Day of arrival question (summit)

[jojo412]

Hello again,

 

Thank you to all who have helped out with their quick and informative responses! So very much appreciated..

 

Another question: how long does the process take from arrival to being able to walk off the ship on the day of arrival at bermuda? We are on the Summit with a scheduled arrival of 8:30am. Realistically, about what time can i expect to be able to walk off the ship after docking, clearing customs, etc? Is it an 8:30 arrival, but then it takes a while to "park" and anchor and then get customs to clear the ship, etc.. so that the time passengers are allowed to wall off is actually much later?

 

What time should we line up at the exits to make sure we are off the ship as soon as possible?

 

The reason I ask if because I'm considering booking a tour, not through Celebrity because they don't offer it the day of arrival. It's the Hidden Gems tour, it does pick up at Dockyard but the meetup time is 9:30am, and they want you there by 9:15 to check in... and apparently they are pretty strict about that time. Just want to make sure we would make it off the ship and get there in time, just nervous for any delays that might happen...do you think we wold make the 9:15 check in if our arrival is scheduled for 8:30?

 

Any advice is appreciated!!

[iheartbda]

We've always been cleared in 30 minutes but at any one time, that can be different. Did you pre-book and pay for the excursion?

 

You could always watch the Bermuda webcam when the Summit gets in and see how soon people are getting off.:)

Edited June 28, 2016 by iheartbda

[firegal2539]

It differs in every docking. There are so many variables, is the ship on time, if they are late ship will let off all their excursions first.

 

 

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[Charles4515]

Hello again,

 

Thank you to all who have helped out with their quick and informative responses! So very much appreciated..

 

Another question: how long does the process take from arrival to being able to walk off the ship on the day of arrival at bermuda? We are on the Summit with a scheduled arrival of 8:30am. Realistically, about what time can i expect to be able to walk off the ship after docking, clearing customs, etc? Is it an 8:30 arrival, but then it takes a while to "park" and anchor and then get customs to clear the ship, etc.. so that the time passengers are allowed to wall off is actually much later?

 

What time should we line up at the exits to make sure we are off the ship as soon as possible?

 

The reason I ask if because I'm considering booking a tour, not through Celebrity because they don't offer it the day of arrival. It's the Hidden Gems tour, it does pick up at Dockyard but the meetup time is 9:30am, and they want you there by 9:15 to check in... and apparently they are pretty strict about that time. Just want to make sure we would make it off the ship and get there in time, just nervous for any delays that might happen...do you think we wold make the 9:15 check in if our arrival is scheduled for 8:30?

 

Any advice is appreciated!!

 

No guarantee but that time should not be a problem. It takes about 30 minutes before they clear the ship arfter arrival. The last two years I have been off Summit by 9:00. This year they actually arrived before 8:30 and I got a shuttle to the beach at 8:35 on Wednesday.

[Charles4515]

It differs in every docking. There are so many variables, is the ship on time, if they are late ship will let off all their excursions first.

 

 

It is pretty hard for Summit to be late arriving to Bermuda. They have plenty of time to get there. Twice this year they docked the evening before scheduled. Once because of a medical emergency. The other time because of a storm.

Edited June 28, 2016 by Charles4515

[Janie001]

Last week we pulled into the dock around 8 a.m., we made our way to the gangway around 8:20 and we were one of the first people off the boat right at 8:30 a.m.

[lauren0309]

Is it a mob scene getting your transportation tokens and tickets at the visitor center assuming everyone gets off at once? 3,000 plus people.

[mcbutter]

It can be pretty crowded at the VIC to get passes or tokens. Sometimes the line moves fast, sometimes not. Wish Bermuda allowed you to purchase by mail, but they don't. What I have done in the past, is purchased them ahead of time via Craigslist or Ebay. Sometimes I've paid slightly more than face value, but, it's worth it to me not having to deal with the hassle, and having them immediately upon arrival.

[Charles4515]

Is it a mob scene getting your transportation tokens and tickets at the visitor center assuming everyone gets off at once? 3,000 plus people.

 

 

 

It was not a mob scene at the visitor center by Summit. Here is a picture from Wednesday morning. This is it after the ship cleared. Hardly a mob scene. By the way Summit only has about 2500 passengers. Not over 3000. A lot of people don't get off when the ship clears. They wait. Sleep late or whatever. Also many don't use the public transport so they don't buy tokens or passes.

 

 

 

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Edited June 29, 2016 by Charles4515

[lauren0309]

It was not a mob scene at the visitor center by Summit. Here is a picture from Wednesday morning. This is it after the ship cleared. Hardly a mob scene. By the way Summit only has about 2500 passengers. Not over 3000.

 

 

 

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Im not taking the Summit, I'm going on the Breakaway which holds more passengers but see there are no crowds. I just pictured in my mind everyone rushing off and running over to get their transporation passes. LOL

Edited June 29, 2016 by lauren0309

[Charles4515]

Im not taking the Summit, I'm going on the Breakaway but see there are no crowds. I just pictured in my mind everyone rushing off and running over to get their transporation passes. LOL

 

 

 

I can't speak for Breakaway as far as crowds but they have their own Visitor Information Center. I don't think everyone rushes off at once. If you read reviews many decide to wait for later, like 11:30 to avoid crowds. And those are the ones who seem to run into crowds. LOL

 

Keep in mind there are other forms of transport, shuttles, taxis, cruise line excursions. Not everyone is buying transportation passes.

 

 

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Edited June 29, 2016 by Charles4515

[jojo412]

Thanks again everyone from your input...we decided to switch over the tour to Thursday. The tour company was very rigid about the meeting time and not able to guarantee that they would wait if we were delayed, or even switch it to another day of we missed...totally understandable. So were playing ithe safe, we should definitely be able to make it thursday!

 

Decided to do St George/Tobacco Beach on wednesday, hidden gems tour on thursday, and friday horseshoe beach. Hopefully the only real crowds we will have to deal with is the first day on the 930 ferry...but the tour will be crowd free, and horseshoe should be relatively less crowded on the last day because most people will stay close to ship. We will probably skip harbour nights.

 

Can't wait! Thanks again for all your input...

[CGinMTL]

Hello again,

 

Thank you to all who have helped out with their quick and informative responses! So very much appreciated..

 

Another question: how long does the process take from arrival to being able to walk off the ship on the day of arrival at bermuda? We are on the Summit with a scheduled arrival of 8:30am. Realistically, about what time can i expect to be able to walk off the ship after docking, clearing customs, etc? Is it an 8:30 arrival, but then it takes a while to "park" and anchor and then get customs to clear the ship, etc.. so that the time passengers are allowed to wall off is actually much later?

 

What time should we line up at the exits to make sure we are off the ship as soon as possible?

 

The reason I ask if because I'm considering booking a tour, not through Celebrity because they don't offer it the day of arrival. It's the Hidden Gems tour, it does pick up at Dockyard but the meetup time is 9:30am, and they want you there by 9:15 to check in... and apparently they are pretty strict about that time. Just want to make sure we would make it off the ship and get there in time, just nervous for any delays that might happen...do you think we wold make the 9:15 check in if our arrival is scheduled for 8:30?

 

Any advice is appreciated!!

If the ship is there, not a problem

The tour company will only pick-up ship passengers,

they will be able to see if the ship is there or not.

If you want to be save, book for Thursday or Friday.