Tender Troubles

[ptiprof]

Just a heads-up to anyone planning to explore a tender port independently or with a private tour. In Newport today, we slept in and arrived at the restaurant for tender tickets about 11:00, figuring we would avoid the early rush. As we entered, it was standing room only, and we were told the wait was 35-45 minutes. After an hour, they had just called the second group! Some people had already been waiting over an hour before we arrived! It was clear that the wait would easily be another hour for a total of over 2 hours. The staff explained that their tours had priority, there were many Elites onboard who also had priority, and they were sharing just TWO tender docking locations, shared with another ship.

The tender ride to the dock was estimated at about 35 minutes. Anyone with afternoon tours would also be given priority, so if we waited at least another hour (depending on the number of Princess tours with priority) , we'd be on shore by about 1:45-2:00. The LAST tender back to the ship leaves at 5:15, so to be safe, we would be lining up by 4:30 (although they clearly wouldn't leave hundreds of people behind). Not much time to visit Newport. So, disappointed, we stayed onboard.

There were no weather or water issues, and Newport is a frequently-visited port, so I'm puzzled. Why wasn't this anticipated? Cruise calendars are set far in advance, so if the ships in port will overwhelm local infrastructure, why wasn't this considered? Why weren't some people with independent plans allowed on the same tenders as Princess tour groups? We are Platinum on Princess and have sailed 8 other lines--this isn't our first tender rodeo-- and I have never had to choose between waiting for hours for very limited shore time or skipping the port all together.

We had been to Newport before, so this was an annoyance rather than a tragedy, but others were angry. I am just plain disappointed in Princess.

[Pierlesscruisers]

There were no weather or water issues, and Newport is a frequently-visited port, so I'm puzzled. Why wasn't this anticipated? Cruise calendars are set far in advance, so if the ships in port will overwhelm local infrastructure, why wasn't this considered? Why weren't some people with independent plans allowed on the same tenders as Princess tour groups? We are Platinum on Princess and have sailed 8 other lines--this isn't our first tender rodeo-- and I have never had to choose between waiting for hours for very limited shore time or skipping the port all together.

We had been to Newport before, so this was an annoyance rather than a tragedy, but others were angry. I am just plain disappointed in Princess.

 

I'm not the most experienced cruiser around by a long shot but your comments above got me to thinking about this problem. It seems from what you had said earlier was that the problem lay with the shoreside end of the line in that there weren't enough tender locations so it would seem to me that the most logical place to address this problem would be the Newport community. Writing to them as a visitor who was not able to visit (thereby causing the local merchants to lose $$$, would seem to be the way to perhaps getting something done. If they get, say 250 letters from cruisers who say "We weren't able to visit your community and buy lunch, souvenirs, etc." they can easily see how much potential money they lost by not having the capability to land 250 (from just 1 ship!) passengers on that one day. (You know that they have an approx. amount that each cruise visitor spends on average!)

 

Your message here is a good starting point that may get others to write letters like that to the Newport Chamber of Commerce or someone similar. I hope it does lead to a solution to your problem. BTW, you did a nice job of explaining the situation very clearly and succintly! Hope that that problem never happens to you again!

 

Tom

[geoherb]

I don't remember tender problems on our one Princess cruise that stopped in Newport. We had a long wait for a tender on a Holland America cruise that stopped in Bar Harbor. I thought that a ship with fewer than 1,300 passengers should have been able to deal with tendering more efficiently. But, like you, we had been there before and weren't in a great hurry to get off the ship.

 

Getting back to one of your observations, Princess does allow people with independent plans on the same tenders as people on the cruise line's excursions. Those spaces, however, may have been taken up by Elite passengers. Generally the people staffing the tender loading area are in contact with the people in the designated waiting area--letting them know how many more people to send down.

[cruiseri]

Just a heads-up to anyone planning to explore a tender port independently or with a private tour. In Newport today, we slept in and arrived at the restaurant for tender tickets about 11:00, figuring we would avoid the early rush. As we entered, it was standing room only, and we were told the wait was 35-45 minutes. After an hour, they had just called the second group! Some people had already been waiting over an hour before we arrived! It was clear that the wait would easily be another hour for a total of over 2 hours. The staff explained that their tours had priority, there were many Elites onboard who also had priority, and they were sharing just TWO tender docking locations, shared with another ship.

 

For the record, ONLY ONE ship in Newport today, Regal Princess was in last week with over 3500 passengers, no problem.

 

Perhaps the CP didn't want to lower more than 2 or 3 tenders.

 

SAS

[iceleven]

For the record, ONLY ONE ship in Newport today, Regal Princess was in last week with over 3500 passengers, no problem.

 

Perhaps the CP didn't want to lower more than 2 or 3 tenders.

 

SAS

 

The OP stated - "...they were sharing just TWO tender docking locations, shared with another ship."

 

 

[Pam in CA]

It's the port/local authorities. Neither Princess nor any other cruise line can tell the port authority what to do or how to do it. They decide how the tender dock space is allocated. I've been in some ports that allowed only one tender boat at a time and if a local boat was docking, they had priority. I've been on 2-hour lines in 120-degree heat with no where to sit or any shade, and very long lines and waits to disembark.

 

If you have a complaint or concern, take it up with the port authority. Chances are nothing will be done as local boats and facilities always get priority. Every single cruise line gives their tours priority on the tenders. If you book a ship's tour, that's one of the things you're paying for. It's your choice whether to book a ship's or independent tour. Elite and full suite passengers have earned the right to the priority tendering perk.

[ptiprof]

I am not disagreeing with Elite and suite passengers' perks. Nor am I suggesting that dock issues are something that Princess can control. I am simply reporting what occurred and what we were told by staff. We came across a number of other passengers who were also not able to disembark in Newport because it would have required more hours of waiting than time on shore. My point is that Princess comes here frequently and knows the situation on the ground. If local infrastructure isn't up to the job, perhaps Princess should re-evaluate Newport as a destination.

I have to respectfully disagree with Pam that Princess tour participants are entitled to priority. Tours are provided as a service to those who want them, and they are a profit center for the cruise line. Those who prefer to explore independently or book other tours shouldn't be penalized by effectively being denied a day ashore. If management knew that there were many Elites with priority and heavily subscribed tours as well, they might have suggested that those wishing to spend time ashore independently might want to arrive early for tender tickets.

We have been to Newport twice before (once on Princess), and this has not been a problem. It hasn't been like this in any other port on any other cruise line for us. In the future, I will carefully evaluate itineraries with tender ports; if there is something I really don't want to miss, I can't assume that Princess will get me there.

[caribill]

For the record, ONLY ONE ship in Newport today, Regal Princess was in last week with over 3500 passengers, no problem.

 

Perhaps the CP didn't want to lower more than 2 or 3 tenders.

 

SAS

 

OP did not say how many tenders were being used.

 

It appears initial tendering may have been delayed for reasons unknown to us.

[jeanandjim]

Princess has some culpability. I would request a refund of my port fees. If the brochure says I will be in port for ten hours and their actions only allow me, say five, them I believe I am entitled to a refund.

[cruzsnooze]

I tendered last week on the Regal. When you have 3618 passengers and 2 loading docks for the tenders what can you expect? The Regal was too big for my taste and i wouldn't book a cruise on her again.

[ar1950]

Had a similar experience on the original Regal (way smaller ship) in Kona several years ago. We had booked a helicopter tour and needed to meet the tour pickup person at 10:30 am at the tender port location. I foolishly had a slow breakfast and then went down to get tickets. Back in those days on that small ship you just picked up tickets and then waited where ever you wanted to on the ship and they announced what group was up next over the intercom. I just assumed that we would be called 10 or 15 minutes later. It was how it worked on Maui at Lehaina prior to Kona. Big mistake to assume that. As I walked out of the dining room they announced the next group to leave, uh oh! It was about 15 or more groups ahead of our group. I went back in and, luckily for me, I pleaded my case to the officer handing out tickets (I think that he may have been filling in for the crew person who normally gave out the tickets) and got priority tickets for one of the next two tenders. Turns out that there was another ship at Kona that day and for some reason the Coast Guard decided to limit the number of tenders that each ship could send at any given time. According to everyone that I talked to afterwards this was not normal at all. Anyway, made the tour. Otherwise we would have forfeited close to $1000.00 that was pre-paid (required to book the tour) for the four of us. Live and learn.

 

What I like about Cruise Critic. Lots of good information in here for anyone who may potentially find themselves in some similar situations in the future.

Edited October 28, 2015 by ar1950

[Cruise Raider]

This was my biggest disappointment on either the Crown or the Caribbean Princess (cannot remember which ship) when we stopped in Newport a few years ago. We were all stuck on the ship for over 3 hours after picking up our tender tickets. We got 1 hour in town ... just enough to catch the bus out to the Cliff walk and start heading back. If we'd have known the line to get back onto the tenders delayed our departure out of Newport by another 3 hours, we could have spent more time in this gorgeous little port.

Alas, this is probably all I will ever see of this town -- time waiting on the promenade deck waiting for a tender and time waiting in line to get back onboard while waiting for a tender. Very sad!!

[FlorenceItaly]

Just a heads-up to anyone planning to explore a tender port independently or with a private tour. In Newport today, we slept in and arrived at the restaurant for tender tickets about 11:00, figuring we would avoid the early rush. As we entered, it was standing room only, and we were told the wait was 35-45 minutes. After an hour, they had just called the second group! Some people had already been waiting over an hour before we arrived! It was clear that the wait would easily be another hour for a total of over 2 hours. The staff explained that their tours had priority, there were many Elites onboard who also had priority, and they were sharing just TWO tender docking locations, shared with another ship.

The tender ride to the dock was estimated at about 35 minutes. Anyone with afternoon tours would also be given priority, so if we waited at least another hour (depending on the number of Princess tours with priority) , we'd be on shore by about 1:45-2:00. The LAST tender back to the ship leaves at 5:15, so to be safe, we would be lining up by 4:30 (although they clearly wouldn't leave hundreds of people behind). Not much time to visit Newport. So, disappointed, we stayed onboard.

There were no weather or water issues, and Newport is a frequently-visited port, so I'm puzzled. Why wasn't this anticipated? Cruise calendars are set far in advance, so if the ships in port will overwhelm local infrastructure, why wasn't this considered? Why weren't some people with independent plans allowed on the same tenders as Princess tour groups? We are Platinum on Princess and have sailed 8 other lines--this isn't our first tender rodeo-- and I have never had to choose between waiting for hours for very limited shore time or skipping the port all together.

We had been to Newport before, so this was an annoyance rather than a tragedy, but others were angry. I am just plain disappointed in Princess.

 

SAME situation in Newport on our CB cruise last month. We were the only ship in town, and they had only 2 tenders running.

[caribill]

SAME situation in Newport on our CB cruise last month. We were the only ship in town, and they had only 2 tenders running.

 

I can understand having only two tender docks, but for efficient use of time, there should be six tenders in use.

 

o two in transit

o two unloading on shore

o two loading at the ship

[AKman2495]

I have to respectfully disagree with Pam that Princess tour participants are entitled to priority.

 

Two things...First of all, personally, if I wanted a day ashore, I would not plan on leaving around 11am. but that's me.

 

Perhaps if you arrived earlier you could have gotten a seat on one of the first tenders.

 

I know when we took a beach day at Princess cays we got there early and we on the first tenner to go-elites and Princess tours included.

 

Second...Sorry, but the reality is that Princess sponsors the tours and thy do get priority. Tours meet in a separate area at a specific time and are led directly to the tenders-no tickets needed.

 

That is a fact of life. Whether or not they should be is another question. IMHO, since I prefer ship's tours, I say of course they should get priority!

[Cruisin' Chick]

Two things...First of all, personally, if I wanted a day ashore, I would not plan on leaving around 11am. but that's me.

 

Perhaps if you arrived earlier you could have gotten a seat on one of the first tenders.

 

I know when we took a beach day at Princess cays we got there early and we on the first tenner to go-elites and Princess tours included.

 

Second...Sorry, but the reality is that Princess sponsors the tours and thy do get priority. Tours meet in a separate area at a specific time and are led directly to the tenders-no tickets needed.

 

That is a fact of life. Whether or not they should be is another question. IMHO, since I prefer ship's tours, I say of course they should get priority!

 

I definitely feel it's okay to give those on Princess-booked excursions priority when it comes to tendering. You can decide not to take them, but would have to be aware you will have to wait. Usually we won't be rushing to get off the ship in these ports, but if we're ready and it's not yet time to just walk up to the gangway (which has happened for us at times), we'll get our tickets and not whine about it.

 

Most likely it's what some have suggested, some sort of problem on the port side of the equation.

[caribill]

I definitely feel it's okay to give those on Princess-booked excursions priority when it comes to tendering. You can decide not to take them' date=' but would have to be aware you will have to wait. [/quote']

 

Sorry. I disagree.

 

Every passenger paid to be at the ports the same amount of time.

 

The port schedule does not have two times, one for those on Princess tours and one with shorter port time for those not on Princess tours.

 

Usually they load tenders from two places and will utilize one for the tours and the other for those not on tours.

[Reader0108598]

Totally agree with Caribill

 

Reader

[ptiprof]

Princess never notified passengers that those who were not on tours would be relegated to the end of the line for tenders. We do not do ship tours unless there is absolutely no other way to get where we want to go, and, as caribill says, every passenger has paid to be at the ports the same amount of time. To AKman2495 who questioned the wisdom of my choice to arrive in the dining room for tender tickets at 11:00, our intention was to avoid the tours, take our turn behind the Elites, and go ashore for lunch and the afternoon. In our (many) previous cruises, open tenders would be available at about that time. If there was to be the kind of delay we experienced, I'm sure Princess was aware of the situation on the ground and should have notified passengers to arrive early. Many passengers we spoke to were upset about the situation and did not get to go ashore.

[FlorenceItaly]

After waiting in the designated lounge, our experience was that the tender tickets were not even collected or required to be shown. We could have just walked on and not waited at all, lol.

[cruiseri]

 

Wink, wink-isn't that usually the case.:):):):):)

[FlorenceItaly]

My post should have said walked OFF, sorry, early, and not enough coffee, lol.

[RDC1]

On board the ship. Tender transit time was about 39 min one way. The ship was using a local boat for excursions which was faster than the tenders. Did see 4 tenders in use as well. We were the only cruise ship in harbor, but there was only one pier being used for tender operations. From look it seems normal. Being a relocation cruise lots of elite on board. That could have impacted things a bit. They were using 2 locations on ship. Front for excursions, b middle for others.

[oskidunker]

You need to get off the ship early. If you sleep until 11, you are essentially cutting 4 hours off your port time.

 

Especially when on one if these huge ships,be the first one getting tender tickets.time is so limited in most ports,we always leave the ship at the earliest possible time,even though we are elite

[rdsqrl]

You need to get off the ship early. If you sleep until 11, you are essentially cutting 4 hours off your port time.

. . .

There's no need to deliberately misrepresent the facts. The OP didn't sleep until 11am; they were ready to go ashore at 11am. There's no rule that says everyone has to be lined up at the crack of dawn to disembark in every port, and choosing to go later (and 11 is hardly late) shouldn't mean that one is effectively robbed on an entire day. I imagine Princess is quite cognizant of, and would probably boast of, their ability to get people back and forth to the ship expeditiously, whether that's at 8am or 11am. Clearly, other forces were to blame here, yet you choose to blame the victim. Not cool, dude.