debark from hell

[duck addict]

On a recent cruise (October) ending in San Pedro it took 1 1/2 hours to get off the ship and through immigration (non-Princess but same problem). They had four immigration agents (two for US and two for non US). The hold up was not the cruise line but the lack of immigration personal.

[sawtooth]

Wow, we did the SA cruise on the Star from Valparaiso to Rio in 2012. We experienced no problems either embarking or disembarking.

Actually, the boarding in Chile was one of the easiest we ever experienced.

We were booked on a Princess tour to Iguazzu Falls from Rio so that may have made our experience smoother

[StLouisCruisers]

We were on the Star SA cruise in Feb. 2012 from Rio to San Francisco, and that embarkation in Rio was one of the worst ever. Chaos! We will never embark or debark in Rio again!

[Astro Flyer]

This thread is making me nervous :(

 

I have booked a Crown Princess cruise in March 2017, from BA to Fort Lauderdale.

 

I'm female, and travel solo. I've done many cruises and never had a problem - but I'm really worried about embarkation in BA now :o

 

I'm very patient and usually 'go with the flow', but don't cope well with being pushed and shoved in disorganised crowds - being 4' 11" somehow makes that all the more intimidating as I seem to become invisible to other people! :o

 

Is it really that bad?

Our BA embarkation in March 2014 went smoothly & the BA cruise terminal appeared to be modern & built as a cruise terminal unlike Valparaiso which was a converted warehouse.

 

We arrived in BA a couple of days early & our biggest problem on embarkation day was getting a taxi from our hotel to the cruise terminal. There was a parade in progress & eventually a staff member walked with us several blocks to find a cab. As I recall we arrived at about 1:30 & like we've had at other ports there was a priority boarding line which moved faster than the general boarding line. Our carry on bags were scanned before we got to the check in counters & we were one of the few passengers there. They keep passports & gave us a receipt (they were returned later in the cruise) and without delay we took a shuttle bus to the ship.

 

For us BA was not bad but like other embarkation ports having priority boarding helps.

Edited January 10, 2016 by Astro Flyer

[kendon]

We had a disembarkation from hell about 6-7 years ago in Puerto Rico. At the very moment we got off, the taxi drivers in San Juan decided at the last minute to strike. Hundreds of them stood at the port with their arms crossed forming a barrier, and refused to take anyone to the airport. Geez. It started getting ugly, police sirens screaming....We went in the opposite direction and found a taxi who was more than willing to take us to the airport. He wasn't informed about the strike yet and was a bit nervous about facing them on the return. Good tips go far. We made it home only to find out on the news that it became a sizable international incident.

 

Travel is fun, isn't it?

[Darcy15]

Our experience is from 2010 when we boarded in BA. We took the Princess shuttle from our hotel to the pier. The area around the pier is sketchy and you should only use the Princess shuttle or a taxi. There wasn't a lot of waiting area but we got there early and were able to get seats. I can't remember if there was priority boarding. When they started check in there were maybe a half dozen stations and they all feed into one line going through security. It was crowded but we didn't feel it was unruly or that there was much if any shoving. We did go through disembarkation in Valparaiso and although there were lines long going through immigration they also were not unruly nor was there shoving. There was a significant police presence with dogs sniffing for unallowed foodstuffs. As things would happen, we ended up disembarking in BA 23 days later but there were only about 400 disembarking in the afternoon and there were no issues at that time with those few people.

 

Thank you :)

[Darcy15]

Our BA embarkation in March 2014 went smoothly & the BA cruise terminal appeared to be modern & built as a cruise terminal unlike Valparaiso which was a converted warehouse.

 

We arrived in BA a couple of days early & our biggest problem on embarkation day was getting a taxi from our hotel to the cruise terminal. There was a parade in progress & eventually a staff member walked with us several blocks to find a cab. As I recall we arrived at about 1:30 & like we've had at other ports there was a priority boarding line which moved faster than the general boarding line. Our carry on bags were scanned before we got to the check in counters & we were one of the few passengers there. They keep passports & gave us a receipt (they were returned later in the cruise) and without delay we took a shuttle bus to the ship.

 

For us BA was not bad but like other embarkation ports having priority boarding helps.

 

Thank you :)

 

I have priority boarding, so that's a help it seems. I also have a Princess transfer from the airport. :)

[Astro Flyer]

I'm very patient and usually 'go with the flow', but don't cope well with being pushed and shoved in disorganised crowds - being 4' 11" somehow makes that all the more intimidating as I seem to become invisible to other people! :o

 

Thank you :)

 

I have priority boarding, so that's a help it seems. I also have a Princess transfer from the airport. :)

That's good & it should help you 'go with the flow' better...have a great cruise. :)

[Gwendy]

This thread is making me nervous :(

 

I have booked a Crown Princess cruise in March 2017, from BA to Fort Lauderdale.

 

I'm female, and travel solo. I've done many cruises and never had a problem - but I'm really worried about embarkation in BA now :o

 

I'm very patient and usually 'go with the flow', but don't cope well with being pushed and shoved in disorganised crowds - being 4' 11" somehow makes that all the more intimidating as I seem to become invisible to other people! :o

 

Is it really that bad?

 

Back in 2011 I did an Antarctic cruise with Celebrity from BA. Seamless, we did not have priority boarding at that stage, but it was quick. We were loaded onto a bus and driven through the rows and rows of containers and straight onto ship. We had booked private transfers from hotel to ship before we left Australia, taxis are quite small. Enjoy your cruise, don't worry about things that may never happen. I have a few inches on you. I am five foot three. Just use your voice and remind people to observe necessary courtesies.

[Darcy15]

Back in 2011 I did an Antarctic cruise with Celebrity from BA. Seamless, we did not have priority boarding at that stage, but it was quick. We were loaded onto a bus and driven through the rows and rows of containers and straight onto ship. We had booked private transfers from hotel to ship before we left Australia, taxis are quite small. Enjoy your cruise, don't worry about things that may never happen. I have a few inches on you. I am five foot three. Just use your voice and remind people to observe necessary courtesies.

 

Thank you :)

 

Hey, you're the tall one round here :D

 

Just noticed you're in Brisbane

 

........cruising from there in September! Really looking forward to visiting PNG, Vanuatu and the Solomons.

Edited January 11, 2016 by Darcy15

[Gwendy]

Thank you :)

 

Hey, you're the tall one round here :D

 

Just noticed you're in Brisbane

 

........cruising from there in September! Really looking forward to visiting PNG, Vanuatu and the Solomons.

 

Enjoy your cruise, hopefully good weather then, not too hot. Just be aware that particularly PNG is a very third world country. Lovely people, very shy, beautiful scenery. Check Trip advisor for info on various ports. I haven't been to Solomons but love Vanuatu and the islands of PNG.

[Darcy15]

Enjoy your cruise, hopefully good weather then, not too hot. Just be aware that particularly PNG is a very third world country. Lovely people, very shy, beautiful scenery. Check Trip advisor for info on various ports. I haven't been to Solomons but love Vanuatu and the islands of PNG.

 

 

My itinerary :)

 

Would love to spend more time in Brisbane, but as I am still working there just isn't the time

 

.....2 days to get to Australia really cuts in to holiday days :rolleyes:

 

Can I ask a question please? I have a late flight home the day the ship gets back to Brisbane and was thinking of going to Lone Pine koala sanctuary. Does this sound like a good plan? :)