Allure, 2pm embarkation Check-in time? What if we show up early? (Want to book the shows.)

[The Fun Researcher]

Finally got around to checking in our party of 10 (cruise is 26 days out).  4 cabins, with guests spread between Michigan and Washington state.

 

All the earlier check in time slots must be already taken, so all we can get is 2pm.  I'm fine with that, EXCEPT I don't want to miss out on booking the shows.

 

A few things:

• If we show up early will they make us wait?
• Can you book shows from inside the cruise terminal?
• How fast are the shows booking up?

 

Thanks!

Dan

[OCSC Mike]

Hopefully they make you wait. The check-in times are there for a reason.

 

Whether they do or not seems to vary by port/ship/day.

 

For future reference, you could have chosen an early check-in time 45 days out & finished checking in at a later date.

[Blur]

Keep checking every once in a while.  They sometimes open up more early time slots.  Also happens closer to the cruise if people cancel.

[Sunshine3601]

Yes you should be able to make show reservations from the app in the terminal.    

Far too many people disregard check in times and cause big lines outside the terminal at most ports.

best advice is show up for check in time you get and everyone will be happy and should be onboard in 10 to 15 mins.

[The Fun Researcher]

I don’t mind 2pm.  I prefer to walk on the ship after staterooms are ready anyway.  I do however mind having my check in time affect my ability to book activities and shows. 
 

It’s better when they used to open it up before the cruise to everyone at the same time.

Good to know about the 45 day early check in times.  I’ll try to remember that.

 

Dan

 

[bucfan2]

Suggest weighing the risk/reward.  If you're willing to risk being denied earlier boarding and the reward of being onboard early is worth it, got for it.  We've only seen 1 of the 8 cruises we've been on since the restart that was checking boarding times (we always get the earliest slot, but certainly understand not wanting to miss a minute onboard).

Those here (cc) that wish to enforce the boarding times mean nothing when it comes to boarding times...it's whether or not the ship is enforcing the times.

Edited May 17, 2022 by bucfan2

[topnole]

It is a really stupid system if they want people to follow the boarding time schedules.  
 

Show up to your late checkin and miss all the shows!  

 

geez.  What an incentive to show up at your time.  
 

I got off last week, but have no idea whether they enforced checkin times.  I doubt they did though because almost all the port staff seemed clueless about things.  

[Jerseygirl1416]

I really don’t think you’ll be locked out of the shows if you book anytime on the first day. Most cruisers aren’t even aware that they have to make reservations which you’ll hear at every show check in.

[OCSC Mike]

41 minutes ago, topnole said:

Show up to your late checkin and miss all the shows! 

Who says you would miss all the shows?

[Sunshine3601]

8 hours ago, The Fun Researcher said:

I don’t mind 2pm.  I prefer to walk on the ship after staterooms are ready anyway.  I do however mind having my check in time affect my ability to book activities and shows. 
 

It’s better when they used to open it up before the cruise to everyone at the same time.

Good to know about the 45 day early check in times.  I’ll try to remember that.

 

Dan

 

Don't stress over getting show reservations.    Majority of people boarding are not aware of booking reservations on day 1.    You should be fine with booking while you are in the terminal.    

Don't forget everyone needs to do their muster drill and report to their assigned area.   We do this right away to get it over with and it is so easy nowadays.

[topnole]

19 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

Who says you would miss all the shows?

It’s called sarcasm.  But clearly that is the concern of the OP.  They don’t care what time they get on the ship.  They just don’t want to be locked out of show reservations.  
 

It is a stupid system that encourages the crowding they are seemingly trying to avoid.  

[The Fun Researcher]

Yes, in the past we've intentionally waited to board after 1pm so we could go right to our cabins and set down our stuff before we go off to explore the ship.  I'd much rather have a relaxing lunch on land than to battle the masses at the Windjammer or other locations.  So yeah, don't mind the 2pm check-in one bit.  Plus, it's an 8 night cruise, so getting on the ship a few hours later is no big deal.  We have LOTS of time remaining on the cruise.

 

However, yes the shows are the ONLY thing I'm concerned about.  If you truly have most of the 1st day to reserve shows, then that would be great.  The shows are very important this time because my parents (mid 70's) are with us, we well as my sister and her college age daughters.  They have never cruised before (and who knows when/if they will be able to again) so the evening entertainment is a huge part of their experience that we don't want to miss out on.

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, topnole said:

It is a stupid system that encourages the crowding they are seemingly trying to avoid.  

The vast majority of cruisers don't know or care that shows must be booked (which itself is fairly rare when looking at the whole fleet) and when they do realize they need to book, they still find most shows/venues available. Chances are that if someone knows and is worried about being able to book shows early on embarkation day, they know that they need to check in early at 45 days out and they'll have an early check in slot. Most folks show up before their assigned slot because they just want to get on the ship, not because they want to book shows.

[rjrpar]

We were on the Wonder last month with about 5300 other cruisers.  The shows did not fill up until well into the cruise.  We made all our reservations at about 5:00 pm on day 1 and got everything we wanted

[The Fun Researcher]

25 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

The vast majority of cruisers don't know or care that shows must be booked (which itself is fairly rare when looking at the whole fleet) and when they do realize they need to book, they still find most shows/venues available. Chances are that if someone knows and is worried about being able to book shows early on embarkation day, they know that they need to check in early at 45 days out and they'll have an early check in slot. Most folks show up before their assigned slot because they just want to get on the ship, not because they want to book shows.

I'm an uber planner and still missed the 45 day information.  I did know that we can't book shows until onboard.  Didn't get the email saying we could check-in until 31 days out.  It was my fault to wait another few days but it's hard to wrangle 4 reservations and get all the required check-in info. (passport info, photos, payment info, etc...)  I'm checking everyone in since I'm the only one who's familiar with the process.

 

Even so, I was surprised that the earliest check-in 26 days out was 2pm.  It is what it is.  Live and learn

Edited May 17, 2022 by The Fun Researcher

[happy cruzer]

What about specialty dining reservations with the UDP?  Same issues.