Ensenada Disembarkation

[TommyD3]

I am interested in the 2012 Australia itineries including the cruise from Hawaii back to the US (or at least to Ensenada). The itinerary shows the last stop is Ensenada at 3:00 AM. The following cruise leaves out of San Diego the same day.

 

Do they actually make everyone disembark in Ensenada? I presume they offer a bus up to San Diego? Is the disembarkation in the wee hours of the morning (before 6:00 AM). Does not sound like FUN !!!!

 

If one were back to back, could they stay onboard?

 

Thanks in advance.

[C 2 C]

I am interested in the 2012 Australia itineries including the cruise from Hawaii back to the US (or at least to Ensenada). The itinerary shows the last stop is Ensenada at 3:00 AM. The following cruise leaves out of San Diego the same day.

 

Do they actually make everyone disembark in Ensenada? YES.

I presume they offer a bus up to San Diego? YES

Is the disembarkation in the wee hours of the morning (before 6:00 AM). Does not sound like FUN !!!! NO

 

If one were back to back, could they stay onboard? NO

 

Thanks in advance.

 

It's the infamous "Jones Act" really the "Passengers Will be inconvenienced Act" or something or other Act..

which prevents passengers embarking in one American port to disembark in another American port without visiting a distant foreign port unless crew and vessel is American flagged.

 

Century will sail empty to San Diego while staff prepares the vessel for the passengers embarking that day... including those who got off in Ensenda.

 

For your reading pleasure;

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merchant_Marine_Act_of_1920

[rucruisn2]

We got off in Ensenada once and swore never again. Not fun. By the way, they do provide a bus to San Diego, but charge plenty for it.

[reklawr]

I am interested in the 2012 Australia itineries including the cruise from Hawaii back to the US (or at least to Ensenada). The itinerary shows the last stop is Ensenada at 3:00 AM. The following cruise leaves out of San Diego the same day.

 

Do they actually make everyone disembark in Ensenada? I presume they offer a bus up to San Diego? Is the disembarkation in the wee hours of the morning (before 6:00 AM). Does not sound like FUN !!!!

 

If one were back to back, could they stay onboard?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

 

We did this at the end of our Hawaii cruise. We all had to disembark in Ensenada and walk thru customs and then into the USA.

Buses were waiting for us to take us up to San Deigo.

It was a real pain in the butt.

It was a long wait in line(at least an hour)

It was hot as blazes while waiting in line.

The bus ride to San Deigo airpot was perhaps an hour our maybe a little longer.

As Xellent says it the Jones Act that causes this problem.

[reklawr]

We got off in Ensenada once and swore never again. Not fun. By the way, they do provide a bus to San Diego, but charge plenty for it.

 

 

I agree we would prefer never to do this routine again.

[TommyD3]

Thank you all for the info.

 

There are also round trip cruises that begin & end in San Diego with a short stop the last evening in Ensenada.

 

Why doen't the cruise from Hawaii do the same thing and just stop in Ensenada for a few hours on the last night?

 

Thanks.

[fleckle]

.......Why doen't the cruise from Hawaii do the same thing and just stop in Ensenada for a few hours on the last night?

Because it would be a violation of the PVSA. Foreign flagged ships are not permitted to transport passengers between two different US ports unless they stop at a "distant" foreign port.

Thus passengers are not allowed to embark in Hawaii and disembark in California because Ensenada is not considered to be a "distant" foreign port.

 

However, cruises that begin and end at the same US port are fine and the brief stop in Ensenada (which is considerd a "nearby" foreign port) is enough to satisfy the round-trip requirement.

 

If you really care about the details and want some very boring reading material, you can look up the Passenger Vessel Services Act, but personally I don't think it is worth the trouble.

 

We keep hoping the law will be changed as we would love an easy way to take one-way cruises from California to and from Hawaii, but after all these years it does not seem likely.

[sasset]

Fleckle:

 

Thank you for calling it what it is. The Jones Act is a different animal.

[notts uk cruiser]

I have done this once and would never do this again. It took 8 hours to get from Ensenada to San Diego. Once at San Diego our luggage was left outside the airport, the bus numbers which took us through the border did not correspond with the bus which held our luggage. We walked for over 2 hours up and down the outside of the airport looking for our cases, NEVER AGAIN. :mad:

[CRUZBUDS]

We've done it twice and it was not bad at all -- though it wasn't a highlight of the trip ;)

 

It's about a three hour bus ride -- sit on the left side - it's quite scenic.

 

When you get to the U.S. border -- you either get off (with your carry ons) or the agents come on the bus and just walk down the aisle. We had it both ways - it depends on what Customs wants to do. Staying on the bus is much better, especially for the senior cruisers

 

We'd do it again for the right itinerary -

 

We did it on Princess and Carnival -- the bus was included in the fare, it was a few years ago.

[fendbass]

We did a cruise from Hawaii a few years ago which concluded in Ensanada. We had to be up at about 5:30, and off the ship by around 7:30. Get on buses (in the dark), and go to the border crossing

 

This is where the fun really starts. The first 3 or 4 buses made passengers carry thier own luggage across the border, quite a few older folks really struggling. Someone took pity, and said luggage would be kept on the buses and examined, but we had to get off with our carry ons and stand in line

 

Then, it started raining, but, at least it wasn't hot

 

We crossed the border, had about .25 -> .5 mile walk back to the bus, go on to go to the airport, only to see the Infinity tied up at San Diego port, having sailed empty from Ensenada. Really made my whole day

 

I swore I would never do that little song and dance again, and apparently someone at Celebrity was paying attention, because I see a lot of ships doing a 'service stop' in Ensenada before continuing on to San Diego

 

Its too bad, because up to that point, it had been a really great cruise

[fleckle]

We did it on Princess and Carnival -- the bus was included in the fare, it was a few years ago.

The same for us, no extra charge for bus fare when we did it a few years ago. But Celebrity told us that they charge extra for the bus fare. To my way of thinking, that is a slap in the face, like adding insult to injury since the bus ride to or from Ensenada is a necessary evil, not something that we would want to do if we had any choice in the matter. It is not like voluntarily booking an add-on port excursion.

[ccruisequeen]

Remind be to bring a wheelchair if I ever do this cruise (or a travel disability scooter!):eek:

[Jerry and Shelly]

Ensenada is currently a very dangerous port due to Mexican drug violence. Some west coast cruises have elimiinated Ensenada as a port and instead stay docked in Cabo San Lucas for an extra day.