Embarkation

[GOLFINCHICK]

Hi All,

 

I have a friend who showed up at her boarding allocation time at 12pm and said everyone had arrived early and it took 2 hours to board. Has anybody else experienced this??? Just want to know whether it would be a better idea to go later and miss the crowds?? TIA

[OzKiwiJJ]

We've arrived 11-11:30am for all three of our cruises and were onboard within an hour. Sun Princess boarded at White Bay. Rhapsody of the Seas boarded at the OPT. Dawn Princess we boarded in Fremantle. The OPT was the fastest, and Fremantle was the slowest.

[The_Big_M]

It's really preference. I agree that boarding later is quicker... all my 3-5 p.m. boardings have been fast. Earlier is busier.

[Beanb41]

It's really preference. I agree that boarding later is quicker... all my 3-5 p.m. boardings have been fast. Earlier is busier.

 

The hype of a cruise heightens with first timers as cruising time approaches and they want to get on board as soon as they can. Hence recommended boarding times go out the window. We are also people who would like to get on board as soon as possible as the cruise doesn't start until we are on board. That said we have had a mixed reaction as to waiting times. We have found the upgraded Sydney OPT to be very good. The extra capacity seems to make the wait seem less. If one can see the customs guy at the end of the hall it only increases expectation. The new Sydney OPT seems to make 30 - 40 minute wait seem shorter somehow.

[goodycruising]

What would probably be a great thing is if the staggered times allocated to people were actually followed. Just an idea!

 

We got there one time at about 3.15 pm and we were on by 3.30 in our room. I could not walk any faster through all the stages. So my recommendation would be that a bit later can be very fast for embarking. Then your room will be open and you can dump your carry on, or have a relax or whatever you feel like.

 

Remember that you need to be there more than 90 minutes before the departure of the ship. I wouldn't risk that and would aim to arrive at least 2 hours before your scheduled sail away time.

 

If you get there earlier and there look like there is a big line up I am pretty sure you can check in your bags and go and have a wander around. Take some photos etc.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Staggered times would probably work better if people could book a time when they book their cruise. Some people prefer to board early, some people prefer to board late. People who have stayed overnight in the embarkation city and who have to check out of their hotel by 10am or 11am may prefer to go straight to the ship and board. Others who are travelling to the port that day may prefer a later boarding time that gives them a buffer against flight delays or traffic issues. Returning rental cars can be another time constraint, delaying the return can add an extra day to the cost if the time is later that when the car was picked up.

[happysnapper]

Staggered times would probably work better if people could book a time when they book their cruise. Some people prefer to board early, some people prefer to board late. People who have stayed overnight in the embarkation city and who have to check out of their hotel by 10am or 11am may prefer to go straight to the ship and board. Others who are travelling to the port that day may prefer a later boarding time that gives them a buffer against flight delays or traffic issues. Returning rental cars can be another time constraint, delaying the return can add an extra day to the cost if the time is later that when the car was picked up.

 

Agree with this. If the cruise companies can organise dining times I'm sure it would be possible to arrange boarding times for passengers arriving in the city at different times with different travel arrangements. The one BIG problem is passengers who totally ignore boarding times.

Edited November 2, 2015 by happysnapper

[GOLFINCHICK]

Thankyou all, we got on the Solstice in January in about 20 mins at our allotted time. This time we have a much earlier boarding time and hubby is keen, I am not so much as I have seen queues at OPT and would rather have a drink in a pub that wait in line.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Agree with this. If the cruise companies can organise dining times I'm sure it would be possible to arrange boarding times for passengers arriving in the city at different times with different travel arrangements. The one BIG problem is passengers who totally ignore boarding times.

 

They make up for the ones who can't get there at the recommended time. :D

And with some cruise lines it is only a recommendation.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Thankyou all, we got on the Solstice in January in about 20 mins at our allotted time. This time we have a much earlier boarding time and hubby is keen, I am not so much as I have seen queues at OPT and would rather have a drink in a pub that wait in line.

 

At least with the OPT you can check out the size of the queue and if it's too big you can wander off to a pub for a couple of hours. Other locations are not so convenient.

[Neil R.]

We arrived later for the Golden Princess last Wednesday and were on board in 20mins.Some cruise companies will let you into the terminal no matter what time has been allocated. However we have found that Carnival will not allow you into the terminal until you allocated time has passed, and it makes the process a lot faster. Also, Carnival allows you to choose your Check in time, and once an allocation is full the time is no longer available. I personally feel the process works best for all. The first time we travelled on the Solstice, it was 2 hour wait (This was the ships first ever visit to Sydney and they had I.T issues) , and on a hot day no ones wants to do that!

[summerholidays]

All Voyager of the Seas Departures

Time Deck Number

11.00am 10 160

11.30am 9 264

12.30pm 8 321

1.30pm 7 332

2.30pm 6 336

3.00pm 3,2 144

 

Does anyone know what time Deck 12 boards? Does not mention this on their website.

[Tara Jane]

I have in my on line check in several options for boarding for my upcoming p & o cruise to Eden. They are all in half hour slots and I think earliest is 12 noon and latest is 2.3 - 3 for a 4pm departure. I think 3pm would be a bit late as they generally have muster prior to departure. Taking 2 very excited grandaughters so we selected 12.30 - 1. It even tells you how many places are available for each check in time.

Well done P and O. Wish they were all like that. Of course it doesnt stop those determined to ignore the allocated check in time but at least we have an input as putting our desired convenient time.

[tangogulf]

Last time we boarded at the OPT (last Feb when renovations were still not quite complete) we chose to arrive at the terminal between 2 and 3pm even though we were able to basically check in any time due to our cruise line loyalty status. We were on the ship in less than 15mins, no lines. The longest part of the boarding process was the time it took to do the body scan and carry on bag scan - they only had one machine working by that time so there were 3 or 4 people in the queue ahead of us. We found this a good time to board as our cabin was ready and the buffet wasn't crowded so we could have a late lunch with no worries about finding a table. Our checked bags also arrived at our cabin just before muster drill. All in all a very stress free start to the cruise.

 

We plan on doing the same thing for future cruises.