Cruising4 Posted August 31, 2014 #1 Share Posted August 31, 2014 Hi, I'm considering an 11:15 flight out of MIA. Would doing Self-Assist and FTTF get us off the ship faster? Do you wait in your cabin until your group is called? Can someone explain the disembarking procedure? Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruise-Crazy Posted August 31, 2014 #2 Share Posted August 31, 2014 With FTTF you can be one of the first off. Depending on when customs clears the ship I am usually off by 8:30 or so and that is not hurrying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not_Done_Living Posted August 31, 2014 #3 Share Posted August 31, 2014 with FTTF i was able to be at MIA by 8:30 am ----- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pghsteelerfan Posted August 31, 2014 #4 Share Posted August 31, 2014 (edited) We did self-assist when we were on our Liberty cruise this past April (when Liberty was still based out of Miami). We were finally called shortly after 8AM for "self-assist". We purchased the airport transfer (round trip) through Carnival and we arrived at MIA right around 9AM. I can't remember exactly how long the whole process took but we were at our gate at MIA just before 10AM. Most of our time was spent walking through the airport and that morning there was not much in the way of lines, but I'm sure that's not always the case. We were traveling over spring break (week before Easter). I'm attaching the handouts from Carnival during the last night of our cruise that explain the disembarking procedures. With the "self assist", we kept our luggage in our room but you'll have to carry it yourself. We had no problem with that. There will be some stairs and escalators that you'll need to get it down. When "self assist" is called, it's shortly after the ship clears. The morning we arrived back in Miami there were no announcements made until shortly before they Edited August 31, 2014 by pghsteelerfan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
okgirl Posted August 31, 2014 #5 Share Posted August 31, 2014 If you have FTTF you will be given a letter explaining your debarkation options the last day of the cruise. Self assist for Diamond/Platinum and FTTF happens first and you are usually told to wait in the theater or lounge. General self assist happens next and you can wait in your cabin and they call you down by deck. Zone number debarkation happens after all the self assist guests are off the ship and FTTF always gets Zone 1 tags and are also directed to wait in a lounge. I prefer self assist (I'm Diamond) not because I necessarily want to be off the ship first, but I want to get through Customs before a thousand people are already in line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pghsteelerfan Posted August 31, 2014 #6 Share Posted August 31, 2014 Sorry my last post ended in mid-sentence. This computer has a mind of it's own today and I was not able to edit on time. What I was saying is that the morning we arrived back in Miami, there were no announcements made until right before they started the debarkation process. We were starting to wonder about that since they had announcements every other morning of the cruise. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruise-Crazy Posted August 31, 2014 #7 Share Posted August 31, 2014 Look for the letter telling you where to meet. On Ecstasy it was the library. Other ships it was the main lounge. Don't go by the general handout. Even before FTTF I have dropped off my bags at home and been to work before 9am. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruising4 Posted September 1, 2014 Author #8 Share Posted September 1, 2014 Thanks everyone! Is it OK to drag along all our luggage as FTTF? We will check bags at the airport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not_Done_Living Posted September 1, 2014 #9 Share Posted September 1, 2014 You can choose self debark where you carry your own luggage or you can check it the night before and pick it up at customs even with fttf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UpstateCruizer Posted September 1, 2014 #10 Share Posted September 1, 2014 Thanks everyone! Is it OK to drag along all our luggage as FTTF? We will check bags at the airport. Yes, bring your luggage with you otherwise you have to debark with the zone you are given. You should have no issues with getting to the airport in plenty of time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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