Freedom of the Seas San Juan departure

[mina518]

Does anyone know what is the earliest time that you're able to board the ship if the cruise does not depart until 8:30pm?  This is for 3/18/19 departure on Freedom of the Seas. Also, what's the earliest you can get off the ship on the final day?

 

Thanks so much, 

Mina

[khm1]

It has been my experience from many sailings from San Juan that boarding begins around 11:30 am. We try to be at the pier around 11. We have rarely had to wait very long. The lines get very long between 1-3. We like to get there early and begin enjoying the ship before the throngs arrive. 

 

I believe that debarkation begins around 8 am, but don’t quote me on that.

[ScubaDo]

We were on the ship a few weeks ago. We were in a suite and the concierge escorted a group off the ship a little before 7 am. We were first off and at the airport checked in by 0735. To the best of my knowledge all others were soon after us.

We boarded at 1130.

[Clarea]

31 minutes ago, mina518 said:

Does anyone know what is the earliest time that you're able to board the ship if the cruise does not depart until 8:30pm?  This is for 3/18/19 departure on Freedom of the Seas. Also, what's the earliest you can get off the ship on the final day?

 

Thanks so much, 

Mina

 

Boarding normally begins between 11:30am and 12:30pm. 

 

The first self-assist people will normally be getting off the ship around 45 minutes after arrival.

[davekathy]

34 minutes ago, mina518 said:

Does anyone know what is the earliest time that you're able to board the ship if the cruise does not depart until 8:30pm?  This is for 3/18/19 departure on Freedom of the Seas. Also, what's the earliest you can get off the ship on the final day?

 

Thanks so much, 

Mina

You missed your ship by a day. The Freedom leaves on the 17th. 😉

[jptoz]

Sorry to jump on your thread. But does anyone know if you can leave the ship after check in and boarding? Is there a separate entrance to get back on the ship with your seapass card? Is it practical or would it be a waste of time to go back to old San Juan.

[mina518]

11 minutes ago, davekathy said:

You missed your ship by a day. The Freedom leaves on the 17th. 😉

whoops...lol

[davekathy]

Just now, mina518 said:

whoops...lol

We'll take good care of her as we are on a B2B (3 March and 10 March) before your cruise. 

[alfaeric]

FWIW, this past Sunday, we boarded the ship at 2pm. No lines what so ever. And we were able to unpack right away. 

[skidawg79]

3 hours ago, jptoz said:

Sorry to jump on your thread. But does anyone know if you can leave the ship after check in and boarding? Is there a separate entrance to get back on the ship with your seapass card? Is it practical or would it be a waste of time to go back to old San Juan.

 

I am pretty sure that you can, I sailed out of  San Juan  on carnival a few years ago but we left from the old San Juan Pier.  It was easy to get on and off.   I am not 100% sure about Royal Caribbean, but I would assume so.  Depending what time you check in, it probably could be worth it to go back to old San Juan.  But as a poster mentioned earlier I would avoid trying to get back on between 1- 4 PM.   I haven’t figured out what I am going to do yet, I get a late check out at my hotel, so I may just stay and spend the day on the beach before we go to the ship    But  that is all up in the air yet, probably will depend on the weather. 

[irun5k]

3 hours ago, jptoz said:

Sorry to jump on your thread. But does anyone know if you can leave the ship after check in and boarding? Is there a separate entrance to get back on the ship with your seapass card? Is it practical or would it be a waste of time to go back to old San Juan.

Not sure if it is set up this way but years ago I left and reboarded the Monarch several times in San Juan.  There were some things in the liquor store (which was after security) that I needed to buy and I couldn't carry it all to my stateroom in one trip.  Did not have to spend much on onboard refreshments that trip....

[Clarea]

3 hours ago, jptoz said:

Sorry to jump on your thread. But does anyone know if you can leave the ship after check in and boarding? Is there a separate entrance to get back on the ship with your seapass card? Is it practical or would it be a waste of time to go back to old San Juan.

 

We've done that several times, no problem at all.  After 2pm or so, there's not much of a line.

[Ashland]

4 hours ago, jptoz said:

Sorry to jump on your thread. But does anyone know if you can leave the ship after check in and boarding? Is there a separate entrance to get back on the ship with your seapass card? Is it practical or would it be a waste of time to go back to old San Juan.

Yes...it's easy to do....there will be signs or terminal employees that will direct you where to reboard.

[SG65CB]

4 hours ago, jptoz said:

Sorry to jump on your thread. But does anyone know if you can leave the ship after check in and boarding? Is there a separate entrance to get back on the ship with your seapass card? Is it practical or would it be a waste of time to go back to old San Juan.

 

Muster drill is around 5:30 PM. They have a later one for people who arrive after that time since the ship does not leave until 8:30 PM. 

[Tanker]

I read the earlier posts and would like some more feedback on return flights from San Juan.  We are planning our cruise on the Freedom for this Sep and would like to know what to expect at SJU for our return flights. How are the lines at the San Juan airport for return flights on Sunday's. Last time we flew out the lines were extremely long and it took us several hours to get from curb to gate. Based on the posts I am reading it is recommended to take flight at noon or later, but arrive as early as possible. Is that the bottom line? Thanks!

[Ourusualbeach]

17 minutes ago, Tanker said:

I read the earlier posts and would like some more feedback on return flights from San Juan.  We are planning our cruise on the Freedom for this Sep and would like to know what to expect at SJU for our return flights. How are the lines at the San Juan airport for return flights on Sunday's. Last time we flew out the lines were extremely long and it took us several hours to get from curb to gate. Based on the posts I am reading it is recommended to take flight at noon or later, but arrive as early as possible. Is that the bottom line? Thanks!

I would still follow that advice.

[cruiseguy1016]

52 minutes ago, Tanker said:

I read the earlier posts and would like some more feedback on return flights from San Juan.  We are planning our cruise on the Freedom for this Sep and would like to know what to expect at SJU for our return flights. How are the lines at the San Juan airport for return flights on Sunday's. Last time we flew out the lines were extremely long and it took us several hours to get from curb to gate. Based on the posts I am reading it is recommended to take flight at noon or later, but arrive as early as possible. Is that the bottom line? Thanks!

 

We have cruised out of San Juan on several occasions. We always get to the port around 11:00. We have been on the ship as early as 11:20 but never later than 12:15. As for Debarkation, if we have an early flight (I wouldn't book anything before 10:00) we ask for an early debarkation time. We don't do self assist. We are usually off the ship by 8:00 and at the airport by 8:30. At that hour, the airport is not crowded and getting through the Agriculture and TSA inspections is fairly quick. By 9:30 or 10:00, the lines start becoming very long and you could end up waiting in lines for up to a couple of hours. 

[Tanker]

 

Thanks to cruiseguy1016 and Ourusualbeach for the excellent feedback.  

[GalwayGirl03]

We relaxed at our resort until 3pm and got there around 3:30/4.  No lines whatsoever and then went directly to our room unpacked and then went to muster.  It was the quickest we were ever on a ship!

[cruisecookie]

Is Luggage Valet available from San Juan?  If so, what is the time range for flights leaving San Juan that qualify for the program?

[cruiseguy1016]

Luggage Valet used to be available in San Juan. The last few years we have cruised from there it was not offered.