Star in AK - New Immigration Procedure?

[LewesBeach]

FYI: Just off the 11day Star Princess Alaska cruise into San Francisco Pier 35, and something new? They sent US immigration forms to your room 4 days before the end of the cruise, you filled them out and returned them to Front Desk. Unless you got a letter saying there was a problem, THAT was immigration!!! It was not done at disembarkation which really speeded things up. We did express walkoff and were on the street hailing a cab by 8:20am. Is this done in other ports or ships?

[rdsqrl]

I've never heard of an immigration form. What questions did it ask? Or do you mean the customs declaration? That I've seen passed out in advance before, definitely.

[Colo Cruiser]

Nice!

[IECalCruiser]

FYI: Just off the 11day Star Princess Alaska cruise into San Francisco Pier 35, and something new? They sent US immigration forms to your room 4 days before the end of the cruise, you filled them out and returned them to Front Desk. Unless you got a letter saying there was a problem, THAT was immigration!!! It was not done at disembarkation which really speeded things up. We did express walkoff and were on the street hailing a cab by 8:20am. Is this done in other ports or ships?

They did that on our Mexico cruise on the Grand RT from San Francisco in March. What a painless disembarkation :) If you were a U.S. passport holder, that was all you had to do. Others had to appear in person. Edited May 26, 2014 by IECalCruiser

[LewesBeach]

I've never heard of an immigration form. What questions did it ask? Or do you mean the customs declaration? That I've seen passed out in advance before, definitely.

 

Sorry, yes the Customs Form. We've always had to go thru long lines at US Customs with that and our passport.

[IECalCruiser]

Sorry, yes the Customs Form. We've always had to go thru long lines at US Customs with that and our passport.

Actually, you go through long lines at immigration. You don't go through customs until after you pick up your checked luggage and the seldom check anyone's bags.

 

 

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[LewesBeach]

Actually, you go through long lines at immigration. You don't go through customs until after you pick up your checked luggage and the seldom check anyone's bags.

 

 

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We did not stand in any lines. We turned our Customs Declaration forms in 2 days ahead of time and walked right off the ship onto the street. Didn't even need to show passports. I was wondering if San Francisco was the only port where this was occurring?

[Cruise Junky]

We did not stand in any lines. We turned our Customs Declaration forms in 2 days ahead of time and walked right off the ship onto the street. Didn't even need to show passports. I was wondering if San Francisco was the only port where this was occurring?

 

We had a really weird disembarkation from our recent Hawaii cruise in Vancouver. You used to have to line up to go through Canadian Immigration. Not anymore, just walk off the ship and hand in your declaration card. I wonder if there doing much more screening onboard?

[cruisequeen10]

it was done this way last year on rccl

[nukester]

well how was the cruise? ship ports and food entertainment etc/????????

thanks john

 

 

 

 

 

Actually, you go through long lines at immigration. You don't go through customs until after you pick up your checked luggage and the seldom check anyone's bags.

 

 

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[skynight]

Maybe this is a trial process by Homeland Security at west coast ports, with other regions to follow. Maybe & hopefully the b2b process will also change at some point.

[IECalCruiser]

well how was the cruise? ship ports and food entertainment etc/????????

 

thanks john

John, Were you asking about our 10 day Mexico cruise fron San Francisco?

 

 

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[Nancyquilts]

Let's hope we still get that easy immigration when pier 27 opens this fall.

[MauiLvrs]

You don't go through customs until after you pick up your checked luggage and the seldom check anyone's bags.

Not always... sometimes you clear customs on the ship...

[abbydancer2003]

On the cruise before the Alaska runs started - ie Vancouver to SF, we turned in our custom forms on the ship two days before we arrived, but we did have to stand in immigration lines which snaked entirely around the ship. Once you left the lounge you got a card saying you could disembark. Because of that, once we cleared the immigration line, we grabbed our bags and just walked off the ship.

 

This was the first time we'd done a Vancouver - SF run with a stop in Canada after leaving Vancouver (Victoria), so we couldn't do the usual US immigration in Canada.

 

I wonder if the difference is that you all did a round trip and started in the US whereas we started in Canada.