Windstar Final Documents

First time Windstar cruiser. Was wondering about how far in advance of sailing I can expect final documents.

And do they come by mail or email?

Thanks!

We are on the March 19th sailing of Windsurf and received our package of Documents, luggage tags, etc in a nice little blue pouch last Friday, Feb 5th. (6 weeks prior to sailing). Our travel agent sent an email stating that the package was on the way and it arrived the next day.

Cheers

Mark

I believe usual delivery method now is electronic. You or your TA can request to receive them in the mail. I enjoy receiving the blue pouch and nicer luggage tags. :)

Nice to know if coming by mail come well in advance of sailing.

I would hope if coming electronic it would be the same.

Thanks!

We are on the March 19th sailing of Windsurf and received our package of Documents, luggage tags, etc in a nice little blue pouch last Friday, Feb 5th. (6 weeks prior to sailing). Our travel agent sent an email stating that the package was on the way and it arrived the next day.

 

Cheers

 

Mark

Oh boy, this could cause trouble in the Tiki Hut, but I am not sure that our recent experience is the standard. I believe that our TA requested the paper tags. (Can't name names here on Cruise Critic, but we used a local branch of a large "luxury travel" agency.)

On our first Windstar cruise, we booked through a giant national agency affiliated with a credit card company. At the time of booking, they gave me the option of having a package with paper documents mailed to us (at a charge of $50, I think) or receiving the documents electronically. I chose the latter, and the docs showed up in my inbox about 6 weeks prior to sailing.

The electronic docs did not amount to much, actually had less information than the invoice that I had received at time of final payment. I don't think that I ever pulled them out of my notebook when checking in at the ship. The staff had our names on a list, and our stateroom keys ready. They just took our passports and scanned our credit card, and we were good to go. One thing that was different than on our previous cruises was that they kept our passports and gave us a receipt to pick them up at reception desk on disembarkation day.

The electronic documents did not include any sort of luggage tag for boarding, but it was not problem at all. The porter at the pier had plenty. Unlike the large cruise ships we had been on before, we actually saw him walk the bags to the ship and hand over to ship staff for loading. They were arriving at our stateroom as we did, maybe 10 minutes later!

$50? That guy must have seen you coming. We get the paper documents for free. You have a choice. Just let Windstar know what you want.

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Plus when you receive docs in the mail you receive Windstar logo luggage tags, along with disposable paper tags in a logo zipper pouch. I like the cruise docs, which really aren't necessary for boarding, for my scrapbook. At least this was how it was for my October 2015 cruise. It came direct from Windstar, the travel agency should not be involved in the shipment of the docs nor should they require payment. Boo! :mad:

We are leaving on the WindSurf in 2 1/2 weeks :) (Feb 27) and received our "E-Documents" from our TA back on Jan 12th. I was not expecting anything else. It states in part:

..... "This email delivers your complete Guest Documentation, which includes your tickets

along with vouchers for any hotel reservations and transfers you have booked

through Windstar Cruises. Please print out the entire Guest Documentation for

each guest in your party and bring it with you on your cruise."....

We are leaving on the WindSurf in 2 1/2 weeks :) (Feb 27) and received our "E-Documents" from our TA back on Jan 12th. I was not expecting anything else. It states in part:

 

..... "This email delivers your complete Guest Documentation, which includes your tickets

along with vouchers for any hotel reservations and transfers you have booked

through Windstar Cruises. Please print out the entire Guest Documentation for

each guest in your party and bring it with you on your cruise."....

That is a very good point. I should have been more clear that this was my experience and that others' might be different.

We did not purchase hotel or transfers for our trip, so the documents might be more necessary for those with added services.

Plus when you receive docs in the mail you receive Windstar logo luggage tags, along with disposable paper tags in a logo zipper pouch. I like the cruise docs, which really aren't necessary for boarding, for my scrapbook. At least this was how it was for my October 2015 cruise. It came direct from Windstar, the travel agency should not be involved in the shipment of the docs nor should they require payment. Boo! :mad:

Actually, for our upcoming cruise, Windstar sent the package of documents to the agent, then they sent them on to us via overnight mail. (We made no additional payment to the TA or Windstar.)

$50? That guy must have seen you coming. We get the paper documents for free. You have a choice. Just let Windstar know what you want.

 

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And that is one of the reasons why I no longer use that travel agency!

Exactly. That guy ought to be in jail for thievery.

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Did anyone have any problems filling out the forms online through Windstar website.

I have been trying without success to enter my passport details but it keeps telling me I have entered an invalid date and to enter in correct format which I have I think i.e yyyy-mm-dd. I have tried every which way but nothing works.

Very frustrating. Any ideas?.

Is it a requirement to fill in these forms ahead of the cruise or can we just do it on arrival to ship?.

I also had trouble filling them in on line. I ended up printing them out, filling them in and mailing to windstar

Thanks Diane thankful I am not the only one to have trouble.:)

Is it actually necessary to fill them in at all, ahead of time, or can we just wait till we board ??

Thanks Diane thankful I am not the only one to have trouble.:)

Is it actually necessary to fill them in at all, ahead of time, or can we just wait till we board ??

Boarding can be a zoo. I'd rather get those forms over with ahead of time so you can focus on getting through the process quickly so you can make your restaurant reservations (if you wish) spa appointments, etc. and then head to deck to grab a little nosh and watch the port activity.

After 19 times on WS cruises boarding / checking in takes the max 10 minutes, organized and quick with a complimentary champagne or rum punch to boot. I have never filled out the online forms. Happy Sailing

Thanks Diane thankful I am not the only one to have trouble.:)

Is it actually necessary to fill them in at all, ahead of time, or can we just wait till we board ??

According to what i read, the form needs to be filled out before final documents will be sent. Since the information includes passport numbers i believe that.

Strentz, maybe with all your past sailings that information is already on record

The good news is once you've sailed it auto fills the info, don't have to do it again. :D

Did not know that we just never filled anything online, thanks. Happy Sailing

Did anyone have any problems filling out the forms online through Windstar website.

I have been trying without success to enter my passport details but it keeps telling me I have entered an invalid date and to enter in correct format which I have I think i.e yyyy-mm-dd. I have tried every which way but nothing works.

Very frustrating. Any ideas?.

Is it a requirement to fill in these forms ahead of the cruise or can we just do it on arrival to ship?.

We just booked the Windsurf yesterday with only a little over 2 weeks before our sailing. We were told that the web site is having problems and that we were to call Windstar in Washington State and give them the information. It may take a little longer than if you could do it online yourself, but it does get the job done and then you are set.

I had a problem completing the details online but I emailed customer services and they completed it for me. No problem.

We have done two Windstar cruises to date and boarding has been quick and painless on each occasion. You can book the beverage package, candles, laundry package and spa appointments straight away. There are tables set up in the check in room. We have always booked exclusions online before the cruise.

If you fly a day or two beforehand you will not be fretting about your luggage as you will already have all you need immediately in your hand luggage. Having said that the suitcases never take long to arrive. The beauty of being on a ship with only 140 or so guests.

 

We have done two Windstar cruises to date and boarding has been quick and painless on each occasion. You can book the beverage package, candles, laundry package and spa appointments straight away. There are tables set up in the check in room. We have always booked exclusions online before the cruise.

 

Karen, You listed some of the things you can book once you get on the ship. Do they do ship tours at that time too? It looks like you can book the tours from the web site, but with everyone saying the web site doesn't work, does that include not working for the tours? Or can you just book them once you get on the ship?

Karen, You listed some of the things you can book once you get on the ship. Do they do ship tours at that time too? It looks like you can book the tours from the web site, but with everyone saying the web site doesn't work, does that include not working for the tours? Or can you just book them once you get on the ship?

I spoke to Windstar about this. If you book an excursion on the website it is payable at that time. I booked one because it was very important to me that we didn't miss out on it.

Anything else I want can be booked on board and the cost gets added to your onboard account. According to the rep I spoke with, there is a lecture about each port of call and the excursions and then the excursions can be booked at that time.

I spoke to Windstar about this. If you book an excursion on the website it is payable at that time. I booked one because it was very important to me that we didn't miss out on it.

 

Anything else I want can be booked on board and the cost gets added to your onboard account. According to the rep I spoke with, there is a lecture about each port of call and the excursions and then the excursions can be booked at that time.

Diane, Thank you for writing. Yes, most all cruise lines have the same set up that if you book a tour before hand, you pay for it right away where as waiting until on the ship, it goes on your account. My real issue was with the site not working. I did try to book from the site and ended up calling Windstar and they said that their web site has been on the fritz for a couple of weeks now, so she took all my information to book it. They are hoping their website will be back up soon, but I"m sure they are doing the best they can since I'm sure that leaves them all feeling very over worked.