Boarding procedures

[Petwin]

Hi there. I get the impression that boarding formalities are now, understandably, taking a lot longer at present.  We are boarding the Silver Muse in Melbourne next month and as we live in Melbourne we are very flexible in our arrival time at the port.  I know the official boarding time is 2-4 however I prefer to miss the “rush hour”.  I understand a coach will bring guests from the pre-cruise hotel and this can lead to long wait times.  I would be Interested in guests recent experiences in this regard.

[chrism23]

I have never had a long wait in embarking. (8). It has been relatively seamless.  I always stay and  leave from the pre-cruise basic hotel because it simplifies the whole process.  Your luggage is in the room when your get there.  The only delay I have experienced was in Iceland.  The pre-cruise testing went off without a hitch. Then we were shown to a tent to wait...and wait.  The problem was the Icelandic authorities who just took forever.  

 

Just a quick tip for those flying.  After a number of 6:00 am arrivals at various destinations, and not, of course having a room available, check in time always seems to be 3:00 PM, I always travel at least a day before embarkation, stay at the SS hotel, waltz into my room at 6:00 AM and sleep.  For me, the extra $400-500 is worth it.  

 

The extra day is worth the peace of mind of delays and not making your departure.  For example, this weekend there is going to be an epic storm, which is being called a "generational" storm, that will, if as advertised, shut done air traffic in the eastern US perhaps for days  Of course you Aussies will probably spend the morning on the beach refreshing your tans.  

[Silver Spectre]

5 hours ago, Petwin said:

Hi there. I get the impression that boarding formalities are now, understandably, taking a lot longer at present.  We are boarding the Silver Muse in Melbourne next month and as we live in Melbourne we are very flexible in our arrival time at the port.  I know the official boarding time is 2-4 however I prefer to miss the “rush hour”.  I understand a coach will bring guests from the pre-cruise hotel and this can lead to long wait times.  I would be Interested in guests recent experiences in this regard.

You are right to be concerned, when we joined the Moon in October we arrived at about 2:30 and took almost 2 hours to get onboard. Someone joining the Muse in Sydney a couple of days ago took about 2.5 hours. It can now be a very time consuming business. Arriving later in the 2-4pm window will almost certainly help shorten it.

[Stumblefoot]

Agree with Mr. Silver.  Friends who boarded in Sydney this week reported another boarding fiasco.  They arrived about 90-minutes before the SS buses did and when those passengers who used the SS hotel to ship transfer service arrived, they were forced to wait on the buses until the port personnel could accommodate them.

[jmalux]

It was indeed rather chaotic and very slow in Sydney a couple of days ago with unclear procedures. 
 

We arrived at 1:35pm, were given cards showing check-in group 7, we were asked to fill in the health questionnaire, and then sit down and wait. Later when our group was called, we were told that we had to go to a different desk first to get a pink sticker to check the NZ immigration documents. If we had known, we could easily have done that during the long waiting time. 
 

When the big crowds arrived after 2pm, it got very chaotic as not everyone were told that a check-in number card was needed, so they just tried to immediately line up for check-in. 
 

Check-in started at 2pm, and half an hour later they had only managed to process group consisting of +/-10 people. 
 

As part of group 7, we were eventually on the ship at 3:30pm, but we were among the lucky ones, as there were +/- 20 check-in groups. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

How does the process work if you are staying at the Simple Silver hotel?  Do you check your bags at the hotel?  Can you do that early and then go sightseeing?  Can we skip the SS transfer and get ourselves to the ship after 4pm when the lines may be shorter?  [This would be in Auckland.]

[Stumblefoot]

2 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

How does the process work if you are staying at the Simple Silver hotel?  Do you check your bags at the hotel?  Can you do that early and then go sightseeing?  Can we skip the SS transfer and get ourselves to the ship after 4pm when the lines may be shorter?  [This would be in Auckland.]

In Australia, luggage was requested to be left outside your hotel room by 10:30p.

 

Yes, you can skip the SS transfer and get yourself to the ship.

[Host Jazzbeau]

At the end of the cruise I see shore excursions that include extensive sightseeing and then end at the airport.  What about people going to the Simply Silver hotel–would we get any sightseeing, or just a direct transfer?  And would it be quicker to skip that transfer and take a taxi?

[Lois R]

13 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

How does the process work if you are staying at the Simple Silver hotel?  Do you check your bags at the hotel?  Can you do that early and then go sightseeing?  Can we skip the SS transfer and get ourselves to the ship after 4pm when the lines may be shorter?  [This would be in Auckland.]

Hi Jazz, I have stayed at SS hotels quite a bit and yes, you can talk to the front desk and if your room is not ready, most places will hold your bags and you can do whatever sightseeing you like.  And yes, you can skip the transfer to the ship and go to the port on your own.  As for disembarking, if you want to go to the airport on your own, you may certainly do that too.  If you are scheduled to go on a cruise line transfer? Just go to Guest Relations and tell them to remove you from that list.