Staying off ship overnight mid-cruise

[londongal796]

Hi all, I think I may have a bit of a unique question and wanted to query whether or not anyone has any experience with this.

 

We have previously stayed overnight off of the ship mid-cruise when we have overnighted in the same port (ie. 2 days in Maui, we stayed in a gorgeous beach resort) and we didn't have any trouble, apart from having our luggage searched as we exited and re-boarded the ship. 

 

However, we were overnighting in the same port, as opposed to moving ports. We will be travelling on a Transpacific cruise in April this year and we are in port in Papeete, Tahiti until midnight on one night, and then we will be in Moorea the next day from 8am-6pm. I have booked a gorgeous over-the-water bungalow for a once-in-a-lifetime experience in Tahiti, and originally planned on just leaving before midnight to rejoin the ship. However, I have since discovered that Moorea is only a 30 minute ferry ride away from Papeete and we could probably stay overnight, and just catch up with the ship the next day. There are several ferries to Moorea from Papeete each day (about 4-5 to choose from that get us in by 4pm) so we should be fine to make it back to the ship.

 

The only thing I'm not entirely sure about is whether or not this is permitted. I'd of course organise this with the ship in advance, and also remind them before we left whilst on board; however, I'd appreciate hearing from others about their experience or knowledge of this. Many thanks.

 

 

[Ourusualbeach]

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/partial-cruise-request

 

Please direct any requests and/or questions to the following e-mail address or fax number: 
Fax Number: (305) 373-6695 
E-mail: AirSeaGFO@RCCL.com

Edited January 16, 2019 by Ourusualbeach

[xpcdoojk]

3 hours ago, londongal796 said:

Hi all, I think I may have a bit of a unique question and wanted to query whether or not anyone has any experience with this.

 

We have previously stayed overnight off of the ship mid-cruise when we have overnighted in the same port (ie. 2 days in Maui, we stayed in a gorgeous beach resort) and we didn't have any trouble, apart from having our luggage searched as we exited and re-boarded the ship. 

 

However, we were overnighting in the same port, as opposed to moving ports. We will be travelling on a Transpacific cruise in April this year and we are in port in Papeete, Tahiti until midnight on one night, and then we will be in Moorea the next day from 8am-6pm. I have booked a gorgeous over-the-water bungalow for a once-in-a-lifetime experience in Tahiti, and originally planned on just leaving before midnight to rejoin the ship. However, I have since discovered that Moorea is only a 30 minute ferry ride away from Papeete and we could probably stay overnight, and just catch up with the ship the next day. There are several ferries to Moorea from Papeete each day (about 4-5 to choose from that get us in by 4pm) so we should be fine to make it back to the ship.

 

The only thing I'm not entirely sure about is whether or not this is permitted. I'd of course organise this with the ship in advance, and also remind them before we left whilst on board; however, I'd appreciate hearing from others about their experience or knowledge of this. Many thanks.

 

 

 

Please report back what you find out.  Might be interested in following the path you blaze.

 

jc

[sixesandeights]

This should be fine.  It is no different than if you missed the ship and paid to catch it in the next port.  Like you said you will want to let them know so they don't wait for you, but it should not be an issue.

 

6&8

[londongal796]

2 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/partial-cruise-request

 

Please direct any requests and/or questions to the following e-mail address or fax number: 
Fax Number: (305) 373-6695 
E-mail: AirSeaGFO@RCCL.com

I appreciate this link but this isn't the same thing at all -- we're not talking about cutting the cruise short, or joining mid-cruise. We're talking about extending our stay in one port and catching up in the next, since it's a 30 minute ferry ride away. 

 

I appreciate the other comments, I'm hoping someone else with experience might be able to chime in (if such experience exists!).

[Clarea]

9 minutes ago, londongal796 said:

I appreciate this link but this isn't the same thing at all -- we're not talking about cutting the cruise short, or joining mid-cruise. We're talking about extending our stay in one port and catching up in the next, since it's a 30 minute ferry ride away. 

 

I appreciate the other comments, I'm hoping someone else with experience might be able to chime in (if such experience exists!).

 

I would start with calling the cruise line.  One way or another, they need to be notified and approve of you not being onboard when they leave the port.

[Ourusualbeach]

11 minutes ago, londongal796 said:

I appreciate this link but this isn't the same thing at all -- we're not talking about cutting the cruise short, or joining mid-cruise. We're talking about extending our stay in one port and catching up in the next, since it's a 30 minute ferry ride away. 

 

I appreciate the other comments, I'm hoping someone else with experience might be able to chime in (if such experience exists!).

 

It’s still the same number that you need to call.  It needs prior approval and not comething that should be left until on-board.

[londongal796]

I appreciate the comments. I've emailed the address you provided, Ken, and we'll see what they say. I know I didn't need to tell anyone in advance when we stayed overnight in Hawaii and Fiji but I appreciate this is slightly different since it is a change of port, though we are not travelling internationally or anything. 

 

Fingers-crossed!

[SRF]

If you are not on the ship, when it is supposed to sail, and they don't know, all sorts of things happen.   One thing is, if you left your passports in the safe, they may be in the hands of the port agent. 😄

 

If you are not on board over night, when the ship is in port, they don't care.

[John&LaLa]

On 1/16/2019 at 7:44 AM, xpcdoojk said:

 

Please report back what you find out.  Might be interested in following the path you blaze.

 

jc

 

We were going to do that on the Explorer TP. Get off in Honolulu,  and catch the ship in Maui. 

 

FWIW, that is how you go see Taj Mahal, tons of folks did that on Mariner

Edited January 17, 2019 by John&LaLa

[londongal796]

On 1/17/2019 at 4:19 PM, John&LaLa said:

 

We were going to do that on the Explorer TP. Get off in Honolulu,  and catch the ship in Maui. 

 

FWIW, that is how you go see Taj Mahal, tons of folks did that on Mariner

Thanks for this, I appreciate your comments. I'll let you know what I hear back since Honolulu to Maui is a similar scenario to Papeete to Moorea. 

[papaflamingo]

I would think you'd be able to do this.  Only thought, and it's unlikely to happen, is that Moorea is a tender port.  It is possible that due to weather or something, the ship could skip the port.  Just something to consider.  

We got back from a South Pacific cruise in Dec.  Moorea was by far our favorite island.  It's simply spectacular. In fact, we decided that if we ever stayed in Tahiti, Moorea would be where we go.   If you decide to do this, check Moorea for an overnight and simply head straight there when the ship gets in if you can get as good a rate on a room. 

[londongal796]

27 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

I would think you'd be able to do this.  Only thought, and it's unlikely to happen, is that Moorea is a tender port.  It is possible that due to weather or something, the ship could skip the port.  Just something to consider.  

We got back from a South Pacific cruise in Dec.  Moorea was by far our favorite island.  It's simply spectacular. In fact, we decided that if we ever stayed in Tahiti, Moorea would be where we go.   If you decide to do this, check Moorea for an overnight and simply head straight there when the ship gets in if you can get as good a rate on a room. 

That's not a bad idea although I've already booked a fantastic rate at the hotel we're staying in, and Moorea isn't as good of a price for the same service. But we'll likely have some time to travel around the island before we need to head on board.

 

I absolutely will be monitoring the weather and if there is ANY possibility that ferries / tenders wouldn't be going out (too choppy etc) we would NOT stay overnight. I wouldn't want to risk missing catching up with the ship!

Still waiting for them to reply... been a few days now but hoping to hear back within a week or so.

[londongal796]

I appreciate everyone's comments and thoughts from before. I contacted AirSeaGFO@rccl.com over 2 weeks ago and I did receive the auto-reply confirming that my message had been received. However, I have not heard anything since then. Is anyone aware of timeframes for responses? I don't mind waiting, of course, but I would normally have expected some sort of a response by now. Thanks.

[Biker19]

2 hours ago, londongal796 said:

 I don't mind waiting, of course, but I would normally have expected some sort of a response by now. Thanks.

I think your expectations are a bit off - if you don't have a reply by about 2-3 weeks out, then call them.

[londongal796]

On 2/2/2019 at 12:50 PM, Biker19 said:

I think your expectations are a bit off - if you don't have a reply by about 2-3 weeks out, then call them.

Thanks, but it's surprising that someone might need to make expensive travel plans and need to wait 2-3 weeks before their cruise to get a response, even though the auto-reply says they answer it in the order in which it is received.

 

I will keep waiting to hear from them.

[SRF]

2 hours ago, londongal796 said:

Thanks, but it's surprising that someone might need to make expensive travel plans and need to wait 2-3 weeks before their cruise to get a response, even though the auto-reply says they answer it in the order in which it is received.

 

I will keep waiting to hear from them.

 

In the order that they are received can mean a while, as they get a LOT of emails.

[frank808]

Please give us an update as I have something similar going on this July.  Thanks 

[cindivan]

I would be interested to hear their response as well.   It would make sense they would allow it as long as they have advance notice. But we tried to do something similar on a New Zealand cruise years ago but we gave up after about a month of trying to get a straight answer after multiple emails and calls. Seems no one had the authority to approve it. We eventually canceled our cruise and did a land vacation.  

Edited February 5, 2019 by cindivan

[Merion_Mom]

On ‎1‎/‎16‎/‎2019 at 4:39 AM, londongal796 said:

Hi all, I think I may have a bit of a unique question and wanted to query whether or not anyone has any experience with this.

 

We have previously stayed overnight off of the ship mid-cruise when we have overnighted in the same port (ie. 2 days in Maui, we stayed in a gorgeous beach resort) and we didn't have any trouble, apart from having our luggage searched as we exited and re-boarded the ship. 

 

However, we were overnighting in the same port, as opposed to moving ports. We will be travelling on a Transpacific cruise in April this year and we are in port in Papeete, Tahiti until midnight on one night, and then we will be in Moorea the next day from 8am-6pm. I have booked a gorgeous over-the-water bungalow for a once-in-a-lifetime experience in Tahiti, and originally planned on just leaving before midnight to rejoin the ship. However, I have since discovered that Moorea is only a 30 minute ferry ride away from Papeete and we could probably stay overnight, and just catch up with the ship the next day. There are several ferries to Moorea from Papeete each day (about 4-5 to choose from that get us in by 4pm) so we should be fine to make it back to the ship.

 

The only thing I'm not entirely sure about is whether or not this is permitted. I'd of course organise this with the ship in advance, and also remind them before we left whilst on board; however, I'd appreciate hearing from others about their experience or knowledge of this. Many thanks.

 

 

 

londongal, I just saw your post, or I would have responded sooner.

 

As soon as I read the topic title, your situation is exactly what came to my mind.

 

In 2017 on my Radiance transpacific cruise, quite a few people did this.  We were invited to do it.  (we didn't).  But it certainly is permitted and apparently rather common.

 

🙂 

[londongal796]

4 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

londongal, I just saw your post, or I would have responded sooner.

 

As soon as I read the topic title, your situation is exactly what came to my mind.

 

In 2017 on my Radiance transpacific cruise, quite a few people did this.  We were invited to do it.  (we didn't).  But it certainly is permitted and apparently rather common.

 

🙂 

I'm much obliged to you for sharing this -- it makes me feel like this is likely to come to fruition. We're planning on staying at the hotel no matter what, whether or not we go back very late to catch the ship at midnight or if we stay overnight, so I don't need to worry about last minute changes to the booking, but it would be fantastic to do this. 

 

I'll let everyone know if / when I hear back from the partial-cruise team.

[londongal796]

Received a response today:

Please be advised that we have received your request to embark/debark at an alternate port. After reviewing said request we are happy to advise that currently there are no regulatory restrictions that will prohibit an approval.

There is a $65 USD per booking non-refundable handling fee to finalize your approval and arrangement. Please contact us at your earliest convenience and provide us with a valid credit card payment so we can approve your request and send you the authorization letters.

 

Does this sound right? Happy to pay the $65 but just worried they think we are disembarking permanently from the cruise and not just for one night!

[Ourusualbeach]

3 hours ago, londongal796 said:

Received a response today:

Please be advised that we have received your request to embark/debark at an alternate port. After reviewing said request we are happy to advise that currently there are no regulatory restrictions that will prohibit an approval.

There is a $65 USD per booking non-refundable handling fee to finalize your approval and arrangement. Please contact us at your earliest convenience and provide us with a valid credit card payment so we can approve your request and send you the authorization letters.

 

Does this sound right? Happy to pay the $65 but just worried they think we are disembarking permanently from the cruise and not just for one night!

No this does not sound right.

 

Unless they have changed their policy it does sound like they think you are permanently disembarking the ship.

Edited February 21, 2019 by Ourusualbeach

[gatour]

I also agree.  I think they are thinking that you are  permanently disembarking the ship.

[SRF]

They are disembarking and not returning to the ship until another port.

 

So the fee is typically to arrange immigration and customs at the port to allow them to stay when the ship leaves.

 

If you stay off the ship, but the ship stays in port, this is a different situation, as you will still be aboard when the ship sails.

 

I WOULD make sure they understand you will be rejoining the ship at the next port.

 

Although, as has been mentioned, my concern would be that the next port gets skipped for some reason.