How long does embarkation and disembarkation take, Western Mediterranean, NCL Epic?

[maraze]

Hi everyone,

We are cruising the Western Mediterranean on the Epic in July, and were wondering how long we could realistically spend at each port?

The Norwegian website says "Due to security reasons, all guests must be on board 2 hours before sailing. Disembarkation usually begins 2 hours after docking. Itineraries are subject to change at any time without notice."

Does this mean I have to add 2 hours to every arrival time and subtract 2 hours from every departure time to work out how long we have on dry land? Does this apply to both ports in which we dock and where we tender? This seems like an awfully short time at port.

Also, we would like to get back on the ship as late as possible (as we assume most cruisers in the Western Mediterranean would want to), does this mean we will be on the ship 2 hours before departure, or simply that we will be in a long queue (especially on a tender day)? We are trying to work out what time to book dinner on board and are not sure when to book it with respect to the ship's departure time - we would like to eat dinner max 30 mins - 1 hour after getting on board.

Thanks,

Mark

My cruise itinerary is here fyi

Thu Florence/Pisa (Livorno), Italy 07:00 AM 07:00 PM (dock)

Fri Cannes, France 08:00 AM 06:00 PM (tender)

Sat Palma, Majorca, Spain 01:00 PM 08:00 PM (dock)

Sun Barcelona, Spain 05:00 AM 06:00 PM (dock)

Mon At Sea ------

Tue Naples, Italy 07:00 AM 07:00 PM (dock)

[sanger727]

The 2 hours only applies to embarkation at the beginning of the cruise and debarkation at the end of the cruise.

 

Typically in port days you'll be allowed to disembark at the time on your schedule. All aboard time is when you are due back on the ship and usually 30 minutes prior to departure for a docked port and 60 minutes for a tender port.

 

 

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[Huntingdon1701]

Have a look at how long the ship's tours are supposed to take, and that will give you an idea of how long it is safe to spend away. For the bigger ports, that's generally around 9 hours, although Cannes and Mallorca are less.

[Son of a son of a ...]

Barcelona is a big turnover port - probably 75% dis/em that AM. Therefore, your ability to dis at 0500 might be aspirational.

[hawkeyetlse]

Not much to do in Barcelona at 5am on a Sunday anyway…

[maraze]

Barcelona is a big turnover port - probably 75% dis/em that AM. Therefore, your ability to dis at 0500 might be aspirational.

 

Thanks for letting me know. Would 6am be more realistic?