Getting off the ship in New York and immigration

[Nikkipink]

I have had some queries answered so I know about the immigration process being dealt with in New York as you get off the ship (I shall be on board QM2 sailing from UK to New York, Halifax, Boston back to New York and then home to the UK) but I have been hearing some awful tales about queuing for hours to go through the process.

 

I shall be travelling with my parents who are in their 70s and queuing for any length of time to go through immigration and wanting to spend the day in New York doesn't sound like it will work well at all.

 

Can anyone say how long this process can take and do you have time to go into New York and can you go on official tours or will we have to wait until we sail back to New York on the return leg before enjoying a day there?

 

Thanks

 

Nikki

[transatlantic fan]

I have had some queries answered so I know about the immigration process being dealt with in New York as you get off the ship (I shall be on board QM2 sailing from UK to New York, Halifax, Boston back to New York and then home to the UK) but I have been hearing some awful tales about queuing for hours to go through the process.

 

I shall be travelling with my parents who are in their 70s and queuing for any length of time to go through immigration and wanting to spend the day in New York doesn't sound like it will work well at all.

 

Can anyone say how long this process can take and do you have time to go into New York and can you go on official tours or will we have to wait until we sail back to New York on the return leg before enjoying a day there?

 

Thanks

 

Nikki

We are on this trip and do self help.

If you do self help you will be off the ship first and has never taken us more than 30 mins from getting off the ship to getting a taxi, have always been in the city by 8 am at the latest.

hope this helps.

[Nikkipink]

Hello

 

thanks for your response - but I am not sure what you mean by self-help as we are not leaving the ship - we are just getting off for the day (hopefully) and continuing visiting the other ports, then back to New York and then sailing back to Southampton.

 

Nikki

[transatlantic fan]

What i am saying is you get get off with the self help people as you would be in transit then gat back on the ship by about 3 in the afternoon giving you 7 hours in New York.

[bobnatt]

First if you have an elderly family member you should talk with the Purser and ask for speciall consideration. If you do not need to bring your luggage through customs it is very easy. On my February cruise it took less than ten minutes to go through after i had obtained my luggage.

[billet]

Admittedly my mother uses a wheelchair to get on and off the ship but we talked to the purser who had us off the ship with the first batch (self help people) and we took a taxi to NY. At the Empire State she was back in her wheelchair to join the fairly long queue, even at 8:30 in the morning. Security whisked us to the front of the queue and we were in and out of the building by 9:30. I have applied to the Guiness Book of Records for the fastest trip ever. We then had a leasurely day using the Greyhound hop on hop off (or crawl on crawl off depending on your age) bus to do sightseeing.

[garigoun]

Hello

 

thanks for your response - but I am not sure what you mean by self-help as we are not leaving the ship - we are just getting off for the day (hopefully) and continuing visiting the other ports, then back to New York and then sailing back to Southampton.

 

Nikki

 

Self help means, in Cunard's definition, that you can handle all your luggage by yourself when walking off. As you are there for just the one day, presumably you won't have much luggage if any. You can be off the ship by 0730 and, as has been said, in the taxi queue by 0800. The only possible fly in the emolient is the poor dependability of the immigration computer system which has left us personnally queueing for a considerable time on 2 occasions. But hey, that's computers for you. Ordinairily you can be downtown by 0830/0845. Regarding Empire State, book online and avoid the queues.

Gari

[billet]

Regarding Empire State, book online and avoid the queues.

Gari

Well, I live and learn! The express pass would give even more time! Reading the notes it seems to get you to the front of both the lift queue and the security queue.

https://www.esbnyc.com/tickets/index.cfm?CFID=29155154&CFTOKEN=80836255

[garigoun]

Well, I live and learn! The express pass would give even more time! Reading the notes it seems to get you to the front of both the lift queue and the security queue.

 

We're here to help, well sometimes.

G.

[PunkiC]

Since you don't have any luggage, the fastest way to get through customs is to wait to disembark until all of the self-serve folks are gone and leave the ship just at the beginning of the the first group that is claiming luggage. Then, while they are claiming luggage, you can slip through customs with no line at all. It is a slick.

 

When you get off the ship, grab a town car. They are much, much nicer and often cheaper than taxis. When you get into town, arrange for the same car company to pick you up when you wish to return.

 

It is a piece of cake.

[garigoun]

Since you don't have any luggage, the fastest way to get through customs is to wait to disembark until all of the self-serve folks are gone and leave the ship just at the beginning of the the first group that is claiming luggage. Then, while they are claiming luggage, you can slip through customs with no line at all. It is a slick.

 

When you get off the ship, grab a town car. They are much, much nicer and often cheaper than taxis. When you get into town, arrange for the same car company to pick you up when you wish to return.

 

It is a piece of cake.

 

Punkie, you bin readin' ma mail.

G.

[slgjhg]

My wife and I are Bridge teachers. In that capacity we did 3 cruises on the QM2 this spring from Brooklyn. Admittedly we are US citizens, but we got off on 3 days when they emptied the whole ship. There was nothing to it. Very reasonable lines. Half hour tops including getting our luggage. Harder to get cab to town than clearing Customs and Immigration.

[GeorgeW]

Admittedly my mother uses a wheelchair to get on and off the ship but we talked to the purser who had us off the ship with the first batch (self help people) and we took a taxi to NY. At the Empire State she was back in her wheelchair to join the fairly long queue, even at 8:30 in the morning. Security whisked us to the front of the queue and we were in and out of the building by 9:30. I have applied to the Guiness Book of Records for the fastest trip ever. We then had a leasurely day using the Greyhound hop on hop off (or crawl on crawl off depending on your age) bus to do sightseeing.

 

Please, a tiny correction.

 

The NYC hop-on, hop-off tour bus is a "Gray Line" bus.

 

Greyhound is the name of a US inter-state bus line-- and not what you're looking for.

 

I speak as a native New Yorker, and I can say the Gray Line bus tour is a terrific way to see the town and pay one price and be able to 'hop on' and 'hop off'. My Aunt Annie came to NYC and she couldn't walk very far, so we found this a perfect solution. We got off only once at the South Street Seaport for lunch but saw all the skyscrapers and the park and the UN etc. It's a double-decker open-air bus and it seems there's always one around.

[astrogirl66]

The normal city buses are also wheelchair accessible.

[bobnatt]

The normal city buses are also wheelchair accessible.

 

 

In theory but the reality is that this does not always work well with broken lifts on some of the buses, etc.

[billet]

Please, a tiny correction.

 

The NYC hop-on, hop-off tour bus is a "Gray Line" bus.

 

Greyhound is the name of a US inter-state bus line-- and not what you're looking for.

 

I speak as a native New Yorker, and I can say the Gray Line bus tour is a terrific way to see the town and pay one price and be able to 'hop on' and 'hop off'. My Aunt Annie came to NYC and she couldn't walk very far, so we found this a perfect solution. We got off only once at the South Street Seaport for lunch but saw all the skyscrapers and the park and the UN etc. It's a double-decker open-air bus and it seems there's always one around.

 

Off my mistake - I must spend more time at home so that I can concentrate better. All this packing and unpacking gives so little time to do anything else.

[guernseyguy]

Admittedly we are US citizens

 

Hooray! Someone finally makes the distinction - the queue for US citizens is usually very short - for others (which I guess the OP from Yorkshire, England is) can be very long - I've waited for over an hour before now - 45 minutes is typical, 30 minutes I'd consider fast. If you are in transit 'self help' does not apply - but check with the purser to see if you can get off then - its very early, but there will be almost no queue. The tours are usually asked to disembark reasonably early in the process - but there can be a substantial queue by then. Waiting until the end is unlikely to work as they want to clear the ship - but there can still be a long queue in immigration.

 

Peter

[Nikkipink]

Thank for the further info re queues and buses. We will be in the queue for UK citizens. I presume if I anticipate a long wait it can only be shorter than expected!

 

Please tell me we don't have to go through the same process when we call at New York for the second time during the voyage?

 

Nikki

[guernseyguy]

Please tell me we don't have to go through the same process when we call at New York for the second time during the voyage?

 

No - but you will have to clear immigration in Boston (I assume the Itinerary is SOU-NYC-HALIFAX-BOS-NYC-SOU) - so after Halifax (that well known den of terrorists and all things foreign) you will have to clear immigration again to enter the US......but not after sailing BOS-NYC. If Halifax is your last stop before NYC, then yes, I am afraid you will.

[capnpugwash]

I did a TA from UK to NYC and then up to Halifax, returning directly to NYC and we naturally (although peculiarly) had to go through immigration both times BUT I had completed my green TWOV form as usual together with customs form each time and the immigration guy said that as the green stub was still in my passport I need not have completed the TWOV form for the second visit. This is good news and I have never experienced it in any of my many visits albeit by air. I am not sure that I would want to stand in line without the form just in case but I tell you the story so that you may make your own decision.

[billet]

Hooray! Someone finally makes the distinction - the queue for US citizens is usually very short - for others (which I guess the OP from Yorkshire, England is) can be very long - I've waited for over an hour before now - 45 minutes is typical, 30 minutes I'd consider fast. If you are in transit 'self help' does not apply - but check with the purser to see if you can get off then - its very early, but there will be almost no queue. The tours are usually asked to disembark reasonably early in the process - but there can be a substantial queue by then. Waiting until the end is unlikely to work as they want to clear the ship - but there can still be a long queue in immigration.

 

Peter

If past history is anything to go by the majority of passengers on the US/Canada cruise will be US Citizens. The joy is that the non US lines are then shorter than the US lines when you get to Boston, depending of course on the vagaries of the US Immigration process.