Disembarking

[Eli_6]

DH and I sailed alone on the Vista in October 2018 and did self assist (carry off out own luggage) disembarkation and walked off with no problem and no wait.

 

Previously we checked our luggage on a Carnival ship out of Florida and that was a nightmare.  Literally, we almost missed our flight because of it.

 

This time there will be several of us including my Mom in a wheelchair and my kids... although, my kids are old enough to handle their own bags. However, I don't know if self assist is possible as someone would have to push her. 

 

Under this circumstance, what is the best way to get off the ship?  We live in Houston so no need to catch a flight.  I Iould like to eat breakfast if possible as well.  What time do you have to leave your room by?

 

Is it better to wait later to disembark or do the lines just get worse the later you wait? Is there any special help you can get for wheelchair disembarking?  

[coevan]

We never book a flight in the morning, too much stress. We would also never carry our own bags. We are usually the last 100 getting off the ship around 10. What's great is there are hardly any luggage left, so ours is easy to find.

[Lottacruises]

You're asking for a lot here it seems.

[Eli_6]

4 minutes ago, Lottacruises said:

You're asking for a lot here it seems.

I guess I am mainly asking what is the best way to disembark with 8 people in my party when 2 are kids and one is in a wheelchair.  Clearly, I can't do express/self carry.

 

Sorry for my stream of consciousness writing.

[Hoops_Baller]

You are better off waiting to be one of the last off.  Check your luggage the night before.  Go have breakfast in the morning and just chill in the dining room or on the Lido until around 9:30 and then head out.  As the previous poster said there won't be much luggage left by that time.  You have no flight to catch so there is no rush.

[Aplmac]

Hurry Up and Wait -the usual thing.

 

Chill out and relax until you're among the last to disembark.

 

Get staff/crew to help with the wheelchair!!

You should have already made mention of the wheelchair thing

when booking -if not, do so now - 'Special Needs'

[Sauer-kraut]

We always wait until they are making last call.  Its usually around 9:30 am.  We eat in the buffet and then just sit and wait and wait until we get kicked off.  So much easier finding luggage and the lines through customs are almost empty.  So easy and restful.

[Nic6318]

4 hours ago, Eli_6 said:

I guess I am mainly asking what is the best way to disembark with 8 people in my party when 2 are kids and one is in a wheelchair.  Clearly, I can't do express/self carry.

 

Sorry for my stream of consciousness writing.

 

Hi Eli

 

The fact that your mother is in a wheelchair does not disqualify you from doing the self assist debarkation. There is an elevator that you would be able to use once you are off the ship and in the terminal. The question is, can you manage the luggage? Figure out how to do that and your problem is solved.

 

When I was travelling with my wife I could push her in her chair and pull a suitcase. In fact I rigged strapping to the chair to pull the bag so that I could have both hands on the chair (this was great in airports). She was able to have our carry on in her lap. Maybe you can or can't do the same, but you have 8 people, share the load (or don't overpack) and you can walk off like everyone else.

 

hope this helps

have a great cruise

[coevan]

3 minutes ago, Nic6318 said:

The fact that your mother is in a wheelchair does not disqualify you from doing the self assist debarkation.

 

 

This is true, but why? Put your luggage outside your door, leisurely disembark, get a porter and have him take your luggage to car or taxi. No reason to be lugging around luggage and pushing a wheel chair

[Tapi]

With a large group, some with mobility issues, and no need to hurry to get off the ship, I wouldn’t do self assist. It seems like more and more people are doing self assist these days, and in my experience the worst lines are early on when mobs of people are all trying to get off the ship as soon as possible. There may be some assistance for mobility impaired passengers, but you’re still expected to handle all of your luggage without assistance.

 

The last time we sailed from Port Canaveral, my parents had to get off the ship quickly because they had a flight to catch but we didn’t, so I escorted them for self assist to help them and say goodbye. The line was insanely long, snaking through the atrium and down a long hallway. It was chaotic. We then went back 2 hours later for our regular debarkation and the atrium was dead. We walked right off the ship with no wait. This scenario has repeated itself on our last few cruises out of US ports, including Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Mobile.
 

We did sail from Civitavecchia (Rome) last year and did self assist since we had an early flight back to the US. For that one, there were maybe 20 people lined up for self assist, so it was super fast to disembark that way. But once again, that hasn’t been our recent experience on all other cruises we’ve taken from US ports. 

Edited December 11, 2019 by Tapi

[groundloop]

I'll chime in and agree with everyone else who suggested simply waiting until the crowds have died down.  We've done that before and it was much less stressful - have a leisurely breakfast, find a table near the pool to sit and play cards until 'last call', and walk right off with no waiting for luggage or customs. 

[LuckyStar]

23 hours ago, Hoops_Baller said:

You are better off waiting to be one of the last off.  Check your luggage the night before.  Go have breakfast in the morning and just chill in the dining room or on the Lido until around 9:30 and then head out.  As the previous poster said there won't be much luggage left by that time.  You have no flight to catch so there is no rush.

I agree with this.  Our experience in Galveston is that it's crazy at debarkation.  Wait until the last to avoid the crowds.