Local Time vs Ship’s Time

[TwoCruisers]

I have read on some CC posts about Local Time being different than Ship’s Time. Specifically, this post was on RCCL and was speaking about Cozumel time.

 

I have been on many cruises and have never noticed the local time being different than the ship’s time. Shouldn’t they always be the same? If the port is in the Central time zone wouldn’t the ships time also be set to Central time?

 

Here is one example from a post:

“Our Cozumel excursion in April was local time not ship time, so we were over an hour early baking in the sun waiting on our guide. With our Belize excursion this week, we tendered over for our tour to start on local time and encountered some pretty angry fellow passengers who had to wait on us because this one was on ship time.”

 

I am soon going on a cruise to the Western Caribbean and have local tours confirmed for both Cozumel and Roatan.

 

Please help me understand what is happening with these time differences.

[Gonzo70]

Ship's time does not always match port time; I have had multiple occasions where port time was an hour different. Often ship's change their time to match local time, but this is not done universally. If the specific cruise line does not have an official policy, then it is at the discretion of the Captain. One always should make sure they have a watch that is set to ship's time when debarking at a port and then check to see what local time is as the ship will always set sail on ship's time. The cruise lines I have sailed with most frequently (RCI and Celebrity) have usually but not always changed ship time to match port time.

[paul929207]

It is up to the Captain whether the ships clocks are changed when the ship crosses into another time zone. If the ship is going into a different time zone for one day and then returning to the original zone, the Captain may elect to not change the time.

[cb at sea]

We never worry about the time....we check the ship's clock as we're leaving (and there will be announcements if the time will be changed!), and go according to ship's time...that's really ALL that matters!

[TwoCruisers]

It is up to the Captain whether the ships clocks are changed when the ship crosses into another time zone. If the ship is going into a different time zone for one day and then returning to the original zone, the Captain may elect to not change the time.

 

We never worry about the time....we check the ship's clock as we're leaving (and there will be announcements if the time will be changed!), and go according to ship's time...that's really ALL that matters!

 

But it does matter if I am going on a local tour. I have local tours set for both Cozumel and Roatan. If the time is different and I don’t know this, I will either be an hour early or an hour late for the tour.

 

Will the people at the customer relations desk on the ship know ahead of time if the times will match?

 

Thanks

[paul929207]

Your tour guide should now the time the ship is on. Give him the ship's time.

[TwoCruisers]

Your tour guide should now the time the ship is on. Give him the ship's time.

 

But I need to know if the time is different BEFORE I meet the tour guide. I need to know this so I can be on time for the tour.

[paul929207]

Just give the guide the ship time you want to meet. The guide will make any needed adjustment to his watch.

[FTLcruisers]

A good local guide should know what time the ship arrives. JMO.

 

Marianne