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What happened to Self-Assist Debark?

mjktg99

By mjktg99,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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mjktg99

mjktg99

Posted
Posted

Just got off the Victory in San Juan and DW and I were confused because never once was self-assist debark mentioned. We remembered from a few years ago when this "innovation" was touted as the best thing since sliced bread.

 

After speaking with the pursers desk, they stated that "self assist debark is available but they do not announce anything about it nor do they recommend it."

 

Is this a fleet wide shun of self assist or is there a particular reason they try not to promote it in San Juan?

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susan123

susan123

Posted
Posted

We did self-assist debark on the Victory Dec. 2009. Since we were on Riviera deck, it was very easy to carry our luggage down one flight and walk off. I didn't see anyone having problems, and there was no crowd at all. They did announce the option several times on our cruise, and I'm fairly certain it was in our Capers. I'm only guessing, but since there is very little time for cleaning between the time everyone gets off and the next passengers start getting on, it could cause problems for the crew.

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LHP

LHP

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Posted

Self assist was still alive and well last week on the Triumph ....

 

however PLATINUM self assist was not.

 

No mention in the Platinum letter or anything....

 

Could it be that since Platinum self assist is usually such a disaster...they are doing away with it and only offering Platinum regular debark (which is what we did)....

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ehfl

ehfl

Posted
Posted

Technically, they have never started, or stopped self cary disembarkation. You have always been free, since the beginning of ship travel, to carry on and off your luggage yourself.

 

Why would someone feel that they had to have an announcement, or be given permission to carry their own bag?

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MrPete

MrPete

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Technically, they have never started, or stopped self cary disembarkation. You have always been free, since the beginning of ship travel, to carry on and off your luggage yourself.

 

Why would someone feel that they had to have an announcement, or be given permission to carry their own bag?

 

You may not, but you can only leave when they say you can leave. The question is more a matter of WHEN.

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conchead

conchead

Posted
Posted
Self assist was still alive and well last week on the Triumph ....

 

however PLATINUM self assist was not.

 

No mention in the Platinum letter or anything....

 

Could it be that since Platinum self assist is usually such a disaster...they are doing away with it and only offering Platinum regular debark (which is what we did)....

 

When is the Self Assist?

Is it the first off or when?

We are leaving on the Triumph this Sat..woohoo:D

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conchead

conchead

Posted
Posted
First off, when we were on the Triumph in July I was off the ship and at work by 9am.

 

Good to know...Thanks

There for a minute, I was wondering how you made it from

NOLA to NY so quickly, then I remembered

The Triumph changed ports:p

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mjktg99

mjktg99

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We did do the self assist, so I agree that you can still do it. We were just confused as it was never brought up in the debarkation talk. Then we were told by the pursers desk that it wasn't recommended. So I was more curious as to why they dont recommend and if it has something to do with San Juan or is Carnival trying to discourage the self assist all together.

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okgirl

okgirl

Posted
Posted
Self assist was still alive and well last week on the Triumph ....

 

however PLATINUM self assist was not.

 

No mention in the Platinum letter or anything....

 

Could it be that since Platinum self assist is usually such a disaster...they are doing away with it and only offering Platinum regular debark (which is what we did)....

 

Linda, what is Platinum regular debark? I always do Platinum "self-assist" where I go down usually by 6:30 and carry all my own bags off. And I do agree it's a disaster but only because they make NO effort to restrict it to Platinum guests only.

 

I don't know what is so hard about having a staff person that "checks" you into the Platinum waiting area then leads ONLY those people to the debarkation line.

 

The only reason I do early like that is because of the nightmare of getting through customs with people who haven't filled out their forms or just don't have a clue as to what is suppose to happen.

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tiggerman101

tiggerman101

Posted
Posted

When I was on the Victory last year they made it seem like there was no self disembarkation. They never made mention of it and gave everyone luggage tags. They made constant announcements that due to customs coming on board, no one could be on the lobby area or they would not clear the ship. I was under the impression that this was an issue in San Juan. Personally, I loved it. I think the self disembark has gotten way out of hand. On a couple of my cruises it was just a nightmare in the hallways, etc. We just wait till we are called and it is easy enough. I have only done self twice and that was on both my solo cruises and I only had a small carry on bag. Some of the people trying to lug all these steamer trunks off the ship (or making their small children wrestle with them) just need to wait it out. The Victory system worked well and went quickly.

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spacewoman

spacewoman

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I agree self-assist is great if you only have one piece of luggage. Have seen same thing of two adults with 3 kids trying to lug a phenomenol amount of luggage themselves. WHY?

 

We have down self-assist for all our cruises but last year. Princess really has the best plan for that as they give you ID debark tags, put you in a lounge area then call by those areas. If you are down there before called they sent you back.

 

On the Miracle2 years ago we did self assist off (in NYC). What H - E - L - L! Said self assist go ahead and come down flights of stairs and for those who checked luggage to STAY in their cabins. Need I say more? Bodies all over the staircases, sitting on the rails, sitting on the staircases, people with luggage could not get down the stairs. They close the atrium elevators so that makes matters worse. Last year we had one in our party in a wheel chair so they told us which lobby to go in and wait to be called. Worked like a charm except ramps off are not made for wheelchairs. Our friend nearly sent his wife flying out of the wheelchair when the foot rests caught the concrete sidewalk:eek: Luggage was a bit hard to find as they said luggage was in numerical order by tag number (it wasn't). But we managed.

 

They probably don't announce self-assist because of the mess we encounterd.

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clearwatergirl

clearwatergirl

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Posted

Just got off Liberty in Miami Saturday 1/16/10. Self assist debark was called after VIP debark. Decks were called in order starting with Deck 1 upt to Deck 11. After which, regular debark started, again by deck. I thought it went well. We did regular debark and found it less stressful than self assist. Had to wait a while for luggage but not that long.

When we leave from Tampa, we do self assist as it's an easier port with a smaller ship. Hope you have a great cruise. :)

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mjktg99

mjktg99

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Seems that this just is a San Juan and or Victory issue/decision. But I can confirm that we were able to do self assist. And for whatever reason, as per the pursers desk, they do not make any formal announcements and do not recommend it.

 

Wonder Why...

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LHP

LHP

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Linda, what is Platinum regular debark? I always do Platinum "self-assist" where I go down usually by 6:30 and carry all my own bags off. And I do agree it's a disaster but only because they make NO effort to restrict it to Platinum guests only.

 

I don't know what is so hard about having a staff person that "checks" you into the Platinum waiting area then leads ONLY those people to the debarkation line.

 

The only reason I do early like that is because of the nightmare of getting through customs with people who haven't filled out their forms or just don't have a clue as to what is suppose to happen.

 

We used Platinum regular debark on the Triumph which means they gave us PLATINUM luggage tags (our luggage was all in one spot right by the door as we entered the luggage area) AND we met in the Forward Theater and were escorted off the ship BEFORE any of the regular debark folks.

 

It usually goes like this:

 

Platinum Self Assist

Self Assist

Platinum Regular Debark (put your luggage out the night before)

Regular Debark

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okgirl

okgirl

Posted
Posted
We used Platinum regular debark on the Triumph which means they gave us PLATINUM luggage tags (our luggage was all in one spot right by the door as we entered the luggage area) AND we met in the Forward Theater and were escorted off the ship BEFORE any of the regular debark folks.

 

It usually goes like this:

 

Platinum Self Assist

Self Assist

Platinum Regular Debark (put your luggage out the night before)

Regular Debark

 

Well, if it's offered I will still do Platinum Self Assist because like I said it seems that more and more people are doing Self Assist so even if you're doing Platinum Regular Debark all those people are already going to be in the Customs lines without their paperwork filled out right.

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