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Barcelona - when to be on ship that leaves at 11 pm


rockjock75
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We are starting a cruise from Barcelona next April. The ship leaves port at 11 pm. We were hoping to do a tapas and wine tour from 6-9 pm and be back on board by 9:30 pm. Is there a "required" time that all passengers need to be on board? Typically on other cruises, it is 1 hr before departure. Does anyone have onboard experience with this late of departure time?

Edited by rockjock75
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2 hours ago, rockjock75 said:

We are starting a cruise from Barcelona next April. The ship leaves port at 11 pm. We were hoping to do a tapas and wine tour from 6-9 pm and be back on board by 9:30 pm. Is there a "required" time that all passengers need to be on board? Typically on other cruises, it is 1 hr before departure. Does anyone have onboard experience with this late of departure time?

On our first Marina cruise back in 2011 we had an 11pm departure -- but the boat drill took place around 5pm.  We happened to arrive at the ship at around 4pm and had no intention of leaving again.  (We were in Civitavecchia that time which is rather different from Barcelona!)  I always heard the rule about boarding time on departure day was TWO hours in advance, but others have said it's a little less.  Never as little as one hour, at least I don't think so.  (It's an hour on port days, not necessarily on departure day.)

 

Then again, these things to seem to change periodically ...

 

Your hour and a half might be perfectly fine, even so.  And you can make up the boat drill the next day, or so I understand.  After all, others might be flying in on that day and have flight delays ... you probably wouldn't be the only people to miss the drill if you decide to do your tapas tour. 😁

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After you check in and board the ship you will find the info or can ask about the "all aboard" time for this cruise.

That will be the definite answer you are seeking.

That said, it is usually an hour before sailing so I believe that you can book that tour - enjoy.

Missing the drill is a different matter 🙂

Edited by Paulchili
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I would check on whether there is an issue about getting off the ship after initial boarding. On a cruise that started in Vancouver, we boarded early and I thought we could get off the ship and walk around Canada Place but they would not let us get off.

 

Never had that happen before and it was long before final boarding.

 

Mary

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19 hours ago, azam71209 said:

I would check on whether there is an issue about getting off the ship after initial boarding. On a cruise that started in Vancouver, we boarded early and I thought we could get off the ship and walk around Canada Place but they would not let us get off.

 

Never had that happen before and it was long before final boarding.

 

Mary

Now that's interesting. Anybody care to respond? 

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That is the case in some places - some people recently reported this to be the case in Sydney as well - but I think it’s the exception rather than the rule.

Best to check ahead of time if one wants to disembark after boarding.

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On 12/13/2019 at 3:54 PM, azam71209 said:

I would check on whether there is an issue about getting off the ship after initial boarding. On a cruise that started in Vancouver, we boarded early and I thought we could get off the ship and walk around Canada Place but they would not let us get off.

 

Never had that happen before and it was long before final boarding.

 

Mary

 

This is also true in Sydney--not allowed to disembark after boarding. Best to confirm with O.

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I've seen several recent posts where places like Sydney and Vancouver don't allow you to leave the ship once you've boarded ... but in our experience that is NOT the usual case.  You do need to check beforehand so you know the lay of the land.

 

 

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On 12/13/2019 at 2:54 PM, azam71209 said:

I would check on whether there is an issue about getting off the ship after initial boarding. On a cruise that started in Vancouver, we boarded early and I thought we could get off the ship and walk around Canada Place but they would not let us get off.

 

Never had that happen before and it was long before final boarding.

 

Mary

When cruising out of Vancouver BC, often times the first port is in Alaska.  The Alaskan ports are small and do not have immigration services.  So you actually go thru US Immigration at the Port of Vancouver.  This happens after you check in/get room card and before you step on the ship.

 

In Vancouver, I expect that you can’t leave the ship after initial boarding because Canadian Immigration won’t allow it.

Edited by CruisingIGo
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Thank you. That is very helpful information. On the ship, nobody could explain it to me. It would make sense for Oceania to notify passengers when this will be an issue. If we would have known we could not have gotten off the ship, we would have just checked our luggage and done our sightseeing before getting onboard. A sign saying something like "Notice: Due to US Immigration regulations, you will not be able to leave the ship and return into Canada after passing this point." would have made sense.

 

Mary

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I just called Oceania about my original question. FWIW, the person at the other end of the phone said I needed to be back on board by 9 pm for an 11 pm departure. I then asked if I only could make it back by 9:30 pm , would that be OK? The Oceania person said " I guess that would be OK also". What?!?!? So I think I will make my tapas and wine tour reservation, call Oceania again in a few months to see if I get same answer, and then once I am on board talk with an Oceania person on the ship to verify 9:30 pm will be ok.

Clear as mud!

Edited by rockjock75
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2 minutes ago, rockjock75 said:

I just called Oceania about my original question. FWIW, the person at the other end of the phone said I needed to be back on board by 9 pm for an 11 pm departure. I then asked if I only could make it back by 9:30 pm , would that be OK? The Oceania person said " I guess that would be OK also". What?!?!?

I think you'd call that CYA rather than hard facts by someone who is not really sure 😀

Edited by Paulchili
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My TA called and told me 9 pm is a hard time. So. we are going to move our Tapas and Wine food tour to the previous day and since most Barcelona restaurants appear to not open until 8 pm, we will just eat on board before we leave at 11 pm. Too bad I would rather eat onshore , than on the ship as long as we are in Barcelona.

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58 minutes ago, rockjock75 said:

My TA called and told me 9 pm is a hard time. So. we are going to move our Tapas and Wine food tour to the previous day and since most Barcelona restaurants appear to not open until 8 pm, we will just eat on board before we leave at 11 pm. Too bad I would rather eat onshore , than on the ship as long as we are in Barcelona.

Just out of curiosity, I’d like to hear from you once you are onboard and what the posted “all aboard” sign will say.

TIA.

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