How many boarding zones are there ?

[VentureMan_2000]

We haven't cruised since 2007... and today we did our first check-in.  Our check-in time is 12:00 - 12:30.  Our Boarding Zone is A01.

The departure port does not have FTTF.  I have a couple questions... what is the earliest check-in time that someone could have printed on their Boarding Pass ?  And how many Boarding Zones are there ?   

[TNcruising02]

I see you are from California, so assume you are cruising out of Long Beach.  Zone A01 will board immediately after priority boarding.  When I cruised out of Long Beach, I went to the early/late line at 11:15 am and was checked in and seated within several minutes.

Edited February 1, 2020 by TNcruising02

[VentureMan_2000]

52 minutes ago, TNcruising02 said:

I see you are from California, so assume you are cruising out of Long Beach.  Zone A01 will board immediately after priority boarding.  When I cruised out of Long Beach, I went to the early/late line at 11:15 am and was checked in and seated within several minutes.

I'm leaving out of San Francisco.  I was thinking of getting to the cruise terminal an hour early, and waiting in the Early/Late line.  This is all so much different.  My last cruise in 2007 was out of Long Beach.  Basically, you arrived... gave your luggage to the porter, and waited in one big'ol long line -- one for priority passengers, and then a line with everyone else -- to board.  The later you came, the further back in line you were.  And Long Beach is a bit warm in May, so the wait in line was unpleasant to many since there is no shade.  

 

[TNcruising02]

When I cruised out of Long Beach this past December, they boarded priority first and then starting calling zones with zone A01.  Hopefully, they will do the same thing in San Francisco.  The early/late line in Long Beach had basically nobody in it at 11:15.  I lucked out with my timing.  I went to the early/late line in Port Canaveral and was in the waiting area within 15 minutes that time too.  Sometimes those lines are long and sometimes they aren't.  With zone A01, I would show up early because most times you will be on the ship before your appointment time.

[Organized Chaos]

I was surprised to get a 12:30 - 1:00 Arrival Appt. for our Horizon cruise in March. And I stayed up to do the online check-in as soon as it was available, so that was the earliest. We've never gotten one that late as the earliest option. Is that normal for the Horizon?

 

We were able to get a FTTF for our cabin, but not for our son's and his friend, so I guess we'll wait for them. They got zone A01, so they'll be called not long after FTTF. We'll just go early and get in the early/late line with them and see how it goes. I hate to give up early boarding since it's a perk we paid for, but we don't think it's fair to leave them behind.

[TNcruising02]

6 minutes ago, Organized Chaos said:

I was surprised to get a 12:30 - 1:00 Arrival Appt. for our Horizon cruise in March. And I stayed up to do the online check-in as soon as it was available, so that was the earliest. We've never gotten one that late as the earliest option. Is that normal for the Horizon?

 

We were able to get a FTTF for our cabin, but not for our son's and his friend, so I guess we'll wait for them. They got zone A01, so they'll be called not long after FTTF. We'll just go early and get in the early/late line with them and see how it goes. I hate to give up early boarding since it's a perk we paid for, but we don't think it's fair to leave them behind.

Between the time they call FTTF and zone A01 it's only a few minutes, so that's good.  Everyone can drop off their carryons in your cabin if they need to.  When I showed up at 10:45 for the early/late line in Port Canaveral, there was hardly anyone in line.  I think the early/late line gets longer the later it gets.

[PhillyFan33579]

4 minutes ago, TNcruising02 said:

Between the time they call FTTF and zone A01 it's only a few minutes, so that's good.  Everyone can drop off their carryons in your cabin if they need to.  When I showed up at 10:45 for the early/late line in Port Canaveral, there was hardly anyone in line.  I think the early/late line gets longer the later it gets.

From talking to my neighbor who works at the Port of Tampa, he has said the only time the early/late line gets busy is early when a lot of people show up early.  After the early rush, which doesn’t happen often,    he said there is rarely a line in the early/late line since most passengers show up during their check-in window. 
 

Tampa can only support Fantasy and Spirit class ships due to the height limit of the Skyway Bridge, so it’s possible the early/late line is more crowded at ports that can support Carnival’s larger ships. 

[TNcruising02]

3 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

From talking to my neighbor who works at the Port of Tampa, he has said the only time the early/late line gets busy is early when a lot of people show up early.  After the early rush, which doesn’t happen often,    he said there is rarely a line in the early/late line since most passengers show up during their check-in window. 
 

Tampa can only support Fantasy and Spirit class ships due to the height limit of the Skyway Bridge, so it’s possible the early/late line is more crowded at ports that can support Carnival’s larger ships. 

My experience with the early/late lines and boarding zones has been:

Vista out of Miami in 2018 - We arrived at 12:30, but had to drop off our bags and were 5 minutes late for the on time line.  We were sent to the early/late line.  There was a wait, but it wasn't horrible.  At that time, they handed out the boarding zone cards upon arrival, so we had to wait inside for awhile before we could board.

New Orleans - I think we got to the port around 11:30 because we had to park in the garage and had no idea how long it would take.  It took about a half hour and we had to park on the top of the garage.  We went to the early/late line and it was packed.  It moved at a snail's pace.  This is the longest we ever waited to get on a ship, but we still boarded before our appointment time.

Fort Lauderdale - We had FTTF and arrived at 10:30.  They started boarding FTTF around 10:50 and the first few zones were called as we were boarding the ship.  So anyone with an early boarding zone who arrived before their appointment time was able to board the ship before their appointment time.

Port Canaveral - Arrived around 10:45 and there was basically nobody in the early/late line. We boarded around 11:10, which was before our appointment time.

Long Beach - Arrived around 11:15 and there was basically nobody in the early/late line.  This was the first 7 day sailing for the Panorama.  They were having issues with the back to back people from the previous 3 night sailing and boarding took a long time.  We weren't on the ship until 1:25 a.m .  However, I think future sailings had quicker boarding. 

[Organized Chaos]

39 minutes ago, TNcruising02 said:

Between the time they call FTTF and zone A01 it's only a few minutes, so that's good.  Everyone can drop off their carryons in your cabin if they need to.  When I showed up at 10:45 for the early/late line in Port Canaveral, there was hardly anyone in line.  I think the early/late line gets longer the later it gets.

 

Yeah, my wife thought maybe we should cancel our FTTF since we couldn't get another one, but I said no. It'll still give us a place to put everyone's luggage and I always seem to have to go to Guest Services at least once, so I do like the priority line. Our hotel shuttle leaves at 10:00 and will get there about 10:30, so we'll definitely be early. That's ok, I don't mind standing in line so much when there's a cruise on the other end of it. 😊 We still have a little over a month and we're checking furiously in hopes of catching one more FTTF, but our chances are looking grim.

[Joe817]

1 hour ago, Organized Chaos said:

I was surprised to get a 12:30 - 1:00 Arrival Appt. for our Horizon cruise in March. And I stayed up to do the online check-in as soon as it was available, so that was the earliest. We've never gotten one that late as the earliest option. Is that normal for the Horizon?

 

We were able to get a FTTF for our cabin, but not for our son's and his friend, so I guess we'll wait for them. They got zone A01, so they'll be called not long after FTTF. We'll just go early and get in the early/late line with them and see how it goes. I hate to give up early boarding since it's a perk we paid for, but we don't think it's fair to leave them behind.

Gosh, O.C. couldn't you all board before your kid & friend...drop off your carry ons, and then wait for them at a predetermined location that's easily recognizable, and simply...wait for them? Sounds like it wouldn't be a long wait at all. And it would save you all some unneeded encumbrances/stress.  JMHO. 

[TNcruising02]

10 minutes ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

Yeah, my wife thought maybe we should cancel our FTTF since we couldn't get another one, but I said no. It'll still give us a place to put everyone's luggage and I always seem to have to go to Guest Services at least once, so I do like the priority line. Our hotel shuttle leaves at 10:00 and will get there about 10:30, so we'll definitely be early. That's ok, I don't mind standing in line so much when there's a cruise on the other end of it. 😊 We still have a little over a month and we're checking furiously in hopes of catching one more FTTF, but our chances are looking grim.

I would keep the FTTF too.  Being able to store carryons is so convenient.  So is the priority guest services line.  People say to just go to guest services at odd hours, but sometimes that's not always possible.  On my last cruise, my room keys didn't work.  I couldn't wait until an odd hour and ended standing in the very slow and long regular line wishing I had FTTF.

You never know about snagging another one.  I was able to snag one at 38 days out one time.  For that cruise, it actually popped up as available a couple more times closer to the cruise.  There is always hope.  I will be platinum on my March cruise and it's so strange not stalking FTTF.

Edited February 2, 2020 by TNcruising02

[new_cruiser_75]

This'll be my first time with the boarding zones... We have A01 for an upcoming Panorama cruise but fly into LGB around 7am.  We plan on taking a taxi to the Hotel Maya and having a leisurely breakfast before walking to the port, might tour the Queen Mary too.  My question is: which will board first A01 or the early/late line?  Thank for your help 😁

[TNcruising02]

11 minutes ago, new_cruiser_75 said:

This'll be my first time with the boarding zones... We have A01 for an upcoming Panorama cruise but fly into LGB around 7am.  We plan on taking a taxi to the Hotel Maya and having a leisurely breakfast before walking to the port, might tour the Queen Mary too.  My question is: which will board first A01 or the early/late line?  Thank for your help 😁

The lines to get into the terminal are different than boarding zones.  To get into the terminal, people can enter through the priority line, the on time line, or the early/late line.  
Priority line: People with FTTF (when available), wedding parties, platinums, diamonds, and passengers in suites
On time Line: This is for passengers who arrive during their 30 minute appointment time
Early/Late Line : This is for passengers who arrive before or after their 30 minute appointment window

One of these three lines will get you into the terminal, checked in, and then seated.  Priority passengers usually have a special seating area.

Boarding is in this order: Wedding parties, diamonds, platinums, suites, FTTF, A01, A02, etc...
No matter what time you are able to enter the terminal, boarding will not begin until all of the previous passengers are off of the ship.  Then they will make announcements to board in ship, with priority boarding first, then the zones, beginning with A01.  A01 is a great zone to have!

Edited February 2, 2020 by TNcruising02

[TNcruising02]

Also, I have had zone A01 a couple of times.  No matter which port, for zone A01 I would arrive at 10:30 and enter through the early/late line.  Most likely you will be on the ship before your appointment time.  At least that has been my experience.

[Organized Chaos]

3 hours ago, Joe817 said:

Gosh, O.C. couldn't you all board before your kid & friend...drop off your carry ons, and then wait for them at a predetermined location that's easily recognizable, and simply...wait for them? Sounds like it wouldn't be a long wait at all. And it would save you all some unneeded encumbrances/stress.  JMHO. 

 

You're right, it wouldn't be a very long wait between FTTF and zone A01. In NOLA in December, we got held up at the Guest Services counter inside the terminal because the rep. didn't know what she was doing and we ended up at the end of the FTTF group. When we were called, just as we were walking out of the waiting area, I heard them call zone A01. It's certainly a possibility, and one my wife and I have briefly talked about. Our son will be 19 by the time we go and he's familiar with the whole check-in and boarding process. But if we do choose to take full advantage of our FTTF, we'd get separated into different lines going into the terminal and separate waiting areas, so I'm not sure if he's comfortable doing all that without us. Not to mention we don't know that we'd want to do that to them out of fairness. We'll probably just have to accept giving up that perk.

[Joe817]

Fair enough, and totally understandable. I agree. 

[Roscoe13]

15 hours ago, new_cruiser_75 said:

This'll be my first time with the boarding zones... We have A01 for an upcoming Panorama cruise but fly into LGB around 7am.  We plan on taking a taxi to the Hotel Maya and having a leisurely breakfast before walking to the port, might tour the Queen Mary too.  My question is: which will board first A01 or the early/late line?  Thank for your help 😁

Just cruised out Long Beach on Panorama 1/25/2020.  

Here's my boarding experience, your mileage WILL vary!

Arrived at the Queen Mary parking lot via private shuttle, Johnny's California Shuttle service.  They suggested the drop off point as it was quicker to access than the crowded parking structure, which was backed up at the entry gate.  This was around 10am.  Walked to 100 yards or so from the drop zone to the early/late line.  Was surprised that I was the first person in that line.  We had 5 in our traveling party.  Weather was mild and dry so I figured we'd be ok to not get soaked and settled in for our long wait as I had chosen the earliest check in time available, 12:30 to 1pm.  I did have optimism that we'd get inside the dome earlier than that as we also had the coveted boarding zone of A01!

We had only been in line for about 15 minutes when they decided to start letting priority line pax in the dome.  Excitement was palpable!  Could it be?  Would they let the early/late line peeps in right after them?

Yes!  By 10:30am we were in the dome and through security and seated as close to the boarding entry as possible.  Right across from where they rent the motorized scooters and just next to the area for pax needing assistance to stage.  

Right about 11:30am they started boarding priority and by 11:45am we were dinged onboard and claimed a table on the lido and in line for our first Guy's burgers, washed down with a Long Island ice tea!

 

I went from very upset they didn't offer earlier check in times to the best non-FTTF embarkation experience ever!

 

 

[me-n-kev]

I just did the check in for our April Magic cruise--this is our first since the arrival appointment system.

 

We are in a suite, so I didn't "rush" (aka do it the first day) to do the on line check in, as I thought given that we had a suite, we would go before FTTF, etc.  It gave me a 12:30 arrival time.....  can I show up early and get right on, or will they have us sit around until 12:30?

 

thanks,

Kevin

 

[capecruzer]

I"m also curious.  We have a 11:30 board time but A04 zone.  We're staying at a local hotel in MIA and planned to head to the port at 10 am, arrive by 10:30 am.  For experienced MIA cruisers, should we just take our time and arrive at 11:30 or is there a chance that we might get on by 11:00 from the early line?  Although I've cruised many times, this is a new system to me...I've always arrived early and got on early on Celebrity, Princess, Norweigan.

 

[Joe817]

22 minutes ago, capecruzer said:

I"m also curious.  We have a 11:30 board time but A04 zone.  We're staying at a local hotel in MIA and planned to head to the port at 10 am, arrive by 10:30 am.  For experienced MIA cruisers, should we just take our time and arrive at 11:30 or is there a chance that we might get on by 11:00 from the early line?  Although I've cruised many times, this is a new system to me...I've always arrived early and got on early on Celebrity, Princess, Norweigan.

 

Just to be sure,you have an 11:30am, check in time... NOT BOARD TIME. You check in, and then wait in line to go through security screening. Then you are herded to a very large waiting area. with seating. Then you have to listen REAAALLLLLLL close because THAT'S when they start announcing the boarding zones. THEN, you get up and get in single file line, to be checked in....again by the last person(thankfully) before you start your final trek toward the ship. And that takes about 10-15 minutes. And then.....you are on the ship....

At least that's the way it was for us on our cruise on the Dream out of Galveston last July 27. Granted that was Galveston....so YMMV. Here's a pic or 2 of what we went through.

 

 

Edited February 3, 2020 by Joe817

[capecruzer]

So, does that mean even if you get through the "early" checkin  line, you're still sitting and waiting for your zone to be called in the sitting area?  So that checkin time makes absolutely no difference in when you board?  I'd rather not sit for hours on end because I arrived early..I can sit at the hotel pool lol.

[TNcruising02]

14 minutes ago, capecruzer said:

So, does that mean even if you get through the "early" checkin  line, you're still sitting and waiting for your zone to be called in the sitting area?  So that checkin time makes absolutely no difference in when you board?  I'd rather not sit for hours on end because I arrived early..I can sit at the hotel pool lol.

Yes, it does mean that even if you arrive before your appointment time and go through the early/late line to get in to the terminal, you still have to wait for your boarding zone to be called to get on the ship. However, my experience is that when I use the early/late line instead of waiting to arrive during my appointment window, I am on the ship before my appointment window.  

They usually start the boarding process between 10:30 and 11:30.  So, if your appointment time is noon and you arrive early, chances are you will be on the ship before noon as long as there are no delays.  The appointment times are to stagger passengers so that everybody doesn't arrive early.  However, they usually start boarding the ships earlier than the appointment times.  You can wait and arrive during your appointment time and basically walk on the ship.  Or you can show up early, go through the early/late line, wait until they start boarding between 10:30 and 11:30 and then get on the ship.

Edited February 3, 2020 by TNcruising02

[Organized Chaos]

5 minutes ago, capecruzer said:

So, does that mean even if you get through the "early" checkin  line, you're still sitting and waiting for your zone to be called in the sitting area?  So that checkin time makes absolutely no difference in when you board?  I'd rather not sit for hours on end because I arrived early..I can sit at the hotel pool lol.

 

Right, if you get there early and get put in the early/late line, once you make it through the security screening and check-in process, you're still waiting in the waiting area, unless they've already started boarding. Then, depending on what zones they've already called, you might just zip on through and onto the ship. From what I've read from others, the early/late line is sometimes long, sometimes very short. I've seen some say even though they ended up in the early/late line, they still got into the terminal well before their chosen check-in time (Arrival Appointment, as Carnival calls it).  You're zone A04, so you might get into the terminal before your 11:30 - 12:00 check-in time, but if they haven't started boarding yet, you're waiting. They won't start boarding until they clear the ship from the previous cruise. Last time we sailed out of Miami was in 2018 on the Glory. They started boarding around 11am, we had FTTF and got called around 11:10.

[Joe817]

10 minutes ago, capecruzer said:

So, does that mean even if you get through the "early" checkin  line, you're still sitting and waiting for your zone to be called in the sitting area?  So that checkin time makes absolutely no difference in when you board?  I'd rather not sit for hours on end because I arrived early..I can sit at the hotel pool lol.

That's the gamble that you take when you decide to get into the early/late check in line(it's the same line). And it IS a gamble. Sometimes you luck out and the line is short.....BUT sometimes the line is verrrrryyyyy long. Even at that, you STILL go to the waiting area. And that's a gamble I do not want to take.  As always, YMMV. 

[TNcruising02]

4 hours ago, me-n-kev said:

I just did the check in for our April Magic cruise--this is our first since the arrival appointment system.

 

We are in a suite, so I didn't "rush" (aka do it the first day) to do the on line check in, as I thought given that we had a suite, we would go before FTTF, etc.  It gave me a 12:30 arrival time.....  can I show up early and get right on, or will they have us sit around until 12:30?

 

thanks,

Kevin

 

When I cruised on the Magic last year, I had FTTF.  They started boarding suites around 10:40 and FTTF around 10:50.  I will be platinum for my cruise on the Magic this April and plan on arriving around 10:15.  Since you are in a suite, you can enter the terminal through the priority line as soon as it opens up. Then as soon as boarding starts, they will call wedding parties, diamonds, platinums, suites, FTTf, A01, etc.

Edited February 3, 2020 by TNcruising02