Boarding Time in Nice - May 30 - Journey

[nonrev1]

I did not want to post this here - but hopefully, someone will know the answer.

We are joining the Journey in Nice on May 30. The ship departs at 10:00 pm. Our docs say that boarding is not until 7:00 pm. That does seem a bit late. I have called reservations two times and received two different answers. One response was 5:00 p.m. and the other 2:00 p.m. Any help would be appreciated. We would love to put our luggage on the ship after our hotel checkout time and wander the city.

 

Lauri

[florisdekort]

I did not want to post this here - but hopefully, someone will know the answer.

We are joining the Journey in Nice on May 30. The ship departs at 10:00 pm. Our docs say that boarding is not until 7:00 pm. That does seem a bit late. I have called reservations two times and received two different answers. One response was 5:00 p.m. and the other 2:00 p.m. Any help would be appreciated. We would love to put our luggage on the ship after our hotel checkout time and wander the city.

 

We arrive at 5 am, so I see no reason why boarding wouldn't 'unofficially' start at approx. 11.30 am, as it always does!

[nonrev1]

I thought the same thing until I printed my docs and they said boarding is at 7:00 pm and then calling and having them tell me it is a late boarding time since the ship leaves at 10:00 pm. Did not make sense to me. I would love to have the "official" answer for planning purposes.

[AZsunluvr]

We will be on the same cruise! I see by your name that you are a fellow interliner?

[nonrev1]

Yes - we have a thread on the Azamara Journey page....not many of us but there is also another interliner.

[California Native]

Even though the ship will be arriving early in the morning, there could be a reason for this port in particular why there's late embarkation...inspections? crew drills? the actual port making the decision on this. Maybe there's something going on with charter air passengers having a late flight and they get to stay on the ship longer..(I've seen that before and it's not a pretty sight, for those arriving)

If reservations told you 2pm and then 5pm ...

this is my deduction.....

You can board at 2pm, you will not be able to access your cabin until later (maybe closer to 5pm)

If you are unable to access your cabin, the conciege will store your hand luggage for you...it's a very simple process. you hand it to them, they hand you a claim check. your hand luggage is waiting for you in your cabin. This is all done while in your other hand you are holding a glass of champagne, orange juice or mimosa that was just offered to you!

now you can head out a sightsee!

Even though for most cruises boarding does "unofficially" start at 11:30am it is usualy for much earlier departures. I'm not so sure I would show up at 1130am, the staff might not even be in place to begin the embarkation process and you are then taking valuable time away from sightseeing.

Disembarkation shore staff are not necessarily trained in embarkation procedures.

You can have your hotel store your luggage (even though you checked out) for a couple of hours before you head to the ship.

Have a wonderful adventure!

Nice is nice, but if you haven't been to Eze

try to find the time to wander around this charming town!!!!

Bon Voyage

K.

[nonrev1]

Thank you for the great advice. Yes, we have been to Eze. I am afraid to show up early and since we are staying in Juan les Pins (no hotels in Nice due to the Grand Prix)and it is more difficult to check out and have them store our luggage and wander around. Our goal was to check out as late as possible, take the train to Nice and check our bags at the ship. It is fine with us if our rooms are not ready, we want to wander around Nice. We would just hate to get to the ship and have them say we can not check in until 5:00(which was one of the times I was given) or 7:00 p.m. which is what it says on our documents and have to hang out for hours with our luggage.

 

I will call a third time and hopefully get one of the same answers or someone who knows for sure. It is just frustrating.

[California Native]

worst case scenario...

have you checked to see if the bus or train station in Nice has luggage lockers?

or perhaps your hotel has a friendly relationship with a hotel in Nice that might be willing to assist with luggage storage...

I know a bit extreme, but trying to think of all angles!

K.

[nonrev1]

That is a great idea. The owners of the hotel do have a property in Nice. That will be our back-up plan. Thank you!

[Bill Leiber]

I did not want to post this here - but hopefully, someone will know the answer.

We are joining the Journey in Nice on May 30. The ship departs at 10:00 pm. Our docs say that boarding is not until 7:00 pm. That does seem a bit late. I have called reservations two times and received two different answers. One response was 5:00 p.m. and the other 2:00 p.m. Any help would be appreciated. We would love to put our luggage on the ship after our hotel checkout time and wander the city.

 

Lauri

Hello Lauri,

 

I’m sorry for the confusion. The “official” embarkation time on your documents should have been 2:00 pm. We’re working with our systems group to prevent future documents going out with the incorrect time of 7:00 pm.

 

Also, as it has been mentioned, on embarkation day you can start checking in at 11:30 am and then you'll have the time to explore the city!

 

Happy Sailing!

 

Bill Leiber

__________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

[fla742]

Hello Lauri,

 

I’m sorry for the confusion. The “official” embarkation time on your documents should have been 2:00 pm. We’re working with our systems group to prevent future documents going out with the incorrect time of 7:00 pm.

 

Also, as it has been mentioned, on embarkation day you can start checking in at 11:30 am and then you'll have the time to explore the city!

 

Happy Sailing!

 

Bill Leiber

__________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

 

 

Sorry Bill - just have to roar over another administrative screw-up. Someday they will get their act together.

[nonrev1]

Bill - Thank you very much for helping! It was a bit frustrating and I kept getting different answers.

 

Can't wait for our adventure.

Thank you again, Lauri