect to start making solid plans probably 9 months ahead of time, which should give me plenty of time for approval.

 

Roy

[Scrapnana]

Thanks, all. I'm encouraged by the experience of grandgeezer that somebody at Celebrity is actually checking and where warrented giving out a definitive answer. Whatever I do it will be with a lot of advance planning, although it's a bit premature since Windstar has been known to cancel their revenue transatlantics and use the time for remodeling the ship. I expect to start making solid plans probably 9 months ahead of time, which should give me plenty of time for approval.

 

Roy

 

Roy.

 

You always plan the most interesting itineraries! Hope this works out for you.

 

Kathi

[Gig103]

I'm in agreement with Gonzo70 that it should be legal, so good luck getting Celebrity to sign off on it! :cool:

[grandgeezer]

Your situation was very different, because it would have meant transporting you from one US port to another. That would be a violation of the PVSA and result in fines.

 

I don't know the exact wording of the PVSA, but we did leave the US after San Diego, as we had a stop in Victoria B.C., Canada before ending in Seattle.

[Gonzo70]

I don't know the exact wording of the PVSA, but we did leave the US after San Diego, as we had a stop in Victoria B.C., Canada before ending in Seattle.

 

It is illegal to start a cruise in one US port and end it at a different US port UNLESS the ship stops at a DiSTANT foreign port in between. Victoria (and all Canadian, Central American and mot Caribbean ports) are NEAR, not DISTANT ports.

[cruisestitch]

What you wanted to do, Grandgeezer, was use the ship to transport you from San Diego to Seattle. This would have required a stop in a distant foreign port, which Victoria is not. By starting the trip in Ensanada, you only had to visit any foreign port, not a distant foreign port.

[Goofyisme]

I don't know the exact wording of the PVSA, but we did leave the US after San Diego, as we had a stop in Victoria B.C., Canada before ending in Seattle.

 

You would have been transported from San Diego to Seatle without stopping at a distant foreign port. The no distant foreign port is what creates the PVSA violation.