Transatlantic - UK citizens immigration times in St Thomas - your experience please?

[Blondie008]

Hi

I am looking for experiences of immigration process and times arriving in St Thomas from a fall transatlantic?

We are looking to book a 2 tank scuba dive - It is not being offered as a shore excursion with NCL -

The dive shop are looking to pick us up at the ship at 8.45am -

The ship docks at 7am - but its a lot of money to risk if we don't get to clear immigration.

Our experience on Getaway this year wasn't good -

We have done numerous transatlantics and often cleared in St Thomas but for the life of me cannot remember what kind of time we managed to clear the ship.

Getaway cleared by those booked on ship shorex then by deck in Southampton this year and as many of us know - it was more than a catastrophe.

So - UK citizens clearing St Thomas - help me with your experiences please

Thank you :)

[Froggitt]

Not done St Thomas, but I can give you my experience of last year Epic TA US immigration at San Juan.

 

US passengers went to the front of the ship, took them about 10 seconds to queue, be processed and be waved on.

 

Everyone else went to back of the ship, except the line was so long it snaked about 5 deep back to the front of the ship, way past OSheehans. The last people cleared immigration around 2pm.

 

I "think" there was a queue jump for official NCL tours, and people in wheelchairs.

[bluesea777]

Which ship?

[GLYNAGP]

We cleared US immigration with British passports in St Thomas on a Transatlantic with RCI a few year ago. We were a long time in the Queue (line) nearly two hours. We did it again in Boston on Celebrity as well it took longer there we were in line nearly 3 hours. In both case people who had booked shore excursions through the cruise line were given priority .

[fredflint]

Short answer is you will not make the time.

[Froggitt]

Short answer is you will not make the time.

Unless possibly you are in a suite, and the Concierge has a route to the front of the line.

[sha32]

Hi

 

I am looking for experiences of immigration process and times arriving in St Thomas from a fall transatlantic?

 

We are looking to book a 2 tank scuba dive - It is not being offered as a shore excursion with NCL -

 

The dive shop are looking to pick us up at the ship at 8.45am -

 

The ship docks at 7am - but its a lot of money to risk if we don't get to clear immigration.

 

Our experience on Getaway this year wasn't good -

 

We have done numerous transatlantics and often cleared in St Thomas but for the life of me cannot remember what kind of time we managed to clear the ship.

 

Getaway cleared by those booked on ship shorex then by deck in Southampton this year and as many of us know - it was more than a catastrophe.

 

So - UK citizens clearing St Thomas - help me with your experiences please

 

Thank you :)

 

 

 

On the Epic one year, we were getting picked up at St Thomas at 09.30, the coloured piece of paper we were giving by the ship to go to immigration was for 10.30! There is a queue roughly for about 1-2 hours. We told the excursion desk our predicament the night before, they gave us a different coloured piece of paper that lets you start queuing for immigration about 08.00, along with the NCL excursion passengers, there was hardly any queue and nobody checked what colour or time the piece of paper said. So since then if we have anything booked early in any immigration port we have gone down with the first colour that gets called, hardly no queue no stress. Depending on how long it takes to clear the staff, it can be from 07.30/08.00 they call passengers.

 

 

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[Minoushka]

There are never enough border guys to satisfy the need ...we lined up around 8 am in a priority line off Epic last Nov ...a madhouse around and around the casino ...getting new carpets just to add to the mess of 5000 people circulating around it ....we got thru rather quickly in Haven line by 9:30 I was outdoors .One lady agentwas so mad she stamped those passports with rugged loud strength ...it was really loud ...kinda made us quiet ...no one wanted to mess with that ..rage ....

We wwre lucky ..I heard the line went on till about noon .This was in SJU

[bluesea777]

OP: you didn't specify which ship, but the 8:45am non-NCL excursion is SOL.

 

We have been on 2 EPIC TA that stopped in St. Thomas as the first US entry port. 2 extremely long queues - one US and Canadians to one end of ship, and the other non-US/Can to the other end of ship. We were given a schedule to attend, deck by deck - the top ones first and then the bottom ones later, but most people disregarded the times and just joined the queues any time they wanted.

 

The second time we gave up queuing and had a leisurely breakfast and went out on open deck to relax, and then we were amongst the last people to go thru the US Immigration at 11:45 am. After that we got off ship for a bit.

 

We have UK British passports.

 

All the crew have to go thru Imm. FIRST (starting when the ship docks in St. Thomas like at about 5 am), and then the Imm. becomes available to the passengers.

Edited August 12, 2017 by bluesea777

[Blondie008]

Thanks everyone for your input

Looking too risky - what a shame NCL isn't offering a 2 tank dive shorex - would have snapped it up - but nah - too much money to lay out and just hoping we make it.

Thanks folks!