New to cruising

[Harbie]

How early can we get on the ship before departure time?

[firefly333]

Most ships you can board a little before or after 11 am... some ports like San Juan leave a lot later, so board later. Depends somewhat on the ship.

[ussenterprise]

We have sailed out of San Juan and Port Everglades. If your ship sails late afternoon, say 1600, you can usually start boarding at 1130.

[JayByrd]

You may be able to board a few hours before departure. I've heard of people being on board by 11 am for a 4 pm sailing. Keep in mind though, that there's no guarantee of this; showing up at the Terminal at 11 may mean you're waiting around for a few hours. You won't be able to board until all of the departing passengers have been processed, and if you look around the CC boards, you'll see that the debarkation process is not an exact science. Most cruise terminals aren't designed to accomodate people for long periods of time, so you will likely find yourself without a place to sit or any amenities if you have to wait. I hope this helps!

[golfadj]

We usually will aim to get to the pier around 11 30

[firefly333]

We hit parking at 10:30 and are at the port ready to board usually just before 11 am and often get on. We are now platinum on Carnival, so we get to board after the wedding parties.

[johnjen]

We were so pumped on our last cruise three years ago that we showed up at the terminal around 9am; they began boarding around noon for a 5pm departure; however, do not expect to be able to get into your cabin right away (we got into ours around 2pm).

[Harbie]

Do we check our luggage onto the ship or do we just carry it on and take it to our room?

[RWolver672]

Do we check our luggage onto the ship or do we just carry it on and take it to our room?

 

You leave your luggage with the porters at the pier. Most people give the porters a $1 tip per bag. Your luggage will show up outside your cabin within a few hours after sailing. You can bring a carry-on onboard with you as long as it fits through the x-ray machine like the airlines have. Most people will carry any medicines, expensive things such as cameras, jewelry, etc in that bag rather than in the checked-in luggage. If you plan on swimming right away, pack your swim wear in that bag too.

[dan40]

How early can we get on the ship before departure time?

 

Keep in mind the ship has not been sitting at the dock waiting for you since you booked.:D It is and will be out cruising and will dock the day you are to board with 2000 to more than 3000 people on board. EVERY one of them has to settle all their on board accounts, and clear customs, and all their 6000 or so pieces of luggage must be off loaded before you and your fellow passengers and luggage can BEGIN to board. Very often, MOST times, you can get on early. But if any of those departing pax causes a snarl, there can be a wait even beyond the normal boarding time.

[KYCruiser111]

Normally you can board 4-5 hours before the cruise leaves. BUT you may wait in line to go through security for a couple of those hours. Our last cruise left the port at 4:00 and we were in our room by 1:00pm. Since we drove all night, we took a little nap before the ship sailed. :)

[elcuchio24]

We usually arrive between 1030 and 1100 for 1600 departure, always been on the ship by about 1200. Of course the rooms are not alway ready right away, but grab some lunch and its all good.

[apdchief]

I prefer the earlier the better, I would rather be sitting and waiting to board than standing in line. We arrived at the POM around 10:15am, no lines and all checked in by 10:30 ish. We waited about 30-45 minutes and then we were on board. While we were sitting and waiting and then boarding the lines just continued to grow.

[hunniebee724]

I'm getting married on embarkation day, and our cruise leaves at 4 pm. We were told to be at the port at 11 am for priority boarding, so I'm guessing general boarding is soon after.