Miami port..do you have to wait outside before boarding time?

[Grandma7]

If you show up early will they let you inside the building or do you have to wait outside? I don't expect to be able to check in early, but don't want to have to wait out in hot sun or rain. ( may have to show up early due to personal reasons).

[LeeW]

As far as I know they currently still have three lines for each boarding time group.  You don't get into the terminal until your line starts getting processed.  When we were there this was AFTER the scheduled boarding time but a few folks have been lucky enough to get in early.  They will take your luggage early.  They check your setsail pass at the head of the line and don't let you through if you are trying to get in early - saw quite a few people trying to do this, making the line longer and slower.

[vegascruiser1]

When we checked in at Miami they were checking boarding times. I you did wait outside. There isn’t any place to wait inside. Once you got inside you went through security first. 

[Grandma7]

Thanks. Maybe will unload bags then sit in car in parking garage until time. Worried about kids  getting restless,needing to use bathroom,etc,but at the same time want to get there with time to spare in case of bad traffic or problems.

[PhillyFan33579]

12 minutes ago, Grandma7 said:

Thanks. Maybe will unload bags then sit in car in parking garage until time. Worried about kids  getting restless,needing to use bathroom,etc,but at the same time want to get there with time to spare in case of bad traffic or problems.

I have sailed several times out of Port Miami recently. For every cruise they enforced check-in times. As others have stated, you have to wait outside the terminal. I assume the waiting time outside is only going to increase as ship capacity increases and people continue to show up prior to their assigned check-in time. 

[waterbugohio]

Please explain boarding time to me?  This will be our first post Covid cruise 

 

How and when are we assigned a time?  What is it based on?  This will be our first diamond cruise (finally). So that no longer matters?  

[LeeW]

Last step of online checkin is picking a boarding time.  If you want an early one you need to check in as early as possible.  Midnight Eastern time 45 days prior to cruise date.  Have security photo, credit card info, emergency contact and passport info/photo ready.  You can scan the passport and yourself with the app or use images on your computer.

[Lane Hog]

The idea behind the boarding times is to try and allow some degree of social distancing by limiting the number of people going thru the check-in process at any given time.  It's one of the few COVID changes I think might stick around because it does help manage the crowd better.

[Biker19]

7 hours ago, Lane Hog said:

The idea behind the boarding times is to try and allow some degree of social distancing by limiting the number of people going thru the check-in process at any given time. 

That may have been the idea initially, but at the moment, the limiting factor is the check in process itself (which takes longer than pre COVID - though a few seconds have been shaved off now that bracelets are no longer used) and the number of check in personnel. There's really no social distancing in the terminal.

[saridien]

You don't fully have to check in to pick a time, you can just pick a time and do the rest later. 

[hannibal54]

If you have to wait outside, is there any place to sit and wait your turn? Standing for a long time isn't easy for me anymore.

[Homosassa]

Because no one else has clarified this, the time you pick is a scheduled arrival time for check in at the pier. 

 

It is not a boarding time.

 

For you scheduled arrival time for check in, you will wait outside until  the designated time period at which point you will be allowed to enter the terminal for security, health check and check in.

 

After check in, you wait in the terminal to board which may be immediately or there may be a wait.

[waterbugohio]

So I am all checked in for a May 2nd cruise.  Got the boarding time of 12:00 noon.  

 

I thought one time I read that you can keep trying for a better time.  Do Ijust do that in the app??  If i chance my time, does my husbands change automatically?? 

 

thanks  

 

Do we still look for a diamond line, or is that a thing of the past??

[karena1]

On 3/24/2022 at 10:35 AM, Grandma7 said:

If you show up early will they let you inside the building or do you have to wait outside? I don't expect to be able to check in early, but don't want to have to wait out in hot sun or rain. ( may have to show up early due to personal reasons).

Every time we get there, we get right in.  Wait up in the terminal lounge area.  Normally on Freedom we get there by 10:45 for a noon boarding time,  and go get checked in and are on the ship by 11:30.

 

[vegascruiser1]

4 hours ago, waterbugohio said:

So I am all checked in for a May 2nd cruise.  Got the boarding time of 12:00 noon.  

 

I thought one time I read that you can keep trying for a better time.  Do Ijust do that in the app??  If i chance my time, does my husbands change automatically?? 

 

thanks  

 

Do we still look for a diamond line, or is that a thing of the past??

My last four cruise there hasn’t been a Diamond or Diamond Plus line. The only separate lines were suites, pinnacles & key. 

[Grandma7]

18 hours ago, karena1 said:

Every time we get there, we get right in.  Wait up in the terminal lounge area.  Normally on Freedom we get there by 10:45 for a noon boarding time,  and go get checked in and are on the ship by 11:30.

 

Is this the Miami port? Has this been since reopening? That would be wonderful if there was a lounge to wait in!

[1ballerina]

On 3/25/2022 at 7:11 AM, Homosassa said:

Because no one else has clarified this, the time you pick is a scheduled arrival time for check in at the pier. 

 

It is not a boarding time.

 

For you scheduled arrival time for check in, you will wait outside until  the designated time period at which point you will be allowed to enter the terminal for security, health check and check in.

 

After check in, you wait in the terminal to board which may be immediately or there may be a wait.

 

This was my experience as well both in the port in Seattle and port in Los Angeles. We leave for Barcelona in the next two weeks and I'll let everybody know if the process was different in Europe. 

[brevardcruiser]

Sailed on oasis 2 weeks ago.  Arrived at 1230 for 2pm boarding time.  On ship at 1

[waterbugohio]

20 hours ago, brevardcruiser said:

Sailed on oasis 2 weeks ago.  Arrived at 1230 for 2pm boarding time.  On ship at 1

What port??  Miami??

[twins_to_alaska]

According to cruisemapper Oasis has been departing from Miami the last month.

[auntjoy036]

I took the Freedom from Miami this January. We arrived a little early having overestimated travel time. Staff let us in the building right away. Check in was blindingly fast. We were on board in no time. It helped that the ship wasn’t sailing at capacity. We were in a junior suite, maybe usually a shorter line, but there were no lines. I don’t expect the same speed sailing from Vancouver in June. Glad I got one low capacity cruise.

[brevardcruiser]

5 hours ago, waterbugohio said:

What port??  Miami??

Miami