Boarding late for Disembarkment

[Sonatina1990]

Hi, my first post. I have cruised before with Disney, Royal, and Princess. We are cruising with Norwegian for the first time this March. I have seen people board up until 1 hour before they disembark. So I was wondering what some of you all have seen or know about boarding. Our flight comes in at 2:10 to LGB and disembark time is at 4:00. It takes 25 minutes to get to the pier. Unless unforeseen problems. Any suggestions? :confused:

[6rugrats]

You are cutting it awfully close, and seem to have no room for error. Your flight is scheduled to land at 2:10. That doesn't mean you are getting off the plane at 2:10. That's just wheels down. It can take a while to get to your gate and get the doors open.

 

If your flight actually arrives on time, you may not make it off the plane, and then to baggage claim until say 2:35. Then, you have to get your bag (hopefully, it's not a 20+ wait as it often is here in Seattle), get out of the airport and get transportation to the port .

 

So, say you take a cab, load your bags and it's now 2:45. Then, you say it takes 25 minutes to get to port. It's now 3:10. That's cutting it pretty close.

 

NCL states if you aren't onboard the ship at least one hour before sailing, you will be denied boarding. If your plane is late, even a little, or you have one holdup, you are going to miss your ship.

 

If you can't change your flight, suggest you bring carry on only, sit near the front of the plane, complete the online check in for your cruise, hope for no traffic, and an on time take off of your flight, and pray.

Edited February 25, 2014 by 6rugrats

[Surfguyxxx]

I would be in a panic. :(

[taglovestocruise]

If your ship sails at 4 pm you can board no later then 3PM, NCL prefers you show up at least 2 hours before boarding. Seems like you are cutting it way to close, 2:10 arrival, getting your luggage, finding a taxi and getting to check in might take more than 50 minutes. Happy cruising,

[Starlight Durban Cruising]

Hi, my first post. I have cruised before with Disney, Royal, and Princess. We are cruising with Norwegian for the first time this March. I have seen people board up until 1 hour before they disembark. So I was wondering what some of you all have seen or know about boarding. Our flight comes in at 2:10 to LGB and disembark time is at 4:00. It takes 25 minutes to get to the pier. Unless unforeseen problems. Any suggestions? :confused:

 

?? Do you mean departure time, or perhaps final boarding time e.g. "Our flight comes in at 2:10 to LGB and departure/final boarding time is at 4:00". Disembark is when passengers get off the ship (at the end of the cruise). Not meaning to be harsh, but would hate for you to confuse someone on the cruise.

 

Most people would say that it is cutting it very fine to say the least to arrive at the airport within 2 hours of final boarding time. Your plane could be delayed, or there could be terrible traffic from airport to harbor. Many people fly in the day before to avoid such travel-delays.

[Sonatina1990]

Those are all my thoughts too. Thinking of changing flights to the day before. Just starting too freak out!!! Thank you for your inputs!!

[Happy ks]

I would definitely change the time to earlier in the day or the day prior to the cruise. Your ship sails at 4 pm, a flight landing at 2:10 only allows a 50 minute window of time. Although the airport is quite close, probably a 15-20 minute drive, you still have to allow for other delays.

 

If you can't find an early morning flight, come in the night prior and Priceline a room in San Pedro. I don't know what the current going rates are, but we've gotten a room there in the past for around $85. Check better bidding (?) for current accepted bids.

[Gunner22aa]

If the plane is on time you land at 2:10. IF. Going to take you another 20 minutes to be off the plane. If you have checked baggage count on another 20 minutes. Lets call it 30 to get to the pier if traffic is light. Its now 3:20 You likely won't be at the terminal before the cut off time. Ships by law have to turn in their final manifest 60-90 minutes prior to sailing. Even if everything goes perfect which we all know is seldom, you are setting yourself up for disaster. You seriously need to re think your flights.

[YubaSutter]

Have a backup plan ready in case you miss the ship.

Edited February 25, 2014 by YubaSutter

[Sonatina1990]

Well I did it I changed our flight to the night before. Going to be a bit more expensive but worth it. Now I can relax and enjoy the getting ready!!:) No more fast heart pounding and worrying about any mishaps!! Thank you for all you input!!

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

That is great!!

When I first started this thread, my heart sank to the ground.

There have been many times when we sat out on tarmack, waiting for a gate to open -- one time we waited an hour.

We always fly in 2 or 3 days early.

[Cruisin' Chick]

?? Do you mean departure time, or perhaps final boarding time e.g. "Our flight comes in at 2:10 to LGB and departure/final boarding time is at 4:00". Disembark is when passengers get off the ship (at the end of the cruise). Not meaning to be harsh, but would hate for you to confuse someone on the cruise.

 

Most people would say that it is cutting it very fine to say the least to arrive at the airport within 2 hours of final boarding time. Your plane could be delayed, or there could be terrible traffic from airport to harbor. Many people fly in the day before to avoid such travel-delays.

 

I'm glad you posted this as this went through my head too when I was reading the first post. We get many newcomers to the cruising world here and it'll help them if we use the right terms.

 

And for anyone thinking about booking a same-day flight to LA for a cruise: if anyone has been on the 405 in the afternoon on the west side (where LAX is) will attest to, you wouldn't want to be trying to go from plane to port within a two-hour window, considering that all cruise lines have a deadline for submitting the manifest of their passengers. So even if you don't have any problems with flight delays, with getting your baggage, with getting your transportation to the port in a small amount of time, you still have to get to the port. And it's not like they like you sauntering up to the ship just before the ship is scheduled to sail off. They might not even let you on the ship. And this is the case for ports too. Respect the time that is listed in the ship's newsletter o port days.

 

Well I did it I changed our flight to the night before. Going to be a bit more expensive but worth it. Now I can relax and enjoy the getting ready!!:) No more fast heart pounding and worrying about any mishaps!! Thank you for all you input!!

 

Thank goodness. I think when you wake up in the hotel near the port the morning of your cruise, you'll be so happy you did.

[sail7seas]

Well I did it I changed our flight to the night before. Going to be a bit more expensive but worth it. Now I can relax and enjoy the getting ready!!:) No more fast heart pounding and worrying about any mishaps!! Thank you for all you input!!

 

Welcome to CC. Happy you found us.

 

You made a wise choice in changing your travel arrangements.

You were taking a huge risk with your previous plans.

Relax now and look forward to your cruise. :)

 

[smeyer418]

FYI the Homeland Security requires that the manifest be filed one hour before the ship sails. To do this the manifest must be properly formatted and submitted and an acknowledgement recieved-all one hour before the ship sail. So NCL like others will close the boarding approximately 90 minutes before the ship sails. Miss the cut off and you literally have missed the boat(yes I know its a ship)

[MommaBear55]

Well I did it I changed our flight to the night before. Going to be a bit more expensive but worth it. Now I can relax and enjoy the getting ready!!:) No more fast heart pounding and worrying about any mishaps!! Thank you for all you input!!

 

 

Yeah! Great decision! This way you can start off your vacation in a relaxed frame of mind and just enjoy without worry.

[Hlitner]

My thinking is that the OP would be out of their minds to use that late flight unless they are prepared to catch-up to the ship the next day. Most cruise lines require you to check-in at least 90 min before scheduled departure (although we had seen exceptions). And the OP is gambling on a flight that arrives right on time...in an era when the airlines have cancelled a record 78,000 flights since Dec 1, and many more flights were delayed by hours. If the OP booked their flight through the cruise line, they might actually hold the ship. But if booked independently it is a recipe for disaster. And by the way, if it a normal sized aircraft (like a 737 or 757 or Air Bus) it can sometimes take as long as 20 min to just get off the aircraft (especially if stuck in the rear). And if you have checked luggage this can often take as long as 45 min to retrieve all your luggage.

 

There is a good reason why most experienced cruisers always plan to fly-in at least one day early.

 

Hank

[smeyer418]

My thinking is that the OP would be out of their minds to use that late flight unless they are prepared to catch-up to the ship the next day. Most cruise lines require you to check-in at least 90 min before scheduled departure (although we had seen exceptions). And the OP is gambling on a flight that arrives right on time...in an era when the airlines have cancelled a record 78,000 flights since Dec 1, and many more flights were delayed by hours. If the OP booked their flight through the cruise line, they might actually hold the ship. But if booked independently it is a recipe for disaster. And by the way, if it a normal sized aircraft (like a 737 or 757 or Air Bus) it can sometimes take as long as 20 min to just get off the aircraft (especially if stuck in the rear). And if you have checked luggage this can often take as long as 45 min to retrieve all your luggage.

 

There is a good reason why most experienced cruisers always plan to fly-in at least one day early.

 

Hank

when they talk about boarding at the next port they mean the Next eligible port...outside the US. This is NCL to Florida I believe. so you can't board until the ship is in the Bahamas...not so easy to get to...If its Bermuda its easy to fly there...if you have a passport. It has to be a foreign port or its a PVSA violation. Homeland Security did grant Carnival an exception last week because of the snow storm but that is extremely rare...but it won't be the next day anywhere.

from NCLS wensite

Any late arriving guest may join the ship at an approved port of call in the scheduled itinerary. Such guest will be responsible for all applicable fees and travel expenses to that subsequent port of call. emphasis added

Edited February 25, 2014 by smeyer418

[Cruisin' Chick]

when they talk about boarding at the next port they mean the Next eligible port...outside the US. This is NCL to Florida I believe. so you can't board until the ship is in the Bahamas...not so easy to get to...If its Bermuda its easy to fly there...if you have a passport. It has to be a foreign port or its a PVSA violation. Homeland Security did grant Carnival an exception last week because of the snow storm but that is extremely rare...but it won't be the next day anywhere.

from NCLS wensite

Any late arriving guest may join the ship at an approved port of call in the scheduled itinerary. Such guest will be responsible for all applicable fees and travel expenses to that subsequent port of call. emphasis added

 

OP said LGB, which I believe is Long Beach. If on a coastal cruise (I don't know if the OP is doing a MR one or coastal), getting on at the next port might be problematic if it's an US port, I believe.

[Gunner22aa]

The extra you spent will be well worth it. No worries about every 5 minute delay on the day of the cruise causing you to miss it. Nothing worse than getting to the ship a mess other than missing it totally. Now you get a relaxing evening, couple of glasses of nice red with your meal, great nights sleep and ready for your adventure. Have a safe and most enjoyable trip.

[smeyer418]

OP said LGB' date=' which I believe is Long Beach. If on a coastal cruise (I don't know if the OP is doing a MR one or coastal), getting on at the next port might be problematic if it's an US port, I believe.[/quote']

LOL NY centric here. I just they made a mistake and meant LGA....

[Ehpride]

I will always fly in a day early. There are too many risks otherwise and I would be a nervous wreck. I think you made a great decision!

 

 

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[BlueRiband]

Well I did it I changed our flight to the night before. Going to be a bit more expensive but worth it. Now I can relax and enjoy the getting ready!!:) No more fast heart pounding and worrying about any mishaps!! Thank you for all you input!!

 

Very happy that you changed your flight! LaGuardia airport is undergoing some major construction and adding to the traffic problems. Your chances of boarding the ship on your original schedule were slim, fat, and none. The added costs are well worth your peace of mind.

[wassup4565]

We flew in the "day of" on our first cruise, not knowing any better. Every flight was delayed, and we somehow got dumped outside of "security" at Reagan and had to wait in line to get security cleared again, before we could get our connecting flight.

 

I have a horrible memory of running barefoot through Reagan airport screaming to myself (as Scarlett O'Hara did), "As God is my witness...." We barely made the flight and the cruise, but as God is my witness, I'll never ruin barefoot through an airport again on the departure day of my cruise.

[Hlitner]

Hate to inform my New York pals (and that is the city of my birth) but the world does not always revolve around NYC. The OP shows a Washington State home address and is taking about LGB which is Long Beach Airport. The estimated 25 min to the port indicates they are talking about a cruise out of San Pedro. So none of this has anything to do with LGA (or LaGuardia) which is about 3000 miles away :).

 

Hank

[Sonatina1990]

Thank you, you are correct! I was talking about San Pedro and LGB Long Beach Airport!!! Was waiting to see if anyone noticed.

 

 

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