Self-disembarkation?

[TMLAalum]

Does HAL have the option for us to disembark taking our own luggage off? How does this process generally work?  We are hoping to "hit the road" asap- the Nieuw Statendam arrives at 7 am on Sunday 12/30. Thanks!

[Krazy Kruizers]

Yes -- HAL does have the option to self disembark.

 

You will get a letter the day before explaining what time this will start.  Usually it will start around 7:15 - 7:30 if the ship has arrived on time and been cleared by the local authorities.

 

You must be able to carry all your own luggage off the ship with no help from the crew or from anyone in the terminal.

 

The letter will tell you what deck the self disembarkation will take place.

[just_cruising_along]

Yes as stated above it is a very easy process and well documented.  

 

One thing I would add is that you will need to remember to keep your ship's card key out and ready to scan one last time to get off the ship.  You will also receive a special tag that says you have requested early disembarkation.  You may have to show that as well.  

 

Have a good cruise.

 

[ontheweb]

When we were on the Maasdam disembarking in Montreal this past summer, there were several self disembarkation times. We took one of the later ones since we knew our hotel room would not be ready until well into the afternoon.

[Crew News]

The last time I self-disembarked, the waiting line included a number of passengers who decided that they wanted to leave earlier than there assigned time (overheard them openly discussing their situation).  Self-disembarkation cards were not proivded to us so the ship had no way of knowing who belonged.  This might be an issue for the larger HAL ships.  My departure was only slightly impacted and I was seated at my Alaska Airlines departure gate a little after 9:00 AM.

 

 

[JimnKaren]

Continuing with was just noted. There will be passengers who just don't get it and will try to get off early; they will be obvious because all that they have is a carry-on type bag only.  Once you get into the terminal, you will see that there isn't much luggage set up, they are still off loading the stuff.

We have done this for several years, however, we have noticed that there are more and more folks wanting to do this. It is particularly evident on 7 - 10 days cruises when they don't have a lot of luggage.

Another thing to take into consideration is the number of ships in port with you. The more ships there are, the fewer qualified people there are on the pier, from luggage handlers to customs personnel. And, the more ships in port, the crazier it will be at the airport.

Jim