What time does check in start? What documents needed?

[catspaw1]

4 hours ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

 

I appreciate that, and I know that you have an understanding of what is needed to travel.  It's all the other people that will give this a quick read and might assume Global Entry is enough documentation to get on a cruise ship.  

 

I work seasonally at a cruise port, and have dealt with passengers who will just show up with their Global Entry card, which would be a boarding denial (no passport or US birth certificate).  So, probably 1/3 of my posts are to educate folks on what documents are needed for a closed loop cruise to Alaska, or the difference between an Enhanced DL and a Real ID driver's license.  It's a never ending battle, but if I (and others) can prevent one person from being denied due to a simple document issue, then it is all worth it.

Ferry watcher. I don't think the cruise lines or the government have done a good job explaining what a REAL ID is. So definitely appreciate your clarifying. I just bring everything! Ever since they went to online documents years ago, I think the cruise lines added to the confusion. I'm sure you get a real hard time when they can't board &:I would not want to be in your place to tell a cruiser that. 

[Barwick Cruiser]

We just did the checkin for our May Silhouette cruise embarking in Amsterdam…which is 6 hours ahead of us. Checkin begins on the 9th at 12:01am Amsterdam time so 6:01pm today for us. I went into the app and was able to get my preferred checkin time of 11:30 (earliest available) without adding any other documents such as passport etc. Was able to do this for all passengers in my booking so basically DH and myself. @catspaw1 you shouldn’t have any trouble getting an early boarding time without entering passport or photo if you’re online when checkin opens. Good luck! 

[catspaw1]

Thanks. I'll be online right at 1201am on checkin day 

[Octavias]

Well…. I stayed up to check in and it’s 12:08 pst. And I’m unable to check in.  I tried at 12 am est. too with no luck.  Not sure what time check in actually starts for my cruise. 

[Octavias]

29 minutes ago, Octavias said:

Well…. I stayed up to check in and it’s 12:08 pst. And I’m unable to check in.  I tried at 12 am est. too with no luck.  Not sure what time check in actually starts for my cruise. 

Looks like 12:10 was the magic time.  I guess the lesson here is that it may not be available at exactly midnight, but never fear, it will eventually let you get checked in! 

[catspaw1]

Thanks Octavis. That will be great to know. I will patiently wait. What boarding time did you get?

[SbbquilterUT]

Love my GE clearance for use in airports when entering the US.  Exiting the cruise port is a breeze in those ports with facial recognition and you used a passport for checkin. 

[TheHawk1]

14 hours ago, Barwick Cruiser said:

We just did the checkin for our May Silhouette cruise embarking in Amsterdam…which is 6 hours ahead of us. Checkin begins on the 9th at 12:01am Amsterdam time so 6:01pm today for us. I went into the app and was able to get my preferred checkin time of 11:30 (earliest available) without adding any other documents such as passport etc. Was able to do this for all passengers in my booking so basically DH and myself. @catspaw1 you shouldn’t have any trouble getting an early boarding time without entering passport or photo if you’re online when checkin opens. Good luck! 

I did the same thing for a recent February cruise and 11:30am was the earliest option.  I doubt  many people beat me to the punch at 12:01am, so thinking that Celebrity may not be offering any earlier boarding times, except to suite passengers.

 

That said, a couple recent threads on CC indicate that many people don't believe assigned check-in times apply to them and just show up for embarkation whenever it suits them. So staying up late to secure an early time may not be that worthwhile in the future.

[rinshin]

I leisurely went in to check in sometime in the afternoon and it automatically selected 11:30 AM for us on our cruise out of Amsterdam.   Did not realize this was the earliest check in time.