Taking Your Own Luggage Off

[gojojo]

When you carry your own luggage off, is there a set time you have to do it by? (Like 7am?)

[papermans]

I've wondered about this also. We did take our own luggage off last week and it was great. I would like to wait a little later to get off though. My thought is what are they going to do, not let you get off the ship?

[Sue L]

If you choose to leave later than the recommended time for self disembarkation. Good luck getting an elevator and getting out. The crowds were unbelievable and we had only one small wheeled carryon and we had trouble.

[gojojo]

When you got off the ship, did they "suggest" a time for you to get off? I can see them wanting people doing their own luggage to do it first and quick so then they can get to everything else.

[hcw80]

I think a lot of people choose this option because they want to leave the ship as early as possible. If you have an early luggage group, you may leave at that time. They do not penalize you if you are later than that. So for example, if blue is called before orange, they do not comb the ship for blue guest and make them leave at that time.

 

I think the cruise line and customs officials prefer that people who are carrying a lot of stuff clear the customs and other congested areas earlier so that later people can move through these checkpoints with minimum congestion. So I would think as a courtesy, you would want to leave when the carry on bags are called if you choose this option.

 

If you have any doubts talk to the front desk and see if you can't request an early or late time based on your travel arrangements.

 

Good luck

Heather

[Sue L]

When you got off the ship, did they "suggest" a time for you to get off? I can see them wanting people doing their own luggage to do it first and quick so then they can get to everything else.

 

 

The self disembarkation group was the first off, on our sailing the call was at 7:15am.

[familycruzer]

We carried our luggage off on our Voyager cruise. I think we had to be out of our cabin by 7:00 am but stuck around until about 7:30. We headed off to a lounge and by 8:00 were off the ship. It was easy and will opt to do it again on Freedom.

[papermans]

We filled out a form for self-assist a couple days before arrival and that was about it. We never received anymore information. We just got off when the ship docked. It was crowded though. I think everyone is wanting to carry their own bags instead of searching for their bags in the confusion at the dock.

[petel]

gojojo.......When you carry your own luggage off, is there a set time you have to do it by? (Like 7am?)

No, but if you don't want to go very early then why bother? The time you spend in line or in crowded public areas could be spent having a relaxed breakfast. Don't get me wrong, I think this self serve plan is great for those who need to end their vacation early. Like other posts have said, it is difficult to move through the crowds with all of your luggage after the color tags begin moving toward the exits.

[Smiling Cruiser]

It is not only difficult for you if you wait to get off, it makes it difficult for everyone else. I don't have a problem with anyone taking all their luggage and getting off the ship before me. (I don't self assist-too clumsy due to too much luggage.) I become unhappy when someone with several pieces of luggage, who has not disembarked early, slams into any of my body parts. I am well padded :mad:, but apparently that doesn't help. I know that the cruiser is not trying to bruise my body, and that it is difficult to maneuver with many pieces of luggage, but my body has no sympathy. Please leave with others who can defend themselves with their own luggage, or wait until the crowds thin and you have plenty of space. My Body thanks you!:)

 

PS. Could everyone please remember that backpacks have no visibility to the wearer. They should have to be registered!:D

[firefly333]

There was a set time for self assist on the Rhapsody. They said if you are not off between 7 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. you give up the time slot and have to go as usual.

 

We still waited 20 minutes for a elevator to get out by 7:30. We left our cabins by 7 a.m. They didnt give us much time to eat breakfast, it was not open until 6:30 so we didnt have much breakfast.

[Happy ks]

Smiling Cruiser, I have to agree with you 100%, so many people are trying to take multiple pieces when they self-disembark and it's a real hassle. Not just the danger of getting whacked by bags, but it seems everyone is trying to cram into the same small space.

 

We've done self-disembark once and will not do it again by choice. The 5 minutes it takes to find our luggage in the terminal is worth not having to juggle and haul bags through the ship, down the stairs, in the elevator, through the crowds, then only to stand in long lines trying to keep track of multiple pieces. We thought we were fine because we took small rollaboards and totes...wrong.

 

For those who want self-help, try to pack your stuff in one large bag, not several small ones balanced on top of others, then carrying backpacks, totes, large purses etc...

 

Getting ourselves off the ship was a total mess.

[papermans]

When we didn't use self-assist, we always had to get our bags before going through customs anyway. Are there ports where this is not the case?

[gojojo]

My plan to do self luggage would be to get off the ship early to do our own post cruise excursion prior to flight. I typically do the one large piece of luggage for my children and myself. While my son is a good strong 14 year old, I don't need to worry about multiple pieces of luggage and trying to be quick whether it's at the airport, hotel or port. Any other time, going the regular route is good. I was interested in the timing because it may not be worth trying to get my dd up and going that early.

[genteelarts]

We were on the Splendour two weeks ago. Self-assist debarkation times at Galveston were set for 7-730 AM. According to one of the staff members in the terminal, over 700 people decided to take this option. The Centrum was jammed, as were the stairwells from deck 2 to deck 7. The ship was releasing the self-assist passengers in groups to avoid overcrowding in the terminal. It was 850AM when the last group finally left the ship. The first "color" group was scheduled to debark at 7:45AM and was not called until 910AM. If there had been an emergency, it would have been difficult to clear the stairs or Centrum in an orderly and timely manner.

 

We had a leisurely breakfast, waited until our group was called, had our luggage in less than a minute upon arrival in the terminal, and cleared customs in less than 5 minutes. Beats the heck out of standing on a jammed staircase juggling luggage.

 

Self-assist a nice option for those that have very early flights or land transportation to catch. But RCI should limit the number of passengers who can take this option and should make sure the stairs are kept clear.

[lmmn]

When you carry your own luggage off, is there a set time you have to do it by? (Like 7am?)

Yes, when we were on the Explorer, you had to be ready at 6:15. If you are going to do this, I highly recommend packing light and having luggage with good wheels, stacks easily, and easy to pull. We also had one esculator.

[cruisldy]

Our first encounter with "Self Assist" was last year and I kept wondering what idiot thought up this. I am an experienced cruiser, having over 35 cruises in just 17 years behind me and as I recall anyone that needed to get off the ship early (such as for an early flight time) could put in for an early disembarkation and would be amongst the first groups called to get off. Has this "Self Assist" taken the place of the early off? The only difference that I see is that you must lug your luggage, instead of finding it in the masses. The hunting is much more appealing to me, as I have it down to a science now.:)

 

Someone asked if there is a time for this "Self Assist" to happen and it seems like this is why it is done, to get off the earliest possible, for whatever reason, so why would you want to not get off when they asked you to, since it was your choice to carry off your luggage and get off as early as you could? If you don't wish this way to do it, then get off with the rest of us, who don't mind waiting around for the colors or numbers to be called and also don't mind searching the mass of luggage for our own.

 

We will be cruising this Sunday and upon our return, I am sure not looking forward to all those "Self Assist" people clogging up the public areas, with their luggage, at the time my color or number is called for me to get off, with only a purse in my hand.

[CruiseZapper]

we always carry our own off but we make sure that our room is on the deck that you leave the ship by, really easy that way, at other times they did have everyone that carried their own off to leave by a certain time.

[Silque1964]

Here's a question I've not seen discussed:

 

We live in Florida, about 2 hours from Ft Lauderdale. We want to be one of the LAST off the ship (to avoid work traffic on the way home) and enjoy a nice breakfast before being shoved back into the "dry world". What's the LATEST we have to get off?

[Pradagal]

How much luggage do you take that you can't get it off yourself. We love getting off early. In Miami we were in our cab and to the airport by 8:30 our last cruise(NCL). We even had breakfast on board. We pack light and it has never been a problem getting off quickly.

Last time on Celebrity we had a CC cabin and it was a nightmare waiting for our color tags to be called. It took forever.Never again!

[apnep]

I'm going on the Radiance of the Seas this May to Alaska and we disembark at 7am in Seward. I want to take my own luggage off so I can get the heck outa there to catch an 8AM cruisetour...can I make it? Who do I have to talk to in order to make this happen?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

apnep

[papermans]

Each of us have one bag with wheels that is very easy to maneuver. If we had more, self-assist would not be an option.

[Nitra]

Here's a question I've not seen discussed:

 

We live in Florida, about 2 hours from Ft Lauderdale. We want to be one of the LAST off the ship (to avoid work traffic on the way home) and enjoy a nice breakfast before being shoved back into the "dry world". What's the LATEST we have to get off?

 

I always do this when I drive. I sit outside and enjoy a nice breakfast and coffee, no rush. By time I get off, my luggage is one of the lonely pieces still sitting there. I do not have to deal with lines or crowds this way. I also plan on getting every bit of my cruise and hate to get off until I have to. This usually works out to be around 10ish. I just wait until I dont see a lot of folks waiting to get off.

[funfamilyfun]

What is the latest you have to be out of your cabin? and What deck do you get off of the ship?(Mariner) Thanks, I know my kids will want to sleep as long as possible!

[firefly333]

.............But RCI should limit the number of passengers who can take this option and should make sure the stairs are kept clear.

 

I see you were on the Spendor out of Galveston. I was on the Rhapsody a week ago and it states right on the form you turn in that there are a limited quality allowed to self assist. It could be RCI does not enforce that only a limited number be allowed to self assist though.