Is this Boarding Time a Joke???

[WestonOne]

I have just downloaded the boarding pass for an upcoming trip and it says to arrive no earlier than 15:45 but I must be on board by the final boarding time of 16:00

I don't know how you would react, but there is no way I am assuming I can clear the check-in, security and get on board in 15 minutes.  I will arriving much earlier than that! 

However, reading the small print this is because I have a guarantee cabin, and 'the arrival time will be updated once your stateroom has been assigned'

Edited September 27, 2022 by WestonOne

[ace2542]

I was always under the impression you could rock up at Southampton and they took a look at the boarding time and give you a colour card wasn't it? And you would sit there and they would check in by colour and they would announce each colour to approach the booking line? Are they not doing that anymore?

Edited September 27, 2022 by ace2542

[exlondoner]

52 minutes ago, WestonOne said:

I have just downloaded the boarding pass for an upcoming trip and it says to arrive no earlier than 15:45 but I must be on board by the final boarding time of 16:00

I don't know how you would react, but there is no way I am assuming I can clear the check-in, security and get on board in 15 minutes.  I will arriving much earlier than that! 

However, reading the small print this is because I have a guarantee cabin, and 'the arrival time will be updated once your stateroom has been assigned'

So they don’t really mean it, but, while I would never risk it, I suspect that, if you arrive that late, the boarding process is extremely rapid, because there are few other passengers and the staff want to go home.

[buchanan101]

Quite excited... 21 days to go for my first QM2 crossing so of course I've already downloaded the boarding cards and luggage labels (12:45 for us)

 

Question: luggage is supposed to be 23kg max - I have two nice big suitcases (as flying back club - 32kg allowed). Do they really check the weight of the cases at Southampton?

 

 

[BigMac1953]

16 minutes ago, buchanan101 said:

Do they really check the weight of the cases at Southampton?

 

 

 

No.

 

Ours are always on the heavy side and in 25+ trips, nobody has bothered.

[MCC retired]

Just show up when you wish .

I have seen no reports that Cunard has been enforcing Boarding times lately.

 

Edited September 27, 2022 by MCC retired

[buchanan101]

What is the earliest time then? Have "priority", whether that works or not!

[ace2542]

Are they still doing the check in by colour scheme thing? Do people still sit in those seats for 2 hours waiting to be called forward by group? Or has all that all gone now and they take them in as they came like at Brooklyn?

[LadyL1]

2 hours ago, buchanan101 said:

 

Question: luggage is supposed to be 23kg max - I have two nice big suitcases (as flying back club - 32kg allowed). Do they really check the weight of the cases at Southampton?

 

 

That maybe your airline allowance and baggage handling is very automated these days in modern airports. Some porter on Cunard will have to manhandle your case on the ship, and the weight probably ties in with H&S, which is sensible.

Perhaps you will find 32kg is fairly hefty to lift on a to bed to unpack.

[LadyL1]

2 hours ago, MCC retired said:

Just show up when you wish .

I have seen no reports that Cunard has been enforcing Boarding times lately.

 

Boarding times are given in the hope to save overcrowding in terminals and reducing wait times! And it works if most people try and arrive in a timely fashion. Some folk do have more of a problem with this when relying on other forms of transport to get to the ship.

[buchanan101]

2 minutes ago, LadyL1 said:

That maybe your airline allowance and baggage handling is very automated these days in modern airports. Some porter on Cunard will have to manhandle your case on the ship, and the weight probably ties in with H&S, which is sensible.

Perhaps you will find 32kg is fairly hefty to lift on a to bed to unpack.

Quite likely cases won't be over 23kg - but just wondering if there's an issue if it is, for example 24kg...!

[Host Hattie]

They aren't weighed but it's for Health and Safety reasons as there is a lot more manual handling involved. There is no limit to the number of cases you can take.

[techteach]

I learned the hard way. I over loaded our suitcase for our August cruise and hurt my shoulder lifting it onto the bed. Heavy luggage is still heavy even with rollers on heavy carpet. There is a possibility of surgery. I will not let this impact our December TA!

[BklynBoy8]

We boarded in 23 minutes and in our cabin. 

[57eric]

6 hours ago, MCC retired said:

Just show up when you wish .

I have seen no reports that Cunard has been enforcing Boarding times lately.

 

As far as I'm aware, they weren't enforced before COVID either. 

[BklynBoy8]

9 minutes ago, 57eric said:

As far as I'm aware, they weren't enforced before COVID either. 

 

Friday September 23rd Boarding was a halt for a while and proceed to board. The hang up was with the Classes lower than the Grills were proceed very slow. They were watching us with the Grill Line moving faster. The corded rail lines were about 7 lines deep and slow. They were holding with numbers handed out and heard from the ship the PA announcing number to proceed.

[jimbo1683]

12 hours ago, WestonOne said:

However, reading the small print this is because I have a guarantee cabin, and 'the arrival time will be updated once your stateroom has been assigned'

What's the problem then?

[WestonOne]

The notes on guarantee cabins say they may not allocate a cabin before you arrive. In that case, the 3:45 would apply.

 

But to be honest I made the comment before I saw the small print!

[ace2542]

36 minutes ago, WestonOne said:

The notes on guarantee cabins say they may not allocate a cabin before you arrive. In that case, the 3:45 would apply.

 

But to be honest I made the comment before I saw the small print!

Sorry to raise this question but there is no way cabin have been over allocated is there?

 

Another thing maybe again a Brooklyn thing but when we wen't onboard QM2 we  got a slip of paper to scan when we boarded and our key card was in an envelope in the mail slot outside of our cabin and from what we could tell all the cabins had these evenlopes with key cards in them. And since your name is on the keycard I don't see how they can allocate it when you arrive?

[exlondoner]

13 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

Sorry to raise this question but there is no way cabin have been over allocated is there?

 

Another thing maybe again a Brooklyn thing but when we wen't onboard QM2 we  got a slip of paper to scan when we boarded and our key card was in an envelope in the mail slot outside of our cabin and from what we could tell all the cabins had these evenlopes with key cards in them. And since your name is on the keycard I don't see how they can allocate it when you arrive?

Remember your keycard has your photo embedded. Many of us have had to have our photo retaken at the terminal, and yet there the card is when you get to your cabin, so it can obviously be done very quickly.

 

There are always cabins left spare.

[BigMac1953]

There's always "no shows" caused by illness, missed plane/train/bus or family or business events.

[richard_london]

On my cruise earlier in September on the Queen Mary 2 I was given 15:30 arrival.  I turned up at 15:00 and there must have been less than ten other passengers boarding at the Mayflower terminal.  It was incredibly quiet.  No one quibbled my early arrival, I've always arrived a little early (say half an hour) so would be very surprised if they did.  It was the best boarding experience as it was so quick, but the disadvantage is missing lunch.

[WestonOne]

33 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

Remember your keycard has your photo embedded. Many of us have had to have our photo retaken at the terminal, and yet there the card is when you get to your cabin, so it can obviously be done very quickly.

 

There are always cabins left spare.

I don't know the exact technology used, but if I were designing the system I would not embed a photo on the card.  Instead I would have a unique reference number on the card and use that to look up your photo in a database of images. So as you get off the ship, for example, it reads the number off the card, looks up the image in the separate database and then presents that to security.  No image, as such, would be on the card.

That same unique reference number would also be used to determine who is charged when your card is swiped for drinks and other purchases.

Edited September 28, 2022 by WestonOne

[ace2542]

23 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

Remember your keycard has your photo embedded. Many of us have had to have our photo retaken at the terminal, and yet there the card is when you get to your cabin, so it can obviously be done very quickly.

 

There are always cabins left spare.

I never thought about the picture. That was taking when we at check in. They must have been pretty quick getting our keycard to the cabin then because I shot to the cabin with the 2 bags in Brooklyn while my father boarded behind me and got seats in the golden lion and the card was there. Unless the embedding can be done by computer? In brooklyn all you had was a paper thing with barcode similar to the baggage tag you put on suitcase in the airport.

[BigMac1953]

In the old days, your photo was printed on your card, but now it's a code that calls up your photo.