Newbie question about boarding time

[screenname2004]

I did an online check-in for our upcoming cruise and selected arrival time of 9 - 9:30 AM. Somewhere in the edocs that I downloaded said boarding time is 12 noon. I get it that we won't be on the ship around 9:30 but is there a realistic time we will be on the ship as a non-suite first time cruisers on NCL ship?

[Mike C]

It depends on when the ship begins disembarking passengers.  Once everyone is off, they begin boarding Haven passengers first, then Platinum, then Casino guests.  Once you are through security, you’ll be given a boarding group number.  As a first time NCL cruiser, it probably won’t be too low of a number.  We are Platinum and  Last week from NY, we boarded at 10:30.

[vince_g]

Don't know if covid is impacting boarding times, but normally it is somewhere around 11:15-11:30 in my experience, and I have cruised out of NY a ton.

[julig22]

On the ship maybe 11:30. But don't expect to be able to go to your cabin until 1pm or so.

[Ottawa_Cruiser]

If you arrive at 9:30, you should be on the ship by 11:30. 

[RocketMan275]

We stood in line at NOLA for over an hour.  There were three checkpoint with only one/two people at each point.  Each checkpoint wanted to see  our boarding pass, vaccination records, identification, and covid test results.  We did arrive at our appointed time.  This was the worst boarding we've ever experienced.  

[wolft927]

22 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

We stood in line at NOLA for over an hour.  There were three checkpoint with only one/two people at each point.  Each checkpoint wanted to see  our boarding pass, vaccination records, identification, and covid test results.  We did arrive at our appointed time.  This was the worst boarding we've ever experienced.  

I must have been on your sailing lol, We where on the Breakaway for the March 6th sailing. Disembarkation took longer that morning, but we where in the Haven and where on board by 11:15am. 

[Raleigh Traveler]

Boarding tip...as mentioned, you get to board a while before you can access your cabin. Most people drag around their carry on luggage till then. Every cruise we have been on had a bar/lounge area set aside to check your carry on. It was attended, roped off and bags were ticketed. Drop it off and go enjoy your first meal. Also, staff will point you to the buffet but one of the two main dining rooms has been open for that first lunch.

[RocketMan275]

11 minutes ago, wolft927 said:

I must have been on your sailing lol, We where on the Breakaway for the March 6th sailing. Disembarkation took longer that morning, but we where in the Haven and where on board by 11:15am. 

That's the one.  We were also in the Haven.  Remember the 'Whoo, Whoo' waitress in the lounge,  the one who was always saying 'Whoo, Whoo'?  We had no issues disembarking.  The concierge took us downstairs.  

[wolft927]

Yes i do, I have cruised with her twice now, she is a riot

[nolatravelgirl]

On 3/23/2022 at 10:59 AM, RocketMan275 said:

We stood in line at NOLA for over an hour.  There were three checkpoint with only one/two people at each point.  Each checkpoint wanted to see  our boarding pass, vaccination records, identification, and covid test results.  We did arrive at our appointed time.  This was the worst boarding we've ever experienced.  

We were on the March 13th Breakaway cruise and the check in procedure was a hot mess. There was a huge line just to get to the security check point. After that you had to stand in this huge snaking line. By the time you actually reached the NCL line they handed us a laminated boarding care but there was no need for it since we just walked up to a check in agent and walked right onto the ship. The back log was with the port staff.

 

Disembarking was miserable as well. We had driven to port so weren't in a hurry and thought we were avoiding the rush by picking a late group. The line snaked all the way (and I mean ALL the way) around Deck 7. There were only two crew scanning faces/IDs to disembark. NCL should have had way more people working. When we finally got off there was a backlog of people in the holding pen when we finally got off at 10:15. 

[mearsfansinboise]

COVID is very much impacting check-in times. You have to wait in this long long long line going through a tent (wearing a mask) to get to someone to show your vaccine card and your negative test from the last 48 hours. Then you pass security, then you go to the “real” check-in and show them (again) your 2 COVID things along with passport and check-in paperwork. You may think you’re getting there early, but I don’t think there is too early this way…

[FlGoodShips]

On 3/22/2022 at 5:50 PM, screenname2004 said:

I did an online check-in for our upcoming cruise and selected arrival time of 9 - 9:30 AM. Somewhere in the edocs that I downloaded said boarding time is 12 noon. I get it that we won't be on the ship around 9:30 but is there a realistic time we will be on the ship as a non-suite first time cruisers on NCL ship?

What ship are you on & what port are you sailing from??

[screenname2004]

1 minute ago, FlGoodShips said:

What ship are you on & what port are you sailing from??

Bliss out of Port of Los Angeles

 

[FlGoodShips]

1 hour ago, screenname2004 said:

Bliss out of Port of Los Angeles

 

Sorry.  I cannot help. Never sailed out of LA.

[mearsfansinboise]

 

3 hours ago, screenname2004 said:

Bliss out of Port of Los Angeles

 

My post above was sailing out of LA on the Bliss (on it right the second).  @screenname2004

[BirdTravels]

On 3/22/2022 at 5:50 PM, screenname2004 said:

I did an online check-in for our upcoming cruise and selected arrival time of 9 - 9:30 AM. Somewhere in the edocs that I downloaded said boarding time is 12 noon. I get it that we won't be on the ship around 9:30 but is there a realistic time we will be on the ship as a non-suite first time cruisers on NCL ship?

Haven boarding usually starts around 11:00. Priority boarding (top tier members) around 11:15 and general boarding by 11:30. Showing up to the port does not necessarily mean that you will be sitting and waiting from 9:00. You need to get through security checks, health checks, and finally get through the check-in process. At most port terminals, these don't necessarily open at 9:00 (they are staffed by port employees and employees of the local agent... not NCL). 

[cruzingthebriny]

On 3/22/2022 at 2:50 PM, screenname2004 said:

I did an online check-in for our upcoming cruise and selected arrival time of 9 - 9:30 AM. Somewhere in the edocs that I downloaded said boarding time is 12 noon. I get it that we won't be on the ship around 9:30 but is there a realistic time we will be on the ship as a non-suite first time cruisers on NCL ship?

I believe your check in time is actually 12 noon.  When I did my check in, I had selected 9-9:30 but the time I had gotten myself and my friend check in, our time was now 11 to 11:30am and that is the time that is printed on my eDocs.

[hallux]

On 3/23/2022 at 12:30 PM, Raleigh Traveler said:

Most people drag around their carry on luggage till then.

I don't carry-on anything I can't easily wrangle.  For my Oct. 2019 cruise I bought a new backpack that fits my camera, tablet and a few other things I could ever possibly need before I can get to my main bag.  Bonus is that it EASILY fits under the seat in front of me on planes.  If I can't fit it in that backpack, it goes in my main bag that gets checked with the porters.

[screenname2004]

Thank you for everyone's replies. For other people that may want to know, our check in process took hour and 50 minutes. We dropped our luggage at the pier at 10:10 and was having lunch at Garden Cafe by noon. The line went very slow. Took about a hour to go through the line for vaccination/COVID test report check. Another 45 minutes for the real checkin. By the time we got our cabin cards, we can board without dealy. I assumed they prioritize boarding only if you done check in earlier in the morning. I guess if we get there by 9:30 we would have to sit for a while before we can get on to the ship but sitting is better than going through the slow line standing for almost 2 hours. From what we saw from garden cafe, the line was even longer after 12 pm.