Terrible disembarkation at Port Everglades 3/26

[mupt87]

We got off Independence on 3/26. Initially we had an 11:20 flight scheduled. After reading about slow disembarkation, I rescheduled our flight to 2:25. Thank God I did! I took almost 3 hours from our scheduled disembarkation time of 9:15 am to get to Customs. We weren't called out of the the theater until about 10am Then, stood in the stairways and hallways for at least another hour until we were off the ship. Then, more lines outside and in customs. Oasis was in port as well as 2 other ships. Don't know if this is how bad it usually is. We have cruised >15 times and have never seen anything like it! Don't know if it is a RCCL issue or a port issue.

[Janet524]

Don't know if it is a RCCL issue or a port issue.

 

I would bet that it's a "port issue," likely a Customs issue that there are not nearly enough customs agents to process so many people. We've had similar issues a few times and it seemed that there were only two or three agents on duty which understandably slowed the process horribly. RCCL has no control over this.

[Clarea]

Sorry to hear this.

 

Our experience has been that the slow progress through the customs agents has been the cause of delayed disembarkation almost every time. Whether this is due to lack of sufficient agents, or some extra process the agents were taking is hard to say. Sometimes they barely look at our info, other times they interview us for a minute or so.

[39august]

I wonder why so many people have posted that debarking Indy in Port Everglades is so difficult. We have sailed Indy in 2012, 2013 and 2014 from there and never had a big wait to debark. I started noticing posts about this situation last fall. Does anyone know what the problem is now?

[cruzrman]

My family and I disembarked the Oasis 3/26. We used express checkout "walk off" but there was nothing express about it. It took us an hour before we cleared customs. Earlier this year on the Adventure OTS out of San Juan we walked off directly right up to a customs agent. I realize Oasis is much bigger but disembarkation improvements are surely needed.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[WaveSplasher]

I wonder why so many people have posted that debarking Indy in Port Everglades is so difficult. We have sailed Indy in 2012, 2013 and 2014 from there and never had a big wait to debark. I started noticing posts about this situation last fall. Does anyone know what the problem is now?

 

Agreed totally. My first cruise was on the Indy and we had a smooth disembarkation last March 2015. Don't know why it changed for the worse?

 

Is the Indy still using Terminal 29 or has she taken Terminal 25? It could be the change in terminal that is causing the problems or maybe is customs issues that are being more stringent on things.

[boulders]

We self debarked at 8 am off Allure on March 20. It took us about 35 minutes to clear customs. It took an hour to checkin for WestJet once we got to FLL. Then another 30 minutes to clear security. Once we got through security, there were huge lines for food and hardly anywhere to sit. All in, it was 3 hours from the time we left our stateroom until we were seated at the gate. Once on the plane, the plane sat on the tarmac for almost an hour before taking off. It was not the easy and quick debarkation process that we'd heard about on these boards.

[The Fun Researcher]

Self disembark is your friend. Get off the ship early. No looking for your bags. Easy peasy, and fast. With an 11:20 flight, that's the way to go.

 

Dan

[Paulette3028]

It is Easter Sunday and perhaps a lot of workers took personal days/vacation days which left a very small crew to work.....therefore longer than usual lines and everything taking longer.

[Clarea]

We self debarked at 8 am off Allure on March 20. It took us about 35 minutes to clear customs. It took an hour to checkin for WestJet once we got to FLL. Then another 30 minutes to clear security. Once we got through security, there were huge lines for food and hardly anywhere to sit. All in, it was 3 hours from the time we left our stateroom until we were seated at the gate. Once on the plane, the plane sat on the tarmac for almost an hour before taking off. It was not the easy and quick debarkation process that we'd heard about on these boards.

I would not have been too disappointed with 35 to minutes clear. Have had much worse.

Edited March 27, 2016 by clarea

[Big_G]

We have a Sunday routine when disembarking in PE. We book a late afternoon flight, use luggage valet, and take a cab to Las Olas Blvd. for brunch. This way we're not rushing to get off the ship and you avoid the crush at the airport. I hate getting stressed out after a great vacation.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

I would not have been too disappointed with 35 to minutes clear. Have had much worse.

 

Also not sure what the situation at the airport has to do with disembarkation. That is a completely different animal unrelated to the cruise or port.

[peteukmcr]

We disembarked Serenade at terminal 18 on Feb 26th and had 8 am tags. Not called until 8:45 am and then held on the upper level until 9 am. Once allowed into the lower level to locate our bags, we joined a line snaking around the terminal (that's why we were held on the upper level).

 

Took another hour to reach the 3 immigration officials manning the desks.

 

That terminal is equipped to have around 16 desks manned (I may have miscounted), so obviously not RCI's fault, but doesn't appear to be an isolated incident. Don't think there were many other ships in port that day either.

[sharktums]

We used self assist yesterday (3/26) on Oasis. Got in line at 7am and were in our car by 7:45am. I think that's pretty decent and standard from what we've experienced in the past. I don't think RCCL is at fault. When there are four agents clearing 6000+ people, do the math and see how long that will take!

[TigerLady]

We got off Independence on 3/26. Initially we had an 11:20 flight scheduled. After reading about slow disembarkation, I rescheduled our flight to 2:25. Thank God I did! I took almost 3 hours from our scheduled disembarkation time of 9:15 am to get to Customs. We weren't called out of the the theater until about 10am Then, stood in the stairways and hallways for at least another hour until we were off the ship. Then, more lines outside and in customs. Oasis was in port as well as 2 other ships. Don't know if this is how bad it usually is. We have cruised >15 times and have never seen anything like it! Don't know if it is a RCCL issue or a port issue.

 

Strange.. We got out of there in pretty quick fashion, in October.. Perhaps they were having a bad day.. Unsure.. It hasn't been the norm for us..

[CVU]

Easter Sunday= less Agents would be working?

 

We had big issues on Allure - Jan/Feb B2Bs. Much Less Agents then we were told. Change over day was a looong process.

[JoeRum]

Your at the mercy of the Customs agents. Until they clear the ship to release passengers no one gets off the ship. If there is a medical emergency this will delay it even more. RCCL and every other cruise line operates as efficiently as they can to end and start each cruise. But we are all at the mercy of the government to allow us to board and exit the ship. Fewer agents means it will take longer to process plain and simple.

 

We were on Indy in January and off the ship by 9AM. On Navigator in March we did the self assist and were in a cab by 7AM.

 

If you are worried about missing a flight skip breakfast carry your luggage and do the self assist.

 

JoeRum

[Saab4444]

More and more people switch to self embarkation, partly due to recommendation here. The result will be that sooner or later all people stand in line at 7am with all their heavy luggage and all will wait several hours in chaos....

[Paulette3028]

More and more people switch to self embarkation, partly due to recommendation here. The result will be that sooner or later all people stand in line at 7am with all their heavy luggage and all will wait several hours in chaos....

 

Somehow there will always be people who want to squeeze their last minute on the ship.....and those were probably the ones who wanted the cruisers to get off the ship ASAP when they were getting onboard.

 

Many people don't want the hassle of dragging their luggage, for us it is fine.

[Keith1010]

This is a reminder that things happen.

 

Yes, usually an issue with immigration/customs.

 

This is why we error on booking a later rather then earlier flight.

 

Keith

[island lady]

Serenade obviously much smaller ship than Oasis, but like previous poster, we had a really, really long wait to clear customs on our 3/5 cruise.

 

Numbers called almost an hour late due to ambulance picking up a sick passenger, so everyone had to wait until they cleared.

 

Record number of self assist disembarkation passengers (according to officer crew member) that were left standing in line for over an hour. Many were getting cranky due to standing, but did not want to lose their place in line. (We elected regular disembarkation and were happy to be comfortably seated in dining room waiting area).

 

Once our number was finally called, we had that same snakey long line inside the terminal, that took over an hour to get to what few customs agents were on duty. Three at time, then just two. Many other ships in port also.

 

Every time we have used PE, we experience that long wait to get through customs. Makes us really appreciate Tampa and Port Canaveral!!

Edited March 27, 2016 by island lady

[Desert Cruizers]

Our worst disembarkation was back in 2011 from a Barcelona TA. We had a post cruise tour and some 200 + missed their tours as a result of lack of custom agents. We were suppose to leave at 8:30 for the tour and were finally curbside at 11, many more were still trying to get off at Noon. The hallways and lounges were so backed up, people in elevators couldn't even get out of them. At one point while disembarking, my husband got passed the sea pass scanner and I was stopped for over 35 minutes while he exited the ship with 1,000 behing me.

[csk]

We are cruising in may out of Seattle, and my husband will need a wheelchair at the pier for the first time, do I contact Royal or the pier? thanks

[acstall]

We got off Independence on 3/26. Initially we had an 11:20 flight scheduled. After reading about slow disembarkation, I rescheduled our flight to 2:25. Thank God I did! I took almost 3 hours from our scheduled disembarkation time of 9:15 am to get to Customs. We weren't called out of the the theater until about 10am Then, stood in the stairways and hallways for at least another hour until we were off the ship. Then, more lines outside and in customs. Oasis was in port as well as 2 other ships. Don't know if this is how bad it usually is. We have cruised >15 times and have never seen anything like it! Don't know if it is a RCCL issue or a port issue.

 

 

Our last two disembarkations at Port Everglades were awful as I previously reported. One from Navigator in November and the other Serenade in February. Lines snaked through the dining room and then in the terminal. We had a low number last fall and were one of the last groups off in February. Timing made no difference. It still took hours. One would think that a big corporation like RCCL could get the government to place enough agents in the terminal. Certainly there are plenty just standing around. It ends a nice cruise on a sour note.

[molsonschooner]

Agreed totally. My first cruise was on the Indy and we had a smooth disembarkation last March 2015. Don't know why it changed for the worse?

 

Is the Indy still using Terminal 29 or has she taken Terminal 25? It could be the change in terminal that is causing the problems or maybe is customs issues that are being more stringent on things.

 

Terminal 25 is what she uses most of the time now. She has been in 18 on the rare occasion