Embarking in Fuerte Amador, Panama - Nightmare!

[Firstin87]

I've posted this in the General NCL forum since that is the cruise line we were on, but this relates to the port at Fuerte Amador and others might want to also read it.

 

We’re back from our cruise through the Panama Canal (NCL Jewel 2/4-13) and here is some helpful information regarding our embarkation in Fuerte Amador, Panama (will also apply to those disembarking at that port).

 

So, as many of you have heard, there have been issues with the port in Fuerte Amador.  There is a great deal of construction going on and you have probably received information about checking in at the Panama Convention Center as opposed to the actual port.  Our cruise was one of the first to experience this new process.

 

First, give your driver the address of the Convention Center (Calle Gral. Juan de Peron; whatever is specified in the email from the cruise line).  We took an Uber from our hotel and the driver went the wrong way for a few minutes, so we assume there is more than one place referred to as “Convention Center”.  The Convention Center is very clearly marked as being NCL – flags along the entrance road, etc. – and there is good signage where to go and enter the building.

 

Passengers line up to check in their luggage.  No priority line for this.  The line is long and very slow moving, despite there being a good number of NCL staff taking the luggage.  The delay was primarily due to people not having luggage tags already applied.  If everyone had their tags pasted on, the line would go soooo much faster.  NCL can improve this congestion point by handing out tags to people in line and having them fill out and attach the tags before they get to the table to hand their luggage over to an NCL staffer.

 

We had Priority Check In, so went upstairs and were checked in quickly.  I believe others checked in downstairs and it is probably the standard waiting time and lines.  There were plenty of NCL staff to give directions.

 

During check in, you are given a group number that is supposed to be used for boarding buses that drive to the port.  Having been very lucky to have arrived early and be Priority, we were on the second or third bus to depart.  As the day went on, the waiting time to board an air conditioned bus grew and I don’t know if the number system was followed.

 

The bus drive to the port was about 10 minutes.  Once you get to the port, you are in a construction zone, the road was not paved, and although work was not going on when we were there (Sat.), you saw the equipment and that a lot is being built.  Your only option for getting from the Convention Center to the port is via the buses – you cannot decide to catch an Uber instead due to the dirt road and limitations of accessing the port. 

 

Once you get off the bus, you walk through a large tent to go through security (in photo, long tent on the right).  Passengers are all in one line and there is only one x-ray machine for every item to pass through.  Massive congestion!  The line progressed through the tent, back outside, and to the gangway – only one gangway was open – and boarding the ship.  Thie gangway was another congestion point.  NCL had staff handing out water, but that was it – no bathroom available, uncomfortable weather for some people.

 

As the day wore on, the buses kept coming and were lined up waiting for the security line to progress enough for them to unload.  Some people were sitting on the bus for two hours before walking another hour through the security line and boarding.  An absolute s------w! 

 

We were scheduled to sail at 5:00, but did not leave until 8:00.  At 5:00, the line of buses stretched beyond the end of the covered area in the photo and had to be at least a dozen buses long.  The Muster Drill (in person now) was set for 4:00, but did not occur until after 6:30.  There were literally passengers who boarded the ship after spending hours getting from the Convention Center and onboard who went directly to the Muster Drill.  A nightmare of an embarkation day!

 

While the port of Fuerte Amador is responsible for many of the embarkation issues, NCL also dropped the ball badly.  They must absolutely improve the congestion points they can.  In addition, they failed miserably in acknowledging, addressing, and apologizing for the headaches and delays of the day.  Again, we boarded early (about 1:00) and did not hear ANY announcements throughout the day about the delays; no announcements about the change in Muster Drill time; nothing done to apologize (free dinks that day, give everyone another specialty dining, something to acknowledge what an awful experience their vacation began with).  As I noted, the Muster drill was supposed to be at 4:00, so we went to our meeting place at that time – were told it was delayed until 7:00.  We had a reservation at Le Bistro for 5:30, but when we arrived we were told they were not serving as the Muster Drill would begin soon.  We returned to Le Bistro after the Drill, which didn’t start until almost 6:30, and were seated in the order of our reservation times.  Absolutely zero communication throughout the day.

 

The first PA announcement of the day was to begin the Muster Drill and was done by the Cruise Director, Tahana.  She made no acknowledgement whatsoever about the events of the day – no apology, absolutely nothing said; you can’t just ignore what passengers went through – just the standard introduction of the Muster Drill.  Unprofessional, insensitive to the discomfort of the passengers, and just a complete fail on starting people’s vacations on a positive note.

 

And if you disembark at Fuerte Amador, it will take a long time as you’ll be returning to… somewhere… via the buses, so a slow and arduous process.

 

Advice for surviving embarking at this port:

 

1.   Put on your luggage tags in advance.

2.   Bring water and maybe a snack in your carry on.

3.   Be ready to put your items on the belt into the x-ray machine.

4.   Pack a h--- of a lot of patience!

 

After this, the cruise was great!

 

Disembarkation in Colon was typical.  That port isn’t undergoing construction.

 

 

 

 

[Firstin87]

[fox02554]

Thank you for the post , we're embarking on the Jewel Wednesday the 22nd , I had hoped to spend some time wandering arounf Panama City that morning and boarding late , but think hubby is right and we should use our early boarding time would much rather wait by the pool then in a line 😄

[Early_5]

I wonder how much worse it will be on the 22nd as it is the last day of carnival?

[Early_5]

9 hours ago, Firstin87 said:

I've posted this in the General NCL forum since that is the cruise line we were on, but this relates to the port at Fuerte Amador and others might want to also read it.

 

We’re back from our cruise through the Panama Canal (NCL Jewel 2/4-13) and here is some helpful information regarding our embarkation in Fuerte Amador, Panama (will also apply to those disembarking at that port).

 

So, as many of you have heard, there have been issues with the port in Fuerte Amador.  There is a great deal of construction going on and you have probably received information about checking in at the Panama Convention Center as opposed to the actual port.  Our cruise was one of the first to experience this new process.

 

First, give your driver the address of the Convention Center (Calle Gral. Juan de Peron; whatever is specified in the email from the cruise line).  We took an Uber from our hotel and the driver went the wrong way for a few minutes, so we assume there is more than one place referred to as “Convention Center”.  The Convention Center is very clearly marked as being NCL – flags along the entrance road, etc. – and there is good signage where to go and enter the building.

 

Passengers line up to check in their luggage.  No priority line for this.  The line is long and very slow moving, despite there being a good number of NCL staff taking the luggage.  The delay was primarily due to people not having luggage tags already applied.  If everyone had their tags pasted on, the line would go soooo much faster.  NCL can improve this congestion point by handing out tags to people in line and having them fill out and attach the tags before they get to the table to hand their luggage over to an NCL staffer.

 

We had Priority Check In, so went upstairs and were checked in quickly.  I believe others checked in downstairs and it is probably the standard waiting time and lines.  There were plenty of NCL staff to give directions.

 

During check in, you are given a group number that is supposed to be used for boarding buses that drive to the port.  Having been very lucky to have arrived early and be Priority, we were on the second or third bus to depart.  As the day went on, the waiting time to board an air conditioned bus grew and I don’t know if the number system was followed.

 

The bus drive to the port was about 10 minutes.  Once you get to the port, you are in a construction zone, the road was not paved, and although work was not going on when we were there (Sat.), you saw the equipment and that a lot is being built.  Your only option for getting from the Convention Center to the port is via the buses – you cannot decide to catch an Uber instead due to the dirt road and limitations of accessing the port. 

 

Once you get off the bus, you walk through a large tent to go through security (in photo, long tent on the right).  Passengers are all in one line and there is only one x-ray machine for every item to pass through.  Massive congestion!  The line progressed through the tent, back outside, and to the gangway – only one gangway was open – and boarding the ship.  Thie gangway was another congestion point.  NCL had staff handing out water, but that was it – no bathroom available, uncomfortable weather for some people.

 

As the day wore on, the buses kept coming and were lined up waiting for the security line to progress enough for them to unload.  Some people were sitting on the bus for two hours before walking another hour through the security line and boarding.  An absolute s------w! 

 

We were scheduled to sail at 5:00, but did not leave until 8:00.  At 5:00, the line of buses stretched beyond the end of the covered area in the photo and had to be at least a dozen buses long.  The Muster Drill (in person now) was set for 4:00, but did not occur until after 6:30.  There were literally passengers who boarded the ship after spending hours getting from the Convention Center and onboard who went directly to the Muster Drill.  A nightmare of an embarkation day!

 

While the port of Fuerte Amador is responsible for many of the embarkation issues, NCL also dropped the ball badly.  They must absolutely improve the congestion points they can.  In addition, they failed miserably in acknowledging, addressing, and apologizing for the headaches and delays of the day.  Again, we boarded early (about 1:00) and did not hear ANY announcements throughout the day about the delays; no announcements about the change in Muster Drill time; nothing done to apologize (free dinks that day, give everyone another specialty dining, something to acknowledge what an awful experience their vacation began with).  As I noted, the Muster drill was supposed to be at 4:00, so we went to our meeting place at that time – were told it was delayed until 7:00.  We had a reservation at Le Bistro for 5:30, but when we arrived we were told they were not serving as the Muster Drill would begin soon.  We returned to Le Bistro after the Drill, which didn’t start until almost 6:30, and were seated in the order of our reservation times.  Absolutely zero communication throughout the day.

 

The first PA announcement of the day was to begin the Muster Drill and was done by the Cruise Director, Tahana.  She made no acknowledgement whatsoever about the events of the day – no apology, absolutely nothing said; you can’t just ignore what passengers went through – just the standard introduction of the Muster Drill.  Unprofessional, insensitive to the discomfort of the passengers, and just a complete fail on starting people’s vacations on a positive note.

 

And if you disembark at Fuerte Amador, it will take a long time as you’ll be returning to… somewhere… via the buses, so a slow and arduous process.

 

Advice for surviving embarking at this port:

 

1.   Put on your luggage tags in advance.

2.   Bring water and maybe a snack in your carry on.

3.   Be ready to put your items on the belt into the x-ray machine.

4.   Pack a h--- of a lot of patience!

 

After this, the cruise was great!

 

Disembarkation in Colon was typical.  That port isn’t undergoing construction.

 

 

 

 

Do you think the priority boarding was valuable in this situation?

[BillB48]

2 hours ago, Early_5 said:

I wonder how much worse it will be on the 22nd as it is the last day of carnival?

 

The last "event" of Carnival will be the burial of the fish at dawn Wednesday marking the beginning of Lent.  Aside from church services for Ash Wednesday it really should be a fairly subdued day with some people wishing they had not been over served the previous night.

[Early_5]

1 hour ago, BillB48 said:

 

The last "event" of Carnival will be the burial of the fish at dawn Wednesday marking the beginning of Lent.  Aside from church services for Ash Wednesday it really should be a fairly subdued day with some people wishing they had not been over served the previous night.

I was thinking of the traffic congestion of everyone trying to return to the city. Plus the threat of road blocks. 

[biggerbearmom]

We disembarked on February 11 at Fuerte Amador and there was no problem whatsoever. We collected our luggage, boarded a bus and off we went to the Panama Hilton.

[Firstin87]

5 hours ago, fox02554 said:

Thank you for the post , we're embarking on the Jewel Wednesday the 22nd , I had hoped to spend some time wandering arounf Panama City that morning and boarding late , but think hubby is right and we should use our early boarding time would much rather wait by the pool then in a line 😄

Definitely go with your husband's plan!!  Only hope of not having a stressful day is to go early.

[Firstin87]

2 hours ago, Early_5 said:

Do you think the priority boarding was valuable in this situation?

YES!!!!  We would have been sitting on a bus for 2 hrs., standing in a slow moving line in the heat for at least another hr. before boarding. 

[Firstin87]

1 hour ago, Early_5 said:

I was thinking of the traffic congestion of everyone trying to return to the city. Plus the threat of road blocks. 

I would think traffic might be an issue - slower bus ride - but sounds like minor, if at all.

[Firstin87]

43 minutes ago, biggerbearmom said:

We disembarked on February 11 at Fuerte Amador and there was no problem whatsoever. We collected our luggage, boarded a bus and off we went to the Panama Hilton.

Great!  The Hilton was lovely.  We stayed there the night before embarking.

[Uff da]

We were on this cruise. We also had priority boarding and were on the second or third bus. We were fortunate. I really felt bad for the people who had the long waits. When we boarded that bus we had no idea the people behind us would have a different experience. It was running rather smoothly in the beginning, although late, since disembarkation of the cruise before us was late. I'm not sure where it went south later in the day. 
The in person muster is another area that bit them in the butt later on. It delayed us even more. People were not happy that there was a delay to opening the dining venues on top of everything else. So many unhappy people that first day (not that I blame them.) OY! 
As for disembarkation, it was also running late. That bottleneck came from them moving the luggage one color at a time off the ship to the shore and it was taking longer than expected. They would not call the next color until all the luggage was shoreside. People with earlier flights were kind of freaking out (it's about 1.5 hours to the airport,) but we had our luggage with us, had NCL transfer to the airport and were not flying until 3. We just hung out without the stress until our color was called since we didn't need to get off early. We made it with plenty of time to spare. 
Let's just say we were lucky and leave it at that. 

[Firstin87]

How funny - we may have been on the same bus and seen you throughout the cruise and not know it.  I think the process devolved as the day went on as the buses were loaded and got to the pier faster than they were unloaded and the security line could move.  The lack of communication added to the mess

 

The cruise was great, though.  Excellent service, good food, met lots of great people (maybe even you).

 

 

 

 

 

[Uff da]

11 hours ago, Firstin87 said:

How funny - we may have been on the same bus and seen you throughout the cruise and not know it.  I think the process devolved as the day went on as the buses were loaded and got to the pier faster than they were unloaded and the security line could move.  The lack of communication added to the mess

 

The cruise was great, though.  Excellent service, good food, met lots of great people (maybe even you).

 

 

 

 

 

Ha ha. It's entirely possible we met or were on the same bus. If you met me you'd know it. My lip was all banged up from a fall I took in Panama. I think we were on the first bus that was not Haven.
It was fun being on the ship with hardly any other people on it. We went to the pool bar, had a drink and snack, wandered around...it was fun until I heard what was happening. 
But yes, the cruise was great after the first day. I really enjoyed this one even if we didn't get to do all we wanted to do ashore due to high winds and waves. It was all good. We made the most of it! I loved the Aviary at the port in Cartagana. That may be my favorite port of all time. No shopping! lol 

[Firstin87]

We were on the bus ahead of you, then.  It sure was nice not to have any crowded areas onboard.  You don't sound familiar, so if we saw each other it was probably just in passing.  Glad you and yours had a good time, also.

 

Loved the Aviary in Cartagena.  I got to hold a baby sloth, so that was quite a highlight of the trip.  We did an excursion to the walled city and we could certainly have done without all the vendors every step you took.