Can I disembark before the final stop?

[mahasamatman]

15 hours ago, markeb said:

And the crew onboard will definitely know the rules.

 

The onboard crew is even less knowledgeable about the PVSA than the call center.

[twincheryl]

20 hours ago, cruisestitch said:

Celebrity ??? forgot to consider the passenger vessel services act which does not allow your proposed itinerary. You would be boarding in one US city, Disembarking in a different US city without visiting the REQUIRED distant foreign port.  No port in Mexico qualifies as a distant foreign port.

Wondering what I am missing here... the itinerary is Los Angeles, sea day, Cabo overnight, sea day, San Diego, Los Angeles.  There are several of them in Oct/Nov 2023.  If Mexico does not qualify as a distant foreign port, how would this cruise be allowed, and why would it be impossible to debark in San Diego the day before Los Angeles?  They aren't stopping anywhere else...

[russianmom]

3 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

To get the best answer I would contact the "Emergency Team" by phone at the contact in the following link.   That is the group I contacted when I requested and paid for the processing of my Down Line Disembarkation Request.  

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/content/dam/royal/countries/AU/faq's/Downline Request Form AUD.pdf

this form appears to be for Australia? Were you on an Australian cruise?

[russianmom]

6 minutes ago, twincheryl said:

Wondering what I am missing here... the itinerary is Los Angeles, sea day, Cabo overnight, sea day, San Diego, Los Angeles.  There are several of them in Oct/Nov 2023.  If Mexico does not qualify as a distant foreign port, how would this cruise be allowed, and why would it be impossible to debark in San Diego the day before Los Angeles?  They aren't stopping anywhere else...

The cruise is allowed because it starts and ends in LA (San Pedro). It can't start in LA and end in SD without going to a distant foreign port, which as others have said, is not anywhere in Mexico.

[helen haywood]

7 minutes ago, twincheryl said:

Wondering what I am missing here... the itinerary is Los Angeles, sea day, Cabo overnight, sea day, San Diego, Los Angeles.  There are several of them in Oct/Nov 2023.  If Mexico does not qualify as a distant foreign port, how would this cruise be allowed, and why would it be impossible to debark in San Diego the day before Los Angeles?  They aren't stopping anywhere else...

To understand it you can’t apply too much logic to the law pertaining to this specific situation.  Closed loop cruises, beginning and ending at the same USA port are allowed without visiting a distant foreign port.  Embarking at one USA city and disembarking at another USA city without visiting a distant foreign port is not allowed as it’s a violation of a law.

[cruisestitch]

24 minutes ago, twincheryl said:

Wondering what I am missing here... the itinerary is Los Angeles, sea day, Cabo overnight, sea day, San Diego, Los Angeles.  There are several of them in Oct/Nov 2023.  If Mexico does not qualify as a distant foreign port, how would this cruise be allowed, and why would it be impossible to debark in San Diego the day before Los Angeles?  They aren't stopping anywhere else...

There are different rules for a closed loop cruise.  It only requires ANY foreign port, not a DISTANT foreign port.

[crzndeb]

Reps for all the cruise lines are notorious for not knowing the rules pertaining to PVSA. In fact, if they are aware, they call it the Jones Act (which applies to cargo).

[Tierun]

These laws are idiotic. A one way Alaska cruise is allowed with a stop in Vancouver, but a cruise is not allowed in op’s case. The PSVA and Jones Act are nonsensical.

[Stockjock]

14 minutes ago, Tierun said:

These laws are idiotic. A one way Alaska cruise is allowed with a stop in Vancouver, but a cruise is not allowed in op’s case. The PSVA and Jones Act are nonsensical.

Also, the distance between L.A. and Cabo are similar to other "distant foreign ports", such as Miami to Aruba or Curaçao, but Cabo isn't a distant foreign port while the others are.  The whole deal seems a bit silly.

[NutsAboutGolf]

Not sure how up to date this is from Carnival but its a good datapoint...Looks like no hard labor in a federal prison, just have to pay a hefty fine...

 

[Jim_Iain]

2 hours ago, russianmom said:

this form appears to be for Australia? Were you on an Australian cruise?

May be from the Australia Site but the phone numbers and links are for all departures world wide.   I've used it myself from the U.S.

You can also call   800-533-7803 (Option 4)

[crzndeb]

49 minutes ago, Tierun said:

These laws are idiotic. A one way Alaska cruise is allowed with a stop in Vancouver, but a cruise is not allowed in op’s case. The PSVA and Jones Act are nonsensical.

 

33 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

Also, the distance between L.A. and Cabo are similar to other "distant foreign ports", such as Miami to Aruba or Curaçao, but Cabo isn't a distant foreign port while the others are.  The whole deal seems a bit silly.

@chengkp75always explains this law better than anybody else on Cruise Critic. Maybe he will step in and explain to those that think it’s a stupid law, will understand more with a more detailed explanation. It’s not only about cruise ships.

[cruisestitch]

1 hour ago, Tierun said:

These laws are idiotic. A one way Alaska cruise is allowed with a stop in Vancouver, but a cruise is not allowed in op’s case. The PSVA and Jones Act are nonsensical.

No, a one way has to begin or end in Vancouver.  Then PVSA is not an issue 

[hrhdhd]

1 hour ago, crzndeb said:

 

@chengkp75always explains this law better than anybody else on Cruise Critic. Maybe he will step in and explain to those that think it’s a stupid law, will understand more with a more detailed explanation. It’s not only about cruise ships.

Google "cabotage."

[WestLakeGirl]

1 hour ago, Tierun said:

These laws are idiotic. A one way Alaska cruise is allowed with a stop in Vancouver, but a cruise is not allowed in op’s case. The PSVA and Jones Act are nonsensical.

You are mistaken.  There are no one-way cruises which begin on one US port and end in Alaska.  There are one-way cruises which start in Vancouver, or which end there, but the PVSA only applies to cruises which begin and end in US ports.

[prmssk]

3 hours ago, twincheryl said:

Wondering what I am missing here... the itinerary is Los Angeles, sea day, Cabo overnight, sea day, San Diego, Los Angeles.  There are several of them in Oct/Nov 2023.  If Mexico does not qualify as a distant foreign port, how would this cruise be allowed, and why would it be impossible to debark in San Diego the day before Los Angeles?  They aren't stopping anywhere else...

My understanding is that the reasoning behind the Jones Act and PVSA is to protect US companies that ferry passengers (and cargo) between different US ports (US companies aren't subject to the restrictions of the PVSA or Jones Act).  A closed loop cruise (start and end at the same US port) isn't moving cargo or people to a different US port.

 

1 hour ago, Tierun said:

These laws are idiotic. A one way Alaska cruise is allowed with a stop in Vancouver, but a cruise is not allowed in op’s case. The PSVA and Jones Act are nonsensical.

All one-way Alaska cruises either start or end in Vancouver, Canada and so PVSA and the Jones Act doesn't even apply.  Passengers (or cargo) aren't being moved from one US port to another.

[Tierun]

My mistake. I saw an itinerary that was actually a back to back with Vancouver splitting the sailing. 

[abbydancer2003]

8 minutes ago, Tierun said:

My mistake. I saw an itinerary that was actually a back to back with Vancouver splitting the sailing. 

Correct.  And sometimes, when it's the beginning of the season, someone will want to start in Hawaii (X) or LA (Princess), go to Vancouver, and then continue on to Seward or Whittier.  If they book it, sooner or later, with sooner being usual, they'll get a call or email from the cruiseline telling them they have to cancel one, or stay on the ship an extra week and disembark in Vancouver.  

 

It's all about where you get on, and where you ultimately get off.

[mahasamatman]

1 hour ago, WestLakeGirl said:

There are no one-way cruises which begin on one US port and end in Alaska.

 

Congress granted an exception in 2021 (The Alaska Tourism Restoration Act), but that exception expired when Canada repoened in 2022.

 

 

 

Edited June 19, 2023 by mahasamatman

[abbydancer2003]

11 minutes ago, mahasamatman said:

 

Congress granted an exception in 2021 (The Alaska Tourism Restoration Act), but that exception expired when Canada repoened in 2022.

 

 

 

I think the exemption just allowed for round trips from Seattle without a stop in Canada.  IIRC, there were no one way cruises that year.

[cruisestitch]

Maybe someday Congress will grant another exception, but as of 2023 there are no one-way cruises between Seattle and Seward

[cruisestitch]

4 minutes ago, abbydancer said:

I think the exemption just allowed for round trips from Seattle without a stop in Canada.  IIRC, there were no one way cruises that year.

I believe that is correct. The ship entered Canadian waters but did not stop and Congress allowed that as a special exemption that year

[Cruising Is Bliss]

8 hours ago, twincheryl said:

Wondering what I am missing here... the itinerary is Los Angeles, sea day, Cabo overnight, sea day, San Diego, Los Angeles.  There are several of them in Oct/Nov 2023.  If Mexico does not qualify as a distant foreign port, how would this cruise be allowed, and why would it be impossible to debark in San Diego the day before Los Angeles?  They aren't stopping anywhere else...

LA to LA is start and end in the same port, which only requires a visit to *any* foreign port.  When it's different start port and end port (LA to San Diego) there the requirement is a visit to a *distant* foreign port.

 

Cruises to Hawaii that are round trip to/from the same southern California port don't require a distant foreign port, so are able to satisfy the PVSA by stopping in Ensenada very late the last evening for an hour long "service call" with no passengers allowed to go ashore.

Edited June 19, 2023 by Cruising Is Bliss

[barbette165]

8 hours ago, cruisestitch said:

I believe that is correct. The ship entered Canadian waters but did not stop and Congress allowed that as a special exemption that year

The exemption also specifically stated it was for the Millennium. At the restart, Millennium was home porting in Sint Maarten and Celebrity initially assigned Summit for the Alaska cruises. The authorities would not allow this substitution and the two ships had to physically swap locations.