Aug 7th W-E-W Caribbean Edge Cruise - B3B

[cricketts]

1 hour ago, CHEZMARYLOU said:

My guess is they switched to T18 because it is bigger, build for RC mega ships, and they can process more passengers at the same time. We sailed out of there on an S class ship with delayed boarding and it seemed like the terminal could hold 75% of the passengers after check in.

 

Makes sense if they can get all the embarkation people inside and out of the heat!

[Ken the cruiser]

We made it to the port and the parking lot folks opened up the pier 25 parking deck for us as it was closed when we got here at 3:55 pm. We drove up to deck 5, found the best seat in the “house” waiting for the Edge to arrive. And if you look close above the palm tree, we think that is her on the horizon. 

[Ken the cruiser]

The Edge is almost here! Yay!!! 😎

Update: we’re now on the shuttle heading over to terminal 18! We’re getting closer!! 😎

Edited August 7, 2021 by Ken the cruiser

[helen haywood]

Great picture!!

[bigbeergut]

6 hours ago, cricketts said:

 

I'm curious why they switched to terminal 18.  Even with a 2am departure, I would think Edge would be gone before Equinox comes in.

 

My guess is that they are using Terminal 18 because it is huge.  It was designed to for the Oasis class ships and I'll bet all of the new passengers for the Edge can fix on the second floor and still social distance.  They really don't know when they'll be able to board and they don't want everyone standing around outside.  

[WhaleTailFlCruiser]

5 minutes ago, bigbeergut said:

 

My guess is that they are using Terminal 18 because it is huge.  It was designed to for the Oasis class ships and I'll bet all of the new passengers for the Edge can fix on the second floor and still social distance.  They really don't know when they'll be able to board and they don't want everyone standing around outside.  

It is almost like they learned from last weeks disaster. 

[Ken the cruiser]

We are checked in at 5:07 and now just waiting for the ship to get ready for us!! Yes!!!! 😎

 

The first picture is the check-in lines followed by the sitting area waiting to board. And, no, we have no idea what time that will be. But we’re inside and seated, so all is good. 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

10 minutes ago, bigbeergut said:

 

My guess is that they are using Terminal 18 because it is huge.  It was designed to for the Oasis class ships and I'll bet all of the new passengers for the Edge can fix on the second floor and still social distance.  They really don't know when they'll be able to board and they don't want everyone standing around outside.  

That makes a lot of sense as there are plenty of places to sit. And thank goodness as it’s 95 degrees here today. 
 

[bigbeergut]

2 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We are checked in at 5:07 and now just waiting for the ship to get ready for us!! Yes!!!! 😎

 

The first picture is the check-in lines followed by the sitting area waiting to board. And, no, we have no idea what time that will be. But we’re inside and seated, so all is good. 

 

How did they handle the Covid test verification?  Was anyone looking to see if  was antigen or PCR or if it was 73 hours?  Did they take a picture?

[bigbeergut]

3 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

That makes a lot of sense as there are plenty of places to sit. And thank goodness as it’s 95 degrees here today. 
 

 

Your first pictures showed the Suite seating area for the Oasis class ships.  The seating is a little nicer.  I assume that how they are handling the Edge passengers.

[Ken the cruiser]

1 minute ago, bigbeergut said:

 

How did they handle the Covid test verification?  Was anyone looking to see if  was antigen or PCR or if it was 73 hours?  Did they take a picture?

They took a picture of it with their notepad and asked if it was a PCR or antigen test and noted our answer as well. They didn’t do any detailed analyses, but did make sure they were done no earlier than Wednesday. 

[Ken the cruiser]

6 minutes ago, bigbeergut said:

 

Your first pictures showed the Suite seating area for the Oasis class ships.  The seating is a little nicer.  I assume that how they are handling the Edge passengers.

That makes sense as folks are just starting to be seated in that area as their check-in time, 5:30, is just starting now.

[Ipeeinthepools]

2 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

That makes sense as folks are just starting to be seated in that area as their check-in time, 5:30, is just starting now.

 

I hope you get to board sometime early this evening and you can get your cruise started.

[Ken the cruiser]

To catch up on today’s self-guided excursion, we took a 3 hour coastal drive along the A1A from West Palm Beach to Port Everglades which was quite fun and saw a bunch of beautiful homes. We even drove past Mar-a-Lago and didn’t even realize we past it, as there were no signs, until we were a few miles down the road. We then decided to splurge for lunch and pop into Publix and bought some cooked chicken pieces from the deli as we didn’t want to deal with eating in a restaurant. We got to the port around 3 pm and the rest you know. 😎

[WhaleTailFlCruiser]

1 minute ago, Ken the cruiser said:

To catch up on today’s self-guided excursion, we took a 3 hour coastal drive along the A1A from West Palm Beach to Port Everglades which was quite fun and saw a bunch of beautiful homes. We even drove past Mar-a-Lago and didn’t even realize we past it, as there were no signs, until we were a few miles down the road. We then decided to splurge for lunch and pop into Publix and bought some cooked chicken pieces from the deli as we didn’t want to deal with eating in a restaurant. We got to the port around 3 pm and the rest you know. 😎

 

Publix is the one true Grocery Store now you are truly a Florida Man loving the Publix life.

[Ken the cruiser]

7 minutes ago, Ipeeinthepools said:

 

I hope you get to board sometime early this evening and you can get your cruise started.

Once we saw the Edge finally pull up to the dock, we knew it was just a matter of time now. The “end of the tunnel” along with a bunch of moguls at the end there along with the 17 months it took to finally get here are now starting to show up in our rearview mirror and it feels great!! 😎

[Ken the cruiser]

Just got notified about the itinerary change eliminating Costa Maya and moving Roatan to Tuesday and the reason was due to the delayed arrival and embarkation procedures. More sea days works for us!

 

[FLCruiser97]

44 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

To catch up on today’s self-guided excursion, we took a 3 hour coastal drive along the A1A from West Palm Beach to Port Everglades which was quite fun and saw a bunch of beautiful homes. We even drove past Mar-a-Lago and didn’t even realize we past it, as there were no signs, until we were a few miles down the road. We then decided to splurge for lunch and pop into Publix and bought some cooked chicken pieces from the deli as we didn’t want to deal with eating in a restaurant. We got to the port around 3 pm and the rest you know. 😎

Good thing you went down on A1A.  I-95 was shut down southbound for hours. FPL sub station was hit by lightening and is right next to the interstate. Good call. Enjoy your cruise. 

[Arzeena]

Enjoy your cruise!

[graphicguy]

37 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Just got notified about the itinerary change eliminating Costa Maya and moving Roatan to Tuesday and the reason was due to the delayed arrival and embarkation procedures. More sea days works for us!

 

Have a great time.  Looking at that 7:00 a.m. arrival time on Saturday, wondering if I can board but 2:00 p.m….. 😉

[Ken the cruiser]

15 minutes ago, FLCruiser97 said:

Good thing you went down on A1A.  I-95 was shut down southbound for hours. FPL sub station was hit by lightening and is right next to the interstate. Good call. Enjoy your cruise. 

I guess so. Hopefully no one was hurt. 

[Ipeeinthepools]

Any estimates when you will board?  Everyone should be checked in by 7:30.  Is it crowded?

[BDevilCruiser]

28 minutes ago, FLCruiser97 said:

Good thing you went down on A1A.  I-95 was shut down southbound for hours. FPL sub station was hit by lightening and is right next to the interstate. Good call. Enjoy your cruise. 

I saw the message on the highway board on I-595 coming from Sawgrass Mills, where I spent most of the day (saw The Suicide Squad since I had more than enough time - highly recommend if you like comic book movies.)

 

longest wait other than getting into the terminal was security outside the port.  I think that might have surprised some people that there would be a check there.

[Ken the cruiser]

1 minute ago, Ipeeinthepools said:

Any estimates when you will board?  Everyone should be checked in by 7:30.  Is it crowded?

No estimates given yet although we are seeing folks disembark the ship. Even though the below picture looks crowded, there is usually at least one chair between groups and so far most folks are doing well to keep their masks on. 
 

[Ipeeinthepools]

It's a good call to be in terminal 18.  Hopefully you can start boarding before 9:00