Turnaround Day in Ft Lauderdale Horrible

[kazu]

Don't let this scare you from back to backs. try one outside the US. I did one a year ago in Sydney and there was no trouble whatsoever. I've never heard of issues outside the US. Recently met up with a couple who did it in Amsterdam and they no troubles either.

 

We did have to disembark in Tilbury England simply to go through immigration. The procedure was quite smooth. Nothing like what is described in FLL. One of the things I liked about our Maasdam cruise in March is that it is NOT a B2B:D;)

[walcherw]

We did have to disembark in Tilbury England simply to go through immigration. The procedure was quite smooth. Nothing like what is described in FLL. One of the things I liked about our Maasdam cruise in March is that it is NOT a B2B:D;)

We love B2Bs and usually have NO problem with the minor problems.

[IRL_Joanie]

My DW missed a dril once and got the letter for her special drill.

 

I learned the hard way not to listen to anyone other than the Captain when it comes to Life Boat Attendance.

 

What was not brought forward in the original quote taht the |oter" CC member copied and pasted, was that I have 3 compression fractures in my spine and it is extremely painful to go over that huge hump to get out to the Life Boat Drills.

 

BUT, I will be there for each and everyone from now on and as stated, will only accept word directly from the Captain that I do not have to attend it.

 

The moral as I stated is GO!!! At least make an attempt and if you cannot get over the hump, do NOT go to your room unless the Captain orders you to do do.

 

EDITED TO ADD: Tracie, Thank You:) I do try and even when I have been shown by experience that I did wrong, I do pass that along and own up to it so that others will not meet the same problems I did:)

 

Again thank you to those who understand that when I post it is to assist others:)

 

Joanie

Edited November 21, 2013 by IRL_Joanie

[sapper1]

I learned the hard way not to listen to anyone other than the Captain when it comes to Life Boat Attendance.

 

What was not brought forward in the original quote taht the |oter" CC member copied and pasted, was that I have 3 compression fractures in my spine and it is extremely painful to go over that huge hump to get out to the Life Boat Drills.

 

BUT, I will be there for each and everyone from now on and as stated, will only accept word directly from the Captain that I do not have to attend it.

 

The moral as I stated is GO!!! At least make an attempt and if you cannot get over the hump, do NOT go to your room unless the Captain orders you to do do.

 

EDITED TO ADD: Tracie, Thank You:) I do try and even when I have been shown by experience that I did wrong, I do pass that along and own up to it so that others will not meet the same problems I did:)

 

Again thank you to those who understand that when I post it is to assist others:)

 

Joanie

 

With all due respect IRL, what Startwin was pointing out was that you were blaming misinformation that you received on CC for your failure to attend the drill, when in fact, in your own words from a previous post you told a different story. Nobody on CC led you astray.

[sail7seas]

 

Captain is not in charge (directly) of Life Boat Drill.

 

Staff Captain (formerly known as Chief Officer on HAL ships) runs Life Boat Drill or whatever they call the safety drill these days. :)

 

Edited November 21, 2013 by sail7seas

[IRL_Joanie]

Actually Sapper it was a HIGHLY respected CC member and HAL Employee who mentioned it to Solocanadian on 27 November 2012, below is the post and THIS is why I thought that I could do what was stated:)

 

If it had come from anyone else I would never have attempted to do as he stated.

 

The entire thread can be read at: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1744659&highlight=cannot+stand+for+safety+drill

 

Have a great day:)

 

Joanie

 

Solocanadian/Gail; there is an easy solution to your issue! When HAL instituted the current mandatory pax safety drill, a Medical Officer/Nurse is now stationed at the bottom of the Atrium near the entrances to the 'Boat Deck' (LP Deck on the S and R class vessels and on Prinsendam; Promenade Deck on the Vistas & Signatures) starting at 15 min prior to the commencement of the drill. Contact that medical officer and advise him/her that you are unable to stand for long periods of time during the drill. He/she will contact the Bridge/Staff Captain via portable radio and they will check you off the muster list.

 

There is some good advice here also from Tangerinebunny and Trixiee re: contacting the Infirmary staff ahead of time (after embarking) however, if you contact the medical officer stationed in the Atrium, it's a done deal. He/She will have you take a seat on one of the benches in/near the Atrium for the duration of the drill. Have a great voyage!

 

With all due respect IRL, what Startwin was pointing out was that you were blaming misinformation that you received on CC for your failure to attend the drill, when in fact, in your own words from a previous post you told a different story. Nobody on CC led you astray.

[sapper1]

Actually Sapper it was a HIGHLY respected CC member and HAL Employee who mentioned it to Solocanadian on 27 November 2012, below is the post and THIS is why I thought that I could do what was stated:)

 

If it had come from anyone else I would never have attempted to do as he stated.

 

The entire thread can be read at: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1744659&highlight=cannot+stand+for+safety+drill

 

Have a great day:)

 

Joanie

 

All that says is that you have to make your way to the atrium and you will be allowed to sit there during the drill. It does not say you can sit in your cabin because you have nine cruises under your belt.

[mightycruisequeen]

All that says is that you have to make your way to the atrium and you will be allowed to sit there during the drill. It does not say you can sit in your cabin because you have nine cruises under your belt.

 

Exactly. There's no way any ship's officer would tell passengers they could stay in their cabin during the drill.

[startwin]

I believe it's been stated on here quite a few times that disabled pax can gather at the atrium. I must say I learned that here, too, for my DH, and I pushed him there in his wheelchair. If I hadn't seen it here I wouldn't have known about this procedure. You have to have a travelling companion if you are unable to get there on your own (ie with electric scooter). And I also understand this applies to pax who have difficulty standing for periods of time, and are not in a wheelchair.

Edited November 21, 2013 by startwin

[luv2travel06]

I just don't see any benefit in doing a back to back cruise as you described. Just a lot of unpleasant hassle mid-cruise, and perhaps one might expect more sophisticated fellow passengers in a dedicated longer single cruise (e.g. fewer kids).

 

I would never go on a back to back cruise from a single port.

 

igraf

 

$899 p.p. for a VA verandah stateroom for 14 days was the benefit of doing a b2b!

 

40 kids the first week, 50 kids the second week.

[luv2travel06]

2nd time trying to post this, let's just say this day has been terrible. We were led like cattle in a huge room after we went through immigration and stood in lines for almost an hour. 600+ people who were continuing on the ship for the Eastern Caribbean.

When we got back onboard....tried to use elevators but only 2 were open and packed, so we trecked up to 7th floor. I went to Neptune Lounge and that is where I broke down in tears. I was so out of breath from the stairs and just so upset in general. Oh yea, while we were waiting in the cattle line....I called Holland America and voiced our opinions of this and were told the ship was still not cleared, which I knew already. Back in the Neptune Lounge, they were very concerned and were so nice in calming me down.

We have decided this will be our last 2 week cruise where there is a turnaround day. It was totally not like we had read it would be. A lot of people were also upset. It turned out that 2 people chose to not go by the instructions and I suppose Holland had a hard time of locating their room to get them off the ship. I heard one gentleman say that the couple should be fined! I think I agree.

Anyway, with a few issues on the first week, overall, it has been wonderful. I pray the second week will be just as wonderful. We will be waving on the sail away today.

 

The delay appeared to be solely caused by 2 couples. One couple who finally disembarked 20 min after 600+ passengers disembarked, and the other couple who disembarked another 20 min after that. HAL staff likely expected all affected passengers to follow the proper procedure, but a cart of chairs was available for those who didn't want to stand for an hour, if you happened to see the cart.

 

Giving the stragglers the benefit of the doubt, while we were on the ship, there were no announcements with instructions for b2b'rs....maybe they were waiting for an announcement and just figured things were running behind.

 

But for the stragglers, the process would likely have gone quite quickly and smoothly.

[OVgirl]

I think we should request some sort of gauntlet through the B2B pax for those late coming off the ship.:D

[Fouremco]

I think we should request some sort of gauntlet through the B2B pax for those late coming off the ship.:D

No need to reinvent the wheel: bring back walking the gangplank! :D

[celle]

I disagree. The Feds say we all have to be off. They DO NOT tell HAL how to do it.

Everybody could meet in a large lounge and stay there untill we were ALL there (we do not have to wait in the port standing up) WHEN we are all there we could be escorted off the ship in a group, go by the Feds and taken back on the ship. Anyone who wanted to stay off untill later could reboard in the normal manor.

 

That would only work if everyone doing a b2b wanted to wait to get off with all the other back-to-backers. I've done b2b once in the US (New Yok), once in Dubai (RCCL), once in Chile, and once in Japan (HAL - Kobe).

 

In New York (HAL), we were issued with our new room card the evening before arrival in New York. We were also given a small card that said "In Transit" or something similar. At a meeting on board the previous day, we were told that we could assemble in a lounge and all disembark and reimbark together, OR we could disembark individually, go through immigration, and go on shore for the day, or until we wanted to return to the ship. As long as we had "dinged" our old cards on disembarking, ther woudl be no problem with zero-ing out the ship.

 

In Dubai, we simply walked off the ship - no immigration procedures at all - and returned to the ship later in the day.

 

In Chile (Celebrity), I don't recall any immigration procedures and we were not issued with a new room card. We took a ship's excursion to Santiago for the day.

 

In Japan, we had the same room card for the entire cruise, with dates on it. There were no immigration procedures at Kobe, as we had done Japanese immigration at the previous port. Everyone had to disembark and stay off thea ship until mid afternoon, as a deep cleaning was undertaken, due to norovirus on board. We had alrady booked a ship's tour for the morning. This was extended by HAL and we were provided with lunch at a restaurant (at HAL's expense). Passengers doing things independently were given an on-board credit, so that they could buy a meal on shore. I know tha some passengers, who had planned a quiet day on board, were very upset, but they did have to stay off eth ship, or else deep cleaning could not have been done.

 

I guess the moral of the whole thing is that turnaround day can be a different experience for every b2b cruise.

Edited November 21, 2013 by celle

[walcherw]

That would only work if everyone doing a b2b wanted to wait to get off with all the other back-to-backers. I've done b2b once in the US (New Yok), once in Dubai (RCCL), once in Chile, and once in Japan (HAL - Kobe).

 

In New York (HAL), we were issued with our new room card the evening before arrival in New York. We were also given a small card that said "In Transit" or something similar. At a meeting on board the previous day, we were told that we could assemble in a lounge and all disembark and reimbark together, OR we could disembark individually, go through immigration, and go on shore for the day, or until we wanted to return to the ship. As long as we had "dinged" our old cards on disembarking, ther woudl be no problem with zero-ing out the ship.

 

In Dubai, we simply walked off the ship - no immigration procedures at all - and returned to the ship later in the day.

 

In Chile (Celebrity), I don't recall any immigration procedures and we were not issued with a new room card. We took a ship's excursion to Santiago for the day.

 

In Japan, we had the same room card for the entire cruise, with dates on it. There were no immigration procedures at Kobe, as we had done Japanese immigration at the previous port. Everyone had to disembark and stay off thea ship until mid afternoon, as a deep cleaning was undertaken, due to norovirus on board. We had alrady booked a ship's tour for the morning. This was extended by HAL and we were provided with lunch at a restaurant (at HAL's expense). Passengers doing things independently were given an on-board credit, so that they could buy a meal on shore. I know tha some passengers, who had planned a quiet day on board, were very upset, but they did have to stay off eth ship, or else deep cleaning could not have been done.

 

I guess the moral of the whole thing is that turnaround day can be a different experience for every b2b cruise.

I agree...they are all a little different.

My point about waiting on the ship as to waiting on the dock was that NOBODY could go back on till everybody was off. Why not get off all together???

[jtl513]

Why not get off all together???

Because many want to get off earlier and go do something besides getting right back on. Why should they wait for all the stragglers? Edited November 21, 2013 by jtl513

[sail7seas]

celle

 

<snip>

 

In New York (HAL), we were issued with our new room card the evening before arrival in New York. We were also given a small card that said "In Transit" or something similar. At a meeting on board the previous day, we were told that we could assemble in a lounge and all disembark and reimbark together, OR we could disembark individually, go through immigration, and go on shore for the day, or until we wanted to return to the ship. As long as we had "dinged" our old cards on disembarking, ther woudl be no problem with zero-ing out the ship.

 

 

Exactly.

 

DH and I have done a great many b-to-b's and have turned around in FLL many, many times. We always go off the ship independently and have always been advised that is perfectly fine with Security on the Ship, with Shore Side Operations and with CBP. As long as we have left the ship and cleared by the time indicated, no one has any issue about it.

 

We do not do the 'group disembarkation' and GRM and Hotel Manager have repeatedly advised us that is permitted and acceptable.

 

We have never delayed anyone or reported 'late'.

 

 

[walcherw]

Exactly.

 

DH and I have done a great many b-to-b's and have turned around in FLL many, many times. We always go off the ship independently and have always been advised that is perfectly fine with Security on the Ship, with Shore Side Operations and with CBP. As long as we have left the ship and cleared by the time indicated, no one has any issue about it.

 

We do not do the 'group disembarkation' and GRM and Hotel Manager have repeatedly advised us that is permitted and acceptable.

 

We have never delayed anyone or reported 'late'.

 

 

OK let me try again , Sorry ,I know I am not making myself clear.

IF you want to get of the ship early...NO problem. When you get off they know it. EVERYBODY who wants to get off can. Those who do NOT want to get off the ship early can wait, stay in a comfortable lounge and when the people who are left are all there go off as a group go by the FEDS and either get right back on the ship OR stay off and get back on later.

The only thing I am suggesting is WHERE the waiting is done.

This is not the way I would do it if I was GOD but the FEDS have their rules and as they are from the government we KNOW they are there to help us and make our life and cruise experience BETTER.

[Krazy Kruizers]

OK let me try again , Sorry ,I know I am not making myself clear.

IF you want to get of the ship early...NO problem. When you get off they know it. EVERYBODY who wants to get off can. Those who do NOT want to get off the ship early can wait, stay in a comfortable lounge and when the people who are left are all there go off as a group go by the FEDS and either get right back on the ship OR stay off and get back on later.

The only thing I am suggesting is WHERE the waiting is done.

This is not the way I would do it if I was GOD but the FEDS have their rules and as they are from the government we KNOW they are there to help us and make our life and cruise experience BETTER.

 

On the majority of our Collectors Cruises, i.e., back-to-back cruises, we got a letter on the last full day of the first segment telling us what time to meet and where to meet on the ship to be escorted off by someone from the front office -- IF you do not wish to get off early and do whatever you want to do --shop -- go to the beach, etc. BUT the instructions indicate you can only take a small purse with you -- no big bags of any type. Thus trying to take beach towels to go to the beach is a problem.

Whether you decide to leave on your own early or wait to leave with the others staying on for the next cruise -- you can not get back onto the ship until it is down to "zero" count. If you go out on your and return later, you show your Intransit card when you enter the terminal. You will only need to go through security -- you skip the check-in lines.

We have waited anywhere from 15 minutes to nearly 2 hours to get back onto the ship as we choose to not go anywhere.

[sail7seas]

Last b-to-b with FLL turnaround, I carried my small purse as well as a HAL regular tote ...... the cream color one they used to provide. It wasn't the larger Mariners Tote.

DH carried my netbook in a shoulder bag carry case. The CBP Officer asked to look in the tote, found sun lotion, a book, tissues and a few odds and ends and sent us on our way. He said he was checking we didn't have any liquor. We were going to a hotel and would use their pool towels so no need for us to carry any off with us.

 

[liamsmamo]

I think we are on the same cruise as you - 14 day HAL Neiu Amsterdam...we leave March 2. I wasn't aware that we had to get off on the turn around day. Sounds terrible.

Did you do any shore excursions? Has anyone experience with picking up tours on the dock in San Juan, PR or Cozumel?

Liamsmamo

[celle]

Because many want to get off earlier and go do something besides getting right back on. Why should they wait for all the stragglers?

 

Exactly! On turnaround day in New York, we walked off with the self-disembark passengers. No rush, no lines. We had an entire day on shore, to amuse ourselves in New York. Why would I want to wait for the people who only want to get straight back on the ship, when I can have a whole day of entertainment on shore?

[celle]

(Snip). . . . BUT the instructions indicate you can only take a small purse with you -- no big bags of any type. Thus trying to take beach towels to go to the beach is a problem. . . . . (Snip)

 

If you go out on your and return later, you show your Intransit card when you enter the terminal. You will only need to go through security -- you skip the check-in lines. Agreed!

 

 

We had no problem taking a backpack each off the ship on turnaround day. Just had to have it re-scanned on entering the ship.

[walcherw]

We had no problem taking a backpack each off the ship on turnaround day. Just had to have it re-scanned on entering the ship.

Why do they care if we take liquor off the ship?

[celle]

Why do they care if we take liquor off the ship?

 

I don't know why you quoted me to ask your question. I didn't mention liquor. However, I guess it's something to do with customs regulations.