Seattle pier 91 porters

[Nattyg1723]

Forgive me for sounding ignorant, but I have never used porters before and have some questions regarding them (Seattle pier 91)

 

1. There will be 2 ships at the pier at embarkation, the Ruby Princess and the Eurodam. Are there certain porters for each ship/cruise line, or will the porter collect all luggage for both ships and sort out where it goes?

2. Are the porters right at the front of the terminal where you get dropped off?

3. What is the general tip per bag? 

 

Thank you.

 

[luvteaching]

Hi Nattyg1723, 

 

We've sailed out of Seattle pier 91 numerous times. Yes, there are certain porters for each line and I'm sure someone will chime in as to which ship they go with. However, they are very organized and will call someone for you if they can't take you. They are right handy in the terminal area. I tip $5.00 - $10.00 total and we have 3-4 bags that are being taken to be loaded. I'm not sure if that's right or not but it's an amount I'm comfortable with. 

Karen

[Ferry_Watcher]

There will be designated porters for both ships.  Each cruise line porter will wear a particular color (orange or yellow/green).  The porters will only accept your bags if they are working for that particular ship, if not they will direct you to the correct porter.  These are union jobs and when their lunch time occurs they do take it, and sometimes around 11;30 - noon it may seem like their are no porters.  There are, but for a short period just less of them.  Also, pier staff can also direct you to the correct color-coded porter. Once the season begins May 4 & 5 we can report back regarding the correct porter color by cruise line. 

 

The porters will be out in the driveway area where you will be getting out of whatever ground transportation you used to get to the port.  Many of the porters will not 'solicit' passengers walking with their bags to the terminal building (they tend to ask as you are getting out of cars, taxis, buses, etc).  They will be happy to take your luggage at any point as long as they have room on their cart.  You also have the option to walk your bags in to the luggage hall as well.  Porters can only accept bags/suitcases that have the cruise issued luggage tags (with the stateroom number shown).  Most of the porters have staplers with them to attach the tags if you have them with you.  Last season HAL & PCL had desks set up to check the manifest and handwrite luggage tags outside the building.

 

As for tipping, it is up to you.  I am sure any gratuity will be happily accepted.

Edited April 15, 2019 by Ferry_Watcher
typo

[Nattyg1723]

Thank you both for the informative answers, exactly the information I was looking for😀

[chewap]

All of the workers including porters at the cruise ship dock belong to the ILWU (longshoreman union).  The longshoreman  at the dock make in excess of $1,000/day which includes weekend wages plus time and a half after 6 hours of work.   Most of the longshoreman working at the cruise ship docks are senior longshoremen being in the highest wage rates bracket.   The longshoremen are hired  by the Port of Seattle and separate from the cruiseline employees.  My son is a longshoreman and says that the longshoreman on the dock cannot solicit tips and should not receive tips, but some ignore the policy.      

[Ferry_Watcher]

I agree with chewap that I have never seen a Seattle Pier 91 porter (longshoreman) solicit a tip.

 

I do know that they make a excellent hourly wage, but the number of hours per week they get assigned is determined by their seniority status.  Many of the longshoremen porters I have seen at Pier 91 include a good many young people (majority of men, but a handful of  20something year old young women as well).   So while they may make a high hourly wage, they could be only working part time (while they work their way up the seniority food chain).

 

At the end of the day, I do believe that it is appropriate to tip the porters if you chose, and that they would gratefully accept a small gratuity for their porter service.

 

 

[rkacruiser]

2 hours ago, chewap said:

My son is a longshoreman and says that the longshoreman on the dock cannot solicit tips and should not receive tips, but some ignore the policy.      

 

Regarding the question of offering a gratuity to the Porters at any Port, I think this is the first response I have ever seen that offers the opinion of an actual longshoreman.  

 

I appreciate the information and I do understand the background information posted by chewap.  Personally, I offer a gratuity to a Port's Porter because I appreciate their service.  I have had several individuals over many cruises that have gone out of their way to be of help that I truly appreciated (and more than once their offered assistance was unexpected).

 

To tip or not to tip:  As the Bard once wrote:  "That's the Question."  Offering a gratuity is, and should be, a personal decision.

Edited April 20, 2019 by rkacruiser

[rt1092]

At the piers in Florida the porters take your bag as soon as you get out of your transportation. You leave them where you are dropped off. Then they load them on to carts and take them to the ship. 

Is pier 91 in Seattle different? Do the porters take your bags in the building, then you check them in? 

[luvteaching]

At Pier 91 the porters take your checked luggage as soon as you get out of your transportation. All you take in the building is your carry on pieces. We are on the shuttle from the Armory parking lot and as soon as we are parked the shuttle driver helps me get a porter and takes care of the luggage for me as I get a wheelchair person for my husband. The folks at Pier 91 are great! 

Karen

[Ferry_Watcher]

4 hours ago, rt1092 said:

At the piers in Florida the porters take your bag as soon as you get out of your transportation. You leave them where you are dropped off. Then they load them on to carts and take them to the ship. 

Is pier 91 in Seattle different? Do the porters take your bags in the building, then you check them in? 

If luvteaching doesn't mind, I am going to expand on her answer (boots on the ground background).

 

On HAL and Princess days (Sa, Su, M) passengers have the option of either having the porters take their luggage, or walking into the building into the luggage hall and actually handing it to the longshoremen who feed the luggage thru the security scanner.  It has been my observation that a majority of the passengers arriving for HAL & PCL (in private cars/ Uber) will opt to wheel their own bags into the building. 

 

Fridays, we have Celebrity and RCL.  The luggage procedure is different - all the luggage (except carry-on) is taken by the porters out in the driveway area and taken to the ship.

 

Tuesday is Carnival.  Porters are only available until 2 PM, and any passenger arriving after that time is responsible for transporting their own luggage on to the ship.  (At least this is what the policy was in 2018).

 

Hope this answers your question.

[rt1092]

3 hours ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

If luvteaching doesn't mind, I am going to expand on her answer (boots on the ground background).

 

On HAL and Princess days (Sa, Su, M) passengers have the option of either having the porters take their luggage, or walking into the building into the luggage hall and actually handing it to the longshoremen who feed the luggage thru the security scanner.  It has been my observation that a majority of the passengers arriving for HAL & PCL (in private cars/ Uber) will opt to wheel their own bags into the building. 

 

Fridays, we have Celebrity and RCL.  The luggage procedure is different - all the luggage (except carry-on) is taken by the porters out in the driveway area and taken to the ship.

 

Tuesday is Carnival.  Porters are only available until 2 PM, and any passenger arriving after that time is responsible for transporting their own luggage on to the ship.  (At least this is what the policy was in 2018).

 

Hope this answers your question.

Thanks. Sounds good. That is the way they do it in Florida. Hand the driver and the porters a tip. Then on to the ship.

Easy Peasy.