to self-disembark or not?

[teacherw3boys]

We just got off the Dream on Sunday. We went to breakfast and left our bags in the room. During breakfast they called for our level to self disembark, but we went ahead and took our time eating. By the time we finished, grabbed our luggage and got to the lobby, the line was just starting to thin out. We strolled right off the boat with no problems and no long wait. It was easy peasy.

 

 

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[quickrate]

We have done self-assist once in 20 cruises and we weren't crazy about it. Too many people pushing and shoving trying to get off, hallways crowded, elevators crowded-not the way I want to spend my last morning. We do just the opposite-even tho platinum, we are usually one of the last ones off the ship. We take our time in the morning, go to breakfast in the DR, and by the time we get off to claim our luggage, it's the only ones left in Platinum area.:D

Pat

[WetToes]

We've done self-assist every cruise.

We are off quick, but we make time for our coffee and breakfast in the morning.

We are over packers, so we each have a large case and at least I small bag/tote of some sort.

DH straps the smaller ones to the large.

It can be hectic with people who don't listen to the instructions, and crowd certain areas. SMH!

[Out of Iowa]

when we fly, we self-debark.

 

Now that a 14-hour drive is the simplest way to our "nearest" cruise port, getting off early so we can hit the road for the lengthy drive home is paramount...

 

self-debark!

 

There is no need to miss breakfast, either.

[LostPuppy]

We've used luggage express a few times and were off the ship by 9:00 (Platinum). No problems with Luggage Express but there is a leap of faith as to leaving your bag outside your cabin and then not seeing it till you get off the plane.

 

We now gotten smart and reduced our luggage to a single carry-on per person which works great. We've got our second B2B planned this August (plus 5 days in New Orleans) and are packing even less than we did the last time. I highly recommend going with just a carry-on and self-debarkation.

[luvtrips]

We have done both. I personally liked self assist. I pack light, so we only had one large suitcase to wheel out. and a back pack each. Even though they called self assist first, we took our time, had breakfast, and went when we wanted to. We stood in the line leaving with the tail end of the guests, and was off the ship in 15 minutes or so. Easy and no problem at all.

[DebJ14]

I have only done self-assist once in Tampa when the airline changed my flight to an earlier time. My feeling is that I am on vacation until I arrive home. Therefore, I will not schlep my luggage down to the pier. I will let them take it off, pay a porter in the terminal. I do as little work as possible on vacation.

[Wayfairers]

Almost always self assist. Never had a problem except for those who think they can handle their luggage but cannot. We've been among the first off the ship and among the last (by choice).

 

 

Done..

7d Royal Caribbean

7d Celebrity

10d Princess

21d Carnival

75d Holland America

 

Next..

21d Carnival Triumph

[ccruisequeen]

On the shorter cruises, it seems that there are more self assist than checked luggage. The lines go on forever. I waited two hours to get off in May. I'd checked a bag and finally joined the self assist line and my bag was waiting for me.

 

[wantocruisemore]

I have done both as well. We used self when we had a flight we needed to get to, or had just a little luggage.

 

Most recently we just used regular. We are normally aft and on Verandah so we are near the last groups with zones. It gives us more time to relax that morning and have a good breakfast. Plus with a lot of luggage we grab a porter just as we get our luggage and normally get through customs faster plus don't have to worry about carrying everything.

[Jay Sam]

Have done self dis-embarkation 7 of 8 cruises, all but the 1st one. Much prefer not having the hassle of planning what I will need the last night. I also enjoy having a more flexible schedule in the morning. I try to take along just what I need. No over-packing for me. Been there, done that. Only reason I did the night before on the 1st cruise is that we didn't know there was a self dis-embark option. Enjoy your cruise.

[quickrate]

I have only done self-assist once in Tampa when the airline changed my flight to an earlier time. My feeling is that I am on vacation until I arrive home. Therefore, I will not schlep my luggage down to the pier. I will let them take it off, pay a porter in the terminal. I do as little work as possible on vacation.

We do the same. Find a porter, pay him , he whisks us thru customs, easy-peasy!!

Pat

[CruiseKittyFL]

Personally, we prefer the self-assisted option for a few reasons. You are always in sight of your stuff and you don't have to hunt for it later in the terminal (though I have seen people mark their luggage with all kinds of crazy things). You do get off the ship first, but still have time to grab some breakfast (we have taken everything down to lido, eaten and waited for our deck to be called). Usually, it doesn't take long to get off the ship unless there is some kind of security clearance issue like what happened on our Legend cruise last year. We live only 2 hours from Port Canaveral so speed of debarkation isn't really important to us.

 

If you do self-assist, don't overpack. We had two suitcases each and we can handle that, but some people struggle. Backpacks are great because they free up your hands and you can stuff a lot in them - I bring one empty and end up buying stuff while I'm visiting ports so it makes it easier to bring your new goodies off he ship. Keep in mind that most ships have self laundry too so you can just wash some clothes and not have to bring enough for 8 days if you want to pack light.

[WetToes]

You do get off the ship first, but still have time to grab some breakfast (we have taken everything down to lido, eaten and waited for our deck to be called).

 

 

We're early risers, so we leave our stuff in the cabin (all ready to go), and then go have breakfast, and a coffee or two.

We then go back to the cabin, gather everything and head down to be called.

[antique sailor]

AHOY SHIPMATES,

When on Carnival (5 days) we each pack large dufflebag w wheels and a small shoulder bag. so self assist is logical choice.

Only problem is room must be vacated by 0830 and disembarking doesn't begin till about 0930 by decks in JAX. so there is an hour that you must wait somewhere till called. Most elevators are turned off and stairs are jammed with those who can't follow instructions and have too much luggage to handle efficiently and rules are NOT enforced by staff so as not to offend anyone. With my military background , I get rather upset watching the" FIASCO" It's still the best way to go!!!!......We park off site and don't want to wait all day for the shuttle to pick up our car for the 15 minute drive home. LOL