Port arrival time? what time is that?

[cruisestitch]

It was winter in Cozumel. No Daylight Saving time issue in January.

[Charles4515]

 

Anybody who relies on anything he reads on this or any other internet bulletin board needs to have his head examined. He's doing his own disservice.

 

 

They can and should check the links provided to port of call sites but those are not always correct. If it is the usual eastern Caribbean itinerary they will change the ships time to local time. Also good tour operators know what time the ship arrives.

 

I would add that I have been to San Juan a bunch of times and to,those two forts. I would not book a tour. You can walk to them or take a cab and you don't need a guide in my opinion. But in any case for a tour, outside the dock there have always been independent tour operators offering city tours including the forts. I would not book that tour in advance.

 

 

 

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Edited December 23, 2016 by Charles4515

[cporses]

Ships use International time for navigation, planning etc. Clocks are set to local time for convenience of passengers.

 

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Edited December 24, 2016 by cporses

[ORV]

FWIW, there is a free shuttle in Old San Juan that takes you directly to the Forts. I just used it a couple of weeks ago. Whether or not it will have any room on it is another story.

[dodger1964]

Ships use International time for navigation, planning etc. Clocks are set to local time for convenience of passengers.

 

Sent from my Lenovo TB2-X30F using Tapatalk

 

Just curious. Do you know what that time (zone?) is?

 

And do you know if airlines do the same thing?

[cporses]

Just curious. Do you know what that time (zone?) is?

 

And do you know if airlines do the same thing?

On cruises they usually mention time changes in the daily program usually delivered to your cabin. It will also be on the ships internal TV program page. Also you can just look at the ships clocks and check against your watch.

On planes the pilot will mention the time change required for your destination at some stage.

 

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[sanger727]

Whether or not the ship changes to local time is irrelevant to the discussion. The ship will have a reserved time for the port. That time will be local time. The port has to know when the ships are coming and going. Every tour operator I've ever used has had access to that time and has known when my ship was coming in. I haven't personally experienced an itinerary that stated 8 am, where we arrived in port at a different local time, but for the purposes of booking an independent tour (not getting back to the ship on time, agree that's a separate issue). The port, and all the independent operators I've worked with know what time the ship will arrive in local time.

 

 

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[TravelerThom]

Whether or not the ship changes to local time is irrelevant to the discussion. The ship will have a reserved time for the port. That time will be local time. The port has to know when the ships are coming and going. Every tour operator I've ever used has had access to that time and has known when my ship was coming in. I haven't personally experienced an itinerary that stated 8 am, where we arrived in port at a different local time, but for the purposes of booking an independent tour (not getting back to the ship on time, agree that's a separate issue). The port, and all the independent operators I've worked with know what time the ship will arrive in local time.

I agree with this post by sanger727 100%.

...I suspect ship's time is a company policy matter and not subject to the whim of the captain. In spite of all the "captain is the ultimate authority" blather, in fact he has to follow company policy in most thing, and no captain with half a brain is going to go to the mats with Miami over something like this. I will also look into this next week...

I will be interested in your report.

 

At the risk of having you demean this as more blather I have personally been on numerous Celebrity cruises (Eastern Caribbean, Western Caribbean, Europe, mid-Atlantic [Azores]) where ship time in some ports was NOT the same as local time, and I have also been to the same locations with Celebrity when ship time did match local time (for what it is worth I am E+ on Celebrity). I agree that Captains would not risk firing by disregarding company policy, so the only conclusion I can reach is that company policy is for ship time to be at the discretion of the Captain.

 

Thom

Edited January 1, 2017 by TravelerThom

[tinybabynurse]

Here you go............Celebruty Today front page announcement

 

Can't read the print. Have a higher resolution photo?

[tinybabynurse]

I am getting confused on a very basic question and cannot seem to find an answer when I search, though I seem to remember having read something about it….

 

When our itinerary on Celebrity says "arrive, san juan, PR---3:30pm" is that 3:30 local (San Juan) time or is it 3:30 FLL (port of departure) time? Of course I am assuming weather and all other variables work to support the posted itinerary.

 

I am trying to arrange a tour to include at least one of the forts, and since they close at 6pm, an hour can make a difference in what time we meet the local guide. Seems on our few other Celebrity cruises, the time listed in our paperwork itinerary was the local port time too…but it's been about a year so I may not be remembering correctly.

 

If anyone can share a link to a site that tells about arrive time for the Port of San Juan, that might help too. Thanks in advance, emelle

 

 

I was saddened to learn from "Gonzo something or other' that my memory is failing and that I'm probably an inexperienced cruiser anyway so I will defer to his superior knowledge and intellect.

 

While it is true that ship's time governs, I do stand by my original statement that I do not remember ON OUR CRUISES being in port on a CELEBRITY ship with local and ship time differing, including our Iceland cruise last May and our 14-day southern Caribbean over Thanksgiving 2016, Panama Canal, Alaska, Hawaii, Baltic, Canada & New England, and South America a few years ago plus a Fall and Spring 14-day Carribean each year for many years. But procedures do change, "your mileage may differ", and I digress.

 

It seems you really don't care about the whole ship/local time discussion but just want to know, specifically, if you have enough time to visit the forts. You didn't say when you are cruising but I seem to remember those 3:30 arrivals are mostly during summer cruises.

 

As I recall from working in Puerto Rico they do not use daylight savings time. A quick check on the internet will show they are presently 1 hour ahead because mainland and PR are now BOTH ON STANDARD TIMES. So....if you are traveling in the summer, Florida will have 'sprung foreward' and both FL and PR will have the same local time. Problem solved.

 

If you are going before DST in the states then others have posted the very good advice to check directly with your tourist operator (we choose to walk to the fort(s) and use our national parks pass, but that is a different thread). You or someone you know will have a cell phone -- AT&T for us-- that is local for Puerto Rico so it is easy to simply call and find answers.

 

Hope this helps...

[tinybabynurse]

Delete

Edited January 1, 2017 by tinybabynurse
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[tinybabynurse]

Just curious. Do you know what that time (zone?) is?

 

And do you know if airlines do the same thing?

 

 

 

 

GMT. Greenwich Mean Time. Also known as Zulu time.

 

Aviation flight plans, weather reports, air traffic contro, etc., are referenced to Zulu / GMT, but the cabin crew always announces local time when you arrive.

 

Times on your ticket are local as far as I can remember

[jan-n-john]

I will be interested in your report.

 

At the risk of having you demean this as more blather I have personally been on numerous Celebrity cruises (Eastern Caribbean, Western Caribbean, Europe, mid-Atlantic [Azores]) where ship time in some ports was NOT the same as local time, and I have also been to the same locations with Celebrity when ship time did match local time (for what it is worth I am E+ on Celebrity). I agree that Captains would not risk firing by disregarding company policy, so the only conclusion I can reach is that company policy is for ship time to be at the discretion of the Captain.

 

Thom

 

First I apologize, but for various reasons I was not able to dig into the issue during my recent trip.

 

That said, based on what I have been able to piece together, it seems to me the below is how it works. Take it for what its worth, and if someone has better info/explanation please correct me. I am a mere E on Celebrity, so what do I know?

 

Part of the problem is what is meant by the term "local time."

 

My understanding, based on experience combined with knowledge of how large organizations work, is that Celebrity company policy is that ships' clocks start the voyage set at the time in the departure port. As it crosses into new internationally-recognized standard time zones (one definition of "local time"), they are set up or back one hour, during the night, presumably as closely as possible to the time the ship physically crosses the line. This will align the ship's clocks with most places in that next time zone.

 

However, not every country/port in any time zone necessarily keeps its clocks on that same time, due for example to differences in whether and when daylight time is observed in that place and possibly other factors. Consequently, in a few situations the hour in a particular port (another definition of "local time") may not be the same as time on the ship or more generally its time zone. This is how discrepancies can arise.

 

So for example, suppose a ship is visiting ports A, B, and C all in the same time zone; daylight time is in effect. A and C observe daylight time but B doesn't. When the ship visits B, shore time and ship's time will differ, even though the ship is always on the "correct" time in that zone.

 

That's my story and for now at least I'm sticking with it.

Edited January 1, 2017 by jan-n-john

[TravelerThom]

I can cite numerous cruises I have been on where it is not true that "Celebrity company policy is that ships' clocks start the voyage set at the time in the departure port. As it crosses into new internationally-recognized standard time zones (one definition of "local time"), they are set up or back one hour..." A few examples:

 

5 May 2012 Constellation Eastbound TransAtlantic. Time set to local in Lisbon (Western European Summer Time - UTC+1), reset to local in LeHarve (Central European Summer Time - UTC+2), NOT reset to local in Dover (British Summer Time - same as Western European Summer Time - UTC+1), terminated in Amsterdam (Central European Summer Time - UTC+2). Not surprised as this would have made a lot of back and forth time changes.

 

26 Feb 2012 Solstice to the Eastern Caribbean (starting in EST [uTC-5], all ports in AST [uTC-4]). To my absolute surprise no time change at all.

 

28 Nov 2011 Equinox Rome to Fort Lauderdale. Started in Central European Time (UTC+1), numerous stops in CET, then despite 2 sea days we changed only one hour before getting to Ponta Delgado, Azores (Azores Time - UTC-1), so ship was not on local time. This made no sense at all as we had to still change 4 more hours between Ponta Delgado and Fort Lauderdale (UTC-5).

 

I can cite a bunch of other cruises I have been on where the Celebrity made no attempt to be in the correct time zone (none of which involved some ports on Daylight time, others in the same zone not on Daylight), especially in Mexico and Central America. In the last few years I have been sailing primarily lines other than Celebrity, but I have no reason to doubt that Celebrity (and indeed all of RCCL) policy is that ship time is at the discretion of the Captain.

[emelle]

While at first I thought my question was a simple one, I now see there are multiple possible answers. Thank you all.

 

Now that holidays are over, I am concentrating on the cruise and have a plan. Hope to see the fort(s) in San Juan, but if not enough time, it's all part of the adventure! Thanks again.

[cruisestitch]

I can see the photo in post #14 -- it says

 

"Important Notice

 

Please notice that the local time ashore today in Cozumel will be one hour behind ship's time. Please do not adjust your timepieces as Celebrity Constellation will remain on ship's time."

[TravelerThom]

While at first I thought my question was a simple one, I now see there are multiple possible answers...

This thread got sidetracked (mea culpa) into ship versus local time. I don't know if Silhouette will be on San Juan (AST) time on arrival (I suspect it will be, but no guarantee), but as sanger727 pointed out that is immaterial. Silhouette is scheduled to arrive in port at 3:30pm AST (no matter what time the ship is on). If that schedule is adhered to, you should be able to be off the dock before 4pm and get to either Castillo San Felipe del Morro or Castillo San Cristobal before 4:30pm. Both are open until 6pm, and even though those two Castillos are not far apart, it would be hectic to tour both in 90 minutes. Even though San Cristobal is the largest Spanish fort in the Americas, in my opinion San Felipe del Morro is more scenic, so I'd head there, but either is quite worthwhile.

 

Enjoy

Thom

[Imonaboat2017]

I too am thoroughly confused about ship's time vs. local time (and DST complicating matters further), and it's making it difficult to plan an independent excursion on St. Thomas!

 

That said, I finally gave up searching online and called the Port Authority directly (I realize this is impractical for some locations, but for USVI it worked).

 

I spoke with a wonderful and helpful agent there who told me what (local) time the boat was slated to be in port. And this didn't make sense to her either:

 

The pilot (boat that guides ship into port) was requested to meet the ship at 6:15-6:30 am. It's about 45 minutes to get to the dock, making the dock arrival time 7 am. Celebrity itinerary shows 8 am. Go figure.

At least the departure time of 5 pm was the same on both the PA schedule and Celebrity itinerary ;).

[jan-n-john]

I too am thoroughly confused about ship's time vs. local time (and DST complicating matters further), and it's making it difficult to plan an independent excursion on St. Thomas!

 

That said, I finally gave up searching online and called the Port Authority directly (I realize this is impractical for some locations, but for USVI it worked).

 

I spoke with a wonderful and helpful agent there who told me what (local) time the boat was slated to be in port. And this didn't make sense to her either:

 

The pilot (boat that guides ship into port) was requested to meet the ship at 6:15-6:30 am. It's about 45 minutes to get to the dock, making the dock arrival time 7 am. Celebrity itinerary shows 8 am. Go figure.

At least the departure time of 5 pm was the same on both the PA schedule and Celebrity itinerary ;).

 

I'd stick with 8. If the pilot boat meets the ship even at 6:15 let alone 6:30, remember it takes time for the pilot to board and get up to the bridge, then almost certainly go through a security screening (hardly anybody gets on a bridge these days without security screening and I imagine that includes port pilots), greet the master and bridge crew etc., and take over navigation. Now figure 45 min and maybe a little safety margin to get alongside. Then more time is needed to tie up and get out the gangway, set up security, etc. Then local authorities come aboard and clear the ship. Only then can anyone get off, and by then it's definitely more like 8 than 7.

 

Plan on 8 to 5 as your window. If you're booking a local tour independently, rest assured the local folks have been through this 100's of times and know perfectly well when the tourists will be getting off. They will be there when you are.

Edited August 10, 2017 by jan-n-john

[Imonaboat2017]

I am getting confused on a very basic question and cannot seem to find an answer when I search, though I seem to remember having read something about it….

 

When our itinerary on Celebrity says "arrive, san juan, PR---3:30pm" is that 3:30 local (San Juan) time or is it 3:30 FLL (port of departure) time? Of course I am assuming weather and all other variables work to support the posted itinerary.

 

I am trying to arrange a tour to include at least one of the forts, and since they close at 6pm, an hour can make a difference in what time we meet the local guide. Seems on our few other Celebrity cruises, the time listed in our paperwork itinerary was the local port time too…but it's been about a year so I may not be remembering correctly.

 

If anyone can share a link to a site that tells about arrive time for the Port of San Juan, that might help too. Thanks in advance, emelle

 

 

Port arrival times matched local times on our recent cruise to the eastern Caribbean. The ship's captain made an announcement when the time would be changed both going and returning, and all of the ship's clocks were changed to reflect the local time.

[jelayne]

We just got off a cruise in December and we did not change from Ships time to local time for the one port where local time was 1 hour ahead of ships time.

 

On cruises where we have started in one time zone and ended in a different time zone the ship changed time so that when passengers disembarked they were on local time.

[hcat]

Grand Cayman is one port where we are always confused. On one cruise, we did not pay attention to the daily newletter and we kept changing our watches back and forth. After a nice pub lunch we just decided to go back early to avoid a mishap....

 

Always best to check before getting off and then adjusting watches or writing it down!