AmericanAirlines Advanced Bag Check-in

[Elizanessie]

Dr.Evil ....thanks for trying to get the info for me...much appreciated :D

 

 

Liz

WYWH Cruiser

[karen_g]

You pick up your bags at the baggage pick-up area in the morning when you disembark and bring them to the American Airlines check-in.(Actually we tipped a porter to bring them to check-in for us and we hopped in a cab, so I don't know if there are lines at the AA check-in or not.)

 

I had been wondering about the need for porters in this situation. I will be travelling with my elderly Mom, so hauling bags around is really not very do-able for us. Even though we do the Advance Check-In, are you saying that we'll still more than likely need to hire a porter to take our bags from the baggage claim area to the AA bag-check area?

[Nanatravel]

Karen, as I understand it and as it was done years ago, you claim your bags in that big port terminal (get a porter if you need help with them) as you have to have them with you, walk through customs, go outside to the AA desk and leave your bags with them. The pre-boarding check-in can be done on-baord your ship the evening before. They will give you boarding passes too.

Bon Voyage

[Catnip]

You pick up your bags at the baggage pick-up area in the morning when you disembark and bring them to the American Airlines check-in.(Actually we tipped a porter to bring them to check-in for us and we hopped in a cab, so I don't know if there are lines at the AA check-in or not.)

 

Just for clarification......after you claimed your bags at bagge claim, you got a porter and he carted your bags thru Customs and outside? He also took them over to the AA desk and gave the bags to the AA people for you? You did not go with him over to the AA desk with him & your bags?

That's great. I also have an elderly mom in a wheelchair and I can only haul one set of luggage by myself! ;)

[Ladylouwho]

Hi, To those who asked if we went through customs in Miami with our checked bags. No, we went through "customs" when we got off the ship with only our carry on bags. Showed our passports and that was about it. We then went to claim our bags, tipped a porter to bring our bags to AA and the next time we saw them we were in Dallas! Great way to handle your checked baggage. There really are no negatives to doing the AA check in at the pier, unless spending a few bucks to make your life easier and more comfortable is a problem. But come on, if that were the case would you even be on a cruise in the first place??? LOL!!!

[wrp96]

Hi, To those who asked if we went through customs in Miami with our checked bags. No, we went through "customs" when we got off the ship with only our carry on bags. Showed our passports and that was about it. We then went to claim our bags, tipped a porter to bring our bags to AA and the next time we saw them we were in Dallas! Great way to handle your checked baggage. There really are no negatives to doing the AA check in at the pier, unless spending a few bucks to make your life easier and more comfortable is a problem. But come on, if that were the case would you even be on a cruise in the first place??? LOL!!!

 

When you left the baggage claim area, you had to hand your declarations form to somebody - that was when you went through Customs. For most people it is as simple as handing the form to the Customs Agent - so you may not have realized you went through customs. The first government agent that you saw (before you claimed your bags) was an immigration agent - not a customs agent.

[Ladylouwho]

We tipped the porter, he took our bags to AA and we went out and got in a cab. We didn't show anything to anyone. We gave our forms to the "immigration" or "customs" person when we got off the ship with our carry on bags. We got off the NOS one week ago. This is not some distant memory. Excuse my quotation marks, but I do not believe we have any kind of REAL security system in this country even though we spend billions of dollars on the current system.

[CruiseMor]

Ladylouwho - you said that you paid $10 per bag X 8 bags. American's website says it is "as little as $10 per person". Where did you pay this fee and who determined it was per bag? We are considering doing this on our Navigator cruise in January and it may make a difference on how many bags we send in Advance.

[Ladylouwho]

Hey CruiseMor, I thought we paid $10 per bag but when I asked my husband he said we paid $10 per person. I checked my seapass bill and yes it was only $10 per person. So we paid $60 not $80. Better deal than I thought. You make the arrangements while on the ship. The forms are located at customer relations. The charge goes on your seapass card. They put the AA luggage tags in your room the day before you disembark. You put the tags on your bags along with your departure color tags and leave them outside your room by midnight. You pick up your bags at the port and give them to the AA check-in people, but in our case we tipped a porter to do it for us so we didn't have to deal with the eight bags at all. Worth every cent.

[Catnip]

You pick up your bags at the port and give them to the AA check-in people, but in our case we tipped a porter to do it for us so we didn't have to deal with the eight bags at all. Worth every cent.

 

That sounds divine! Sorry, but I have another question:

You gave the cases to the porter and he checked them in at AA. The AA people didn't want to see ID from you, or anything? It was OK for the porter to check in your bags without you being there? That sounds perfect!!!

[Ladylouwho]

Catnip,

Yes, we walked out of the baggage area as he headed the other direction with our bags. We jumped in a cab and the next time we saw our bags was in the Dallas airport when we got home. I never even saw a customs line near the baggage terminal.

[ILuvCruisin']

Just wanted to bring this to the fore front again as I think it is the best thing they have added since I began cruising. We sailed the Freedom in August.

 

Not sure if it's better to pay onboard or not but I paid my $10 at a booth once thru customs. And it was $10 per person. Once thru customs people going straight curbside went one way and those checking their bags in went another way. I always have a lot of luggage so not to have to be bothered with lugging it onto the shuttle bus and then off the bus and to the curbside (or inside) for airport check in was well worth the $10. I will usually try to do curbside check in. Which is a few dollares and I would have had to tip the shuttle driver more as well for baggage handling. So to me it all was about the same.

 

Also, the process was very smooth. There was no wait and this was the week they started the no liquid thing.

 

Note: Some of my friends wanted to do the pier baggage check in but their bags took so long to come out from the ship that they were denied the opportunity with the airline stating they were too close to their flight time.

[jeannejj]

Here is the info sheet that I got on the Navigator this August

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v516/jeannejj/Navigator-Western-General%20Info/Navigator-AmericanAirlinesLuggag-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v516/jeannejj/Navigator-Western-General%20Info/Navigator-AmericanAirlinesLuggageIn.jpg

[Laid-back]

Here is the info sheet that I got on the Navigator this August

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v516/jeannejj/Navigator-Western-General%20Info/Navigator-AmericanAirlinesLuggag-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v516/jeannejj/Navigator-Western-General%20Info/Navigator-AmericanAirlinesLuggageIn.jpg

 

 

Thank you very much for posting. Straight from the "horse's mouth" so to speak.

[Esmerelda]

It sounds like a great service...but $10 PER BAG!! Yikes....! I can't see as it would be worth that extra $50-70 for this to be carried out....

 

I will have to learn more on this one...

 

E..

[luvcruzen]

It sounds like a great service...but $10 PER BAG!! Yikes....! I can't see as it would be worth that extra $50-70 for this to be carried out....

 

I will have to learn more on this one...

 

E..

 

Earlier they said that it is per person not per bag, so if you have more than one bag, it is the same price.

[wrp96]

It sounds like a great service...but $10 PER BAG!! Yikes....! I can't see as it would be worth that extra $50-70 for this to be carried out....

 

I will have to learn more on this one...

 

E..

 

It's $10 per person with each person allowed to check 2 bags.

[LadeeBug100]

ILuvCruisin'

Do you know how long they stay curbside to check in the luggage? Just in case I do not get off as soon as they call our color ( if they call real early, like 6:30 or 7:00)

We used this service with Celebrity in San Diego in April, however; we did NOT have to claim our luggage at the port. We did not see our luggage after we set it out the night before until we arrived at our final destination.

Sure wish they would handle it the same way in Miami!

[ILuvCruisin']

ILuvCruisin'

Do you know how long they stay curbside to check in the luggage? Just in case I do not get off as soon as they call our color ( if they call real early, like 6:30 or 7:00)

We used this service with Celebrity in San Diego in April, however; we did NOT have to claim our luggage at the port. We did not see our luggage after we set it out the night before until we arrived at our final destination.

Sure wish they would handle it the same way in Miami!

 

LadeeBug100: That would be even nicer if you just set them out the night before and didn't see them again until you got to your final destination but not the case with our Freedom cruise.

 

You should request early off so your color gets called in the first group if your flight is early. We had plenty of time and didn't need early off. We couldn't quite figure out the cutoff time as my friends were about 10 munutes behind me. I was able to check in at the pier they couldn't and our flights were about the same time. I had about 4 hours before my flight.

 

Also, I only paid $10.00 and I was able to check 2 bags.

[sicsinohio]

We just got off the Majesty of the Seas on Friday morning and port check in was only $5.00 per person. Well worth it, and our bgs were all waiting for us when we got off the planr in Detroit that night. What a great service!:D

[KK_Cruisin]

I just got off Navigator and we did the luggage valet. It was $10 per person and you are allowed 2 bags per person. We travel light so it was not neccessary for us to do it, but on vacation we take it as easy as we can. I will say after using it, I would not do it again. It was not horrible, but it turned out to me bore of an inconvience then anything. We received 6 phone calls on the ship about our valet paperwork. The lady kept saying "Oh you did not fill this out correctlly" when in the end they has lost our paperwork.

Now this part is not the fault of the valet service but it was inconvient. Our origional flight left miami at 1:30, but we arrived at 9:30 so we could have caught an earlier flight at 10:30 if our luggage had been there. Unfourtantlly because it was not we had to wait until our 1:30 flight. Even then our luggage was late and did not arrive to Jacksonville until about 9pm and we got it around 11pm.

In the end if you are a large group or travel with a lot of luggage feel free to use it, just be aware I have read more than once on here baout luggage not making it to the airport on time and being delivered later that day.

[ILuvCruisin']

Yeah, I can see how being able to get on an earlier flight if you had your luggage would make you feel like "oh why did we do the pier check in?" but for me I do not travel light so pier check in has definite advantages.

 

My packing motto: Better to have and not need than to need and not have. :D .

 

For our Freedom 8/6 cruise we did not fill out any paperwork on board. We paid after we got our bags.

 

Also, for the return trip home I am not concerned if my bags come after I actually get home. Once again this is great for me as I usually have parked at the airport and have to lug the bags on a shuttle. If my checked bags don't arrive at the airport when I do then the airline must deliver them to my door. Now I can board the shuttle with just my carry on. Wonderful!!!!

 

So I will probably always pray that pier check in is an option. Heck, I wish they would do it for embarkation as well.

 

I see that the pier check in price is different. Wonder why.

 

sicsinohioWe just got off the Majesty of the Seas on Friday morning and port check in was only $5.00 per person.

 

 

KK_CruisinI just got off Navigator and we did the luggage valet. It was $10 per person and you are allowed 2 bags per person.

 

 

Once again Freedom 8/6 I paid $10 and could check 2 bags.

[ILuvCruisin']

Anybody have any updates on this topic?

 

What about other Cruise Lines besides RCCL?

[suzy671]

we did this last week and at first the airlines didn't have us listed as having a flight but the cruise people were looking under the wrong airlines. It cost us $10 a person. After you retrieve your luggage you go to the right and there's an empty room and you just give it to the guys there and that's it.

[rngdfan]

We did this last week on the Freedom, we had the 10.00 per person charged to our sea pass card and they gave us luggage tags for the airlines on the last night. They also printed our boarding passes onboard the ship. We put our luggage out as usual and after going through customs collected our bags we then gave then to the AA desk. You turn right after picking up your bags. We did not see our luggage again until we got to Richmond. I thought the service was wonderful and well worth the 20.00 spent.