Second guessing arrival time to San Juan for Viva

[PATRLR]

1 hour ago, cruiser2015 said:

Where do I start?

As far as I'm concerned, if you deplane and board a different aircraft, it's no different than a connecting flight. If you reboard the same craft, with the same flight  #, I'm torn on the definition.

Well, unless we're talking about Air-cruiser2015, for many airlines that very well may be a direct flight.  I get it, from the passenger perspective it's a connecting flight, but that doesn't stop them from marketing it as Direct.

[kitkat343]

On 11/24/2023 at 6:04 PM, CrossM2 said:

I had done this same thing every time I cruised and had no problems until the last one , we flew in March and a storm blew in, we got o the port at 730, the ship was there and the port closed, we watched it sail away.

Were you able to catch up with the cruise at its next stop or did you miss it altogether? 

[CrossM2]

12 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

Were you able to catch up with the cruise at its next stop or did you miss it altogether? 

Yes we had to island hop but we eventually caught the ship. Luckily we had stayed right at the airport so we got our luggage , there were many people with no luggage that caught the ship also

[cruiser2015]

17 hours ago, PATRLR said:

Well, unless we're talking about Air-cruiser2015, for many airlines that very well may be a direct flight.  I get it, from the passenger perspective it's a connecting flight, but that doesn't stop them from marketing it as Direct.

Their choice - not mine.

😏

[nimbex1970]

please get some good trip protection, not just from the cruise line.  We have flight interruption through Alianz or Aligenz, Can't recall the name, but we bought a one year policy as we cruise several times a year plus do flights for a land vacy.  when you compare the yearly cost, it's a no brainer, for us anyway.  Give them a look.

[rdmyrick]

I will be travelling on the Viva Mar 24 from San Juan leaving at 8:00 p.m.  What time do they open up the ship to board.  I am flying in a day early but don't want be stuck outside with my luggage after my 11:00 check-out time

[nimbex1970]

On 12/19/2023 at 1:47 PM, rdmyrick said:

I will be travelling on the Viva Mar 24 from San Juan leaving at 8:00 p.m.  What time do they open up the ship to board.  I am flying in a day early but don't want be stuck outside with my luggage after my 11:00 check-out time

 

My docs simply say departure 830pm, arrive on ship no later than 2 hours prior. 

[wil e coyote]

On 11/13/2023 at 9:56 AM, DanSgt said:

I have a trip scheduled on the Viva out of San Juan in February 2024. I normally arrive a day early being fully aware of what could go wrong. However, this time I took a gamble with scheduling a direct flight into SJU arriving at 2:45 PM on embarkation day. The ship leaves at 8 PM. This would normally give me a an hour and a half to three hours to make the cut-off.

I just would like input concerning this turnaround.  I'm not familiar with SJU or the port in San Juan. I've already booked the flight and would be subject to change fees and hotel costs if I were to change. Please no lectures 

We have done this from the Northeast US in the winter - early morning direct flight to San Juan for a same-day cruise departure. Like others have said, it isn't ideal, but for personal reasons it was necessary. We made it to the ship just fine. The cruise terminal is only 8 miles from the San Juan airport, so even with traffic, you're unlikely to have trouble actually getting to the pier once you get to San Juan.

FWIW, here is how I think about same-day travel to the ship (we're about 50-50 on same-day vs. early arrival):

1. Try to get one of the first flights out of the airport in the morning. The first flights of the day are less likely to be delayed by things like weather elsewhere in the country, airport congestion, etc.

2. Try to get a direct (non-stop) flight. Every connection adds to the risk that you'll be delayed by factors on your flights or elsewhere in the slight network.

3. Buy transfers to the pier from the cruise line.

4. Buy travel insurance. We've never had to use it, but having it lets me relax a little if the pilot comes over the PA system in the plane and says, "We're experiencing a delay..."

 

Of course, if there is a major storm at your home airport, none of the steps above help - except item 4.

 

Enjoy!

[rnfulk]

On 12/19/2023 at 1:47 PM, rdmyrick said:

I will be travelling on the Viva Mar 24 from San Juan leaving at 8:00 p.m.  What time do they open up the ship to board.  I am flying in a day early but don't want be stuck outside with my luggage after my 11:00 check-out time

I just checked in over the weekend for the January 7th Viva San Juan departure cruise. Earliest port check in time was 11:30 am. I completed check in at midnight on day 21, so I’d be surprised if there were earlier times available that had already filled up. You should be fine checking out of your hotel at 11 and heading to the pier. 

[rdmyrick]

Thanks everyone!

[Lew Port]

San Juan is one hour ahead of East Coast time, so keep that in mind.

Embarkation starts at 11:00 and the sail away is at 8:00.

Another poster mentioned that the port is close to the airport and that is true.

There are plenty of taxis in San Juan.

The only delay we experienced was at the TSA station in the San Juan airport.

Slow as molasses in winter.