Boarding Time

[Raceyfool]

I read somewhere our boarding time is visible in the online checkin, however i can not find it.  Can someone please direct me?  Thank you

[Thrak]

Normally it's whenever you get there. Try for around 11:00 AM if possible. There will be a "boarding time" listed on your docs but it's (normally) meaningless. You should be able to find their "boarding schedule" toward the bottom of your Travel Summary.

Edited December 24, 2019 by Thrak

[skynight]

Basically in the U.S. and most other ports Princess begins boarding with priority boarders around 11:30am, followed quickly by others grouped by order of arrival at the pier. On medallion class ships boarding may even begin earlier. Progressive boarding information is at the bottom of the travel summary in your cruise personlizer. However, this is just a suggestion and a dream by some Princess staffers. Have not been on normal Princess cruise where the peak of the boarding curve was around 12:30pm with probably 3/4 of the passengers on board by then. 

[satxdiver]

Usually the big rush to board is the first few hours so that by 2:00 or so it dwindles down to being able to almost walk right onto the ship.  Just keep in mind they have to stop all boarding's 90 minutes prior to departure (sail away) by federal law.  Sometimes they have pax who arrived at the airport late (EZair + transportation to ship) and they are allowed to board.  Good reason to arrive at least a day early.  

[seattlestan]

My cruise personalizer says boarding time is 12:30 and my boarding pass says check-in time is 12:30.  Is it going to show a  different time for different people?

 

[casofilia]

Remember that "special" people are not given a boarding time as they have priority, you may be one of them.   Others are given a time depending on the deck they are on.   If you are not given a specific time arrive when you are ready to think about boarding; then wait!!!!

[MissP22]

On 12/25/2019 at 7:19 AM, satxdiver said:

Usually the big rush to board is the first few hours so that by 2:00 or so it dwindles down to being able to almost walk right onto the ship.  Just keep in mind they have to stop all boarding's 90 minutes prior to departure (sail away) by federal law.  Sometimes they have pax who arrived at the airport late (EZair + transportation to ship) and they are allowed to board.  Good reason to arrive at least a day early.  

I'm not sure they enforce that law any longer.

A few years ago I arrived 2 minutes before sailing & boarded without any problem. 

[satxdiver]

22 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

I'm not sure they enforce that law any longer.

A few years ago I arrived 2 minutes before sailing & boarded without any problem. 

 

Princess will publish that boarding stops at 4 PM for example but the ship does not leave the pier until an hour or more later.  During that time they hold the safety drill required by maritime regulations.  The real issue is when they physically drop their lines to depart.  I have seen pax who had delayed flights booked with EZair and ship transfers board just before the ship drops its lines.  Federal regulations require ships departing US ports submit the manifest 90 minutes before departure so I have been told. 

[pablo222]

On 12/25/2019 at 7:19 AM, satxdiver said:

Usually the big rush to board is the first few hours so that by 2:00 or so it dwindles down to being able to almost walk right onto the ship.  Just keep in mind they have to stop all boarding's 90 minutes prior to departure (sail away) by federal law.

 

That's not what the law says. at all.

 

I have seen the ship held for a few people stuck on a late flight.

 

The people show up, board, and the ship sails immediately.

 

From time-to-time, the captain will also make an announcement around sail-away time that

they are waiting for a couple people...

 

 

[MissP22]

18 minutes ago, satxdiver said:

Federal regulations require ships departing US ports submit the manifest 90 minutes before departure so I have been told. 

I've heard the same thing but all I can go by is what happened to us. 

We didn't have our passports or birth certificates for a Caribbean trip.

I waited in the terminal while my husband had to drive back home to get them.

 

Possibly they knew we were going to board since I was conversing with the people at the front desk for almost 5 hours until he arrived back? 

We were the last 2 people to board the ship in front of a photographer. 

They actually closed the door behind us as we entered the ship. 

[pablo222]

9 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

I've heard the same thing but all I can go by is what happened to us. 

 

 

The deal with submitting the manifest is covered in the cruise answer book (pdf) page 3.

 

As long as you have provided the information in the cruise personalizer in advance,

you can board right up to sailing.  (not that anyone would recommend doing it)

 

https://www.princess.com/html/global/brochures/pc/cruise-answer-book-v4.pdf

 

Apparently federal law has changed in the past hour or so, based on the editing

done by posters here...

 

 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has mandated that Cruise Lines must

transmit their departure manifests no later than 60 minutes prior to departure

from the U.S. To comply, passenger information must be processed at least 90

minutes prior to the scheduled sailing time. Therefore, passengers must

provide complete and accurate immigration details in advance of the embarkation

date. This can be done online via the Cruise Personalizer at http://www.princess.com

up to six days prior to sailing. The eTicket Boarding Pass will serve as the

receipt at check-in. Missing details may be submitted up to six days prior by

calling 1-800-PRINCESS. International callers may dial +1-661-753-0000. Please

ensure that your travel plans permit adequate time for arrival to the ship.

Passengers who have not provided the required details in advance **MUST** be

checked-in no later than 90 minutes prior to the scheduled departure time or

they will be denied boarding. Thank you for your attention to this important

information. We look forward to welcoming you aboard a Princess cruise!

[satxdiver]

It is not a law but rather a regulation by the Department of Homeland Security.  I found this in https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/documents/vessel_guide_3.pdf:

"For Departures From The United States: An APIS manifest must be submitted no later than 60 minutes before the vessel departs from the United States."

 

I found this on the Carnival website: 

"U.S Department of Homeland Security (DHS) requires Carnival Cruise Line to submit a final departure manifest with specific guest information at least 60 minutes prior to departure."

 

It has been my experience that when the captain waits for pax to arrive, the pax bought their airline tickets and transportation from the airport from the cruise line.  

[pablo222]

5 hours ago, satxdiver said:

It has been my experience that when the captain waits for pax to arrive, the pax bought their airline tickets and transportation from the airport from the cruise line.  

First you told us it was a law, and that no one could board later than 90 minutes before sailing...

 

Folks have posted persoanal examples to the contrary.

 

If one reads the the princess Answer Book, it states that completing the online cruise personalizer is sufficient to meet the manifest requirement.

 

When a passenger screams up to the ship in a cab at the last minute, while the ship is being held for them ...

 

I do wonder how you would have 'experience' as to how the passenger bought their ticket and transportation...

Do you rush down to the gangway, and survey them?

And, what's your sample size?

 

In the personal example posted here, the passenger was not flying at all.  They had driven to the port.

The husband ... twice.

 

If is certainly possible for any passenger to call princess and advise them about enroute travel delays, with the hope

that the ship could be held.  Or, have their travel agent do so.  Or, have registered their flights in the personalizer.

 

[satxdiver]

10 minutes ago, pablo222 said:

First you told us it was a law, and that no one could board later than 90 minutes before sailing...

 

It is not a law but rather a DHS regulation.

[pablo222]

6 hours ago, satxdiver said:

 

It is not a law but rather a DHS regulation.

This is an exact quote of what you wrote previously:

 

"Usually the big rush to board is the first few hours so that by 2:00 or so it dwindles down to being able to almost walk right onto the ship.  Just keep in mind they have to stop all boarding's 90 minutes prior to departure (sail away) by federal law."

 

Clearly gentle readers here should rely on the Princess Answer Book for correct information and not rely on what is posted here,

regardless of how/where they bought their tickets.

 

 

[vampiress]

ok no need to be pedantic, it is common parlance to refer to laws and regulations as the same thing.

 

its just like flying, homeland security needs the manifest before the ship leaves, BUT they may make some exception for known delayed passengers where they have the information for them based on the discretion of the captain and dhs. 

 

practically, as a fellow cruiser, i recommend boarding between 11am and 2pm for a 4-5pm sail away.  this is the time frame i always aim for and i have always had a satisfactory boarding experience.  i normally aim to get to port around 11 because i want to be onboard to have lunch in the dining room.

[MissP22]

3 hours ago, vampiress said:

practically, as a fellow cruiser, i recommend boarding between 11am and 2pm for a 4-5pm sail away.  this is the time frame i always aim for and i have always had a satisfactory boarding experience.  i normally aim to get to port around 11 because i want to be onboard to have lunch in the dining room.

Some people think we're nuts but we like to arrive even earlier since we normally drive to the Ft Lauderdale port. Although we have a choice of getting there later we'd rather sit in the terminal for a while rather then having to drive in heavier traffic, looking for a tighter parking space & using the packed shuttle to get to the ship.

What else are you going to do the day you leave? Might as well arrive early & have the peace of mind that you're at the port with time to spare. 

[vampiress]

even though i live near port, i arrive the night before and stay in a hotel near port.  then i wake up have a nice breakfast and then take a lyft/uber/taxi to the port.  i consider this day before ths start of my trip and decompression day, so when i board the ship i am already relaxed.  i do not drive to the portt the day of because los angeles has ridiculous traffic.

 

 

when i have cruised out of miami, i have family in palm beach, so we generally return our rental car to the airport and use one of the shuttle van services to pick us up form airport and take us to port.  again, i aim to be there around 11. 

 

i've always been on board before noon and never sit in the terminal too long. obviously i've been lucky and can not guarantee you will be on board by noon.

Edited December 28, 2019 by vampiress