Disembarking in Key West, Cozumel (Millennium)?

[sueswny]

I'm going to do a 4-night W. Caribbean cruise on the Millennium in February. Will there likely be a long wait to disembark in either/both ports? Should I expect to stand in line? (On a recent Carnival cruise, there was a long line in Cozumel, and we stood in line about 45 min to get off the ship.) Any advice for how I should plan for this? thanx

[alabama ghost]

:)Don't be in a rush to get off when they open up the gangplanks. Eat breakfast, get dressed and give them time to get off; then you'll be able to just walk off, no lines, and you get to sleep a little longer. :D

[Lsimon]

When the ship arrives in port they need to get clearance from local authorities. It also takes some time to tie up at the dock and secure the ship. Sometimes both of these activities are completed before the published "arrival time" and sometimes not.

 

If they haven't' been completed and you're waiting near the gangway at the published time there will likely be a crowd of anxious people like you (I'm only saying you're anxious if you're waiting in line at that point). If you are out and ready to get off before the ship is secured then do yourself a favor and instead of waiting inside by the gangway to out to the promenade or upper outdoor deck and watch them secure the ship and the activity out on the pier while you wait there for the "cleared" announcement.

 

OTOH, if you wait in your stateroom or someplace comfortable on the ship until they announce the ship has been cleared and wait another 5 minuites there will be little or no line at all. The only line there will be is a short minute or two line for the security machines and maybe a short bottleneck as disembarking passengers try to get past those annoying photographers in the silly costumes (excuse the bit of opinion in those adjectives).

 

My experiance on Celebrity is that if you want to be among the first to do anything at the starting time there will be a line. If you allow a few minutes after starting time there will be little or no line. The only exception is ports where the ship tenders (the two you mention are not tender ports) where the process of tendering involves lines for the first hour or two after arrival.