Faster to the Fun worth it?

[blueridgemama]

We just returned from a 4 day cruise on the Victory from Miami. We had a :')11:30 arrival appointment. We arrived at the port by shuttle at 11, dropped off our luggage with the porter, went to the priority line and then literally walked into the ship. No line! We were in our cabin at 11:15 We dropped off our carry on bag and met our room stewart.We went to our assigned dining room and looked for our table to be sure it was what we asked for. This prevented us from having to go see the maitreD at 1:30 At 11:35 we were in a very short line at the deli for lunch and had our choice of seats in the aft shaded dining area. We used the guest services desk 3 times during the cruise and never had to wait (the non priority lines were very long) We chose self early disembarkation so we were in the Caribbean Lounge at 7am. Faster to the fun folks were in one section, early flight folks were in another section and all the rest were sent elsewhere to wait. At 7:15 Faster to the Fun were the 1st to depart, then early flights and then the rest were called by deck # The only perk that was a little disappointing was that our luggage arrived only a little earlier than the rest. Did we find FTTF worth the extra $59? Absolutely yes!! I think it all depends on how you feel about getting on and off the ship a little earlier, not waiting in long lines, not carrying your stuff with you until 1:30 when rooms are ready. We are definitely FTTF fans!

[sanmarcosman]

Many opinions here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2565336&highlight=FTTF+Worth+It

Some agree with similar experiences to yours, others not so much.

Edited April 28, 2018 by sanmarcosman

[bury me at sea]

We are definitely FTTF fans!

 

As am I.

[teknoge3k]

There are lots of people who don't think it's worth it and old school d/p cruisers hate it. For the rest of us though, FTTF is absolutely worth it. I am not on vacation to stand in line and wait for everything. I want to keep going. It's totally worth it to us, even with the new cost.

[blueridgemama]

Some additional info for FTTF. Print your luggage tags AFTER you book FTTF otherwise they will not have the FTTF tags. Also make sure your sign and sail cards have a FTTF stamp or sticker on them. Ours did not and were added by the guest services rep. They do check the cards when you are using the included perks.:D

[Nic6318]

Hi

 

After the last FTTF price increase many more people started to voice that the price has gotten too high.

 

At that time and I suggested that people are still willing to pay even more. Here you can see how for a short cruise $60 doesn't seem like much to people any more, even for a 7 day cruise a $100 doesn't seem like much after paying for everything else. I can imagine how most new cruisers wouldn't think twice when asked by their TA if they would like to purchase this perk. Many have had experiences in other venues where they can pay some extra amount for similar front of the line privileges.

 

What people on this forum have pointed out is that what you are paying for is not significant and if you do want to save some money you can easily avoid waiting with some planning. That is part of what this web site is for...showing people how, with planning, can save money. You can avoid the lines and go straight to your cabin at embarkation just by arriving a little later. You can avoid lines at guest services just by returning when the line isn't long. If you do self assist debarkation you are literally getting off the ship right behind the Plat/Diamonds and FTTF, it's not like a great amount of time.

 

Of course you can pay and enjoy the perks, but they will keep raising the price. That's the idea of supply and demand, but you do have a choice that wont diminish your cruise experience and save you a few dollars.

 

hope this helps

[beachbum53]

Before deciding whether or not FTTF is "worth it", you have to look at what you get for your money, then decide if those benefits are important enough to you to purchase FTTF, no matter the price.

[blueridgemama]

Different strokes for different folks. For some it is worth it for others not so much. Choices are great!

[JMAE]

I the cruise has a tender port I would say it is worth it!

[emory2001]

Although I haven't used my FTTF yet, since it will be my first cruise on Carnival, I was thrilled to learn about it, bought it immediately, and would pay more for it.

[teague38]

I the cruise has a tender port I would say it is worth it![/quote

 

Get in line early and you will more than likely be on the same tender boat with the people who paid for FTTF.

[evandbob]

The OP said that for disembarkation, the FTTF self assist folk were the first off the ship. Perhaps that sailing had no Diamonds or Platinums aboard?

 

My experience is that Diamond and Platinum self assists always precede off a ship before the FTTF group. Just last Saturday, I was doing a diamond self assist on the Glory and was the 1st guest off the ship. No FTTF's in front of me, that's for sure.

[salty dingo]

My personal take is - I want a cruise to be a laid-back, relaxed experience. Rushing to get ready and be first off the ship does not fit that description. Maybe for others, but not me.

 

I also don't book flights where I need to rush to get off the ship. It's nice to begin the cruise with a minimum of wait time at embarkation, but Carnival's assigned check-in times seem to address that issue pretty well. FTTF just gets you on earlier. Not worth it to me but I do see how it would appeal to some.

 

Anything that makes other folks pay more so I can pay less is OK in my book! ;)

[camijo]

FTTF will always be a personal choice. No right or wrong if you get it or not. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

[Greggy_D]

I'm using FTTF next week however I did book it many months ago. After the price increase, I simply do not find it worth the price.

 

Both times I had FTTF in the past, our luggage was delivered right before dinner even though it was properly FTTF tagged. The majority of the ship without FTTF received their luggage hours before us. Never did quite understand that.

 

Also, it appears they have streamlined embarkation to the point where FTTF really is no longer needed.

[Keys2Heaven]

Really not sure this time around.

 

Luggage was handled quite promptly. Had it within 15 minutes of getting to our cabin (self-retrieved from cart) :).

 

We were in a group of 4 that purchased it and were actually going to be on the ship quite early. However, my wife's brother and his wife were pulled over as they needed to check his CPAP machine AGAIN (3rd time by this point....why??????) We had to wait 10 - 15 minutes for them to get that straightened out. By that time, they were boarding by zones and the gangway was packed. So, we missed the advantage of FTTF in this situation.

 

It was nice to have FTTF for tender boarding to a couple of ports (Grand Cayman/Belize), but they don't offer priority tender for FTTF on the way back.....WHY?????

 

Was able to bypass a long line at GS to make change and get some aspirin....so o.k. there.

 

Priority debarkation.....meh? Was told to go to Golden dining room at 7:45 a.m. Headed down there about 7:35 a.m. and was met on other side of atrium bar by individual who said that they had already cleared out the dining room and to just proceed to the line.

 

Stood in a long line for about 45 minutes waiting for customs to clear out people already in terminal. Heard a lot of people complaining about how they were going to miss their early flights. Not sure FTTF did anything for us here.

 

Aside from quick luggage, tenders on the way to port and the one GS visit, we didn't see any benefit.

[riclop]

It's waste of $$$$$$$$$$$$.

[melsmom303]

FTTF is the best way to cruise and is totally worth the price .:cool::cool::cool:

[LuckyStar]

I ordinarily do not get FTTF but for my cruise in January, I have purchased it. We need to book an early flight so I want to make sure I can get off the boat early. It was a really inexpensive cruise so the price of FTTF still keeps the price reasonable.

[Thorncroft]

FTTF is more worth it than spending $25,000 to make Plat. Fake it till you make it.

[cmptrwiz]

We used FTTF last year on a B2B cruise and back the it was worth it. I would NOT pay the higher price that it is today! Just my opinion.

 

 

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[Shaded Lady]

I was outraged when Carnival increased the price of FTTF by 30%... and I declared that was it, no more for me, I was done with it.

 

My DH and daughter decided otherwise, and so I started on the hunt to find it for our cruise that is still 13 months out. I can't believe how excited I was today when someone on my roll call told us it was finally available, and I jumped in immediately and bought it for both cabins.

 

So I guess all my righteous indignation with Carnival was for nothing and reflected what several people have said here on CC- supply & demand is king and if something is worth it to you, it's worth it at any cost!

 

I'm apparently back on the PRO side of FTTF!

[cfr70]

I ordinarily do not get FTTF but for my cruise in January, I have purchased it. We need to book an early flight so I want to make sure I can get off the boat early. It was a really inexpensive cruise so the price of FTTF still keeps the price reasonable.

 

 

Which cruise in January did you purchase FTTF? I have a January sailing as well (Liberty) and have been waiting ages for it to be released and every day I check and still nothing. Hopefully getting yours means any day now for mine.

 

After having it last cruise, I won't sail without it!

[kona_wahine]

People say, what’s the rush? Here’s my take. We fly in the day before and have to check out before 11:00. We head to port and get on with FTTF, and can go directly to our room with all our carry on’s and drop them off, lock valuables in safe. Then we are free to roam the ship without having to carry stuff around. That can be a couple hours difference.

And our experience has been getting our luggage early and being able to unpack and then RELAX! So, it’s actually making it so we are NOT rushed. And some say they NEVER have to go to guest services. I usually don’t but had an issue on the last sea day of one cruise where I had to go back 3 times to get it straightened out. Walking by that huge line 3 times paid for FTTF that cruise.

 

So, even with the increase we decided to buy it.

[Havingfun2010]

I only carry on a backpack

I prepay tips and have credit card on account

I never rush getting off ship

I never rush getting on ship

I never use the desk - why would you?

 

FTTF is one of the greatest marketing gimmicks ever created. It started in amusement parks where wait times were in excess of an hour. So it's a huge benefit. So the urban legend goes a marketing guy for Carnival was at Disney World, and saw this and decided, WOW, I bet I can get people on Carnival to fork over money. Now Carnival with all the cutbacks in place, and not really wanting to spend any money, looked at this, and realized that this is a service they can give, charge a price, and pay no overhead to do so. So they tested it. It was successful. They raised the price. Success. Wait, wait, and than guess what? Raised the price again, and still, people are buying it. So now the Marketing guy gets a promotion and a giant pat on the back. Carnival gets extra money for basically doing nothing. The customer gets to their room a few minutes before everyone else.

 

So long story short, Please fork over that money if it makes you happy. It sure makes Carnival happy. So it's a win win for you and Carnival.

 

The rest of the world, will use their money to buy an actual product.