But when do we really get off the ship???

[davideichler]

I have several ports of call where we land at 8. I am looking at expeditions starting at 9. I know the time of the drive from dock to location isn't an issue but that is based on really getting off at 8:00. Can we get in line early? Thanks.

[donaldsc]

If the ports are dock ports and not tender ports, you should not have a problem.  That is assuming that you actually can walk off at 8.  However, the people doing the tour should be aware of any problems as often ships do not dock exactly when they say that they will.

 

DON

[navybankerteacher]

Not only might the ship be delayed in anchoring or coming alongside the pier;  there might be a delay in clearance -  due to health or other concerns.

 

No one can give you complete assurance about time getting off the ship.

[Elaine5715]

1 hour ago, davideichler said:

I have several ports of call where we land at 8. I am looking at expeditions starting at 9. I know the time of the drive from dock to location isn't an issue but that is based on really getting off at 8:00. Can we get in line early? Thanks.

There will be announcements where you can wait.  You will not be allowed to be close to the exit, usually held a couple decks about.

[paul929207]

Once the ship is cleared by local authorities, it will take about 15 minutes for the initial rush to get off.

[cb at sea]

If you're docked, you simply walk off when the doors open.  If your ship is late for some reason, your private excursion will know that....

Not EVERYONE is in a rush to be 1st off...so don't worry too much.

 

If your excursion is thru the ship, then time matters not at all....they will tell you when and where to meet and they take care of the "timing" for you.

[SRF]

Bottom line, you will get off the ship when you get off the ship.

 

The tour operators understand this and expect it.   And probably have a better idea of when you will get off than you do.

 

Just make sure they know you are on a cruise ship, and which one.

[Krazy Kruizers]

If it is a tender port, your daily program will tell you where to meet and pick up tender tickets.  You have to stay in that area until your number is called.  This can take a while to get tender people off the ship as the ship will take their tours off first.

[zqvol]

20 hours ago, davideichler said:

I have several ports of call where we land at 8. I am looking at expeditions starting at 9. I know the time of the drive from dock to location isn't an issue but that is based on really getting off at 8:00. Can we get in line early? Thanks.

 

At a docked port passengers should be allowed off beginning at approximately the published docking time. Usually this means if you dock at 8, people are allowed off the ship by no later than 8:05.

[getting older slowly]

Have had a few ports where everybody wanted off at the same time......

 

Generally ship tours first... then others.... a couple of times an hour be getting off...at port

 

Know a days never in a rush....

 

Cheers Don

[Hlitner]

On ‎6‎/‎16‎/‎2019 at 5:09 PM, zqvol said:

 

At a docked port passengers should be allowed off beginning at approximately the published docking time. Usually this means if you dock at 8, people are allowed off the ship by no later than 8:05.

Baloney!  It varies depending on the port/country, but our experience (based on more than 40 years of extensive cruising) is that it averages out to about 20 minutes after docking.  First, there is the time it can take just to get a gang plank into place (which varies by port).  And then, in many ports the ship will first need to be "cleared" by the authorities which can take anywhere from 5 minutes to over 30 minutes.  And finally there can be a large back-up at the exit area as hundreds (or more) try to be among the first off a ship and must slow down to have their cruise cards scanned.  For example, I will use our most recent cruise (3 weeks ago) on the Celebrity Summit to Bermuda and then back to New England.  In Bermuda we were able to exit the ship about 15 minutes after docking.  But when we returned to a US Port (in this case it was Boston) there was more then a 1 hour delay getting ashore because the US CBP folks came aboard and did a face-to-face with every passenger and crew member.  This meant that 2200 passengers had to go through an onboard immigration inspection.  While rare, this does happen in some US Ports (when returning from out of the country) and also at some UK ports.  In Russia the situation is even worse as every passenger (and crew member) must clear a Russian Passport/Visa check each and every time they exit the ship.

 

We do think that arranging for a private tour one after the scheduled docking is a very reasonable practice.  If there are unusual delays due to late docking (or other issues) the tour providers will quickly become aware of the delays and adjust :).  Most tour providers do this stuff every day and are well aware that passengers can be delayed getting off any ship.

 

Tender ports are an entirely different kind of issue and it can take anywhere from 15 minutes to several hours for folks (especially those who are not on a ship excursion and who do not have some kind of priority tender privilege ) to get ashore.

 

Hank

[CruiseDigits]

On 6/19/2019 at 10:44 PM, getting older slowly said:

Generally ship tours first... then others....

 

^ ^ ^ ^ This is our experience too, especially for tender ports ^ ^ ^ ^  And I also echo the comments about using non ship tours, they know what to expect.

[navybankerteacher]

On 6/16/2019 at 5:09 PM, zqvol said:

 

At a docked port passengers should be allowed off beginning at approximately the published docking time. Usually this means if you dock at 8, people are allowed off the ship by no later than 8:05.

It depends upon  what you mean by “docked”.  If you just mean when the ship is alongside the pier with all mooring lines in place, you still could easily wait up to an hour to get off.

 

If you mean the above, but adding that the gangway has been put in place and ships personnel have set up their tent or whatever on the pier,  and all port clearance procedures have been completed and any priority debarked (on special tours or whatever) have gotten off, and word has been passed that general debarking can commence and there is no long line of people ahead of you —- then, yes - you can get off in five minutes.

[broberts]

I would not book a non-ship tour so close to the published arrival time, especially if it is the first port on the itinerary. (First port always seems to have many more people trying to get off.) Check with the tour operator to see how flexible they are. If you are part of a larger group, they may not be able to wait for you. On the other hand, if you and a few ship mates are the entire party, they probably will accommodate late arrivals.

 

[Sancho_proudfoot]

On 6/21/2019 at 6:59 PM, broberts said:

I would not book a non-ship tour so close to the published arrival time, especially if it is the first port on the itinerary. (First port always seems to have many more people trying to get off.) Check with the tour operator to see how flexible they are. If you are part of a larger group, they may not be able to wait for you. On the other hand, if you and a few ship mates are the entire party, they probably will accommodate late arrivals.

 

 

 

Hmmmm...not sure on these comments. We booked a non-ship tour, from Warnemunde in Germany to go to Berlin. As it was a 3.5 hour transfer, the booking said "Meet on the Quayside NO LATER than 07.30. If you are not there at that time we cannot wait for you."

 

Ship docked at 7.20. By the time it was cleared and gangways on, and we could scurry off  it was 7.45. 

 

Did the tour(s) wait?

 

Of course they did  AND got us back to port before "all aboard".

Edited June 24, 2019 by Sancho_proudfoot

[Crew News]

The time listed on a cruise itinerary for arrival is the time that passengers can leave the ship.  In nearly every case, actual arrival time is 30-60 minutes before the time listed on your itinerary to allow for tying up to the pier, clearing local officials, and getting the ship ready to process passengers leaving the ship.

 

Private tours will wait for contracted passengers.  If they got the reputation for leaving passnegers behind, they would lose a lot of future business.

 

I have seen passengers packed together so tightly near the gangway that one could not pick up their ship card if it was dropped on the floor.  There is no need to suffer in the initial surge to get off the ship since the ten-minute delay will make no difference to prospective tour operators.

[sanger727]

The latest I’ve had a ship start unloading after arrival was 45 minutes. But then there was a healthy line and it did take us awhile to get off. Most often in my experience the ship starts unloading very close to the scheduled arrival time. I would be comfortable booking a 9 o clock tour with a 8 o’clock arrival if it either met at the dock or allowed for a non-penalty cancellation if you missed it due to the ship arriving late. You mentioned the drive time not being an issue; how long is the drive? I would be concerned if I had to be off the ship, and get in line for a taxi, and drive more than 5-10 minutes away to be somewhere by 9.