Required to disembark in Southampton?

[vieux_carre]

I’m booked on the R/T Southampton (M505) that returns to Southampton on a Saturday morning.  I’m considering separately additionally booking M506A, the Southampton —> New York crossing, that departs from Southampton the same Saturday in the late afternoon.  I would be switching cabins as well as I would prefer to do the March crossing in a sheltered balcony (stability & weather concerns) but will have done the previous voyage, M505, in QG.  What are the logistics of this?  Will I be required to disembark at Southampton, go through UK border control, and reboard?  I know that in New York, US customs requires everyone to disembark to “zero-out” the ship.  Is this also the case with the UK passport control?  Also, how is our baggage dealt with when switching cabins across classes between back to back voyages?

[Winifred 22]

Definitely no requirement to zero out with UK immigration. Not sure how the cabin switch will work but others on here will

be more informative. You will need to sort out your new cruise card and your previous account will be settled. Bonus if you have any loyalty internet allowance, it will

be re-set. 

[D&N]

You usually clear UK immigration part way through your Eastbound crossing. You'll be assigned an afternoon to meet them in Britannia Restaurant Deck 3. If you were disembarking you would simply get off and walk away.

[stan01]

What I can report is what we were asked to do in July, 2024.  If you are moving cabins you will be asked to pack your bags and the crew will move them between the time you vacate the first room and the second room is available for you to occupy.  Of course if you wish you could also keep your bags with you.  You will be asked to go to the Purser's desk around 11:00 AM to pick up the new key.  

[Colin_Cameron]

When we have moved cabins all the stuff in drawers and on shelves went back in the cases but whatever was on hangers was moved using a rolling rail. The only fly in the ointment was that the QG hangers are removable with their own hooks but the Britannia ones were the hotel type with the loop around the rail. It took a few minutes longer than expected as all the hangers had to be swapped.

[tv24]

We once had to zero out in Southampton on a voyage from New York to Hamburg.  It was annoying as the weather in Southampton was dreadful and a bunch of us did not want to get off the comfortable Mary.  We had to sit in the cold cruise terminal for an hour or so before we were allowed to re-board.

[Germancruiser]

Oh dear- I am sailing from New York to Hamburg October 4th. So I fear I have to dissembark- well one can always walk into town and come back in time.

[exlondoner]

35 minutes ago, Germancruiser said:

Oh dear- I am sailing from New York to Hamburg October 4th. So I fear I have to dissembark- well one can always walk into town and come back in time.

I bet you don’t have to leave the ship. You will have cleared immigration. But, if you do, take the shuttle into town, the walk is no fun.

[ExArkie]

21 hours ago, stan01 said:

What I can report is what we were asked to do in July, 2024.  If you are moving cabins you will be asked to pack your bags and the crew will move them between the time you vacate the first room and the second room is available for you to occupy.  Of course if you wish you could also keep your bags with you.  You will be asked to go to the Purser's desk around 11:00 AM to pick up the new key.  

This was what we did in December 2022, also changing cabins while in Southampton on the turnaround. Only difference was that we were able to get our second leg key cards at about 9 AM, when the departing crowds had left. 
 

Ours was booked as two separate reservations for the two legs. We were required to go to the gangway to scan off our old cards, signifying the end of our reservation and closing out the record, then scan the new cards to show we had boarded in Southampton. Did not have to walk off the ship. 

[Germancruiser]

Thanks exlondoner- yes I did that once too, took the shuttle to the shopping mall in town and made my way around.

My second leg begins in Hamburg to Le Harve, Exarkie  - also booked in two separete bookings - so I think the prodecure is the same as in Southampton with different cards and such.

[sullaRaffaello]

I booked a back to back transatlantic on the QE2 in 1982. Even though I was in the same cabin on the return crossing, and I was permitted to leave my luggage in the cabin, I had to depart the ship and spend the night in a Southampton hotel. I realize that was 42 years ago and rules may have changed.

[TheOldBear]

19 minutes ago, sullaRaffaello said:

I booked a back to back transatlantic on the QE2 in 1982. Even though I was in the same cabin on the return crossing, and I was permitted to leave my luggage in the cabin, I had to depart the ship and spend the night in a Southampton hotel. I realize that was 42 years ago and rules may have changed.

We have done three round trips so far, and none of the turn around ports [Southampton, LeHavre, Hamburg] have required zeroing out. On our 2022 26 night round trip, only about 120 passengers booked all three component segments. 

[ExArkie]

9 hours ago, sullaRaffaello said:

I booked a back to back transatlantic on the QE2 in 1982. Even though I was in the same cabin on the return crossing, and I was permitted to leave my luggage in the cabin, I had to depart the ship and spend the night in a Southampton hotel. I realize that was 42 years ago and rules may have changed.

Is there anything that is still the same as it was 42 years ago? Interesting about having to spend the night in a hotel, which implies that “turnaround day” was an overnight endeavor. Do you know if this was common practice at the time (I couldn’t find anything that describes early-1980s standard practice for turnaround, but evidently overnight turnaround was not uncommon earlier in the century), or was there something special about this particular trip?

 

 

8 hours ago, TheOldBear said:

We have done three round trips so far, and none of the turn around ports [Southampton, LeHavre, Hamburg] have required zeroing out. On our 2022 26 night round trip, only about 120 passengers booked all three component segments. 

From what I have read, I think that US ports are the only ones that routinely require the ship be zeroed out. It may happen sporadically elsewhere, but it is standard practice in the US. Of course, I also have no direct experience, other than Southampton, so I could be completely off-base…which rarely stops me from giving an opinion. 

[exlondoner]

21 minutes ago, ExArkie said:

Is there anything that is still the same as it was 42 years ago? Interesting about having to spend the night in a hotel, which implies that “turnaround day” was an overnight endeavor. Do you know if this was common practice at the time (I couldn’t find anything that describes early-1980s standard practice for turnaround, but evidently overnight turnaround was not uncommon earlier in the century), or was there something special about this particular trip?

 

With five day crossings, the ship usually got to spend a couple of nights in port. Lovely for the crew.

From what I have read, I think that US ports are the only ones that routinely require the ship be zeroed out. It may happen sporadically elsewhere, but it is standard practice in the US. Of course, I also have no direct experience, other than Southampton, so I could be completely off-base…which rarely stops me from giving an opinion. 

Singapore?