MSC Seaside Martinique Disembarkation

[yellow-submarine]

The Seaside has multiple embarkation and disembarkation ports during it's East-Caribbean voyage (Martinique, Guadeloupe, Barbados). That's mean there is no "zero passenger" count. How long can you stay on the ship? I know you have to leave the room but can you hang around till lunch? The the thing is our flight is at late at the night and there is no good way to kill that much time with bunch of luggage in Fort de France. Or do MSC have a facility to store your luggage?

[hamrag]

21 hours ago, yellow-submarine said:

The Seaside has multiple embarkation and disembarkation ports during it's East-Caribbean voyage (Martinique, Guadeloupe, Barbados). That's mean there is no "zero passenger" count. How long can you stay on the ship? I know you have to leave the room but can you hang around till lunch? The the thing is our flight is at late at the night and there is no good way to kill that much time with bunch of luggage in Fort de France. Or do MSC have a facility to store your luggage?

In Martinique, yes. In Barbados, not if you are an independent guest i.e. not with MSC flights! We discovered such on debarkation day, in Barbados and had to be off ship by 10.30am.

 

The Martinique sailing time is 11pm, so you'd probably be able to have dinner too! 

Edited January 15, 2023 by hamrag

[yellow-submarine]

Thank you Hamrag. Are you sure it is doable on Martinique? We have 'non-MSC flight'. Why you could not avoid 'early' unboarding?

[CruisingFox27]

We debarked in Barbados after a TA and were able to stay on the ship until around 1pm.

[hamrag]

15 hours ago, yellow-submarine said:

Thank you Hamrag. Are you sure it is doable on Martinique? We have 'non-MSC flight'. Why you could not avoid 'early' unboarding?

We disembarked on 13th December 2022, 14 night from Barbados return, and were told by the YC Director that Barbados Border Control had made a change (commencing from our cruise) that passengers with independent travel from Barbados had to leave the ship by 10.30. Those on the MSC travel package had to exit and go through Border Control, but returned to the ship which the authorities considered 'a bubble' that MSC controlled.

 

Previously, in Barbados in 2019, we were allowed to stay onboard as independents until 5pm or thereabouts. Martinique, we could not say categorically but we did see independent passengers still in the Yacht Club enclave having early dinner around 6pm! Bearing in mind, the ship didn't sail from there until 11pm.

[yellow-submarine]

Thank you both. It is very much appreciated. Did you and other passengers had their carry-on with them while lingering? I mean would it be an option to tag all the bags to be delivered to the terminal and go on an excursion and come back and collect them at the evening? Contacted MSC about this but haven't got a clear answer.

@CruisingFox27 TA as Travel Approval?

[CruisingFox27]

@yellow-submarineTA as in transatlantic/repositioning cruise. 

Our cruise was prior to December 2022 and from Hamrag's Post, a change has been implemented in Barbados. Additionally, we weren't leaving the island just waiting to check into a hotel. 

[hamrag]

20 hours ago, yellow-submarine said:

....Did you and other passengers had their carry-on with them while lingering? I mean would it be an option to tag all the bags to be delivered to the terminal and go on an excursion and come back and collect them at the evening? Contacted MSC about this but haven't got a clear answer.

@CruisingFox27 TA as Travel Approval?

When you leave the ship on disembarkation day, you have finally left....you need to just stay on board, no excursions for you other than airport transfer!

[hamrag]

19 hours ago, CruisingFox27 said:

Our cruise was prior to December 2022 and from Hamrag's Post, a change has been implemented in Barbados. Additionally, we weren't leaving the island just waiting to check into a hotel. 

It's about leaving the port, not the island, we too had a hotel booking for a couple of nights post-cruise. It's Port of Barbados Border Control that implemented this ruling.

Edited January 17, 2023 by hamrag

[yellow-submarine]

7 hours ago, hamrag said:

When you leave the ship on disembarkation day, you have finally left....you need to just stay on board, no excursions for you other than airport transfer!

No, never meant to combine the two: it is option A or option B.

» Option A: Take an excursion (a private one, not an MSC excursion) to make good use of the day and return to the port <Not the ship!> early evening and pick up the bags from the port. This is our preferred option. So very much interested if it is possible. Can we return to port? Would they keep the bag that long or it would end up on a lost and found department somewhere?

» Option B: Stay on the ship longer

 

Edited January 17, 2023 by yellow-submarine