Fort Lauderdale Customs Procedure On B2B Cruises

We are taking our first B2B cruise this fall on the Eurodam out of Lauderdale. When returning to Lauderale after week one, I have heard that US Customs either clears B2B passengers in the terminal, or onboard the ship. Their decision that day.

I am wondering what the procedure is. Do passengers meet somewhere (and where?) and then clear Customs at the same time, or is it on a first-come, first-served basis? At what time does this generally occur?

Thx.

We have done this several times. You all meet in the showroom at a designated time (I think around 10am) and then either the customs people come on board and check you as you leave the showroom or you go off the ship as a group into the terminal - see the customs folks - then wait in a designated area in the terminal until the ship gets to the zero count and then you are free to reboard. Wait is usually less than 30 minutes.

We have done this several times. You all meet in the showroom at a designated time (I think around 10am) and then either the customs people come on board and check you as you leave the showroom or you go off the ship as a group into the terminal - see the customs folks - then wait in a designated area in the terminal until the ship gets to the zero count and then you are free to reboard. Wait is usually less than 30 minutes.

^^^ That OR If you intend to spend some time in Fort Lauderdale (quick trip to Total Wine perhaps ;p) you can just walk off as you would at any port, go through customs, and then re-embark at any time after the ship has been cleared.

Whether you are doing a back-to-back or a Collectors Cruise, it is Immigration that you go through on In Transit day. This is where you show your passport.

If you are going to do something ashore, then you will go through immigration in the terminal and you will have to turn in a customs form as you leave the building.

Whether it is done in the terminal or on the ship, depends on the number of people staying on for a second cruise. If it is a large number of people staying over, then the immigration people will come on board -- usually in the show room. It can start as early as 10 AM or as late at 11 AM. There have been times when we sat in the terminal up to 1 1/2 hours while they were hunting down a couple of people on the ship.

No one can get back on the ship until it is down to "zero" count.

It's really boring to get the ship to zero count [ passengers ],while we wait in the building on shore. Nothing any of us can do about it. We wait 30 mins, if we are lucky, or much longer waiting, if we have to wait for stragglers.

The upside is. We are the lucky ones and instead of flying or driving home, we continue to cruise.:cool:

Sandra

^^^ That OR If you intend to spend some time in Fort Lauderdale (quick trip to Total Wine perhaps ;p) you can just walk off as you would at any port, go through customs, and then re-embark at any time after the ship has been cleared.

We used to leave the ship when it was cleared, catch a taxi and go to a nearby hotel to use their pool/ facilities. We had friends there and it was a great way to spend the ds ay.

We also sometimes got off on ourr own, when permitted and would sit on the benches out side, Why sit in a terminal building on a gorrgeous S. Florida day? :)

We have done this several times. You all meet in the showroom at a designated time (I think around 10am) and then either the customs people come on board and check you as you leave the showroom or you go off the ship as a group into the terminal - see the customs folks - then wait in a designated area in the terminal until the ship gets to the zero count and then you are free to reboard. Wait is usually less than 30 minutes.

Thank-you.

If you have plans or want to leave the ship leave in the morning. My last b2b I went to the spa at a hotel and hung out by the pool for the day. Friends that met at the designated time were there for almost 2 hrs for the ship to be cleared. Boarding did not go very smoothly that day because of the delays. I came back around 230pm and went to the front of the line with my "in transit" pass (terminal was still packed due to delays) and was back on the ship in 10 min

The Port Everglades terminal has fast, free WiFi. I used it to do updates while DH went back on board, after we were marched past immigration and showed our passports. Ask the terminal staff where the best WiFi spots are, they helped me fine a very good one. When I was done, I just showed my In Transit card and proceeded back on board. m--

The few times we've been in-transit between cruises, we treated it like a port day and spent time ashore, sightseeing and/or doing a few errands. I like the idea of using a hotel as a day spa. That's a nice option.