Miss Embarkation on Purpose?

[GoofingOff]

A group of us are thinking about an 11 day cruise (Alaska - SF to Vancouver). One family cannot be away that long and wondered if its possible to miss embarkation on purpose and hook up at the first port of call. They don't mind paying the full-price.

 

They stumped me with that one. Anyone know?

[ReadyToCruiseAgain]

A group of us are thinking about an 11 day cruise (Alaska - SF to Vancouver). One family cannot be away that long and wondered if its possible to miss embarkation on purpose and hook up at the first port of call. They don't mind paying the full-price.

 

They stumped me with that one. Anyone know?

 

They will catch you up at your expense at the next port, it may not be cheap short notice

[kitty9]

They may not allow this if it's a violation of the Passenger Services Act. If that family misses the foreign port, which is why all Alaskan cruises make a stop in Canada, they won't allow anyone to board late. There is a very large per person fine for violating the PSA.

[GoofingOff]

They won't need to miss the only foreign port as that is Vancouver where we disembark. Here's the 11 night itinerary. Seattle would be the targeted catch-up port if Celebrity would allow it. Can anyone opine on this?

 

San Francisco, CA

At Sea

Astoria, OR

Seattle, WA

At Sea

Ketchikan

Juneau

Skagway

At Sea

At Sea

At Sea

Vancouver

[cruisead]

The only way for you to find out the answer is to call Celebrity yourself and ask. Only they know the real answer

[pegpowell]

And if their customer service reps are as helpful and knowledgeable on that as they are on other matters, you still won't know.

 

I do know that passengers who were denied boarding in SF, were told that if they didn't board in SF they would not be allowed to board later in LA. This was for Princess, can't remember where it was headed.

[TravelerThom]

They won't need to miss the only foreign port as that is Vancouver where we disembark. Here's the 11 night itinerary. Seattle would be the targeted catch-up port if Celebrity would allow it. Can anyone opine on this?

 

San Francisco, CA

At Sea

Astoria, OR

Seattle, WA

At Sea

Ketchikan

Juneau

Skagway

At Sea

At Sea

At Sea

Vancouver

As you already seem to understand, PSA does NOT apply as anywhere you board on this itinerary will a US port, provided you stay on to the final [foreign] port. I have heard of a number of people who have been allowed by X to shorten cruises on one end of the other [but at full price as you state]. Only way to know for sure is to call X and ask.

[Lisa63]

I agree the best course is to call Celebrity. Speak to a supervisor if you have to, and get any approvals in writing. You don't want your friends to risk being deemed no-shows in SF, and therefore denied boarding in Seattle.

[ocngypz]

A no-show in SFO will cancel the booking unless Celebrity knows what's going on.

[billsbrowneyedgirl]

And if their customer service reps are as helpful and knowledgeable on that as they are on other matters, you still won't know.

 

I do know that passengers who were denied boarding in SF, were told that if they didn't board in SF they would not be allowed to board later in LA. This was for Princess, can't remember where it was headed.

 

 

Curious, why would someone be denied to board?

[pegpowell]

Usually not traveling with passports and then not having an original of the birth certificate-not a copy and not a hospital certificate.

[critterchick]

Celebrity appears to allow you to take a partial cruise, so have your friends call them and arrange it. I know that on RCI you have to follow some fairly specific guidelines to make sure that you're ok embarking late (or disembarking early for that matter), so I would think that Celebrity as a sister line would have the same requirements.

[TravelerThom]

And if their customer service reps are as helpful and knowledgeable on that as they are on other matters, you still won't know.

 

I do know that passengers who were denied boarding in SF, were told that if they didn't board in SF they would not be allowed to board later in LA. This was for Princess, can't remember where it was headed.

Curious, why would someone be denied to board?

A number of possible reasons, the most likely two being:

1) The ship takes extensive precautions to keep those without proper documentation off. pegpowell gave likely reasons for being denied boarding initially in SF. Then since you did not board in SF you will not have a ship card to get on in LA, and they will have no one at the LA pier to check you in. You then MUST have written authorization from Miami HQ to get on board, and that would be difficult to get in the day or so involved.

2) The itinerary of this ship was not defined, but if it was a RT out of SF to non-distant foreign ports [eg Mexico] and back, then boarding in LA for a return to SF would be in violation of the PSA.

[OceanLiner]

One of the major considerations for which you must plan is the possibility that the ship does not arrive at Seattle. Mechanical failures, winds, currents, storms…….any number of things might divert the ship from the port. The QM2 skipped Cairo on her around the world cruise. I believe that a Princess ship had some passengers leave the ship to drive across New Zealand thinking that they were going to be picked up at the next port. Rough seas did not allow the ship into the port so the ship continued onwards to Australia. Those passengers in New Zealand were on their own and they lost the last 4 days of the cruise.