Disembarkation is the pits

[starysacz]

No problem with disembarkation with all of our HAL cruises. Do order breakfast, room service, and appreciate that we can remain in our cabin until our color is called. Some minor problems with retrieval of luggage, but not sure how else it can be done.

[senator6]

I must agree with all who have said that HAL does a terrific job, I think most folks hate to leave, but reality sets when we start to pack. This got me to thinking about the way it was on HAL before they allowed us to stay in the cabin until we are ready to leave. IMO this is one of the big improvements over the past few years. Unless we have an early flight we order room service and just wait around for our number to be called.

 

I have noticed that you can leave early if you have no checked luggage, but we have not been able to advantage of that yet.

[hammybee]

I have it seen it mentioned you can leave the ship with all your luggage. No need to put them out the night before. Is this available on HAL? Do they let you off early if you are willing to do so? We did this on NCL in March and it was awesome. Within 20 minutes of leaving our cabin, we were driving our car through Manhattan. I thought it was a great option.

Thanks.

 

You can most certainly roll your you luggage off the ship, any ship, any cruise line. We always do. NCL promotes this as a benefit and the DIY thing appeals to their passengers and saves them a lot of work and passengers' time. HAL, being more upscale, may not want to create the perception that encourages passengers to DIY, as it's contrary to the image they strive to create. And given the amount of luggage many HAL passengers bring along and or the physical limitations of some passengers, DIY may not be practical.

[SnorkelBear]

Thanks Hammy. That's good to know. We were never made aware of this by any line but NCL. Do you know if the HAL DIYers are allowed off with the first colors called?

 

Thanks.

[hammybee]

Thanks Hammy. That's good to know. We were never made aware of this by any line but NCL. Do you know if the HAL DIYers are allowed off with the first colors called?

 

Thanks.

 

You asked a better question and Ill try to give you a better answer.

 

NCL has a good system that allows passengers to declare themselves as DIY and as you know, such passengers are free to leave anytime they choose. In my experience with HAL, they are not there yet.

 

Your post cruise plans often determine the color of your tags and tags determine when you can leave. We often have early return flights so no matter what, we are among the first to disembark. We have also just positioned ourselves and our DIY luggage, and walked off the ship.

 

On HAL, you might want to clue in your Room Steward and leave a note on your cabin door of your intention to roll your own. Otherwise, a well intentioned crew member may come a knocking at your door, in the middle of the night, thinking you forgot to leave your luggage out.

[Copper10-8]

HAL will give you a form to fill out pretty early into the cruise on which they want you to declare your disembarkation plans (airline flight, time, transportation required, etc etc). Based on what you tell them i.e. I'm on a HAL-excursion and have a 2 PM flight, I have bus vouchers to the airport, I'm an independent traveller, I'm in a post-cruise hotel, etc. etc. will determine what disembarkation number and luggage tag/color they'll give you and where you'll fit in the all important pecking order to depart the vessel.

[SnorkelBear]

Thanks Hammy. It worked great last time, but I would hate to see the entire ship doing it. Can you imagine the luggage traffic jam near the gangway? :eek:

[Old As Dirt Mom]

I have it seen it mentioned you can leave the ship with all your luggage. No need to put them out the night before. Is this available on HAL? Do they let you off early if you are willing to do so? We did this on NCL in March and it was awesome. Within 20 minutes of leaving our cabin, we were driving our car through Manhattan. I thought it was a great option.

Thanks.

 

Hi Snorkelbear:

 

Last Friday (August 25) on Zaandam, "Express" disembarkation was available. I believe this is a fairly new program on HAL for those passengers who wish to carry all their own luggage, and have made their own independent travel arrangements, but I am not completely clear on the details, as we didn't choose this option for our own disembarkation. The "Express" passengers were the first group to be called off the ship. As Copper mentioned, early into the cruise you will be given a form which lists all the disembarkation options available to you.

[SnorkelBear]

Sweet! Glad to hear. Welcome back to reality MiddleAge.

[WNYCRUISER]

This past March on the Noordam, express disembarkation was in place, and the DIYers were the first called off the ship. This stands to reason, as when they are called, the bulk of the luggage hasn't even made it off the ship yet.

[hammybee]

Hi Snorkelbear:

 

Last Friday (August 25) on Zaandam, "Express" disembarkation was available. I believe this is a fairly new program on HAL for those passengers who wish to carry all their own luggage, and have made their own independent travel arrangements, but I am not completely clear on the details, as we didn't choose this option for our own disembarkation. The "Express" passengers were the first group to be called off the ship. As Copper mentioned, early into the cruise you will be given a form which lists all the disembarkation options available to you.

 

There you go. HAL saw the opportunity and implemented " Express" disembarkation for those who are willing to DIY. For those that are able and inclined, it's the best thing since sliced bread. Given that most pasengers are packed to the gills I am inclined to believe most passengers will continue to prefer the traditional assisted disembarkation.

[Giorgi-one]

My wife and I have always marveled at the wonderful quality of life on a cruise, only to be rudely shaken back to reality on the final morning. And it's not just HAL, it seems to be every cruise line.

 

After many days of being treated like you really matter, you are then treated to an extremely limited breakfast at best, treated as if you have committed some sort of crime, and tossed ingloriusly off of the ship.

 

My question is, how would you change the disembarkation process to give a much better final memory your cruise? I would think that instead of more and more activities, that a cruise line like HAL could invest some time and energy into making the last morning as good as the first morning, and leave us all wanting for more.

 

HAL is one of the best. At least they let you wait in your cabin. You should try RCL Freedom if you want to be treated like cattle. In any event, there is not much we can do about this unless we want to delay boarding. They need to get people off the ship so they can get the next group on board. There are certain things related to vacations we just have to put up with. By far, the worst is flying and airports which apply to any vacation where you have to fly. For cruises, it's embarkation, debarkation and, sometimes, tendering into ports. We just make up our minds before we cruise, arrive one or two days early, and book later flights home. The best is to fly home a day or two later, so you don't have to face embarkation and airpots the same day, but we really can't afford days on both ends and we prefer to arrive early.

[Copper10-8]

There you go. HAL saw the opportunity and implemented " Express" disembarkation for those who are willing to DIY. For those that are able and inclined, it's the best thing since sliced bread. Given that most pasengers are packed to the gills I am inclined to believe most passengers will continue to prefer the traditional assisted disembarkation.

 

Does that mean and can we infer that you are not packed to the gills on a cruise, Hammy? You must not be a "shoe person" :D

[hammybee]

Does that mean and can we infer that you are not packed to the gills on a cruise, Hammy? You must not be a "shoe person" :D

 

TOUCHE !

One suitcase, one carry-on that attaches to the suitcase and a back pack= many, many shoes, too many shoes.

[Copper10-8]

TOUCHE !

One suitcase, one carry-on that attaches to the suitcase and a back pack= many, many shoes, too many shoes.

 

Proud of you! Very impressive!;)

[bdcbbq]

We got off early during our cruise. We had driven down to FL from Indiana before Christmas and had to pick up our dog at a kennel that closed at noon and was about 45 minutes from the pier in Tampa.

[serendipity1499]

Never have any problem with HAL's disembarkation procedure.:confused: .We usually drive to/from the port...We have a leisurely breakfast in the dining room & then go back to our cabin to freshen up...We can wait in the cabin for our number to be called..No more trying to find a seat in a common area...:)

 

Occasionally it's a problem trying to find all our luggage because it never seems to all be in one spot....That's why we enjoy the smaller ships rather than the Vista Class ships..

[sparkly]

Carnival has express check out, carry off your own luggage. It works so well for us!!! That said, I really prefer lounging in our cabin rather than the "common" areas... that ain't fun.

[kiwichick]

We disembarked the Noordam last week and although the disembarkation itself was well organised and hassle-free, it was let down by the ridiculously early HAL-organised airport transfer we were forced to get. We ended up sitting in the airport for more than 5 hours before our flights. Next time we will organise a private transfer which will make the last morning a lot more pleasant.

[Bramcruiser]

I have found disembarkation to be as varied from cruise to cruise as it is between lines. I have to say I was majorly surprised how easy disembarkation in San Diego was on my Oosterdam cruise in 2005. I was off the ship with the second group called and was on curbside by 8:30 am with bags in hands and waiting for a taxi. This was completely different from the very first cruise I ever took where I stood on deck in the hot sun until 12:00 noon and thought we would have some passengers die of heat stroke. A riot almost happened on that frightening day. So I would look at the disembarkations that went right and avoid whatever is wrong. Personally, passengers who don't listen to what they are supposed to do also add to the problems. So even if we found the magic answer we would get different results cruise to cruise.

 

And yes, I agree with those who say waiting in your cabin is 100% better than sitting in some common area.

 

David

Who hates disembarkation simply because it means the cruise is over!:(

[Bramcruiser]

Why I don't do express checkout! First, who wants to rush off the ship and end the vacation? Secondly, I rather extend to yet another area having someone do something for me. Heck, if they can deliver it to my house I'd let them. Boy, I do hate having to set foot on land once we dock for the last time.

 

David

[m2violin]

My mother and I got back 9/2 from a seven-day Alaska Inner Passage cruise on the Oosterdam (r/t out of Seattle). Being first time cruisers, we did attend the disembarkation talk -- yes, the crew farewell is fun (we were anxiously looking for our cabin steward, Aduan). We also enjoyed the free glasses of champagne (or mimosas, or OJ-your choice) being passed out to passengers.

 

Express Debarkation was an option that was announced. We weren't eligible since we stayed on in Seattle a couple of days post-cruise -- not to mention with my mother's physical limitations this would not have been an option anyway.

 

We were well aware that we had the option of staying in our cabin until oru group was called. My mother has some mobility issues, so she was wary of using that option. Instead, we waited in the Windstar Cafe. We noticed a line of wheelchairs ready outside the Pinnacle Grill. Mother gulped when she saw the incline of the gangway leading off the ship. However, I was able to secure a wheelchair for her, which Mother really appreciated.

 

Full breakfast in the Lido. I loaded up on the smoked salmon, as did the guy ahead of me in line -- "one last go-around!" as he said! :D

 

Immigration/customs were a breeze (then again, this was an Alaska cruise). We just had to show our proof of citizenship to the NSA guys at the end of the gangplank, then had to deposit our customs forms in a box in the terminal. We really didn't have much trouble finding our bags -- there were plenty of personnel to guide us to where the bags for the different color groups were stashed. I think it took us less than 5 minutes to find our bags and be on our way.

 

The worst part (besides going back to reality) was the surly bus driver who took us to our post-cruise hotel.

 

Since we were first-time cruisers, we really cannot compare our experience with any other lines -- but this was what happened with us.

[7x5090g]

I agree about the transfer buses. I generally use a taxi.....more convenient and usually costs about the same as a transfer bus. Taxis don't charge per person.

 

HAL wants $500 for air from Toronto to NYC on my next cruise saying that includes the transfer.:confused: Taxi from La Guadia to NYC Pier is $30 for the 3 of us plus toll. Air arranged by yours truly costs $140 and I know up front what flight I am taking. Figure this one out.:D