Priority Boarding but given a time..

[RickAinley]

Hi all,

 

Second Carnival cruise this year, we've sprung for an Excel suite on the Mardi Gras next week. I'm late checking in (for many reasons) and noticed the earliest time we have is 1pm but it states Priority Boarding. For some reason I though suites can board any time. Am I mistaken?

 

Thanks.

[mz-s]

Suite guests must choose an arrival time like everyone else but you can arrive at the pier whenever you’d like.

[gazingm42]

Plat, diamond and suite travels priority is currently being done via a 2 day jump on checkin.  At day 16 day you can select your boarding time.

[mondello]

@RickAinley Mardi Gras has a separate waiting area for Suites guests and they have been boarding first.

 

Could you maybe post back after your cruise about the Loft 19 area. Don’t see a lot of posts about it. Curious if the Cabanas are selling and I seen posts they’re discounting the regular price.

[sanmarcosman]

25 minutes ago, gazingm42 said:

Plat, diamond and suite travels priority is currently being done via a 2 day jump on checkin.  At day 16 day you can select your boarding time.

At day 16 we can select our arrival time to the pier. Boarding time depends on many factors, e.g. the ship was cleared late by customs, ship was late arriving, etc.

[RickAinley]

5 hours ago, mondello said:

@RickAinley Mardi Gras has a separate waiting area for Suites guests and they have been boarding first.

 

Could you maybe post back after your cruise about the Loft 19 area. Don’t see a lot of posts about it. Curious if the Cabanas are selling and I seen posts they’re discounting the regular price.

 

Yes, as long as I remember. When I last looked they were offering the Cabana's at $1,750 for the week as a deal!!!!!, however they now show as sold out! We will use the Loft 19 area but not the cabana's. 🙂

[Anyislandwilldo]

If you show up at 10:30 they will check you in and then go sit in the waiting area.  Suites will then be called first to board.

[kelkel2]

I am loving your pictures. An Alaskan cruise is totally on my bucket list. Are there many kids? Is it ever warm enough to swim? 

[pohlerbear]

We had a suite on Magic out of Norfolk in May.  We upgraded to a suite after check in, so had a later time.  I emailed the person who upgraded us, and confirmed we could check in whenever we wanted.  Printed it out and brought it to port. 

 

At port, they said priority check in didn't start until after security, and didn't want to let me in before my check in time.  I showed them the email and in I went.  Granted, this was Norfolk's second embarkation since the restart and they were understandably a mess, but I would email Carnival and get it in writing just in case. 

[southbayer]

So basically since I'm platinum, and when I have 16 days to go before sailing, I can choose my own time ?

[mondello]

4 hours ago, southbayer said:

So basically since I'm platinum, and when I have 16 days to go before sailing, I can choose my own time ?

Yeah, the 2 day headstart gives you dibs on the first available check-in time; you’d most likely get one of the earliest boarding groups, too.

[bguppies]

5 hours ago, southbayer said:

So basically since I'm platinum, and when I have 16 days to go before sailing, I can choose my own time ?

Yeah when we did ours 16 days ago, we had from 9:30 AM in 30 minute increments.

Doesn't mean we'll board the ship at that time, just do our check in and get cattle called until the ship is cleared to board.

Edited September 22, 2022 by bguppies

[ALWAYS CRUZIN]

We are Diamond an no longer means much. Last Carnival cruise was about 2 months ago. Our boarding time was 12:00 - 12:30 We arriveda at 12:15. All the other later times were full. No one in our line at all. They looked at our boarding time and off we went. Got on the ship super fast.

[karmamule]

On 9/17/2022 at 7:06 PM, RickAinley said:

 

Yes, as long as I remember. When I last looked they were offering the Cabana's at $1,750 for the week as a deal!!!!!, however they now show as sold out! We will use the Loft 19 area but not the cabana's. 🙂

 

We booked a cabana on our cruise and I've been watching how quickly they sell. Last time I checked a couple weeks ago there were still only 5 out of 12 sold. As of today they say 'sold out'. I'd be surprised that after only selling 5 for the last few months they suddenly sold 7 more in the last 2 weeks, but who knows.

[Pyrate13]

People seem to continue to confuse check in time with boarding time. They are two different things folks. You can select your check in time then wait in a seating area at the terminal, but the ship will tell you when you can board. Boarding time can vary, and you don't get to pick it. 

[RickAinley]

So, there seems to be a bit of confusion on this so I called Carnival. Word was suite passengers can arrive any time. Even the priority boarding statements in the FAQ's that cover this only mention that VIFP status (diamond etc) must arrive at their allotted time, but suites are omitted from that specific statement. I'll know tomorrow 🙂

[Pyrate13]

Yes, suites can arrive anytime but if they show up early, like 10-10:30 etc, they still have to wait to board until such time as actual boarding begins, whatever time that may be. They do not get to board immediately. That's what folks need to be clear on.

[kelkel2]

9 hours ago, RickAinley said:

So, there seems to be a bit of confusion on this so I called Carnival. Word was suite passengers can arrive any time. Even the priority boarding statements in the FAQ's that cover this only mention that VIFP status (diamond etc) must arrive at their allotted time, but suites are omitted from that specific statement. I'll know tomorrow 🙂

Make sure you come back and let us know. We have a suite booked for January and I’m overall curious about the boarding process. 

[CruizinSusan70]

16 minutes ago, kelkel2 said:

Make sure you come back and let us know. We have a suite booked for January and I’m overall curious about the boarding process. 

It's rather simple.  The procedure at this time is that you get to check in on line to choose your physical check in time two days prior.  Really does not matter since suites get priority over diamonds and platinums and will embark first.  You could choose 10:00 am or 2:00 pm as your slot, but if you arrive at 10:00 you will just wait in the suite waiting area and will embark first.  It could be at 1045, but it all depends upon when the previous cruise zeroes out.

When we embarked in August, we were on board at 11:00, right after the suite guests. This was on the Mardi Gras.

[kelkel2]

9 hours ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

It's rather simple.  The procedure at this time is that you get to check in on line to choose your physical check in time two days prior.  Really does not matter since suites get priority over diamonds and platinums and will embark first.  You could choose 10:00 am or 2:00 pm as your slot, but if you arrive at 10:00 you will just wait in the suite waiting area and will embark first.  It could be at 1045, but it all depends upon when the previous cruise zeroes out.

When we embarked in August, we were on board at 11:00, right after the suite guests. This was on the Mardi Gras.

I understand that. But what is supposed to happen and what happens can be very different things and I’m interested in the poster’s experience. 

[Pyrate13]

33 minutes ago, kelkel2 said:

I understand that. But what is supposed to happen and what happens can be very different things and I’m interested in the poster’s experience. 

Well, I'm not the poster you refer to but just a few weeks ago we arrived for our cruise on the Liberty at 10:30. We were in a suite so we were allowed to walk right into the terminal via a separate line to check in. Once checked in we were directed to a separate lounge to wait for boarding. It was around 11:15- 11:30 when a staff member came to the lounge and we were directed to go ahead and board the ship.

[Drazil65]

We were in a suite so we were allowed to walk right into the terminal via a separate line to check in. Once checked in we were directed to a separate lounge to wait for boarding. It was around 11:15- 11:30 when a staff member came to the lounge and we were directed to go ahead and board the ship.

 

This...works every time like this when we are in a suite no matter what ship.  We are in a suite on Mardi Gras in December and we expect it will be the same as our previous experience (and has been confirmed by previous posters that have sailed on MG in a suite)...

Edited September 24, 2022 by Drazil65

[pohlerbear]

On 9/23/2022 at 11:08 PM, CruizinSusan70 said:

It's rather simple.  The procedure at this time is that you get to check in on line to choose your physical check in time two days prior.  Really does not matter since suites get priority over diamonds and platinums and will embark first.  You could choose 10:00 am or 2:00 pm as your slot, but if you arrive at 10:00 you will just wait in the suite waiting area and will embark first.  It could be at 1045, but it all depends upon when the previous cruise zeroes out.

When we embarked in August, we were on board at 11:00, right after the suite guests. This was on the Mardi Gras.

I posted earlier in this thread, but in Norfolk in May (Magic), my check in time on paper was 11 am. They did not want to let us in at 1030 until I showed them the email from Carnival indicating we could ignore the check in time. They said there was no priority until after check in. So I think it very much varies between each port and possibly each employee. 

[CruizinSusan70]

On 9/27/2022 at 2:59 PM, pohlerbear said:

I posted earlier in this thread, but in Norfolk in May (Magic), my check in time on paper was 11 am. They did not want to let us in at 1030 until I showed them the email from Carnival indicating we could ignore the check in time. They said there was no priority until after check in. So I think it very much varies between each port and possibly each employee. 

The OP wanted to know about information regarding checking in on the MG and I just confirmed what had happened to us in Feb and again in August.  Obviously there are going to be employees that are totally clueless about the proper procedures.  If you happen to run into one I would ask to speak to a supervisor if I had paid for a suite and was denied the priorities I was entitled to.

[RickAinley]

On 9/23/2022 at 10:46 PM, kelkel2 said:

Make sure you come back and let us know. We have a suite booked for January and I’m overall curious about the boarding process. 

 

In a weird sense of irony, by the time we parked the car at the terminal we were at 12:45 (we had a 1pm check in time). They were checking boarding passes at the entrance but he waved us on and said you'll be on board in no time and can go straight to your suite.

 

We were onboard by 1:10 🙂