Can we check in the luggage with the ship and then go out to tour the city?

[JerseyBird]

We will be boarding NCL Gem on Sunday in Barcelona. The check-in time is 12noon and sails away at 7pm. I have a few questions:

 

1. Can you possibly check-in early than 12noon?

2. Can you just check in your luggage and go out right way without getting on the ship?

3. How can I get to a ho-ho bus stop? Port shuttle bus or taxi only?

 

we will arrive Barcelona Saturday afternoon, plan to spend time in La Ramblas that evening/night.

 

What can we realistically do in the 5 hours of time on Sunday? What's the best option - by taxi or ho-ho bus?

 

Thank you very much for your input!

[Costafox]

I can't answer all your questions but we did check in for the Voyager of the Seas a few years ago and left to tour the city without boarding the ship. We were meeting up with friends so we got a city into the city and back.

 

We went straight from the airport to the port and had to wait about half an hour before check in started. I suppose it was around 11am.

 

Best Wishes

Gill

[Katypaty]

I was told by NCL that there was no luggage storage at the port, but she recommended renting a hotel room for the day and storing our luggage there. We arrive at 7:30 am and are allowed to board at 12 since we are past cruisers.

[sddsddean]

We checked in about 11am last year, so I would think you could drop your luggage around 10.30am. Check what the latest check in time is, then either get a taxi or the blue portbus. The port bus will drop you at the Colom monument at the bottom of Las Ramblas (€2 single, €3 return). It only takes about 10 minutes. There is a HOHO stop there, so you can jump straight on the next bus. Personally, when it gets near last check in time, I would grab a taxi to get back to the port, especially if you are in the city. It should only be about €15 - €20 from just about anywhere in the city.

 

Simon

[CruisingGoddess]

I can't answer all your questions but we did check in for the Voyager of the Seas a few years ago and left to tour the city without boarding the ship. We were meeting up with friends so we got a city into the city and back.

 

We went straight from the airport to the port and had to wait about half an hour before check in started. I suppose it was around 11am.

 

Best Wishes

Gill

 

Gill - When you did this, what time did you come back to the port to board the ship?

 

Thanks in advance!

[Drifting Happily]

I would try and do the HoHo bus on Saturday, if you can. They give you a great overview of the city. Then on Sunday you'll know where you want to go back to. If it's just to walk Las Ramblas, that will be easy to get to and you'll have plenty of time for that on Sunday.

[dfwguy62]

We were on the July 12th sailing of the NCL Gem. We flew overnight from New York and landed and were at the port by about 9:45 am. My plan was to drop off our bags as soon as possible and then take the Blue Bus or Taxi back into the city to do some sightseeing. The good news was that I was able to find the baggage guys and they willingly took my bags. It was a bit chaotic still as there were still a lot of people leaving the ship and there wasn't a formal process in place yet to take the bags, but there was a guy there who was in charge and he agreed to take them. He would not let us in the building into the waiting area until 10:30 however. Which was fine with us at the time. So... you might be able to leave the bags as early as 9:45 or 10:00 or so. But keep in mind it wasn't very orderly there yet. But a few others started to do the same thing around that time. I also suspect the process might be slightly different depending on which terminal building your ship is at. They are all somewhat different in layout, I think.

 

The bad news was that since the ship was still being disembarked, transportation back into the city was not easy. The Blue Bus showed up, but there was a line of 30-40 people with baggage waiting for it and it already had people on it. They took a few, but then the rest had to wait for the next bus. We decided not to do that. But also, the taxi line at that time was very long. I suspect it was maybe a 30-60 minute wait, based on what I've read since then. After seeing the lines for the bus and the taxi and starting to feel the very warm sun and then factoring in that none of us slept that well on the flight over the Atlantic, we opted to skip our return into the city and simply waited around for them to let us board the ship. Which, by the way, started more like 11:30 than noon, if I recall.

 

 

What I would do, if I had it to do again, was to take a taxi to the port and drop off the bags around 10:00-10:30 to allow for a little extra time to make sure they would take them. I would keep the taxi waiting while I dropped the bags off with the ship. Then I would get back in the same taxi and take it back to my desired location.

[JerseyBird]

I am rethinking my plan. Maybe I will leave my luggage in the hotel, or maybe rent a car or something.

 

Thanks a lot!

[CruisingGoddess]

I am rethinking my plan. Maybe I will leave my luggage in the hotel, or maybe rent a car or something.

 

Thanks a lot!

 

We are also arriving Saturday afternoon. We plan to request late checkout on Sunday and hopefully, leave the luggage in our room for as long as possible. If we cannot do late checkout, then we will leave the luggage with the bellman at the hotel until we are done sightseeing and are ready to go to the port.

[eandj]

I am rethinking my plan. Maybe I will leave my luggage in the hotel, or maybe rent a car or something.

 

Thanks a lot!

 

The hotel will store your luggage for you if you were a night guest. Do your sightseeing and then go back to the hotel to pick up your bags on the way to the port. That will save you time waiting for the ship to clear and from going all the way to the port twice.

 

You do NOT have to have a late checkout to store your bags as someone mentioned.

[edinburgher]

We have sometimes wanted to do the same thing, but have had to change plans if a shorter time than we anticipated is what we end up with. This can happen a lot because it depends at what time your Muster Drill is.

[CruisingGoddess]

The hotel will store your luggage for you if you were a night guest. Do your sightseeing and then go back to the hotel to pick up your bags on the way to the port. That will save you time waiting for the ship to clear and from going all the way to the port twice.

 

You do NOT have to have a late checkout to store your bags as someone mentioned.

 

You must have misunderstood my post. I did not say you "have to have late checkout" to store your bags. I said late checkout was MY preferred plan and storing my bags without late checkout was my backup.

 

I would prefer late checkout so I don't have to pack up everything before I go sightseeing but I realize that may not be an option.

[trojangirl90066]

If there is any way you can arrive the day before Barcelona is a great city to visit. That way you can leave your luggage at the hotel.