ArriveCanada

[pistnbroke]

Departing Vancouver on Alaska cruise.

Understand that the arr.can requirements are only applicable on our return and not needed for embarkation..

We live in BC. ( know about the negative , proctored test requirement)

Also , if not checking bags with porter is there a way to avoid that area altogether on embarkation ?

 

 

 

[1960Travel]

I have read in different posts, that you still need the ARRIVCAN for embarkation also..we are from Ontario flying into Vancouver 2 days prior to the cruise 

thanks 

[pistnbroke]

Seems odd that you have to list your arrival in Canada when you have not yet left !

[Woody14]

3 hours ago, pistnbroke said:

Seems odd that you have to list your arrival in Canada when you have not yet left !

I think they put this in place so you don't have to worry about getting service on the ship to connect and complete the app, much easier to do this in advance.

[pistnbroke]

How does that help when it an only be completed with 72 hours of arrival in Canada

as per the app ?

[martincath]

10 minutes ago, pistnbroke said:

How does that help when it an only be completed with 72 hours of arrival in Canada

as per the app ?

It's not a 72 hour limit before getting to Canada when you're using the Marine Entry, Cruise option - the clock counts back from when you embark the ship which will bring you (back) to Canada...

 

Without knowing what cruise route you are on OP, I can't help with your exact situation but as a general note here are the possibilities:

• Boarding an RT cruise in Vancouver, which goes immediately into US waters (i.e. first port of call is US) - you must complete ArrCan before boarding in Vancouver, as it will be checked at the pier by check-in staff
• Boarding a one-way, with no Canadian ports - no need to complete ArrCan as you never ARRive back in CANada after boarding the ship
• Boarding a one-way which DOES have Canadian ports - if they are all consecutive, no need to complete ArrCAN but if you go Canada>US>Canada you do need to complete it.
• Boarding a one-way to AK, no Canadian ports, but then coming back on a second one-way later (e.g. spend time touring Alaska) you would complete ArrCan before boarding the second leg.

 

As to the questions about avoiding porters - you can always hand your bags over directly to the longshoremen at the conveyor belts, that's what we always do as that removes any risk of your bag ending up in a cage that's being loaded onto a different ship! Never common, but every year sees a report or two, usually start of season and when 2 diff ships of the same line are in port.

 

However, since the luggage drop is on the same level as the taxi/bus dropoff, and the porters hang around there as that's where folks need their services, and the pedestrian ramp from the street means you walk right past that area too there's no way to avoid being in proximity to the porters if you are e.g. trying to cut back on how many groups of people you have to hang around with to avoid some Covid risk

 

If you're traveling very light, so all your bags can go through the security scanners (a little bigger than airline carryon probably fits, but a typical big 27"+ roller isn't going through so you'll have to hand it over to longshore) then you could avoid the taxi ranks/bus stops/bag drop area entirely though.

 

If it is a 'minimum interaction with people to avoid infection' then I strongly advise arriving as late as you possibly can - be sensible, be near the pier, so you don't risk getting caught in traffic and missing embarkation of course, but in general if you are among the last folks to board you avoid all of the holding pens for early arrivers and all of the long waits in Security and CBP too.

 

Again - more info needed about your cruise to give specific reccos, as this year we have some really odd times quite regularly (e.g. Royal and Majestic Princess times are based on tide, so the days they are in port might see them plan to leave at 1:30pm while 2 other ships wait until the 'normal' 4-5pm - so if you're boarding those beasts you might have no option but to check in during the worse possible time of day, 11:30ish to 2ish, when the most pax will be clogging all the queues to do everything... OTOH if it's one of the days they leave at 11pm or 1am, you might be able to board after all other vessels have left and it'll be lovely and quiet!)

[pistnbroke]

Thank you ! for your comprehensive and helpful response

We embark on July 31st on Celebrity Eclipse returning on Aug.7th

Have been given a checkin time of 11.00am to 11.30am

[martincath]

17 hours ago, pistnbroke said:

Thank you ! for your comprehensive and helpful response

We embark on July 31st on Celebrity Eclipse returning on Aug.7th

Have been given a checkin time of 11.00am to 11.30am

You're welcome. That's a 2 ship day then - your ship and Serenade of the Seas, both a good size so the pier will be fairly busy even if they're still not sailing at full capacity, but definitely not going to be one of the really awful 3+ ships or Megaship days.

ArriveCan WILL need completed as it's an RT cruise - itinerary shows no other Canadian stops, so use Canada Place on Aug 7 as your arrival date; you should be able to get into the app to add all info 96 hours before embarkation day (it hasn't been advertised but many reports indicate cruising gets an extra 24hrs, probably because there's been so much confusion around the App!) but if you haven't already used it, you can add yourself, other family traveling with you etc. right now and do all the footery bits (scanning your ID can be tricky to optimise lighting/avoid reflections) in advance, the time limit is only for the trip-specific data: method, time & date of arrival to Canada.

 

Your ships also shows a normal 5pm departure time - so arriving at 3pm should avoid the bulk of the crowds. You can drop your bags off earlier though if you wanted to go sightseeing (you did say you are from BC, but maybe you don't get into Vancouver often?) unencumbered - officially bag drop opens some time between 10 and 10:30am; I've always been able to drop off earlier than that but with extra Covid cleaning and whatnot it might be taking a bit longer to get everyone off the incoming ships so aiming to drop bags after 10am might be wiser.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[Urban trekker]

And MartinCath - don't forget that July 31st is the Pride parade so depending on where the OP is staying may need to give extra time to get to the port.

Dennis

[martincath]

12 hours ago, Urban trekker said:

And MartinCath - don't forget that July 31st is the Pride parade so depending on where the OP is staying may need to give extra time to get to the port.

Dennis

Good point Dennis! Volunteering at that too, or have you built enough karma this summer already?

 

OP, and anyone else on those ships July 31st, can check road closures and timing here. The parade's good fun, and watching from nearer the start on Robson rather than down at the Beaches you can see all the floats and be on your way only an hour or so after the parade starts up. The festival zone on Sunset Beach and roads nearby are the last cleared so getting in or out of Stanley Park near the bowling greens/brewery will be tricky most of the day - I'd definitely suggest being east of the pier, Gastown or Chinatown, during the last couple of hours before heading to the pier.

[pistnbroke]

Thanks for the information

We are staying at Surestay on Capilano Rd.

Would it be better to use the Seabus for our 11am checkin rather than risk delays through Stanley Park ?

[Urban trekker]

While the parade does not affect Stanley Park or Georgia Street - traffic will be  much heavier than normal so I would suggest using Sea Bus and then transfer to the bus taking you to your hotel.

I generally if going to the North Shore take Sea Bus and then transfer to whatever bus I need.

 

[Urban trekker]

Yes I am volunteering at the Pride Parade - will be a road marshall somewhere on Robson Street.

 

[pistnbroke]

11 hours ago, Urban trekker said:

We are actually coming the other way leaving the hotel to Seabus for 11am checkin at cruise port on  Sunday 

 

 

[NW Pacific]

We are doing an Alaska Cruise departing and returning from Seattle.  It does stop in Victoria last day.  Does anyone have experience with getting onboard in Seattle, and if arrive Canada documents required for boarding by NCL.  I did call NCL, told nothing required, but the person I spoke with wasn't too knowledgeable in my opinion.   And does it make a difference if you do not get off Ship in Victoria?

[jsglow]

So @martincath, reaching out again for a little ArrCan guidance.  We'll be crossing the border by bus (I'm sure you remember our communication on the other thread) the afternoon of 8/19.  So our plan is to Covid test in Seattle on the 18th bf we leave town.  Concurrently, we'll finalize our ArrCan at the same time for that border crossing.

 

We're doing the One Way Glaciers cruise on Royal departing 8/20 (never setting foot in Canada again once we leave the pier) so I'm under the impression that we DO NOT need to do a second ArrCan 'trip' for embarkation separate from our original border crossing. The Princess website seems to indicate that a 'fresh' ArrCan is necessary for embarkation on seemingly ALL Vancouver departures so I'm a little unclear.

 

If you can shed light that would be great.

 

Edited August 6, 2022 by jsglow

[jsglow]

16 minutes ago, NW Pacific said:

We are doing an Alaska Cruise departing and returning from Seattle.  It does stop in Victoria last day.  Does anyone have experience with getting onboard in Seattle, and if arrive Canada documents required for boarding by NCL.  I did call NCL, told nothing required, but the person I spoke with wasn't too knowledgeable in my opinion.   And does it make a difference if you do not get off Ship in Victoria?

I'm 99.9% confident that you need to do the ArrivCan and have that finalized within the 72 hours before you board your ship at initial embarkation.  I've seen numerous threads on that topic as I research our own situation.

[martincath]

2 hours ago, jsglow said:

We're doing the One Way Glaciers cruise on Royal departing 8/20 (never setting foot in Canada again once we leave the pier) so I'm under the impression that we DO NOT need to do a second ArrCan 'trip' for embarkation separate from our original border crossing.

My understanding of this is the same as yours - no cruise stops in Canada, therefore no 'Arrival in Canada' at any point after embarking the ship, so no need for a new ArrCAN completion. If they ask - which may be a simple admin "since we need to confirm Vaxx status, and ArrCAN contains that info verified by Canadian gov't, then let's just ask for ArrCAN to satisy the Canadian gov't that we are doing due dilligence on pax vaxx status" then your still-valid-since-less-than-72hrs-ago border crossing entry should have a QR code they can scan that works.

 

Worst case, if Princess actually demanda fresh entry made at the pier just do it - any private company can set whatever rules of carriage they like as long as they are MORE stringent than what gov't demands rather than less - and with the difficult stuff already in the app, bunging in another Trip should take all of 2 minutes... there's free WiFi at Canada Place, and it's not like you need a fast connection so even if many folks are using it you should be good.

 

2 hours ago, NW Pacific said:

We are doing an Alaska Cruise departing and returning from Seattle.  It does stop in Victoria last day.  Does anyone have experience with getting onboard in Seattle, and if arrive Canada documents required for boarding by NCL.  I did call NCL, told nothing required, but the person I spoke with wasn't too knowledgeable in my opinion.   And does it make a difference if you do not get off Ship in Victoria?

100% you need to complete it before boarding - folks working at Seattle pier have confirmed that staff there check on entry to the building, so it's not relevant at all which cruise line as the line-specific desks cannot be accessed until after you get inside! And whether you get off or not in Victoria is also irrelevant - your ship enters Canadian waters, so Canadian rules require the ArrCAN data be supplied in advance of the ships arrival.

Edited August 6, 2022 by martincath

[NW Pacific]

thank You.   Now to try to figure how the heck to complete this requirement.  From reading around, it doesn't sound easy.  Will be using a desktop to complete.  Hoping to be able to print out the QR code ?  Any sugestions

[martincath]

38 minutes ago, NW Pacific said:

thank You.   Now to try to figure how the heck to complete this requirement.  From reading around, it doesn't sound easy.  Will be using a desktop to complete.  Hoping to be able to print out the QR code ?  Any sugestions

If you're at home within the timeline, then sure - use the website, print the code. A bit of paper is not susceptible to running out of battery, no pfaffing around trying to open the App or find a screenshot on your phone if you're not very techy, so definitely printing it keeps things as simple as possible at check-in time if you print all your other docs.

 

However if you DO have a smartphone, the App is actually easier to get the required Traveler info input as you can take a picture of your passport and Vaxx card - there's no need to scan pics into your desktop, no risk of manually typing in the wrong passport number/spelling name wrong or other silly keyboard errors. A should anything go wrong while traveling you'll have the phone app in your pocket in case your plans change (there's a current thread from someone whose flight was cancelled so they missed boarding and are flying to join the cruise - that sort of event changes dates of border crossings so might invalidate a Trip on ArriveCAN and need you to revise it).

 

Whatever is easiest for you to do really, Canada doesn't care which version you use!

[NW Pacific]

I am a paper document person, guess that gives away my decades.  We have a webcam, so hoping just to take the pictures needed and they "load" in.  NCL online check in works like that for your photo.    thanks much for your reply

[jsglow]

I just want to say.... @martincathand @Ferry_Watcherare the two very best resources possible up in the Pacific NW.  Always massively helpful to those of us that visit.  Buy either of you a coffee or beer any day.

[Ferry_Watcher]

@jsglow, Wow, you made my day!  Thank you for such a nice shoutout.  I am just one of many local Seattle/Puget Sound/Salish Sea residents who enjoy sharing our beautiful part of the world with others.  I have a great seasonal job, and any bits of information that I can share to help someone's embarkation or debarkation go a little easier and a bit less stressful I am happy to share!

 

Thank you again my friend!

[QuilterGirl]

@Ferry_Watcher, @martincath - you are both indeed very helpful.  It is appreciated.  Hoping you can clarify some questions about a somewhat similar situation as recently discussed here, for me:

We will be on the Discovery Princess's last Alaska cruise for this year.  It departs Seattle but has no stops in Canada until the passengers disembark in Vancouver on September 25.  So (barring changes by the Canadian government) one would for sure need to finalize ArriveCan within 72 hours of arrival there (we've already done the basic work, downloaded the app, etc. - we used it on an Alaska cruise earlier this year).  I get that.

 

1.  OK, now the tricky part:  after collecting our luggage from the Discovery Princess, we will be "walking across the pier" and boarding the Serenade of the Seas that same morning.  (Serenade OTS will also be concluding its Alaska season for the year that day, then proceeding on a southern coastal route.)  Will we need a second "finalization" of ArriveCan for boarding the second ship, even though we had just arrived in Canada a few hours previously?  And are on the same dock?  It's not like we had left the country during those few hours. 

 

2.  The Serenade OTS will stop the next morning in Victoria, but that should not generate a need for (yet) another "finalization" as we will have been sailing within Canada....right??

 

3.  Also - any intel on logistics at Canada Place for us?  I'm guessing we would want a late departure time from the first ship, claim luggage etc., hang out at Canada Place until the earliest possible time to check in to the second ship (will hope to select an early check-in time in three days, when that opens).  We don't care to see the town (been there, done that - 'tis a beautiful city, though!); just want to get 'er done and get on the second ship.

 

Good to know there is free WiFi at Canada Place - we may need to do our Canada-required (and maybe Royal Caribbean-required; who knows at this point?) Covid tests there at the port, between ships, if we can't get a decent internet connection for online proctored tests on the Discovery Princess as it sails from Alaska.

 

Thanks for any tips you can give me!

[martincath]

36 minutes ago, QuilterGirl said:

...  It departs Seattle but has no stops in Canada until the passengers disembark in Vancouver on September 25.  So (barring changes by the Canadian government) one would for sure need to finalize ArriveCan within 72 hours of arrival there (we've already done the basic work, downloaded the app, etc. - we used it on an Alaska cruise earlier this year).  I get that.

I may be misreading your grammar - but for clarity, you need to do your ArriveCAN before you get to Seattle pier, rather than before you arrive in Vancouver... for cruises, it's all about when you embark the vessel and lock yourself in the proverbial 'floating petri dish' with the other pax that will then bring you all into Canada

 

36 minutes ago, QuilterGirl said:

1.  OK, now the tricky part:  after collecting our luggage from the Discovery Princess, we will be "walking across the pier" and boarding the Serenade of the Seas that same morning.  (Serenade OTS will also be concluding its Alaska season for the year that day, then proceeding on a southern coastal route.)  Will we need a second "finalization" of ArriveCan for boarding the second ship, even though we had just arrived in Canada a few hours previously?  And are on the same dock?  It's not like we had left the country during those few hours. 

As I think I mentioned further up this chain, but honestly it's all a blur these days, Canada does not demand an ArriveCAN entry for people who are only leaving the country - but I have no idea about Royal's admin procedures for check-in staff. Given that fines are applied when folks shouild complete it but don't, they may be demanding to see ArrCAN for all pax under the K.I.S.S. principle to avoid errors...

 

As to the dock, there's just the one building - Discovery docks on East side, Niuew Amsterdam West, and Serenade will be at the North end - so you won't even have to go outside if you don't want to.

36 minutes ago, QuilterGirl said:

2.  The Serenade OTS will stop the next morning in Victoria, but that should not generate a need for (yet) another "finalization" as we will have been sailing within Canada....right??

Right - with no intervening US port, you will never officially leave Canadian waters. Incidentally, this does mean that your first US port, Astoria, will suck immensely as the very small CBP complement there will have to clear all pax for entry to the US! By hitting Vic after Van, the law which allows Preclearance at Canada Place does not apply, so instead you'll have officers who only have to clear a handful of ships a year doing it manually, rather than kiosks and an experienced group. Do NOT book any excursions close to docking time!

 

Even worse - Fall, Columbia Bar? Astoria is notoriously prone to weather cancellations, and if you do miss it that means CBP in San Francisco will now have to scramble to staff up for an unscheduled immigration clearance! So I would likewise avoid any soon-after-docking excursion bookings in SF. Even when they expect you, it took over 3 hours to clear Golden Princess when we sailed into SF a few years back - I think that held only a hundred or so extra pax compared to your SotS.

36 minutes ago, QuilterGirl said:

3.  Also - any intel on logistics at Canada Place for us?  I'm guessing we would want a late departure time from the first ship, claim luggage etc., hang out at Canada Place until the earliest possible time to check in to the second ship (will hope to select an early check-in time in three days, when that opens).  We don't care to see the town (been there, done that - 'tis a beautiful city, though!); just want to get 'er done and get on the second ship.

3 ship day on Sep 25 - your two plus Nieuw Ansterdam. If you're OK with skipping tourism, then I'd say the latest boot-off time is bang on (from what I hear, 9:30am is still the 'everyone except Covid +ve folks being bussed to quarantine' last timeslot). While you can expect to hit some queueing, I'd find it highly unlikely that you would spend more than an hour between walking down the gangplank and being able to drop your bags off for the second cruise, then go join the herd waiting in the check-in hall. One small bonus is that while Security will still be 'all the pax from 3 ships' busy, skipping CBSA removes the usually-the-worst queue from the process (although as noted, even a bad day at Canada Place is frankly going to be more efficient than CBP at Astoria or SF so you're trading one annoyance for another bigger one...)

 

36 minutes ago, QuilterGirl said:

Good to know there is free WiFi at Canada Place - we may need to do our Canada-required (and maybe Royal Caribbean-required; who knows at this point?) Covid tests there at the port, between ships, if we can't get a decent internet connection for online proctored tests on the Discovery Princess as it sails from Alaska.

 

Thanks for any tips you can give me!

If you do still need to test - very likely, given how slowly Canadian rules about cruising have rolled out throughout I seriously doubt anything will change until next season - and the CP network is slow, then try walking away from the pier and use the city network #VanWiFi, as it should be less overwhelmed than the one right at the pier given 3 shiploads of pax might all be trying to use it for testing, ArriveCAN etc. mid- to late-morning.

 

Good news for you is that your arrival will be at a SUPER quiet time of day for internet use - you're scheduled for 3am so that Discovery can fit under Lion's Gate bridge at low tide. Even if you can't get off the ship until CBSA start work, sit by a window (even better on deck if weather behaves) and you should easily get WiFi from shoreside, and until the other smaller ships arrive c. 7am there will be way less competition.

 

Personally, with proctored online test kits, I'd be planning a Wee Small Hours test at say 4am, then back to bed!

Edited August 9, 2022 by martincath