Boarding times With large party, FTTF and priority (suite)

[51st FMS]

We are a large group (12) and 5 cabins.  Four balconies and one suite.  We have boarding times of 10:30-11 but 2 cabins have 11:30-12.  My question to all you seasoned Carnival cruisers is, will we all be allowed to board at the earlier time or do we have to wait until the later time? Do we have to board at the time noted?  We all have FTTF and our cabin is a suite with the priorities of  a suite.

 

[Elaine5715]

7 minutes ago, 51st FMS said:

We are a large group (12) and 5 cabins.  Four balconies and one suite.  We have boarding times of 10:30-11 but 2 cabins have 11:30-12.  My question to all you seasoned Carnival cruisers is, will we all be allowed to board at the earlier time or do we have to wait until the later time? Do we have to board at the time noted?  We all have FTTF and our cabin is a suite with the priorities of  a suite.

 

Odds are you will all be able to enter the terminal at arrival.  If boarding has started, you "should" be able to board immediately.  If boarding has not begun, the Suites can board with Suites and the FTTF can board with FTTF.  Or the Suites can join the FTTF group but the FTTF group cannot join Suites.  

[serene56]

7 minutes ago, Elaine5715 said:

Odds are you will all be able to enter the terminal at arrival.  If boarding has started, you "should" be able to board immediately.  If boarding has not begun, the Suites can board with Suites and the FTTF can board with FTTF.  Or the Suites can join the FTTF group but the FTTF group cannot join Suites.  

im not sure about that.   People say they are turned away if their time is not yet    I think you all should wait til 11:15 to go in and check in      (does the 11:30 have FTTF?   as that is a different area to check in    if not they will meet you on the lido decl

 

[reeinaz]

Pre-Covid, when I had FTTF, I was able to enter the terminal prior to my appointment time and I was directed to sit in the priority boarding area. Since FTTF has just started back, I'm not sure many know how it's working this time. 

[hapytobehr]

From what I have heard from recent cruisers, things are like they were pre covid as far as boarding and check in times

[Schoifmom]

33 minutes ago, 51st FMS said:

We are a large group (12) and 5 cabins.  Four balconies and one suite.  We have boarding times of 10:30-11 but 2 cabins have 11:30-12.  My question to all you seasoned Carnival cruisers is, will we all be allowed to board at the earlier time or do we have to wait until the later time? Do we have to board at the time noted?  We all have FTTF and our cabin is a suite with the priorities of  a suite.

 

 

To be clear, you have ARRIVAL times of 10:30-11 and 11:30-12.  The suite will receive the highest priority boarding (meaning they are called in their own group and get to board first).  FTTF will get priority boarding, but it will be in a later group.  There are no guarantees about when boarding will begin.

 

You choices?  Everyone can wait to arrive at the later time. The suite guests can wait to board with the FTTF group. OR  Everyone just follow their individual arrival appointments and boarding groups and meet up on board.

Edited December 12, 2022 by Schoifmom

[Elaine5715]

4 hours ago, serene56 said:

im not sure about that.   People say they are turned away if their time is not yet    I think you all should wait til 11:15 to go in and check in      (does the 11:30 have FTTF?   as that is a different area to check in    if not they will meet you on the lido decl

 

I agree people should be held to their arrival appointments but I have yet to see it enforced at Seattle or Port Canaveral   

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

First: as stated above; this are arrival times to the terminal, not boarding times.

 

Did everyone plan on arriving to the port together or separately? 

 

If you are arriving together: you can get there at the early time, and those with later times will have to get in the early line, and may have to wait a bit to enter.  Or you can ask arrive at the later time and go in together, but suite and FTTF can use the priority line. 

 

If you all arrive late, you may be able to board right away, together, depending on when boarding starts. If you arrive early, priority groups can board early or wait. 

[asalligo]

12 hours ago, Elaine5715 said:

I agree people should be held to their arrival appointments but I have yet to see it enforced at Seattle or Port Canaveral   

This happened to me recently at Port Canaveral. I arrived at 10:15 for my 10:30 check in time and stood aside assuming that the people joining the line had an earlier time than me. No, they were ignoring check in times and I was standing there like a fool. 

[serene56]

3 hours ago, asalligo said:

This happened to me recently at Port Canaveral. I arrived at 10:15 for my 10:30 check in time and stood aside assuming that the people joining the line had an earlier time than me. No, they were ignoring check in times and I was standing there like a fool. 

  they are allowing 15 min early      

[asalligo]

2 hours ago, serene56 said:

  they are allowing 15 min early      

The people in front of us had an 11:30 check in time and FTTF was not yet being sold again. I will be boarding again on the 23rd and will pay closer attention. I think if you are there early and there are not people waiting to board, they are just letting you in, but why not, fill those empty spots. 

[Elaine5715]

4 hours ago, serene56 said:

  they are allowing 15 min early      

With an 10:30 am arrival appointment. I have been behind people with a 12 noon, 1 pm, even 2 pm arrival times, all let into the terminal at Seattle and PC, since no one checked.  

[staceyglow]

If there is not much of a line, does it really matter when people are allowed in as long as they can't get on the ship before their assigned boarding group?

[Elaine5715]

34 minutes ago, staceyglow said:

If there is not much of a line, does it really matter when people are allowed in as long as they can't get on the ship before their assigned boarding group?

Probably, but this was not my experience.  One cruise we were not able to enter the terminal with a 10:30 am arrival time because it was full since boarding had not started.  

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

8 minutes ago, Elaine5715 said:

Probably, but this was not my experience.  One cruise we were not able to enter the terminal with a 10:30 am arrival time because it was full since boarding had not started.  

What time did you get there? 

[Elaine5715]

3 hours ago, PrincessArlena'sDad said:

What time did you get there? 

10:30 am right on time.  Security was halted and we waited outside until after boarding began.  This was Seattle.  

[Eli_6]

I asked John Heald shortly after the restart if the Suite guests had to stick to their boarding time (because I had booked a last minute suite and had a late boarding time) and he said that suite guests could arrive at any time and board at any time and did not have to arrive within their allocated appointment window. That has been my experience post-covid at Galveston, Pt Can., Dover, and Seattle. 

 

Before Covid, FTTF was the same way but just they boarded after Suites, Platinum, Diamond...but is all in quick succession. Not sure now since it just came back. 

Edited December 14, 2022 by Eli_6

[Eli_6]

I just recalled there was one exception, but that was when I cruised with my kids last Christmas and they had just started allowing vaccinated kids and we had to stand in the "kid" line to make sure they were vaccinated.  It didn't matter if you were a suite, platinum, diamond, etc., if you had a kid you were stuck standing in the long *ss "kid" line waiting behind all the people who didn't have the proper documentation on their kids or were trying to get their unvaxed kids on board without an exemption or had an exemption and had to show their documentation. But that shouldn't apply now.

[pinklucky61]

19 hours ago, Elaine5715 said:

Probably, but this was not my experience.  One cruise we were not able to enter the terminal with a 10:30 am arrival time because it was full since boarding had not started.  

That happened to us in NOLA in Feb. this year.

[staceyglow]

3 hours ago, pinklucky61 said:

That happened to us in NOLA in Feb. this year.

Perhaps they have fixed that.  We sailed out of NOLA in September.  We had a 10:30 arrival time, and when we got to the port right around that time, there was a very, very long line outside the entrance doors.  We stood at the end of it, but a minute or two later, a woman walked down the line shouting, "Anyone who has a 10:30 arrival time can go on in!"  

 

Turns out that line was for people who got there early so they could wait outside in an orderly manner.

[PA Dutchman]

On 12/13/2022 at 10:53 PM, Eli_6 said:

I asked John Heald shortly after the restart if the Suite guests had to stick to their boarding time (because I had booked a last minute suite and had a late boarding time) and he said that suite guests could arrive at any time and board at any time and did not have to arrive within their allocated appointment window. That has been my experience post-covid at Galveston, Pt Can., Dover, and Seattle. 

 

Before Covid, FTTF was the same way but just they boarded after Suites, Platinum, Diamond...but is all in quick succession. Not sure now since it just came back. 

John is not right, if he is why bother with a boarding time if people just show up whenever

[Eli_6]

2 hours ago, PA Dutchman said:

John is not right, if he is why bother with a boarding time if people just show up whenever

He was right because the Suites were allowed to board before everyone else. I was immediately allowed in terminal and put straight through to the VIP lounge at Pt Canaveral and was the first to board even though I had a 2 pm boarding time.  

 

Same thing happened on my Alaskan cruise where I had a suite.

 

And I was the first to board on my Europe cruise with a suite, too...although, in that case, they were so off schedule it didn't matter because of traffic delays.  Still, I was allowed to board before even platinums and diamonds. 

 

The "boarding times" do not apply to suites or FFTF.  That is what you are paying extra for.  There are not that many suites or fftf on the ship so the vast majority of people can't just show up whenever they feel like it.  

Edited December 30, 2022 by Eli_6

[mz-s]

2 hours ago, PA Dutchman said:

John is not right, if he is why bother with a boarding time if people just show up whenever

 

Back in the beforetimes, everyone had to choose an arrival time but plat/diamond, suite guest, and FTTF could arrive whenever they wanted.

 

As always - it is an arrival time, not a boarding time. The distinction is important.

[Ferry_Watcher]

On 12/13/2022 at 12:06 PM, Elaine5715 said:

With an 10:30 am arrival appointment. I have been behind people with a 12 noon, 1 pm, even 2 pm arrival times, all let into the terminal at Seattle and PC, since no one checked.  

 

Due to the required  Arrive Canada QR check health protocol, there was no checking of arrival times during the 2022 Alaska season.  There were so many Carnival passengers that arrived at Seattle's Pier 91 without completing ArriveCan , that Carnival Corporate made it mandatory that every passenger show their ArriveCan QR before they were allowed to even enter the building.  Carnival's  #1 priority  was ArriveCan completion.  Nothing else mattered.  There was a whole team of pier side staff that assisted passengers with this required health registration.  Also, FTTF was suspended fleet wide, and at least in Seattle,  there was zero priority perks until passengers got thru the Security Screening (which was the last stop before the actual check-in).

 

Training for pier staff won't start happening until April 2023 but, my best educated guess that there will be a return to the traditional and strict Carnival timed entry policy.  There will probably be a line for those arriving earlier then their assigned time, but they will only be allowed in when all the on time folks are being taken care of and there are available check-in agents.

 

Suite passengers and maybe the top loyalty tier will be the first on the ship, followed by the FTTF passengers.

This is just my educated guess.

[Elaine5715]

4 hours ago, PA Dutchman said:

John is not right, if he is why bother with a boarding time if people just show up whenever

He frequently gives poor information including telling people they could bring whomever they wanted with them as priority guests. Actually posted on FB, "just tell them John Heald said ok".  I always wondered how many people yelled "JOHN SAID I COULD"