Check in and boarding independence of the seas

Hello everyone

My father and I are going on independence of the seas out of Fort Lauderdale next week. I have a few questions if anyone can help. What time is check in and boarding? As diamond members is there priority check in and boarding ? We are in a junior Suite so does that have priority check in and boarding? My father is the diamond member but he is 82 and cannot remember his past experiences hence the reason I am asking this info. We arrive in Miami at 550am and are trying to decide best time to take a shuttle as we don't want to be waiting around at port too long. We can wait at airport in AA admirals club instead of hanging around port.

Boarding will usually start anywhere between 11am and noon. You will have priority check-in and boarding by virtue of being Diamond and being in a suite. I'd pick whatever line is shorter.

We were on Aug 2nd, 2015 sailing & are diamond.

Arrived & checked in by around 10:30.

We were on the ship by 11:30ish.

Have a great cruise!

Enjoy the Admirals Club and don't be in a big hurry to board. You should be in Terminal 18, RCL's newest terminal there. It's a quick and easy check in for Suite guests. Should be less suite guests than Diamonds checking in, but as Bob said, take the shortest line.

We were on Indy 3 weeks ago and loved it! Enjoy your cruise!

Rick and Deirdra

Hi All,

I've been trying to figure out the best time to get to Port Everglades with my mom for our NYE cruise. We're both D+ but she uses a walker so needs assistance and that means no priority boarding. The last 3 times we went on the Liberty out of FLL it was a nightmare - over 2 hours to board and she was exhausted by the time we got on. We normally get there about 11:00 because we (like everyone else) want to get on and start enjoying ourselves. Does anyone have experience with this, is 11:00 too early or too late?

Thank you :)

Vickie

Boarding started right at 11:30 a couple weeks ago when we were on Indy

I prefer getting on the ship once the rooms are ready around 1:00 pm, so I usually don't get to the pier until around noon

Get there around 11-11:30 am....boarding will have begun, and it's a pretty fast procedure, most of the time!!!

Thanks for the feedback! I think we're going to get there a little earlier than before and hopefully they are ready for folks who need wheelchair assistance. Counting the days until we leave:)

Enjoy Ricky Mathew , amazing cruise director

Hi All,

 

I've been trying to figure out the best time to get to Port Everglades with my mom for our NYE cruise. We're both D+ but she uses a walker so needs assistance and that means no priority boarding. The last 3 times we went on the Liberty out of FLL it was a nightmare - over 2 hours to board and she was exhausted by the time we got on. We normally get there about 11:00 because we (like everyone else) want to get on and start enjoying ourselves. Does anyone have experience with this, is 11:00 too early or too late?

If someone needs wheelchair assistance to board, the time required depends on how many other people also need assistance as there are only so many wheelchairs and "pushers" available, so they need to take a group on then return for more. If there are a lot who need help, then the wait will be longer. If few need help, then you don't need to wait as long. No way of telling that in advance.

Thanks Geri,

I know it's a bit of a guessing game but hadn't waited too long when we cruised in the past but they were slightly smaller ships- Voyager size. Ever since we upgraded to the Liberty getting on board takes several hours. I just wish there was an easier way to get my mom on board.