Will They Hold The Ship?

[mandms40]

My question is, my flight gets into Miami at 2:00, ship leaves at 4:00, will they wait?

 

Going on a group cruise and are using fly away thru Carnival...will they hold the ship?

 

Getting paranoid about all this!!!

[wrp96]

No they won't hold the ship. And it's very unlikely you will make it as you have to be onboard no later than 3pm. The pier is about 30 minutes away from the airport.

[LHP]

My question is, my flight gets into Miami at 2:00, ship leaves at 4:00, will they wait?

 

Going on a group cruise and are using fly away thru Carnival...will they hold the ship?

 

Getting paranoid about all this!!!

 

Make sure you have insurance.

 

Sadly (generally) they will not hold the ship. In fact NOW because of Homeland Security changes...you must be ON THE SHIP one hour before it is allowed to sail.

 

So even though it sails at 4PM...it is my understanding that you MUST be onboard by 3PM. Make sure you have your Funpass completed as well!!

 

We always fly in the day before. I know that is not always possible for folks..but even if we are just driving 6 hours down to New Orleans...we go down a day ahead.

[Cuizer2]

It depends. It depends on how many people are in the same "boat" as you. It depends on Carnival even knowing about the delay. It depends on whether or not the delay will impact the itinerary. It depends on the amount of the delay.

 

However, don't expect any special treatment just because Carnival made the flight arrangements for you. This is just another example of why it is better to book your own flights and arrive one day ahead of time.

[mandms40]

I will go to greater detail...

 

Our company, bought us all a cruise, includes everything but the drinks, flights and all, they went thru a travel agent, not to be named, that lives in another state...they are booking everything, cruise, flights, transfers, everything.

 

We have alot of employees, there are 4 different dates that we could pick from, on my date, we have about 120 people going(including spouses)

 

We have no say so as to when we fly, they are doing all the booking. We are on the 2nd cruise, Well, the first cruise came out(flight info) today, alot dont arrive in Miami until 2:00pm. To me, that is cutting it way too close.

 

I am holding my breath for the 2nd cruise info to come out, something tells me, we wont get in until then either.

 

Whats your take on this?

[Cuizer2]

I will go to greater detail...

 

Our company, bought us all a cruise, includes everything but the drinks, flights and all, they went thru a travel agent, not to be named, that lives in another state...they are booking everything, cruise, flights, transfers, everything.

 

We have alot of employees, there are 4 different dates that we could pick from, on my date, we have about 120 people going(including spouses)

 

We have no say so as to when we fly, they are doing all the booking. We are on the 2nd cruise, Well, the first cruise came out(flight info) today, alot dont arrive in Miami until 2:00pm. To me, that is cutting it way too close.

 

I am holding my breath for the 2nd cruise info to come out, something tells me, we wont get in until then either.

 

Whats your take on this?

 

I would suggest that your company change travel agents.

[mandms40]

I said the same thing!http://boards.cruisecritic.com/images/icons/icon8.gif

[jaybeedee]

You may think you don't have a choice, but maybe the people putting this together aren't aware of the 3pm rule.

 

I don't think 2pm will give you enough time UNLESS EVERYTHING goes right... If you get to your gate at 2pm, go to baggage, catch a cab... it will get you at port just around 3pm. What if your plane is delayed? What if your baggage is not there and you need to speak to someone about what to do when they find it?

 

It may bother you to speak up now, but think about how much worse you'll feel when you watch that ship pulling away without you onboard!

[LaVere28]

I will go to greater detail...

 

Our company, bought us all a cruise, includes everything but the drinks, flights and all, they went thru a travel agent, not to be named, that lives in another state...they are booking everything, cruise, flights, transfers, everything.

 

We have alot of employees, there are 4 different dates that we could pick from, on my date, we have about 120 people going(including spouses)

 

We have no say so as to when we fly, they are doing all the booking. We are on the 2nd cruise, Well, the first cruise came out(flight info) today, alot dont arrive in Miami until 2:00pm. To me, that is cutting it way too close.

 

I am holding my breath for the 2nd cruise info to come out, something tells me, we wont get in until then either.

 

Whats your take on this?

 

I would say take care of the airfare yourself if you really want to go. If you cut it that close there may be 120 watching as the ship leaves from port.

[Cuizer2]

I will go to greater detail...

 

Our company, bought us all a cruise, includes everything but the drinks, flights and all, they went thru a travel agent, not to be named, that lives in another state...they are booking everything, cruise, flights, transfers, everything.

 

We have alot of employees, there are 4 different dates that we could pick from, on my date, we have about 120 people going(including spouses)

 

We have no say so as to when we fly, they are doing all the booking. We are on the 2nd cruise, Well, the first cruise came out(flight info) today, alot dont arrive in Miami until 2:00pm. To me, that is cutting it way too close.

 

I am holding my breath for the 2nd cruise info to come out, something tells me, we wont get in until then either.

 

Whats your take on this?

 

The following is from the Carnival website ...

 

Embarkation Hours:

Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Mobile, Galveston, Tampa, Port Canaveral, New Orleans, Los Angeles and San Diego - 1:30 P.M.

 

New York, Vancouver, Rome (Civitavechia) and Whittier – 12:30 P.M.

 

San Juan - 2:30 P.M.

 

London (Dover) - Noon

 

Honolulu - 1:00 P.M.

 

Ensenada - 6:00 P.M.

 

You must check in at least one hour prior to departure.

 

Here is a link to the website ...

http://www.carnival.com/CMS/FAQs/Embarkation_Arrival.aspx

 

Okay, lets assume your flight is on time (it could happen). So your flight arrives at 2:00pm. You said your ship leaves at 4:00pm. Per the above, you have to be checked in by 3:00pm. So you've got one hour.

 

The following is from a site specifically for travel between the airport and the port ...

 

Travel Time: Approximately 30 to 45 Minutes. Schedule: If you're flying in, your pick up time should be scheduled 30 Minutes after your flight lands allowing you enough time to collect your luggage from baggage claim. Port pick ups should be scheduled no earlier than 09:00AM.

 

Here is the link ...

 

http://www.tforlando.com/ondemand/miami_airport_to_port_of_miami.htm

 

 

What this site is saying is, it takes a little under 30 minutes to get off the plane, walk to baggage claim, get your luggage and get outside for a pick up. Then it takes 30 to 45 minutes to get from the airport to the cruise dock. In other words, even if everything is on time, you will be too late. Your travel agent obviously is not very knowledgeable about cruise travel.

 

I would estimate that it is twelve miles from the airport to the port. So that has to be at least 25 minutes. Under a best case scenario, you get your luggage in 20 minutes and arrive at the port 15 minutes prior to the 3:00pm deadline. Any delay under the best case scenario and you are late.

[ChrissyBTX]

My question is, my flight gets into Miami at 2:00, ship leaves at 4:00, will they wait?

 

Going on a group cruise and are using fly away thru Carnival...will they hold the ship?

 

Getting paranoid about all this!!!

 

I agree with the others. They definitely used the wrong travel agent. I can't believe they did that!

 

I'm curious. Are you on a direct non-stop flight from OK to MIA? Or do you change planes? Like the other poster said, if everything goes just perfect you might possibly make it. If you're flight is delayed by even 30 minutes or if there is a weather delay, I think you're up a creek.

 

When is your cruise? Can they change the flights? Are all these people flying to MIA from OK or are they all coming from different cities?

 

I always fly out a day early. I'm flying to FLL a day early for my next cruise and I'm worrying now if I shouldn't have flown in two days prior. I just worry

mostly about weather delays, especially flying from the south, midwest or FL area where they have alot of storms.

[LHP]

The bad news is that you may not make it.

 

The good news is that they will fly you to the next port...so it won't be a total loss.

 

More bad news is that your travel day will be one of STRESS...but what a great company to send their employees on a free cruise!!!

[ChrissyBTX]

I'm sitting here blaming the TA for booking a late flight. If they booked thru Carnival, I should actually shift my blame towards Carnival. Why on earth would they do that? They should know better. Or do they just not care?

[Mike45]

I just got off the phone about an hour ago about miami airport and the cruise terminal. Carnival said your flight has to be on the ground by 2:00 pm at the very latest.

[Ms Belvedere]

On page 15 of the Carnival Fun Ships booklet "Things to Know Before You Go" in our travel docs it says, " If you are experiencing a travel delay en route to the ship or after your voyage, call our travel hotline at 1-877-885-4856 or 1-305-406-4779." That's a number I'd keep handy and call when you land if it's 2:00 pm when you get off the plane.

 

If you don't have pre-arranged transport to the ship from the airport, I'd send someone out to get a cab and have it ready to load up with the luggage that the others are gathering inside.

 

I wish you the best of luck making the ship. If the stars are aligned, if you've done good things and have earned some helpful karma, if you have a good flight and the plane is on time or ahead of time, if you have a great driver from the airport to the pier, you might get there and have a drink in hand for sailaway. Let us know how you made out when you get back! :)

[valancy1]

Here's one way to avoid delay--EVERYONE of the 120 people carry on their bag (ONE) onto the plane. Depending on where you come from, that may or may not be possible because of the plane used (regional jets have very little on-board storage).

 

There are holes in this theory... not everyone is going to carry on (liquids being limited, no space, etc.). So even if YOU carried on, because you're with a group, you're still going to have to wait for everyone that doesn't carry on to get their luggage.

 

Show your boss this thread. See what they can do on getting it changed now, while you still have the time. it's GREAT they got everyone a cruise and you'll have a blast; however, you might need to be the one that saves the day to get this stuff switched before 120 of you are all disappointed by missing the ship by moments.

 

Good luck!

[98Charlie]

Just chiming in to say that I'd be in contact with whoever I could within the company and let them know about the problem.

 

Are all of you flying from OKC or are they coming from a lot of different cities? If so, you may be just one of the few that is in the later than late category.

 

Hope you can get it resolved.

 

Charlie

[mandms40]

We are flying in from Tulsa, some are landing in Fort Lauderdale, some are in Miami, they have everyone on different flights, which is worse.

 

I think what I am going to do, when our schedule comes out, if I dont get in until 2:00, I will book my own airfare, the day before, I DONT WANT TO MISS THE SHIP!

 

I will keep everyone updated, These Travel Agents are suppose to be flying in Sept. 25 with all the details, and believe me, I will inform them of the timeline.

[VentureMan_2000]

Hope it all works out well for you.

 

Best of luck. :)

[valancy1]

We are flying in from Tulsa, some are landing in Fort Lauderdale, some are in Miami, they have everyone on different flights, which is worse.

 

I think what I am going to do, when our schedule comes out, if I dont get in until 2:00, I will book my own airfare, the day before, I DONT WANT TO MISS THE SHIP!

 

I will keep everyone updated, These Travel Agents are suppose to be flying in Sept. 25 with all the details, and believe me, I will inform them of the timeline.

 

Yikes... FLL is even further away. Miami traffic *can be* pretty hectic. I HOPE YOU DO NOT have to pay for this airfare--I hope your employers can fix this big mess.

 

Fingers crossed for you,

[Disneycruisers]

We are flying in from Tulsa, some are landing in Fort Lauderdale, some are in Miami, they have everyone on different flights, which is worse.

 

I think what I am going to do, when our schedule comes out, if I dont get in until 2:00, I will book my own airfare, the day before, I DONT WANT TO MISS THE SHIP!

 

I will keep everyone updated, These Travel Agents are suppose to be flying in Sept. 25 with all the details, and believe me, I will inform them of the timeline.

 

Yes mandms40, please keep us informed. I hope this works out for you and the company. (Sounds as if it's a great company! Sending their employees on a cruise!):)

[DocF]

My question is, my flight gets into Miami at 2:00, ship leaves at 4:00, will they wait?

 

Going on a group cruise and are using fly away thru Carnival...will they hold the ship?

 

Getting paranoid about all this!!!

 

All I can tell you is when we were on the Glory last October, our departure was delayed a very few minute account a busload of passengers who had booked their air through Carnival were delayed in traffic. We did not wait long, but we did wait for them. I've never seen 45 people checked in and boarded and the bags loaded so fast.

 

Doc:D

[pjtulsa]

mandms40,

 

In July Carnival held the ship for over 2 hours in Italy for a group of 25+ passengers that were affected by a strike at the airport in Germany.

 

As for your air reservations. Who are you flying on? I am flying from Tulsa to Tampa and was recently able to move my flight up. You might try to call the airline when you receive your flights and try to get on the 6 am flight out of Tulsa. That would give you time to make an earlier connection. They are starting to cut flights to/from Tulsa so I would do it as soon as possible.

 

Good Luck,

[mom&me_cruising]

Wow, that's really tight timing. I would be a worry wort until I get on the ship if I'm in similar situation.

 

Hmmm... I thought if air is purchased through Carnival, then they would wait. But another poster said it is not true. So what good is purchasing air from Carnival. :confused:

 

I also thought paying more for Carnival sponsored tours mean the ship would wait for the group to get back before sailing. :confused:

 

Hope it all works out for you and the other employees. What a great gesture from the company. Stupid TA though.

[98Charlie]

Wow, that's really tight timing. I would be a worry wort until I get on the ship if I'm in similar situation.

 

Hmmm... I thought if air is purchased through Carnival, then they would wait. But another poster said it is not true. So what good is purchasing air from Carnival. :confused:

 

I also thought paying more for Carnival sponsored tours mean the ship would wait for the group to get back before sailing. :confused:

 

Hope it all works out for you and the other employees. What a great gesture from the company. Stupid TA though.

In general those statements are true. But, if you read the cruise contract you will see that Carnival is not responsible for 3rd parties errors which specifically includes transportation (like flights and transfers) and tour companies (excursions).

 

The cruise lines will do what they can. But, they are under no obligation to wait for anyone.

 

Charlie