johnrich Posted March 17, 2023 #1 Share Posted March 17, 2023 Although we’ve cruised with NCL many times, this is the first time we’ve used their transfers from the airport to the ship. When we give our checked luggage to the “bus porters” at the airport, is that the last we will see our luggage until it is delivered to our stateroom or will we need to collect it from the bus and then give it to the porters at the port? Just want to make sure we have the cruise luggage tags on it when it needs to be. TIA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdc987 Posted March 17, 2023 #2 Share Posted March 17, 2023 NCL greeter meets you at luggage carousel. They will escort you to bus waiting area where you sit with luggage and attach your NCL room tags that you have prepared at home. When informed to board bus, you roll your luggage to bus where the bus driver loads in bus. Upon arrival at ship terminal you will wait in bus while the luggage is unloaded. You claim your luggage and usually within a few feet the dock porters will prompt you to utilize their services, which is generally required, tips expected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted March 17, 2023 #3 Share Posted March 17, 2023 That depends on the port but I think the majority of the time that I've used the NCL transfer I needed to collect my bags. That might involve just moving it a few feet to where the porters are - or around the terminal building. By having you collect your luggage you (and they) know that it hasn't been left behind at the airport - or left on the bus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare www3traveler Posted March 17, 2023 #4 Share Posted March 17, 2023 The last time I did this, I put my cruise tags on while waiting to board the bus in the baggage claim area of the airport. Once luggage is unloaded from the bus, you leave the bus, find your luggage and then give them to the port workers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare BirdTravels Posted March 17, 2023 #5 Share Posted March 17, 2023 41 minutes ago, johnrich said: Although we’ve cruised with NCL many times, this is the first time we’ve used their transfers from the airport to the ship. When we give our checked luggage to the “bus porters” at the airport, is that the last we will see our luggage until it is delivered to our stateroom or will we need to collect it from the bus and then give it to the porters at the port? Just want to make sure we have the cruise luggage tags on it when it needs to be. TIA. After claiming your bags at the baggage claim, remove your airline tags and put on your cruise tags. The shore personnel will give you instructions for your cruise. For us, we have had the bags sent direct to our stateroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnrich Posted March 17, 2023 Author #6 Share Posted March 17, 2023 It seems that it may vary depending on the port. Our first is Manhattan Cruise Terminal. Later this year will be Port Miami. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
complawyer Posted March 17, 2023 #7 Share Posted March 17, 2023 it's been my experience, as follows (1) the driver takes your luggage and puts them in the luggage compartment (2) the bus gets to the port and the driver unloads everyone's luggage(3) you get you luggage, call over a porter (4) he takes it from you (a tip now is in order) (5) assuming youve correctly put on the ncl luggage tags, your bags will be delivered to your cabin later on in the day.just did this end of january from panama airport, but hired a cab to take us from the ship to our hotel as we werent leaving until next morning no muss, no fuss, no bother, easy peasy! sometimes though, it may be cheaper to get a cab at the airport, or arrange private transportation (shuttle service) this works especially well, if youre flying in early and staying in a hotel. last year we were going from london to copenhagen. we rented a cab from heathrow to our hotel, stayed for 3 days, and had made prior arrangements before we left the states, to have a shuttle pick us up at the hotel in london, and take us directly to the pier in southampton. we did the same on a back to back. hired a cab from venice airport to our hotel, stayed a few days, arranged a shuttle to drive us to trieste. the hotel had an ncl desk. we put in our names and a bus arrived the next morning to take us to the pier. we have done it both ways. ncl bus is great and super convenient if youre flying in the day of departure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randomthought Posted March 17, 2023 #8 Share Posted March 17, 2023 16 hours ago, complawyer said: sometimes though, it may be cheaper to get a cab at the airport, or arrange private transportation (shuttle service) this works especially well, if youre flying in early and staying in a hotel. I've been wondering about how this works so was wondering if you could explain a bit more. I'm using NCL Air for the first time on a NYC Fall cruise and had to pay for their transportation. We'll be coming in a day early. Do they not cover transportation to your hotel if you are arriving a day early? We depart from Quebec City so I can understand just getting on one of the shuttle buses to the airport, but was unclear how it worked arriving the day before. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted March 17, 2023 #9 Share Posted March 17, 2023 13 minutes ago, randomthought said: I've been wondering about how this works so was wondering if you could explain a bit more. I'm using NCL Air for the first time on a NYC Fall cruise and had to pay for their transportation. We'll be coming in a day early. Do they not cover transportation to your hotel if you are arriving a day early? We depart from Quebec City so I can understand just getting on one of the shuttle buses to the airport, but was unclear how it worked arriving the day before. Thanks! If you are using NCL air and requested a deviation, then they will refund the transfer fees and you will also get a $25 credit. And you are on your own with respect to getting to the port the following day, unless you booked your hotel through NCL. As to Quebec, they may fly you into Montreal due to the limited number of flights into Quebec, so that is an issue - and why I chose a cruise that ends in Quebec instead! I have seen a few discussions on the Montreal-Quebec issue, you might want to look to your roll call for ideas. In the past on other cruises, I have opted to keep the airport transfer, and just went back to the airport. However, on my last cruise they cancelled my transfer reservation (something about security, which the airport denied was an issue). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randomthought Posted March 17, 2023 #10 Share Posted March 17, 2023 Thanks for the information! We are leaving out of NYC and ending in Quebec so looks like that is the better route to handle NCL air and transfers. We want to arrive a day early so sounds like transfer fees will be refunded (is that only refunded for the NYC part of the trip?), but then we still want to use NCL transfer to the Quebec airport when our cruise finishes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tartantiara Posted March 17, 2023 #11 Share Posted March 17, 2023 Can you use the NCL transfer if you have booked your own flights ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted March 17, 2023 #12 Share Posted March 17, 2023 6 minutes ago, randomthought said: Thanks for the information! We are leaving out of NYC and ending in Quebec so looks like that is the better route to handle NCL air and transfers. We want to arrive a day early so sounds like transfer fees will be refunded (is that only refunded for the NYC part of the trip?), but then we still want to use NCL transfer to the Quebec airport when our cruise finishes. Sorry, I misunderstood, thought you meant your cruise initiates in Quebec. Yes, they will take off the NYC transfers and leave the transfers for your return, as long as you don't request a deviation. As I understand it, the bus will take you to whichever airport. At least that's what I'm assuming, since I'm basically doing the same thing, but leaving out of Boston, not NY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted March 17, 2023 #13 Share Posted March 17, 2023 (edited) 6 minutes ago, tartantiara said: Can you use the NCL transfer if you have booked your own flights ? Usually, assuming they have room. I think you have to let them know a couple of weeks in advance and give them your flight information. However, they didn't let me go back to the airport on my last trip and I'm kinda thinking they ran out of room (vs the bogus excuse they gave me). And if they tell you to just show up - don't let it go - insist on a reservation anyway! You can also usually book onboard for the transfer at the end of the cruise if you don't book in advance - but that can also sell out. Edited March 17, 2023 by julig22 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karaboudjan Posted March 18, 2023 #14 Share Posted March 18, 2023 (edited) 14 hours ago, tartantiara said: Can you use the NCL transfer if you have booked your own flights ? We did that in Port Canaveral. We arrived a day early so they just instructed us on what time to get back to the airport for the transfer. I believe our PCC did have to make up some flight information since their system may require that to complete the reservation. Edited March 18, 2023 by Karaboudjan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamajean1113 Posted March 18, 2023 #15 Share Posted March 18, 2023 22 hours ago, julig22 said: If you are using NCL air and requested a deviation, then they will refund the transfer fees and you will also get a $25 credit. And you are on your own with respect to getting to the port the following day, unless you booked your hotel through NCL. As to Quebec, they may fly you into Montreal due to the limited number of flights into Quebec, so that is an issue - and why I chose a cruise that ends in Quebec instead! I have seen a few discussions on the Montreal-Quebec issue, you might want to look to your roll call for ideas. In the past on other cruises, I have opted to keep the airport transfer, and just went back to the airport. However, on my last cruise they cancelled my transfer reservation (something about security, which the airport denied was an issue). I deviated our airline trip w/NCL to Seattle one day earlier for this coming August. I did get the $25 credit and the transfer to the ship and from the ship to the airport remained on. We will be staying at the Hilton at the airport. I was informed by my PCC to go back to the baggage area the next day and look for the NCL Shuttle Person we could board the shuttle to the ship. This was true for a trip we booked to Rome, we were going in 2 days earlier, got our own hotel and was told to go back to the airport the day of embarkation and we could take the shuttle to the ship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted March 18, 2023 #16 Share Posted March 18, 2023 17 minutes ago, mamajean1113 said: I deviated our airline trip w/NCL to Seattle one day earlier for this coming August. I did get the $25 credit and the transfer to the ship and from the ship to the airport remained on. We will be staying at the Hilton at the airport. I was informed by my PCC to go back to the baggage area the next day and look for the NCL Shuttle Person we could board the shuttle to the ship. This was true for a trip we booked to Rome, we were going in 2 days earlier, got our own hotel and was told to go back to the airport the day of embarkation and we could take the shuttle to the ship. Yes, I have done it many times - no problem if the NCL person making the arrangements understands that you do indeed want to keep your transfer - they actually have to do something to override the system (I had one PCC who, along with his supervisor, could never figure out how to do it!) Always make sure that when you get your edocs that the transfer is correct. My last cruise had the transfer from the airport to hotel/hotel to port, so they would have had no record of my reservation at the airport. I got it corrected -and then they cancelled my reservation anyway just a few days before my cruise, no notice other than an updated statement that no longer showed the transfer. I was not a happy camper, not sure how much to trust NCL with transfers going forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpk Posted March 27 #17 Share Posted March 27 On 3/16/2023 at 8:47 PM, complawyer said: we did the same on a back to back. hired a cab from venice airport to our hotel, stayed a few days, arranged a shuttle to drive us to trieste. the hotel had an ncl desk. we put in our names and a bus arrived the next morning to take us to the pier. we have done it both ways. ncl bus is great and super convenient if youre flying in the day of departure Were you able to find out ahead of time that the hotel had a NCL desk? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
complawyer Posted March 27 #18 Share Posted March 27 no, but it was there, a major surprise, and we took advantage of the opportunity. it was convenient, but if it wasnt there, we would have just as easily hired a cab. we stayed at the hilton doubletree hotel, and it wasnt very far from the port Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legodude_uk Posted September 6 #19 Share Posted September 6 Hi there, sorry to resurrect an older thread but it looked the best place to ask my question, we are cruising into Miami in October and usual disembarkation is early morning, but our flights back to Heathrow aren't until later that evening, they are booked through NCL so I was wondering how that will work with transfers... Do we get taken to the airport early and have to wait there? Is there an option to leave our luggage somewhere, explore then return for the transfers? Any suggestions would be gratefully received Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted September 6 #20 Share Posted September 6 11 minutes ago, Legodude_uk said: Hi there, sorry to resurrect an older thread but it looked the best place to ask my question, we are cruising into Miami in October and usual disembarkation is early morning, but our flights back to Heathrow aren't until later that evening, they are booked through NCL so I was wondering how that will work with transfers... Do we get taken to the airport early and have to wait there? Is there an option to leave our luggage somewhere, explore then return for the transfers? Any suggestions would be gratefully received If you are using the NCL transfer, yes, you will get taken to the airport early and have to wait there. NCL will usually offer post-cruise excursions that end at the airport but they don't make them available to see until day 50. Hopefully others will chime in with suggestions specific to Miami. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare www3traveler Posted September 6 #21 Share Posted September 6 12 minutes ago, Legodude_uk said: Hi there, sorry to resurrect an older thread but it looked the best place to ask my question, we are cruising into Miami in October and usual disembarkation is early morning, but our flights back to Heathrow aren't until later that evening, they are booked through NCL so I was wondering how that will work with transfers... Do we get taken to the airport early and have to wait there? Is there an option to leave our luggage somewhere, explore then return for the transfers? Any suggestions would be gratefully received Two Suggestions for you: (1) Book a "Day Room" at an airport hotel. Take the transfer to the airport and then go on to the hotel. (2) While on board, check with the Shore Excursions Desk to see if there is a tour ending at the hotel. Either with the tour or taking the transfer to the airport, you could have a very long wait just to be able to check-in for your flight and check your luggage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefMateJRK Posted September 6 #22 Share Posted September 6 2 hours ago, www3traveler said: (1) Book a "Day Room" at an airport hotel. Take the transfer to the airport and then go on to the hotel. Why not just uber to the hotel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare BirdTravels Posted September 6 #23 Share Posted September 6 3 hours ago, Legodude_uk said: Hi there, sorry to resurrect an older thread but it looked the best place to ask my question, we are cruising into Miami in October and usual disembarkation is early morning, but our flights back to Heathrow aren't until later that evening, they are booked through NCL so I was wondering how that will work with transfers... Do we get taken to the airport early and have to wait there? Is there an option to leave our luggage somewhere, explore then return for the transfers? Any suggestions would be gratefully received Welcome to Cruise Critic. Just start a new thread with your question next time. All Ashore is about 9:30 when every must leave the ship. The last transfer will be shortly after. Many airlines won’t let you check your bags that early or even have a desk open. You could take a spot cruise shore excursion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare www3traveler Posted September 6 #24 Share Posted September 6 (edited) 2 hours ago, ChiefMateJRK said: Why not just uber to the hotel? The person asking the question says they have transfers to the airport. They are also from the United Kingdom and may not be familiar with Uber. Edited September 6 by www3traveler Add a comment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefMateJRK Posted September 6 #25 Share Posted September 6 14 minutes ago, www3traveler said: The person asking the question says they have transfers to the airport. They are also from the United Kingdom and may not be familiar with Uber. Yeah, I guess if they have flights booked through NCL the airport xfers are likely a mandatory part of the deal. That said, if uber/lyft is an option for folks, I want to encourage them to learn how to use them and try them out (both very simple). I resisted for a while when I was (slightly) younger and more ignorant, but finally "forced" myself to try one. I loved it and have used them exclusively ever since. Of course, if the day use hotel is not right at the airport, forfeiting their airport xfer and just using uber/lyft direct might still be a better approach.😎 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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