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Question on flights post cruise


July2016
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For those of you that have ended your river cruise in Basel. I'm sailing with AMA (Enchanting Rhine) and we dock in Basel at 3:30 am. I am contemplating booking a flight that departs Basel airport at 640 am. Would this be enough time? Thanks.

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I'm probably not the best person to answer your question because my boat was unable to dock in Basel. Due to high water, we disembarked in Strasbourg - which added about an hour to our bus transfer from the boat to the Basel airport. Since the airlines like for you to check in three hours in advance, you might be cutting it a bit close for the early flight out. With rivers dictating schedules, I think it's better to allow too much time rather than take the most convenient schedule. Just my thoughts.

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The airport in Basel is about a 20 minute drive from the dock. The airport there is pretty small so in airport transit time won't be much. Personally I wouldn't really want to risk a late arrival but go for it if you are feeling lucky. If AMA is providing your transfer they would likely tell you whether they would get you there in time. If you are doing your own transfer then you have to hope the cab would be there waiting on you when you dock.

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My questions are what are the assurances that the ship will actually dock at that time? How long after arrival at the dock will passengers be permitted to leave?

The dock in Basel is in an industrial area and there are docking locations on both sides of the river. Sometimes taxis have trouble finding the docking location especially in Basel during the day. You are talking about leaving the ship while it is still dark. I, personally, would pick a later flight time. I would not want to worry about the timing of my departure flight.

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Check with AMA and see what they think.

 

We had a similar situation on a recent Alaska cruise where we docked in Seattle at 7am and our flight was 11:30 am. (A bit better timing than yours). I asked our PCC what he thought and he said we would have plenty of time. I posted on CC what other opinions were and we were basically condemned for even asking such a 'stupid' question. There was no way we would make the flight thru TSA, the stress of it all would kill us, we would never make it etc.

 

We made our flight in plenty of time and actually waited about 2 hours. My point is ask AMA if anyone else has done this and if it is feasible.

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I am always one of the first of the passengers up in the morning. On the ships I have sailed, there is one crew member at the desk overnight and he/ she is the only person you see around before 6:00 am. The doors are locked and I very much doubt that the crew member at the desk would be able to allow you to leave that early. This is from a safety perspective.

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Based on my experience, the ship's staff will work with you however they can to expedite travel. Assuming that you decide that you can make the connection, they will arrange for a cab to pick you up and take your luggage out to the cab for you.

 

You can prearrange your own transportation, but that involves some risk. On our last cruise, we docked at Basel and had to arrange our own transport to the Zurich airport. I had prebooked a transfer, but the driver called and couldn't find the ship. The ship's staff gave me the name of the mooring site, but that didn't help the driver. I had to get off the ship and walk until I saw a street sign, and that allowed him to find us. It didn't help that my German was better than the driver's English!

 

FuelScience

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