MDR Lunch Available with 1 pm Embarkation Time?

[6986]

We are on Emerald departing from Boston Sept 17th and apparently we will have a 1 p.m. boarding time. Wondering if we will have the option for lunch in the MDR. Anybody been in a similar situation and know the answer?  Thanks! 

[memoak]

When you say boarding time is that when the window opens ?  What is the exact window ?  Usually I don’t see that on the app until the boarding passes come out

[trbarton]

Princess no longer in forces the Embarkation time. The lunch is from 12 noon to 1;30 pm. I always arrive at the terminal before they let anyone inside. Once the terminal is opened & the boarding starts I’m usually in one of the 1st groups to board. Boarding early allows me to relax & avoid the crowds later. I’ve been on 38 cruises & I always arrive early & I’m never been  questioned about my arrival time. 

[chris153]

I am on an enchanted cruise.  On app says 12:30 arrival time. BUT  there are 10:30 activities listed in ships journal.  Check that out. You may be able to go earlier

 

[PacnGoNow]

Not sure where your boarding information is from.  Your “check in” window, they call it now, will show up on your App, anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 days before the sailing.

After you have completed the check in on the App, you should get a BP/QR code and it will show your check in window.  Sep 17th is too far out to show that right now.

 

Most of our cruises have shown this about 7 days before up to 2 days before.

 

I bet you’re looking at My Journey on the App?  Ignore that, that’s not your check in time.  They are assuming you will be on board by that time to start the fun.  My Journey is not always correct and activities will be changed. Just a guideline.

 

 

Edited August 12 by PacnGoNow

[skynight]

The ship arrives at 7am. By 9:30/10:00am disembarking passengers will be cleared off the ship. Boarding should begin around 11am. The DR will be open for lunch from noon to 1:30. I don't know where you are seeing a boarding time. But, there are no longer assigned boarding times. If you have your medallion you will be in the green lane when you arrive. Without the medallion you have to make a brief 5 minute detour to pick it up at the pier. In your case you will be able to board anytime from around 11:00am until the evening. Your ship is scheduled to sail at 10:00pm. If you select to arrive early you will most likely encounter additional crowds. Most likely your cabin will not be available until around 1:00pm.

If you miss the DR lunch there are the Horizon Ct. buffet, Slices Pizza, and the grill all on the Lido deck as well as the International Cafe on deck 5.

 

[susancruzs]

I'm reading these posts on the MDR lunch, guess I'll have to try it, 30+ cruises, never have!

 

I haven't cruised since '19, looking forward to my Oct. Emerald cruise.  I'll also be interested to see about boarding times, I've never tried to be early on board.  Might be why I haven't done the lunch, too close to when it ends.

[missnd]

With MDR lunch from 12:00-1:30, what's the latest you can arrive at the MDR?  Can you stroll in at 1:25 and still be served?  Or does everyone need to be out by then?

 

I wouldn't want to be a pain to the staff, but with travel constraints, I can't always board the ship as early as some others.

[HotRoot]

7 minutes ago, missnd said:

With MDR lunch from 12:00-1:30, what's the latest you can arrive at the MDR?  Can you stroll in at 1:25 and still be served?  Or does everyone need to be out by then?

 

I wouldn't want to be a pain to the staff, but with travel constraints, I can't always board the ship as early as some others.

I believe you will be served if you walk in at 1:25 pm.  I believe you will be turned away if you walk up at 1:31 pm.

[ldubs]

11 hours ago, trbarton said:

Princess no longer in forces the Embarkation time. The lunch is from 12 noon to 1;30 pm. I always arrive at the terminal before they let anyone inside. Once the terminal is opened & the boarding starts I’m usually in one of the 1st groups to board. Boarding early allows me to relax & avoid the crowds later. I’ve been on 38 cruises & I always arrive early & I’m never been  questioned about my arrival time. 

 

We are just the opposite. We avoid the early rush.  There usually are no crowds to avoid later.  We enjoy the more casual boarding experience.  Downside is we might sacrifice MDR lunch on embark day, but that isn't a big thing for us.   There will be plenty of times to enjoy the MDR.  

[JF - retired RRT]

2 hours ago, susancruzs said:

I'm reading these posts on the MDR lunch, guess I'll have to try it, 30+ cruises, never have!

 

I haven't cruised since '19, looking forward to my Oct. Emerald cruise.  I'll also be interested to see about boarding times, I've never tried to be early on board.  Might be why I haven't done the lunch, too close to when it ends.

You missed out on a lot of great, relaxing lunches. We went to the MDR for embarkation lunch on every cruise except our last one.

[voljeep]

we went to one only ... can't see going back again - actually went to two - one regular mdr and one when we had our one and only suite - went to the 'club class / reserve lunch - which was really nice and timely.

[skynight]

For what it is worth I enjoy having a few slices of pizza or a burger on deck with an adult beverage. That's my go to. MDR isn't for everyone. 

[memoak]

8 hours ago, PacnGoNow said:

Not sure where your boarding information is from.  Your “check in” window, they call it now, will show up on your App, anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 days before the sailing.

After you have completed the check in on the App, you should get a BP/QR code and it will show your check in window.  Sep 17th is too far out to show that right now.

 

Most of our cruises have shown this about 7 days before up to 2 days before.

 

I bet you’re looking at My Journey on the App?  Ignore that, that’s not your check in time.  They are assuming you will be on board by that time to start the fun.  My Journey is not always correct and activities will be changed. Just a guideline.

 

 

Also there are almost always people still on board from b2b cruises. The events on the app have nothing to do with boarding times

[susancruzs]

I'm an IC addict, great place for people watching, which I enjoy, traveling solo.  I get something at the IC, stroll over to Vines for my 1st glass of wine! 

[memoak]

3 hours ago, JF - retired RRT said:

You missed out on a lot of great, relaxing lunches. We went to the MDR for embarkation lunch on every cruise except our last one.

We miss long lines by boarding later in the day. We cruise 8-10 weeks a year and have lots of times to eat in the MDR but always board late to avoid lines and waits

[555]

On 8/12/2024 at 1:12 AM, chris153 said:

I am on an enchanted cruise.  On app says 12:30 arrival time. BUT  there are 10:30 activities listed in ships journal.  Check that out. You may be able to go earlier

 

Those activities are meant for people doing a B2B cruise. 

[latebloomer56]

21 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

We are just the opposite. We avoid the early rush.  There usually are no crowds to avoid later.  We enjoy the more casual boarding experience.  Downside is we might sacrifice MDR lunch on embark day, but that isn't a big thing for us.   There will be plenty of times to enjoy the MDR.  

This is us as well generally board after the rush. However I wanted to do different things this year and originally planned to be at the pier by 11:00 to try MDR lunch. Airline changed our flight time now won't get in until 11:00, oh well someday maybe.

[PMGS247]

20 hours ago, skynight said:

For what it is worth I enjoy having a few slices of pizza or a burger on deck with an adult beverage. That's my go to. MDR isn't for everyone. 

 

Same....did the MDR thing a couple cruises in a row and while it was a nice relaxing way to start, the food isn't anything to write home about and being the beginning of my vacation I'm much more inclined to start soaking up the outdoors if at all possible as I'm usually in a warm climate escaping the cold from home.

[6986]

We were on Emerald in May and that was the first time in many years of cruising that we had lunch in the MDR on embarkation day. As someone traveling with a blind partner it was so nice not having to navigate the buffet with the crowds and our carry ons. For our Sept. 17 cruise, I saw the 1 pm arrival time on the ship schedule section of the app. I was surprised as in FLL in May we were able to start boarding around 11 am. It sounds like the 1 pm arrival time is probably not accurate and we may be able to board at 11 am again. 🤞.  

[chris153]

On 8/11/2024 at 11:44 PM, 6986 said:

We are on Emerald departing from Boston Sept 17th and apparently we will have a 1 p.m. boarding time. Wondering if we will have the option for lunch in the MDR. Anybody been in a similar situation and know the answer?  Thanks! 

It said arrival time 12:30 for me  Aug 24th. enchanted  but noticed there were activities starting at 10:30  We just got our boarding pass it says boarding time 10:30 to 2:30           that is on our boarding pass

   So go anytime after 10:30. 

Edited August 13 by chris153

[skynight]

1 hour ago, 6986 said:

 I was surprised as in FLL in May we were able to start boarding around 11 am. It sounds like the 1 pm arrival time is probably not accurate and we may be able to board at 11 am again. 🤞.  

Boarding in F.L. normally begins around 11am and maybe 15/20 minutes earlier. This past winter as a b2b'er I was cleared through immigration and back on the ship around 10:15am. We are the final ones to clear the ship. Maybe 30 minutes later newly arriving passengers began to board. 1pm is boiler plate information. Princess has been using this time forever. Only exceptions are for certain inspections. If these happen you are normally notified in advance. 

[6986]

9 hours ago, chris153 said:

It said arrival time 12:30 for me  Aug 24th. enchanted  but noticed there were activities starting at 10:30  We just got our boarding pass it says boarding time 10:30 to 2:30           that is on our boarding pass

   So go anytime after 10:30. 

Thank you, this seems more in line with our past experience.