Back to Back Cruises Question

[mamaboss]

Just booked my first BTB. Both are to and from Fort Lauderdale, same ship and same cabin. I understand from things I have read we will receive a cruise credit for each cruise. I wondered if anyone who has done a BTB from Fort Lauderdale could tell me if you have to disembark and then embark again between cruises?

[canadarocks]

Just booked my first BTB. Both are to and from Fort Lauderdale, same ship and same cabin. I understand from things I have read we will receive a cruise credit for each cruise. I wondered if anyone who has done a BTB from Fort Lauderdale could tell me if you have to disembark and then embark again between cruises?

 

Yes you do. :)

[mamaboss]

Thanks! Was hoping we wouldn't have to. Do you get off then join the line outside to re-enter the terminal or is there a different process?

[canadarocks]

Thanks! Was hoping we wouldn't have to. Do you get off then join the line outside to re-enter the terminal or is there a different process?

 

We just did it on the Emerald in March, and it couldn't have been simpler. You'll have to bring your passport, your first cruise card, and your second one. We waited for a short time as a group in one of the lounges, then followed a Princess rep off the ship. A quick walk and we were at an agent, who checked our passports, and we were then led to an area to wait. They had to bring the ship to zero (make sure everyone is off), and that didn't take more than 15 minutes or so. We then reboarded as a group, before the new passengers. Took about 1/2 hour.

 

Of course your mileage may vary! ;)

Edited April 5, 2014 by canadarocks

[paul929207]

It will be fairly quick. ou will go thru US immigration, but not customs. You will not have to pack our stuff and carry it off.

[fishywood]

A couple days before you will be given instructions as to when and where to meet on turnaround morning. All of you on back-to-backs will be escorted off the ship as a group to go through ICE processing and once the ship is verified as "zeroed out" you will be allowed to return directly to the ship, no check-in line to wait in. How long this takes depends on how quickly ship's security runs down the stragglers who ignore the instructions.

 

Of course if you have an activity planned for the day in Ft Lauderdale you can walk off at your leisure first thing in the morning as soon as the ship is cleared.

 

(And nothing against the OP, but maybe there should be a sticky on this topic; as soon as the current thread on this topic drops off Page 1, same question gets asked again. Though it does mean that Princess is selling lots of B2Bs :rolleyes:)

Edited April 5, 2014 by fishywood

[OCruisers]

In FLL it is easy and normally quick. They walk you through it. You will be sent a letter the day before explaining the whole thing in detail along with your cruise card for the next and an In Transit card. Your luggage stays on the ship.

LuLu

~~~

[Kamloops50]

You'll meet a given time and location. One of the officers will escort you thru customs and then back on board. You could leave the ship earlier and take a excursion. When you come back you'll use your in-transit card and board ship directly without waiting for the general boarding call.

[capriccio]

We just did it on the Emerald in March, and it couldn't have been simpler. You'll have to bring your passport, your first cruise card, and your second one. We waited for a short time as a group in one of the lounges, then followed a Princess rep off the ship. A quick walk and we were at an agent, who checked our passports, and we were then led to an area to wait. They had to bring the ship to zero (make sure everyone is off), and that didn't take more than 15 minutes or so. We then reboarded as a group, before the new passengers. Took about 1/2 hour.

 

Of course your mileage may vary! ;)

 

Whether it is quick or not depends on how many folks are doing the B2B. On our February B2B on the Ruby Princess over 800 passengers were doing the B2B. The process was long and annoying - no one can return to the ship until the last passengers are off - they needed to be hunted down - and the 'turn around area' had seating for only 1/2 of the passengers. Everyone else had to stand in line after clearing immigration. We met in the MDR around 9:30 and it was well after 11 before we were back on the ship.

 

I recommend finding out how many passengers are doing the B2B. If it is a large number, that would be the perfect morning to go into Fort Lauderdale on your own or take one of the ship's tours (we live north of Fort Lauderdale so we weren't interested in doing that).

Edited April 5, 2014 by capriccio

[dmwnc1959]

Here is what I received approximately 5pm the afternoon prior to returning back to Fort Lauderdale on my B2B. Yours may be similar:

 

 

 

[AndyTheK]

We will be doing two B2Bs within the next 12 months. One turns around at Southampton, where you do not have to get off but just have to go to the gangplank and have your new cruise card verified.

 

The other one turns around in LA. Since this is a US port, we must get off, clear Immigration (we're US Citizens and travel on US passports so there's no IBP hassle) and follow the procedure outlined in this thread.

 

My question is this: DW uses a scooter on board. Is the turnaround (in LA) scooter-friendly in the sense that she will not need a ship-supplied helper (to open locked elevators, for example)? When the time gets closer (February 2014) I'll ask on the Disabled board, but it seemed logical to ask on this thread.

 

Has anyone actually done the turnaround in LA with a scooter or chair?

 

TIA and shalom from Tel Aviv. Andy.

[paul929207]

Andy,

I can't help with the LA question, but regardless of the answers you get, I would check with the Passenger Services desk early in the first leg.

[LewesBeach]

Whether it is quick or not depends on how many folks are doing the B2B. On our February B2B on the Ruby Princess over 800 passengers were doing the B2B. The process was long and annoying - no one can return to the ship until the last passengers are off - they needed to be hunted down - and the 'turn around area' had seating for only 1/2 of the passengers. Everyone else had to stand in line after clearing immigration. We met in the MDR around 9:30 and it was well after 11 before we were back on the ship.

 

I recommend finding out how many passengers are doing the B2B. If it is a large number, that would be the perfect morning to go into Fort Lauderdale on your own or take one of the ship's tours (we live north of Fort Lauderdale so we weren't interested in doing that).

 

Agreed, we were on several B2Bs where people did not read the info, just assumed they didn't have to disembark. Every single time, we've had to wait until they located the missing passengers & escorted them off the ship. Lots of unhappy cruisers standing around waiting. Bring a book or e-reader just in case. Next time in FLL, we'll get off & do the InterCoastal waterway HOHO cruise for a couple hours.

[Stevesan]

Take one of your ship's tours.

I recommend the Intracoastal Water Way Cruise. Excellent narration, and the best hot dogs on this planet :)

Most folks take the Intra Coastal water way Everglades Air Boat Ride tour. I thought it just okay. The bus trip to and back is long.

Edited April 5, 2014 by Stevesan

[Cruiserkenn]

Andy,

I can't help with the LA question, but regardless of the answers you get, I would check with the Passenger Services desk early in the first leg.

 

Great answer, Paul. I found that checking with the Passenger Services desk early on is a great idea. This really got the communication going, for me. Really a good thing to do.

 

Dave: wow, great visuals for the cards and paperwork. As always, very impressive:)

[geoherb]

We had a long wait for a mother-daughter pair in December. They paged them over and over again. Finally, after about an hour of waiting for them, the Princess rep finally led us down without them. We had our old cruise cards scanned, then showed our passports to the Immigration officer. Then we had to wait in the terminal until the mother-daughter pair showed up. That was another 30 minutes or so. The worst thing about it is that they were oblivious to the fact that everyone else had been waiting. After showing the Immigration officer their passports, they ended up cutting in line in front of some of the ones who had been sitting down waiting for them. They're lucky they were behind us when they did so. I'm not usually confrontational, but I would have been if they had tried to cut in front of us.

 

We walked to Total Wine after eating lunch in the dining room. When we left the ship, there was a long line of people waiting to get into the terminal. By the time we got back, there wasn't. We had to go through the security screening and declare our two bottles of wine at the naughty table.

[mamaboss]

A couple days before you will be given instructions as to when and where to meet on turnaround morning. All of you on back-to-backs will be escorted off the ship as a group to go through ICE processing and once the ship is verified as "zeroed out" you will be allowed to return directly to the ship, no check-in line to wait in. How long this takes depends on how quickly ship's security runs down the stragglers who ignore the instructions.

 

Of course if you have an activity planned for the day in Ft Lauderdale you can walk off at your leisure first thing in the morning as soon as the ship is cleared.

 

(And nothing against the OP, but maybe there should be a sticky on this topic; as soon as the current thread on this topic drops off Page 1, same question gets asked again. Though it does mean that Princess is selling lots of B2Bs :rolleyes:)

 

I apologize fishy, I check the first couple pages and did not see what I was looking for, guess I need to change my glasses!

[mamaboss]

Here is what I received approximately 5pm the afternoon prior to returning back to Fort Lauderdale on my B2B. Yours may be similar:

 

 

 

 

Fantastic Dave! Thank you so much! Hope you don't mind if I copy your info to email to the rest of my group?

[mamaboss]

Many thanks to everyone! Very helpful. I like the idea of taking a tour in FL for a few hours. Thanks again!:D

[dmwnc1959]

Fantastic Dave! Thank you so much! Hope you don't mind if I copy your info to email to the rest of my group?

 

No problem! Hope it helps eveyone out. :D

[Colo Cruiser]

Great info especially with the letters.

[FritzG]

Don't panic if you don't get your In Transit info the night before the end of the first cruise. On the March 15th Ruby we didn't get ours until 9:30 pm on the last night. They had some sort of glitch, and the info was hand delivered late in the evening. We had called around 6:30pm and were told that the info would be in our hands by 8pm. At 9pm we were told it might not be until 10pm.

[Colo Cruiser]

I know we have recieved ours late the last night before too.

[rubrrick]

We will be doing two B2Bs within the next 12 months. One turns around at Southampton, where you do not have to get off but just have to go to the gangplank and have your new cruise card verified.

 

The other one turns around in LA. Since this is a US port, we must get off, clear Immigration (we're US Citizens and travel on US passports so there's no IBP hassle) and follow the procedure outlined in this thread.

 

My question is this: DW uses a scooter on board. Is the turnaround (in LA) scooter-friendly in the sense that she will not need a ship-supplied helper (to open locked elevators, for example)? When the time gets closer (February 2014) I'll ask on the Disabled board, but it seemed logical to ask on this thread.

 

Has anyone actually done the turnaround in LA with a scooter or chair?

 

TIA and shalom from Tel Aviv. Andy.

 

I have done many B2B's out of L.A. The terminal and gangplank (actually a very nice covered ramp that is large, gentle slope with a couple of turns to make it up or down, and scooter friendly) will be very accessable for you.

 

Once inside and passed thru Immigration, there is an elevator downstairs to the ground level, where you must run out of the building, and back in at the start of the check in area, then back up an elevator to the actual check in (which you will bypass) and to the holding area for boarding.

 

Then the procedure is reversed, and you will be back on board. It seems that anyone with wheelchair assistance, or scooters, gets moved to the front of the line.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Rick

Edited April 6, 2014 by rubrrick

[Knightro]

On a B2b in Ft Lauderdale...In a previous message someone mentioned that they walked to Total Wines! How far would that be? Any problem getting in and out with the Port Security folks? Are there other stores in walking distance?