Why board early?

[Sunny AZ Girl]

On most cruises we leave for the ship around 11:00 AM. We have to check out of the hotel by that time anyway. We do like to avoid the longer lines that form a little later and 11:00 usually works for us. We also like to sleep in a bit and have a leisurely breakfast with no rushing and we can do that.

 

Boarding day is a laid back day for us most of the time, but it really depends on the cruise. One time when we boarded in San Juan and the ship was not scheduled to depart until late at night (10 PM?) we boarded at our usual time, checked in, had lunch and dropped off our bags after cabins were open. We then left the ship and went into Old San Juan for a 2 PM Segway Tour. After that and an hour or so to shop in OSJ we headed back to the ship for dinner and sailaway. THAT was a fun day in our vacation memories.:D

 

Embarkment Day: San Juan

[PSCruiser]

For true cruise addicts, this is not even a question. You've been waiting months for the cruise, and of course you want to board ASAP, or you're wasting Day 1. Our usual plan is to grab lunch, and if the weather is good, change into swimwear at the spa, and watch the late boarders straggle through, from the comfort of a hot tub!

Of course, if you're not addicted, take your time boarding.

[cjdixon4]

Call me a bit anal, but...

I much prefer to board the ship earlier than later. I'd rather spend that time ON the ship, than getting TO the ship. And that's even when our hotel is right by the pier! LOL! Just less stress during vacation for us.

I know it's crazy, but I just have a hang up about getting too close to sailaway time. My hubby and I like to go straight to the Windjammer for a quick bite, then explore the ship a little. By that time, we can go to our cabin and relax until time for Muster Drill. :cool:

[Gumbey]

For true cruise addicts, this is not even a question. You've been waiting months for the cruise, and of course you want to board ASAP, or you're wasting Day 1. Our usual plan is to grab lunch, and if the weather is good, change into swimwear at the spa, and watch the late boarders straggle through, from the comfort of a hot tub!

Of course, if you're not addicted, take your time boarding.

Literally do exactly the same...

[bigque]

I like to get on board early and have a lite bite to eat cause I will have usually had a early morning breakfast then while I'm waiting for the room to be ready I walk around to different parts of the ship to get a feel of where everything is so I can't just go to where I want later without having to find it. This is my time also that I get some pictures without there being a crowd of people blocking the shots that I want. After that the room is usually ready.

[sleepless]

We always go to the port city a day early; explore the city, have dinner in a favorite restaurant, then head back to the hotel.

 

The next day, boarding day, I am up before 7:00 am in search of the first cup of coffee. DH is still sleeping. I head back to the room about 8, to wake up

DH. We head down to breakfast about 8:30, back to our room about 9:30. We finish any last minute packing then head out for our prearranged taxi or shuttle at about 10:00 am. We get to the port about 10:30, check in, then wait for our time to board. Sometimes who have a little bit of a wait, other times there is no wait. Either way, we are one of the first people on the ship. We head to the Windjammer for lunch. After lunch, we head to the main dining room to check out our table location. By now, it is about 1:00 pm, time to find our stateroom and drop off our carry on luggage. Easy.

 

I would rather wait at the port, then wait at the hotel. It is the first day of the cruise, I am anxious, and want to be on the ship as early as possible.

[lady_cruiser]

..........are there other reasons to boarding early?

YES we get the prime parking space in the parking lot ;).

[mjldvlks]

Count me with the early crowd. But if you prefer later, I have no argument with you. The only wrong answer is to do something you don't want to do.

 

I like early because:

 

1. I like ships. The more time aboard the better.

 

2. We are usually meeting people we haven't seen in a while.

 

3. I like to spend the first afternoon exploring and taking pictures of the ship.

 

4. Although we have never had a problem, I am just a little paranoid and the earlier we discover a check-in problem, the more time we have to fix it.

 

5. Gives me plenty of time to check out MDR seating and learn my way around the ship.

 

6. If there is something in the embarkation city I really want to see, I have probably done that the day [or days] before.

 

7. Windjammer lunch on day 1 [even if it is crowded] is a tradition I look forward to. It is my "the cruise has begun" moment.

[fpcruiser]

We arrived for our Liberty cruise at about 1:15- 1:30. Lines were very long. We were unable to fly in the day before. We will make sure we can fly in early for now on.

[travelplus]

The reason for boarding early in my opinion is because you are paying for the extra time so why not take full advantage of the Windjammer, pools and get to your room when they open the doors.

 

I love arriving early so that way I can see the layout of the ship, go to the Main Dining Room to see our table assignment and change it if necessary. Also I try to make Specialty Reservations at that time.

 

If you board later you may run into snafus at checkin or miss the boat if you cut it too close.

 

I like to rest in the Solarium before the Muster Drill and of course go up for the Cruise Criitc Sailaway party.

[Virtopia]

I would love to sleep in as we are leaving our 3 sons behind (10,10, and 9) and sleeping in doesnt happen very often in our house. Unfortunately, like a previous poster, I'm like a Kid on Xmas and probably wont be able to sleep in and will be up by 7 or so. My wife on the other hand....thats a different story. I'll probably get up and go for an early morning walk. We are staying at the Hilton marina so from what I understand its close to the pier.

 

FYI I stayed in this hotel in September and yes, it is close to the port, but there is nothing much in the area. We had to take a taxi everywhere we wanted to go.

[travelplus]

I planned to arrive New Orleans and have 2 nights with a day and a half or so to tour New Orleans. Then the day of the cruise is spent getting the last minute things ready in the carry-on bag and grab breakfast and checkout and take a cab to the pier. Since we're staying at a hotel about a mile from the pier there is no need to wake up at the crack of dawn.

 

I figure if we're up by 7:30 take a shower and have a leisurely breakfast from 8:30-9:30 and take a quick walk and grab the cab about 11:15 and arrive to the pier by 11:30 that works well.

[Virtopia]

I like boarding early out of pure excitement; I usually book my cruises 6 months to a year in advance and I like familiarizing myself with the ship while it's still slightly empty. The earliest I've been on a ship is 11am.

 

When I leave from SJU in September though, I will be heading to the port around 1. I'm going to ask the hotel if they can hold my bags; I'd much prefer to board the ship and go straight to my room to drop my stuff off. The ship doesn't leave until 8:30pm so I'll still feel like I'm getting a full Day 1, even if I get on at that time.

[Lionesss]

We fly down a day ahead of time, go out to a nice dinner, get to bed early.

We eat a traditional breakfast, and we go to the pier early to check in.

When we sailed the Freedom this past July we were checked in so early that we were passengers 8-9-10 to board, (we counted at our line when the rope dropped).

We plan on arriving at the port for the Allure about 10:30, wait till its time to board.

When we do board we will explore the ship.

We heard that the lunch places get very crowded, we may just get something light to eat, (that is why we eat our big breakfast), and we run arround the ship exploring and taking pictures before the crowds.

OMG, cannot wait to meet the Allure!!

Sea Ya

[slimkat]

Interesting question. One I have contemplated myself. After all of these replies I am now considering arriving later. With almost everyone insisting on arriving by 11AM, it seems like it might be just as busy/crowded as arriving later. Maybe I'll sleep in like some have suggested.

[Gumbey]

Does Royal have a type of Port Arrival time slot for passengers? I have done Disney a few times and everyone gets a Port Arrival time to lessen the influx of people at opening time?

 

I've never sailed RCI so I have no idea how boarding works.

[couple_cruisers]

I still don't understand the big rush to getting on-board. I agree with a previous poster as why not explore the port you are in. There is a lot to do in Miami and Ft. Lauderdale. Go to Lincoln road mall or hang out on Deco drive, really cool places. I would rather do that on the first day than stand in line for food or sit on the deck. Also, you can either store your bags at the hotel you are staying at or even drop them off at the port and leave for the day.

 

I totally agree with the fact that there is lots of thinks to do in Ft. Lauderdale but for us we have a very late flight on disembarkment, and since we have to be off the ship no later than 10am we will use this time to explore Ft. Lauderdale before our flight. (leaving luggage in the rental car)

Also we are new cruisers so we are excited about getting to the ship early, plus check out time at our hotel is 10am so we will just head on over the the pier then.

[Clarea]

Does Royal have a type of Port Arrival time slot for passengers? I have done Disney a few times and everyone gets a Port Arrival time to lessen the influx of people at opening time?

 

I've never sailed RCI so I have no idea how boarding works.

Royal does not have individual port arrival times for cruises out of the US. I have read that they do this in Australia, but not in the US, yet. If you want to board as soon as possible, arrive at the terminal about 11am.

[KeywestK]

As others have said, we're paying for day one, so we want to be on the ship for lunch. For our upcoming cruise this summer, since we are driving a whole 25 minutes from our home to the Port of Baltimore, we'll put our bathing suits in a carry on bag (or wear them under our clothes!) and chill out by the pool right after lunch.

[critterchick]

We don't like to rush around in the morning, either. Since we're usually 3 time zones ahead of our home, we set the alarm for 8:00 so we can get breakfast at or near the hotel. We then like to go for a long walk (aiming for 10,000 steps daily) before we check out and head to the pier around noon. We've only had one horrendous line, on Liberty in Miami a couple of years ago, and that was because of a pileup on I-95 that made a lot of the port personnel late for work.

 

We try to time our arrival with the cabins being open. We drop off our carry-ons and head to lunch - by then the crowd has thinned out a bit as everybody else is heading to their cabins. We have plenty of time before muster drill to have lunch, unpack and have a drink in the Schooner Bar.

 

We've always found that hotels with an 11:00 am checkout time will give us at least until noon (remember to ask at checkin so your room card is programmed).

[Gumbey]

Royal does not have individual port arrival times for cruises out of the US. I have read that they do this in Australia, but not in the US, yet. If you want to board as soon as possible, arrive at the terminal about 11am.

Thanks for that. I guess it must be a big onslaught around 11am?

[deltahog]

For true cruise addicts, this is not even a question. You've been waiting months for the cruise, and of course you want to board ASAP, or you're wasting Day 1. Our usual plan is to grab lunch, and if the weather is good, change into swimwear at the spa, and watch the late boarders straggle through, from the comfort of a hot tub!

Of course, if you're not addicted, take your time boarding.

 

I think you have kind of hit the nail on the head. I think those on cruisecritic would tend to be those more in love with cruising itself, who would want to get on the ship ASAP. Whereas, some folks are just "taking a cruise", and would prefer as much time in the departure port as possible. I know that's how I was with New Orleans. I probably will be just the opposite with Port Canaveral, might as well go ahead and get on the ship.

 

If you already live in the departure area, I see no reason not to board early.

[Gigi11111]

We like to board early so we get to see the ship before everyone boards. We also like to go to the Windjammer for lunch and then go to the pool as I will have our bathing suits with us.

We have a suite so we will board early anyway but even if we didn't we would be in line by 11.

[Scotico]

I guess I am spoiled by living 20 minutes from Ft. Lauderdale and 45 minutes from Miami. I would rather wait until everything thins out with the those trying to be early onboard. I think on our last cruise we boarded around 2:30 or so (after we went to the gym and dropped the dog off with family).

[akcruz]

Thanks for that. I guess it must be a big onslaught around 11am?

 

The thing is most literature says boarding is 2 I believe, so most who do not frequent cruise critic or have not done many cruises will get there later.