Overnight ports, can we stay on shore?

[OC PAT]

A while back I was told by someone on the boards that HAL will not allow passengers to stay off the ship on two-day ports overnight.  Maybe Covid related?  We are doing the South Pacific this fall, and I so want to stay in an over water bungalow.  Can anyone tell me if I dreamed this conversation or if it is accurate?  Where did I hear this?  Thanks for any info.

[OlsSalt]

56 minutes ago, OC PAT said:

A while back I was told by someone on the boards that HAL will not allow passengers to stay off the ship on two-day ports overnight.  Maybe Covid related?  We are doing the South Pacific this fall, and I so want to stay in an over water bungalow.  Can anyone tell me if I dreamed this conversation or if it is accurate?  Where did I hear this?  Thanks for any info.

 

That is what we did on our South Pacific cruise - we wanted to spend a night in an over-water bungalow on Moorea - except ours was a departure in Papeete and a day later pick up in Moorea. 

 

HAL was also offering this overnight option from Papaeete as an excursion to I believe the Hilton resort on Moorea.  Which resort were you looking at? 

 

There have been no problems not coming back to the ship for an overnight, when it is a two night overnight in the same port. Not being checked back in when the ship leaves one port is the issue, where you need upfront permission.

[CruiserBruce]

You can stay ashore. Keep in mind that the ship may leave suddenly due to emergency situations, and you will be on your own.

[bennybear]

We did an overnight in Meteora , 20219, when our ship was in Athens overnight.  We told them, but they didn’t seem too concerned   Not sure if things have changed?

[OlsSalt]

Watching the Amsterdam come in from Papeete where we disembarked -early in the morning - pajama time - from our overwater bungalow on Moorea where we rejoined the ship the next day.

[MAVIP]

We did it in 2019 in Hanoi when the Maasdam stayed overnight in Halong Bay. Just warned cabin stewards and Guest Service. No problem at all.

[cruzingnut]

@OC PAT  Here is something to think about regarding what you want to do.  On the 2019 world cruise, a number of people did that on their own, planning on getting back on the ship the next day when the Amsterdam went to Moorea.  Only the Amsterdam did NOT come due to weather.  We sailed right on by (and the weather really was pretty awful) and I wondered about the independent people!  They had to make their own way to Bora Bora.  That is yet another thing to think about..where is your cruise going next?  Will you be able to find a way to get to it? 

 

Linda R.

[MAVIP]

1 hour ago, cruzingnut said:

@OC PAT  Here is something to think about regarding what you want to do.  On the 2019 world cruise, a number of people did that on their own, planning on getting back on the ship the next day when the Amsterdam went to Moorea.  Only the Amsterdam did NOT come due to weather.  We sailed right on by (and the weather really was pretty awful) and I wondered about the independent people!  They had to make their own way to Bora Bora.  That is yet another thing to think about..where is your cruise going next?  Will you be able to find a way to get to it? 

 

Linda R.

You are absolutely right and that is what I always do. We do private tours, but always try to calculate  the risks and how to cope in case of ....

[Galley Slave]

We stayed in Edinburgh to watch the Tattoo after purchasing our own tickets.  The next stop was Invergordon, so we knew we could take the train and hopefully meet up with the ship.  

[OlsSalt]

Be sure and bring the name of the port agent with you when you leave the ship, passport too incase you do find the need for alternative transportation to the next port. 

 

I assume it is a given one knows they are on their own when they leave the ship and to have a Plan B always in mind.

[OlsSalt]

Rick Steve's Mediterranean Cruise Ports travel book ended each chapter with back-up travel options, in case someone missed their ship.  

 

Thought that was a very interesting touch - might be a happy option but for the most part is it just "money" that finally gets you on your way either to thee next port or back home. Risk-benefit ratio to be factored in and accepted when making one's own informal travel plans.

[OC PAT]

Thank you all for your input. We will be in Bora Bora, French Poly 11/2 and 11/3 on HAL's Zuiderdam. So, the ship will remain in port the entire period. I haven't research which resort/hotel we will book because I thought the rumor was accurate.  My TA is sending an inquiry to HAL.  I do wish I could find the source of this rumor.  We will create a backup plan based on your advice. 

 

[OC PAT]

On 4/21/2022 at 2:37 PM, OlsSalt said:

Watching the Amsterdam come in from Papeete where we disembarked -early in the morning - pajama time - from our overwater bungalow on Moorea where we rejoined the ship the next day.

 

[OlsSalt]

If you will be staying on Bora Bora for your overnight bungalow adventure and you like to snorkel - the Taha'a Drift Dive Coral Garden is a once in a life time treat that I hope you do not miss.

 

Helps if you are a reasonably  strong swimmer, because the current wants to overtake you.  This is certainly not just a surface paddling snorkel experience. Once in the current, it takes you where it wants to go. Which is past wonderful fish, underwater life and colorful corals. 

 

Resorts are close by, or by boat trip - we did the HAL shore excursion from the ship and were able to do this drift snorkel several times on our excursion. 

[OC PAT]

Update

 

TA has not been able to get a straight answer for HAL.  He has asked them to send it up the line.  He is rather shocked by the lack of knowledge, but he is pushing it.  I wish I could track down the rumor.

 

[ger_77]

As others have said, we also have stayed onshore during an overnight visit.  In our case it was an overnight in Bangkok where we took a 2 day private tour with about 12 other people from the ship.  We let Guest Services and our cabin stewards know we wouldn't be returning until the following day and it wasn't an issue.   Hopefully Covid hasn't changed things for you.

[Horizon chaser 1957]

The thing that worries them, and the Port Authority, is that you leave with the ship when it goes. What you do while the ship's in port and how late you stay out is your own business. 
You don’t need deviation permission for that.

[WisRiver]

Several years ago we did a cruise from Santiago, Chile to Boston via the Panama Canal.  One of the HAL tours had passengers getting off the ship, doing a two night excursion to Machu Picchu and rejoining the ship at the last shop in Peru.  Overnighting off the ship can be done.

[rafinmd]

Bora Bora is a tender port.  You might need that backup plan if tendering conditions change the second day.

 

Roy

[Bethcb]

Just a few months ago we were on the Zuiderdam and in Moorea we went to the Sofitel Resort for the day and spent a night there. The following day, we took the afternoon ferry to Papeete and joined the Zuiderdam in plenty of time. 

We had to tell Guest Services well in advance of our plans. They gave us our passports back the day before we went to Moorea and we had to clear customs on the ship the morning in Moorea. It all went very smoothly. They just need to know for immigration purposes. 

[OC PAT]

Thank you all for your comments.

 

I finally found where I had heard that we could not do an overnight on our South Pacific Cruise on HAL. A cruiser had contacted HAL directly and was told that it could not be allowed.  This conversation took place in September 2021.  We think it may have been a Covid wariness by HAL.  But judging by my TA's frustrating experience and your comments it may be someone not knowing what they were talking about.

Will keep you updated!

[OC PAT]

Response from my TA.

 

 

Well, as I always point out, one person's experience may or may not be true, especially given who they actually talked to.  Case in point; right now, when you call the cruise line, you're more than likely talking to someone who's only worked for the cruise line for a couple of months.  Plus, you could very well be talking to someone who's in a foreign country.  It was pointed out by CLIA (Cruise Lines International Assoc) that we all belong to, that when you call the cruise lines: 1) you're talking to someone who is not a certified travel agent; 2) you're talking to someone who has only worked there less than 6 months; and 3) has never even been on a cruise or to any of the ports.  They're just there to take your order.  Often times, when you ask a question, you'll get a wrong answer, because they don't want to spend the time putting you on hold, while they call a supervisor.  The average lifespan of a reservationist is less than 6 months across the industry.  And due to the pandemic, cruise lines are having an extremely difficult time filling the vacancies.  Hold times have very often exceeded 1 to 2 hours!  There are days that we're on hold for half the day with various cruise lines when we can't get answers.  Luckily for us, being one of the biggest agencies in the business, we often have special numbers not available to other agencies, but even with that our hold times can be very long.

 

In other words, when you call the cruise line and you get an answer you don't like, hang up and call back - you may get a different answer from the next person.

 

With this individual, I'm willing to bet that was the case.  I've been doing this for 20 years (just celebrated our 20^th anniversary a couple of weeks ago!) and we have over 3500 clients around the world.  I've never heard of anyone not being allowed to stay off the ship.  As I mentioned, we've had clients that got off the ship in one port and gotten back on the ship the next day in another port.  We've also had clients disembark ships before the cruise ends.  They just went up to customer service the night before, settled up their account, and carried their luggage off the ship.  Think of it this way; if you get off the ship one day and don't come back on board until the next day, what are they going to do about it?  Obviously, it's always good to let them know, but there's no requirement to do that - just common sense in case of an emergency.  The only thing that may impact that decision would be a restriction in the port itself, not the ship, which could very well have been the case in Hawaii, given their restrictions during Covid, which were more restrictive than other places.  I would be willing to bet it wasn't HAL that had the problem.  There were people on our NCL Hawiian cruise that spent the night off the ship in a couple of ports.  Then again, that was a few years before Covid and it was NCL, not HAL.

 

In your situation, as long as the resort says there are no restrictions in Bora Bora, I would believe you won't have any problems and I don't see HAL forbidding you from doing it.  We'll see if we can get a more definitive answer from someone in charge, but so far, as you've seen, none of the 3 people that I've gotten responses from have any problems with it.

 

But one person's experience with a reservationist is definitely not something I would hang my hat on, that's for sure!!

Pete & Nancy Peterson

[Mary229]

Bottom line there is no curfew.  HAL wouldn’t know if you would be sleeping at a hotel or partying all night.  Proceed with the cautions given by others.