lake effect

If it's 29 October you are boarding ,then so far it is terminal 3 , subject to change because this is the final tampa sailing and the return is disembarkation only . They may give preference to Brilliance as they will be there all season . If not it would be terminal 6 which is only a 100 yards north up the channel.Also you may   Embark and disembark from two different terminals.if you are traveling by cab or Uber make sure they drop you off at the correct terminal , you can see the ships from the street.

We do MTD on Brilliance on every cruise, and rarely have had any difficulty eating at the times we want. Their setup is a bit weird however, since the MTD section is on one side of deck 5 and traditional seating is on the other side. There will be two "lines" - one for people with reservations and one for "walk-ins". We've never waited more than 10-15 minutes in the "walk-in" line (even on holiday cruises). My only add to the suggestions already made would be to go into your cruise planner and book the earliest time available, and then go to the maître D and ask to change the times once on board.

 

 

 

As a side note, Chops, Giovanni's, and Izumi are all excellent on Brilliance - and rarely crowded if the OP is looking for alternatives. The Windjammer on Brilliance in the evenings is also quite good - the captain and his officers often can be found there for their evening meals.:)

When we cruised on 17 September, my time dining was on both sides of deck 5 , so it was the entire upper deck of the dining room . I'm sure you will get to dine close to your desired time .

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Hello All,

I am turning to my Cruise Critic family with a question that may or may not have come up in the past. We (family) are traveling in February. My granddaughter will just be three. We are on the Anthem again. That being said, here’s my problem. Money for my daughter is an issue. She has primary physical custody of her kids. The sperm donor will not sign the papers for the little ones passport. Will her birth certificate and a copy of the judges decree of divorce and custody be all the documentation my daughter will need to cruise? This is a closed loop cruise. Thanks for any help you can afford me.

Birth certificate is acceptable for most closed loop cruises to the Caribbean. Make sure it is a government issued certificate and not a hospital certificate (the one with the babies footprint sometimes)

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I have an 11:15 flight out of Tampa. Do I need to be 1st in line on self disembarkment to make it?

If you are among the first 250 off and do express walk off with all your luggage with you ,then 25-30 dollar cab on Sunday morning,you will have enough time .

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We didn’t fill it out on Grandeur last month, but they did ask if any of us were sick at check-in.

 

 

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Yes they ask if you have had fever and vomiting in the past 48 hrs . If you answer yes , the ship nurse or doctor will examine you to be sure your fever has passed .

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taxi and plan on arriving a little later rather than early everyone wants to board in the first 2 hours it seems, board as late as possible based on when you need to leave your apartments noon would be a good time to head over even as late as 2 PM would probably be fine. Due to flying in the same day as the cruise the last 2 times I have arrived early and noticed that after 1PM or so there is literally no line at all.

 

Now I am not sure if your cruise has boarding where you are given a time and how much they stick to the times.

if the cruise lines were smart they would be like the airlines and charge an extra 100.00PP for early boarding before 2PM.

Agree , after 130 pm or 1330 in Spain the check in and security is much less crowded . Also , the cabins are ready after 1 pm so the public spaces on the ship empty out and the crowd feel is lessened.

Charge extra for early boarding , sure they can call it "faster to the royal amplified " or fttra.

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Apparently if you are black out drunk you don’t have to attend muster drill. Lol.

 

And of course Harmony offers 10 day Westerns leaving on Tuesday from NYC.

 

I laughed the most at their version of Love & Marriage. That was actually pretty funny.

 

 

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I like to pick out product placements in movies but this is the biggest one I've ever seen .Im thinking Amazon prime is probably making a deal now with one of the carnival brands for a similar movie/ad campaign.

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U.S. port ? Don't forget San Juan , especially in winter you miss all the Florida cold front wind and the nighttime sail away is beautiful.

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Since these leaves from Miami, have you checked that the US will let you enter the US and board the cruise with less than 6 months remaining?

If you are planning on returning to Miami , this is the most important question . Also are you a resident or visitor in the u.s .?If you are a resident then you need appropriate documentation to return to Miami . E.g. Visa ,arc card .Find someone at msc that can give you the correct information for your situation.

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Yes, but it still has lines during peak times ,we always make a reservation and may show up at that time or another time . They try to seat you in the same section so you are familiar to the staff .

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Expired passport is useless and will not be accepted , get your birth certificate before you leave or you will be denied boarding .

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I live in the Tampa area...it is not fog so the delay must be on the ship’s end. You need to hope it does NOT come in to Terminal 2. That is the problem terminal.

Definitely at terminal 2 . The delay will escalate the problems already with timely disembarkation.,which causes a very slow embarkation . The terminal can only hold 500 people at a time and then they stop letting people in . If you want to avoid lines outside , find something to do in Tampa till late afternoon .

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Everybody rushes to get on board. Wait until they're already boarding to check in. Get there like 12:30 - 1:00. Check in will be quick and you'll board as soon as you're checked in.

I find that the rush hour with lines begins at about 1115 and continues to about 145 to 215 depending on the port . If you arrive between 2 and 230 ,most times you can walk right up to check in and directly on to the ship.

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Agree with those above that RCI will hold for you at checkin for HOTS and return it to you at disembark.

 

In addition you might want to check the storage locker situation at FLL if this might work as well.

Security at embarkation is usually a private firm as opposed to the security at most ports of call is rci staff.Private security usually confiscate and do not return at debark . Even if they say they will hold it , I would not trust them .If your staying in FLL after HOTS ,you could take it to your hotel and they could hold it .Interesting problem ,no easy solution

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I would pack insect repellant, conditioner, hand wipes, disposable ponchos, and a portable back-lit clock.

Yes back lit clock , most ships I've been on have the clock on the ship channel or the phone both of which it's difficult to see in the dark . We also bring a small flashlight just in case .

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If it only takes a few weeks, I'll renew it before we go.

 

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Great idea, when I renewed my passport they returned the old one with holes punched in it .I believe this is a indicator of a voided passport . Grabbing the wrong one would be a problem at check in .

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Raised seal!!

 

 

 

I'd apply for a passport. With all that's happened over the last few weeks............one would be needed to fly home from a foreign port in case of emergency.

Yes , raised seal and government issued ,e.g. State of ,county of, city of , if it's a hospital birth certificate and you've used it your whole life for other things , you can't use it to get on the ship . best advice is to get a passport just like everybody else in the world who travel to foreign countries .

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Same in most of Europe, great idea , need this in the u.s.

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Boarding usually commences a few minutes passed when there are zero passengers on board from the previous cruise and all b2b are accounted for. Late arrival, special sanitation,training meetings can cause a delay in embarking time.staggered check in is an attempt to prevent thousands of passengers from showing up between 11 and 12 .we always board after 130 pm on most all ships and never go hungry.

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If you are interested in sea conditions try passageweather.com . You will be glad you paid attention in earth science class.land weather from usual sites are usually reliable only 3 days out.Current northeast weather pattern has been very changeable.

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Getting off the ship should not be a problem ,just need to clear with guest services and sometimes they give you a special card that tells the gangway security that you have paid your bill.we did this two years ago and the only issue is to make sure you arrange a cab ahead. The CPh security was long so give yourself plenty of time .

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Thanks, do you get an extra copy or do you keep the signed page that the check in agent usually collects.

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When you pick up your sea pass card at check in , there may be a dx imprinted on the bottom corner which indicates they have it in their system . Some ships do it , some do not either way it should be in your folio.

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We started using my time dining when it was first introduced and have not returned to assigned dining since .They attempt to increase two tops by separating tables by 8 inches or so . Also they will try to seat you in the same section if possible so you get to know your wait staff .Time flexibility is the big benefit but they do have peak times between 7 and 815 and there is usually a wait .They encourage you to make a reservation.

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