Carnival Fascination - FTTF, flights, questions

Hi, Looking at flights to San Juan compared to the staggered check in times on the online check in.

it looks like my flight wont get in until a little after 12 noon. approx. 20 mins to the port.... Is FTTFworth it when the first check in time available is 1pm?

might still get it just to have access to the room as soon as we board.

Also, I read somewhere that it is best to have a flight after 12 noon on disembarkation because of how the long airport lines get. can anyone speak to this? looking at either a 12 noon flight or 6pm.

I just booked this ship for August. My research so far has everyone saying FTTF is not worth it at all. I'm planning on flying in the day/night before. Not seeing a lot of good flight times. Also on the return flight I'm planning leaves at about 11:30. It was the only good option. I cruised Valor out of San Juan a few years ago and I recall we were at the airport much earlier than we expected.

im hoping to fly direct. both options out of DC will get us to SJU between 12 and 1230. and for flying back direct leave at 12p and 6p. if we don't fly direct, the lay overs are insanely long (8+ hours) or 30 mins in JFK (that's a no no).

being there earlier than expected makes me feel better about booking the 12 departure flight.

Yeah, my flight options aren't great but I have a lot of time to see if anything is added. San Juan is a lot of fun if you go a few days early, but it gets expensive. I think we spent more in 2 days in San Juan than we did for the cruise last time. LOL The fact the ship leaves so late makes flying the same day more realistic.

Done this itinerary twice on Fascination.... your room should be ready by the time you get there.

Done this itinerary twice on Fascination.... your room should be ready by the time you get there.

Kelib,

I will be cruising out of San Juan in Feb 2017 on Fascination. Have FTTF so we can get on asap, drop stuff in room, eat and go explore old San juan for the day..

In your experience, when do they usually start boarding in San Juan?

We have cruised on Carnival many times in other ports and usually arrive around 10:30am to check in and get in earlier boarding groups for when they start embarkation at 11:30-noonish, depending on the ship and port. Is this (starting to board around 11-noon) any different in San Juan since the ship doesn't sail until 10pm? Have you done FTTF in San Juan? The "excursion" time for FTTF says 12:00pm-1:00pm...obviously we could show up anytime later, but does it sound reasonable to arrive at port at 10:30 or 11am, or is that way too early?

Thanks!

Hi, Looking at flights to San Juan compared to the staggered check in times on the online check in.

 

it looks like my flight wont get in until a little after 12 noon. approx. 20 mins to the port.... Is FTTFworth it when the first check in time available is 1pm?

 

might still get it just to have access to the room as soon as we board.

 

Also, I read somewhere that it is best to have a flight after 12 noon on disembarkation because of how the long airport lines get. can anyone speak to this? looking at either a 12 noon flight or 6pm.

Suggest you inquire for ideal flight time out of San Juan on the San Juan, PR forum. I heard previously of some long lines and delays at Customs in San Juan.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=131

If you are scheduled to arrive at noon you have to consider how long it will take for things like getting your luggage, taxi line, etc. in addition to the 20 minute ride. I have a feeling the rooms will be ready by the time you board. I wouldn't bother with FTTF, especially with the price increase. I would prefer to spend a lot less money for a drink at the lobby bar if I had to sit a while and wait to get to the room.

In San Juan, your bags have to go through agricultural inspection and get a sticker before you can check them. If you do online checkin before you get to the terminal, then you can do the ag thing and then just go to the counter to check the bags. Thre can be a long line there, too. After that, you hit security. EM

Since we were staying in OSJ prior to our last cruise we had FTTF in San Juan and not sure that I would do it again. You do get your own line at check in, you get a priority line at the customer service desk, but that's about it. I'm not sure I agree with staggered check-in during a San Juan embarkation. It's so laid back and such a late departure that I'm not sure it's necessary. Both times we've sailed from San Juan the entire process has been smooth. I'm sure some have had experiences that were not this way, but this has been our experience.

Whether it's worth it is completely subjective, but I can give you feedback based on my experience. I had FTTF for my Fascination cruise last November. When I ended up scheduling a pre-cruise excursion that had us not arriving to port until 4:00, I almost canceled it due to the fact that the main reason I usually get it is to have our room ready when we board. Obviously it would be ready at 4:00 no matter what.

I can say that it did end up being worth it for us because this was the one cruise that we ended up having to go to Guest Services more than any other cruise. Not for anything bad, but in any case, we saved a lot of time waiting in long lines by being able to use the Diamond/Platinum/FTTF line. So I don't regret having it in San Juan despite the late embarkation and no tenders.

There is now staggered check-in (at least beginning Feb. 19) in San Juan with the earliest time being 1 pm. I know because I just got the e-mail from Carnival and had to choose my check in under the Manage tab.

Hi, Looking at flights to San Juan compared to the staggered check in times on the online check in.

 

it looks like my flight wont get in until a little after 12 noon. approx. 20 mins to the port.... Is FTTFworth it when the first check in time available is 1pm?

 

might still get it just to have access to the room as soon as we board.

 

Also, I read somewhere that it is best to have a flight after 12 noon on disembarkation because of how the long airport lines get. can anyone speak to this? looking at either a 12 noon flight or 6pm.

I can attest to long airport lines. Arrive at least 3 hours before your flight and the earlier the better. Last year we got there at 10am and took about 3 hours between check in and security. The place was a zoo with all the cruise ship pax

I just booked this ship for August. My research so far has everyone saying FTTF is not worth it at all. I'm planning on flying in the day/night before. Not seeing a lot of good flight times. Also on the return flight I'm planning leaves at about 11:30. It was the only good option. I cruised Valor out of San Juan a few years ago and I recall we were at the airport much earlier than we expected.

Same here. Our flight out will be at 11:40. It's too bad they only offer one or two "good" flights. My sister and I cruised this itinerary a few years ago. Our flight was for around 2:00. We arrived at the airport around 9:00 and sat there for HOURS.

However, if you book the earlier flight, definitely plan to handle your own luggage!

Same here. Our flight out will be at 11:40. It's too bad they only offer one or two "good" flights. My sister and I cruised this itinerary a few years ago. Our flight was for around 2:00. We arrived at the airport around 9:00 and sat there for HOURS.

 

However, if you book the earlier flight, definitely plan to handle your own luggage!

Yeah I've been reading a lot and looked back at my cruise on Valor and we were on the 11:40 flight then also. We took our own luggage and we sat around for a while at the airport.

I find it funny that so many people are saying noon is too early but then in another thread about a 3 PM flight they are saying to leave luggage at a restaurant in Old San Juan (Barachina) and do lunch and shopping. If noon is too early to make then I can't see how 3 PM leaves time for touring.

I can attest to long airport lines. Arrive at least 3 hours before your flight and the earlier the better. Last year we got there at 10am and took about 3 hours between check in and security. The place was a zoo with all the cruise ship pax

THIS is the best reason for a post cruise stay. We stayed a couple nights post cruise and the airport was a ghost town. We arrived early just incase and wound up sitting around for what seemed like forever.

There is now staggered check-in (at least beginning Feb. 19) in San Juan with the earliest time being 1 pm. I know because I just got the e-mail from Carnival and had to choose my check in under the Manage tab.

Birdy,

Are you on the Feb. 19 Fascination cruise? If so, please join us on the roll call. We are also sailing on Feb. 19.

Howard

I just booked this ship for August. My research so far has everyone saying FTTF is not worth it at all. I'm planning on flying in the day/night before. Not seeing a lot of good flight times. Also on the return flight I'm planning leaves at about 11:30. It was the only good option. I cruised Valor out of San Juan a few years ago and I recall we were at the airport much earlier than we expected.

We just got off this cruise. I'd never been on one before, and I did buy FTTF for priority embarkation/disembarkation. Hubby and I are not sure whether it is worth it overall (they did not maintain separate lines at various ports, so if you wanted to go faster, you'd have to cut, and we aren't that assertive).

However, reading about the staggered boarding times, and seeing the staggered disembarkation times upon return, I think it was worthwhile for us this particular time. We were able to get on the boat the first day by 11 AM and put our extra bags in our stateroom, then get off the boat and have a full day to explore Old San Juan unencumbered. When we returned, our check out time was 8:30 AM, two or more hours earlier than it would have been without FTTF.

Our flight out was at 4 pm, so we took our bags to the Sheraton across the street and asked to check them for the day (they let us, for a fee), and had the whole day to enjoy San Juan again. So for us, it was like paying for a single ticket to a city excursion, and getting two excursions for two in return. :-)

We also just got off this cruise. We purchased the FTTF and were able to have a dedicated check in line and we were in our cabin by 11:15 am and our checked bag was in the room shortly thereafter.

We came in to San Juan 3 days early just to explore a bit. We stayed at The Marriott Stellaris Casino location for two days and then stayed at a hotel in Old San Juan the night before the cruise. In retrospect, we would have stayed at the Marriott for all three days to enjoy the beach. Old San Juan is nice but the fact that you have to be back on board by 8:30 means that you could easily explore it after checking in.

If you do go exploring after check in you get to skip the regular line at the gate when you return.

Our flight home wasn't until 1:40 but we figured we had enough fun and left the ship on the earliest group, around 8 am, which you get with the FTTF. We didn't know what the airport security would be like so we just hopped in a taxi ($23 + tip) to the airport (about 15 minutes). We flew JetBlue and it was a breeze checking in. We used the kiosk to check in and print our boarding passes and luggage tag. They do need to tag your bags for an agriculture check but that took less than two minutes. The regular security line had maybe 10 people in it and the TSA Pre Check like 6. Breezed right through and were at the gate by 8:35 or so. Way too early for a 1:40 flight! We easily could have made an 11:30 flight. I booked the later flight because Carnival didn't recommend flights before noon but with the FTTF we were able to beat the crowd off the ship.

Other than the early boarding and early debarkation we didn't use the FTTF for anything else. The lines to get back on the ship after on shore activities were minimal and there isn't any tender ships to worry about with the ports you visit.

I just read a review that said the line for any time dining was very long. Does FTTF get you through the line faster? I keep switching my dining option because 6:00 is too early. We want to enjoy our island time then have time to shower and unwind before dinner. My husband doesn't want the 8:15 dining because he says that's too late to eat. I enjoy the set dining time because I like sitting with the same people every night. Currently we are booked for Any Time.

I just read a review that said the line for any time dining was very long. Does FTTF get you through the line faster? I keep switching my dining option because 6:00 is too early. We want to enjoy our island time then have time to shower and unwind before dinner. My husband doesn't want the 8:15 dining because he says that's too late to eat. I enjoy the set dining time because I like sitting with the same people every night. Currently we are booked for Any Time.

From Carnival website on FTTF:

Dining Reservations

Priority Dinner Time Assignment: FTTF guests will be cleared after VIFP Platinum guests. This benefit does not include specific time reservations for 'Your Time Dining'.

Note: VIFP Diamond guests and guests traveling in deluxe suite accommodations are guaranteed their dining in the Main Dining Room.

We were on the Fascination in August. We also had a 11:40 flight home--it was bumped from 11:45 AM, so not too different from what we had purchased, and thankfully, they didn't keep moving it any more beyond that five minutes. We (family of five) did self-embark and were at the airport by around 8:15. We knew to do the agricultural check first and those lines were non-existent. The regular security line wasn't too bad, either...we were probably at the gate by 8:45 or so.

THIS is the best reason for a post cruise stay. We stayed a couple nights post cruise and the airport was a ghost town. We arrived early just incase and wound up sitting around for what seemed like forever.

I wish a post cruise stay was possible but the need to return to work Monday morning makes it impossible.

Has anyone been on the Fascination post-staggered check-in? How early can you try checking in now?

I purchased FTTF for us so we can start enjoying ship amenities ASAP.

Thanks!

I'm not doing FTTF but if I recall correctly can self debarkation happen as early as anyone else? We will take our bags off ourselves. Our flight is now closer to noon, like 11:56 or something. We will only have carry-ons (hopefully).